Chapter 68

"Speaking of which, I was wondering why the pig fodder at home was missing."

Han Weijun, standing nearby, muttered softly, "This kid is still up to stealing pig fodder." Li Dong dodged the big tobacco pipe in Han Guofu's hand and chuckled. "Brother Weijun, I was just joking. Uncle Guofu greeted me with his tobacco pipe as soon as he saw me."

Han Guofu really wanted to hit this kid. Without mentioning anything else, just the bicycle issue made Han Guofu want to hit Li Dong. His third son had caused a lot of trouble over this matter yesterday. Although the two daughters-in-law didn't say anything, they were unhappy inside.

After all, a bicycle costs two or three hundred yuan. The family hasn't split up yet, and the third son doesn't earn work points for going to school, and his food allowance is quite high, mostly fine grains, and he even gets eggs from time to time, better than what their own children get. You can imagine what Zhang Qiuju and the two sisters-in-law think.

Now, they have to spend another two or three hundred yuan to buy a bicycle. The two daughters-in-law didn't say anything, but their cold faces were enough. This matter kept Han Guofu and Li Chunhua up all night yesterday. What can they do? The third son wants to buy it, but not buying it might affect his studies.

But if they buy it, it might cause more conflicts at home. Han Guofu has been worried about the drought recently. The commune issued a document, reducing the amount of grain purchased this year, and the over-purchase and exchange quotas have increased.

With low yields, the public grain and the quota grain are already a lot, and now the over-purchase and exchange quotas are increasing, making the food supply a problem. The village cadres are now studying and looking for solutions every day. With Li Dong causing this trouble, Han Guofu can't be at ease.

He really wants to hit this kid, but Li Dong doesn't know that. "Brother Weijun, where's the turtle?"

"This damn kid."

Han Guofu almost couldn't resist hitting him when he heard about the turtle.

Fortunately, this time Li Dong was smart and stood far away. Han Weijun pointed to the wooden basin, and Li Dong saw that it was indeed quite large, about the size of a basin.

"Uncle, are you selling this turtle? I'll take it."

"Are you really taking it?"

"Sure, I'll take it. Four mao per catty, is that okay?"

After saying that, Li Dong paused for a moment, then slapped his forehead, realizing he had forgotten something. He only had 4.45 yuan in his pocket. He couldn't help but check his pocket. "Hmm."

"What's wrong?"

"Nothing."

Li Dong felt something extra in his pocket. He opened it and was surprised to see a large note. He took it out and counted it, finding an extra 20.35 yuan and a note.

It was an IOU. Li Dong was both amused and frustrated. This was from Xiaojuan, but what's the 0.35 yuan for?

Never mind, now he has money. Li Dong felt confident and decided to take the large turtle. It's not easy to deal with such a large turtle, and it might be hard to sell it.

"Really?"

"Really."

Li Chunhua, Zhang Qiuju, and others came out to see the commotion. The turtle weighed 13 catties, so it would cost 5.20 yuan. Li Dong paid the money without hesitation.

"5.20 yuan?"

Everyone gathered to see what was happening, wondering if this kid really buys turtles. At 0.40 yuan per catty, it's almost as expensive as pork.

They all wondered if there might be more turtles in the reservoir mud. They decided to check it out. If they get lucky and find a couple, it would be enough for a month's worth of oil and salt.

Li Dong didn't realize that he had caused a disaster for the turtles in Han Village.

He happily carried the large turtle back home. A 10-catty turtle would be a great addition to the farm.

"I need to take good care of it." At home, Li Dong cleaned the turtle. "Hmm, the pattern on its back looks like a character."

To his surprise, the turtle's back had a pattern resembling the character for "joy." Li Dong rubbed his eyes, and the more he looked, the more it resembled the character. "What a find." Not only is it a large turtle, but it also has a pattern resembling the character for "joy."

This made it even more special. Li Dong treated it like a treasure and brought it inside. "I got something good, let's have a nice meal for lunch."

To save time, Li Dong made some vermicelli, cut a few large pieces of mutton, and added some shrimp balls and dried tofu strips. He put a large bowl of mutton soup and a few steamed buns in the steamer.

"Smells good."

The aroma filled the air even before the pot was opened. Li Dong started eating, and Han Guofu came over. As soon as he entered the yard, he smelled the food. This kid is eating meat again.

There's no way around it; they are close relatives. Han Guofu envied Li Dong. If only he could help get a bicycle, it would save a lot of trouble.

"Uncle Guofu, why are you here?"

He quickly wiped his mouth and saw that there were still two pieces of mutton in the bowl. He gritted his teeth. "Uncle Guofu, do you want to eat some? Mutton vermicelli soup."

Han Guofu hadn't eaten yet. He had just received an urgent notice from the commune and was on his way there. "I'll have a bite." The smell was irresistible, and Han Guofu couldn't help but sit down and take the chopsticks.

We'll talk about the issue after eating. Li Dong saw that there weren't enough buns, so he cooked another pound of noodles. Five steamed buns and a pound of noodles were enough for the two of them to eat until they were almost full. "The soup is really good, your skills are great, but you can't eat meat every day."

That's right, another lecture. Fortunately, Han Guofu had something to do and didn't say much.

"In the afternoon, you don't need to go to work."

Han Guofu wiped the oil from his mouth. "Ride the bicycle to the commune with me. There's an urgent matter there, and you'll get work points."

"Sure."

Not having to work and still getting work points is a good deal. Li Dong cleaned up the table, poured the pig fodder into a basin, and pushed the bicycle out. Han Guofu's eyes lit up; it was a good thing.

"Uncle Guofu, do you want to go now or come later?"

"How can you look down on Uncle Guofu? You go first, and I'll jump on later."

"Alright."

Li Dong thought, "I'm not afraid you're too old to jump." But he forgot that he was also a beginner and hadn't ridden a bicycle in years. There was a bit of a grudge between Li Dong and bicycles.

In junior high, he lost three bicycles in the first two years, almost making him drop out of school. In the third year, he decided not to ride a bicycle and walked the 5-6 miles to school, which took over an hour each way. As a result, his legs became muscular.

Surprisingly, his health improved, and his studies became more focused. After a year, he went from being 20th-30th in his class to first in the school, and he was admitted to the city's top high school. It's clear that Li Dong and bicycles have a deep connection.

Not having ridden a bicycle for years, carrying Xiaojuan was fine, but when Han Guofu got on, Li Dong couldn't control the handlebars and almost crashed into a dry ditch.

"Can you ride a bicycle or not?"

Han Guofu was scared, and this kid was riding like a madman. Who wouldn't be afraid?

"Don't worry, Uncle Guofu, I'm just a bit rusty. I'll get better soon."

By the time they reached the commune, Li Dong had finally steadied the bicycle. Han Guofu was sweating, thinking, "This kid needs to practice more."

Li Dong wiped the sweat from his forehead. He was drenched from the ride, especially with an old man on the back. He was afraid of any accidents, as he would be in big trouble if he returned to Han Village.

"Han old man, you came pretty fast."

"You're not slow either, Old Bi."

Han Guofu smiled and glanced at the cart behind Bi Qingzhu. "You came by cart? No bicycles in your village?"

"Ha, Li Dong was just greeting Bi Qiaosuo. Han Guofu's words almost made Li Dong spit on Bi Qiaosuo's face."

Sure enough, Bi Qingzhu looked surprised at the smug Han Guofu. "You came by bicycle? When did you buy one? I can't be outdone. I'll ask the team leader for a bicycle ticket this year."

"This bicycle is great. It doesn't eat grass, runs fast, and has a soft seat. It's comfortable." Han Guofu said proudly. "I didn't even finish smoking a pipe, and I'm already here."

Bi Qingzhu gritted his teeth. "Old Han, you're proud of your bicycle. I'll get one too."

Li Dong was speechless. "You still smoke? You almost scared me to death."

"Look."

Han Guofu brought people over. Bi Qingzhu thought it was a high-priced second-hand bicycle, but when he saw it, he was amazed. "It's a Forever brand, even with a light. Not bad, Han old man. It must have cost a lot."

Li Dong thought, "It cost over 600 yuan, but you don't need to know that. Just recognize Ma Ba, and Taobao will deliver it to your door." "It's okay, I got it from the factory for 200-300 yuan."

"Do you need a bicycle ticket?"

Not just Bi Qingzhu, but several people from other production teams gathered around. Without a ticket, 200-300 yuan wasn't expensive. Even Bi Qiaosuo was tempted by the beautiful Forever brand bicycle with a light.

"What's going on, so lively?"

"The team leader is here."

Gao Weimin and his father, Gao Jinjun, pushed a bicycle over, and everyone entered the team office. Li Dong and the other young people waited outside.

"Brother, have a cigarette."

"Thanks."

Li Dong took out his windproof sunflower lighter, which dazzled the young people around him. It was a Shanghai product, rarely seen in the countryside.

Even Gao Weimin's eyes lit up. His lighter was taken by his brother-in-law, and he really wanted a good one. Now he uses a kerosene lighter from the supply cooperative, which is outdated.

In comparison, Li Dong's lighter was like a smartphone compared to a brick. The difference was significant.

This kid has a lot of good things. Gao Weimin thought he should ask Li Dong to help him get a good lighter.

Bi Qiaosuo was focused on the bicycle and didn't notice Li Dong being surrounded by everyone. Li Dong thought, "There's a big market for lighters. Several people have already asked about the price."

Li Dong was about to