Chapter 72

"Here it comes, here it comes."

The water wheel, weighing over a hundred catties when wet, was not too heavy when dry. Li Dong carried it with ease.

"This damned weather, if it doesn't rain soon, there won't even be a place to fetch water from."

"Isn't that the truth."

After digging out the silt, they originally planned to divert the water to the small dock, but after a lot of effort, the water only reached halfway. So, they had to use the water wheel to pump the water up.

Li Dong didn't mind; the lack of water in the reservoir was actually better. He could catch turtles and maybe even some wild fish and shrimp, which were all good things. Now, Li Dong was considering whether drying it in the sun for 300 days would increase his carrying capacity.

The prerequisite was to make more money and buy more goods. The mountain goods in Han Village were almost all collected, and the villagers had no time to go deep into the mountains to gather more. The surrounding forests were basically cleared out.

"Hurry up."

"Here I come, Uncle Guofu, why doesn't our production team have a water pump?"

Li Dong muttered. He had seen some movies from the 1960s and 1970s where production teams had everything, from tractors to water pumps, and even harvesters. But Han Village had nothing, which was really strange.

"A water pump? I wish we had one. Why don't you ask Secretary Gao at the brigade?"

Han Guofu rolled his eyes. Do you think I don't want one? If we had one, I would have it.

Li Dong was speechless. What could he do? He couldn't just bring one. Besides, it was too heavy and hard to explain where it came from.

"Get to work."

Seeing that Li Dong wasn't speaking, Han Guofu grunted. Han Guofu had reported this issue to the brigade several times, but the brigade only had two water pumps, one for Gao Family Village and one for Bi Family Village, as they were far from the water source, unlike Han Village, which had a reservoir.

Han Guofu had complained a lot about this, but the brigade couldn't get a third water pump. They couldn't just take the pumps from Gao Family Village and Bi Family Village, so the issue was left unresolved.

"I'll go to the brigade and ask Secretary Gao about this later," Han Weijun couldn't help but mutter.

"What's the point of talking about it now?"

Han Guofu said, "Let's focus on saving the crops first."

Li Dong and Han Weijun pumped water all day. Li Dong found a way to make it less tiring.

"Tomorrow, I'll try to do something else." Pumping water was fine for half a day, but a full day was exhausting, especially after riding a bicycle for over ten miles. Li Dong's legs were sore.

"I need to buy some alcohol to relax."

It was convenient that Gao Min was at the supply cooperative. He bought two bottles of Xinghuacun Daqu and some peanuts, which he would fry at home as a good side dish for the alcohol.

After Xiaojuan finished her class, it was almost dark. Li Dong pedaled the bicycle, carrying his daughter home. After a while, his legs became even more sore. "This bicycle is unreliable. If only I could get a motorcycle, it would be much more comfortable."

"Dada."

Xiaojuan had a good spirit for learning today and was still reciting her lessons on the way. Li Dong told her a few times to put down her book, but she kept mumbling the lessons.

"What's wrong?"

"Are you hungry? I'll pedal faster."

Xiaojuan originally wanted to say that there were a lot of pig grasses here, and they could gather some before going home, but when Li Dong said he was hungry, her stomach growled, so she didn't say anything.

"Yes, I'm hungry."

"Really hungry? Then I'll speed up. Hold on tight, don't fall off."

The bicycle sped up significantly. As they approached Han Village, they caught up with Han Weihé, Han Guofu's third son, and a group of children who had been dismissed from school early.

"Uncle, Uncle."

Han Xiaohao waved his schoolbag and followed behind the bicycle. Li Dong smiled and stopped the bicycle. "Get on."

"Sure thing."

Han Xiaohao climbed onto the back, and Li Dong pedaled away, leaving Han Weihé envious. He clenched his teeth, determined to buy a bicycle to save a couple of hours on the commute.

Li Dong didn't know that he had strengthened Han Weihé's resolve to buy a bicycle.

"Finally here."

Li Dong rubbed his legs. After a day of work and a long bicycle ride, he was quite tired.

"Dada, I'll cook."

"No need, no need. Focus on your studies and try to be among the top 100 in the county."

"Okay."

Xiaojuan nodded vigorously. Being in the top 100 would earn her 7.5 yuan, enough to buy eight or nine pounds of pork.

Li Dong started cooking, steaming rice and stir-frying two dishes. Cooking with two pots was quick.

"Done, Xiaojuan, come eat."

Beef and stir-fried vegetables, Li Dong added some chili sauce. It was comfortable. He decided not to go turtle fishing tonight. The reservoir was almost dry, and the turtles had burrowed into the silt. He would try to persuade Uncle Guofu to clear the silt while the reservoir was dry.

Li Dong didn't know that Han Guofu's family was having a dispute. Han Weihé insisted on buying a bicycle, as walking to and from school took too much time. Alternatively, he could stay at school, but the boarding fees were high. This dispute made the family's dinner uneasy.

Han Guofu wished he could hit Li Dong with his pipe. This was all because of Li Dong buying a bicycle. "Buy it, I'll go to Li Dong later. We do need a bicycle."

Once Han Guofu made up his mind, no one dared to oppose him, though the two daughters-in-law were a bit unhappy.

Of course, they didn't dare say anything to his face. Han Guofu and Li Chunhua were in charge, and the two daughters-in-law only grumbled behind their backs.

"What's wrong with you?"

"What?"

Zhang Qiuju was unhappy. She thought she was smart.

"Did you forget about our little black? If the third son buys a bicycle, little black won't have to wake up early and go to school. Isn't it better for the third son to carry him?"

Han Weijun's suggestion made Zhang Qiuju realize that if the third son bought a bicycle, little black could ride with him. Her eyes lit up. It was a good idea. Han Weijiang, on the other hand, was a bit upset because his child was still young and not in school, so they hadn't considered this.

Li Dong had just finished eating and was tutoring Xiaojuan, which made him quite excited. It was a rare moment to tutor her, and he was deeply moved, even shedding tears.

"Dada, what's wrong?"

"Nothing, I'm happy."

Li Dong was a bit excited and was about to continue when a knock on the door interrupted him.

"Who is it? Can't people have a peaceful evening?"

"Uncle Guofu?"

He opened the door and saw Han Guofu. "Come in and sit down."

Han Guofu sat down but didn't speak for a while, making Li Dong a bit nervous. What was going on? He hadn't been lazy these past two days, and he had only taken a bit of corn, which he had already destroyed the evidence.

"Uncle Guofu, have a cigarette."

"No, I came to talk to you about something."

What is it? Speak up. Are you afraid Xiaojuan will hear? Li Dong thought. "Xiaojuan, go check if the piglets are sleeping."

"Okay."

Once Xiaojuan left, Han Guofu spoke.

"Help Weihé get a bicycle?"

Li Dong's eyes twinkled. Yes, he could sell his current bicycle for 250 yuan, which wasn't expensive. This way, he would have money to buy tiger bone wine and tiger penis wine, and then he could get another bicycle.

After some calculation, it seemed feasible, but it would be a bit tough for Xiaojuan for a few days.

"Uncle Guofu, I haven't told you something. My second uncle has been transferred to the region. He just went, so it will take some time."

Han Guofu was troubled by the transfer. A new job and unfamiliar environment might make it difficult to get a bicycle.

"I see."

This was a problem. Han Guofu frowned, and Li Dong observed his expression. He really wanted to buy a bicycle. "Uncle Guofu, I don't go out much now, just to pick up and drop off Xiaojuan. How about I give my bicycle to Weihé?"

"How can I do that?"

Han Guofu said, but then thought it was a good idea.

"Uncle Guofu, the bicycle cost my second uncle 280 yuan from the factory. You can give me 260 yuan, but I have one condition: before I buy another bicycle, Weihé should take Xiaojuan to and from school."

Li Dong's main purpose in buying a bicycle was to take Xiaojuan to school and to make it easier to go to the city. The city situation was not good, so he didn't plan to go there soon. Besides, if he sold the bicycle and got the tiger bone wine and tiger penis wine, he could go back to 2018 and buy a bicycle for 600 yuan on Taobao.

"I'll discuss it with your aunt."

260 yuan wasn't expensive, and Li Dong's bicycle was almost new. Taking Xiaojuan to and from school wasn't a big deal.

Actually, Han Guofu didn't know that Li Dong just needed money. Once he got the money, he could get a bicycle in two or three days.

It wouldn't delay Han Weihé. Han Guofu left, and Li Dong was quite happy. The money problem was solved. He was a smart little guy.

"Xiaojuan, what's wrong?" He turned and saw Xiaojuan deep in thought.

"Nothing."

"Are you worried that Dad won't have a bicycle to pick you up?"

Li Feng laughed. "Don't worry, Dad will go to the city in a couple of days and bring back a bicycle."

The little girl wasn't worried about that. Li Dong didn't know that Xiaojuan was calculating 260 yuan. He was too happy and forgot that he had exposed his financial situation.

"Go to bed."

Li Dong hummed a tune, washed up, and brushed his teeth. With money, he could get his tiger penis wine and tiger