Chapter 9

The road was a yellow earth road. Since early July, there had been little rain, so the road was covered with loose, soft soil. The wheels of the vehicle sank in, creating significant resistance. Xiao Fei got out of the car and pushed it along.

He greeted the villagers along the way.

Xiao Fei noticed that the villagers looked solemn, with many of them wearing expressions of deep worry.

This was all due to the bollworm disaster. The infestation was rampant, and the cotton fields, which the farmers relied on for survival, were facing the threat of total crop failure. No one could be happy about it.

The air was filled with the pungent smell of pesticides, making it almost impossible to breathe.

Following the winding yellow earth road, Xiao Fei finally approached the earthen hill.

The hill was densely covered with thorny bushes, locust trees, and hawthorn trees, all lush and green. It was also a paradise for small animals, with rabbits, pheasants, and badgers living there. In autumn, the wild hawthorns on the hill would ripen, hanging in clusters and bending the branches, attracting people from nearby to climb up and pick them.

This place had been Xiao Fei's childhood playground.

This place had been where countless happy moments of Xiao Fei's life were stored.

Xiao Fei knew that this earthen hill, which surrounded the village, would soon be completely removed. The soil would be hauled away by large trucks to become the foundation of a highway.

A flash of inspiration crossed his mind.

He suddenly saw an opportunity.

Now, this earthen hill was just a nuisance to the village, and even the village officials were trying their best to level it and turn it into arable land.

However, the project was too large for the village to afford, so the hill remained standing on the plain.

But Xiao Fei knew that the Jichang Expressway in City X was scheduled to start construction later in 1996, and it would require a large amount of soil. The construction team was searching for places to source the soil, and they had found this village, Xili. The village chief, Liu Zhenhai, representing the village committee, had signed a soil purchase agreement with the Jichang Expressway project team in City X.

No one in the village knew how much money the earthen hill had been sold for, but everyone could see that Liu Zhenhai had become extremely wealthy as a result. He had built a two-story house and bought a home in the city, becoming a well-known rich person in the area.

If Xiao Fei could get the village to lease him the earthen hill before the Jichang Expressway project team did, wouldn't he be able to make a fortune?

The earthen hill, which surrounded the village, was about 8 to 9 meters high, 40 meters wide, and stretched for about 4 to 5 kilometers.

The amount of soil that could be extracted was substantial, at least 800,000 to 900,000 cubic meters.

Xiao Fei didn't know the price of yellow earth before 1996, but after 2000, the price of soil had risen sharply, with one cubic meter selling for more than 10 yuan.

This earthen hill was like a small gold mine.

He clenched his fists. He had to act quickly and secure it.

What made Xiao Fei even more determined was that he had no money to lease the earthen hill, and his family certainly couldn't afford it. He also didn't know how much the village would charge him for the lease.

Liu Zhenhai, the village chief, was a tyrant in Xili Village, and he had the final say in all village matters. Xiao Fei needed to find a way to prevent him from interfering.

With this in mind, Xiao Fei's enthusiasm for earning money from writing grew even more.

He would start writing tonight and earn the money as quickly as possible to secure the lease on the earthen hill.

Passing through a narrow pass, a village appeared before Xiao Fei. The houses were scattered and huddled together, with blue brick and red tile roofs, surrounded by fences or earthen walls. The sounds of chickens and dogs filled the air, showing the village's simple and contented life.

The village street was quiet, with only a few children, looking like muddy monkeys, running by occasionally.

Xiao Fei's home was at the western end of the village, consisting of three dilapidated houses with a roof covered in wild grass. The yard was large but had no wall, only a fence around it. The yard was planted with several rows of vegetables, including green vegetables, eggplants, and zucchini.

The house exuded a sense of decay.

Pushing his bike to the gate, Xiao Fei saw a girl in a short-sleeved floral的确良 (dacron) shirt squatting by the door, sobbing and covering her face.

Next to her, a young man was kneeling, his face full of worry.

Xiao Fei's brows furrowed.

This scene was all too familiar.

The girl sobbing was his sister, Xiao Yan, and the man kneeling was Qian Guangwen, her boyfriend, from a nearby village.

According to the course of history, Xiao Fei knew that Liu Zhenhai's wife had come to their house to arrange a marriage. Liu Zhenhai's wife was a short, fat woman with a fierce and cunning personality. She often cursed and shouted in the village, making her a well-known troublemaker in Xili Village.

Her brother had a son who was mentally disabled and had never been able to find a wife.

Her plan was to arrange a swap marriage, where Xiao Yan would marry the disabled man, and the disabled man's sister would marry Xiao Fei's brother, Xiao Yang.

This marked the beginning of the Xiao family's tragedy.

The disabled man's sister was also a fierce and unreasonable person. After the swap marriage, not only was Xiao Yan's life ruined, but Xiao Yang's life was also destroyed.

The sister-in-law, who came from the swap marriage, complained about the Xiao family's poverty, often breaking pots and pans and arguing with her in-laws. Naturally, the short-tempered Xiao Yang couldn't tolerate it, and the two of them fought frequently.

Later, the sister-in-law left without a word, running away secretly.

Liu Zhenhai's family, using their power, claimed that the Xiao family had lost her and demanded that the Xiao family take responsibility.

As a result, Xiao Yang was even arrested and detained by the police for a few days.

The runaway sister-in-law never returned, and Xiao Yang was left to raise his child alone, suffering a lifetime of hardship. Xiao Yan, who had married the disabled man, lived a life of constant sorrow and was often bullied by her in-laws.

"Xiao Fei, you're back," Qian Guangwen, who was kneeling, greeted him.

"Uh-huh," Xiao Fei responded, not asking for the reason. He secured his bike and helped his sister up, saying, "Sister, why are you crying so much? As long as you don't agree, no one can force you."

Xiao Yan, with tear-streaked eyes, looked at her brother and shook her head. "Brother, I can't refuse. I can't let my brother be a bachelor for life. This is fate, and I can't deny it."

This sister was gentle and honest, always thinking too much about the family, even at the cost of her own happiness.

Qian Guangwen, who was beside her, became anxious. "Xiao Yan, that man is a fool. You won't be happy with him. I'll talk to your father. I, Qian Guangwen, will take care of finding a wife for your brother. I don't believe a person can be so desperate. As long as we can earn money, we can find a wife."

Qian Guangwen and Xiao Yan were classmates in junior high school and had been dating since then.

In the countryside, it was already good for a child to finish junior high school.

Qian Guangwen was a smart and enterprising person. After finishing school, he had been doing small businesses, such as making tofu, steaming buns, raising chickens and pigs, selling clothes, opening a supermarket, and running a shoe factory. He eventually became wealthy.

"Sister, Qian Guangwen is right. Our family is poor now, but as long as we work hard, we can become wealthy quickly. You can't sacrifice your whole life for this," Xiao Fei said, supporting Qian Guangwen's words.

Qian Guangwen looked at Xiao Fei gratefully.

But Xiao Yan clearly didn't believe them.

"I can't let my brother be a bachelor for life," Xiao Yan murmured, her face filled with sorrow.

"Sister, wake up! Don't be so foolish. Your brother isn't as bad as you think. Without your sacrifice, he won't be a bachelor for life. Why do you, as a sister, have to worry so much?" Xiao Fei couldn't help but shout at her. His sister was a bit stubborn.

He was really getting anxious.

In his previous life, his brother had firmly opposed the swap marriage, and his parents had been indecisive. However, his sister, under the influence of Liu Zhenhai's wife, had run away to the disabled man's house, creating a fait accompli that ultimately led to the swap marriage.

If he couldn't persuade his sister, the tragedy might still happen.

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