Chapter 31

PS: Thank you to the generous patrons who supported me: Tianhei Liulei, the living are truly tired, after half a lifetime of love, Jiling, and the sorrow of paradise.

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Brother-in-law Zhou Bin walked out of the shooting range with an excited look on his face. The shotgun was really powerful; it made a big hole in the wooden target with just one shot. Especially when he tried the M500 that Li Han brought over, his wrist was numbed by the recoil. This thing was no less powerful than the shotgun, with a shiny finish, it felt like a real cowboy when tucked into the holster, left hand holding the shotgun, right hand patting the revolver holster, looking very much like a cowboy. If it weren't for his sister pulling him, he might have fired a few more shots.

Li Han, along with his brother-in-law Zhou Bin, and the two excited little kids, Dudu and Baobao, made Zhang Xiuying and Li Mei quite angry. They grabbed the two kids by the ears and dragged them out of the shooting range. Back at the store, Li Han quietly wrote a check and gave a nod to Thomas, who smiled and shook his head, curious about the relationship between Chinese parents and children. Li Han was already independent and had no problem buying firearms and ammunition.

With a bitter face, Li Han took the two Colt Python revolvers from Dudu and Baobao under his mother Zhang Xiuying's watchful eye. The two little kids pouted and reluctantly took out the guns, which Zhang Xiuying quickly handed over to Li Han. "Kids, guns are for playing, Baobao, Dudu, don't touch them again, okay?"

"Okay." Baobao pouted, unwillingly, while Dudu blinked and nodded. Seeing the pitiful look on the two little kids, Li Han smiled and said to Thomas, "Thomas, do you have any good model guns? I want to take a look."

Buying two model revolvers that looked similar for the two little kids, who couldn't tell the difference between real and fake, made them very happy. They held hands and skipped ahead, leading the way. The family left the gun store, with Zhou Bin a bit regretful, and Li Mei still reminding her husband. Li Han just smiled and shook his head. Despite her soft nature, his sister could get quite angry when she was mad. Li Han had been disciplined many times as a child. Seeing his brother-in-law's current state, Li Han chuckled. "Mom, Sister, let's rest for a bit and have a cup of coffee."

Passing by a street-side outdoor café, Li Han smiled and said, "I'm a bit thirsty, Mom, Dad, Mei, let's rest for a bit." Zhou Bin quickly agreed, but after touching a few guns and firing a few shots, his ears were almost worn out from the nagging.

Li Mei gave her brother and husband a dirty look, but the outdoor café was quite nice. They had been walking for a while, so a rest was good. Dudu and Baobao had already run out and sat down, waving their little hands to the group.

"Mom, Dad, you sit down, I'll go get the coffee." Li Han walked into the café, and the two little followers, Dudu and Baobao, ran in. "Dad, Baobao wants candy." Dudu tugged at his father's pants, and Li Han pulled out a twenty-dollar bill and gave it to Dudu. "Dudu, take Baobao to buy candy, don't play on the way, and come back quickly."

"Okay, Dudu will be good." Dudu and Baobao ran out through a small door. Li Han brought the coffee outside. "Xiaohan, did you see where Baobao and Dudu went?"

"Oh, Dudu took Baobao to buy candy, they'll be back soon."

"What? You, Dudu is so young, if they get lost or are tricked, what will we do? Let's go check on them." Zhang Xiuying was worried; it was a big deal for two or three-year-olds to go shopping. If they got lost or encountered bad people, it would be a serious problem.

"It's fine, Mom, it's not far, and Old Rock is a good person, nothing will happen." Li Han sipped his coffee, thinking his mother and sister were overly worried. The town was full of familiar faces, and besides, Dudu wasn't an ordinary child, capable of fighting raccoons and kicking wolves.

"That's not acceptable, let's go back and have our coffee." Zhang Xiuying glared, and Li Han stood up with a bitter smile. "Alright, Mom, you sit here, I'll go check." Zhou Bin immediately stood up and followed. The two men exchanged a bitter smile; Old Rock's store wasn't far, and they arrived soon.

"Hank, it's been a while, how are you?" Old Rock hugged Li Han and greeted Zhou Bin. "Not bad, Old Rock, you look great." After a brief chat, Li Han asked about Dudu and Baobao. "They just left?"

"Oh, yes, Hank, they are two adorable little angels. The two little angels bought candy and left." Old Rock said.

"Thank you, Old Rock, the candy looks beautiful, goodbye." Li Han and Zhou Bin left the store. Zhou Bin asked, "Xiaohan, Dudu seems to be going the wrong way, not back."

"Yes, this little guy, let's go, I know where Dudu is."

Zhou Bin and Li Han walked about a hundred meters and indeed met Dudu and Baobao on their way back. The two little kids were eating candy and skipping hand in hand, with Dudu carrying a small bag. "Dudu." Dudu saw his father from afar and tried to hide. Li Han took the bag from Dudu and opened it, finding vegetable seeds inside.

"Uncle, Uncle, Dudu bought vegetable seeds, so many." Baobao said proudly. Dudu and Baobao talked about planting vegetables, and Baobao was very excited. It was her first time planting, and she wanted to plant tomatoes like Dudu.

"Vegetable seeds?" Zhou Bin looked puzzled at Li Han, who explained, "Brother-in-law, Dudu likes to play planting games. The empty land around George's farm is full of vegetables, and the lawn behind the house has been planted with tomatoes. I locked the warehouse, but this little girl came out to buy vegetable seeds on her own."

"Can Dudu plant vegetables?" Zhou Bin looked incredulous, and Li Han nodded with a bitter smile. "Yes, the house is surrounded by vegetables." "Ha, I didn't expect Dudu to be so capable. I can't even plant vegetables."

Dudu, seeing Li Han, lowered her head, looking guilty. Her little mouth was pouted, and her hands were hidden behind her back, looking pitiful. Li Han patted her head. "Alright, Dudu, let's go home. Dad will give you a vegetable garden, and you won't dig up the lawn to plant vegetables anymore."

"Okay." Dudu nodded happily. The four returned to the café, where Zhang Xiuying and Li Mei were quite worried. "Xiaohan, it's not early, let's go home." The surroundings were unfamiliar, and there was nothing interesting to talk about.

Li Han drove the car, and the family headed directly to George's farm. Compared to the small farm, this one was much larger. George's stone castle-like house was much prettier than Li Han's small farm house, with a much larger lawn, a stream flowing around, and a fence with blooming tulips.

"Oh, over there, the one herding sheep on horseback is Daina. Hutton might be at another pasture." Li Han pointed to Daina riding a horse and herding sheep in the distance.

"A cowgirl?" Zhou Bin was curious, and Li Mei, Zhang Xiuying, and Li Ping were also surprised. "Yes, I'll introduce you to her later. Daina is a very skilled rider."

They parked the car and went into the house. The living room and fireplace were much larger than those at the small farm, but there was only one bedroom, a study, and some storage rooms. A few guest rooms were empty, and they could stay here if they wanted.

Li Han went to the kitchen to make tea. When he came out, everyone was gone. "Brother-in-law, where are Mom and Sister?" "They went to help Dudu and Baobao plant vegetables." Zhou Bin smiled bitterly. Baobao came back and wanted to plant vegetables, and Grandma and Mom indulged her. Zhou Bin didn't know what to say.

"Let's go see." Li Han put down the teapot and went to the back, where Dudu was teaching the whole family how to plant vegetables. Li Mei, Mom, and Dad had never planted vegetables before, but Dudu was a professional, looking very serious.

Li Han stood by and watched, feeling proud. Suddenly, Zhang Xiuying gave him a few slaps. "Mom, what's wrong?" "What's wrong? Look at Dudu, so young, washing dishes, feeding cows and horses, and planting vegetables. Is this how you raise a child?"

"Mom, it's not like that. Dudu is very happy. The little girl likes planting vegetables. Besides, I don't have time to always be with her. Taking care of the calves and horses isn't too tiring, and she has playmates." Li Han felt a bit bitter, thinking about coming to America alone, enduring those days without family or friends.