Chapter 57 of 100

Chapter 57

13 min read3,340 words

Dudu cried very sadly, and Li Han felt a bit heartache as he wiped away Dudu's tears. Li Han had never known how to be a good father; Dudu's arrival had been too sudden. He had been trying hard to be a competent father, but he had missed out on some things because of his youth. Seeing Dudu cry so sadly, Li Han realized he had not paid enough attention to Dudu and had been too strict. When they got home, Li Han made some dishes that Dudu loved. The little one wiped away his tears and ate the food his father made with big bites. Li Han was inevitably scolded by his parents, but he didn't forget to ask Dudu what he had done that day.

Dudu said it was hot and tiring selling vegetables, but no one bought his lettuce. He pouted, feeling a bit down. "I ate a lot, and it was very delicious," Dudu said, lowering his head. Li Han comforted him by patting his little head. "It's okay, Dudu. The lettuce you grew is the best."

"Daddy, you're lying. No one bought the vegetables I grew," Dudu sniffled, rubbing his big eyes. Baby nodded vigorously beside him. "Yes, Uncle, why don't Grandpa, Grandma, Uncle, and Aunt buy the lettuce that Dudu grew? It's very delicious."

Dudu lifted his head, looking at his father with hope in his red eyes. Li Han knew what Dudu had encountered that day. He had heard from people on the street that another family's certified farm boy had sold all his basket of vegetables, and even more people had placed orders. Dudu had watched for a long time, then approached the boy to talk, but the boy ignored Dudu and even knocked down his lettuce, making Dudu cry as he picked up the fallen leaves. "They just don't know how delicious the lettuce you grew is. If they knew, they would definitely buy it," his sister said, pulling Baby. These days, Dudu had been watering and loosening the soil with great enthusiasm, growing a lot of vegetables. But after a long, tiring day, he had sold nothing.

"Yes, the vegetables you grew are delicious," Dudu said, suddenly happy. He wiped away his tears and ate the meat with big bites. "You grew a lot of vegetables and sold them. Grandpa and Dad both said they were delicious." "Eat more. Tomorrow, Dad will help you grow vegetables, okay?"

"Okay." Dudu was even happier that his father would help him grow vegetables. Li Han smiled and wiped the greasy little mouth. After dinner, Dudu happily washed the dishes, and his father helped him put them away. In the evening, after taking a bath, Li Han carried Dudu to his bedroom, where he changed into his pajamas. Dudu was particularly happy and wanted to sleep with his father, but his father said Dudu was growing up and needed to sleep alone. He rolled around on his father's bed, ending up in his father's arms. "Giggle, Dad, tell me a story, okay?"

Li Han held his daughter and nodded with a smile. "Dad will tell you the story of the Ugly Duckling." "Okay, Dad, but all the ducklings are beautiful," Dudu said, blinking his big eyes and moving his bottom up in confusion.

"Yes, all the ducklings are beautiful, but this one was very ugly. Everywhere he went, he was beaten, excluded, and mocked. Not only by the other ducklings, but even by the chicks. There was a proud rooster who was born with spurs on his feet, so he thought he was an emperor. He puffed himself up like a sailboat and came at the ugly duckling, glaring with big eyes and his face red. The poor little duckling didn't know where to stand or where to go. The ugly duckling felt very sad because he was so ugly and became a laughingstock for all the chickens and ducks. This was the first day. It got worse each day after that. Everyone wanted to drive away the poor little duckling; even his own brothers and sisters were angry with him. They always said, 'You ugly monster, we hope the cat catches you!' The ducks pecked him, the chicks hit him, and the woman who fed the chickens and ducks kicked him," Li Han said softly.

"The duckling is so pitiful, Dad. Can we raise an ugly duckling?" Dudu hugged his father's arm and shook it.

"But it's so big and ugly, everyone says," Li Han said, combing Dudu's hair. "Dudu isn't afraid of the ugly duckling." Dudu lifted his head, and Li Han touched his little face. "Okay, if we encounter an ugly duckling, Dad will keep it for you to raise." "Okay, Dudu will raise the ugly duckling. All the ducklings are so pitiful."

"Dudu is such a good child. Now, let's continue the story of the ugly duckling. Everyone hated him, so the ugly duckling flew over the fence and escaped. The birds in the bushes were so startled by his appearance that they flew away. 'It's because I'm so ugly,' the ugly duckling thought." Li Han gently patted Dudu, and soon the little one in his arms fell asleep. Perhaps Dudu was a unique ugly duckling.

Li Han pulled the blanket over Dudu, who was sleeping soundly. With his father by his side, he turned off the light. Li Han lay awake for a while, thinking about many things. The next morning, Dudu woke up early and called his father. The father and son put on their work clothes, took a small bucket, a shovel, a water bottle, and seeds, and went to the hillside. All morning, Li Han helped Dudu plant lettuce, and Dudu was very happy, giggling all the time.

After breakfast, Dudu and Baby went to school in a small cart. Li Han processed the videos he had shot over the past few days, showing Dudu planting, watering, loosening the soil, and harvesting the lettuce. The video was over thirty minutes long. After processing it, Li Han wrote an email and attached the video before sending it out.

In the morning, Li Han drove the tractor to level a piece of fallow land near the small house, turning it into a garden. The entire area was over ten acres, divided into small plots. While Li Han was busy building a small vegetable garden for Dudu, at the Glasserman Estate, which was a half-hour drive away, Vesa was introducing Li Han's information to the master. "Sir, Pandora first appeared on Komi Star two weeks ago. Her father is a Chinese man named Hank Li, who is twenty-three years old. He has been in the United States for five years and on Komi Star for four years. There isn't much information for the first year, as he entered on a tourist visa and stayed in Chinese communities in cities like New York and Boston, working as a dishwasher, mover, masseur, and even a beggar. Four years ago, he came to the small town of Komi Star. The old farmer, Phil, saw that he was hardworking and paid him a low wage, so he kept him. After Phil's death a year ago, Li Han bought Phil's small farm and obtained a green card through Ronald. Three weeks ago, he received a large sum of money and subsequently bought George's farm, Dick's farm, and several others. Recently, he bought two small farms, including Oram Lake, and connected Oram Lake and Dick Lake to form a new irrigation farm. His estimated assets are ten million."

After Vesa finished, Glasserman nodded. "I see. That's enough, Vesa. You can go now; I don't need anyone here." Glasserman took the watering can to the vegetable garden, where he had developed the habit of watering the seedlings every day. Vesa left with his people.

Li Han had no idea that because of Dudu, Glasserman disliked him even more. Li Han was busy renovating the farm, driving the tractor and pulling long pieces of wood to build the gate of the vegetable garden. He was driving in stakes and dividing the area into sections to surprise Dudu. Perhaps he could build a small vegetable garden for Dudu, so he would have a place to play when Baby returned to the country. Li Han and his brother-in-law drove the tractor to the hillside, cut down over ten pine trees, and sawed them into strips and small stakes. The small vegetable garden looked like a miniature farm. Li Han even had Pierre install a sprinkler head near the garden for easy watering.

In the town, Dudu and Baby were working hard on their ballet. Mrs. Augustus said that if Dudu danced the best, she would buy his lettuce. Dudu practiced very seriously and didn't play around. Sure enough, when school was over, Mrs. Augustus bought Dudu's lettuce, and Dudu earned two dollars. Baby encouraged Dudu to buy ice cream, and the two little ones sat in the cart, with White slowly walking home. On the cart, Dudu and Baby took turns eating the small ice cream.

Dudu was very happy. In the afternoon, Dudu practiced boxing. The teacher said that if Dudu acted as a small punching bag, the teacher would buy ten bundles of lettuce. Dudu sold a lot of lettuce and was very happy, but the ice cream was all eaten by Baby in the end.

---