After that, Yang Yunhai didnât appear for quite some time, and Gu Lingling also followed his advice, either studying at home or going to work with Gu Chunhai every day.
Gu Chunhai felt sorry for his daughter and mostly wouldnât let her go, but he couldnât resist Gu Linglingâs insistence on going. This year, their familyâs work points were still quite short.
In the blink of an eye, it was July. The weather had been good this year, and the wheat fields were a sea of golden yellow.
The old village chief strolled around the fields of Nanshui Village every day with his hands behind his back, his face beaming with a broad smile.
The harvest was good, which meant the villagers wouldnât go hungry.
Their villageâs proximity to the city meant they were better off, as he knew some less fortunate areas that, after a year of hard work, harvested very little grain, leaving the entire village hungry.
Cases of people starving to death werenât unheard of.
The sun had been quite generous these days, and when the ears of wheat drooped, it was time to start harvesting.
With a command from Gu Tongzhou, the villagers of Nanshui Village began the vigorous busy farming season.
They cut the wheat, bundled it, and hauled the bundled wheat to the village square to dry. After two days of sun, they could use the communeâs tractor to thresh the wheat.
This time was when Gu Chunhai, who could drive, was the busiest.
He would drive from one place to another, threshing the wheat without even having time to take a sip of water at times.
There was always the fear that rain would suddenly pour before the wheat was threshed, which would be disastrous.
Additionally, Gu Chunhai had the skill of repairing vehicles. The communeâs tractor was like a precious treasure, but sometimes this treasure would often break down at critical moments.
Gu Chunhai could always pinpoint the problem quickly without causing any major delays.
As a result, around this time, village chiefs from other villages in the commune would come to Gu Tongzhou, asking if they could borrow their tractor expert, Gu Chunhai.
When Gu Chunhai went to help other villages, a few capable people from those villages would come over to help the Gu Family with their work.
Evenings were almost like the childrenâs realm. While the adults rushed to thresh the wheat, the children played nearby, chasing fireflies, and it was truly delightful.
When Yang Yunhai passed by the village square of Nanshui Village, he saw Gu Lingling leading a group of children playing with a few girls her age from the village.
Tonightâs tasks were finished early, so they didnât need to join the adults in sorting the wheat.
"We caught a lot of cicadas, Sister Lingling. Can you make those cicadas we ate last time?" A little kid proudly swung a jar of something in front of Gu Lingling and the others.
The jar was full of cicadas that he and the village children dug up all over the fields, cicadas that hadnât yet transformed into their mature form.
"Sure, no problem," Gu Lingling smiled, ruffling his little buzz-cut head. "But do you still remember the big words and math problems I taught you yesterday? If you donât, there wonât be anything to eat."
"We all remember! If you donât believe us, test us, Sister Lingling," the little kids quickly found a stick and, under the moonlight and the dim bulb on the village square, eagerly looked at Gu Lingling.
"Alright." Gu Lingling smiled, squatting down to give them questions, and the little kids earnestly scribbled in the dirt.
"Lingling is such a good girl," a woman said to another beside her, "Er Dan in our family is much more obedient now, even helping me with work at home."
"Yes, our Gou Sheng too, even said to me, âMom, you work hard.â" The other woman wiped a tear as she said this. "Itâs the first time ever he said that to me."
"If it werenât for Lingling, these little rascals wouldnât know how to behave."
"Whoever marries Lingling will surely have a good life."
Yang Yunhai chuckled softly, but soon found it difficult to keep smiling.