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Chapter 236: Chapter 226 Welcome Welcome
The next day, Shen Yunfang planned to visit Sister Jiang in the county during the day, so she headed to the mountains early in the morning.
Before she even reached the hillside, Taxue came wagging its tail to greet her.
Shen Yunfang laughed at its silly demeanour and gave it a tap, "Did you watch over everything properly last night? Let me tell you, if another chick dies under your watch, you can say goodbye to your bone feast."
It was as if Taxue understood and it whimpered, then turned and ran up the hillside.
Shen Yunfang watched its retreating back, thinking it ran away after being scolded. However, it wasn’t long before Taxue came bounding back, with something in its mouth, wagging its tail back and forth.
As it got closer, she saw that it was holding a rabbit in its jaws, gray and dusty.
"Where’d you get this? Did you catch it?" Shen Yunfang couldn’t believe it. Taxue was a dumb dog in her family, and she had never taught it to hunt. How could it have learned on its own after just two days on the mountain? Either it was a natural talent, or, unlikely as it seemed, this rabbit was too foolish and walked right into its grasp.
Taxue whimpered twice and rubbed its head against Shen Yunfang’s thigh, looking like it was seeking praise.
Shen Yunfang picked up the dead rabbit and inspected it closely. Its fur was a bit messy, probably ruffled by Taxue’s large paws, and there were several bloodied holes on its neck, looking like Taxue’s bite marks.
She vigorously rubbed its head, "Our Taxue is too handsome! You’re getting an extra meal tonight."
Taxue looked up and licked Shen Yunfang’s hand with its big tongue.
Woman and dog climbed up the hillside, and Shen Yunfang threw the dead rabbit into the space. After shooing the bothersome Taxue away, she began feeding the pigs and sheep. It wasn’t until she reached the radish field to feed the chickens that she saw Taxue fiddling with something at the edge of the field, jumping around, busily having a great time.
After emptying the chicken feed into a basin, she walked over, then uttered a "huh" and crouched to take a closer look at a ball on the ground.
It must be a hedgehog, something she had only seen on television, never in person.
The little creature might look small, but it was rather plump, covered in short, dense spines. Its face and paws were not visible. Scared by Taxue, it had curl into a ball, with only its spines bristling.
Shen Yunfang, curious, reached out to touch the short spines. Taxue started whimpering beside her, probably unable to scratch the hedgehog without getting pricked, so it had been circling it restlessly.
Shen Yunfang wasn’t very familiar with hedgehogs but knew they were beneficial animals. She didn’t want to see this one get played to death by Taxue, so she had to pull Taxue aside and pat its head. Pointing in the direction of the hedgehog, she told it, "You can’t touch that, understand?"
She wasn’t sure if Taxue understood, but by the time Shen Yunfang was ready to go down the mountain, the hedgehog was gone from that spot. That’s when she let go of Taxue.
She had other matters to attend to that day and didn’t have time to play with Taxue, so seeing that it was about time, she quickly descended the mountain.
Due to the rush, she didn’t cook when she got home but instead served herself a bowl of porridge from the space, grabbed a big steamed bun, a salted duck egg, and picked some pickled vegetables from the jar, quickly finishing her breakfast.
After eating, she tidied up and took out two hens she had slaughtered yesterday from the space, planning to bring them as gifts to visit Jian Hui later.
But before she could leave her house, Xing Zhonghua arrived.
Driving a green-skinned car, Xing Zhonghua sped through the village, raising a cloud of dust. The villagers, startled by the noise, flocked outside to watch the commotion, with some curious folks running after the car. They saw the car parking in front of Shen Yunfang’s house and slapped their thighs, exclaiming, "Why is it always Yunfang this girl he’s rushing to see, can’t he bother someone else for a change?"
Shen Yunfang heard a knock at the door and didn’t expect to see Xing Zhonghua when she opened it.
"Hey, little sister, what’s the matter, not happy to see me?" Xing Zhonghua burst into a hearty laughter.
Shen Yunfang immediately put on a smile and hurriedly ushered him inside, "How could that be? I was just thinking of going to visit my sister Jian Hui, and before I could even step out, my brother-in-law has come to visit. You two don’t want to let me set foot in your house or what?"
"Hahaha, I can’t speak for others, but you, little sister, are always welcome," Xing Zhonghua said, laughing as he walked into the house.
When Shen Yunfang closed the courtyard door, she thought she saw someone in the distance but didn’t pay it much mind and closed the door.
Once inside, Shen Yunfang poured Xing Zhonghua a cup of hot water and exchanged some pleasantries.
Xing Zhonghua mainly came to see how she was doing, fearing he might have scared her yesterday. Jian Hui had also wanted to come today but couldn’t take leave at short notice, so she sent Xing Zhonghua first to check on Shen Yunfang and planned to visit when she was free.
Shen Yunfang hurriedly said that was unnecessary; she wasn’t really affected and there was no need for anyone to visit her specifically. After all, if there was visiting to be done, it should be her visiting Jian Hui.
They both updated each other on their recent circumstances before Xing Zhonghua brought up the real matter at hand.
"I didn’t expect you to have connections in the provincial government; I was worrying over nothing."
"Not at all, I don’t have any connections," Shen Yunfang replied, surprised now.
"Then it must be Hongjun’s connections. Just yesterday, that old fellow Zhao Zhandou was asking me about it." Xing Zhonghua also believed it had to be someone Li Hongjun knew. Shen Yunfang was just a village girl, with limited outings from the village; where would she get to know high-ranking officials from the province? His question was merely a probe.
Deputy Director Zhao didn’t go by the name Zhao Zhandou before liberation; he changed it afterward to express his revolutionary resolve, a name with significance.
Shen Yunfang didn’t know the specifics either, but she guessed it was most likely Li Hongjun asking someone for a favor. Old Shen had told her that after she was taken away that day, he went straight to the brigade to call Li Hongjun. Although Li Hongjun wasn’t at the base at the time, one of his comrades surnamed Wu said they would handle the situation.
Upon reflection, Shen Yunfang surmised the comrade surnamed Wu was probably Political Commissar Wu Guoqiang, so the provincial connection Xing Zhonghua mentioned was likely someone Wu Guoqiang found.
Although Shen Yunfang guessed as much, she wasn’t entirely sure, so she didn’t feel it was appropriate to speak about it. Fortunately, Xing Zhonghua wasn’t there to dig deep; in the official circles, one usually just got the general idea and the rest was left to interpretation.
Xing Zhonghua didn’t stay long as there was a pile of work waiting for him at the team. Shen Yunfang hurriedly handed over two hens she had prepared for Jian Hui, telling him to take them straight away. She didn’t need to rush over to see Jian Hui today; she’d visit when she had time to go to the county.
Xing Zhonghua, unceremoniously, took the hens, laughing and saying this meant he could enjoy a good drink tonight.
When Shen Yunfang saw Xing Zhonghua off, she noticed quite a few people had gathered around his car, pointing and discussing her house and the vehicle.
Once the gate opened, everyone’s gaze turned in her direction.
"Oh, Yunfang, the villagers of Gaijiatun are really enthusiastic, aren’t they?" Xing Zhonghua joked.
"Yeah, seeing such an important official come by, of course, they have to welcome you," Shen Yunfang jested back.
At that moment, Old Shen also hurried over; Xing Zhonghua shook his hand, exchanged a few words, and then got into his car and sped away with a roar.
