country bumpkin

Chapter 18 Autumn Harvest 3

The busy farming season is the most tiring, with endless work for both adults and children.

It's a new day, a new job, a new beginning.

The villagers arrived at the fields early in the morning and began their day's work. Everyone had a clear division of labor: some were responsible for digging up peanuts, some for transporting the peanuts to the edge of the field, and others for sorting and loading them onto trucks.

Harvesting peanuts is similar to harvesting sweet potatoes; both require several steps.

First, the peanuts need to be dug out of the soil with hoes; of course, this is the men's job. Some women are also quite strong, not much less so than the men.

The second step is to pile the peanuts that are closest together and shake off the soil from the roots, otherwise they will be too heavy. No need to put them in bags; once they're all dug up, load them directly onto the truck and take them home.

The children helped carry the peanuts onto the truck; the peanuts, which had just sprouted, were still attached to their vines.

Each peanut vine was laden with peanuts. Every single one was large and plump. Yunya was quite strong; she carried five peanut vines in one go, showing she could endure hardship.

The sun rose higher and the weather grew hotter, but no one stopped to rest. Everyone knew that the farm work couldn't be delayed and had to be finished as soon as possible.

Finally, thanks to everyone's joint efforts, all the peanuts in the field were harvested. The whole family looked at the fruits of their labor, and smiles of satisfaction appeared on their faces.

Despite being physically exhausted, they felt a great sense of accomplishment. This is the life of a farmer: hard work brings abundant rewards.

After loading the peanuts onto the truck and bringing them home, the farmers still need to pick them all and dry them in the sun. Picking peanuts is a slow process, so farmers use their own methods.

Some people lay a small square stool on its side, grabbed the peanut vines, and slammed the roots hard against the stool. The peanuts at the roots all fell off.

Some people would invert the bicycle and stabilize it, then vigorously crank the pedals to make the wheels spin. They would then place the peanut roots onto the spinning wheels, and the peanut roots would be twisted off.

Some people simply placed a large wicker basket on top of it and slammed it down, causing the peanuts that fell out to land inside the basket.

However, the most common method is slamming and striking. This saves time and effort, and is also highly efficient.

The family chatted about this year's harvest as they cracked peanuts together. The three-year-old children played and ran around, occasionally picking up a few peanuts and stuffing them into their mouths.

However, even children as young as Yunya helped with the peanut-making. They would only play for a short while after taking a break.

Just then, laughter came from the doorway. It turned out that the neighbors were passing by and, seeing the lively scene, had come over to join in. They greeted each other and exchanged planting experiences.

Granny Zhang also came to visit. Her family had finished their work early, so they had basically finished all the chores except for drying the plants.

While chatting with Mu Shuyun, Granny Zhang helped smash peanuts. Her help improved efficiency.

The main reason is that everyone loves to hear gossip. Even those who were feeling a little sleepy were jolted awake by her gossip.

As night fell, the stars twinkled in the sky. The family packed up their tools and filled bags with the crushed peanuts. Granny Zhang also went home to rest.

With satisfied smiles, the family finished their day's work, looking forward to a sunny day tomorrow so they could dry the peanuts.

Everyone slept soundly through the night, except for Mu Shuyun, who tossed and turned, unable to sleep. She kept thinking about the gossip that Granny Zhang had told her during the day, and the more she thought about it, the more outrageous it seemed.

What? The Li family's wife from the next village ran off with someone, and the Liu family's son stole grain from the production brigade. The Xu family's wife beat her daughter-in-law so badly she was hospitalized. How could these things possibly happen in their village?

The most frustrating thing is that Mu Shuyun's gossip has spilled over into her own home. Her eldest daughter-in-law is arguing with the neighbor in the backyard again.

Mu Shuyun decided to go to Granny Zhang tomorrow to get the facts straight; she didn't want to be misled by these rumors.

The next morning, Mu Shuyun got up early, only to find that everyone in her family had already gone out to work. She hurriedly ate a few bites of food and, with Yunya in tow, headed towards Granny Zhang's house.

It seems no one can resist the allure of gossip.