Quickly grabbing a handful of grains from the ear of rice and crus.h.i.+ng it between his fingers, Grandpa Liu"s expression slowly cracked.
Compared to the past, at this same time of the year was when rice crops began to harden, counting the days, they should mature in at least twelve to twenty days later!
But the hard grains in his palms were telling him that their crops are ripe!
And the rice grains are fuller than ever! Shaking his hands to remove the rice husks, Grandpa stared down at the white rice in the palm of his hand and could no longer make sound.
“Dad, we can harvest, they can be harvested now. Just by looking at it, we can still have a rich harvest!”
The condition of their crops quickly spread to the ears of the neighboring villagers, and everyone rushed to their own fields, grabbing the rice grains for inspection.
"It"s true! They"re really ripe! I can"t believe it!"
"Nothing has gone bad, nothing"s wasted…. G.o.d still has eyes!"
“Quickly, those who walk fast will go back to the village and spread the word, let everyone come down quickly to harvest! Lest the fields will shrivel into a sunken valley under the sun!”
The heavy depression was swept away replaced by cheerful delight.
Merriment filled the fields.
The news that rice in the fields has matured spread throughout the village overnight.
On this day, the stifling depression that pervaded the whole village was dispersed by euphoria. People in the fields harvested their crops in full swing.
Liu Yusheng was sitting on the threshold of the courtyard door, her head was supported by her little hands. Listening to the peals of laughter blending in the air, her little mouth smirked.
On the other side of the Qinghe River is the farmland of Xiapo Village.
Across the river, they can clearly see the lively atmosphere and hear the loud laughter of the villagers.
This spectacle was unimaginable, that more and more villagers from Xiapo Village gathered by the river bank to see the fun.
While watching the liveliness, each face was as ugly as the other, feeling envious of Xinghua Village.
“What"s going on? How come the rice over there has ripened?”
“We blocked the river. They were short of water four days earlier than us! Just look at our fields, they are all dry and cracked that half of the ears of rice are flat. How could theirs be better than ours!”
"Can"t say for sure, their families must have been cornered and chose to jump over the wall. In order to reduce their losses, maybe that"s why they decided to harvest early?"
“Can early harvest make you laugh like that? From the snippets from a few fields by the river, I have heard everyone saying that it is a good harvest!”
The face of the village chief of Xiapo village, Chang Ancai, darkened and even his eyes dimmed, "Go and ask if they have any ways to make rice mature ahead of time!”
Other than that, there was no other explanation.
The same fields, the same rice seedlings, sharing the same river water, plus their Xiapo Village also have advantages in terms of water resources. It was impossible for them to have completely different results!
Even if there was any difference, their Xiapo Village should be better than Xinghua Village!
Soon, someone crowded beside him. “Village chief, I asked someone in the village to go and find out. Their fields are indeed a good harvest, but no one knew how it happened!”
After a pause, he hesitated for a moment, “But there is a ridiculous rumor circulating privately on their side …”
Then he stopped.
“What?” Ancai narrowed his eyes.
“Rumor has it that they were in a bad situation before. Everyone has made preparations for a bad harvest … Ten days ago, a little baby in their village went to the field to play. From that day on, the growth of rice in their fields started to ripen strangely. Obviously, there was insufficient water supply, but the crops still grow robustly. They said that the little baby, is a divine baby, and bestowed blessings to the whole Xinghua Village …”
"Ridiculous! Bulls.h.i.+t!"
Ancai blurted out, and the speaker immediately snorted and retreated to the crowd.
Their voices were too loud, and with the crowded packed together to watch the fun, they heard something.
“Are they talking about the baby granddaughter of the Liu Family?”
“Do you know their family?”
“I"ve heard that, too. I"ve been in town and heard a few rumors flying around about their family. And the most miraculous thing is…”
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