My 1995 Small Farm

  Chapter 538 Rescue the chicks

  The firewood Chen Ling collected last year was enough for a whole year.

   I didn't expect that so many people came to visit and stay at home this year, and unknowingly consumed a lot of firewood.

   There are only a few tall firewood piles behind the kitchen now.

  So after carrying back all the bamboo and dry firewood, Chen Ling handed Ruirui over to Su Ligai to watch, and went up the mountain to collect firewood by himself.

   Although Chen Ling is famous for being lazy, when he was a child, he often followed his father or his friends up the mountain to collect firewood.

  Hitting pigweed and chopping firewood were things that the dolls often did at that time.

   I don’t feel tired, just do it after playing.

   There is no shortage of firewood throughout the year.

  For example, reeds, wheat stalks, corn stalks, bean stalks, etc. can all ignite fire.

   But not resistant to burning.

   What is missing is firewood.

   It takes a lot of effort to cut firewood, which is what men do.

  Children mostly pick up dry firewood.

  But when I was young, I didn't think it was a tiring job. I just thought it was very majestic for adults to wield axes, chop knives, and pull saws, so I wanted to participate in it too.

   Now I don't feel that kind of fun anymore.

   "Fourth Grandpa, you also come out to collect firewood."

  Walking to Xishan, Chen Kannian and Wang Laishun were also collecting firewood here.

  Chen Gannian grinned his teethless mouth, and said with a smile: "It's nothing to do with the sheep, so I just pick up some. I come out to herd sheep every day, and picking up every now and then is enough. It's different from you."

  Wang Laishun also said: "Fugui bought firewood twice, isn't it enough?"

   "Yeah, it's not enough, and I have to pile another firewood pile, so as not to be busy."

   Chen Ling nodded with a smile.

  Wang Laishun has been very fond of looking for Chen Kannian recently, and other than the village accountant, he doesn't like to talk to him very much.

  Just followed Chen Gannian all day to herd sheep, tidy up the vegetable garden and so on.

   Except when eating, I generally don’t like to go home, and I tend to quarrel with Liang Guizhen when I go home.

   "That's right, I don't know if you are rich or not, do you still remember, when you were a child, when you were five, six, seven or eight years old, several nearby counties were willing to marry girls from our side.

   Just know that in our county, there is "Chaifang Shuibian". "

   "Chaifang Shuibian, uh, I seem to have heard of this saying when I was a child, but I never understood what it meant."

   "Hey, I don't understand. Firewood and water are convenient. It is a place near mountains and rivers. It is convenient to go to the mountains to cut firewood. It is close to the river. It is convenient to irrigate the land. I am not afraid of drought and poor harvest.

  At that time, when a girl got married, she had to check whether the man’s house had firewood and water. Life could be good in such a place. Look at your aunt, it’s not good to marry in that place. "

   "There is another saying."

   Chen Ling heard of it for the first time. No wonder people say that having an old man is like having a treasure. This old man knows a lot.

  Since Chen Gannian is no longer confused, it is really a basket of stories from his old age, which can be called a basket of living stories.

  Chen Ling likes listening to him and Chen Sangui tell stories the most.

   "Yes, today, go south. There are many mulberry and neem trees over there. You can chop them down as much as you can, and they are all for firewood."

   "Yes, you can go south. It was windy and rainy earlier, and a lot of trees were blown down by the river, and the beetles and everything inside were hollowed out."

  Wang Laishun followed closely.

   "Okay, then I'll go and have a look."

  In the place where the West Mountain is close to the South Mountain, near the mountain stream, beside a rugged trail, there are indeed some fallen trees covered with fungus and thick moss.

  There are also mulberry trees with growth problems around them.

  Tramulus trees and poplars grow fast, but they are not mature, and they are used as firewood in the end.

  Of course, the mulberry tree is called the northern banyan tree, and it can grow everywhere, even in a small gap in the house, let alone in the mountains, there are so many.

  It also grows fast, Chen Ling took an ax and hacked it cracklingly, knocking down several thick mulberry trees in a short while.

   According to the rules of the mountain.

   To cut firewood, you actually need to choose a place with relatively lush and dense vegetation, and then you have to learn to pick those dry branches, fallen trees that have been dry for a long time, or large trees that have been completely dried out after being sawn down.

  In this way, you can pick up more firewood and go home.

   But Chen Ling didn't care about those, he simply chopped them into small pieces, and piled them up high, a pile of firewood that was 1.5 or 6 meters high, and carried them home all at once.

   For fallen trees, the branches are cut off, and the trunk is carried back directly.

  He walks like flying, just two or three times back and forth.

   Those outsiders wandering around the farm to play were stunned when they saw it, and they all said that this man was no wonder he was fighting the wild boar king, and this strength is not something ordinary people have.

  Looks like a gentleman, but he can carry so much firewood, and he can even lift a big tree.

   It's really hard to judge people by their appearances.

   "Brother Fugui, are you done with your work?"

  Chen Ling was stacking firewood behind the kitchen when Lao Guo from Provincial Taiwan hurried over.

   "It's almost ready, what's the matter?"

   "Hey, don't you suggest that we disturb those red-crowned cranes? It just so happens that we can take a few pictures of the little cranes and the work will be finished...

  Unexpectedly, two people in the group just found out with binoculars that the eggs in the nests of two red-crowned cranes were difficult to produce, with holes and cracks on the surface of the eggs. "

  Old Guo stomped his feet anxiously.

  They have been with the red-crowned crane for a long time, and they have feelings for each other.

   "Ah? Dystocia? There is no dystocia in birds, is it difficult to break the shell?"

Chen Ling wiped his sweat: "Oh, I thought it was all right. I asked Professor Han, who specializes in tracking endangered wild animals and plants, and he said that these red-crowned cranes were probably born at the end of breeding after losing a clutch of eggs due to floods. of the second litter.

  This second litter is like a rush job.

  It is easy to cause the young cranes to be unable to break their shells and suffocate to death, or lead to weak chicks, weak and sick, and it is difficult to survive after breaking their shells.

   Unexpectedly, the old man really hit the mark, and this thing still happened. "

   "Since you have asked the experts, brother, do you know what to do?"

  Old Guo was very anxious, because after seeing the big red-crowned crane turning over a few eggs, he concentrated on feeding the hatched baby cranes, and felt a little bit like giving up on the unbroken eggs.

   "What can I do, I can only help them break their shells, or will they suffocate to death inside the eggs?"

  Chen Ling found a bamboo basket: "Come on, go up the mountain and get the eggs back. Let's crack their shells. By the way, how many eggs are not broken?"

   "Two eggs."

  Old Guo hurriedly followed behind him: "Three pairs of red-crowned cranes laid two eggs in each nest, and now only one baby crane has emerged from two nests, and the remaining one has not hatched."

   "Oh, I see then."

  As soon as Chen Ling heard it, he knew that it must be two pairs of cranes other than the two big thief birds.

  Those two big thieves ate and drank at their own house last year, and their physique is better than other birds. When they are healthy, they will lay better eggs.

   During feeding in the morning, a little boy noticed that two little cranes were eating very fast.

   He also yelled at Chen Ling to feed more fish.

   The two walked out while talking, and there are a lot of people outside the farm now.

   Either circle around the pig king, or take the children to catch frogs and tadpoles by the canal.

   And there are new tourists coming.

   Greeted Chen Ling eagerly, saying that he had bought zongzi and some specialties here before.

   Right now, he wanted to ask Chen Ling if he could show them the puppy.

   There are dogs watching, and the **** is also very protective of the calf, they dare not approach.

  Chen Ling waved his hands, and walked forward in a hurry: "I have something to go to the mountain now, I'll talk about it when I come back."

  The sun is shining, and the temperature is getting higher and higher.

  Even if it is covered by tall reeds, if the delay continues, the life of the unbroken little crane will become more and more critical.

   Moreover, the eggs will not break for a long time, and the big red-crowned cranes will pull out the eggs and discard them.

  This matter cannot be delayed forever.

  The two rushed up the mountain in a hurry, and even Rui Rui, who was drawing kittens beside Han Shaobo and Old Man Zhong, called Dad, Chen Ling didn't bother to answer.

  Just told him to be obedient, and he would be back in a while, and then went up the mountain.

  Lake Yamanaka.

  The atmosphere in the province and Taiwan was a little anxious.

   It was the red-crowned crane in the reeds, wandering in the shallow water with its young ones to look for food, looking indifferent.

   I don’t know if it’s really big hearted, or I know that the two eggs are hopeless, and after being sad, I decided to give up.

  Chen Ling and his two groups were still rowing the boat, feeding the fish with small buckets to let the red-crowned cranes relax their vigilance, while quietly parting the clear and dense reeds, and slowly driving the boat into it.

  In the reeds, three huge half-bowl-shaped bird nests are not far away, suspended in the shallow water area, surrounded by reed flowers swaying in the wind, and a lotus flower is also in full bloom.

   The field of vision is fairly wide.

   So as soon as they came in, they saw the only two eggs left in the two nests.

  One in a nest.

  Bird eggs are oval in shape, about the size of a goose egg, and appear off-white in the withered yellow color, which is similar to the color of reeds. It is also a kind of protective color.

   There are obviously cracks and small holes on the top, but the little crane just doesn't come out of the shell.

   "What's the matter? Go directly to the nest to get it?"

   "Well, let me do it."

  Chen Ling jumped off the boat, leaning on the side of the boat, and was about to approach the red-crowned crane's nest.

  These big birds spread their wings angrily, quacked, and pecked at them with their long and sharp beaks...

  Two big birds pecked at his outstretched hand.

  The remaining 'Papapa' flapped their wings and attacked his head and face.

  The offensive was very swift and violent.

   "Hey, be careful."

   Seeing this, everyone hurriedly reminded them that they wanted to use bamboo poles to help Chen Ling.

  Chen Ling just covered his face with one hand, and waved the other hand in front of him to drive them away. While they were retreating, he quickly reached out and took the two eggs in his hand again, and put them into the boat.

   "Swipe out, back out...you help Xiaohe out of its shell first..."

  Chen Ling waved his hands, constantly blocking the attacks of the big birds, and shouted.

"ah?"

   "How to do this, don't kill the little red-crowned crane."

  Everyone panicked at this moment, holding two eggs, their hands trembling a little, not knowing how to help break the shell.

  Seeing this, Chen Ling pulled a long bamboo pole from a nearby boat, waved it at several red-crowned cranes, and drove them away.

   Then he climbed into the boat himself.

   "Let's go, let's talk on the shore. I was thinking of putting the little crane back into the nest after you broke the shell."

Chen Ling didn't care about getting wet, wiped his face twice, and looked back, the big birds were still flapping their wings angrily, stepping on the water, and floating on the water with their long legs like doing light work Same, come after them.

   Even the little cranes in the reeds were left alone.

   Of course, it is not completely ignored.

  They just took this reed bush as their territory, and they were kind to people before, but now they go to their nests to mess around, so they offend them.

   "Really, these cranes are too weird, they can't hatch their own chicks, why don't you ask us to help?"

   "Hmm... this... maybe I haven't given up completely yet, and besides, they don't understand human language, so they thought we were going to hurt them."

   "Hey, it's over now. It's hard to cultivate a relationship. I'm afraid I won't be able to get close in the future."

   "..."

   Everyone sighed.

  Chen Ling saw that the red-crowned cranes gave up chasing after the boat left the range of the reed marsh, so he picked up a bird's egg to observe the situation.

   I smelled it first, and it didn't smell bad yet.

   I put it to my ear and listened, and I could still hear a faint sound.

   proves that there is still salvation.

   At this time the boat reached the shore.

  Chen Ling followed the crack in the eggshell, gently opened the shell of an egg, and said to the people next to him, "Come over with some dried bamboo leaves from the bamboo forest..."

  Then the eggshell cracked slowly, revealing the little brown, fluffy guy inside, still a little wet.

   Looks like he is dying.

   "Ah, brother Chen, it's all like this, is there any help?"

"have no idea."

  Chen Ling shook his head, and gently opened the other egg.

The same is true for Xiaohe in   .

   Weak and dying.

  The two little guys were placed on the dry and soft bamboo leaves, and they were all limp and motionless.

   "In our village, there are chickens and ducks that hatch like this, but there are also some that can be saved. Take it back and try it. You have to feed it with water first."

  Speaking, Chen Ling asked someone to go to the bamboo house to get a worn-out basket, spread out the dried bamboo leaves, put two small cranes with weak voices on it, and carried the basket down the mountain.

  At this moment today, in fact, the filming work in Taiwan Province has ended.

   It can end when the little crane that hatched yesterday is photographed.

  But isn’t the village lively recently?

  The old turtle also reappeared.

  They still decided to send back the good ones like the last time they took the Wild Boar King, and keep people here to wait for the old turtle.

  I want to personally take pictures of how Lord Turtle is going on tour.

   It's okay, they decided to stay for a while, only to find these two unbroken eggs.

   Otherwise, the two little cranes would definitely be suffocated to death in the eggs if they were later.

   "Brother Chen, what water do you want to feed? Clear water? I'll get it."

   "No clean water, just feed me the water in the fish tank, I'll do it myself."

  Chen Ling put down the basket, brought the needle tube, pulled out the needle, and drew a full tube from the aquarium for keeping ornamental fish.

   Then stretched out a finger, carefully opened the mouth of the little red-crowned crane, and slowly fed water drop by drop.

   "What is this for? Did you pick up two little ducks from the mountain?"

  Han Shaobo walked over with Ruirui and Datou and the younger children. There were people watching outside the door, but they dared not come in. There were dogs watching outside.

   "It's not a duckling...it's a little red-crowned crane. It's been two days since I couldn't get out of its shell. Fugui helped them break out of their shells. I don't know if I can save them by feeding them water now."

  Old Guo from Provincial Taiwan explained.

  (end of this chapter)