Chapter 39 Summer Fun

  Thank you for Little Mai's reward, be happy every day!

  Sweltering June, the sun hung high like a big furnace, emitting waves of energy.

  Recently, Aunt Li and others have been particularly busy, as it is the wheat harvest season, and everyone is working hard from dawn till dusk.

  Song Jie carries a small basket every day and follows behind Xiao Yan to the fields to pick up wheat ears. No matter what, she can pick up two baskets in a day, and her face has become darker over the past few days.

  It's the busy season, everyone is working hard and even the most mischievous children are being sent to the fields to do some chores within their ability. The scene in the wheat field is one of bustling activity.

  At noon, a few people in the village worked together and collected some money to buy a bunch of ice pops from a street vendor, which they shared among themselves.

  Some adults couldn't bear to eat them and left them for their own children. Aunt Li bought a few more and gave one to Song Jie and Xiao Yan each.

  Song Jie took the popsicle and examined it carefully. It was wrapped in a thin layer of packaging paper with the Tianchi brand on it. She tore open the packaging paper, lightly licked it, and tasted its sweetness. There was a rich and pure natural milk fragrance.

  You can tell there's no added flavorings with just one bite. Chew on a piece and let it melt in your mouth, the sweetness spreads everywhere. Plus it's icy cool, making it a perfect summer treat. But it's too expensive, at 10 cents per stick, what a pity, can't eat it often.

  Song Jie felt a little regretful. In a few more years, she might not be able to eat such authentic popsicles again. She couldn't bear to swallow them in just a few mouthfuls, and could only lick them gently, no matter how much she ate, it was never enough.

  The sun in the sky was really too big, and it melted the popsicle in no time. Song Jie couldn't help it, so she ate it down in a few mouthfuls, and afterwards there were still some lingering regrets, the sweetness in her mouth lingering for a long time.

  It's really delicious! Song Jie closed her eyes and savored the flavor carefully, this taste is just like the sweet childhood of now.

  After harvesting wheat, what's left is threshing and drying the wheat, which shouldn't be a job for little kids like them. Song Jie was leisurely playing with her companions.

  The apricot river is now deep enough to reach her waist in the deeper places, and the shallower places only reach her ankles, so this has become a playground for children.

  The little girls wouldn't play with those stinky boys, so they got together to catch river shrimp and clams instead.

  Song Jie and Xiao Yan'er, along with a 7-year-old girl named Shan Xing, played together by the river. She had never had so much fun before, using a torn mosquito net, each person holding a corner, to catch fish in the river.

  The fish picked up from the water were not as good as the natural ones, only some small fish that were a few inches long. After bringing them back home and frying them, they tasted particularly crispy and fragrant.

  One time they even scooped up a loach, which scared the timid Shan Yan to tears, thinking it was a snake. Song Jie and the others were stunned, wouldn't a normal girl be afraid, like Shan Yan? Song Jie and Xiao Yan exchanged a speechless glance, both feeling that they had already deviated from the norm...

  During the day, go down to the river, and at night, the most important program is catching fireflies.

  In summer, what bothers people most is cicadas. Their endless calls make people who are already in a bad mood due to the heat even more annoyed.

  Still like cicadas, at night, older people who have reached the age of majority take advantage of the moonlight to move a small stool, gather together and fan with a palm-leaf fan while chatting about gossip.

  The energetic young man couldn't stay idle. He rummaged out a well-preserved flashlight from home and then dug out the large battery that had been placed under the kang for a long time, carefully assembling them.

  At this time, having a flashlight is such a prestigious thing. Walking proudly among a group of people, swaying back and forth with the flashlight on, passing by in front of them.

  Experienced filial sons knew that they were going to catch the Knowing Monkey, and couldn't miss it. They took candles and followed up.

  Before long, a large group of people followed behind, in a mighty and majestic manner. Familiar adults shouted from afar: "Be careful, little black lanterns."

  "Hmm." A disgruntled response came from the group, feeling embarrassed in front of their companions, and replied coarsely. The companions then loudly jeered, followed by the sound of a heated argument.

  After the wheat harvest, Song Jie also participated in the activity here for the first time. Xiaoyan'er held her hand tightly, and the two of them followed in the middle of the team, whispering softly, occasionally with a few people interrupting from the side, and a group of people chatted lively.

  Song Jie felt extremely happy, her heart slightly excited, maybe it was because the night was too hazy, she thought.

  Everyone didn't enter the mountain, but chose to go into the apricot tree thicket instead. The mountain is a place where even adults dare not enter at night, if someone dares to run there, it's strange if they don't get their butt beaten.

  There were many knowing monkeys here, and when they arrived at the riverbank, the procession stopped.

  The leader with the flashlight started bending down, lowering his head to carefully shine under the tree, if he found a small hole, he would take a thin branch and insert it in, after a while, a knowledgable monkey would climb out along the branch and be caught by a hand, put into a pocket, causing an outcry.

  It's quite interesting, Song Jie is very interested. The moon now is very bright, the people it shines on are all pale white, and with the candles, as long as you look carefully, the small holes under the trees on the ground are still easy to find.

  Sure, here is the translation:

  As expected, before long the group dispersed, with only a few lingering reluctantly beside the flashlight.

  Song Jie and Xiao Yan'er walked together to the side, stopped under a big tree with no one, lit a match, lit the candle in their hands, and the surroundings immediately brightened up.

  The two of them crouched down and searched every inch along the tree roots, but they didn't find anything. A hint of disappointment flashed through Song Jie's heart.

  There is no natural transition to another tree here. This time I was quite lucky and found a hole less than one centimeter in diameter.

  Song Jie hastily stepped forward to shield her and said urgently, "I'll go, I'll go."

  The little swallow said casually: "Okay, I'll find a branch for you, wait." She was nonchalant, she played this every year and was very familiar with it. Unlike Song Jie, who had never played before, looking curious and naive as if she had never seen the world.

  As soon as she got the branch, Song Jie was eager to put it into the hole. Xiaoyan quickly stopped her: "Hey, hey, slow down, you have to put it in slowly, steady your hand, or it will be scared and won't dare come out."

  Song Jie listened and suddenly realized, and indeed took a little more care. Before long, a knowing monkey slowly crawled out and was caught by her, and due to the poor angle, it was also scratched.

  Carefully putting the spoils of war into her pocket, Song Jie was overjoyed and couldn't close her mouth, it was really too interesting.

  Next, the two of them swept away in a flash, and even found a cicada monkey that was molting on a tree trunk. It turned out that when this cicada monkey came out, it wasn't directly black, but white, and then turned gray and black. The skin it shed is a good medicinal material.

  One evening, the two of them really returned with a full load, catching nearly thirty fireflies. Back home, they released the fireflies and used a fine sieve to scoop them up, then fried them in oil, making another delicious dish.

  Song Jie had a fulfilling evening and slept soundly tonight.

  ,！