Chapter 175: Clever and Brave Xiaoxi—How Could She Have Fallen?

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When something like this came up, and his little niece was there, of course he would go with her! What was there to think about?

It certainly wouldn’t do to go with Shao Hong, with Shao Hong sitting in front and Zhong Di rowing behind him. Hmm, that sounded a little wrong. But switching places didn’t sound right either!

“I want to go with Uncle,” Xiaoxi announced loudly.

Uncle loved Xiaoxi most of all. Though he could be terribly mean at times, and was always thinking about finding himself an aunt for her and abandoning her, those things were still within the realm of what she could accept. Naturally, she was going with Uncle.

“I’m seriously starting to wonder whether you’re really my own child!” his older sister muttered.

In the end, Zhong Di went with Xiaoxi, Shao Hong with his mother, and their father naturally went with their mother. As for his older sister, she somehow ended up alone.

Her husband was busy today and couldn’t get away. If he had been there, everything would have been perfect.

Before long, they had all climbed into their dugout canoes. They agreed that everyone could go wherever they wished and set a meeting time two hours later.

Playing together in a place like this would certainly be lively, but it would also destroy the unique sense of tranquility. Splitting up was clearly the better choice.

Zhong Di and Xiaoxi set off. Just to be safe, Zhong Di put Xiaoxi in a tiny life jacket and secured it to the canoe as well.

Xiaoxi complained about it over and over. Exactly how many times, Zhong Di could no longer remember.

“Uncle, you’re so annoying! Why did you tie me up? What are you trying to do?”

“Uncle, this is uncomfortable. I don’t want to sit like this.”

“Uncle…”

Being secured like that really was uncomfortable, but Zhong Di had no choice. The thing was terribly unstable!

The dugout canoe rocked from side to side as Zhong Di began rowing.

To be honest, none of them had ever rowed one of these things before. They had learned a little from watching television, but when it came to actual practice, it was everyone’s first time.

Shao Hong rowed best of all. Before long, he had vanished from sight. The lake was so vast that anyone who didn’t know better might have thought Shao Hong had trained for this. Perhaps he really had.

Zhong Di gradually found his rhythm, pulling first on one side and then the other, and soon he was moving quite quickly.

In a scene like this, one ought to compose a poem—ah, no, wrong setting. Let’s start over.

The water was crystal clear. Though it was called a lake, it was not deep, more like a wetland, though not quite a wetland either. One could see all the way to the bottom at a glance.

Sand that had soaked in the water for a long time drifted slowly with the current.

In just this short while, Zhong Di had already lost sight of everyone else.

“Uncle, there are fish!” Xiaoxi suddenly cried, breaking the brief silence.

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“There are fish? Have you been a good girl lately?”

“If there are fish in there, are there shrimp too?”

Zhong Di was taken aback. How was he supposed to know whether there were shrimp? As far as he remembered, there seemed to be only a few tiny ones.

“There probably are. Have you been listening properly lately?” Zhong Di replied with a universal answer.

“Can we eat those shrimp?”

Zhong Di…

She was clearly refusing to have a proper conversation with him. She definitely had not been listening.

The water rippled gently, and a single dugout canoe drifted quietly among the desert poplars. It gave one the feeling of ancient poets wandering wherever they pleased until inspiration struck and they composed a verse.

Time passed quickly. Zhong Di’s mind found a brief moment of peace, and Xiaoxi’s occasional chatter was harmless enough.

He felt as though he had grasped something. He seemed to understand why he had been so exhausted lately, and why he had been so irritable.

But he still could not quite figure out what it was.

After returning, he had watched the orchard develop steadily and become highly profitable. His parents no longer needed to work so hard and could finally enjoy life.

His sister and brother-in-law were in better financial circumstances and had far fewer troubles. Shao Hong had also freed himself from the person who did not belong in his life, restored the reputation he had once lost, and given his mother a much better life.

He himself had achieved what he had originally hoped for: to return home, grow things, earn money while living a warm and peaceful life, and spend his free time researching technologies that could benefit his country.

Everything was so beautiful.

Everything had developed exactly as he had imagined.

So why was he gradually losing the ability to feel happy?

After thinking for a while longer, Zhong Di cast all those jumbled thoughts aside. For now, he would stop worrying about them and simply enjoy the moment.

Quiet hours always passed quickly. Before long, more than an hour had gone by. Looking toward the poplar-lined riverbank in the distance, Zhong Di calculated that it was probably time to head back.

They had seen everything worth seeing, and it was nearly time to meet up.

“Uncle, aren’t we going to keep rowing? There are still lots of beautiful places ahead.” Xiaoxi looked curiously at her uncle as he turned the canoe around.

“We’re going back. This is a dugout canoe, not a boat.”

“A dugout what?”

“A canoe, not a what.”

“A what, not a what.”

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Zhong Di gave up trying.

The return journey was much faster than the trip out. On the way there, he had still been learning to control the canoe, while also taking time to quietly admire the scenery.

When he reached their starting point, Zhong Di discovered that everyone else had already arrived.

He was the slowest by far.

“Mommy, Uncle bullied me!”

The moment Xiaoxi climbed out of the canoe, she rushed straight into the arms of her mother, Zhong Hui, sobbing pitifully.

Zhong Di was stunned.

When had he bullied Xiaoxi? How had he not known about it?

“Zhong Di, why did you bully Xiaoxi?” Di Chunhua hurriedly demanded. So that was why he had insisted on going with Xiaoxi—the little rascal had wanted to bully her.

Still, Zhong Di treated his niece so well every day. How could he possibly bully her?

At that moment, from her angle, Di Chunhua happened to catch sight of the corners of Xiaoxi’s mouth curling upward.

So that was it!

“Tell the truth. Don’t make things up,” Zhong Hui said. Xiaoxi was her own child, after all. How could she not know what sort of girl her daughter was?

“Uncle really did bully me. He tied me to the boat.”

“It was for your safety. What if you fell into the water?” Zhong Hui said helplessly. So that was what this was about.

“Xiaoxi is clever and brave. How could I possibly fall?” Xiaoxi protested with all her might.

The brief little episode was both short-lived and amusing, and they decided to move to another place.

Noon was approaching. It was time to find somewhere to rest and eat a little. Their packs were filled with equipment and supplies, all of which had been prepared in advance.

They followed the poplar forest for a while and eventually stopped at a place that looked quite pleasant.

It was shaded and sheltered from the wind, making it an excellent spot to rest.

They took out their belongings one by one. Everyone was quite casual about it, though Shao Hong’s mother looked a little reserved, which was perfectly understandable.

They had prepared everything quite thoroughly. There were so many of them, and they had come out to enjoy themselves—they had to put together a proper meal. Surely they weren’t going to survive on instant noodles.

Among the ingredients, seafood made up the main course, with everything else serving as accompaniment. Seafood was convenient to bring along, especially with the self-heating equipment they had packed. Put it in a pot, warm it up, and it would be ready in no time. After that, all they had to do was enjoy a hot pot and cook a few other dishes.