PCJ – Chapter 206 Bicycle

The Yongjiu heavy-duty bicycle is solid, but it has a very high frame. Even with the seat at its lowest, Zhang Jiaohua couldn’t reach the pedals. However, this didn’t stump him. Instead of mounting the bike, he extended a leg over the tripod and could ride the bicycle like a pair of flaming wheels. In rural areas, people rarely bought lightweight bicycles; they usually opted for these heavy-duty bikes. They were sturdy, lasting ten to twenty years without making a sound.

The bicycle from Luo Yongming’s family had been ridden for at least ten years, but it was well-maintained and still looked like new. After Zhang Jiaohua brought it home, it was seldom used. The courtyard wasn’t big enough, and he was too lazy to go to the school playground to practice. Thus, the bicycle sat idle at home. If it weren’t for Luo Yongming’s good maintenance and the thick layer of diesel oil covering it, the bike would have rusted long ago.

Now things were different. There was a road in the horticultural field, which had been there since the old days when tractors could drive directly to the tea field to haul away the harvested tea leaves. Now that Zhang Jiaohua had contracted the horticultural field, the road became his private property. There was also a yard near the pig farm, previously used for drying pig feed. Zhang Jiaohua could practice riding the bicycle there.

Learning to ride a bicycle was no challenge for a child. First, he pushed the bike and glided with it, gradually learning to ride. With Zhang Jiaohua’s excellent balance and his training in light skills, it took him less than an afternoon to ride the bicycle fast.

Seeing Zhang Jiaohua riding enthusiastically, Jinhu and a few others were eager to try. Back then, there weren’t many bicycles in the village, and they were very precious. It was unthinkable to let children touch them. Those who owned bicycles valued them more than their wives, feeling as if someone else riding their bicycle was like someone else riding their wife. Back then, neither Zhang Jiaohua’s nor Jinhu’s families had bicycles, so they never had a chance to learn. Now that Zhang Jiaohua had his own bike, he was naturally very excited, and so were Jinhu and the others.

When Zhang Jiaohua got tired, he set the bicycle aside, and Jinhu and the others immediately took it to ride. Thus, an eerie scene unfolded in the horticultural field—a heavy-duty bicycle seemed to ride automatically back and forth on the rough road. Fortunately, there was no one else around, and anyone approaching the field would be warned by the constantly patrolling hunting dogs.

“Woof! Woof! Woof!”

Suddenly, from a distance, the hunting dogs guarding the entrance of the horticultural field barked furiously.

“Bang.”

The heavy-duty bicycle crashed to the ground with a heavy thud.

“Jiaohua, Jiaohua!”

Dumb’s voice called out at the entrance of the horticultural field. Originally, there was an iron gate at the entrance, but after the field was contracted, the gate disappeared. Some said that the iron gate now in Zhang Dechun’s courtyard had been taken from the horticultural field. Back then, only Zhang Dechun’s family in Meizi Village dared to blatantly take public property.

Zhang Jiaohua walked over, lifted the heavy-duty bike, and mounted it, ringing the bell to respond to Dumb. Hearing the bell, Dumb became even more excited, waving vigorously at Zhang Jiaohua from the entrance.

Although the hunting dogs didn’t attack, they kept a close watch on Dumb, ready to pounce if he stepped forward.

Zhang Jiaohua rode quickly to the entrance. Seeing Zhang Jiaohua riding the bike confidently made Dumb very envious.

“Jiaohua, you learned to ride?” Dumb asked, taking a step forward.

“Woof!” The hunting dog growled a warning, making Dumb step back in fear.

“Go to the gate. Don’t worry about this person,” Zhang Jiaohua ordered, and the dog obediently went to the gate, wagging its tail.

“Wow! This dog is so obedient. How do you train it, Jiaohua?” Dumb had also gotten a local dog from a relative, but it was nowhere near as well-trained as Zhang Jiaohua’s hunting dogs.

“I just feed it casually. I go to school every day like you. Where would I find the time?” Zhang Jiaohua naturally wouldn’t reveal the secret. His master, the old Taoist priest, often said that the way shouldn’t be easily shared. Teaching magical skills casually could lead to problems, as not everyone had the talent for cultivation. Even if you taught someone, it might only lead to false hopes and disappointment. Letting people know the secret of longevity could be more cruel than kind. Sometimes, ignorance is a blessing.

Dumb thought Zhang Jiaohua was being stingy, but he didn’t say anything, knowing Zhang Jiaohua’s stubbornness.

“Jiaohua, can I borrow your bike to practice?” Dumb asked, eyeing the bicycle.

“You can practice, but don’t blame me if you get hurt,” Zhang Jiaohua said, pushing the bike towards Dumb.

Dumb, overjoyed, took the bike and began playing with the bell, ringing it non-stop in the horticultural field.

After playing for a while, Dumb asked, “Jiaohua, how do I learn?”

Zhang Jiaohua, amused, showed Dumb how to glide. However, Dumb lacked athletic talent and couldn’t even learn to glide. As soon as his feet left the ground, his hands started shaking, and he veered off the road, crashing the bike into the tea trees. Dumb ended up tangled in the bushes, his head in the dirt, and when he got up, he had a mouthful of mud.

“Hahaha…” Zhang Jiaohua laughed so hard his stomach hurt as he helped Dumb up. “You’re really bad at this.”

“It’s my first time on a bike! Let me try a few more times, and I’ll definitely be better than you,” Dumb insisted.

However, Dumb didn’t perform as well as he claimed. Instead, he kept crashing in various spectacular ways, once even ending up in the dried reservoir.