PCJ – Chapter 329 The Purest Happiness

“Whose child is this?”

This shout stirred quite the commotion, as Liu Hangu, the owner of the pond, came rushing out.

“Whose child is this? All my fish fry (young fish) are gone!”

Zhang Jiaohua and Liu Xi exchanged glances, realizing they were in trouble, and immediately took off running.

“Liu Xi, don’t even think about running! I saw it was you who threw firecrackers into my pond. All of my fish fry are dead because of you,” Liu Hangu shouted, spotting Liu Xi trying to escape.

Zhang Jiaohua glanced back at the pond, and sure enough, several small fish were floating on the surface. But these weren’t fish fry—they were clearly just some trash fish. Zhang Jiaohua knew the difference.

Knowing he couldn’t run away, Zhang Jiaohua stopped in his tracks. “You’re calling these fish fry? They’re just bitterling fish! Were you planning on raising bitterling fish in your pond next year?”

Zhang Jiaohua had initially run out of reflex, but after taking a few steps, he realized running wouldn’t solve anything. In the end, they would have to pay for any damages, but he thought to himself, “There’s nothing to pay for here.” A lot of dead fish were floating in the pond, but most of them were just bitterlings, a type of fish that nobody eats. They were typically used to feed chickens and ducks. Also, many of the fish floating on the surface had been dead for a long time. Clearly, Liu Hangu was just trying to make trouble.

Liu Hangu hadn’t expected the two kids to talk back, so he angrily rushed over. “Liu Xi, isn’t this the child of your aunt, Qiaoye? Well, you’re still young, but your tone is too bold! I put thousands of fish fry in my pond, and now they’re all dead because of you two. You’re still denying it? I caught you red-handed! I’m not going to argue with you kids; I’m going to talk to your parents!”

Liu Hangu stormed over to Liu Tongmao’s house, shouting as he reached the main road, “Liu Biao! Get out here and take care of your kid. They blew up all the fish fry in my pond, and I caught them in the act. And now they’re talking back!”

Liu Tongmao quickly came outside. “Hangu, calm down. We can work out whatever happened.”

Before Liu Hangu could reply, Liu Biao emerged and said, “Hangu, how dare you come to my house with this nonsense? Since when did you put thousands of fish fry in your pond?”

“I drained the pond and kept some fish fry! Are you trying to bully me because you have more family members?”

“Hangu, are you trying to pick a fight with me? Your pond hasn’t had fish in years. You just drained it and caught a few carp this year, and now you’re claiming you’ve got fish fry. It’s the New Year, and here you are stirring up trouble. If you keep it up, I’ll make sure you spend the entire month of January in bed!” Liu Biao, known for his temper, grabbed Liu Hangu by the collar.

Liu Hangu was just trying to extort some money, thinking Liu Biao’s family had come back from working in Guangdong with a good haul. He figured he could get some money out of them for the New Year. But he hadn’t expected Liu Biao to be so well-informed, even though he had been away.

“No, no, I was just joking around with your kid. I came to ask you for a pack of cigarettes. It’s New Year’s—do you really think I’m here to cause trouble? I heard you made a lot of money in Guangdong this year. You won’t be stingy over a pack of cigarettes, will you?” Seeing that Liu Biao wasn’t playing along, Liu Hangu quickly changed his tune. He didn’t dare push his luck any further, as there was no one in the village who would stand up for him if Liu Biao decided to beat him up.

Liu Biao wasn’t having it, but Liu Tongmao didn’t want to cause any trouble on New Year’s Eve. He hurried inside and brought out a pack of fancy, filter-tipped cigarettes that Liu Biao had brought back from Guangdong, offering them to Liu Hangu. “Hangu, since it was just a joke, we won’t take it seriously. Take these cigarettes and don’t scare Liu Xi again. If you do, and Biao loses his temper, we won’t be able to stop him from giving you a beating.”

“Of course not! I was only joking around. Right, Liu Xi?” Liu Hangu smiled and quickly pocketed the cigarettes, hurrying out of the courtyard before Liu Biao could change his mind.

“Father, why did you give him those cigarettes? Don’t let him think our family is easy to push around,” Liu Biao grumbled, clearly displeased.

“It’s New Year’s Eve; it’s not worth arguing with someone like him,” Liu Tongmao replied.

Meanwhile, Zhang Youping had already found Zhang Jiaohua and Liu Xi outside and brought them back. “I told you not to cause trouble. Why did you go blow up someone else’s pond?”

Zhang Jiaohua felt wronged. “That pond was already drained! The valve wasn’t even closed properly.”

“You think that gives you the right to cause trouble? We’ll deal with this when we get home.” Zhang Youping shot him a stern look.

Zhang Jiaohua pouted. “But it’s true!”

“Why are you scolding the kids? They didn’t do anything wrong. It’s clear that Liu Hangu was just looking for trouble. If we hadn’t been here, he would’ve made a huge fuss.” Liu Biao, still fuming that he hadn’t gotten a chance to teach Liu Hangu a lesson, defended the children.

Liu Qiaoye also stood firmly by Jiaohua’s side. “Don’t blame the kids before getting the full story. That Liu Hangu is just a lowlife. Do you really believe anything he says? If it weren’t for the New Year, I’d go beat him up myself.”

After this little incident, Zhang Jiaohua’s family had dinner and returned to Meizitang.

Many families in the village had separated and no longer celebrated the New Year together. Zhang Youlian and Zhang Youping, both brothers, had built their own houses a few years ago. According to local customs in Meizitang, families that build new houses must celebrate three consecutive New Year’s Eves in their new homes to bring good fortune. So, the two brothers celebrated the New Year separately. However, Zhang Manyin wanted Zhang Jiaohua to celebrate at the old house, so he came up with an excuse for the whole family to gather together. Even though Zhang Youping and his wife returned, Zhang Manyin still hoped the whole family could celebrate together.

After all, in China, New Year’s is all about family. Being together brings that festive feeling. The children are always the happiest when the whole family gathers for New Year’s. Zhang Jiaohua, Zhang Yuanbao, and Zhang Runtian sat together, laughing and playing. Children always find ways to be happy—a single firecracker can bring them joy, and a piece of candy can make them feel sweet. Only at their pure and innocent age can they experience the simplest and purest happiness.

“Come on, let’s watch the fireworks!” Zhang Youping brought a large firework out into the courtyard. The whole family gathered outside, looking up at the sky as the fireworks burst in brilliant colors.

“Wow, so beautiful!” Zhang Runtian clapped her hands in delight.

As the new year began, everything seemed to move faster, and before they knew it, the fifteenth day of the month had passed.

Liu Biao decided to take over Zhang Youping’s recycling station.

Zhang Youlian and his wife had already leased a barren mountain in the village. They planned to plant fruit trees at the top and tea trees along the slopes. They were already hard at work, with Zhang Youping and Zhang Manyin helping out.

Meanwhile, in Xintian County (a fictional place name, altered to avoid confusion), the county committee and government were holding a meeting to discuss this year’s production tasks.

County Mayor Deng Junshan delivered the government work report: “…Last year, our county’s total tea production reached over 6,000 tons, making us the largest supplier for Zijiang City Tea Factory. Particularly noteworthy are our signature products, Meishan Maojian and Bamboo Tube Black Tea, which are exclusively sourced from our county’s tea bases. Our progress in tea farm improvements has been very encouraging. I propose that this year, we continue to focus on expanding our tea plantations and aim to become not just a raw material supplier but also a tea processing and sales hub. Bamboo Tube Black Tea is a unique product of Xintian County, and we should work to grow and strengthen it. You may have heard that Bamboo Tube Black Tea has become a symbol of Zijiang City, and even provincial leaders are impressed by it…”

Deng Junshan had big plans for the county’s tea industry. Last year, tea had contributed significantly to Xintian County’s GDP, and he intended to expand the tea-growing area by 50% this year, using barren mountains and wasteland for tea cultivation.

The county committee and government were meticulous in their planning, and they had even found out about Luo Changjun’s relationship with Zhang Jiaohua. They used their connections to transfer Luo Changjun from the public security system to a government position, promoting him to Deputy County Mayor, specifically in charge of tea

 production in Xintian County.

Deng Junshan wasn’t satisfied with Xintian County just being a tea supplier for Zijiang City Tea Factory. He wanted to bring Bamboo Tube Black Tea back under the county’s control and develop it into the county’s flagship product to drive the growth of the local tea industry. The government work plan had already made it clear that they intended to reopen the county’s tea factory. Last time, they tried to take Bamboo Tube Black Tea from Zhang Jiaohua, but that attempt had failed. Although the situation was eventually resolved, Deng still felt something was missing. This time, he planned to cooperate with Zhang Jiaohua, following Zijiang City Tea Factory’s lead. To this end, he pulled some strings and got Luo Changjun promoted to Deputy County Mayor, a special appointment.

“Comrade Changjun, this task is crucial. You must convince Zhang Jiaohua of Meizikou to work with us. I know it’s a difficult task, but for the sake of our county’s tea industry and to make Xintian County a leader in tea production, we must overcome any challenges. I hope you can see this from the perspective of the county’s interests and handle this matter well,” Deng Junshan said, shaking Luo Changjun’s hand firmly.

Luo Changjun was still a bit dazed. He had suddenly been moved from the public security system to a government position, and not only was his rank not lowered, but he was also promoted. It was an unexpected surprise that he hadn’t yet fully processed.