Chapter 125: Xiulan’s Dominant Aura

After moving the quicklime into the house, Lin Heng still stacked it in the same room where the sanghuang mushrooms were stored. Previously, even a whole room couldn’t hold all the mushrooms, yet a thousand jin of quicklime only took up less than one cubic meter of space.

Once the unloading was done, the driver uncle was ready to leave. Though Lin Heng wanted to invite them to stay for dinner, the two quickly took off after a brief chat, saying they had to report back. As for the fuel for the rented tractor, Lin Heng had already filled up on the way, so there was no need to pay.

In the courtyard, Lin Father looked at the huge pile of goods and asked, “Just how much money did you spend? Even if you have money, you shouldn’t waste it like this.”

“It’s all necessities. I didn’t waste anything,” Lin Heng replied, then went over to the big cabinet to fetch the things he had bought for his family.

“Dad, Mom, these are for you.”

“Caiyun, this is yours.”

“Big Bro, this is for you. And this food and these school supplies are for Sister-in-law and the kids.”

Lin Heng handed out everything he had bought, stuffing them into everyone’s hands.

“You call this not wasting? We just bought stuff back in May,” Lin Father said, a bit exasperated. His son was too filial—it made him feel helpless. All this cost money, after all.

Lin Mother opened her bag and gasped, “Oh my God, how much were these shoes? And these clothes? They can’t be cheap either!”

They weren’t Liberation shoes or the yellow rubber hiking shoes they’d bought last time. These were white athletic shoes she’d rarely even seen before. They must have cost a fortune.

And the clothes—the texture, the design—all felt new and modern, completely different from what they could get in town.

Lin Father quickly opened his bag too. His outfit was a leather jacket, a pair of black trousers, and a pair of men’s dress shoes.

Some things, you can tell their quality just by one look. The moment they laid eyes on them, their hearts trembled a little.

“Spit it out, how much did this cost?” Lin Father grabbed Lin Heng by the shoulders.

“Not that much. Yours cost just over twenty yuan,” Lin Heng said helplessly.

“You call that not much? Am I wearing gold now? I’m already over fifty. As long as I have something to wear, it’s enough. This is just too extravagant!” Lin Father looked like he wanted to give his overly filial son a couple of slaps.

“You just can’t rest until all your money is spent, is that it? Xiulan, you’d better take over managing his money,” Lin Mother scolded fiercely.

Just thinking about how the shoes and clothes in her hands added up to more than twenty yuan made her hand tremble. That’s worth over a hundred jin of rice!

“Second Brother, this gift is too expensive,” Caiyun said, looking at the clothes in her bag, at a loss for words. The little shoes were just too beautiful.

Lin Heng spread his hands, totally shameless. “Go on, wear them already. I also bought laundry detergent and stuff—take it all. Once it’s bought, it can’t be returned. If you’re mad, then go ahead and hit me.”

Of course the things were nice—he’d bought them from the only high-end mall in Taibai City, the kind of place only rich folks frequented.

Lin Father looked at him and really did want to give him a couple of smacks.

“Sigh, just spend, then. Let’s see how much you’ve got,” Lin Mother shook her head in resignation.

What else could they do? Since the stuff was from the city, might as well wear it.

Lin Father was helpless too. His son was a big spender—but he spent it all on them, so he couldn’t even scold him properly. It was frustrating.

“Little Bro, what about your own clothes…” Lin Yue began, but Lin Heng cut him off.

“Enough with that, Bro. We’re all men here. If you feel bad about it, just help me out more in the fields—I’m lazy anyway.”

Before they could argue, Lin Heng shoved them all out the door, along with the stuff he’d bought them.

“From now on, the Lin family won’t be short on money. Stop scrimping. Eat your fill of white rice and fine flour!” With that, Lin Heng shut the door.

At that moment, Lin Father, Lin Mother, and the others truly felt what it was like to be rich. From afar, the villagers watched, shaking their heads and sighing—there weren’t even enough words left for “envy.”

“Quit staring. Go on home,” Lin Mother said helplessly.

Everyone carried their clothes home, and once they got there, they couldn’t wait to try them on. They’d never worn such expensive clothes before, so naturally they were excited—even if they didn’t want Lin Heng to waste money like this.

Caiyun put on the clothes and shoes Lin Heng had bought her and came out to ask, “Mom, how do I look?”

“My daughter is so pretty,” Lin Mother marveled. She finally understood the saying ‘Clothes make the man, saddle makes the horse’.

With her red jacket, blue bell-bottoms, and white sneakers, the fresh design and stylish cut made Caiyun seem like a different person—elegant and cool, like a freshly bloomed snow lotus.

If she wore this to school, she’d be every boy’s unspoken crush—the kind of girl they’d never dare confess to, but would remember for the rest of their lives.

“Mom, you look like you’re in your twenties too,” Caiyun said with a smile.

“Sigh, expensive clothes really are different. The feeling on your body isn’t the same,” Lin Mother sighed with emotion.

Then the mother and daughter hurried Lin Father into his new clothes too. Once dressed, he looked younger—like a successful businessman.

…

After sending off everyone in the courtyard, Lin Heng finally turned to Xiulan and their daughter, smiling, “Wife, guess what I bought you?”

“Isn’t it just clothes and shoes?” Xiulan said, winking at their daughter.

“Daddy, I want candy!” Xiaoxia demanded again, feeling wronged that her dad had ignored her candy request earlier.

“Here, Daddy got you something even better,” Lin Heng said, tearing open a bag of shrimp chips and feeding her.

After two bites, Xiaoxia’s eyes sparkled—this was a whole new world of flavor. “So yummy!”

“Take it and enjoy,” Lin Heng handed over the whole bag of high-end shrimp chips. Xiaoxia sat on her little stool and munched happily, licking her fingers after each one.

With his daughter settled, Lin Heng took out a box from the bag like a treasure and presented it to his wife, smiling, “For you—open it.”

Xiulan curiously opened it, then froze. “A watch!”

“Like it? Let me put it on you,” Lin Heng grinned. Her stunned look was just too cute.

Xiulan looked at him helplessly, but with warmth in her heart. “You spent money again… I really don’t know what to say. This must’ve cost over a hundred.”

“These are couple watches. I’m happy spending money on you,” Lin Heng chuckled and slipped the watch onto her wrist, showing off his own too.

Let people say he was a show-off—he just wanted to buy things for his family.

“I don’t know how to read this. Is it the same as a clock?” Xiulan asked, staring at her wrist.

“Yeah,” Lin Heng said, and patiently taught her how to read the time. After a while, she got the hang of it.

With a sly grin, Lin Heng added, “I also bought you two outfits and a set of lingerie. Come on, let’s go inside so you can try them on for me.”

Still munching on her shrimp chips, Xiaoxia was also pulled inside—he’d bought something for her too.

“You got me a dress?” Xiulan looked at the floral skirt in her hands, unsure what to do. She’d never worn something like that.

“No worries, I’ll teach you how to wear it. It’s just normal clothes—don’t be scared,” Lin Heng said, smiling.

There were women in the village who wore skirts too. They weren’t anything rare, after all—they’d been around since ancient times.

“These white socks—those are the ones city women wear on their legs, right?” Lin Heng added, pointing at the stockings.

“No wonder their legs always looked so white,” Xiulan finally understood the secret. She’d been wondering about that ever since her last trip to the city.

She watched her husband get so excited, so she had no choice but to take off her clothes and change into the new ones, putting on white stockings.

Xiulan stands at 1.7 meters, her legs are already long and white, so with the stockings on, they looked even whiter. However, her delicate feet looked more misty inside the stockings. Lin Heng touched them lightly, the feel was really good, making him want to taste them.

“Stop touching, our daughter is here,” Xiulan glared at him. She was a bit scared; why was her husband still swallowing his saliva?

“Haha, mainly because you look too good,” Lin Heng chuckled and withdrew his hands.

Xiulan glanced at him with a roll of her eyes, then put on her skirt and changed into a white blouse.

Lin Heng personally helped his wife put on her low-heeled sandals.

When Xiulan stood up from the bed, Lin Heng was stunned. Before him, Xiulan seemed to have transformed into an urban white-collar worker, exuding a mature, dominant aura.

Her watery eyes looked at him, as if she were the caring big sister from next door.

“Doesn’t it look good?” Xiulan blinked and asked deliberately.

That playful expression instantly gave off the vibe of a mature woman teasing a young man.

“You don’t know how enchanting you look right now,” Lin Heng sighed, “If our daughter wasn’t here, I’d have jumped on you.”

“I think it’s quite nice too, you have good taste,” Xiulan blinked, lifting the hem of her skirt. Wearing a dress really is a unique experience.

Then she changed into another outfit more suited for autumn. If the previous set was more urban, elegant, like a female teacher, this one was purely the mature woman vibe, especially with Xiulan’s hair down, long legs and slim waist – it was captivating at first glance.

“Alright, after you’ve seen it, I’m changing back,” Xiulan raised her hand and spun around in front of Lin Heng.

“You could just wear it like this at home,” Lin Heng shrugged.

“These expensive clothes shouldn’t be worn at home; I’ll wear them when I visit my parents for the Mid-Autumn Festival,” Xiulan said while changing back.

“Once I buy you more in the future, you’ll get used to it,” Lin Heng smiled slightly.

“Spend recklessly and you’ll be sleeping on the floor!” Xiulan poked Lin Heng hard, pressing him against the wall in warning.

Just as Lin Heng was about to turn the tables, Xiaoxia ran over, holding an empty bag, looking at him expectantly, “Daddy, I want more.”

“Tomorrow, we’ll eat. Let’s try on your new clothes first,” Lin Heng lifted her onto the bed, and together with Xiulan, they helped her change.

Xiaoxia looked at her clothes with a pitiful gaze, not interested at all, only wanting something to eat. But with her mom around, she didn’t dare speak up, just licking the shrimp chips crumbs off her mouth.

“Eat them tomorrow morning; they’ll taste better then,” Lin Heng patted his adorable daughter.

The first outfit Lin Heng bought for her was a floral dress with white knee-high socks. Once dressed, Xiaoxia looked like a little princess.

The second outfit was for autumn, with a light yellow coat, a white sweater underneath, blue pants, and black cloth shoes.

Everything fit well except the shoes, which were a bit large.

After trying on all the clothes, Lin Heng checked his watch; it was already 7:30.

Stepping outside, the sky was filled with red clouds in the west.

“Awoo~~”

Xiongba came over, rubbing against him, seemingly wanting a gift too.

“I really brought you a gift,” Lin Heng said with a smile.

“Woo woo~~”

Xiongba stuck out his tongue, showing a Samoyed smile, rubbing his head against Lin Heng’s leg.

Lin Heng took out a small paper package from his bag, opened it to reveal several pieces of deworming medicine, and handed one to Xiongba, “Eat this, it’s good for you.”

“Woof woof??”

Xiongba barked angrily at Lin Heng.

“Woo~”

Before he could bark twice, Lin Heng pried open his mouth and threw the medicine down his throat.

Xiongba couldn’t even cough it out, angrily headbutting Lin Heng, as if questioning who was really the dog here.

Seeing Lin Heng take out a piece of fish with a pill hidden inside to feed the small golden cat Jinbao, Xiongba charged at Lin Heng, his eyes full of resentment. You give that silly cat a disguise but won’t even pretend for me, right?

“Awoo!!”

He decided to run away from home, but after reaching the door, he lay down silently.

Lin Heng shrugged; he wanted to buy something for Xiongba too, but there was no dog food available in the country at that time.

Xiulan prepared dinner, and while eating, Lin Heng chatted with her about what he saw and heard that day.

Xiulan already knew about Lin Heng starting a Acquisition Station, and upon learning that the paperwork wasn’t complete, she asked, “So you have to go back to the city tomorrow?”

“Yeah, no choice, this kind of thing definitely requires at least two trips, might even need several,” Lin Heng said helplessly.

“But once this is settled, there won’t be anything else,” Lin Heng nodded.

“By the way, wife, I’m thinking of buying a cow and a horse. The cow for milk for Xiaoxia, and the horse for transportation,” Lin Heng added.

“Can we buy a cow around here?” Xiulan was curious.

“I’m not sure, I’ll ask around when I go down,” Lin Heng said.

Xiulan nodded, “We can buy them; otherwise, you walking back and forth is too tiring.”

“Okay, I’ll look into it this time,” Lin Heng nodded.

After dinner, Lin Heng went to feed Xiongba, who seemed genuinely upset and ignored him.

Lin Heng went over and rubbed his head; he grumbled.

“I’ll make you something delicious in a couple of days,” Lin Heng said.

“Woof!” Immediately, Xiongba got up to eat; he was actually very hungry.

Lin Heng shook his head, thinking to himself, this dog is really something else.

As night fell, Lin Heng went into the woods to check on the cicadas, but they weren’t coming out much anymore. After searching for a while, he didn’t find many.

“There sure are a lot of scorpions,” Lin Heng remarked, seeing many along the way.

He collected over thirty cicadas before heading back.

That night, after much pleading from Lin Heng, Xiulan finally wore the white stockings.

The stockings made him a bit too eager, leading to an awkward situation.

The next morning, Xiulan looked at the tangled stockings, wanting to hit Lin Heng; they were brand new and already ruined.

“It’s okay, I’ll buy you another pair next time,” Lin Heng chuckled.

Xiulan glared at him fiercely, “Now I know why you bought these, you rascal!”

Lin Heng just smiled, not daring to say anything; his wife had been very cooperative last night.

“Still laughing!” Xiulan slapped him playfully.

After getting up, they went to feed the chickens and ducks together. In just over three months, the chickens and ducks had grown, and Lin Heng had chosen all the right genders.

Except for one chick that died from illness, the rest were healthy and had started laying eggs.

“Two more eggs, they’re so diligent,” Xiulan said happily, seeing three eggs in the coop.

Lin Heng reached in, took two and left one. If there’s one egg left, the hen will work harder to lay more, aiming for five or six to hatch, but there’s always just one.

“I feel like having some Toona sinensis with eggs,” Lin Heng handed the eggs to his wife, smiling.

“Then let’s have Toona sinensis with eggs for breakfast; we have plenty of dried Toona at home,” Xiulan said, looking at the eggs.

“Let’s do Toona sinensis with cured meat, boil the eggs for our daughter, and I’ll buy more in a few days,” Lin Heng thought for a moment.

For breakfast, they had rice, a plate of fried cicadas, a plate of Toona sinensis with cured meat, and a plate of spicy and sour shredded potatoes.

The Toona sinensis with cured meat was incredibly delicious, the unique flavor of Toona blending with the cured meat, making it a perfect dish to go with rice. Lin Heng ate two large bowls of rice.

After breakfast, Lin Heng set off to find the village head to get a certificate.

“You want to open a Acquisition Station? Have you coordinated with the state-run store below yet?” Tian Dongfu asked curiously.

“It’s all set. I know one of the directors over there,” Lin Heng replied with a smile.

“Lin Heng, your connections aren’t simple,” said Village Chief Zhao Hu in surprise from the office. His gaze inevitably landed on the watch on Lin Heng’s wrist, his expression tinged with envy.

“Yeah, I can’t believe you even have that kind of connection,” Tian Dongfu added, equally amazed.

The two hardest things about opening a Acquisition Station were having enough cash on hand and establishing a connection with a state-run store. The latter was especially difficult—without the right contacts, it was almost impossible.

Yet Lin Heng had quietly managed to handle both. This truly made the two men see him in a new light.

Zhao Hu looked at Lin Heng and thought, Why didn’t I notice these things about him before?

“Haha, it was all just a matter of chance,” Lin Heng said modestly.

“If you’ve got everything else in place, then there’s no problem on our side. I’ll write it up for you right now,” Tian Dongfu said, looking at Lin Heng. He actually wished there were more people like Lin Heng in the village.

“Uncle Tian, Uncle Zhao, when will our village get electricity?” Lin Heng asked curiously while Tian Dongfu was writing up the certification.

“We’ve been wanting that too, but the villagers would have to pay for it. Each household would need to put in ten or twenty yuan. Not everyone’s willing to do that,” Zhao Hu sighed.

At that time, running electric lines wasn’t free. Many villages didn’t want to pay for it, and even into the 2000s, some still hadn’t been electrified. It wasn’t until later, when it became free to run lines, that every household finally got electricity.

“But if the village wants to become prosperous and develop, electricity is a must. Maybe we can try mobilizing the villagers,” Lin Heng said with a smile.

In his past life, it had been Tian Dongfu who went door-to-door persuading everyone until the deal was finally made. Lin Heng nudged him now, hoping it could happen a little earlier this time.

“I’ll give it a try in the fall,” Tian Dongfu said as he continued writing. He knew the road to wealth started with access to roads and electricity.

But it was going to be tough. If worse came to worst, he’d try getting a village collective loan and worry about paying it off later—getting the power lines up came first.

“I can help with mobilizing people when the time comes,” Lin Heng nodded. Without electricity in the village, even a celestial being couldn’t help them develop.

“Alright,” Tian Dongfu nodded.

After a little while, the two certification documents were finished.

(End of this chapter)

—————

Toona sinensis, or Chinese toon, is a fast-growing tree native to Asia. Its young reddish shoots are a spring delicacy in Chinese cuisine, known for their unique onion-garlic flavor. Commonly stir-fried with eggs or served cold, they’re also valued in traditional medicine. The shoots must be cooked before eating due to potential nitrate content.