Li Tingyun and Xu Erhua had never participated in such things, but they were still happy to think that they could make some contribution to the dam.

The mobilization meeting didn't last long, but the villagers were very enthusiastic.

Although road construction is hard work, the work points will not be small, and this time a lunch will be provided, which is undoubtedly a timely help for many people. After all, everyone's life is not easy.

The most important thing is that the place is not far away and I can go home at night.

Since we are going to provide meals, we need a few people to cook.

In the past, the aunties in the village helped to cook, but the taste was very ordinary, and the rice they ate was all old rice from the upper reaches.

"Village chief, I don't want to cook this time. I want to repair the road." said an aunt who was in charge of cooking before.

"I don't want to cook anymore. I don't have many work points this year, and I want to earn more." Another aunt also stood up.

The village chief looked at the two of them and felt a little embarrassed. Cooking only earned five work points, and every time the dam was repaired, it was only the two of them and Xiao Zhuang's mother. This was indeed a bit embarrassing for them.

Just when he couldn't find a suitable candidate, Li Tingyun and Xu Erhua came over.

The two discussed it before coming and finally decided to take on this job.

"Old village chief, how about Erhua and I help Dazhuang's mother cook?" Li Tingyun said.

There is another reason for taking this job, that is, when they are not cooking, they can go to the nearby mountains to dig herbs, hunt, and find some mountain products. In this way, they don’t have to ask for leave later unless there are special circumstances.

When the old village chief saw the two people stand up, he smiled with relief on his face.

The two aunts were also very grateful for their willingness to help, but just when the old village chief was about to agree, Liu Yue and Li Qiang came over.

"We also want to do this, but you can't be partial to me, village chief." Li Qiang stepped forward and said.

The old village chief saw that Li Qiang was a little confused and that this troublemaker was very troublesome. Comrade Liu Yue, although she looked weak on the surface, was also a thoughtful person.

I guess they came out because they thought they could gain some benefits from cooking.

One of the aunts shared the same idea as the village chief. She said sarcastically, "Young man, don't think you can gain anything from cooking. It takes a lot of time to pick up stones from the pot every day. If you don't do it well, you will be scolded."

"Auntie, I can cook. I can try." Liu Yue said gently.

The old village chief was a little embarrassed. It was not a good thing to be accused of favoritism too often.

The old branch secretary and the team leader came over and couldn't help laughing when they heard that four people were competing to make lunch.

There is absolutely no problem with the character of Li Tingyun and Xu Erhua, but it is hard to say about Li Qiang and Liu Yue.

"Let's go and take a look at the situation over there first, and then you can make a decision." The captain felt that there was no point in arguing any further. After seeing the environment, some people would probably back down.

Li Tingyun and the other three walked at the back, while Liu Yue and Li Qiang walked in front. Liu Yue chatted with the old branch secretary and the others along the way and seemed very enthusiastic.

"Doesn't she care about work points?" Xu Erhua said in a low voice.

"They think cooking from a big pot is more comfortable than building roads." Li Tingyun probably guessed what the two were thinking.

"Really? Why don't I feel any better? It's not easy to cook for so many people. If it weren't for you, I wouldn't dare to take such a job." Xu Erhua thought about how many people were feeding, and how much rice there would be, and she also had to wash the vegetables and so on.

The villagers walked towards where Li Tingyun and his family lived, and left the village from a road on this side. After walking for about half an hour, they arrived at the place where they were building the road.

The path was winding. People had already arrived at other villages, but the place closest to them was empty.

Li Tingyun took a look and didn't think much about it. He followed Xiao Zhuang's mother to the side of the road and helped set up the tent first.

The tent is where the night watchmen live at night. Some things are placed inside, and there is a shed next to it for cooking and storing firewood.

After all this was done, a big pot was brought over, along with a few bags of rice.

Xiao Zhuang's mother poured some rice into the pot and saw a lot of stones and sand in it.

"Either you pick out the sand or eat it. This is actually the most troublesome part of cooking. Before, the three of us didn't have very good eyesight, so we often found sand in our meals." She glanced at everyone after she said that.

After pouring out some of the rice, she opened the sack next to it, which contained cabbage, radishes, and potatoes.

These are vegetables grown in the brigade. They are covered in mud and it takes a lot of time to wash them clean.

"Cooking doesn't seem very tiring, but it takes a lot of time. There is a river nearby, but the water is relatively cold," she added.

Looking at these things, Liu Yue couldn't help but frowning.

Not to mention the hassle of picking up stones to wash vegetables in such cold weather, it is also not easy to lift such a big pot.

"You guys try this pot." After she said that, she made way and let everyone try it first.

Li Qiang originally thought it would be an easy job, but Liu Yue said it was okay if the work points were a little less, and she would give him some food when the time came. Only then did he agree to come over.

Now it seems, it’s not easy at all!

It would be better to go build roads, at least you don’t have to soak your hands in cold water.

Seeing this situation, Liu Yue had no choice but to back down. It was difficult for her to lift the big pot, let alone cook.

"I, I don't think I can do it. I'll go and repair the road!" she said weakly.

"Li Qiang, you are a gay, why don't you stay and help?" the old village chief said deliberately.

"I, I want to earn more work points." Li Qiang didn't want to stay.

Three women and one man, it would be strange if he didn't suffer any loss if he stayed!

When the captain and the others heard this, they couldn't help but smile sarcastically.

After sending the two troublemakers away, the old village chief chuckled and said, "Alright, you guys go about your business. If you have any questions, ask Xiao Zhuang's mother. She's very experienced."

Why……

The two of them responded and began to follow Xiao Zhuang's mother's instructions.

Gu Xingwu and the team leader helped to make the tent more secure. This place would not be removed at night, and each village would send two people to stay here to guard the night, so it had to be made ready.

Li Tingyun looked at the grains and found that there were too many stones of different sizes in them. It would take a lot of effort to pick them up one by one.

"I have a way to do this." Xu Erhua patted Li Tingyun's shoulder and stood up. She looked at Xiao Zhuang's mother and said, "Xiao Zhuang's mother, I'm going to go back and get some things to help."

"Be careful, almost everyone in the village has come out." Xiao Zhuang's mother reminded.

"Liuli, accompany Tingyun back to get some things." Li Tingyun walked out of the tent and instructed Gu Xingwu.

Gu Xingwu dusted off his hands and went back with Xu Erhua.

After a while, the two men came back with a dustpan.

The winnowing basket that Xu Erhua brought had many gaps in it, and could be considered a failed work of art, but it was now just the right size for sifting rice.

"Erhua, you are so awesome." Xiao Zhuang's mother gave Xu Erhua a thumbs up.