Chapter 104 (1)
Xia Juhua thought that the reporter's question was nonsense, except for the number of people participating in the campaign. In the past, when the county organized a campaign, the production team that built the canal would give the participating members work points. Didn't the reporter know that the brigade's reserve grain could not be moved? The members of the commune ate their own food.
When the reporter heard that the members might have to eat the cold biscuits they brought with them, he looked upset: "The farmers are really too hard-working. They do such tiring work and still have to eat cold dry food."
Xia Juhua couldn't help but speak up, "When we were repairing the Xihe Reservoir before, we all brought dry food with us. Now the third team has organized people to boil hot water for. Compared with the county-wide battle, the conditions are much better - everyone can go home and eat something hot after work every day."
The old reporter is in a state of emotional excitement...
Li Changshun was more experienced than Xia Juhua. He knew that the more the reporter talked about the hardships in person, the better the report would be in the future. He smiled and said to the old reporter: "Comrade Xia Juhua has always been able to endure hardships. The people in their production team nicknamed her Xia Xiaohuo. So what others think is hardship is nothing new to her."
So that's how it is. The old reporter looked at Xia Juhua and found that she didn't show any disgust when she mentioned that not-so-nice nickname to Li Changshun. He was very impressed in his heart - it's really not a nice word for a woman to be called a young man. Xia Juhua was able to remain calm, which shows that she is a very strong woman.
He didn't notice that while he was thinking, Li Changshun looked at Xia Juhua with some concern, while Xia Juhua shook her head at Li Changshun nonchalantly:
Compared to Li Changshun, who has been dealing with his superiors for decades, Xia Juhua dared to speak casually in front of Director Zhang and Uncle Qi, but she relied on the relationship between Li Changshun and Director Zhang and Qi Weidong and Uncle Qi, and was sure that the two men would not make things too difficult for her.
Li Changshun was obviously trying to redeem himself by refiuting the reporter's words just now, so Xia Juhua would never blame him for calling her by her nickname. Not only that, Xia Juhua even felt that she had learned something from Li Changshun.
Old people may be stubborn or nagging, but their life experiences and knowledge are never in vain. Don't think that Xia Juhua watched TV for two more years in her previous life, but when it comes to dealing with people outside, she is far worse than Li Changshun.
The old reporter's smile remained unchanged as he asked Xia Juhua his next question: "Captain Xia, the Red Star Commune told us that it was you who came up with the idea of making the Ping'anzhuang production team's first character mat, which led to the huge development of the Ping'anzhuang production team's sideline business today. Is that true?"
Xia Juhua received Li Changshun's implicit reminder just now, and her attitude couldn't be more correct: "Although the pattern of the calligraphy mat was originally my idea, it would be impossible to complete the supply and marketing cooperative's order in one go without the cooperation of all the women comrades in the production team. It is all the joint credit of the vast majority of women comrades, and I personally did nothing."
This lack of self-respect made the old reporter look up to Xia Juhua even more, and he began to talk to her casually, just like chatting with her about daily life. Although reporters can be casual, Xia Juhua was always on guard, trying to make her words as high-sounding as possible and not to make any mistakes.
With Li Changshun on the side, the conversation between the three people went smoothly. The two reporters who went to interview the members came back, and the three of them were still not satisfied. The old reporter finally asked the question that he was most concerned about:
"Captain Xia, I see on your banner it says 'Agriculture Learning from Dazhai Commando'. Do you want to learn from Dazhai's spirit of fearlessness of hardship and fearlessness of death and open up the water channels for the entire brigade as soon as possible?"
For a raid, there must be a target, otherwise it would be enough to just put up a banner about the battle.
Xia Juhua couldn't help but glance at Li Changshun, who turned his head to observe the members digging the canal and refused to look at her.
Anyway, I didn't say the time when the call will be connected, so you can write whatever you want.
The old reporter shook hands with Li Changshun again with great satisfaction. Regardless of Xia Juhua's and others' attempts to keep him, he said that he also wanted to learn from the members of Ping'anzhuang Brigade, show a spirit of assault, and publish the report on the Battle of Ping'anzhuang as soon as possible.
After seeing the reporter off, Xia Juhua heaved a sigh of relief, remembering that Li Changshun's legs couldn't stand standing for too long, and wanted to take him to the side of the road to rest for a while. Li Changshun waved his hand to tell her not to rush: "If this matter is really reported, we will have to clear all the canals."
Xia Juhua was about to dredge the canal, and said confidently: "Captain, we can definitely dredge the canal." This was a little later than the reporter expected.
Li Changshun listened to the whistle of the third team leader telling the members to rest and have lunch, and sighed: "Look at what everyone is eating. Today is the first day, and each production team is competing with each other, and everyone is working hard. After three or five days, everyone will be tired. Can the progress be as fast as today?"
Xia Juhua also felt that Li Changshun's worries were justified, but she didn't want him to worry too much. Just as she was thinking about how to answer, a series of car bells rang behind her.
Looking back, it was the reporter with the camera on his chest. He got out of the car, smiled at Xia Juhua and the others, and said, "Excuse me, Captain Xia, I want to take a shot of the members having lunch and see if I can send it out with the report."
Xia Juhua said with some embarrassment: "Everyone brought pancakes or steamed sweet potatoes. If they are photographed, it won't bring discredit to the group, right?"
The reporter said as if it was a matter of course: "No, it just reflects the hard-working and struggling spirit of the members who work hard for the revolution."
What else is there to say? Xia Juhua personally led the reporters to the members who were sitting down in their respective places.
As Xia Juhua expected, most of the troop members brought flatbreads, but some who were in difficult circumstances at home simply brought steamed sweet potatoes with a piece of pickled mustard. When they were about to start eating, they saw Xia Juhua and the reporter coming over and were a little at a loss.
"Captain, have you eaten yet? Why don't you have a bite in our production team?" Niu Erniu raised the sweet potato in his hand and offered it to Xia Juhua. He was smiling because he was talking to Xia Juhua, but the hand holding the sweet potato was dark and cracked. Because the cuffs were slightly shrunk when he raised his hand, a small part of the thread had been unraveled, revealing the black cotton inside.
The reporter froze the camera for a moment, and after hearing Xia Juhua politely told the others to remember to ask Team 3 for a bowl of hot water to keep their stomachs from getting upset, he followed her out, sighing, "This is all we eat, and yet we have to do such heavy work."
Xia Juhua was thinking that the Fifth Team didn't seem to be having an easy time, and her face looked a little heavy: "Yes, in a few days, we might not even have sweet potatoes to eat." Why was the Fifth Team Leader still so obsessed with selling vermicelli? She would have to talk to him about it later.
Xia Juhua was so lost in thought that she didn't notice that the reporter had captured her solemn face in the camera.
After taking a few photos with the reporter, Xia Juhua again invited the reporter to have lunch. But the reporter, who had just seen what everyone was eating, was too embarrassed to stay, as that would mean he was eating from the farmers' mouths.
The place where the reporter was sent off was not far from where the Pingan Village production team worked, so Xia Juhua simply went to find her two sons, and they all had a meal together before continuing to work. Before they got close to the resting place of the Pingan Village members, a burst of sour and spicy smell came to their noses. Xia Juhua took a closer look and laughed.
The women in Ping An Village are so talented.
I don't know who came up with the idea, but even though they couldn't use a stove to light a fire in the field, they actually soaked the vermicelli at home, put the seasoning in jars, and then used the hot water boiled by Team Three to make hot and sour vermicelli for the men in their family!
The hot, sour and spicy aroma stimulated people's taste buds. The Ping'an Village members ate the delicious food one by one, which made the Xiaozhuangtou members who were resting next to them feel that the cakes in their hands were too dry and too irritating to the throat. They could not swallow them at all - they had just seen that half of the people in Team 5 brought steamed sweet potatoes, and they thought the cakes were quite delicious.
Why can't my own wife remember that I should have something hot for lunch after working all morning? Yes, Team 3 boiled hot water for everyone, but the biscuits were still cold!
The more he thought about it, the more unwilling the member from Xiaozhuang was. He slowly moved to the side of the member from Pinganzhuang and asked, "Are you eating vermicelli as well?"
The Ping An Village member had not yet realized the crisis and nodded calmly: "Yes, it is just vermicelli. But if you add some chili and vinegar, it tastes good."
Doesn't that taste good? The taste shouldn't be too attractive, okay?
A member of Xiaozhuangtou asked again: "Just adding chili and vinegar? It would be better to just chew vermicelli."
The Pingan Village members looked at the people from the small village with eyes that they had never seen the world: "You chew the vermicelli directly, how come your teeth are so good? How long do you have to chew the dry vermicelli before you can swallow it, it's not like it goes into the stomach in one sip. Alas, my wife is busy now, if she wasn't busy, she could cut some meat and make some meat soup, that would be great."
"You should be content." An experienced person couldn't stand it any longer: "If every family hadn't bought a hot pot last year, you would have sprinkled half of the seasoning on it. Besides, your wife even put cabbage hearts in it, isn't it better than eating pickled vegetables?"
The small village head member who was just about to take a bite of pickled vegetables to add flavor felt like he had suffered 10,000 points of damage.
Gradually, all the participants in the battle saw the unique way of eating of Ping An Village members, and many people came to ask how it was made. Ping An Village people did not keep any of the methods of making vermicelli secrets, and introduced them in detail. If you have good connections, you will come to ask, and if you bring a lot of soup from home, you will invite them to taste it.
Xia Juhua and her two sons didn't get to eat the hot and sour rice noodles - Wang Caifeng was busy frying peanuts and had no time to bring them soup, so she only asked Sun Zhaodi to bring them some freshly made cakes.
"Captain, I still have some soup here, would you like a sip?" From time to time, someone asked Xia Juhua's mother this question, but Xia Juhua refused them all - the freshly steamed cakes had a light sweetness, and Wang Caifeng mixed some old pumpkin in it, which made it very chewy when bitten, but it actually made people feel more hungry than the spicy and sour noodles.
Li Daniu and several other production team leaders have discovered that the food in Ping'an Village is different. Like the other members, they complain about their wives at home, but they also want to know whether their own production team can also make vermicelli in this way.
"Captain, you haven't finished eating yet?" Several people quickly gathered around Xia Juhua and were surprised to find that Xia Juhua was still chewing the cake: "Why didn't you drink that? Where's the hot and sour rice noodle?"
Xia Juhua swallowed the last bite of the biscuit, drank a sip of water, and then said, "If you want to learn how to make it, just ask anyone in Ping An Village. We do it the same way as them."
Is it really okay to say it so bluntly? Li Daniu glanced at Xia Juhua with some resentment.
Even though Xia Juhua had been accompanying the reporter for the entire morning, she still observed how the team leaders worked. It must be said that with Li Daniu's intelligence, he was able to be the production team leader for such a long time, which was completely due to his hard work.
This guy is so capable.
While others took two shovels of soil, he could dig three, and each shovel contained half a pound more soil than others. He also had a loud voice and was not afraid of offending people. He would yell at anyone who stopped shoveling or was taking a break. His serious, stubborn and responsible spirit meant that if he was not allowed to be the production team leader, he would beat anyone else to the ground.
But you work so hard, aren't you looking at people in a too feminine way? Xia Juhua looked at Li Daniu puzzledly and asked, "Captain Li, am I wrong?"
Li Daniu didn't see Li Changshun around, so he spoke: "Captain, it's not that we don't want to do the same as Pingan Village and let everyone have a hot meal. But I just saw that it's too troublesome to bring the seasoning soup over, and we don't have that many old guys."
So you are not attracted by the good food in Pingan Village, but by the things they use to hold food. Xia Juhua looked at Li Daniu steadily and smiled: "It is not easy to find industrial tickets. Our production team is still making mats like last year, and the supply and marketing cooperatives..."
Several production team leaders stood up. There was no point in chatting today. They couldn't make mats like Ping'an Village this year, okay? Where could they find industrial tickets? If they could find industrial tickets, why would they look for Xia Juhua? Couldn't they just go to the supply and marketing cooperative and buy them themselves?
The team leaders, who were unable to chat with Xia Juhua, put all their energy into digging the earth. They ran to their respective plots one by one and started digging the earth without saying a word. The members looked at their team leaders going crazy without knowing why, and after hesitating for a while, they stood up and followed suit.
Chen Qiusheng was stunned: "What's wrong with them?"
Xia Juhua didn't care and continued to sit on her seat: "You are using a cruel trick on me."
Even though she knew that the production team leaders were showing off in front of her, Xia Juhua still asked Qi Weidong if he could get some industrial products like hot pots when he came to collect vermicelli again.
For Qi Weidong, selling anything means making money, so he immediately agreed: "Auntie, just tell me how much you want. I can't say how much, but a dozen or twenty should be no problem." After saying that, he winked at Xia Juhua.
Knowing that he was not here just for vermicelli, Xia Juhua sent both of her sons away and asked, "What can't be told to Zhiquan and his brothers?"
Qi Weidong smiled wickedly: "Auntie, did you know that Sun Hongmei is getting married?"
The movements were not slow. Xia Juhua replied uninterestedly: "It's just this matter. I have already told Zhishuang about it. He also hopes that Sun Hongmei will get married soon, so that he doesn't have to worry about her jumping out and causing trouble every day." So there was no need to let the two of them go out just now.
Qi Weidong said disapprovingly: "She didn't just get married and that was it. Auntie, you know, it wasn't Sun Hongmei who went on the blind date, it was her parents who went. After they got married, Sun Hongmei realized what kind of man she married, and she made a fuss about going back to her parents' home, which made Uncle Li Lin give her a black eye."
"On the wedding day?" Xia Juhua couldn't believe it. Didn't the man just get married when he was in his forties? Normally, he should have cherished the marriage for two days, so how could he bear to do it on the same day?
Qi Weidong said with a bit of gloating: "That Sun Hongmei is too much of a troublemaker. People paid 50 kilograms of flour to marry her, but she ended up calling people ugly and crippled in front of the guests, saying that they shouldn't have harmed her. People got angry and didn't care about her?"
She really deserves a beating. As a woman, Xia Juhua was speechless about such behavior of exposing someone's shortcomings in front of her, so she simply said to Qi Weidong: "Don't tell me about her affairs in the future."
Qi Weidong smiled good-naturedly, and stopped talking about Sun Hongmei. Instead, he talked about how he bought food for Ping'an Village: "The money is limited. This time, I only bought 100 kilograms of sorghum. Auntie, I really tried my best."
According to Xia Juhua's own calculations, Qi Weidong could not earn a penny from buying 100 kilograms of sorghum. She said with some guilt, "Xiao Qi, this time Auntie is giving you a difficult problem."
"Auntie, if you really think I'm at a disadvantage, ask your sister-in-law to fry some peanuts for me. I don't need to coat my peanuts with icing sugar, but I can still sell some before the New Year."
Yes, the farmers had a poor harvest due to the drought, but people in the city who ate commercial grain were not greatly affected. They still had monthly rations and monthly wages, and they still needed some snacks to liven up the New Year atmosphere.
Xia Juhua did not object to this: "You go and discuss it with your sister-in-law. I don't have time to take care of your affairs."
Qi Weidong knew that even if Xia Juhua said she didn't care, Wang Caifeng would not agree to it without her nod. Now that Xia Juhua had nodded, he could bring the peanuts tomorrow.
Thinking about the money coming in, Qi Weidong asked in a good mood: "Auntie, is the oil at home enough? How about I exchange it for some peanut oil?"
This year, Xia Juhua didn't fry peanuts, so there were no peanuts left to exchange for oil. She hardly cared about the kitchen now, and had no idea whether there was any oil left, so she asked Qi Weidong to ask Wang Caifeng himself.
Hearing that she could continue to make money by frying peanuts for Qi Weidong, Wang Caifeng became extremely enthusiastic. She immediately asked Qi Weidong to buy 20 kilograms of flour for her next time he came, and she would pay for it from her future processing fees.
When Xia Juhua found out, she said to her, "You're having a hard time making ends meet, why are you buying so much flour all of a sudden?" Given Wang Caifeng's personality, she would never do such a thing as eating flour buns with Baoguo Lele at home while Xia Juhua's mother was repairing the canal. The bought flour must have been used to feed everyone.
Wang Caifeng rarely argued with her mother-in-law: "Mom, didn't you say that the money was earned by myself and I have to decide how to spend it. I want everyone to eat well and not harm their health." Didn't Zhishuang also treat his family to meat after earning money? The same was true for their eldest wife, who were not the kind of people who only cared about their own family and not the rest of the family.
It would be better if mother-in-law saw that they were all trying to get close to everyone and gave up the idea of dividing the family.
Xia Juhua was now fully focused on the canal construction battle and had no time to care what Wang Caifeng was thinking. She told her not to work too hard and not to disappoint her seventh grandmother, and then she brought her people to the canal construction site again.
After several days of hard work, the distance between Team 3 and the Ping'an Village water channel was only halfway closed. Li Changshun was happy to stay at the construction site every day. When he saw Xia Juhua coming, he smiled and said, "The battle can mobilize people's enthusiasm. If only Team 3 repaired it, it would take a whole winter to get it done."
Seeing that everyone was working, Xia Juhua quietly told Li Changshun about Qi Weidong's purchase of sorghum: "This 100 kilograms of sorghum was bought with the money seized from the small village head and the fourth team. Let them take it back later. At least it can hold out for a while."
Li Changshun frowned after hearing this, but he finally sighed and said, "You are thinking about the militia, so I won't say anything. But you have to make it clear to Li Daniu and the others that this little bit of food must go into the militia's stomach. We can't just give it to someone because they cry."
In fact, sorghum is not a good food. In normal years, it is often used as fodder for cattle and horses. But now it has become a good thing. Li Changshun angrily cursed: "...What a big deal."
Regardless of whether it was a problem or not, having food was better than having no food. After hearing this, Li Changshun and the fourth captain said that they would secretly go to Xia Juhua's house to carry the food back, and they would also ask their wives to prepare it every night and distribute it to the militia.
Because she was not sure how many hot water bottles Qi Weidong could buy, Xia Juhua told them casually that they might be able to find some and asked them if they wanted any. They both nodded vigorously: "Yes, take as many as you have." Then they glared at each other fiercely.
Li Changshun couldn't stand it any longer: "Don't take advantage of me. Juhua was able to find a warm pot, but she also owed a favor to others."
The two were a little embarrassed and speechless, but they had both made up their minds to go find Xia Juhua early today and not let the other get there first.
Before they could find Xia Juhua, the Agricultural Machinery Station had already driven in three tractors, and the one leading them was Xiao Zhao, who was familiar with Liu Zhishuang: "Captain Xia, we from the Agricultural Machinery Station are here to support your Ping'anzhuang Brigade in the battle."
Xia Juhua was confused about what was going on: "Why are you here?" They also drove three tractors.
Xiao Zhao smiled and said, "Two days ago, reporters came to interview the Ping'anzhuang Brigade's battle. The commune attaches great importance to it. Director Zhang has discussed it with our station chief. It just so happens that we have nothing to do in winter, so we will support your battle and help you to repair the water channel of Ping'anzhuang Brigade as soon as possible."
Xia Juhua never expected that the reporter's interview could bring such great benefits. She wanted to go to the commune to thank Director Zhang, but Xiao Zhao told her that Director Zhang had told her to tell Xia Juhua that repairing the canal was the greatest thank you to the commune.
Xia Juhua was moved when she called the members over and introduced three tractor operators to them, conveying the commune's support for the Ping'anzhuang Brigade's canal repair campaign. The members, who were already a little tired after working for a few days, were now in high spirits. They followed the poor farmer director Sun Qinglin, waving their arms and shouting slogans: "Work hard and resolutely open up the Ping'anzhuang canal!"
Regardless of whether the slogan is awkward or not, it is true that each production team can be assigned a tractor to transport soil, which greatly improves efficiency. Liu Zhishuang and another tractor operator from Ping An Village, Niu Weiguo, can always ask Xiao Zhao and the other two for advice on what they don't understand, and they are becoming more and more proficient in driving tractors.
Since they had brought such a great help to Ping An Village, Xia Juhua and her team could not just take advantage of them and ignore their meals and rest. They discussed and agreed that several production teams would take turns to send people to cook for the three tractor operators, making sure they had a good meal and rest at night.
Xiao Zhao whispered to Liu Zhishuang: "Tell Captain Xia that there is no need to prepare fine food for us. We can just eat whatever everyone else eats. I really want to eat the hot and sour rice noodles I had at your house last time."
It was not easy to eat hot and sour noodles. Several other production teams had already learned how to make hot and sour noodles. When they heard that Xiao Zhao and his team wanted to eat hot and sour noodles, they wanted to give them three meals a day. Finally, Xiao Zhao asked Liu Zhishuang for help: "Zhishuang, this hot and sour noodles is delicious but I can't eat it every day. Can you ask your sister-in-law to make hot pot cakes for me?"
Liu Zhishuang laughed when he heard this, but he still told Xia Juhua about Xiao Zhao and the others' request, which finally stopped the Ping'anzhuang team's enthusiasm for promoting hot and sour noodles to others.
Before the smell of the hot and sour noodles faded, someone on the side of the road called out, "Captain Xia, is Captain Xia here?"
Xia Juhua thought the voice sounded familiar. She walked up to the reporter who took the photo that day and said to him with a smile, "Reporter, you are here. Do you need to take photos again? Do you want me to ask the members to prepare?"
The reporter smiled and handed Xia Juhua a few newspapers: "I'm here to deliver newspapers to you. The deeds of your Ping'an Village Brigade are so touching that we have used a full page to publish it."
After saying this, he remembered that Xia Juhua might not know what a full page meant, so he went on to explain to her: "Usually it's not an important matter, so just use such a small space to post the news. However, the Ping'an Village Brigade actively organized members to repair water conservancy projects in the year of the disaster, and the members were so hardworking. We think more people should learn from this spirit." As he said this, he opened the newspaper and pointed to the page reporting the Ping'an Village canal repair battle and showed it to Xia Juhua.
The title is eye-catching and straightforward: Self-reliance, a record of the canal repair battle of the Ping'anzhuang Brigade.
In addition to large blocks of text, there are also several photos of labor scenes, including not only shots of people digging the soil, but also pictures of tractors unloading trucks, and the sweet potato being held high. At the bottom is a picture of Xia Juhua herself frowning and thinking.
"Look, why am I still here?" Xia Juhua had the same reaction as other rural women seeing themselves in the newspaper. She pointed at her frowning photo and said, "You should have reminded me to smile at that time."
The reporter laughed: "This better reflects your true situation when facing difficulties."
"There are many difficulties." Xia Juhua sighed, without carefully reading what the report said. She carefully folded up the newspaper and asked the reporter: "Is this for our team?"
The reporter, who was not much older than Liu Zhiquan, smiled tolerantly and said, "This one is for you personally. The other copies have the same content as this one. The brigade can post them on the bulletin board. I hope it can encourage the members and it can be regarded as our newspaper's contribution to the Ping'an Village Brigade."
If I really want to encourage everyone, it would be better to send some food. Xia Juhua thought to herself, but she couldn't stop thanking the reporters for their hard work and for reporting the ordinary work done by Ping An Village.
"Captain Xia, you are too modest. When farmers across the county were thinking about how to find more food or how to rest and save energy, the Ping'anzhuang Brigade took the initiative to carry out the canal repair campaign, which was already very remarkable." The reporter regretted that Xia Juhua did not read the report carefully, and could not help but remind her: "Your brigade can organize everyone to study the report and let the members know that their hard work is seen by the collective."
They built the canal to produce more food, not to show off to others. Xia Juhua smiled at the reporter and said, "Okay, I'll have each production team organize a study session tonight."
Although the reporter noticed that Xia Juhua did not take the report that seriously, he remembered what the old reporter said, that Xia Juhua was a practical person, so he did not say much. He smiled and asked Xia Juhua to notify them to conduct another field interview after the channel was opened, and then he returned to the county.
Xia Juhua refused to let them go no matter what: "Last time you came, you didn't eat, saying you were in a hurry to go back and write an article. This time the newspaper has been published, and you don't have to write any more articles. You have to eat before you leave no matter what."
The reporter patiently explained to Xia Juhua that their newspaper did not just report on Ping'an Village and that was it, but that they needed to write a large number of news articles every day, so he really had work to do and could not stay in Ping'an Village Brigade for long.
Xia Juhua expressed her longing to stay there and asked the reporter to come to Ping'an Village more often. She also asked the reporter to come with her three friends next time. The reporter was deeply moved and said to the reporter after returning to the newspaper office: "The farmer brothers are so real."
Xia Juhua was very practical. She distributed a copy of the newspaper left by the reporter to each production team and stuffed her own copy directly into her trouser pocket without carefully reading what the report said from beginning to end.
She didn't read it carefully, but as the only newspaper in Pingde County, some people read its content carefully, such as the county director, Uncle Qi, and Director Zhang.
"Deputy Director Qi, please come to my office." When Uncle Qi was reading the report, the county director called him.
Uncle Qi entered the county director's office and found that he was also reading the report about the Ping'anzhuang Brigade's canal repair battle, so he said, "That Xia Juhua is quite unexpected. Director, you have a good eye. You made the right choice to let her be the captain of the Ping'anzhuang Brigade."
The county director happily accepted this small flattery: "At first I just thought this female comrade was very thoughtful and should be able to shoulder a heavier responsibility. I didn't expect that she not only took on the responsibility, but also played an unexpected role. I think such a good comrade should be promoted vigorously."
Uncle Qi shook his head and said, "I think Comrade Xia Juhua is a hard-working comrade. What she wants most right now is probably not publicity."
Although Uncle Qi disagreed with him, the county director did not find it offensive and even knew what Uncle Qi wanted to say: "Yes, canal repair is physically demanding. The Ping'an Village Brigade did not receive any relief rations this year, but everyone still worked hard to repair the canal. It was not easy, and it was even more difficult for Comrade Xia Juhua to mobilize everyone's enthusiasm."
Uncle Qi took the opportunity to say, "Director, I think the Ping'an Village Brigade still has a certain cohesion now, because although their grain production this year has decreased, they have also reduced their grain payment by half, so every family can still eat for the time being. But as the canal construction takes a long time, everyone's grain consumption will accelerate, I'm afraid..."
"The Ping'anzhuang Brigade's canal must be repaired." The county director glanced at Uncle Qi and patted his desk to show his determination: "The Ping'anzhuang Brigade's initiative to repair the canal is not only a matter for them, but also a reflection of the people of Pingde County who were not frightened by the disaster and actively carried out production and self-help."
"Indeed," Uncle Qi understood the intention of the county director and firmly supported his idea: "Compared to other counties that only know how to ask their superiors for relief food, the Ping'anzhuang Brigade is a banner for our county to actively carry out work. But how can we keep this banner..."
The county director glanced at Uncle Qi and announced to him: "Tomorrow, organize the county team members to go to the Ping'an Village Brigade Battle Site for an inspection. If there are any difficulties, we can help solve them."
Uncle Qi nodded immediately after hearing this: "Okay, then Director, do you need to notify the Ping'an Village Brigade and let them prepare?"
"No, they are so enthusiastic in their work, we should not add unnecessary burden to them." The county director felt that he should see the real situation, not the scene prepared by the Ping'anzhuang Brigade.
What the county director didn't know was that Qi Weidong had already arrived at the Liu family's yard in Ping'an Village before Xia Juhua came back from the canal construction site. He saw Wang Caifeng still frying peanuts diligently, while Liu Baoguo and Lele were being watched by their seventh grandmother. He hurriedly asked, "Sister-in-law, my aunt hasn't come back yet?"
Wang Caifeng looked at the sky and said, "It will take a while. What's the matter?" I've never seen you so anxious before.
Qi Weidong pushed his bicycle and said, "The construction site is west of the village, right? I'm going to look for my aunt and talk to her about something."
Wang Caifeng nodded habitually when Qi Weidong discussed things with her mother-in-law: "Okay, go ahead. My mother didn't ride a bike today, so you can bring her back. By the way, ask Zhishuang if Xiao Zhao and the others want to come to our house for dinner."
Qi Weidong agreed and left the courtyard, riding his bike quickly to the canal repair site. Seeing him in such a hurry, Xia Juhua thought something had happened and asked hurriedly: "What's the matter? Why aren't you waiting for me at home? Is it..." Was he discovered while selling vermicelli?
Qi Weidong followed her to the side of the road and whispered, "Auntie, my uncle asked me to tell you that the county leaders will come to Ping'an Village for an inspection tomorrow, so you should make some preparations."
"What's there to prepare for? We in Ping An Village work very hard. We will do the same thing tomorrow as usual."
Qi Weidong chuckled: "Auntie, why are you so confused? The leader is here, why don't you take the opportunity to tell us about your difficulties and let the leader solve them for you? Who will you go to after the leader leaves? Putting aside other things, do the people in your team who are repairing the canal have enough food?"
Xia Juhua was shocked: "You mean?"
Qi Weidong nodded: "That's what my uncle meant. He has also contacted the county director. Whether it can be accomplished tomorrow depends on you, auntie."
Okay, I know what to do.
Before Xia Juhua sent Qi Weidong home to wait for her, she did not forget to ask him when he would buy the hot water bottle for her. The production team leaders were all looking forward to it with green eyes.
Qi Weidong got on the bike with a bit of amusement: "Auntie, you should think about how you are going to deal with it tomorrow."
There is no need to deal with it at all.
Xia Juhua called the production team leaders over and told them about it. Chen Qiusheng had an idea: "The leaders want to see the real situation, so let's show them. Everyone can't have a hot meal at noon while repairing the canal. Many people can't even afford to bring bread. They can only eat steamed sweet potatoes and keep eating."
Captain Niu looked at Xia Juhua with some embarrassment and said, "Everyone is helping our production team to build a canal, but we don't even let you drink a sip of hot water. This is a bit..."
"Who said that we can't continue to boil water for the production team?" Li Changshun glared at the third team leader. "It's time to boil water. We should show that the Ping'an Village team is a collective if we understand and encourage each other. The hot water doesn't make you full. Drinking it will make you even hungrier."
Li Daniu gritted his teeth and said, "Tomorrow I will ask everyone to bring steamed sweet potatoes. Then I will tell the members that no matter who asks them, they will all say that they have no objection to digging the canal, but it is a bit uncomfortable to do it on an empty stomach."
Li Changshun glared at him again: "You dare to tell this to anyone. If there is someone who is not careful with his words, what will you do if he lets it slip?"
Xia Juhua nodded and said, "The team leader is right. We don't need to notify everyone to bring steamed sweet potatoes. For example, the Ping'anzhuang production team didn't even need to notify everyone. They just brought whatever they needed to bring. After all, the Ping'anzhuang production team gets more food than everyone else. Last year, the grain stations leaked flour, and the leaders knew about it."
The other four production team leaders said: It's okay that the people of Ping'an Village usually eat better than everyone else, but how come they don't have to eat sweet potatoes when the leader comes tomorrow?
They all knew the situation in Ping An Zhuang, and their superiors must also be aware of it. If everyone in Ping An Zhuang held sweet potatoes and ate pickled vegetables at noon tomorrow, it would be obvious that they were faking it.
As a hardworking and experimental team, the Ping'an Village team could not make such a low-level mistake.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
