Chapter 129
Xia Juhua smiled at her uncle and said, "When we were in Guangzhou, Director Yang and Deputy Director Gu told me that I performed well at the Expo. To reward me, they wanted to provide three-phase electricity to Ping An Village as soon as possible, and we don't have to pay for the wire poles. Then not only can we use the laminator, but I also want to replace the pulping machine with a bigger one, so that it can be directly wound by electric motor instead of manpower."
What do you think? Should I give myself a compliment for participating in an expo and solving the electricity problem for the Ping'an Village Brigade? Xia Juhua was no longer dizzy, and her eyes were bright. She was waiting for Uncle Qi's compliment with anticipation.
Ping An Manor is going to have three-phase electricity? Uncle Qi, who was expected by Xia Juhua, was so angry that he almost died. Xia Juhua slept for most of the car ride. He didn't even report such an important matter to him!
They are too disrespectful to their leaders, too disorganized and undisciplined! Criticism must be made seriously. If this unorganized and undisciplined behavior is easily let off this time, Xia Juhua will be in big trouble next time!
Seeing Uncle Qi's face gradually darkening, Li Changshun's mouth corners became more and more pulled. Xia Juhua realized belatedly that it seemed a little late for her to report it.
Look, Uncle Qi's face is almost frozen, he must be very angry. Xia Juhua had to quietly pull the corner of Li Changshun's clothes to let him smile less obviously - Uncle Qi was on the verge of exploding, you are smiling so happily now, please consider his feelings.
Comrade Qi Mingtang, director of the Pingde County Revolutionary Committee and Qi Weidong's uncle, had mixed feelings at this time. He was happy that the Ping'anzhuang Brigade, under his leadership, was able to have electricity without having to apply to higher authorities in the county or spend any money. But he was also angry that he only found out about this at this time.
His anger was obviously greater than his joy. He asked Xia Juhua unhappily, "Is there anything else you haven't told me?"
There are many things I didn't tell you. Xia Juhua saw that Uncle Qi looked unhappy, and said with a flattering smile: "Well, Director Yang will coordinate with the provincial supply and marketing system to arrange 20 combined harvesters, two of which will be directly allocated to our Ping'an Village Brigade. By the way, they said they will guarantee our oil supply."
Good, very good. Uncle Qi looked at Xia Juhua fiercely and said, "We must get two more combined harvesters. The county has no control over the oil used by your Ping'anzhuang Brigade, and how the other two combined harvesters are distributed has nothing to do with the Ping'anzhuang Brigade."
Xia Juhua's smile froze on her face: "Director Qi, coordinate the combined harvester..."
Uncle Qi sneered and threatened: "Don't forget, even if the higher-ups directly give that thing to your Ping'an Village team, none of you know how to operate it. The people at the Agricultural Machinery Station have to learn how to operate it and then teach you. If the county doesn't get the other two combined harvesters, the comrades at the Agricultural Machinery Station will not have the opportunity to learn how to operate it."
Don't bully people like that! Xia Juhua simply lowered her head and stopped talking. No one could tell whether she was sulking or admitting defeat. A full minute had passed before Uncle Qi spoke again: "Is there anything else?"
Xia Juhua thought that she had no more, but Uncle Qi had already remembered all the rumors he had heard at the welcoming banquet. Could he keep Xia Juhua silent? He did not even ask Xia Juhua for confirmation, but directly gave her an order: "From now on, you will coordinate the production of tires for the regional rubber factory, the tractors of our county's agricultural machinery stations, and the tires for the transport team's cars."
Xia Juhua suddenly raised her head and stared at Uncle Qi. Even though there were only candles lit in the room, one could see that she was furious. "Director Qi, the provincial supply and marketing system has informed me that I can work in the provincial capital and that I will be given a house."
Uncle Qi sneered: "Deputy Director Xue of the regional supply and marketing cooperative has informed me that it is your two sons who will go to the supply and marketing system, not you."
Li Hongliang and his partner breathed a sigh of relief when they heard Xia Juhua say that she was going to work in the provincial supply and marketing system. It was because of the content and manner of the conversation between Xia Juhua and Uncle Qi that they were shocked - the army believes that subordinates should obey their superiors, and even if they disagree, they must first accept the order and then come down to discuss it.
They had never seen a subordinate who dared to speak to their uncle like Xia Juhua did.
Are the local brigade leaders so powerful? They remember that the brigade leaders are only the most basic cadres. No, in fact, the brigade leaders in the countryside are not organized and are not included in the cadre sequence, while the director of the county revolutionary committee is a department-level cadre.
Isn't Captain Xia afraid that Uncle Qi will be unhappy and will rape her? !
And that veteran comrade, wasn't he the former captain of Ping'an Village? It's not quite appropriate for him to just watch the current captain and the director of the county revolutionary committee quarreling without even trying to smooth things over, right?
Could it be that he wanted to be the captain again and let Xia Juhua offend the director of the revolutionary county committee? Thinking of this, Li Hongliang and Lin Junqing, who had just breathed a sigh of relief, could no longer sit still. They called out "Captain Xia" and smiled at Qi Xiaoshu, trying to make the two understand that what they were discussing now was the issue of how to supply Ping'anzhuang's instant hot and sour noodles to the Northwest Military Region.
We need to concentrate on discussing issues. Should we wait until the two of them leave before discussing Pingde County's internal issues?
Uncle Qi was so angry that he didn't know where to vent his anger. He didn't give them face at all. He waved his hand and said to them, "Your business won't fail. I will discuss the relationship between the big group and the small group with Captain Xia first."
Seeing that her uncle was not giving in, Xia Juhua said angrily, "The two comrades have been waiting for several days. If they had finished their research earlier, they would have returned to the northwest to report to the leaders."
"You also know that you have to report things to the leaders, right? Have you ever thought that if you didn't report to me, and I didn't know about the two combined harvesters until they arrived in Pingde County, would all the communes know about it? At that time, we would have to get our heads out to ensure that we could really transfer them to the Red Star Commune?"
"Okay, even if Director Zhang can snatch them, he can guarantee that only your Ping'anzhuang Brigade can use the two combined harvesters?" The commune needs to coordinate internally, so that during the autumn harvest, it will not be the Ping'anzhuang Brigade's turn to use them. That would be a shame.
It seems to be the case. Xia Juhua was a little scared just thinking about the picture her uncle had described: "Deputy Director Gu begged Director Yang for a long time before asking for 18 more seats. I am just a team leader, and Director Yang gave me his phone number out of courtesy. I can't really bother him."
Uncle Qi continued to sneer: "When you wanted to buy a tractor, when you wanted coal bricks, when you wanted to move the reserve food to support the militia, you troubled me a lot."
We are all adults now, isn't it a bit bad to bring up the past? Xia Juhua looked at Li Changshun for help, he was just like her and Uncle Qi, blowing the water in the cup. Xia Juhua wanted to remind him that he had been in the house for such a long time, the water was no longer hot, what were you blowing?
There was no way to ask for help, so Xia Juhua had to admit her mistake: "Once the two comrades in the army have been arranged, I will call Director Yang, okay?"
"And then there's the matter of tires. Can you guarantee that the tires on the tractors and harvesters of your Ping'an Village Brigade will last a lifetime?" Uncle Qi refused to give in. The anger in his heart had long since disappeared, replaced by the joy of a liberated peasant singing.
"Call, call, call. After I finish calling Director Yang, I'll call Deputy Director Xue. If Deputy Director Xue can't handle this, I'll call Deputy Director Gu and ask him to coordinate across the province. Is that okay?" Xia Juhua, who always felt that she had suffered a loss, finally had a way to make up for it:
"Our brigade wants to develop the breeding industry, but we can't do without feed. Can Director Qi also give a heads-up to the noodle factory and furfural factory? The troops need vermicelli, but the ones that come out now are too thick, so we have to order a new pot and learn how to make a colander. Can the county coordinate with us and produce them for us as quickly as possible?"
Li Hongliang and his friend, who thought that the conversation between Xia Juhua and Uncle Qi had just gone beyond cognition, found that the topic had unconsciously shifted back to hot and sour noodles. They were a little confused about Xia Juhua's train of thought: How did she switch back?
Uncle Qi did not respond to Xia Juhua's words, but looked at Li Hongliang and the others: "Comrade Li, Comrade Lin, the resources that can be mobilized in our county are limited. I'm afraid that some supplies will have to be solved by the troops themselves."
Li Hongliang just nodded and hadn't spoken yet, but Li Changshun had already put down the cool cup he had been blowing for a long time and said, "Director Qi, we are soldiers and civilians, and the troops are all focused on training. There are some things that they can't coordinate as conveniently as we can."
Although Uncle Qi had no psychological burden when squeezing Xia Juhua, he still respected Li Changshun from the bottom of his heart and spoke politely: "Captain Li, if it was the iron pot and colander that Xia Juhua mentioned just now, I can definitely coordinate. Even if Ping'an Village wants to rebuild the powder room, I can also coordinate the bricks for you. Anyway, you just pay the price."
"But the main source of leakage is sweet potatoes. Didn't Xia Juhua just say that spring ploughing is just around the corner and the weather is getting warmer. Firstly, we don't have much sweet potato in stock, and secondly, storing it is also a problem. If the troops can coordinate these, it's better for them to do it."
Regarding the supply of troops, Xia Juhua still agreed with Uncle Qi's concerns, and looked at Li Hongliang and the others: "If the troops can guarantee the supply of sweet potatoes, our Ping'anzhuang Brigade will fully support the construction of the troops even if we don't want the processing fee."
Xia Juhua was not just boasting. She was thinking: It was already 1977. In less than two years, the ungrateful country would treacherously launch a war. In her previous life, Xia Juhua had watched a program on the Laoshan front on TV. In the program, the soldiers had trouble keeping up with supplies in order to defend the country.
How does it feel to have bullets whizzing overhead and your stomach growling with hunger, but you can't take a step back? In her previous life, Xia Juhua could only watch TV and worry about it. In this life, the things she thought of could be put to good use. Xia Juhua sincerely felt that she should help.
There were also the 21 children from Ping An Village in the army. There were also thousands of others, all of whom were about the same age as the 21 children. In Xia Juhua's opinion, they were in uniform to defend their country, but they were not invulnerable. They had to be well-fed to have the energy to kill ungrateful people.
So even though the visitors were officers from the Northwest Military Region, Xia Juhua was still willing to help the soldiers. Her idea was to use about a year to further mature the technology of instant hot and sour noodles, making it taste better, take less time to soak, and make the seasoning more nutritious. Then a soldier would have to put a few packs of noodles in his backpack and not have to worry about being hungry.
Li Hongliang and Lin Junqing were deeply moved: "Captain Xia, the army will never take a single needle or thread from the masses, nor will it let the people sacrifice their own interests. So don't worry, you can work hard tomorrow and list the raw materials and tools for making hot and sour noodles for us. We will report to the army leaders the day after tomorrow."
Xia Juhua nodded. Li Changshun wanted to persuade Li Hongliang, but Li Hongliang made it clear first: "Captain Li, you know that as the logistics department of the military region, we are not just supplying a company or a battalion."
"So it is very likely that the members of Pingan Village will have to spend most of the year leaking rice noodles. We have learned about this in the past two days. The members are counting on the annual harvest. But if they leak rice noodles to the troops, they will not be able to take care of farming. If they don't collect money, what will the members eat? We can't support the construction of the troops and let the members go hungry. What's the point of defending our motherland then?"
Li Changshun lowered his head uncomfortably: "Alas, the members who stay at home can always come up with a solution. But the soldiers in the army are so far away from home, the training is so hard, and you are charging them money for a little vermicelli. I feel so bad..."
Uncle Qi spoke at the right time: "Captain Li, the people own the army, and the army also loves the people. We all know that the people's army does not take a single needle or thread from the masses. I think as long as the Ping'anzhuang Brigade produces the hot and sour noodles needed by the troops as soon as possible and guarantees the quality, it will be the best embodiment of our ownership of the army."
After saying this, he turned his head to the two comrades in the army and said, "Comrade Li, Comrade Lin, when you report to the commander, please convey our county's determination. That is, no matter what difficulties the Ping'anzhuang Brigade encounters during the powder leakage process, we, Pingde County, will do our best to help them solve them."
"Once the regional power bureau starts connecting Ping'an Village to electricity, no matter which commune or brigade it passes through, we will provide sufficient manpower to help lay poles and pull cables, and there will be no obstruction to construction."
Li Hongliang excitedly held Uncle Qi's hand and said, "Director Qi, with your words, we are more confident in handing over the task of producing hot and sour noodles to the Ping'anzhuang Brigade."
Xia Juhua nodded, and although she didn't express her opinion, her expression clearly showed that she couldn't agree more. Uncle Qi sneered in his heart and decided to settle the score with Xia Juhua later. Now he would let her go home and rest. This man was obviously forcing himself to stay awake, and he could hardly sit still. While he was talking, Xia Juhua had changed her sitting position several times.
"Well, Comrade Li, Comrade Lin, let's stop here for today. You have had a hard day of investigation, and Comrade Xia Juhua has also had a hard time rushing back from the region. How about we meet again tomorrow?" Uncle Qi stood up first to end the conversation.
Li Hongliang and Lin Junqing stood up somewhat embarrassedly, and kept criticizing themselves, saying that they should not have pulled Xia Juhua aside to talk as soon as they saw her, and did not pay attention to whether Xia Juhua's body could handle it.
Xia Juhua said modestly that it was no problem, but she was still very grateful to Uncle Qi in her heart. She secretly decided that if she had time tomorrow, she would call Director Yang and ask him to coordinate the two combine harvesters in Pingde County.
Looking at the watch she had worn for just two days, it was already past ten thirty in the evening. Xia Juhua felt that she could not hold on any longer and could not even utter a humble word. She asked Uncle Qi directly, "Director Qi, why don't you stay here and talk to the two comrades and ask the driver to take me back to Ping'an Village?"
The 150 kilograms of dried shrimps, apart from the one kilogram given to Deputy Director Gu's secretary and another person, still left 149 kilograms, plus the 39 kilograms of cashews and Xia Juhua's bag, totaling nearly 200 kilograms. Xia Juhua didn't think she had the strength to carry it back home in the dark night.
Uncle Qi would not make things difficult for this convenience. He agreed immediately and told Xia Juhua to think carefully about the materials she needed tomorrow morning and list them in detail. In the afternoon, he would have the driver come to pick up Xia Juhua and the two comrades from the army to go to the county town. There was a phone in his office, so whether Li and Lin called the army or Xia Juhua called Director Yang, it would be confidential and convenient.
Xia Juhua thought it was a pleasant surprise that she could have half a day to rest. Naturally, she had no objection. After getting on the bus in a daze, she remembered Li Changshun and leaned out of the window and shouted, "Captain, you should also take the bus back. You can't see the road clearly at night."
Li Changshun wanted to stay and accompany Uncle Qi, but was pushed into the car: "I will talk to the two comrades, you can go back and rest without worry."
Li Changshun was over sixty years old. He usually went to bed early at this time and felt a little exhausted, so he sat down and the car started.
"You must be exhausted from this trip, right?"
Xia Juhua shook her dizzy head and said, "It's OK, but there are too many orders. I'm afraid the editing team won't be able to handle it. We need to recruit more people to the editing team."
Hearing that the editorial team was going to recruit again, Li Changshun was happy. He wanted to ask Xia Juhua how many people she wanted to recruit, but he could hear that her voice was weak. Alas, this is electricity and a combined harvester, which sounds like a good thing. Xia Juhua must have worked very hard outside, but the leaders gave her such a big reward. Let her take a good rest and ask her after the comrades in the army leave.
They were silent all the way until they got off the bus at Xiaozhuangtou. Li Changshun couldn't help but say, "You should go back and rest early. No matter how urgent it is, can you still save half a day?"
Xia Juhua forced herself to smile, instructed the driver to drive the car to her door, got out of the car drowsily, and knocked on the door. As she knocked, she was still energetic and thought, the production team is still poor, everyone is reluctant to raise a dog. If they raised a dog, they would hear the car making such a loud noise at night, and the dog would bark, and even the most sleepy people would hear it, and she wouldn't have to knock on the door.
"Who is it?" Liu Zhiquan's voice came from the door, and Xia Juhua responded weakly: "It's me."
"Mom?" Liu Zhiquan didn't quite hear clearly through the gate, but he opened the door quickly. When he saw that it was Xia Juhua standing at the door, his mouth suddenly widened: "Mom, it's really you who's back. Why don't you send me a telegram so I can pick you up."
Xia Juhua waved her hands impatiently and interrupted Liu Zhiquan's nonsense: "Bring the things in, and ask the driver to come in and have a drink of water before leaving." After that, she walked towards the main room with light steps.
Halfway through the walk, Wang Caifeng stopped her and said, "Mom, you must be tired. You can't even walk steadily."
Xia Juhua only had time to smile at her before her eyes went dark and she knew nothing.
"Mom, what happened?" Liu Zhishuang, who had just finished putting on his clothes, happened to see his mother lying in the yard and his sister-in-law trying hard to help her up. His eyes suddenly turned red, and he walked up to Wang Caifeng, carrying Xia Juhua and heading towards the main room.
The driver heard the noise and thought it was useless to carry him inside the house, so he reminded the two men, "Let's take Captain Xia to the hospital."
"Okay, okay." Liu Zhiquan threw the sack on the ground and murmured in panic: "Send her to the hospital, send her to the hospital quickly."
After he finished speaking, his mind cleared up a little, and he took Xia Juhua from Wang Caifeng's hand and urged her: "Go get the money quickly."
Wang Caifeng turned around and ran into the house. She came out in less than two minutes: "Here, they're all here." Two thick stacks of money were stuffed into Liu Zhiquan's pocket, which gave the driver a startle.
The Liu family is so rich that their daughter-in-law can come up with two thousand yuan.
At this time, Xiao Man, who was pregnant, was also putting money into Liu Zhishuang's pocket: "Don't let big brother pay alone."
Liu Zhishuang looked at her belly in embarrassment, and while carrying his mother to the car with his eldest brother, he said, "Mom may just be tired. Don't worry, and don't go to the hospital with her."
Wang Caifeng also advised: "Xiaoman, just wait at home, I will follow you. Just give Lele and Baoguo a meal tomorrow morning."
As he was talking, Chen Dongsheng and Sun Zhaodi came over after hearing the noise. Liu Zhishuang felt relieved: "Dad, Mom, please take care of the family."
"Hey, you guys also get a quilt to cover your mother." Sun Zhaodi ordered her daughter with tears in her eyes. After she finished speaking, she looked at her belly and didn't care that it was not easy for her, the mother-in-law, to enter her aunt's room. She took out a quilt in two or three steps and covered Xia Juhua with it: "You guys go, I'll ask your father to bring you food tomorrow morning."
"Auntie, the family is counting on you." Wang Caifeng squeezed tightly against the car door, holding Xia Juhua's head in her arms so that she could lie more comfortably, while being polite to Sun Zhaodi.
Liu Zhishuang sat in the co-pilot seat, while Liu Zhiquan squeezed in at Xia Juhua's feet. Seeing that they were seated, the driver immediately started the car and drove towards the brigade headquarters.
On the way, the driver agreed with Liu Zhiquan and others that he had to go to the brigade headquarters to report to Uncle Qi first, otherwise the leader would be thrown to the Ping'anzhuang Brigade. He ran to the hospital without saying a word, and he would not have to do his job as a driver.
Uncle Qi and Li Hongliang were talking happily, and they were laughing when they heard the movement of the car: "Xia Juhua was quite quick this time, she must have returned the car as soon as she arrived at Ping'an Village."
Unexpectedly, the sound of the car engine did not stop, and the driver ran in to say that Xia Juhua had fainted when she got home. The three of them looked at each other, too shocked to speak for a moment.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
