Chapter 58 Chu Er actually came to bring her business...
With Principal He present, the other teachers in the office were busy with their own things and did not interrupt.
When Yan Xue said she wanted to skip to the second grade, a female teacher with a round face and round eyes, about forty years old, looked over.
Principal He happened to look at her. "Xiao Yuan, do you still have the final exam papers from last semester?"
"Yes." Teacher Yuan immediately rummaged through the cabinets in his desk. "But there's nothing unfinished. Wait for me to copy a few questions for him."
When the other teachers heard this, they all looked over.
After all, these days, many children enter first grade at the age of ten or eleven, but few skip a grade right away. While Teacher Yuan was copying questions, Yan Xue leaned over to meet Yan Jigang's gaze. "How about we do a set of tests? Didn't you learn all this from my sister and brother-in-law?"
Yan Jigang picked at his fingers, clearly still nervous, and said in a very low voice, "Yes, I have learned it."
Maybe he was afraid that others would hear him and laugh at him for being a stutterer?
Yan Xue felt a mixture of pity and anger. She reached out and touched the top of his head, lowering her voice. "Then prove it to them, okay?"
This time, Yan Jigang looked at the boy, then at Teacher Liu, then at the other people in the office, and nodded. "Okay."
After copying the questions, Teacher Yuan specially made room on his desk for Yan Jigang to answer the questions.
She also took the pen from the canning jar on her desk where she kept miscellaneous items. When she handed it to Yan Jigang, Yan Jigang whispered thank you to her.
This politeness made Teacher Yuan smile at him and say, "You're welcome." He also went to find a stool nearby and asked him to sit down and write.
Yan Jigang felt even more embarrassed. He said thank you again before lowering his head to do the questions seriously.
His pen-holding posture was very standard, and it was obvious that he had been corrected before. Although his handwriting was immature, each stroke was very neat.
Teacher Yuan knew the answers to these questions very well. He only took two glances to find that he had indeed learned them and had answered them correctly.
The same goes for Principal He and Teacher Liu, who was also standing by and watching, not believing anything.
He finished the math problems quickly without making any mistakes. Then he took the Chinese test, and it was found that Yan Jigang knew more words than everyone imagined.
Teacher Yuan thought for a moment and then softened his voice and asked him, "What grade are you in?"
Yan Jigang raised his hand and made the number three, trying hard not to stutter, "Third...grade."
"Then wait a moment, I'll give you a few more questions."
This time, not only Principal He and Teacher Liu, but other teachers also came over.
Yan Jigang is only ten years old in his age group. Normally, he would be a first or second grade student, but he actually said that he had already learned up to the third grade.
But he could indeed solve all the second-grade questions that Teacher Yuan gave him.
Although they are much slower than before and even made one mistake, the performance of students of this generation is really hard to describe, and only a few can pass.
Teacher Yuan couldn't help but look at Yan Xue: "Why don't you just let him go to the third grade? I still have the third grade."
This is really true. I thought he was my student before, but it turned out that he not only finished the first grade, but also the second grade. Teacher Liu didn't look very happy.
Principal He smiled at Yan Jigang and said, "Your child is quite smart and well-taught."
"He's a good kid." Yan Xue lowered her head and patted her brother. Seeing a small smile on his face, she said to Teacher Yuan, "Let him go to the second grade. I want him to stay in the forest farm for another year."
He is in the third grade now, and will have to live in the town middle school in three years. She is really worried.
Moreover, the current education system is five years of primary school, two years of junior high school, and two years of high school, so students can graduate from high school in nine years.
I am in the second grade now, and I will graduate in 1977, so I can catch up with the first batch of college entrance examinations. If I were in the third grade, I would have to take it earlier.
Everyone present was a parent, and they could understand her concern for her child, so in the end it was decided that Yan Jigang would skip the first grade and become a second-grade student in elementary school.
The second graders had already returned to school to collect their books, so Teacher Yuan personally took the siblings to the logistics department to collect Yan Jigang's books.
After they left, Teacher Liu couldn't help but pinch her son, "Look at him, he's already in the third grade by self-study. Look at you!"
Before Yan Xue and Yan Jigang had gone far, they heard someone crying behind them. "What does it have to do with me what grade he's in?"
This teacher has a really bad temper. Yan Jigang's shoulders trembled and he quickly leaned towards Yan Xue again.
Teacher Yuan saw this and explained apologetically, "One of our teachers is about to retire, and Teacher Liu just changed to a teaching position this year, so she may not have much experience."
Yan Xue asked why she had never heard Liu Weibin mention this Teacher Liu.
"Do you know any children in the class? If not, I will find someone to take care of him." Teacher Yuan said again.
This is obviously a good intention. With someone to guide him, Yan Jigang will find it easier to integrate into an unfamiliar group.
Yan Xue thanked him first before saying, "A friend of mine's younger brother is also in the second grade at the start of the school year. His name is Liu Weibin."
Teacher Yuan, who was obviously familiar with every child in her class, nodded and said, "Then I'll arrange for Liu Weibin to sit next to him."
There were not many books in those days, and the notebooks were not big, all in 32-mo format. On the way back, Yan Jigang did not ask Yan Xue to take them, but held them in his own hands.
As soon as he entered the door, he went to find the second old lady, "Grandma!" and showed the book to the old lady.
The old lady couldn't read. "Is this on the newspaper?"
"Yeah." Yan Jigang got along quite well with Teacher Yuan and nodded.
After pointing, he held up two fingers to show the second old lady, "Second, second grade."
"Second grade?" The old lady looked at Yan Xue in surprise. Seeing Yan Xue nod, she hugged Yan Jigang in her arms and said, "Our Jigang is really amazing. He entered the second grade right away."
When Qi Fang came back in the afternoon, Yan Xue told him about this matter immediately. The man nodded and said, "Not bad."
For someone as introverted and quiet as Qi Fang, it was already very good for him to say "good". Yan Jigang smiled again.
With the unanimous encouragement from his family and a kind head teacher, he was obviously not so afraid of going to school anymore.
"Did you skip grades when you were a child?" Yan Xue asked Qi Fang curiously.
To be able to enter university at the age of fourteen, one must either skip a grade or start school very early.
Qi Fang had just put down the things he brought back. Upon hearing this, he raised his peach blossom eyes and looked at her, "Want to know?"
Yan Xue suddenly didn't think so. Sure enough, even though she didn't say anything, the man passed by her when he went out to wash his hands and said, "I'll tell you tonight."
She didn't respond, but instead asked with a smile: "How much did you sell it for? You bought so many things."
Qi Fang did buy a lot of things, including several pieces of ready-made clothing for each person. Yan Xue even suspected that he had bought all the wearable items in the department store.
In addition to clothes and shoes, each person got a pair of thick-soled sneakers, and I also bought a pair of reading glasses for the second old lady.
In those days, there were no presbyopic glasses, so people would just buy one at the store. The degree was definitely not accurate, but it was better than nothing. The old lady's eyesight had been blurring for a long time, and every time she did needlework, she would spend a long time threading the needle facing the sun, but she had never been able to buy one in town.
This time, the second old lady also began to feel distressed. "How much will it cost to buy so many things?"
"Not much." Qi Fang handed the remaining money to Yan Xue. "Three fifth-grade leaves and five fourth-grade leaves, a total of 768."
The valuable ones are the three five-grade leaves, and as for the two-year-old tree, the couple kept it for stewing chicken during the New Year.
When she heard that it was over seven hundred, even though the Second Old Lady had experienced a lot, she couldn't help but take a breath, "How can it be worth so much money?"
When Yan Jigang came back, he only told her how big a ginseng stick they had dug up. She didn't even open the ginseng bag to see, and thought her grandson was exaggerating.
Yan Jigang's mouth opened wide. "Seven, seven hundred plus? We should stay in the mountains for a few more days."
The latter sentence made Yan Xue laugh and cry, "Are you so greedy?"
Yan Jigang hugged the glass marbles his brother-in-law bought for him tightly and just smiled. After smiling, he pressed his sister's hand that was holding the money and said, "Put it away quickly, put it away." As if he was afraid of being found out.
This kid is definitely a person who makes a fortune quietly. Yan Xue didn't click on it and took it back to the house first to prevent the second old lady from knowing how much money Qi Fang spent on shopping.
Before anyone left the house, the second old lady remembered something and asked Qi Fang, "With so much money, no one is targeting you, right?"
The old lady had lived through a time of war and chaos, and she knew very well that one should not show off one's wealth.
At that time, no one dared to use a new quilt, for fear that it would be snatched away by the bandits. Young girls and wives were even more afraid to go out.
Yan Xue also remembered what happened last time and turned around to ask Qi Fang: "Are those people from last time still here?"
"I didn't see it." Qi Fang said. Seeing that everyone in the family was looking at him with concern, he added, "No one else was with them."
I don’t know if reporting the case that time worked, but it’s a good thing that we didn’t encounter any danger, and the whole family felt relieved.
Qi Fang kept his word and made the car for Yan Jigang in just two days.
It was a small metal car, less than the size of a palm, with a very simple design. The doors could be opened, and the wheels were covered with rubber cut from tires.
Yan Jigang pushed the toy with his hands and made a "dudududu" sound. He was very happy and even took it to play with the two puppies.
Because he had put away all his things, he didn't have much resistance when he actually went to school.
Early in the morning, the second old lady dressed him in the new clothes that Qi Fang bought from the county. He carried his schoolbag and followed Yan Xue to school.
Teacher Yuan was still as kind as ever. He first told Yan Jigang not to be nervous and to speak slowly later, and then he took everyone to the classroom to introduce the new members to the class.
Liu Weibin was chatting with his classmates in the back seat. When he heard the noise, he turned around and his mouth opened wide.
When Teacher Yuan assigned someone to sit next to him, he couldn't help but ask Yan Jigang, "Didn't you stop going to school? How come you're already in the second grade?"
Yan Jigang just smiled sheepishly, "My sister asked me to take the test... and I... I passed."
"Do you two know each other?" Others leaned over and asked Liu Weibin.
Liu Weibin nodded immediately. "I know him. His brother-in-law is a good friend of my brother's. He used to live in my house."
Then he told a few people, "He moved here later. His hometown dialect is a bit strange, so you should speak slowly to him. But his brother-in-law is amazing. He has a little hand/wood warehouse that looks like the real thing."
"Is this true?"
The things that boys were interested in were guns, glass marbles and playing cards. After school that afternoon, some people followed Yan Jigang and Liu Weibin to watch the hand/wood warehouse.
Then they discovered that Yan Jigang not only had a small hand/wooden warehouse, but also a small car. The group played at Yan Xue's house for most of the day before going home with their schoolbags to eat.
This was a good start, but Yan Xue was still worried, so she secretly went to the school to check again.
Seeing that Yan Jigang had his own playgroup and was not being bullied, he left with peace of mind. Unexpectedly, as soon as he went out, he ran into the second old lady who also came to visit secretly.
Thinking about how the second old lady met Shan Qiufang, Yan Xue smiled and accompanied the second old lady to see it again before going back.
Not long after Yan Jigang started school, the dog Duanmu from Yan Xue's family began to grow ears.
Generally speaking, when the earlobe is fully unfolded, the edges begin to curl upwards, the ear body becomes soft and drooping, the elasticity becomes poor, the ear flesh becomes thick, the ear base shrinks and becomes smaller, thinner, and upright, and the color turns from black to brown, it is mature.
At this time, the fungus must be harvested in time, otherwise it will become runny and rotten. The rotten fungus will remain on the ear wood and even affect other fungi.
The time of harvesting is also important. It should be chosen when the sky clears up after rain, when the ear pieces are slightly dry but the ear roots are moist, or when the morning dew has not dried yet.
At this time, the wood ear is soft and not easy to be broken, and it is not easy to damage the nearby ear buds and the mycelium under the ear roots when picking.
For several days, Yan Xue's family was busy harvesting and drying wood ear mushrooms.
It was too troublesome to go from the forest farm to the town, and it required bus tickets. In order to save costs, Yan Xue decided not to sell fresh ear mushrooms, but to dry them all.
However, she also has requirements for drying the ears. According to the number of wrinkles on the ears, they are divided into three categories: multi-ribbed, semi-ribbed and no-ribbed.
After harvesting, the fungus should be dried immediately and laid out in a single layer to avoid stacking. It should not be turned over before it is completely dry, otherwise the fungus will become folded.
The half reinforcement should not be laid too thickly. After it is shaped, it can be combined and moved to a well-ventilated shade shed to continue drying in the shade.
The most troublesome ones are those without ribs, as they require secondary shaping after quick air drying and shaping.
Guo Changan's family had harvested wood ear mushrooms before, and they would just lay them out on a curtain to dry. Seeing Yan Xue beating the veinless wood ear mushrooms until they were slightly damp, and then rubbing the leaves with both hands until they rolled inward into strips, he couldn't help but ask, "Are there so many things to pay attention to when drying wood ear mushrooms?"
"Of course." Yan Xue smiled and asked, "When you go shopping, do you first choose something that looks good but may not taste good, or something that looks bad but is actually delicious?"
Who doesn’t see the beautiful appearance first? After all, you have to taste it to see whether it tastes good or not, but you can tell at a glance whether it looks good or not.
Guo Changan found that he could learn a lot from Yan Xue. He didn't ask any more questions and continued to gather the dried fungus and put them into the basket.
While I was busy, Zhou Wenhui arrived and asked awkwardly, "Am I disturbing you?"
Seeing that she came alone and Liu Weiguo was not with her, Yan Xue guessed that she might have something to do. "Wait a moment, I'll finish what I'm doing."
Zhou Wenhui nodded, "You are busy, I am not in a hurry."
But Yan Xue quickly finished the fungus on hand and went into the house with her. "How is it? Are you adapting to being married?"
This question made Zhou Wenhui blush, but it also invisibly brought the two closer together.
Zhou Wenhui nodded and said, "Very good." She looked at her sincerely and said, "Thank you and Qi Fang for your help. Without you, Weiguo and I might have broken up."
Yan Xue had some understanding of this girl's personality. "You didn't come here just to thank us, did you?"
That's too polite. Zhou Wenhui shook her head. "Not entirely. I just wanted to ask if you can buy these fungus anywhere?"
Yan Xue was a little surprised that he was here to bring her business. "Do you have any channels?"
"Isn't my uncle-in-law in the logistics department of the town forestry bureau?" Zhou Wenhui said. "Their canteen is also stocking up on vegetables for the fall. I asked him to help inquire, and they're willing to buy if the price is right. I can also ask around at the homes of my former classmates and friends if you need anything."
I almost forgot that this girl had such connections. Yan Xue thought about it seriously and asked, "Is the canteen of the Town Forestry Bureau okay?"
She remembered that the canteens of such units should purchase goods from stores or supply and marketing cooperatives, and then take the receipts back for reimbursement.
Zhou Wenhui also knew this. "I asked carefully, and they can also go to the market to buy things that the store doesn't have."
As for wood ear mushrooms, they were something that stores and supply and marketing cooperatives wouldn't sell. Yan Xue didn't say anything else. "How much do they want?"
"About 10 to 20 kilograms," Zhou Wenhui said a little embarrassedly. "It's mainly because they're not sure if the food is good, so they don't dare to buy too much."
Compared with radishes, cabbages and potatoes, wood ear mushrooms are indeed a bit more expensive, with a pound of dried ones costing three or four yuan.
But it takes seven or eight pounds of fresh stuff to produce one pound of dried stuff, and it's also very tasty after soaking.
"That's also helping me." Yan Xue said, "How about this, I'll give you 3.4 yuan per pound of the stuff, and you can get as much as you can from me. I don't care how much you sell it for, and if there's any left, it's all your errand fee."
Zhou Wenhui had never expected that she would pay her for running errands. She was a little stunned and said, "I just helped you connect with someone. I didn't expect to get paid."
"Then it's not hard for you to go back and forth as a matchmaker? Don't you have to pay for the car fare?" Yan Xue never had the habit of asking others to pay for doing things for her.
Zhou Wenhui couldn't argue with Yan Xue, so she cautiously took the 20 kilograms and left.
The relationship between the two families was so good that Yan Xue did not ask her for money. "We can settle the account after you come back. You can return the unsold items to me."
Zhou Wenhui felt too embarrassed to do so, so she went home and got thirty yuan, which she left with Yan Xue as a deposit.
There was still a lot left from the first batch of harvest. Yan Xue thought about it and decided to carry it on her back, give some to Shan Qiufang first, and then sell the rest at the small market.
While I was waiting for the train, Old Man Wang came with a basket on his back. It was obvious that he was also going to the town to sell things.
Yan Xue didn't know where the bad fate between her and the other party came from. They didn't meet each other when they were not selling things, but they met each other as soon as they went to sell things.
Old man Wang's face looked a little bad at that time. He had been ruined by Yan Xue twice, once when he was selling frozen mushrooms and once when he was selling black fungus.
Who knows what this girl is going to sell with that basket on her back? What if she is trying to steal his business?
Old man Wang looked into Yan Xue's basket again and again, and finally saw the dried wood ear mushrooms inside when Yan Xue put the basket down to rest.
This is such a coincidence, he went to town today to sell wood ear mushrooms.
Old Man Wang's face turned dark and he immediately turned around and walked back with the basket on his back.
This departure surprised Yan Xue.
So you're not going to sell it?
Or did you suddenly remember something and go back?
Seeing Old Man Wang coming back, the Wang family was also a little confused, "Dad, what did you forget? Or is there no car today?"
"No. I didn't check the almanac before going out today, so it's not a good day to sell things."
Old man Wang walked in, put down the backpack, put his hands on his waist and relaxed for a long time. He was still out of breath, so he lit another pack of cigarettes and took a deep puff.
He was not afraid of that dead girl, he just felt it was unlucky, and bad luck was the most taboo in doing business.
When Yan Xue rushed to Shan Qiufang's house, she didn't see Shan Qiufang.
She thought no one was home, but then Shan Qiufang's youngest son, who was playing in the mud at the door, said, "Someone's here to sell fungus. My mom went to check it out."
She was about to deliver something to someone, and someone else was about to buy it. Yan Xue hurriedly asked for the place and rushed over.
When they arrived, Shan Qiufang was indeed bargaining with someone. "It's 3.80 yuan a pound at the small market, and you're also selling it for 3.80 yuan a pound. We're neighbors, so why not give me a discount?"
"My parents picked these up in the mountains themselves. It's not easy to get them. How about you buy some more? If you buy two pounds, I'll give you a dime."
The other party obviously doesn't want to get a bargain. They only charge one cent for buying two kilograms. Who would buy two kilograms of dried black fungus for that one cent?
Shan Qiufang wanted to say something else but was pulled back by Yan Xue.
Yan Xue even winked at her, and she immediately understood, "Someone's coming to my house, I have to go back and see."
"Hey, you don't want to buy it anymore?" The man obviously didn't expect her to leave so easily, and called out from behind.
Shan Qiufang didn't even turn her head and said, "I won't buy it yet." She turned into her own alley and asked Yan Xue in a low voice, "What's wrong? Is there something wrong?"
Yan Xue didn't say anything, but first lowered her eyes to look at her belly.
"Ah, I'm pregnant again. It's only been five months. The last time you came here, she wasn't showing yet."
Shan Qiufang said she was older than him, but she was actually only in her early thirties. She didn't care much about what had happened to her again. She still asked about Yan Xue's wink before, "Is there something wrong?"
"Then I've come at the perfect time." Yan Xue smiled and took out a package of fungus from her backpack, "As a gift for my little brother and sister."
Shan Qiufang immediately said to her, "Look, you just came, what else do you bring?"
He added, "This time it's probably a girl. We all have children in our family, so we either have a girl and a boy, or a boy and a girl."
Shan Qiufang's previous three children were a son, a daughter, and a son. Yan Xue insisted on giving it to her, "Then give it to your future little sister. Remember to tell her that it was given by Sister Xue."
Shan Qiufang's arms were stuffed full, and only then did she notice what she was giving her. "Why did you give me such an expensive thing?"
"I told you, these are all made at home." Yan Xue showed her the basket. "I came here to sell wood ear mushrooms, and I'll bring some for you as well."
"So many?" Before Shan Qiufang could speak, someone next to her suddenly interrupted.
The two looked and found that it was the neighbor who sold wood ear mushrooms before.
The other party was obviously worried and followed her again, saying to Shan Qiufang: "Don't buy things carelessly. What if she picked it up somewhere else?"
The small market allows individuals to sell some of their family's surplus agricultural and sideline products, as well as mountain products, but those are all collected by the people themselves in the mountains. It is a different matter to resell them, which is absolutely speculation.
The public housing complex was densely populated, and there were many people who were good at doing good things nearby. How could Dan Qiufang let her put such a big hat on Yan Xue's head? Her face changed instantly, "Stop talking nonsense!"
Yan Xue, however, was able to keep her composure, and even smiled, pulling the backpack over and placing it in front of the other person.
"Then tell me, where can I get all the fungus that's dried to look the same? The fungus I have is one-of-a-kind. You won't find anything of this quality anywhere else in Chengshui."
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