Chapter 62: The two comrades who led the recitation in your forest farm are good.
In this kind of party hosted by the Forestry Bureau, the first program is usually for the Town Forestry Bureau, and the last one is a chorus of all the leaders on stage.
Yan Xue and her group's poetry recitation was arranged to be the second one because it was jointly selected by all the forest farms. Before the party officially started, they had to wait backstage.
By the time the first act came on stage, they were already standing behind the curtains on both sides. Yan Xue was fine, but the girl next to her was obviously a little nervous and kept reciting the lines in a low voice.
"It's okay, I'm sure you'll be fine."
Yan Xue turned around and comforted her, "I heard from your roommate Yang Wenhua that you're reciting the script even in your dreams."
This made the woman blush, but the joke also helped her calm down. "Don't listen to her nonsense. I only said that once."
Soon the first show was over. After the applause, the host came on stage to announce the program and it was their turn.
Yan Xue found the designated seat, stood up, picked up the manuscript folder, and just as she looked up, she heard applause from the audience below.
"Qi Fang and Yan Xue from our forest farm led the recitation." Liu Weiguo was the first to lead the applause.
Except for the leaders in the front row, the audience seats below were basically composed of people from various units who came to perform. This group happened to be the choir from Jinchuan Forest Farm, and they all felt proud to hear this.
Seven forest farms performed together, and the two reciters were from their forest farm, which was very impressive.
No matter what they thought before, the fact that Yan Xue and Qi Fang could stand in the middle was a credit to their forest farm.
When Yan Xue heard this, she looked over here with a smile. When she looked away, she noticed the person sitting in the front row and couldn't help but feel a little surprised.
Sitting in the middle of the first row of the audience was the man with glasses who almost hit them with his bicycle that day.
The man's glasses had obviously been replaced. He was relaxed and smiling warmly. He was drinking water from an enamel pot on the table in front of him, and occasionally chatting with the people around him.
Generally speaking, that place is reserved for the secretary of the town forestry bureau. I didn’t expect the world to be so small.
But it's true that not everyone can afford a Roman watch. It costs more than 400 yuan per piece, and there are not many people who can afford it in Chengshui.
Yan Xue didn't look at him any further, nor did she show anything. She naturally withdrew her gaze and walked forward following Qi Fang's low voice.
As the morning mist dissipated and the light sunlight shone in, the forest farm welcomed a new day.
The hardworking lumberjacks in the forest farm carried their tools, shouted slogans, and started working in these vast mountains, contributing to the construction of the motherland.
The hardworking women in the forest farm put down their spatulas and picked up shovels to clear the forest, plant trees and protect the forest. They are a female army that is no less capable than the men.
If Qi Fang's voice is the lush green mountains and the proud pines and cypresses, then Yan Xue is the clear spring in the mountains and the wind of hope in the forest.
She always possessed a high-spirited vitality that could be clearly conveyed through every word she uttered. Especially at the end of the poetry recitation, when her voice rose and she firmly led everyone into the chorus, it was as if the mountains shouted with them.
So when the poem recitation ended, the lingering sound still echoed in the theater, and it took a while before thunderous applause broke out.
This time, not only the Jinchuan Forest Farm, but also several other forest farms and even the town forestry bureau, town machine repair factory, and town plywood factory all applauded.
The effect was so good that even Lang Yue'e, who had gone to find Yan Xue and Qi Fang with some selfish motives, did not expect that the two could achieve this level.
Section Chief Miao did not expect that the two youngest people in the audience were the best performers and were also applauding while standing in the audience.
After two drum beats, someone came over and asked, "Secretary Qu wants to know which forest farm the two people who led the recitation are from and what their names are?"
When Section Chief Miao heard this, he hurried over and said, "It's Qi Fang and Yan Xue from the Jinchuan Forest Farm."
Qu Mingli nodded after hearing this and said, "These two young people are not bad."
A person may be good-looking or good at reciting poetry, but the key is to have a good heart and be willing to help strangers you meet on the street.
Moreover, both of them had clearly seen him just now, but they didn't show any abnormality and performed as usual. When they passed by the audience, they didn't even glance at him.
Regardless of whether he was a stranger he met on the road or the secretary of the town forestry bureau, the attitudes of both of them remained unchanged, which was what he appreciated most.
With Yan Xue and her group’s poetry recitation being such a gem, the rest of the programs always felt a little lacking, especially the town machine repair factory performance that took place right after the poetry recitation.
Chen Jizhong, as the organizer, was standing in the audience and heard the contrast even more clearly. His expression hadn't improved since the poetry recitation entered the middle.
The success of the poetry recitation obviously brought pressure to the town machine repair factory. Everyone's performance was even worse than usual, and they all looked gloomy when they left the stage.
Some people also whispered, "Why does that man who led the poetry recitation look so familiar to me? Is he the guy from our factory?"
"You just realized that I felt he looked familiar when I came to rehearsal the day before yesterday, but I just didn't dare to recognize him."
"Who is it?" Some people who came to the machine repair shop later did not know Qi Fang.
"Master Chen, who used to work at our machine repair shop..."
After being glanced at by Chen Jizhong, he quickly shut his mouth.
But once Qi Fang jumped out like this, this kind of discussion was inevitable, and this was the reason why Chen Jizhong didn't want him to appear in the town.
Qi Fang's mere presence reminded everyone how hard he'd worked for years, only to be outshined by a new kid. Finally, Qu Mingli took the stage, and a group of leaders and factory workers sang a chorus together, bringing the party to a successful conclusion.
As everyone exchanged greetings and left the stage, Qu Mingli saw Secretary Lang and smiled and praised him again, "Those two comrades in your forest farm are great."
Secretary Lang's smile hadn't dropped since the poetry recitation began. Upon hearing this, he quickly said modestly, "Thank you very much. It's also because the bureau has trained them well and given them this opportunity."
Yan Xue and Qi Fang's recitation was enough to bring honor to the Lin family, and they performed so well. He had earned enough face, so naturally he had to be humble.
This made him, who already liked Yan Xue and Qi Fang, admire the two young people even more. On the way back to the forest farm in the internal combustion engine, he said that the two of them were tired from their business trip, and Qi Fang would not be scheduled for the mountain patrol next month.
Patrolling the mountain is really hard work. You have to eat and sleep in the watchtower. It is naturally a good thing not to go there. Yan Xue hurriedly thanked the other party.
When they got home, Yan Jigang had already finished school. As soon as they entered the yard, they heard his childish voice reciting a poem, "Spring sleep does not know the dawn..."
Then the two dogs shouted: "Woof!"
"Everywhere you hear birds singing..."
Another "Woof".
"The sound of wind and rain at night, how many flowers have fallen?"
“Woof woof!” “Woof woof woof!”
The two dogs worked in perfect harmony, and soon Yan Jigang's laughter could be heard. "Let's recite another poem, 'Pity the Peasants.'"
Then came the second old lady's usual slow voice, "Don't be in a hurry, take your time."
Yan Jigang slowed down his speech again, "Song of the Peasants, Tang Dynasty, Li Shen..."
The breath of life that hit him made Qi Fang stop in the yard unconsciously.
It was not until Yan Jigang finished reciting the poem that he whispered to Yan Xue, "Jigang doesn't stutter when reciting poetry."
Yan Xue didn't rush in. She just hummed, "The more nervous he gets, the harder it is for him to speak. If he recites something rhythmic like this and speaks slower, he won't stutter."
"Then teach him to recite more poems in the future." Qi Fang had just finished speaking when the second old lady opened the door and came out. She was slightly surprised when she saw the two of them. "You two are back?"
When Yan Jigang heard this, he immediately ran out, "Sister! Sister, brother-in-law!"
Following behind were two puppies that were much bigger than them, wagging their tails and barking.
Seeing her brother's eyes shining, Yan Xue smiled and touched his head. "Your brother-in-law and I have not been home these days. Have you listened to grandma?"
Yan Jigang nodded, and the second old lady also said: "Jigang, you don't know yet. Just do your homework and go to and from school by yourself every day."
"Okay, let's eat canned braised pork tomorrow." Yan Xue took out a tin can from the bag she brought to town as she walked in.
When Yan Jigang saw it, his eyes lit up even brighter and his face turned red.
He had never eaten this thing before in his hometown. It was the first time he ate it after coming to the forest farm, and he couldn't help but eat too much.
He started burping as soon as he opened his mouth to speak, and his speech became even more slurred. He thought his sister and brother-in-law would scold him, but his sister smiled and said, "You won't be like this if you eat more often in the future."
This kind of canned meat is sold in small quantities in forest farm stores, sometimes only once every few months. Once it arrives, it is bought up by those who are well-informed. The only way is to find a way to buy it from the town.
This made him narrow his eyes happily, but he still cared about his sister and brother-in-law first, "Did the performance go well?"
"Of course." Yan Xue smiled. "Are you still worried about your sister and brother-in-law taking action? I guarantee they'll shock everyone the moment they open their mouths."
"Really!" Yan Jigang immediately tugged at her sleeve, motioning her to elaborate.
Qi Fang picked up the can and was about to put it in the cabinet in the main hall, but the second old lady took it and said, "You two must be tired after all this trouble. Take a rest."
He paused and said, "Okay, let's go to bed early tonight."
Grandma told him to rest now and didn't mention tonight. Yan Xue couldn't help but look at the man again.
Besides, going on a business trip to town is not as tiring as going up the mountain to cut down trees?
He didn't say a word when we went up the mountain to cut down trees, and he was able to maintain good hygiene habits every day. But now he can't do that?
Yan Xue wanted to laugh, but the man had a cold and serious look on his face, which was really intimidating.
At least the old lady really felt that they were working hard, and she nodded quickly when she heard it. Yan Jigang also sensibly said that they could get up later tomorrow, and he would definitely not make any noise to wake them up.
So Yan Xue naturally got up late the next day, and she was really lazy, working hard day and night.
In contrast, Qi Fang was much more energetic. He even went out to harvest wood ear mushrooms early in the morning and came back to tell her, "It's less than half of what it was before."
"Normal." Yan Xue had expected this. "Once the temperature drops below five degrees, it should stop growing."
The temperature in the south is high, so it may last until the end of November, while in the northeast it may last until October at most.
Today is October 1st, and maybe frost will fall in the forest farm in a few days.
Sure enough, a few days after finishing the canned braised pork, Yan Jigang was still reluctant to eat it. One morning, Yan Xue woke up and saw a layer of frost on the ground.
"Let's dismantle the frame," she said to Qi Fang when she returned. "Find the old sleepers and stack them up at both ends, ready for the winter."
When the mycelium stops growing and enters a dormant state, the wood ear mushroom needs to be managed for the winter. If the winter management is good, the wood ear mushroom can produce for three consecutive years; if the management is not good, the production will be significantly reduced in the second year.
The texture of the first-year ear wood is hard, so you can just lay it flat and stack it. The reason why both sides are padded is to prevent heavy snow in winter. Once the snow melts, the ear wood will easily rot if it sticks to the ground.
After all the logs were processed, Yan Xue gathered the remaining dried wood ear mushrooms and made a summary of this year's planting.
First, there were still more than 30 kilograms of dried black fungus left, which would bring her over 100 yuan if she sold them all. She could find some time to go to Aunt Qiufang's house and the small market.
Secondly, it was too late to plant this year. There was still space in the backyard, so she selected the fullest and thickest wood ear mushrooms to extract spores. She will start cultivating the fungus in January next year and plant it in April, which should be just in time for harvesting in June.
Then, to thank the whole family for their hard work, Yan Xue bought small gifts for everyone in the family, and prepared a large table of food and wine. Of course, there was no wine for Yan Jigang.
In the end, she didn't plan to sell all the wood ear mushrooms. She planned to keep some for herself and give some to the Liu family, the Guo family, and Secretary Lang's family.
Especially the Guo family. No matter what, they were the ones who helped preserve the fungus strains. Guo Changan has worked for her for so long, so he must let people taste the fruits of his labor.
Unexpectedly, before Yan Xue could be sent over, Guo Changan arrived first. As soon as he entered the yard, he could hear the sound of his crutches tapping the ground.
After more than half a year of recuperation and recovery, Guo Changan was able to move around on his own with the help of a cane, but it was still very strenuous and his right hand was still weak.
After October, the forest farm assigned him a job, which turned out to be a sinecure, watching over the hangar at the foot of the mountain. After all, the logging team was up there for half the year, and there wasn't much to be found in the hangar at the foot of the mountain.
However, when she saw him, Yan Xue still smiled and congratulated him first: "Can you finally take a break recently? I heard that your job has been confirmed."
Guo Changan nodded, but didn't say much about the work. Instead, he sat down on the kang and leaned his crutches against the wall. "I remember you said you were going to cultivate fungus next year."
Yan Xue had indeed told him so, and poured him a glass of water. "Yes, we will start cultivating it in January next year."
Guo Changan is a man who gets things done. He suddenly asked this question, so he must have something to say.
Sure enough, Guo Changan used his good hand to pull out a few pieces of paper from his pocket and handed them to her. "This is what I asked my classmate to draw at the food factory. Take a look and see if it can be used."
Yan Xue took it and opened it, and found that it was a blueprint of the room structure. The walls and ceiling were simplified, and the focus was on the ground. Several obvious grooves were drawn below, connecting to the edge of the room.
"What is this?" She looked up with a little confusion.
"The fermentation room used by the food factory to ferment Qinghong Fang," Guo Changan said. "They also use mold to ferment Qinghong Fang, and if the temperature is too low, it won't ferment, and if the temperature is too high, the mold will lose its activity. I thought it was very similar to how you cultivate bacteria, and it's easier to control the temperature than burning a kang, so I went to copy it."
He pointed to a piece of paper. "It's all made of cement underneath. The grooves drawn on it are the air ducts. When you need to use it, fill the ducts with water and connect it to a boiler. The boiler can directly supply air, and the amount of air supplied controls the temperature. They make soybean paste and bread this way, too."
Making soybean paste also requires heating, but when making soybean paste, the air is not passed into the ground, but directly into a soybean paste pool made of cement. There are also air passages inside the walls around the pool.
Guo Changan pointed to the one at the back and said, "That's the boiler. It's a homemade boiler that I made by welding iron sheets. Your Qi Fang should be able to understand it."
Regularly produced boilers start at one ton, which are expensive and hard to come by, and even out of reach for small businesses. So, food factories in town, for example, all get their own iron and weld it themselves.
Qi Fang was writing something at the table that Yan Xue couldn't understand, and he didn't participate in the conversation. Hearing this, he stretched out a bony hand and said, "Let me see."
Yan Xue handed it over along with the previous one, "I've looked at it. It has the dimensions. It's two meters high and one meter thick."
"The boilers at their food factory are this big," Guo Changan said. "I didn't understand it either, so I just wrote it all down."
Qi Fang didn't say anything, but glanced down first, "It can drive several rooms."
This big boiler is different from the iron stoves in the field office and in one's own house. Once it is lit, the heat can supply at least several rooms.
As expected, Guo Changan said, "I've asked, and there's no problem with six or seven rooms. They have several connected rooms, so if any room needs gas, just tell the boiler room."
That's probably a bit too much. Even if Yan Xue builds another room specifically for cultivating fungi, it's impossible to make it as big as six or seven rooms.
Besides, the food factory's house might be different from theirs, Guo Changan knew that, "I just asked for help. If you can use it, then use it. If not, it's okay."
As he said that, he picked up his crutches and stood up. However, given his current inconvenience, how could it be so easy for him to get these two drawings?
Qi Fang carefully put the things away and said, "Thank you." Yan Xue even called him, "Don't leave in a hurry." She took two bags of dried black fungus and gave them to him.
Guo Changan was stunned, looking like he was about to refuse, but Yan Xue had already taken her coat and was ready to help him pass it over. "One package is for Aunt Guo and Brother Changping and Sister Baozhi, and the other package is for your employee benefits." She looked at him again and said, "You are so reserved. Do you not want to work for me next year?"
"That's not the case." For Guo Changan, guarding the hangar was the compensation given by the forest farm to employees who were disabled due to work-related injuries, and Yan Xue was the real hope that could pull him out.
"Then don't be so polite to me." Yan Xue went out and pushed the door open for him. "This is because you didn't make much this year. When you make more next year, I'll give you a bonus."
Ten thousand inspirational quotes are not as real as a bonus. Yan Xue is a realistic person, so of course she will do whatever is practical.
When she arrived at the Guo family's house, she didn't wait for the Guo family to refuse. She walked in, put down her things and left. "Don't be so formal. This is the result of our labor. Of course everyone should try it."
Auntie Guo tried to catch up but failed, so she couldn't help but say, "This Xiao Yan."
Guo Changping looked at the two bags of fungus and said, "How about we soak some tomorrow? After all, it's grown in Chang'an. I don't know what farm-grown fungus tastes like."
Thinking that Chang'an might not have been able to recover so quickly if it weren't for the fact that he was growing wood ear mushrooms, Aunt Guo nodded and said, "Okay, let's try the wood ear mushrooms grown by Chang'an tomorrow."
As he spoke, he touched the paper bag containing the fungus, moving very carefully, as if he was afraid of breaking something precious.
When Yan Xue returned, Qi Fang was still looking at the boiler blueprint. She asked, "How is it? Does it work?"
"It needs to be changed." Qi Fanggang was thinking about this problem. The earthen boiler in the food factory was too big for them.
This thing requires burning coal, and someone has to watch over it. All the manpower and material resources are invested, but more than half of them are not used. It's a complete waste.
Yan Xue also knew, "Why not just forget it? I didn't use it this year, but I've already cultivated it."
"It's okay, it can be modified." Qi Fang insisted more than her, "I'll see about making it smaller and including the other rooms in the house."
"Take the other rooms in the house with you?" Yan Xue was a little surprised.
Qi Fang put down his things and looked at her. "Don't you always sit on the kang in winter? I guess grandma and Jigang can't stand it."
The winter in Northeast China without heating is still quite unbearable. Except for the warm spot on the kang, the rest of the house is cold.
Therefore, many families will build an iron stove, which is commonly known as the "turtle stove" by locals because it looks like a lying turtle with the stove ring and lid.
In order to increase the heat dissipation area for more heating and to exhaust smoke, an iron tube, commonly known as the "stove tube", is connected above the stove and extends to the outside of the window.
Yan Xue and her family were renting someone else's house at the time, so they didn't do it. Yan Xue didn't say anything and just stayed on the kang as much as possible when she felt cold. She didn't expect that her husband would find out since he spent so little time at home.
If it were just Yan Xue herself, she would have endured it and at most lit a tin stove. But as for Ji Gang and Grandma, she didn't say anything.
However, in order to include the other houses, the existing houses also had to be modified. In the end, Qi Fang took the drawings to find Liu Daniu.
"Do you want to install air ducts in the other rooms as well?" Liu Daniu frowned as he looked at the blueprint. "That's probably not possible unless you tear down the house and rebuild it."
Qi Fang had already thought about this, "What if I don't lay it on the ground, but build a firewall against the wall?"
He flipped to the back of his new drawing. "It's all made of cement, with only a pipe running out to connect it to the boiler."
"That's feasible."
As the two were talking, Liu Weiguo and Zhou Wenhui came in from outside, went straight to Huang Fengying, and chirped softly.
Not long after, Huang Fengying exclaimed, "Ah," "Then it might really be possible." She hurriedly led people into the house.
This was a happy event, and Liu Daniu immediately stopped talking to Qi Fang.
When Liu Weiguo came in, he noticed Qi Fang in the room and chuckled.
Qi Fang congratulated him, and the corners of his mouth immediately stretched to the back of his ears.
After Qi Fang and Liu Daniu finished talking, when they sent Qi Fang out, he couldn't help but brag, "You said I've only been married for two months and Wenhui is already pregnant. It shouldn't be a problem to have three children in two years, right?"
Qi Fang didn't say anything, just said "hmm" lightly.
"Remember to tell Yan Xue when you get back that I agreed to let her be the child's godmother. I've been working really hard these past two months."
Hearing him mention Yan Xue, Qi Fang spoke this time and looked at him slowly, "You're pregnant right after getting married, what are you going to do in the next year?"
Liu Weiguo's face, full of joy, suddenly froze.
Yeah, how could he forget this?
He has only been married for two months and hasn't done anything yet, but he has to be a monk for a year. It's better for Qi Fang to remain silent.
No wonder Qi Fang said he would have three children within two years this year, but Yan Xue never had one, and he didn't seem to be anxious...
That’s not right, Liu Weiguo thought of another thing.
"It's October now. As soon as the snow starts to fall, we have to go into the mountains. Wouldn't you have to stay there for half a year without being able to go home?"
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