Although people would secretly buy meat on the black market to treat themselves, no one dared to trade openly. In previous years, many people in their village had died because of these things, and everyone was filled with fear.
The brigade leader knew that the villagers' thinking was rigid, which is why he asked the secretary to go to the county and commune to get the approval documents before announcing these things. Having the approval documents and making a public announcement would save a lot of trouble.
He took out the approval document and passed it to the people in the first row, telling them to pass it around and read it.
Some of the older people couldn't read, so the team leader specially arranged for one of the educated youth in the team to stand on the stage and read another document.
"Captain, is this true?" Some people didn't understand, their eyes shining, but she understood that dried vegetables could be sold for money and that she wouldn't get arrested.
That's enough.
The captain nodded. "Really."
At this moment, the audience suddenly became lively, and people began to whisper among themselves, but more than anything, they were incredulous, even though they often saw other communes having some side jobs.
But when it actually happened to them, they were mostly incredulous.
The next moment, someone raised a question.
What if they can't make money? What if the state-owned factory goes bankrupt and they lose all the dried vegetables they've collected?
The captain gave his wife a look.
The team leader's wife stood up with a smile. "You all don't know this, but this morning the Party Secretary and Wanyue went to the city to sell a batch of goods." She held eight yuan in her hand. "Because we were worried about the risks, we took out our own money. This is the money the Party Secretary gave me."
No matter how reasonable the explanation, nothing is more convincing than firsthand experience.
Immediately afterwards, an honest-looking woman wearing a blue-green long-sleeved shirt stood up, clutching three yuan in her hand. "I have five jin of dried vegetables and a few jin of mushrooms. This is the money the Party Secretary gave me."
The speaker was Li Mei, a widow from the village. Her clothes were covered in patches, and she was holding a baby in her arms.
Li Mei lost her husband at a young age and was kicked out by her in-laws. The villagers took pity on her and gave her a thatched house in the village. Because she had to work all year round, she was dark and thin, and her face was always full of suffering.
But now he had a smile on his face.
The team leader's wife might lie, but Li Mei would never.
And the smile in her eyes couldn't lie.
Everyone had their own plans.
"Captain, just tell us what to do, and we'll do it your way." As long as there's money, anything is negotiable.
The crowd responded in unison.
Aside from what they eat themselves, their family dries hundreds of kilograms of vegetables every year, but these always get moldy the following year, and most of them end up in the bellies of chickens and ducks. If they could exchange them for money, they would be laughing in their dreams.
The team leader and Secretary Guo exchanged a glance, both seeing a smile in each other's eyes.
He gestured for everyone to be quiet, then leaned close to the microphone and said, "Since no one has any objections, please sign your names on the request form in a moment. Now I'm going to tell you about the rules."
Hearing the captain's serious expression, everyone shut their mouths and pricked up their ears, afraid of missing anything.
The team leader cleared his throat. "We cooperate with state-owned factories. They require high quality, so our dried vegetables must be the best. The team will have specially assigned quality inspectors. If they don't meet the standards, we won't accept them." He said coldly.
No one expected that quality would also be a requirement.
"What kind of state-owned factories would accept it?" the plump woman asked.
“We definitely don’t want you spitting,” another thin middle-aged woman said sarcastically.
The plump woman's cheeks flushed red.
"I won't spit on it if it's sold to a state-owned factory," the plump woman argued, fearing the brigade leader wouldn't accept her family's produce.
The skinny woman scoffed, "I even saw her stomping on it. I won't buy from her."
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