Under the moonlight of a summer night, the general appearance of the courtyards in Zhangjia Village, some far and some near, can be vaguely seen. There are bluestone walls, but more are bamboo fences.
With such conditions, the Zhangjia Village Production Team was already envied by the surrounding area, and families with children also liked to marry into their village.
But Zhang Guoqing could not forget the envious looks of most of the children in the village as they looked at his son's little sandals naked and barefoot.
Poor, so poor!
Except on snowy days, the villagers would rather let their children go naked year-round. How could parents bear to let their children be naked? It's all because of poverty.
If every household had an extra income, it might change the fate of the entire village. When people have enough to eat and wear, they naturally want their children to be more than just blind.
Only when the next generation leaves Zhangjia Village and goes to school to enrich themselves can the fate of Zhangjia Village, where generations have relied on hunting and farming for a living, be changed.
"Third Grandpa, are you asleep?"
Standing at the door of the old captain's house, Zhang Guoqing knocked on the door and greeted loudly, which startled the dogs in the hunter's house next door and started barking wildly.
In previous years, it wouldn't take long for the village's barking to grow louder and louder. It was only in recent years, with food shortages, that even dogs couldn't be kept. It was this dog that had saved the old hunter's life, and that's why Nian'en's family risked their lives to keep it.
"Wait, I'll open the door."
After a while, the old captain dragged his shoes out of the yard, opened the door, and revealed his tired and weathered face.
"Third Grandpa, did I wake you up?"
The old captain looked behind him and saw that he was alone. He shook his head and said, "Not yet. I'm thinking about the team's work. If you have anything to say, come in and talk."
Zhang Guoqing followed him into the east room. Passing by the outer room, he saw Third Grandma and her eldest daughter-in-law still mending clothes. They were indeed not asleep yet, so he breathed a sigh of relief.
"Pour the water yourself. Tell me, what brings you here in the middle of the night?"
It was getting late, so Zhang Guoqing didn't exchange many pleasantries. He got straight to the point and shared his idea of setting up a food factory in the village. Whether this idea would be successful depended on the decision of this knowledgeable old man.
The old captain smiled as he listened. "I do have that idea. Hunting is almost gone. Our village can't survive just relying on the little we harvest from the fields."
Zhang Guoqing nodded.
"I mentioned this to the township at the last meeting. They said they could approve it, but we still had to handle everything ourselves, and we still had to pay a lot to the township every year. I kept this matter to myself and didn't tell anyone else.
This is a tough calculation. Opening a factory requires a lot of money, including glass bottles and labor costs, and we still have to give a portion of the profit to the township. After all this, it's not much different from selling to a purchasing station ourselves."
Zhang Guoqing understood the implication of his words and ultimately didn't want to benefit the locals. After all, they were afraid of paying the public grain tax. Who knew if the profits they handed over would increase year by year?
The old captain looked at Zhang Guoqing, who was deep in thought, and smiled knowingly. His eyes flickered as he continued, "Actually, the best way is not to set up a factory. Every winter, we can process the goods ourselves in the ancestral hall, paying according to work points. Then, we can sell the goods in the name of the production team and distribute the proceeds to the villagers. That way, no one can take advantage of the villagers."
"Your idea isn't bad." Zhang Guoqing understood the captain's point. This was a purely private workshop with no future, but it was suitable for the conservative villagers.
"It's difficult. You don't know, without the support of the township, even with the production team's certification, those glass bottle factories will look down on our team. And the most crucial point is, without the township's support, no technicians will be willing to come to our team for guidance."
Zhang Guoqing laughed. Was he walking into a trap? Perhaps if he didn't show up tonight, they would have a chat with him in the next two days.
The old captain also laughed heartily. He said this kid was very clever. But apart from this kid, no one else in the village could handle this matter.
"How about you help Third Grandpa find some connections?"
Since Zhang Guoqing had come, he didn't think of refusing. "Okay. I'll go to the city tomorrow morning to find someone. Glass bottles aren't a problem. I have a classmate who works as an accountant there, so he can at least give me some face. But, Uncle San, do you think it would be better to find a retired old man from the food factory as the technician?"
The old captain was overjoyed when he heard this and slapped the table, "Whatever you say, it's fine."
"I don't really know this technician. I'm using connections to introduce him. If he can't bring himself to come, but isn't happy about it, then it's pointless."
The old captain nodded slightly, waiting for the next words. For this kid to say such a thing, there must be a suitable candidate.
"It's definitely better to ask my dad for this than me! My dad has an old friend named Mo. This old man is a retired chef from the provincial capital's food factory. He spends his days wandering around the county town. Let's let him make use of his spare time and have him come over to play. He'll definitely be happy to do so."
The old captain pointed at him and smiled, "You bad boy!"
Zhang Guoqing smiled and said, "Old Man Mo is a good person. His older sons and daughters are all in the provincial capital, and his youngest son is in the county town. He is tired of living in the city, and my yard happens to be empty, so the two old people can come and stay for a few days.
My father has a few old buddies who are very good friends. They can come over and give him some pointers when they have some free time. Talk to my father about this; he's eager to be busy."
The old captain jokingly said, "Aren't you afraid that your father will find out and beat you?"
"My father is a man who can't sit still." Zhang Guoqing understood his father's feelings for the Zhangjia Village people better than anyone else. Otherwise, he wouldn't come back to help during the busy farming season.
Sometimes, happiness is not just about having money and free time. If Zhang Dad could feel that he still has the ability to do something for the villagers, he would probably be happier.
With these old men and women, my parents won't feel lonely in their old age. If I go to the city to visit these families again, they should give me some face.
"Your father has always been warm and kind."
Seeing that the discussion was over, Zhang Guoqing stood up and said goodbye: "Third Uncle, I will discuss the glass bottle issue tomorrow, and we will discuss the rest later. You can rest first."
"Okay, there's no rush. Take care of your own business first."
Zhang Guoqing declined the old man's offer of farewell. Passing by the old man's courtyard on his way home, he hesitated for a moment before going in to wake his father. The busy farming season would soon begin, and the harvest was the most important priority; everything else would have to take a back seat. There was no need to rush contacting Old Man Mo.
After returning home, Zhou Jiao left the lights on and waited for him to come back.
Zhang Guoqing recounted his evening conversation with the old captain to her in detail. The couple exchanged opinions, discussed briefly, and then let it go. Since the old captain had a plan, that was perfectly fine. They could offer assistance, but they certainly wouldn't stand idly by.
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