The sun was about to set behind the mountain, and the last wave of members returned to the brigade headquarters one after another.
After returning the tools from the warehouse, the members did not leave in a hurry. Instead, each household left someone behind, standing in the threshing ground against the wind, watching the ox cart slowly approaching from a distance.
When Mo Yutong and his group of five got off the ox cart, they were greeted by the fiery and enthusiastic gazes of the members.
The way he looked at them was as if he was looking at golden dolls, as if he was about to pounce on them and take a bite of each one to determine their gold content.
This enthusiasm came so unexpectedly and for some unknown reason.
Tian Xiaomei was so scared that she quickly moved towards Ma Xinguo, but before she could get close, Liao Qingyun came in with a big stride and disrupted her formation.
Ma Xinguo cast a grateful look at Liao Qingyun, and Liao Qingyun smiled faintly and said, "I need your protection more than she does."
The looks from those aunts and ladies were so terrifying that Liao Qingyun felt that he would be dragged away and made into a pile by them at any moment.
Mo Yutong, the best-looking of the five, was the focus of countless young men from the moment she stepped off the ox cart.
If there were no policy in place, and they had seen members being taken to the police station for insulting female educated youth, they would probably have started a fight right away.
With different thoughts in mind, the late summer wind brought a hint of refreshing coolness, and a faint fragrance blew from the mountains. The faint fragrance gently brushed through the vibrant leaves and gently passed by the pearl butterfly hairpin at the end of Mo Yutong's braid.
The white, round pearls clearly reflected the soft light, and the thin copper pieces bent into antennae trembled in the wind, as if they could spread their wings and fly away immediately.
Mo Yutong stood between Lian Haiguang and Ma Xinguo, raised her hand and stroked the unruly hair on her temples.
It was just an unintentional little action, but it had dimmed the surrounding scenery and made the young men who had just lined up to return their tools almost fall off the stairs.
This new female educated youth is really a very pretty girl, with smooth skin, bright and watery eyes, a small and delicate nose, and rosy and delicious lips.
They are not here to receive re-education from the poor and lower-middle peasants, but to be worshipped at home and enjoy the incense of their ancestors.
Look, look! The moment Nie Hongshan saw Mo Yutong, he knew this would be the situation. Looking at those useless young men with their eyes wide open, he really wanted to hit them with the sole of his shoe.
"Hello, new educated youth." Nie Hongshan couldn't bear to watch any longer. He quickly walked over to the line of educated youth and said loudly, "I am Nie Hongshan, the captain of the third production team of Pingshang Brigade. On behalf of the third production team, I welcome you all. Thank you for joining us in building Pingshang. I believe that with the participation of all of you, Pingshang will surely be able to catch up with Dazhai."
As soon as Nie Hongshan finished speaking, the members in the threshing ground immediately applauded enthusiastically. Mo Yutong and others also quickly followed suit in the thunderous applause.
"Hello, Captain! We must humbly learn from our fellow members, fight against arrogance and complacency, and remain neither proud nor impatient." Tian Xiaomei then stepped forward, took a sideways lunge, and charged forward, shouting, "Ten thousand troops will fight together to build a high-standard Pingshang Village."
Liao Qingyun glanced at Ma Xinguo, his eyes full of emotions: Where did you provoke him? It's so scary.
Ma Xinguo gave him a look in return: How would I know? It was posted here for no reason.
Tian Xiaomei's action completely confused Nie Hongshan, who quickly said, "Comrades, Pingshang Village is hard and tiring, but Pingshang Village is a friendly collective. Although we don't have special housing for educated youth, we have enthusiastic members."
No housing for educated youth? This meant the five of them had to either stay with fellow commune members or build their own houses.
What was this sudden feeling of happiness? Mo Yutong felt that this was the most exciting news she had heard after two long days here.
Her Mr. Yan, she wants to live with him.
The other four people looked at Nie Hongshan in disbelief. They all said that life in Tongzi Commune was hard, and Pingshang Brigade was even harder, but it wasn't as hard as this!
"This is the situation in our production team. Comrades, please discuss whether you want to stay at the homes of the members." Nie Hongshan knocked his pipe against the sole of his shoe and said slowly.
Is this something we need to discuss? If there's no housing for educated youth, and they can't live with members of the commune, are they going to sleep in the cowshed?
The four of them looked at each other in thought. Mo Yutong wanted to raise her hand to express her opinion, but she was a girl after all, so she had to pretend to be reserved, even though her heart was jumping for joy.
Seeing that no one spoke, Nie Hongshan remained calm and continued slowly, "If you really don't want to live in a member's home, you can temporarily stay in the cowshed in the northwest of the village. There's still room for people there."
Temporarily? This meant that sooner or later we would have to move into a commune member's home, or we would have to build our own house. After all, winter was just a few months away, and it was impossible for everyone to continue living in the cowshed.
Having said this, Mo Yutong knew it was her turn to speak and immediately raised her right hand.
"Hello, Captain. Can I choose which member's house to live in?" Mo Yutong's voice was as sweet and soft as she was, just like the unique gentleness and grace of a Jiangnan woman.
Nie Hongshan, who had seen many educated youth, felt his bones soften instantly. If such a delicate girl stayed in their production brigade, how many young men in the brigade would be wasted!
"Okay, but since you're living in a member's home and occupying their rooms, shouldn't you subsidize some of the expenses?" Although Nie Hongshan was distracted by Mo Yutong, he didn't lose his composure and said everything he needed to say.
Resettlement fees? So that's what's waiting for them here!
No wonder those members are not in a hurry to go home after work. They want to see which family can get the resettlement fee.
Mo Yutong knew that the newly sent-down youth could not only receive 480 yuan in resettlement fees from the Youth Office set up by the local Revolutionary Committee, but the state would also subsidize them with 35 kilograms of trade grain and 3 taels of cooking oil every month for a whole year.
So the team leader’s ultimate goal is actually the resettlement fees and subsidized food!
Mo Yutong began to pretend to think. She had to think! The three grown men next to her hadn't recovered yet, so she had to give them a chance.
Even Tian Xiaomei didn't raise her hand to speak, probably because she was confused.
Just as the five people were thinking silently, Yan Mingli was walking towards the small path carrying a dung bucket. He walked straight past the threshing ground and towards the brigade headquarters.
He stood in front of the warehouse under the crowd's obscure gazes and returned the wooden barrel and shoulder pole to the custodian.
Originally, he wanted to work a little longer, water the land thoroughly before going home, and then clean up the mess tomorrow morning, so as not to delay everyone's autumn potato planting.
But with Nie Xiaoyu's sudden affection and her entangled behavior in Duck Forest, he didn't want to go there again tonight.
There had been precedents in the village where women deliberately threw themselves at men, forcing them to marry. Yan Mingli did not want to marry Nie Xiaoyu, and even less did he want to be forced to marry into the Nie family.
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