The 16th of June is an auspicious day for weddings, praying for blessings, and offering sacrifices.
Today marks the official establishment of the Lijiapo Cannery, a collective enterprise of the Lijiapo Brigade.
At around 4 a.m. this morning, just as dawn was breaking and the village dogs were still fast asleep, Li Qing got up.
He specially put on a brand-new blue work uniform that his wife had just made for him, washed his hair that he had shaved neatly the night before, shaved his beard, and carefully applied his daughter's hair oil to his face.
His wife, who had been woken up by his noise, gave him a disgruntled look. "It's 8:30 right now, are you up so early to disturb the mice?"
Li Qing wasn't angry. He strolled towards the cannery at the south end of the village with his hands behind his back. In the distance, he saw several figures squatting or standing ahead. When he got closer, he saw that these guys had already arrived!
"Captain, you've arrived early?" Li Qing greeted Li Jin, Li Tang, and Li Kang.
Li Kang snorted, "You're the only one missing. Are you so sleepy with your sister-in-law that you can't get up? You're so late!"
The others also watched with smiles as Li Kang teased him.
Li Qing wasn't angry. He just laughed and scolded, "Get lost! The sun hasn't even risen yet, it's still late!"
After a few words of laughter and conversation, the group looked with great interest at the cannery in front of them. It was a row of five single-story brick buildings, five meters high, taller and wider than the villagers' houses, and looked quite grand.
Brick-clad walls are made of adobe but covered with a layer of red bricks, making them look like brick and tile houses.
A little over ten days ago, Li Xiangdong, Li Jin, and Wang Zhenbo personally took the collective enterprise qualification and food hygiene production license, along with 1,000 cans of food, to Dongfang City. After signing the contract with Deputy Manager Xie, they personally inspected the goods and finally received 1,500 yuan in payment.
To continue expanding production, it was no longer appropriate to keep using the brigade headquarters' yard. So the brigade leadership collectively decided to build a factory on an open space at the south end of the village. The first phase consisted of five buildings, including a production workshop and a storage warehouse.
Because they needed it urgently and didn't have time to make more adobe bricks, they borrowed adobe bricks stored by villagers and bought several thousand red bricks from a brick kiln. They didn't need to find anyone outside; Li Chang knew how to build houses.
Everyone in the brigade pitched in. Some dug the foundation, some carried soil, Li Chang led the people to build the walls, and some even contributed their old roof beams. The reed mats to be laid on the roof were all made from the best and thickest reeds.
In less than ten days, the house was up and running.
"Brother Chang's craftsmanship is unparalleled; this house is perfectly straight, with straight lines and right angles," Li Tang praised, patting the red brick wall.
Li Chang, an honest man, really didn't think Liu Changhai's praise was very good. "If the house is built crookedly, how can anyone live in it?"
Everyone burst into laughter. Just then, the sound of a bicycle bell could be heard in the distance, and a man shouted, "Come and take the plaque!"
Upon hearing this, everyone realized that Liu Changhai and Guo Daming, who had gone to the county to pick up the plaque, had returned!
The group quickly went to meet them and saw Liu Changhai riding a bicycle with Guo Daming sitting on the back seat. Guo Daming was holding a plaque with gold lettering on a black background, one meter wide and two meters long, and the entire plaque was wrapped in red cloth.
Liu Changhai squeezed the brake, and with a long leg, the car stopped. Guo Daming carefully handed the plaque to Li Tang and Li Kang before jumping off the car himself.
Guo Daming jumped up and down on the ground, rubbed his bottom, and complained, "Uncle Changhai is so unreliable when he rides his bike. He keeps riding into potholes, one pothole after another, one bump after another. It's making my butt feel like it's going to split into eight pieces!"
Liu Changhai laughed heartily, "Letting you hold the plaque is an honor for you. Do you think just anyone can accept a plaque written by the county party secretary?"
That's right, this very retro wooden plaque was personally written by Liu Donglai, the Party Secretary of Huichuan County.
They originally planned to weld one with wire or write one directly with red paint, but unexpectedly, Li Xiangdong personally brought back the six big characters "Lijiapo Canned Food Factory" written by Liu Donglai.
In Li Xiangdong's words, it meant that Secretary Liu wanted to inscribe the name of the first brigade collective enterprise in Huichuan County, which would not only be commemorative but also give everyone a boost of confidence!
Liu Donglai himself said that even if there were any political movements later that involved this matter, he, as the county party secretary, would be responsible for the inscription he personally wrote.
When Li Jin and the others heard what the county party secretary said, their eyes filled with tears. He was going to become the backbone of their Lijiapo brigade!
So everyone agreed to send the words to a carpenter in the county town, and for ten yuan, they had the finest wood made into this large plaque with gold lettering.
Before seven o'clock, women began to arrive one after another, carrying spatulas, bowls, and children.
The entire Lijiapo brigade was like a pot of water being boiled, gradually becoming bubbly.
The sounds of adults talking, children laughing and playing, and all sorts of laughter, combined with the crackling and popping of oil from the stoves set up in the backyard of the cannery, created a wonderful symphony.
Many years have passed since the last time the communal canteen was used, and the more than 700 people of Lijiapo Brigade have never eaten together again.
Today is a good day. We have freshly ground wheat flour and freshly pressed wheat oil. The brigade leader said that we'll have fried dough sticks for breakfast this morning, and everyone can have as many as they want!
Since noon yesterday, thrifty families haven't cooked, just waiting for this free meal today.
Today's head chef is Li Chang and his son Li Guoqing. The fried dough sticks they made are crispy on the outside and tender on the inside, much more fragrant than the fried dough sticks from state-run restaurants.
Li Guoqing also creatively made savory fried pancakes with scallions and salt, which don't need to be eaten with any side dishes and aren't greasy, making them very popular.
Some families who doted on their children even brought two eggs, asking Li Chang to make them a "fried tiger."
Fried tiger is made by making a rectangular oil cake, frying it until both sides are golden brown, then using chopsticks to open the middle of the cake, cracking an egg into it, and frying it again until the egg is cooked. A fried tiger is made. Oil cake with egg, what a delicious combination! We couldn't even have it during the New Year in the past!
Besides making an unlimited supply of fried dough sticks, Li Xiangchao's wife, Zhang Xiaohong, also led several women to make a large pot of stir-fried pickled vegetable strips. The pickled vegetable strips were cut into very fine pieces, rinsed several times with water until only a little saltiness remained, and then a few chopped scallions were added and stir-fried in oil. The resulting stir-fried pickled vegetables were the perfect match for the fried dough sticks.
Besides the main dish, there was also a pot of milky white fish soup simmering in the pot. Anyone who wants to drink it can serve themselves!
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