Chapter 232 Substitute Teacher
"How can that be? Auntie, we're making clothes for our wedding, and there are specific customs involved. How can we let you work for nothing?"
Sheng Xiping was naturally unwilling to owe anyone a favor, so he insisted on paying the fee.
After some back and forth, Zhang Caifeng finally had no choice but to say that if Sheng Xiping hunted wild boar again, especially older ones, he should leave the belly to her.
Zhang Caifeng has a bad stomach, and she heard that pig stomach can cure stomach ailments, so she thought about asking Sheng Xiping to help her find some pig stomach to try.
Wild boars have an omnivorous diet, eating crops, wild fruits, tender shoots, herbs, bird eggs, mushrooms, and even mountain rats, poisonous snakes, and centipedes—anything edible they will eat.
Wild boars often graze on various herbs on the ground, which gives them a certain degree of resistance to toxicity, so they are unharmed even if they eat venomous snakes.
The old hunter said that after a wild boar eats a venomous snake, a fleshy growth will grow in its stomach, which is also called a boil.
The more snakes you eat, the more boils you get, and the higher the medicinal value of the pig's stomach.
Elders say that wild boar stomach is a treasure, with benefits such as invigorating qi and detoxifying, and it has a miraculous effect, especially in treating stomach ailments.
Someone had previously suggested to Zhang Caifeng that she eat a wild boar's stomach, as it was good for her stomach.
However, not many people in Qianchuan Forest Farm knew how to hunt, and Zhang Caifeng didn't have much of a relationship with the Sheng family, so she couldn't very well ask for it.
It just so happened that Sheng Xiping came to have clothes made, and the conversation drifted to this point, so Zhang Caifeng casually mentioned it.
"Oh, I thought it was something important. It's just a wild boar's stomach. We have some at home. I'll bring it to my aunt later."
"Auntie, please use this first. If it's not enough, I'll go hunting again sometime and if I find any, I'll definitely save the pig's stomach for you."
Sheng Xiping laughed when he heard this. He dared not say anything else, but a wild boar's belly was readily available, wasn't it?
"Well, thank you, my nephew."
"Nephew and niece-in-law, don't worry, I'll make sure these clothes are beautiful for you."
Zhang Caifeng was overjoyed upon hearing this, and even changed her address to nephew and niece-in-law.
"Then I'll have to trouble you, Auntie. Once the clothes are finished in a few days, please have the child let me know so I can come and pick them up."
When Sheng Xiping looked, he saw that the food had already been cleared from the table, and they were waiting for Zhang Caifeng to eat.
So the two of them didn't linger. After taking the measurements, they said goodbye and left the Yang family's house.
The two of them rarely had time alone together, and they weren't in a hurry to go home, so they wandered around outside for a while before going home for dinner.
Sheng Liancheng was guarding the generator and did not evacuate with the workers; he estimated it would take another day or two.
At home, Zhang Shuzhen took the children out for dinner, chatted for a while, and then rested.
The next day, Zhou Qinglan, Li Xue, and Wang Lin began packing their things and moving to the Sheng family's old house.
The Sheng family never intended to throw away the old house. In winter, Zhang Shuzhen would send the children over every other day to heat the kang (a heated brick bed).
So the old house is in pretty good condition, but since it hasn't been lived in for a long time, some dust has accumulated inside, so it needs to be cleaned up.
The three girls were all well-liked, and when they heard that they were moving, many educated youths came to help them.
Everyone worked hard all morning to tidy up the old house, and Zhou Qinglan and the other two moved their luggage and other belongings over.
After moving, Zhou Qinglan called Songjianghe and told Wang Chunxiu about the situation there.
Wang Chunxiu already knew that Li Yuqin's parents-in-law were coming to live with them in their old age, and the couple were also thinking about how to get married.
Upon hearing that the Sheng family was vacating their old house, Wang Chunxiu felt that this was the most appropriate and reasonable solution.
So I told my daughter over the phone that she should treat her in-laws well in the future, and that she should be diligent in moving out and not build the house in a bad state.
The mother and daughter chatted on the phone for a while before Zhou Qinglan hung up.
Just as he was about to leave the farm headquarters, Wang Jiachuan called out to him. "Hey, Xiao Zhou, perfect timing, I need to talk to you."
Zhou Qinglan was taken aback. She wasn't familiar with the leaders in the venue and didn't know what Wang Jiachuan wanted to see her about.
"Secretary Wang, just tell me what's on your mind," Zhou Qinglan replied with a smile.
"Oh, is that so? Teacher Huang from the third grade at our forest farm primary school, isn't she being transferred to another job?"
Right now, the school doesn't have enough teachers; there's no one to teach that class.
I heard Xiping say that you are quite educated and had good grades when you were in school.
Sheng Jia's sixth son used to be so naughty and always ranked last, but you taught him so well that he got third in the class.
"I was thinking, why don't you go to the school and work as a substitute teacher for a while? What do you think?" Wang Jiachuan didn't beat around the bush and said directly.
The education of the children of forestry workers has always been a top concern for the leaders of the forestry farm.
Qianchuan Forest Farm is located deep in the mountains and forests, with inconvenient transportation and a lack of talent. Only a small percentage of the teachers are actually graduates of normal schools.
Moreover, these people are frequently transferred to different jobs. Most of them come to the forest farm to teach for two or three years, gain seniority, and then are transferred to the First or Second Primary School of the Forestry Bureau, or other forestry bureaus.
Very few people can truly settle down in the forest farm and teach there in a down-to-earth manner.
A larger portion of the forestry teachers were actually forestry workers.
Because he could no longer work on the construction team for various reasons, he was assigned to teach at a school due to his education.
These people are not from a professional background and have not received relevant training, so their teaching level is limited.
The third-grade teacher Wang Jiachuan mentioned was transferred from elsewhere a few years ago, and is now being transferred to the Tanghe Forestry Bureau Central School, which was established a few years ago.
With this teacher gone, there was no one to teach the third-grade classes at Qianchuan Elementary and Middle School.
The principal was quite anxious, so he went to Wang Jiachuan to discuss whether they could select a suitable substitute teacher from among the educated youth from the forest farm.
In enterprise-run schools like Qianchuan Primary and Secondary School, the forest farm has the power to decide on the appointment and dismissal of teachers. From the perspective of labor management regulations, this is called "substitute work for cadres" or "substitute teaching".
These teachers, who are not government-sponsored, have the same salary and status as forestry workers.
Wang Jiachuan's idea was that Zhou Qinglan, a female educated youth, would rather teach than work hard and suffer on the mountain.
Although she is only a substitute teacher at the moment, as long as Zhou Qinglan teaches well, the forest farm will give her a permanent position in a few years, and then she will become a formal teacher.
"Huh? You want me to be a teacher at a school? Can I do that?"
Zhou Qinglan never expected that the forest farm would arrange for her to become a teacher at a school.
Even being a substitute teacher is better than growing vegetables in an agricultural team or measuring instruments in a work team.
Zhou Qinglan is cultured and loves reading, so having her teach students would be perfect.
The good news came so suddenly that Zhou Qinglan was a little taken aback.
"I didn't tell you about this beforehand, so you might not have been prepared."
Here's what you should do: go back and discuss it with Xiping, ask for his opinion, and then get back to me as soon as possible.
Seeing Zhou Qinglan's expression, Wang Jiachuan assumed she had some concerns.
That's true. Zhou Qinglan is getting married soon, so she should consult her fiancé about work-related matters.
"Okay, then I'll go back and discuss it with Xiping. Thank you, Secretary."
Zhou Qinglan had already come to her senses by then. She quickly thanked Wang Jiachuan and happily ran home.
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