The room was cleaned very well by the aunts, and the old furniture was placed there neatly without a speck of dust. The three rooms were just enough for their family to live in.
Grandpa Shen and Grandma Shen put down their things and went to chat with the elderly people in the village with snacks that were easy to digest and did not require much effort. Shen Anning and his younger brothers and sisters took the things they brought from Beijing and distributed them door to door. There were snacks, stationery, children's toys, new fabrics, and old clothes worn by family members. Although they were old clothes, many of them were about 70% to 80% new, especially Xixi and Erbao's. Children grow fast, and many of their clothes are too small for them. Many of them were also taken from their cousins' wives.
There were too many things, so Shen Anyu directly borrowed a cart from the village office. After all, there were differences in closeness to the family, and Shen Anning could not give the same things to every household. Most of the things were given to her aunt's family who used to take care of them. For those with ordinary relationships, she only gave a bag of snacks and some stationery for students.
The things Shen Zixi brought to her friends were the last ones she delivered personally. Her friends were originally going to follow her to the courtyard, but they were forcibly taken back by their parents.
The little girl took Shen An Ning and Er Bao to Xiao Xue's house first. Shen An Ning helped to get things, and Er Bao was begging and refusing to go home with An Yu and An Xuan.
Xiaoxue, like Shen Zixi, will be in fifth grade when school starts again. Looking at the things placed on the kang, Xiaoxue couldn't believe it, "Xixi, these, are these all for me? There are too many. I can't have them. I just want these to eat." Although she also liked those beautiful clothes, Xiaoxue knew that she couldn't take so many things from her friends.
Shen Zixi put down the things in his hand heavily, "Xiaoxue, are we still best friends? You send me so many delicious foods every year, and you and your family have worked hard to find them in the mountains. I wanted to buy this skirt for you when I saw it in the department store before, and I spent all my own New Year's money. I would be very sad if you didn't want it."
Seeing that Shen Zixi was really about to get angry, Xiaoxue had no choice but to hold her little sister's hand, "Okay, okay, I'll take it all, but this is too much, don't spend so much money in the future, buy more things for yourself, okay."
"Okay, then put this on. We're going to go out and play together later and find Xiaowang and the others. I brought them some things too. You said in your letter that you're a little shorter than me, so the skirt I bought you is a size smaller. And these are the ones I wore last year, but they're all new. Don't be disgusted. I took good care of them when I wore them, afraid they'd get damaged accidentally. These were the ones my younger brother wore when he was a kid. Didn't you say your little brother was only a few months old? They should fit him perfectly..."
Shen Zixi rambled on for a long time. Although she made new friends at school, she had been in the Northeast for nearly seven years. These friends who grew up with her and occupied many happy times in her memory were always different.
The two good sisters wore light yellow puff-sleeved knee-length skirts. Shen An Ning also braided identical pigtails for them. Standing together, they looked quite similar.
The two little girls looked at each other and laughed happily.
Although it is very hot in July, with the mountains behind it, many trees and winds, and many places to play, Shen Anning feels that it is much better than being in Beijing. Beijing is very hot and humid at this time, especially at noon, it is like a steam furnace.
After the implementation of the self-packaged produce delivery system, the lazy men and women in the village have become much better. There was no other way. In the past, there was a collective guarantee, and the villagers would never let you starve to death. But now it is different. Each family does their own work, and whatever they earn is theirs after paying the grain tax.
After wandering around the village for two days, Shen Anning found that although the villagers' lives were better than in previous years, they still couldn't afford to eat or drink. Children in the village still had to walk a long way to go to school, and they still had to save up cloth coupons for half a year to make a new piece of clothing. Seeing this, Shen Anning felt very uncomfortable.
At night, lying on the kang, Shen An Ning was fanning Shen Erbao while thinking about how to make life better for the villagers. Wangtu Village and Gengjiatun have a special geographical location, backed by the mountain - this is both a disadvantage and an advantage, at least they can rely on the mountain to eat the mountain, chestnuts, hazelnuts, walnuts, pine nuts and those wild mushrooms. Shen An Ning was smart, and when she sat up, she accidentally hit Shen Erbao with the hand holding the fan.
Without waiting for the little guy to open his eyes and howl, Shen An Ning took the first step to hold him in his arms, "Oh, it doesn't hurt, Erbao is sleepy, auntie will rub it for you, Erbao, go to sleep..."
Watching the little guy's frown relax and his open mouth close again, Shen Anning carefully got off the kang. She already had a plan in her mind and couldn't sleep. She kept thinking about things and fell asleep when it was almost dawn.
After breakfast, Shen Anyu was about to go out, “Anyu, wait a moment.”
"Well, what's wrong, sister?"
"You're going to look for Guoqing, right? And by the way, call Uncle Geng and the Party Secretary of Gengjiatun over to the village office."
When Shen Anning brought her own plan to the village courtyard, the village cadres were all there. When they saw her coming, they asked:
"Hey, An Ning, why are you here today? Aren't you going up the mountain to play?"
"Uncle, let's go in and talk. I've called the village chief and the party secretary of Gengjiatun. I have something to discuss with you."
. . . . . . .
After hearing what Shen Anning said, several people at the table were shocked and a little nervous. Contracting the hilltop to plant trees in the name of the collective was a big deal. The leaders of the two villages who had a say were looking at each other here, and they all wanted to get an answer from each other.
Finally, they called in the village heads and party secretaries of the previous two villages. Several elderly people smoked dry tobacco. They were people who had experienced two eras and had a more comprehensive view of things. So after listening to Shen Anning's words, there was almost no hesitation. Several elderly people slammed the table and decided to "do it". They had to work hard. What's wrong with having a backer? Having a backer is also an advantage. If their economy is good in the future, they can naturally become a center.
Now that the decision has been made, the heads of the two villages immediately summoned the villagers through the loudspeaker to prepare for the meeting. This contract requires money, and there will be investment in the later stage. The total amount is not a small amount. However, they listened to Shen Anning's words that everyone is responsible, and the shares will be determined according to the amount of money contributed. If it is clearly written in black and white, there will be no complaints in the future.
On the threshing ground, everyone took their benches and sat in rows. This time, young and old were all present at the meeting. "Hey, why did the village chief let all of us come to the meeting this time? Didn't he always dislike us for being too talkative and let the men come?"
"Who says it's not? People from two villages are coming together, so this must be a big deal. What do you call this? Respect. Don't people outside say they should respect each other? The Chairman said a long time ago that we women hold up half the sky."
The discussion below was in full swing, and the village cadres above were not idle either. They calculated the account books of the two villages over and over again, hoping to squeeze out some more money.
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