Chapter 35

Chestnut baked potatoes

"You know Sun Xiaoai's origins better than I do. She came from Tacheng. She said her husband, a military officer, died and she became a widow, so she came back. However, we all know that although the soldiers have sacrificed their lives now.

Due to national conditions, the pension is not too high, but a soldier's pension is more than 400 yuan. In addition, the army must arrange jobs for the dependents of the soldiers who accompany the army.

At the very least, they would be given a subsidy of at least ten yuan a month. Not only was Sun Xiaoai not assigned a job, she was also able to escape the organization's review and get married directly. She was also vague about her husband's death, which is enough to prove that her husband did not die gloriously. "

Qin Sheng nodded.

Sun Xiaoai herself did not dare to say that her husband was a martyr, so there was only one possibility, that he was guilty of stealing and profiting.

"She has been looking for a target for at least a year since she came back from Tacheng. During this year, she has not looked for anyone else but only the oil base. Her goal is to get into the base. Once inside, all kinds of Soviet products will be sold directly. And you, the security team, can't even check where the things come from?"

"It should be that Liu Han pulled it every time he went out and came back." Qin Sheng actually knew it very well, but many times, this was a matter that the officials did not commit and the people did not investigate.

"But, since there are Soviet reconnaissance planes in the sky at any time, it is impossible for Liu Han to deviate from the route. Where did he pull these things from?" He still had doubts.

"If you want to investigate, you can send someone to follow his car, but if you send someone to follow the car, he will definitely not go to meet him. I'll tell you where it is, right where the educated youth are digging the drainage trench now. That's where your convoy must pass, and it's close to our base.

But it is far from Mulan Farm, and the drainage ditch was dug by Sun Dabao. I want to ask you, why did he have to dig a drainage ditch near the base? Wasn't it to make it easier for Liu Han to come?" Chen Lina said.

"It sounds like that, but with so many educated youths fighting in the trenches, it's not certain that Sun Dabao will be the one who gets to meet them."

Chen Lina said, "Sun Dabao is in charge of the fleet of Mulan Farm, which can go to Tacheng, so he can get the cheapest sewing machine.

Because the money didn't have to be transferred several times, and because it was a security team's convoy, no one would check him wherever he went.

So, Sun Xiaoai only has a 60-yuan sewing machine. Am I clear enough?"

"Nie Gong, everyone in our base has deep feelings for Sun Gong. After all, you are the elders of the base, and Sun Dabao is her brother whom she has always placed the most hope on. What do you think we should do about this?"

Okay, let me throw the question to Nie Bozhao.

His late wife's younger brother and Daylily's eldest baby.

Just so that he could enter the oil base and resell things, he drove a group of educated youth to dig drainage ditches in the middle of winter.

In order to get a female educated youth to agree to marry him, he allowed her to be frozen to the point of almost having to have her limbs amputated.

Nie Bozhao thought about it, but asked Chen Lina, "When do they have to go to catch Sun Dabao's people?"

Chen Lina said, "This is easy. Get the big wolfhounds at your base and I'll let them smell it. If Liu Han has that smell on him that day, you can go to the back of the alkali drainage ditch and wait for him. You'll always be able to catch him."

It's also very fashionable. Sun Xiaoai and Sun Dabao both like to spray cologne. The fragrance of that thing is particularly strong. Once the dog smells it, the dog will never forget it.

"How about this, when you want to go, I will go with you." Nie Bozhao thought for a moment and said, "I am also a member of the base. The present situation of the Republic is hard-won, and the current situation of the base is even harder-won. Comrade Xiao Chen is right. We can overcome the lack of food and clothing. It is not wrong for family members to buy some things outside, but it is wrong to bring capitalist things directly into the base. I am his brother-in-law, so I have to go with him."

About four or five days later, Qin Sheng said that it was time to go and arrest people.

Chen Lina saw Nie Bozhao take out a pistol from the study and put it behind his waist. She asked in surprise, "Why are you still carrying guns? Isn't it forbidden to own guns now?"

"We were provided with guns by the organization for self-defense. Sun Dabao also has several hunting rifles. The security team has the right to bear arms, so I have to take one for self-defense."

"You are his brother-in-law, he won't shoot you. Besides, you are just arresting people and removing his security chief. Are you planning to start a gunfight?"

"You don't know Sun Dabao." Perhaps those who work in engineering like to play with guns. He stood in front of the window, disassembled the gun, assembled it, and looked at the watch. It took 30 seconds. He seemed very dissatisfied with the speed and assembled it again.

"He was brought up with the habit of eating alone and doing things alone. Even though Sun Gong has passed away, one of his brothers-in-law works in the mining area, and another is the director of Mulan Farm. That family is very arrogant.

Moreover, the workers and peasants are the most important in the world, and he is also the production model of the farm. It is not as easy as you think to deal with him. "

"Don't scare me, old Nie. Is there really something wrong?"

"If we fail to catch him, we will have nothing. If we do catch him, he will definitely go to jail. Do you think it's okay?" Nie Bozhao said.

He was actually quite helpless. He was probably torn between his feelings for his deceased wife, his loyalty to the organization, and his responsibility to maintain the base as a pure land.

"If I die, remember to tell the children my story." Before leaving, he still wanted to tease Chen Lina.

Chen Lina almost laughed to death. "No matter how powerful Sun Dabao is, he is just a guerrilla. Besides, he is guilty of speculation. And Qin Sheng brought all the people from your temporary combat department with him in order to wipe out the speculation den in one fell swoop today. You are trying to gain my mercy on purpose, and thinking.

Well, what a glorious and tall image! This little girl is easy to please, and girls nowadays all like soldiers. When he comes back, the balloon will be useful."

"Comrade Xiao Chen, we are a legal couple with a valid marriage license. What I am asking of you now is your obligation as a wife. Even if I force you here, I am not doing anything wrong."

"Yes, you did nothing wrong. However, if it were you in your previous life, you would never force me, because you proposed to me eight times in your previous life."

"I'll shoot him sooner or later. What's his name? Apricot Fork, isn't it?"

"His last name is Nie, and his name is Nie Bozhao."

"He is just a fork in an almond tree. Don't tarnish my name."

When they reached the door, he said again, "So, you're not even going to give me a chance to kiss you while I'm sending you off to battle?"

This man is tall and big, with slightly brown skin. He was very handsome when he was young.

Well, just to go back to her youth and see how handsome he was, Chen Lina felt that the wind in the desert was not blowing in vain, and the sand was not eaten in vain.

She wanted to jump up and kiss him, but after looking at the sewing machine in the corner, she coldly refused. "When you propose to me and I say yes, I will give you a kiss."

Nie Bozhao put on his military coat lined with raw cashmere and said, "You are not a crescent moon, you are a real princess."

Even if she was a real princess, she wouldn't behave like this.

After seeing Nie Bozhao off, Chen Lina herself didn't dare to sleep.

Although Sun Dabao only led a small group, after all, those people were a bunch of hooligans in Mulan Farm who were reluctant to work and just liked to wander around.

In case of an accidental discharge of a gun, the base has a temporary combat command center with the legal right to use firearms, so there is no need to worry about being held accountable by the military.

But I'm afraid that if the sand bullet has no eye and hits the flesh, it will hurt for several days.

The sewing machine is now placed in the master bedroom. She has always wanted to make a large cover for Nie Weimin's small cotton coat, but she couldn't find suitable cloth after asking around.

However, two days ago, Nie Bozhao distributed two sets of large work clothes, which are used in the oil field. They are all made of windproof cloth. The cloth used by senior engineers is different from that used by oil workers, and is white.

As soon as she started cutting with the scissors, Nie Weimin woke up.

This guy has an extremely light sleep and seems to wake up very easily.

"Goudaner's clothes are green and very beautiful, but I told him that my aunt Xiao Chen has a sewing machine and can sew more beautiful clothes than what he wears," he said.

Chen Lina had seen that the army green soldier uniform was made based on the Type 65 military uniform.

Although it is said that there would be more beautiful military uniforms in the future, the Type 65 military uniform can be said to be all the rage at the time. It would be an indescribable honor for any child to wear such a set of clothes.

"You want it too?" Chen Lina asked Nie Weimin.

The child was lying on the big kang, wearing a sweater that was altered from Chen Lina's original underwear, and a pair of flat-leg underwear that was altered from his father's underwear. He also wore a cotton T-shirt and two pairs of pants, one for Nie Weimin and one for Erdan. Little Sandan was still rolling around on the kang, and his little butt was always red from being permed when he woke up in the morning.

"I made a bet with Goudan that the military uniforms you cut look better than the ones his mother sewed because we have a sewing machine at home," said Nie Weimin.

"You don't want to wear white clothes, you want to wear green military uniform? Is that green uniform so good-looking?"

“It looks good. It looks really good.”

"Do you want it?"

"think."

"There is no green cloth at home. Goudan's green clothes are his father's military uniform when he was discharged from the army. It is such a precious thing that no one will exchange it for you. If you want it, just call me mom and I will go next door to ask Goudan's mom to exchange it for you."

"I will never be a traitor to the people." With a whoosh, Nie Weimin dived into the quilt.

Well, you'd rather break than bend, you have backbone.

A large white work suit was being cut into several large pieces. The sewing machine was making a clattering sound, and little Nie Weimin fell asleep in this familiar clattering sound.

In the late night, Nie Bozhao came back.

The radio said that the temperature in Umayyad has dropped to minus 30 degrees Celsius.

When I entered the room, the door was frozen and I had to push it several times before I could open it.

It's just a wall, with two completely different worlds of ice and fire inside and outside.

"You haven't slept yet?" Nie Bozhao was a little surprised to see Chen Lina sitting in the master bedroom.

There was a layer of frozen ice on his woolen coat, and the clothes rustled when he took it off.

The firewall of the small study was built in this living room. Nie Bozhao put his feet on the edge of the wall and closed his eyes.

She was seen turning the stove, and a light cloud of coal dust rose up, but Nie Bozhao didn't blink. When the coal was not enough, she went out to get more coal. Although she only opened the door for a moment, a gust of cold air immediately rushed in from outside.

Nie Bozhao originally wanted to remind Chen Lina to put on her military coat before going out, but perhaps because he was cold and bored, he didn't open his mouth.

Suddenly, a particularly familiar fragrance lured Nie Bozhao into opening his eyes.

"Baked potatoes. You made this?"

"The potatoes grown in the desert's red sand are different from those grown in the mainland. They need to be roasted directly, with a hollow center and two layers of skin on each side. However, if you wrap them in the desert's red sand and roast them, the moisture won't be lost, and after roasting, they will taste like cooked chestnuts."

Under the lamp, Chen Lina was quite proud. She carefully peeled off the red soil, revealing a layer of newspaper inside. After peeling off the newspaper again, she found the red-skinned potatoes, a specialty of this desert. When she broke them open, the aroma of cooked chestnuts became stronger.

There are hundreds of potato varieties in the border areas, but the best one for roasting is Kexin No. 18, which is coated with the unique red mud of the Gobi Desert and tastes like chestnuts when baked.

"Is this what your husband Nie told you again?"

"Really?"

"I only know how to eat it, not how to cook it, Comrade Chen. You don't know how to cook it, but you still want to say that it tastes better with pickled vegetables."

Sure enough, Chen Lina brought over an enamel pot of scorched pickled cabbage and picked up the chopsticks. "You also said that you should remember to wrap the roasted eggs in red mud so that they will be fragrant. I didn't listen to you and roasted them like that. Look, they have become empty shells." With a snap, she squeezed open the two burnt eggs, and sure enough, only empty shells were left.

"Your apricot tree fork is a liar, Comrade Chen, you have to believe me, I will never bake potatoes in this life or the next. As for the red mud wrapping, he must have lied to you."

Nie Bozhao didn't care at all that what he said would ruin the image of himself in Chen Lina's heart in his previous life. He took a few big mouthfuls of hot sauerkraut and two bites of potatoes in a row, breathing out white air.

"No way. All my experience of desert life comes from him. Guess why our house is so warm? Others who burn the same coal are not as warm as ours."

"Why?"

"He also told me that thick blankets are useless and that we have to use the large plastics produced by our plastic factory. Look at the large plastics covering the windows of our house. They are all obtained by me from the oil factory."

Plastic is extracted from petroleum.

At present, the Republic has not imported even a pound of oil or a grain of rice, so the plastic that will cause disasters everywhere in the future is still a precious thing. The most common use is to make sandals.

Chen Lina was foresighted and had already started covering the windows with plastic sheets.

Nie Bozhao said with emotion, "Comrade Xiao Chen, I really believe that you are from the future. So what do you think will happen to me in the future? Will our country eventually achieve self-sufficiency in oil?"

"The north has achieved self-sufficiency, while the south needs to import," said Chen Lina.

It seems that Nie Bozhao is quite satisfied with this answer. Of course, he believes that this is all due to the hard work of him and the oil workers.

"Then I will also achieve something in my own field."

"No, you started your own business in 1985, and you started an Internet business. Moreover, your Chiu Citizens Real Estate was one of the first companies to be listed on NASDAQ."

Nie Bozhao is at the forefront of science and technology in the Republic. Of course he knows Nasdaq, stocks and finance.

However, from the day he arrived at the frontier, his ideal and goal for his whole life was oil, which was his field of scientific research. How could he possibly go into business?

"Okay, you're talking nonsense again, go to bed early." Well, you see, he still doesn't believe it.

"How is Sun Dabao?" Chen Lina took the initiative to get some water for Nie Bozhao so that he could wash his feet and asked.

"Originally they were going to send him to the Uru Public Security Bureau, but because someone from our base was involved, I thought about it and decided to keep him here. His Mulan Farm security team leader will definitely be removed. According to Chief Engineer Wang, he wants to be sent back to his hometown.

But I felt that this was not possible. He was too familiar with the so-called struggle. Sending him back to his hometown would be like releasing a tiger back into the mountains and sending revolutionary fighters to the inland areas. So I decided to classify him as a Soviet revisionist and subject him to labor reform.

Soviet revisionism can be a spy or a Soviet-style ideology. Nie Bozhao found some Russian-language materials promoting capitalism, and even though he knew his brother-in-law couldn't understand it at all, he still made the classification.

If his deceased wife really had a soul, she would hate him to death!

"What about Liu Han? Is he also locked up? Where's Sun Xiaoai?"

"Liu Han has been arrested, but as for Sun Xiaoai, I want to observe her for a while longer." Although most of the Soviet revisionists were quick to believe rumors and were only alarmed for a short while, Sun Xiaoai's background was indeed a bit suspicious.

Nie Bozhao suddenly smiled meaningfully, "I don't think my mother-in-law will give up easily. Comrade Xiao Chen, if she comes, what will you do?"

"What should we do, Liangban? I haven't forgotten that we still have 5,000 yuan with her. Now the pension for sacrificing a border guard is only 500 yuan. Sun Gong's pension is subsidized according to the engineers from Beijing, because there are foreign experts among them, so the subsidy is so high. You, Nie Bozhao, look down on money, but I can't do that. I am a delicate person. I want the best Soviet-made cosmetics and a small cotton-padded jacket with otter rabbit fur. It doesn't matter if I wear a big flowered jacket on the outside, but I must wear something beautiful inside and use the best cosmetics.

I took great pains to raise your child and provide for your logistics, so the money should be mine and should be spent by me. I must get it from her."

"Why, do you think I can't come, or do you think I'm too heartless? After all, that money is your grandson's life salary."

Nie Bozhao smiled helplessly, "If you really have a way, I'll let you do whatever you want, just remember not to say anything out of line in public. If you want to fight that old lady, I'm really worried about you."

Well, she reported the crime and got Sun Dabao arrested. How could the old lady just let it go?

Chen Lina sighed. The older she looked, the prettier the girl became. She was youthful and full of energy. "Don't worry. There is no old lady in this world that I can't handle. Besides, if she doesn't come to see me, I want to go to the farm. My sister has been there for a month. I should start planning my job."

"You don't want to be the manager of Magnolia Farm, do you?"

"Really?"

"Comrade Xiao Chen, it seems that I really have to look at you differently. Okay, I will be your family member from now on, Comrade Director."

Nie Bozhao's words were actually a joke.

The director of Mulan Farm is the only top position in the entire mining area that does not require a threshold. His position is on par with the directors of each branch factory and the top leaders of the base.

Except for the fact that there is no organization, it is a quick success.

So, when people want to make a joke, they always say that if you take office as the director of Mulan Farm tomorrow, you will be on par with the chief engineer.

Unexpectedly, Chen Lina really thought so.

He made a joke and prepared to go into the cubicle.

Unexpectedly, Chen Lina called out, "I have put out the fire on the firewall. Are you planning to freeze to death in the small bedroom?"

"You didn't let me into the bedroom?"

"Yes, you were not allowed in before, but you have been behaving well recently, so you can come in now."

"Does that mean that our relationship has finally taken a step forward? I need to go check to see if the children have used up all the balloons in the small storeroom."

"No, it's impossible. You didn't call me Comrade Xiao Chen in your previous life. That's too bad. It will be possible when you remember the unique name you gave me in your previous life."

Finally, I got around eight proposals, but what the hell is this unique title?

"Any unique title?"

"Yes, you conquered me the first time you screamed." Chen Lina thought of her past life and felt happy.

Of course, under such difficult conditions, she could only persist in her struggle by thinking of her rich and handsome husband in her previous life who spent all his time trying to please her.

"I guess it's particularly corny." Nie Bozhao felt a lump in his teeth when he said this.

After he finished washing his feet, he went out and splashed water. The water froze in the air and bounced up when it fell to the ground, bouncing around on the ground like silver beans.

It's really cold today.