Chapter 66

Fire

In the cultural center, Nie Gong, who had a background in science and engineering, watched his family members being forced to dance to song after song.

Of course, the female relatives and educated youth also liked him very much, and there were always people who came up to him and wanted to dance with him. But the worker had no interest in dancing, so he said he didn't know how to dance and refused.

When we got to the barley field, we saw a crowd of people watching the movie "The Visitor on the Iceberg". Nie Gong saw Chen Lili standing there alone, eating melon seeds and watching the movie, so he asked, "Where are the children? Is Wang Hongbing with them?"

Chen Lili slapped her head and said, "He is the deputy director. His mission tonight is to protect the cotton fields. He is currently standing guard at the entrance of the cotton fields with the comrades from the armed forces."

"What about the children? Why don't you look after them?" Nie Bozhao became angry immediately.

Chen Lili threw away the melon seeds and said, "Child, where is the child?"

That's right, as someone who has never given birth, and because Liu Xiaohong is too worry-free, and there is a movie tonight that will excite everyone, Chen Lili forgot her most important responsibility.

The two searched the wheat field but couldn't find the child.

It just so happened that Nie Bozhao heard from someone that Huang Huacai had returned again. He became even more anxious when he thought about the old lady who bullied the weak and feared the strong and liked to attack children the most.

After finding the wheat field, he went to find the production team, and from the production team he went to the warehouse. It goes without saying how angry Nie Bozhao was.

This was the first time since she had a child that Chen Lili realized that being a mother was not just about enjoying the benefits of having a child, but also about being responsible for the child's safety.

"How's Alamuhan? He's neither fat nor thin..."

Unable to find his sons, Nie Gong was so anxious that he was sweating profusely. He thought that this was a disaster. When Chen Lina knew that he had lost his sons, she might slap him in the face in public.

Who would have thought that when we entered the cultural center, we would find Erdan and Liu Xiaohong in the middle of the dance hall, actually dancing.

Erdan is not good at studying, but he is very rhythmic when dancing. Liu Xiaohong is wearing a skirt and is surrounding him, and the two of them are dancing beautifully.

This song has fast drum beats and a strong rhythm. When it was time to turn around, Liu Xiaohong quickly opened her skirt and spun rapidly, as beautiful as a blooming peony.

Chen Lina was chatting with Secretary A and District Chief Gao on her left and right, while Sandan was drinking soda obediently on her lap. Maybe the soda tasted bad, but the child couldn't help himself when he saw others drinking it so deliciously.

Take a serious sip.

Nie Weimin, with his hands in the pockets of his grass-green pants and a frightened look on his face, stood not far away, watching Erdan and Liu Xiaohong dancing. He looked probably the same as Old Nie just now.

"If you like it, why don't you go in and dance too? Why don't you dance?"

"Dad, don't you realize my mom is very popular?"

Yes, although there were many family members and beautiful female educated youth, everyone from the district head to the secretary, from the political commissar of the armed forces to the chief of staff, all gathered around Chen Lina.

Her popularity was unmatched. Even if He Min worked at full speed, it would take him eight hundred years to catch up.

"No one will dislike the person who grows food for them, that's for sure."

"Isn't it because she's beautiful?"

"The charm of a woman is not only reflected in her appearance. I think they appreciate her inner qualities more."

"You have a really big heart." Nie Weimin said sincerely.

"Let's go dance." Nie Bozhao said as he pushed him. Nie Weimin quickly dodged and said, "No."

People who like dancing are born with a sense of rhythm, but Nie Weimin is a quiet person. Even if someone forces him, he doesn't have the rhythm in his bones and can't dance.

"Comrade Chen Lili, it is not easy to raise a child. The children are fine, but if something happens, it will be a regret that we will never be able to wash away in our lifetime. Do you understand?" Nie Bozhao then turned around and said.

Chen Lili was so frightened this time that she felt dull watching movies and no longer happy listening to music. She sighed deeply and said, "Today I finally understand why Lina didn't give me the child. When the child was not lost, I really wasn't worried."

I have never thought that I now have the responsibility of being a mother.

Nie Bozhao himself was careless, so he did not blame Chen Lili too much. After all, at this moment, the guilt in her heart was enough to make her feel better.

"Nie Gong, you really won't dance with us?"

Wu Qiong, deputy director of the cultural troupe, was in a bad mood today. She took back her Plum watch, but when she saw her husband was always around Chen Lina, she wanted to give him a warning.

Well, she also wants to find the most handsome worker in the entire mining area to dance with him, to show off to Gao Dayong, that rough guy.

"Yes, in addition to the deputy director, there are also the twelve golden flowers of our art troupe. Nie Gong, we can't let you go unless you dance a song today." The twelve female soldiers immediately surrounded Lao Nie.

Nie Bozhao quickly waved his hands and said, "Comrades, I really can't dance."

Nie Weimin smiled sadly, "You always force me to dance, don't you? Now it's your turn. Let's see how you can refuse."

Oh, Tang Seng entered the spider cave, and there were beauties from the art troupe all around him, and no matter how hard he tried, he couldn't get out.

But at this moment, there was a sudden bang of gongs outside, "Fire, fire, put it out!"

"Where is the fire?" Chen Lina jumped up first.

"Lina, it's a cotton field. We are watching it closely, but we can't guard against it. It's in the corner of Team 12. Although it's not big, I'm afraid we can't get rid of it." The person who came was Wang Hongbing.

So the movie was turned off, the music stopped, and everyone rushed to the cotton fields.

"What happened? Who set the fire? It doesn't look like the area is very large." Secretary Ah said.

He Min said, "That was Sun Gong's mother. I was with her the whole time, trying to persuade her, but who knew she would sneak out and set fire to the cotton field without even noticing."

In fact, he was not as glorious as he portrayed himself. After being beaten up by Day Huacai, he felt very humiliated and found a place to hide to drink soda and eat melon seeds and snacks. This gave Day Huacai the opportunity to slip away and set the fire.

If we really investigate, he is guilty of dereliction of duty.

He Min was eager to get promoted and achieve some achievements. When such a big incident happened, she was afraid that it would be traced back to her, and she was so scared that she was trembling with fear.

Huang Huacai was the one who started the fire and is now being held on the sidelines by the comrades from the Armed Forces, swearing at them.

"Secretary He, quickly put out the fire. Hundreds of acres of cotton fields are on fire. It will be a major accident. If the news gets to Beijing, both you and I will be blamed." Secretary He's slowness made everyone angry, and he shouted.

"Everyone, listen to my command, hurry into the culvert, fetch water and put out the fire. Also, everyone present, take off your clothes and beat the fire to put it out."

Before He Min finished speaking, the enthusiastic and energetic members took off their clothes one after another and started beating the cotton fields. There were only rumbling sounds, and as the beatings went on, sparks flew everywhere, and flames not far away started up again.

Cotton is flammable by nature, and since it hasn't rained recently and the weather is dry, if a spark spreads, the entire farm will probably be destroyed.

"Members and educated youth quickly took basins, wet their clothes and quilts, and beat and splashed water on small areas to put out the fire. Comrades from the Armed Forces Department, listen to my orders, take iron tongs, and go to extinguish the potential fire."

At this moment, Nie Bozhao gave a loud roar and stopped the comrades in the armed forces.

"Niangong, now is not the time to fight for power. I know that you and Director Chen don't take me, the secretary, seriously, but this is the biggest crisis facing the farm. I declare that all orders must be obeyed by me. Everyone go to fetch water and do not split into teams."

"The mouth of the Kaner well is narrow to begin with. There are thousands of people but some are ineffective. The Baiyang River is far away and it is difficult to get water. What we need now is to eliminate the potential danger of transmission. Comrades in the Armed Forces, listen to my command." Nie Bozhao's voice was louder than his.

Secretary Ah was also anxious. After all, He Min was the head of the farm, so he said, "Everyone must listen to He Min. No one is allowed to give orders beyond their level."

He Min was very proud of himself. He took off his clothes and shouted, "Everyone follow me to get water to put out the fire."

Nie Bozhao pushed He Min behind him. Well, this idiot said directly, "No, the soldiers must listen to me. The farm is in danger, I won't allow you to give orders here."

There was a fire in the cotton field over there again, and a fight broke out over here.

He Min looked like he was being persecuted, yet he still wanted to call on everyone to follow him.

Suddenly, there was a deafening sound of gunfire, which cut out all other sounds.

The birds on the trees all flew up, and everyone turned around following the sound.

"Today there is no such thing as overstepping one's authority. Everyone listens to the orders of the laborers. If anything goes wrong, I will take responsibility."

It was Gao Dayong, the head of the Armed Forces. He blew a puff of smoke from the muzzle of his gun and said, "I'm drunk on soda today. If anyone dares to talk nonsense and disobey my orders again, I'll shoot him."

Well, Secretary A and District Chief Gao didn’t dare to say anything.

The idiots with guns took the initiative. Wang Hongbing brought a loud speaker. Minister Gao took it over and, following Nie Bozhao's instructions, he began to assign tasks calmly.

The educated youth walked quickly to fetch water from the Baiyang River, the commune members went to the karez to fetch water, and the comrades from the armed forces department, all holding shovels, followed Nie Bozhao into the cotton fields.

Fire is a very difficult thing to deal with.

It is easy to put out an open fire, which is only the first task of the assault. But even if the open fire is extinguished, the sparks in the air can spread as long as they splash a little bit, which will set the whole prairie on fire.

Therefore, Nie Bozhao led his soldiers to dig trenches directly in the cotton fields. They dug trenches and pressed earth into the cotton fields to prevent fire in order to completely stop the source of the fire.

Minister Gao followed Nie Bozhao with a gun in one hand and a loud speaker in the other, looking ready to punch anyone in the head if they dared to say something wrong.

Staff Officer Yu was the most miserable today, because Minister Gao's loud speaker was always next to his ear. He felt like he had lost his hearing while digging trenches and listening to the loud roar.

"Mom, mom, will the fire go out?" asked Sandaner.

Chen Lina turned around and saw the child pulling at her skirt, so she picked him up and said, "Of course, with your dad here, it will be OK."

"Then do you know why my father ordered everyone to dig trenches in the north when the wind is blowing from the southeast and the fire should be carried to the northwest?"

It would have been fine if Erdan was just pulling her skirt, but Nie Weimin also came to pull her skirt.

"Wei Min, Wei Guo, you are already adults, you should be sensible. Mommy only has this skirt on her legs, and no pants underneath, so please stop pulling her."

All right, Nie Weimin let go and jumped up and down. "You haven't answered me yet. I want to ask you, why did my father dig trenches in the northwest?"

"have no idea."

Not only did she not know, the leaders of the mining area were also worried. After all, judging from the wind direction, they should dig trenches in the northeast first.

"Then I'll tell you, huh." As soon as Nie Weimin opened his mouth, Chen Lina bent down.

"Did you see it? The Baiyang River is in the northwest. Because it is close to the water source, the air there is humid, so Mars is not easy to spread and can be extinguished the fastest. The south is a big mountain pass, and it is also the place where the wind direction is most likely to change. The air flowing in from the north to the south is very dry, so the south is the place where Mars is most likely to flow."

However, as soon as he finished speaking, Nie Bozhao pointed again, and all the officers and soldiers rushed north again.

"Look, the wind is coming from the big mountain pass in the south. Now we have to put out the fire in the south first to prevent it from being blown to the north by the wind." Nie Weimin said proudly.

"Wei Min, you are still a child. How do you know all these things?" Chen Lina was full of admiration.

"My dad told me."

Since he found that his son was very smart and understood things quickly, Nie Bozhao was of course willing to teach him many things.

When I do some small experiments at home, I will also ask him to help me. The best education is the subtle influence in the little bits and pieces of growth.

Sighing like an adult, Nie Weimin said, "You should know that there is no man in this world who is smarter, more handsome, and knows more than my father. You must cherish him."

"When did I stop cherishing him?"

It was clearly a life-and-death race in the cotton fields, but Chen Lina still made the child laugh.

"Don't drink other men's soda, don't dance anymore, isn't it enough for daddy to take you to the movies alone?"

My god, this kid even knows about his parents watching movies alone.

Is there anything else in this world that can hide from his eyes?

After the fire was put out, it was dawn the next day.

After daybreak, there was another drizzle. Although there was some damage to the cotton fields, it was only two or three acres. In the face of a major disaster, this small loss was nothing.

However, leaders are facing new troubles.

"What should we do with the day lilies? What do you think, Nie Gong? Should we send them back to their hometown?" Secretary Ah asked Nie Bozhao as they walked through the fields covered with dead branches and fallen leaves.

That is Sun Zhuan'an's mother. Her son has been killed for colluding with Russia. Last night, Sun Duoyu made great contributions in the firefighting and disaster relief. If Nie Bozhao were asked to say that he should be sent back to his hometown, he would definitely be unable to say it.

Chen Lina said, "If you want to send her back to her hometown, she will definitely come back. She can go to Beijing, and there is no place in the world that our Sun Gong mother cannot go. Let's put it this way, there is an Alimu Forest Farm behind the Devil City, and the management there is strict. She is not yet 60 years old, and according to the law, she must undergo labor reform. Send her there for labor reform."

"Bah, damn old lady."

"The shame of Sun Gong."

"You almost destroyed the farm, and you still have the nerve to come back?" When Huang Huacai was finally untied, he returned to Sunjiazhai, only to be met with everyone's contempt.

The old members of Sunjiazhai who once praised her and complimented her like yes-men no matter what she said no longer recognized her, and some even threw slop on her.

After knocking on his own door for a long time, Sun Duoyu yelled, "Get out! Get out! You are so happy to have set fire to my house. The clothes the manager gave me were all burned last night. I still want to find someone to marry. How can I marry you?"

It turned out that when putting out the fire, Sun Duoyu was the most aggressive and ferocious in order to redeem himself for his crime, but he was also burned by the fire.

The old lady had been tied up for a whole night, her legs and hands were stiff, and she sat on the ground with a thud. Before she had time to catch her breath, she was handcuffed by the police from the mining area and sent to the forest farm for forced labor.

In the early morning, the air still had a lingering smell of burning fire.

Nie Weimin climbed up from the big bed in the cave and saw Erdan lying on top of Sandan, the two of them sleeping soundly in each other's arms. Next to his head was a dahlia made of red silk, which was a gift from the girls in the art troupe to Liu Xiaohong last night when they were dancing because she was a good dancer.

Apparently, Liu Xiaohong had gotten up early.

There were greasy soft wheat pancakes spread out on the table. Finally, the members of the farm could eat greasy wheat pancakes.

I pushed the door open with a creak, and there was a white mist outside. As far as the eye could see, there was only a low underground shed and a poplar tree with golden leaves. After the rain, the mist rose and the air was fresh and cold.

He walked out of the den, listened to the chirping of the woodpecker, turned around and walked a few steps into the poplar forest behind him. He heard footsteps and saw a little girl in a flowery dress and long hair running out of the mist.

The little girl was holding a bouquet of flowers in her hand. It was an autumn morning, with white mist and yellow leaves all over the ground. When the two looked at each other, he felt quite embarrassed.

"You kept mumbling in your dream, saying Tiantian didn't come, Tiantian didn't come, you kept shouting all night long."

Nie Weimin's face turned even redder. He was actually talking in his sleep?

"Now in our border area, all other flowers are gone, only the baby's breath is left. This is what Grandpa Tian gave me when I was helping him. Give it to Tiantian. Isn't it beautiful?"

A very beautiful bouquet of baby's breath.

Nie Weimin took it, thought about it, patted his head, went into the house and ran to the food bag in the corner. After digging for a long time, he dug out a glass bottle. "This is the soda my mother left for us yesterday. Erdan and Sandan drank up all the soda. I don't like it. You drink it."

Liu Xiaohong took it and took a sip. It had a very pungent and unpleasant taste.

"Is it delicious? Erdan kept saying it was delicious and kept asking me for more." Nie Weimin asked.

Liu Xiaohong blushed, stuck out her tongue, and kept breathing out, "It tastes good, very good, and very sweet."