Chapter 69

Winter vacation

"Who is this? Are you going to let me sleep? Old Nie, come here quickly." Chen Lina thought to herself, in the middle of the night, who wouldn't have something going on on the kang? How could this person be so tactless?

I thought it was Nie Gong's student who came to see him for an experiment. When she heard the door creak, she thought her classmate had left. She rolled around on the kang and said, "Come on, Old Nie Gong, come quickly. Your little princess is so hungry and thirsty."

"It seems that our Director Chen has already gone to bed. Isn't it a bit inappropriate to disturb him at this time?" A deep voice sounded, with a hint of teasing.

Chen Lina sat up immediately, and of course, Nie Bozhao also came in.

The look in his eyes was like that of a chicken being killed. “Your voice is not usually like this…” It was so loud, as loud as the water of Honghu Lake.

"Today everyone was waiting for Director Chen to dance with you, but you just quietly slipped away." Secretary Gao sat on the chair at Nie's house, touched it, and said, "This chair is very good."

"The worker made it himself." Chen Lina said as she brought tea to the two leaders.

District Chief Gao studied the stool carefully and said, "I have to admire the craftsmanship of the worker."

Men are born lazy. When Chen Lina came, the family was penniless. She asked him to saw wood from the woods behind to make chairs and tables. Now the house is fully furnished, a whole set of birch furniture, made of pure solid wood, which can be sold for a high price in the future.

"Actually, we are here for you, Xiao Chen," Secretary Ah said again.

"Last year, the grain production of our Mulan Farm, in terms of fine flour, was enough to supply the entire mining area for only three months. The rest was all borrowed by our District Chief Gao after he begged everyone for help and borrowed from many households. This year, District Chief Gao and I calculated that the fine flour is enough to at least last until the winter. You have made a great contribution to this."

It's just wintering, and it's still a long way from being self-sufficient.

At that time, Chen Lina gave the two leaders a military certificate, which stated that she would achieve self-sufficiency in production within three years. So, after the autumn harvest, the leaders came to her house in person to summarize her work.

Chen Lina was standing behind Nie Bozhao. Nie Gong thought for a moment, stood up, motioned for Chen Lina to sit down, and said, "Okay, you go and have a good chat with the leaders. I'll go and boil some water for us."

Well, at the critical moment, the family members are very supportive. He is showing with practical actions that no matter what Chen Lina does, he will fully support her.

The two leaders looked at each other and kept it a secret. Finally, District Chief Gao reached out and shook Chen Lina's hand. "We still have two years to go. Let's work together to help the workers, members, and educated youth in the mining area fill their stomachs. What do you think, Director Chen?"

"I will definitely live up to your mission."

Because Secretary A and Nie Gong would soon be going to Beijing to attend a meeting and meet with leaders, and Secretary A had a lot to discuss with him, the two of them started chatting.

District Chief Gao sat down and drank tea for a while. He saw that the door of the worker's small study was locked. There was a piece of paper nailed to the door, which was obviously drawn by the children, so he walked over.

Well, after watching for a while, I figured it out. These are two women, one of whom has fiery red lips, long wavy hair, and a long skirt. Well, in the eyes of the children, this should be considered a great beauty.

The other one was much shorter, grey, with short hair and a few small arrows on his head. Below was a line of small characters, which were written so sloppily that they could not be seen clearly under the light. District Chief Gao was about to take a closer look.

"Here, District Chief Gao, please take a seat. I'll tear up the scribbles made by the kids."

Chen Lina came over and tore it apart.

The two leaders sat long enough, drank enough tea, and were ready to leave. When they were leaving, District Chief Gao fell behind and said, "Director Chen, what's written on the paper is that if you defeat He Lanshan, Mom will win, and then step on He Lanshan 10,000 times, right?"

"Leader, are you dazzled? How is that possible?" Chen Lina laughed three times quickly to hide her embarrassment.

Yes, that piece of paper was drawn by the children to cheer her up so that she could beat Helanshan.

Every time she won, Nie Weimin would draw a small arrow on He Lanshan's head to represent that she had lost again.

Time flies. After harvesting cotton, we distributed the cotton and paid the public rations. In the blink of an eye, it was already the Late December and it was time for the children to have their winter vacation.

"Mom, Xiaohong is having dinner at our house today, why are you cooking mutton again?"

"Why, mutton doesn't taste good?"

"He's getting angry. Look, little Dandan's mouth is full of blisters." Nie Weimin was wearing a leather hat on his head, small leather shoes on his feet, and a small leather jacket on his body that was made of raw wool and kept shedding fur.

He just came back from school and threw himself on Chen Lina as soon as he entered the door. "It's cold, cold, let me warm my hands on your neck."

"You're cold, but I'm not. Hurry up, get the bucket and pick up some coal for me."

"I took the final exam today and I got a perfect score."

"Well, I have to cook you a scallion and two eggs today."

"Really?"

"Stop talking nonsense and go out and pick up some coal."

Liu Xiaohong followed him into the house. As soon as she entered, she picked up the coal bucket and went outside to pick up coal briquettes.

Now, this is her aunt's home, and from now on, no one will chase her away.

"How many points did Xiaohong get in the exam?"

Nie Weimin held up two fingers and said, "Also a perfect score."

"Very good, not bad. How about our Nie Weiguo? How many points did he get?"

Nie Weimin exclaimed, with a look of dejection on his face, "61!"

"Not bad, 60 points is the passing score. He passed. One point more is a waste. I will cook eggs for you tonight, two for each of you."

Since autumn, the chickens on the farm have stopped laying eggs. In this border area, vegetables are expensive in winter and eggs are even more expensive. And now is the time when children need protein to replenish their bodies. One egg is equivalent to half a pound of meat, but we still have to grit our teeth and buy it.

When it comes to eggs, whether they are fried or boiled, or even just sprinkled with a little salt, children love to eat them.

"You are all lazy idiots, Nie Weimin. Xiaohong is younger than you and is your younger sister. You always ask her to do the work while you do nothing. I want to ask you, are you ashamed?"

"Don't be ashamed. My grandmother said that work is a woman's job and has nothing to do with men."

"They favor sons over daughters and don't treat daughters as human beings, so your grandmother was sent to the forest farm. Do you know the Alimu Forest Farm? The mountains are high and there are many rocks. Besides trees, there are wolves. If the wolves want to bite you, one bite will be your little hand, and then another bite will be your arm. Well, sometimes they even bite off your nose." As she spoke, Chen Lina pinched Nie Weimin's nose.

This child has had a high and straight nose since childhood, and is very easy to pinch.

"Mom, will the wolf really eat grandma's nose?" Sandan was scared. He touched his nose and was a little scared.

"No, Mom lied to your brother. Your grandma is fine. Besides, your grandma is so fierce that she can only eat wolves. The wolves don't dare to eat her."

Sandan was still a little scared. After all, it didn’t matter whether his grandmother would be eaten by the wolf. He was just afraid that he would be eaten by the wolf.

"No, Mom, I can't sleep with my brother tonight. I have to sleep with you. Otherwise, the wolf will come and eat me."

"Dandan, you are already four years old, you know that, you are already an adult, you can't act like a child anymore. The wolves are in the forest farm, not in the base. Besides, even if there are wolves, I will protect you. Don't mention sleeping with mom again. She and dad are going to give birth to a little sister for us." Erdan rushed into the kitchen and rubbed Sandan's face. His two chubby hands like popsicles rubbed his brother's round face.

"Nie Weiguo, who told you that your parents were going to have a little sister? Why are you always thinking about useless things instead of studying hard as a student?"

"That's what my aunt said. She said she's pregnant, so you should be pregnant soon. If you want to know why you can't get pregnant, it's because Dandan always occupies the kang."

Chen Lina hit him on the butt with a fire stick. "Okay, Weimin won't eavesdrop on our conversation anymore, but you are eavesdropping again. If you dare to eavesdrop on my conversation with your aunt again, I will beat you with a fire stick."

Erdan touched his butt and shouted that it didn't hurt, then turned around and bumped into Liu Xiaohong who was carrying half a bucket of coal.

"Aunt, I'll help you light the fire, but are we really eating mutton today?"

"Well, the farm has a good potato harvest this year, and we just got some new vermicelli today. I want to ask you why you don't like it?"

Living in the border area, there are many ways to eat mutton, but braised mutton is the most difficult to make.

After blanching to remove the blood, the fish have to be fried in a large oil pan. After frying, they have to be browned and stewed, which wastes a lot of oil and requires a lot of seasoning.

But it is also delicious. Stew a big pot of it, freeze it in a small warehouse, and whenever you want to eat it, you can scoop out a big bowl, which is enough for the whole family.

"Xiaohong, go and call Nie Weimin over and ask him to sharpen my machete. This knife is too blunt and can't do any work."

"Aunt, let me help you grind it. He still needs to study."

"They all got 200 points. Why should he study? You should do the work. No, call him over to me."

So, Liu Xiaohong went to call Nie Weimin, "Brother, my aunt wants you to sharpen the knife. She wants to chop scorpions. Hurry up."

"Oh, I know, I know. I'll go right away."

He said he would go right away, but he still dawdled and didn't come for a long time.

He squatted on the ground and looked at the knife. He said, "No, Comrade Chen, your knife has holes all over it. It will take a lot of effort to sharpen it."

"Yes, we are all waiting to eat scorpions. If you dawdle any longer, you will be served with a fire stick."

Nie Weimin then began to sharpen his knife.

Again and again, he polished it with great care.

Chen Lina has always suspected that he and Nie Bozhao are different from normal people. However, one thing that makes him better than Nie Bozhao is that Nie Bozhao's eyes have been malnourished because he loved reading in his early years. In addition, there was not enough light at night, so his eyes have been nearsighted for a long time. Now he has to use glasses for military training and target practice.

Nie Weimin's eyesight was amazingly good.

One day, Chen Lina took him to the farm. In the endless fields was a snow-white cotton field. There was nothing in the field except a tree with thick branches standing there.

The tree was just a shadow in Chen Lina's eyes, but Nie Weimin insisted that there was a bird on the tree, which must have been injured. Children have a natural love for birds.

Chen Lina rode her bicycle and took him for a long way. When they arrived at the tree, they saw a wounded falcon hanging on the tree with a sand bullet in its leg.

The falcon is a first-class protected animal in the country. There is no such thing as protected animals now, but in the future, one of these can be sold for hundreds of thousands.

When Falcon was sent to the mining area hospital for surgery, Chen Lina also tested his eyesight.

According to the doctors, the children's vision cannot be measured using the machines they currently have, not because his vision is poor, but because his vision is incredibly good.

Only then did Chen Lina realize that when Nie Weimin wanted to adopt Liu Xiaohong, he only relied on his naked eye vision.

Just as he got close to Song's wife, he saw the injuries on her body through his cool shirt.

"Nie Weimin, you didn't look at anything random, for example, at places on others' bodies that you shouldn't look at?" Chen Lina subconsciously covered her chest at the time. "Young man, I didn't realize that your eyes would commit a crime."

Nie Weimin was so angry that he jumped up and down. "I was looking at that woman's shirt closely. It is true that there are gaps between the warp and weft of the fabric. Do you understand? If I look at someone else's clothes closely every day, wouldn't I be a hooligan?"

Well, for the sake of protecting his eyes, we can't let him bury his head in books all day.

"Xiaohong, your mother is pregnant now and can't take care of you. If you don't want to go back to the farm, why don't you just live in my house? What do you think?"

Chen Lina took the knife and started chopping the mutton, then asked Liu Xiaohong.

Erdan came over quickly and said, "The farm is too cold. Sister Xiaohong must not want to go there again."

Sandaner also said, "Yes, there are only cabbages and potatoes on the farm, but we have mutton at home. Also, my mother's big bathtub is full of vegetables, so we have vegetables to eat."

Now with the soil film, although the bathtub is not big, the output of vegetables has doubled, especially with good seedlings. Chen Lina grows rapeseed, wormwood and Chinese cabbage, the most tender vegetables, which can grow well with water. In the middle of winter, a plate of these vegetables with mutton is a favorite for the children.

"Yeah, if you don't want to, don't go back during the winter break. Just stay at my house."

"No, my mother is pregnant and has severe reactions. I have to go take care of her." Liu Xiaohong shook her head dryly.

When Nie Bozhao came back in the evening, he smelled the aroma and said, "Oh my god, I haven't eaten hand-rolled noodles for a long time."

"Well, you're back again. How's your work going? Is it going well lately?"

After the British and American heads of state paid a secret visit to the Republic in July, the Sino-Soviet situation eased considerably, and the oil industry also began to receive attention from the higher-ups.

But at the same time, because there were many British and American travelers who sneaked in from all directions, many people also entered from the border.

Therefore, Nie Bozhao's research laboratory was completely closed. Although I live nearby, I rarely go home recently.

Normally, all meals were eaten casually in the laboratory. It was really unbearable for the workers to not go home for a meal occasionally.

The plump potato flour is soft and chewy, and it tastes delicious when paired with lamb and fried and stewed potatoes.

However, the potato production in the farm was not high in the past few years. The potatoes themselves were not enough to eat, so who would be willing to use them to make flour?

Only this year, there was a bumper potato harvest, and every household on the farm had dozens of kilograms of hand-rolled noodles.

"Dad, Xiaohong is here today, you can't hit me." Erdan was very diligent today. As soon as his father came in, he immediately poured hot water for him.

The wind is blowing outside. The New Year is coming soon. Judging from the weather, it will definitely snow again.

"I can tell from the looks of it that you didn't do well in the exam again."

"The teacher also said that Erdan's brain is full of paste and that his little head is a pig's head." Sandan has been running to school frequently recently, standing on tiptoe under the window to watch his two brothers attend class.

The teacher's ways of scolding Erdan were endless. Chen Lina and Nie Bozhao, who were good students since childhood, couldn't figure out where Erdan's gene mutated from.

"Okay, don't hold daddy's feet. No, no, don't take off daddy's socks. Erdan, okay, thank you for bringing daddy slippers, but these things can't change the result. Daddy asks you, how many points did you get in the final exam?"

No one dared to speak in front of the two Shuangbai.

Chen Lina brought a large pot of hot braised lamb into the living room. "Okay, Erdan, go get us some bowls. The less you work, the more you should do. If you don't have tears, remember to go to the kitchen and put some on your eyes. Your dad won't beat you tonight."