What was the Huaihua Brigade busy with? Of course, they were busy paying their grain tax!
In the countryside, grain taxes were paid twice a year, in summer and autumn. The amount of grain paid depended on local conditions.
The standard in Baishui County is to produce 50 kilograms of grain per mu of land, and the grain must be good, free of impurities, dry, and plump. If it is found to be unqualified during inspection, it will be sent back and replaced with better grain.
Before four o'clock, Gu Aiguo organized the young and strong men in the team to carry the dried grain onto the tractors and ox carts.
Bag after bag of grain was neatly stacked high in the truck bed. Gu Aiguo had the old man modify the truck bed by adding two tall wooden boards on either side to prevent the grain from falling out.
Accountant Liu sighed as he smoked his pipe, "Finally, we can breathe a sigh of relief this year. Thanks to Chen Zhiqing, our brigade was able to get a tractor."
In the past, paying public grain was a very tiring job for the Huaihua Brigade. There were only three ox carts in the team, and nearly 20,000 kilograms of public grain had to be transported by ox carts, carts, and manpower.
Every time the grain tax was paid, all the men and women in the team went out. They would set out before dawn under the moonlight, stopping and starting along the way to change crews. By the time they arrived at the commune grain office, they were at least half exhausted, and sometimes they even had to sleep on the floor there overnight.
Because we arrived late, the line was very long, and paying the public grain required three procedures: inspection, weighing, and storage. Sometimes it was not my turn until late at night, and I had to sleep on the floor.
Gu Aiguo also nodded. He really had to thank Chen Zhiqing. He gave her an extra 20 kilograms of rations when distributing them. He didn't want to let down those who had made great contributions.
Gu Aiguo stood with his hands behind his back, watching everyone stacking food onto the truck. "Everyone, pay attention and stack it neatly. Let's try to finish it in one trip."
Two boards were specially added to the tractor bed and the oxcart, so that the goods can be stacked well and completed in one trip, which can also save a lot of manpower.
The people on the bus responded loudly, "Okay, Captain, don't worry, we will stack them neatly and securely."
After the grain was loaded, Gu Anxi drove the tractor in front. In addition to the grain, there were many young and strong men sitting on the cart, as well as Gu Aiguo, Accountant Liu, Gu Wubo and three others who drove ox carts following behind.
Don’t ask why so many men went together. The reason they went was to help unload the goods.
If we rely solely on the people in the commune grain warehouse, they will be exhausted. Moreover, the commune grain warehouse will not help unload the goods, so the people who pay the public grain have to unload them themselves.
After rushing all the way, they finally arrived at the commune at around eight o'clock in the morning. The ox cart was still moving slowly behind them, and Gu Anxi drove the tractor to grab a spot first.
At this time, the team paying public grain had formed a long queue, with ox carts and carts lined up in a winding manner. When they heard the "thump thump thump" sound, everyone turned around and looked at them enviously.
"Seventh Uncle, you guys are here. You're really fast this year."
The man who came was Bi Guihua's husband, also Gu Sannai's grandson-in-law. He was waiting for Gu Aiguo. He had a cousin who was a capable official at the grain station. So every time Bi Guihua paid the grain tax, he would bring some things to the door in advance and ask this cousin to take care of it.
"This year, I got an iron lump. The speed is indeed faster than in previous years. Has the sea been waiting for a long time?"
Dahai waved his hand and said, "I just arrived. It won't be long. Uncle Qi, I'll take you to meet my cousin. I have to go to work soon."
Before going out, Gu Aiguo put on the Daqianmen cigarette given by Chen Qiangwei. He had saved the cigarettes that Chen Qiangwei had given him before, waiting for them to come in handy at a critical moment.
Dahai's cousin got a pack of Daqianmen cigarettes, and his smile became much friendlier.
He smiled and said, "Just stand in line. When it's your turn, I'll check it myself."
Gu Aiguo's eyes were so bright that he could catch a fly. "Hey, leader, please rest assured. We have brought good food. Our team is very conscious. Even three-year-old children know that the good food should be saved for the public tax."
Dahai's uncle smiled and nodded, "I believe this. Over the years, your Huaihua Brigade has never made any mistakes."
For the two pounds of fat meat sent by his niece-in-law last night, he could turn a blind eye even if it was almost gone. However, the captain of the Huaihua Brigade was quite reasonable and the food he sent every year was good food.
Dahai said, "Uncle Qi, please line up properly. I'm leaving first."
He had originally asked his boss for half a day off, but since Gu Aiguo came early, he rushed back to work. It was only half a day, so if he worked an extra half day, the children at home could have a few more bites of food.
Gu Aiguo also stuffed a pack of Daqianmen cigarettes into Dahai's hand and said, "Okay, Dahai, you've worked hard. Take this pack of cigarettes."
Dahai looked at the cigarette in his hand. It was a good cigarette. This pack of cigarettes would make him popular among his colleagues for a month. "Hey, thank you Uncle Qi. I'm leaving now."
Dahai has enough money to buy this pack of cigarettes, but when he was chatting with his colleagues, he told them that it was a gift from a relative, which made his colleagues envious.
Thanks to the acquaintance, the Huaihua Brigade's grain tax was paid smoothly. After carefully folding the receipts issued by the grain office, Gu Aiguo breathed a sigh of relief and asked the men to deliver the grain to the warehouse.
On the way back, I saw some brigades sifting out shriveled grains with sieves with sad faces. I couldn't help but feel fortunate that my niece Guihua married into the commune and that my niece-in-law Dahai had an uncle who worked as an officer in the grain bureau.
After paying the public grain tax, Gu Aiguo let everyone move freely and gather back on time at 12 o'clock. No one late would be waited for. The tractors and ox carts were placed in the ox cart storage area and people took turns to look after them.
In the Huaihua Brigade, the intelligence center in the threshing ground became bustling again. Under the big banyan tree, a group of women were making shoe soles, weaving straw sandals, mending clothes, weaving mats, and doing all kinds of things.
They worked and chatted at the same time, looking forward to it from time to time.
"This year, the child's father will definitely come back earlier than in previous years."
"You're talking nonsense. With the tractor, it will definitely be earlier than in previous years."
"It's all thanks to my niece Guihua from my third aunt's family, otherwise it would be very difficult." Because my mother's team has no connections at the grain station, I heard that six out of ten times they would be troubled by the quality inspectors of the grain station.
Either the grain was not dried enough, or there were too many shriveled grains and impurities in it, or dozens of kilograms were withheld. Every year when paying the public grain tax, one had to prepare an extra bag of grain.
"Yes, it's all thanks to Chen Zhiqing."
In previous years, her husband would have to lie down at home for a day or two before he could recover after paying his taxes. But this year, the hard times have finally come to an end and he even got to sit on an iron lump. Apart from the fact that loading and unloading grain required some effort, he enjoyed the whole journey.
"I finally understand how important studying is. Without education, you're nothing. When school starts, I'll send all three of my kids to school."
Don't you see that you need to be educated to do anything? Markers have to take exams, elementary school teachers have to take exams, and I heard that if you want to eat the government rations in the city, you have to take an exam too.
"Once the public grain is paid, it will be the brigade's turn to distribute rations."
The atmosphere became even more lively as soon as these words were spoken. Everyone rushed to talk about how many work points their family had accumulated in the first half of the year, how much food they could exchange for, and how many days of dry rice they could eat.
It was so lively for a while that even the educated youth started laughing.
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