Chapter 59

The chicken was stewing in the iron pot on the wood stove.

Yan Lei spent the whole morning to finally finish reading the agricultural technology manual.

He had been reading it on and off for several days. He

seemed to like it very much. He really has strong Chinese blood in his bones.

"We should buy more books like this." He said, "Our country is a big agricultural country, and we must not forget our roots." He

wanted to say that the book would be kept for Yan Xiang to read later, but the original owner had a deep impression of hating the countryside, so he stopped at the point and swallowed back the words "leave it for Yan Xiang".

He didn't know that Yan Xiang had already read it.

Yan Xiang was already reading the pig farming technology book.

Qiao Wei didn't let Yan Xiang read these books when Yan Lei was at home.

Genius baby, male protagonist, original female protagonist, cannon fodder female supporting role, extras... these are all super-dimensional concepts. Qiao Wei didn't intend to let Yan Lei

know.

She discussed the exterior wall of the house with Yan Lei.

"Loess?" Yan Lei was slightly surprised.

"It's the kind of soil that turns light yellow after drying. You should know it." Qiao Wei asked.

Yan Lei certainly knew: "You want a mud house?"

In the countryside, especially in the north, there are mud houses everywhere. That is what Yan Lei has seen since he was a child, no, no, it is the environment he grew up in.

That's why he can't understand it.

If you have the ability, who doesn't want to build a brick and tile house, who is willing to continue living in a mud house.

The house they live in now is a traditional local stone house. Although it is not as good as the red brick and tile house, it is much better than the adobe house. In the old society, only the wealthy could afford to live in it.

No matter in the new society or the old society, adobe houses are chosen because of poverty and because they cannot afford to build brick houses.

Yan Lei tried to persuade Qiao Wei: "If you think this wall is ugly, why don't we paint the outer walls white?"

In fact, if it is in the future, it would be nice to build a rural courtyard and paint the outer walls of the house white.

But that is in the future. The current era is special. If the outer walls of the house are painted white in this era, Qiao Wei is very worried about what will happen at any time. If they see that the outer walls of your house are white, they may paint a few big slogans on you.

Really, there is no way to guarantee that this will not happen. Qiao Wei even felt that if the exterior wall was really painted white, there was a high possibility that slogans would be painted on it in the future.

That would be a heart attack.

Very embarrassing.

So when Qiao Wei racked her brains to think about how to beautify the shabby exterior wall at home that looked like it had been patched up, she remembered a country homestay she had visited.

That homestay was in an ancient village.

The exterior walls were all light yellow earth walls, which were imitation adobe houses. The actual house was newly built, and the interior was also finely decorated. Only the facade was imitated.

But it was beautiful.

Very rustic and beautiful.

People in big cities in the Internet age can appreciate this kind of beauty.

Yan Lei was very conflicted.

Because you have been used to seeing something that represents "poverty" and "hardship" since childhood, it is difficult for you to find it beautiful.

"Have you really thought about it?" he asked.

"Yes!"

"Why can't it be painted white? Don't you think it looks good if the inside of the house is painted white?"

Qiao Wei thought about it and told Yan Lei about her concerns about painting the exterior wall white.

Yan Lei said, "Not really, this is inside my own yard..."

Qiao Wei said, "It's hard to say."

She asked, "If there are slogans painted on it, can you paint it off?"

Yan Lei's voice stopped abruptly.

If there are slogans painted on it, it will have political significance, and of course it cannot be painted off on your own initiative.

Unless you want to change the slogan, or the wall has been exposed to the wind and sun, it needs to be repainted.

Anyway, you can't take the initiative to actively remove the slogans that have been painted.

Yan Lei is a regimental-level cadre, so of course he can understand some subtle rules.

Qiao Wei said: "I've heard of such a thing. There was a female cadre. She was a good person, but she offended a villain. Those people wanted to frame her. They found an excuse to lock her in a room, and deliberately locked the door but left the window. The female cadre was so hungry after being locked up for a day and a night, so she tore off the paper pasted on the window and climbed out of the window to go home."

"She was illiterate. The paper was printed with quotations from great men. Not only did she throw it on the ground, but she also stepped on some of the sheets with footprints."

"She was innocent originally, but now she is guilty."

Yan Lei's face became serious and cold: "Where did this happen? When did it happen? What was her name?"

This was actually a plot from a period drama that Qiao Wei had watched.

"Don't worry about who it is. It has nothing to do with us. It's not a current thing. It's long gone. It may not be true at all." Qiao Wei said, "I just want to make my house prettier. If I paint it white, I'm afraid that if there are slogans on it in the future, it will be difficult to deal with. I didn't choose a big white wall because I don't want to leave a little possibility for this to happen."

"Okay, do whatever you want." Yan Lei said, "It can match your straw hat and straw sandals, right?"

Qiao Wei smiled.

"Are you..." Yan Lei thought about it for a while, and still said, "I think, are you just trying to make your house look like a rural village?"

Yan Lei had a vague feeling for a long time, but he always felt it was ridiculous. It was not until Qiao Wei said that she wanted to make the outer wall of the house look like a mud house that he finally confirmed it.

Qiao Wei was slightly surprised, and then she smiled even more happily.

"There is a word that is much more beautiful than the word 'rural'."

"Which one?"

"Pastoral."

Pastoral, Yan Lei chewed on this word that is not often used in daily life, savoring it carefully.

"This word doesn't sound right, it has lost the essence of simplicity."

Qiao Wei said: "If the simple essence you are talking about refers to poverty, hard work, and misery, then this essence doesn't need to exist."

"Poverty is a phenomenon, an objective situation, but it is definitely not a goal."

"Compared with Western countries, our socialist country is indeed still poor. But this is because we have experienced a century of poverty and weakness and have just started, while Western robbers have been plundering for hundreds of years."

"Our socialist country will eventually be able to completely eliminate poverty, build roads to the entrance of every village, allow every child to receive at least nine years of free school education, and allow ordinary people to afford medical care and food. Let all rural areas become pastoral areas."

Yan Lei had been married for several years, and for the first time he saw such a firm look in his wife's eyes.

She seemed to believe in the future she described.

Yan Lei always thought that she had serious petty-bourgeois ideas, but now he realized that he was wrong. Her faith in the motherland was as firm as his.

Yan Lei was extremely relieved.

As a man, he could actually tolerate many of his wife's conflicts with him.

But as a staunch communist fighter, he would be disappointed and distressed if his spouse was backward in thought and low in consciousness.

"Okay, do it if you want." He agreed to Qiao Wei's plan.

But he stepped back a few steps to the yard, put his hands on his hips, and looked up at the whole house.

"This is a big project. You can't do it, and neither can I. We have to find an expert."

"Ah, can't you do it yourself?" The man who had just given a bird's-eye view and profound advice fell into his own blind spot. "Just like painting a wall, can't you just do a little bit every day?"

"No." Yan Lei said, "It's mud that's applied, and it will be the yellow soil you want when it dries. For such a large area, it can't be done all at once. Some places will be dry and some places will just be painted. It will crack after a long time."

"I see." Qiao Wei didn't hesitate and said cheerfully, "Then where can I find someone?"

"I'll go. Find a nearby commune. Each commune has its own bricklaying team. For building adobe houses, bricklayers in the city are not good enough. You have to find people from the countryside."

"But it's not possible now. We're busy. If it rains heavily in a few days, all the soldiers will have to be sent out to help the villagers."

"After the work is done and I'm free, I'll find someone for you."

Qiao Wei asked, "Will you find it troublesome?"

Because she only asked him to help move the furniture when painting the house, and Qiao Wei did everything else herself. The cost is low.

But if the exterior wall is done like this, you don't have to think about it to know that the cost will be high. It's no longer a DIY at home, it has become a big project.

Yan Lei said, "I don't need to worry about it. Instead of worrying about it, you should think about how to answer when someone asks you why you want to cover your house with yellow mud."

Qiao Wei smiled slyly, "My wife and children are afraid of the cold, so we should thicken the walls to keep them warm. It's cheaper to cover the walls with adobe than other methods."

"It's well made." Yan Lei praised her, "I almost believed it."

Qiao Wei laughed.

After laughing, she said, "No matter what others guess, my pastoral aesthetic is invincible now. Who dares not to praise me for being simple and unsophisticated, and my style is touching?"

Yan Lei thought of her homespun clothes and trousers, which were so simple that even Captain Zhao was worried that her family was in financial difficulties. No one would have thought that it was because she thought it looked good.

Yan Lei couldn't help laughing when he thought of this.

Only Yan Xiang asked, "Dad, is the chicken ready?"

It smelled so good that he was drooling.

"Let me take a look. Hmm, it's almost done. Wait for Dad to make you some cakes." Yan Lei called, "Qiao Wei, Qiao Wei"

Qiao Wei followed him into the kitchen: "What's wrong?"

Yan Lei poured a bowl of chicken soup: "Send a bowl to the old Zhao family. You go or I go?"

Qiao Wei looked confused.

Yan Lei paused and explained, "It's like this in the village. When you eat something good, you fill a bowl for your family relatives or neighbors who have a good relationship with you."

His hometown is in the same area as Captain Zhao's hometown, and the customs are the same.

"Relationships need to be mobile. If they are not, even if you live close to each other, you will be far away from each other," he said.

Qiao Wei's memory of rejecting such things in the past was activated.

The ecology in the city is different, and there are no such rules. Qiao Weiwei also hates being too close to these people.

In fact, Yan Lei has always hoped that his spouse can't be said to be smooth, but at least can get along well with his comrades and neighbors. Unfortunately, he has always been disappointed. He

had given up, but now, he has secretly had hope in his heart.

"I understand, I'll go." Qiao Wei said happily.

Although she has never experienced it, for her this is a traditional custom with a strong sense of fireworks. This itself is part of the "pastoral".

Qiao Wei is well accepted.

"I'll go too." Yan Xiang followed.

So Qiao Wei took Yan Xiang and carried a bowl of chicken to Captain Zhao's house.

It was really interesting.

What was even more interesting was that when they arrived at Captain Zhao's house,

all the members of the Zhao family, except Wu Ni'er, including Junzi and Lin Xixi, were mobilized collectively, and the whole family was busy painting their house white.

Qiao Wei was so happy to see it.

She shouted: "Sister-in-law——"

I'm here to share delicious food~