Chapter 23 Harvesting in the rain.
He Susu didn't expect her mother to be so thoughtful. She was prepared to buy more food to take home without knowing the harvest. This was a good idea, as it saved her from having to find an excuse to exchange the food.
She nodded and said, "It should be no problem to ask my classmate to help buy rice, but the rice we buy now is from last year's harvest. Mom, how many kilograms of rice do you want to buy? Do you want refined rice?"
He's mother thought about it for a while. The price of refined rice was so high that it would cost a lot of money. But if the harvest this year was not greatly affected and the amount of grain they received was not much less, it would be a loss to buy too much brown rice.
She thought that she would use the refined rice she bought as lunch for her daughter, and also buy some brown rice to keep as a storage.
"Susu, just ask your classmates to help buy ten kilograms of polished rice and ten kilograms of brown rice. After the harvest, we can look at the harvest from the fields this year and decide whether to buy more food."
If she really wants to buy something, He's mother might consider asking about buying sweet potatoes, which are not only cheap but also filling.
He Susu nodded: "Okay, I'll make a note of it. I'll go find my classmate and tell her about this when I go to work in the county town."
He's mother was relieved: "Tell me about this as soon as possible, so that others won't think like me and want to stock up on food. I'll give you the money to buy rice first, so that you can get things done with money in hand."
He Susu did not refuse. In her mother's mind, she only had such a small salary at the moment, and she would feel relieved after receiving the money. Finally, He's mother stuffed two big unity notes into her hand, which were enough for the rice price her daughter had quoted last time, and told her to ask her for more if she didn't have enough.
He Susu took this matter to heart, and the next day she went home and said to her mother, "Mom, don't worry, I have already told my classmates about buying rice."
However, she did not take the rice home immediately. She planned to leave enough time for her classmates to help her buy rice and then bring it back in a few days.
After the villagers waited anxiously, they finally heard the village radio sound again. The team leader simply read out the decision made at the commune meeting and arranged for the harvest in the rainy days.
Given the heavy rain, according to a provincial newspaper, if this weather continues for a period of time, the rice ears will be more likely to become moldy if soaked in rain for a long time. In order to minimize the damage caused by the heavy rain, the commune decided to let each production team organize villagers to rush to harvest on rainy days.
The He family was delighted to hear the news. Although it was hard to harvest in the rain, what they harvested was their food for next year, so at least they didn't have to stay at home and worry.
The production team organized women with good skills to weave raincoats and straw hats overnight. Those who had raincoats and straw hats at home also brought them with them, to ensure that everyone who went to work had equipment to keep out the rain so that they could start the rush to harvest.
In previous years, during the harvest season, the village primary school would be closed for a few days, and all the children would go out. The adults would cut the rice ears with sickles in front, and the children would follow behind to pick up the fallen rice grains. No one would care how much they picked up. Don't underestimate the rice that the children picked up. After a few days of harvesting, they could pick up several kilograms of rice.
However, it rained this year and the rice ears were soaked in water. I was afraid that if I cut the rice ears in front, the rice grains behind would fall into the water. It was very difficult to fish out the rice grains in the water.
The adults in the He family discussed and decided to let the children stay at home and not go to the fields to pick rice. If they accidentally fell into the water, or got wet and caught a cold or fever, it would cost a lot of money to send them to the hospital for treatment.
Guifang and her friends looked at the sky which seemed to have a hole in it and it was raining all the time. They wanted to go to the fields to pick rice to supplement their family's meals, but they were afraid of getting really sick. In the end, they listened to their grandparents and stayed home obediently.
When He Susu came home from get off work in the evening and heard her parents talk about the rush to harvest during the rain, she was a little surprised.
This is different from the original story. Now, the harvest is organized in the rain after only eight or nine days of rain. The cut rice ears are placed in the vent to let the air blow, and then hung up to dry in the sun, which is better than soaking in water all the time.
However, she told He's parents: "Dad and Mom, it has been raining for so long, and there is a lot of water in the fields. You must be careful when harvesting the rice ears. It doesn't matter if you go slower and gain a few centimeters less, just don't fall."
Then he looked at his eldest brother and the others, "And you, eldest brother, eldest sister-in-law, second brother, second sister-in-law, you too, must be careful."
Father He smiled and said, "I've been farming for many years and I'm an old hand at it. Don't worry, my daughter."
He's mother also said: "This is the first time I have encountered rushing to harvest on a rainy day. I must be careful."
Brother He and the others also agreed, expressing their gratitude for the younger sister's concern.
Since the autumn harvest time was set, He Susu carried out her previous plan and exchanged five kilograms of pork at one time in the shopping system.
However, she only took two kilograms of pork home, and put the remaining three kilograms in the storage compartment to be taken home next time, so as not to scare her family.
Besides, no matter how capable her classmate was, it was a bit exaggerated for him to help buy five kilograms of pork at one time.
Carrying two pounds of pork home, He Susu said, "Mom, I bought these two pounds of pork especially for you to eat during the autumn harvest. You must not save it, and fry some for every meal. You will be able to work better if you have enough fat in your stomach."
He's mother took two pounds of pork and said, "You're wasting money again, kid. I'll listen to you this time and have fried meat for every meal."
The other members of the He family knew that there were two more pounds of meat at home. They had meat for every meal during the days of the rush to harvest. It seemed that their bodies had accumulated strength, so they would just work hard when the time came. Anyway, when they were tired, they could go home and eat meat, and they would be back after a rest.
On the day of the rush to harvest, the rain was still heavy, and He Susu still had to go to work. However, she woke up earlier, had breakfast with her family, and went to the fields to check.
This scene is undoubtedly spectacular.
It was raining in Wumeng, and countless people gathered together wearing straw hats and raincoats. After listening to the instructions and encouragement given by the team leader on the loudspeaker, they went down to the fields with sickles, walked to the area they were responsible for, bent down and cut rice ears. As they passed by, rice ears fell down one by one.
In previous years, the rice ears were left lying on the fields after harvesting and then collected later. This time, the fields were full of water, so some people were assigned to follow behind to collect the rice ears, carrying them one by one to a bamboo shed specially built next to the fields.
This rush to harvest was undoubtedly much slower, but thinking of the harvested grain, the villagers all got busy with energy.
He Susu looked at it for a long time and then went home. She had to rush to work.
Arriving at the cinema, it was still a day with few customers. He Susu sat in front of the ticket counter, with nothing to do. Thinking of the scene she saw in the fields in the morning, she still had a lot of feelings.
The working people cherish food, fight fearlessly in the face of difficult weather, and strive for a better life. One theme after another and the spirit of transmission kept popping up in her mind. He Susu was inspired and suddenly wanted to write an article about the autumn harvest.
With a pen in hand and a blank sheet of paper in the drawer of the ticket counter as a backup, He Susu simply picked up the paper and pen and began to write the outline of the article. Once she started writing, her ideas flowed like a fountain, and she couldn't stop at all.
She quickly wrote a rough outline. If there had been no stationery, she could have even started writing the entire article directly.
At lunch break, He Susu heated up her food and started eating. When she was almost done, she heard a noise outside, and then the half-closed door of the cinema was pulled open. She looked up and found that it was her elder sister.
He Xiuxiu came over after having lunch in the cafeteria. Just like before, she also specially left some braised tofu and minced meat for her: "This dish is good, it's still hot, little sister, please eat it quickly."
"Thank you, big sister, for giving me a snack." He Susu said with a smile, took the lunch box and ate with a spoon.
It is indeed not easy to come here on rainy days. He Xiuxiu asked worriedly: "I haven't come here because it has been raining for the past few days. I thought it was almost harvest time. What's the situation in the village? The rice ears are soaked in water all day long, so they will definitely get moldy, which will affect the harvest."
After all, she grew up in the countryside and knew about farming. It was because of this that she was worried, as this concerned her family's food for the whole year.
If it was her elder sister who asked this question, He Susu really wouldn't know how to answer it. Fortunately, there are rules now. "The commune held a meeting and organized each production team to rush to harvest in the rain. Our village started to rush to harvest today. My parents and my elder brother went to work after breakfast."
She also specifically described the scene.
After hearing this, He Xiuxiu didn't know whether she should be relieved that the team had made arrangements to start harvesting, or should she be worried about her parents who were harvesting in the rain.
She said, "Even if you wear a raincoat, you will get wet if you bend over to work in the fields. Remember to tell your mother when you go back and ask them to boil some ginger water to get rid of the cold, so that you won't get sick later."
He Susu really didn't expect this: "Okay, big sister, I'll remember it."
He Xiuxiu glanced at the cinema and asked: "Do you have many customers these days?"
He Susu shook her head: "Basically no one comes to watch movies, so I am happy to have some free time. Except for the hassle of commuting to get off work, I can do my own things the rest of the time."
He Xiuxiu nodded: "Then just take a break, this job is pretty leisurely."
The two sisters chatted for a while, and He Susu asked her elder sister and herself to lie on the table for a nap, and then go back to the meat processing factory after waking up.
He Xiuxiu naturally agreed. There were many workers in the factory workshop, and there were inevitably other noises during breaks, which made it difficult to sleep well most of the time. It was much quieter in the cinema.
When it was time to get off work, He Susu said hello to Sister Chen and rode her bicycle home. When she arrived at the village, she did not go directly to the house, but went around to the fields to take a look. A lot of rice seedlings in the rice fields had been harvested, and everyone was still busy, so they probably didn't get off work so early.
Naturally, the rush to harvest must be done in time.
He Susu rode her bicycle home. Her five children were at home. When they heard the noise, they hurried to open the door and said, "Aunt, you're back."
"Yeah." He Susu responded, parked her bike, walked into the hall and took off her raincoat. Guifang was smart and took the raincoat and hung it up.
Ke Rou said, "Aunt, my sister and I were just discussing washing the rice and cooking it first, so that when my mother comes back later we can cook some meat dishes and eat them."
The aunt was the only adult at home at the moment, so she reported subconsciously.
"Of course, you two are so good." He Susu praised.
Thinking of her parents who were still busy in the fields, and remembering her elder sister's instructions to boil ginger water to ward off the cold, He Susu did not stop and went to the kitchen to find a piece of ginger.
She first lit the stove, poured a pot of water into the pot and started to cut ginger slices. For better results, He Susu directly cut half a piece of ginger and put it into the pot to boil with water, so that the whole family could drink a bowl later.
Guifang came in and scooped up some rice to wash. He Susu told her, "Your parents have been working hard these past few days, so cook some rice that's 70% polished rice and 30% brown rice."
If I cooked rice with only refined rice, my mother would be so heartbroken if she found out. There's nothing I can do.
Guifang should naturally be fine.
Soon the ginger water was ready. He Susu filled six bowls with it and called the five children over: "Come here, each of you drink a bowl of ginger water to drive away the cold, so as not to catch a cold."
Gui Xi couldn't help but resist when she thought of the spicy taste of ginger: "Aunt, can we not drink it? We haven't been caught in the rain at home, so we don't need to ward off the cold."
He Susu insisted: "No, it's safer to drink one bowl. If you get sick later, not only will it be hard work, but your parents will also worry about you."
Gui Xi had no choice but to agree. As the eldest sister, Gui Fang took the lead in drinking the ginger water and told her younger siblings: "Hurry up and drink it. The ginger water cooked by my aunt is just right, just a little bit spicy."
Ke Rou and the other little ones picked up their bowls and started drinking.
He Susu also drank a bowl of ginger water, which tasted slightly spicy, mostly because the ginger water was too hot, but it was not difficult to accept.
After drinking a bowl of ginger water, the whole body is warmed up from the inside out, without the slight dampness and coldness lingering all over the body on rainy days.
Afraid that the ginger water would get cold, He Susu did not put the remaining ginger water in the pot into the large basin, but kept it warm with the residual heat from the stove, so that her parents could drink some hot ginger water when they got home from work. Anyway, the stove would not be used for a while.
Guifang was a smart person. She held an umbrella and picked vegetables from the vegetable garden in the yard. She then washed them all and put them aside for later use.
Then he went to the well to pick up the bucket, opened the lid, took out the piece of pork and brought it to the kitchen. He used a kitchen knife to cut the amount he would eat tonight, put the rest back into the bucket and sank it back into the well. He then went back to the kitchen to get a kitchen knife and cut the pork into slices for later use.
He Susu saw this and couldn't help but sigh that this niece was diligent and filial. At most, she boiled some ginger water for her family to drink, and took the opportunity to earn 1 point of diligence.
A little later than usual, the He family got off work and went home. They dragged their tired bodies back to the hall and took off their straw hats and raincoats, hanging them up to dry quickly because they would need to wear them tomorrow.
He Susu didn't need to say much. When Guifang saw her grandparents coming back, she went back to the kitchen and filled a bowl of ginger water for each of them. "This ginger water was made by my aunt when she got off work. It's for you grandparents to drive away the cold."
He's father and the others took it and started drinking.
After drinking a bowl of ginger water, He's father said, "Susu is still considerate."
He's mother also smiled: "It is said that daughters are mothers' sweet little cotton-padded jackets. Susu cares about us the most."
After drinking ginger water, Brother He and his friends' hands and feet, which had been soaking in the fields for a whole day, were no longer so cold. They also praised He Susu, saying, "Little sister is the best to us."
He Susu was a little embarrassed by the compliment: "This ginger water was also given to me by my elder sister at noon when she came to the cinema to ask about the autumn harvest. Otherwise, I really wouldn't have thought of it."
He's mother thought of her eldest daughter in the county town: "Your eldest sister is the most attentive, just let her rest assured."
He Susu nodded: "I told her about the situation in the brigade, and my elder sister said that she would come home to see you after she had a rest."
Qian Chunhe returned to his room, changed his clothes, and went to the kitchen to cook. The clothes of the others were somewhat wet, so they simply lined up to take a shower first. By the time they had dinner, it was already very late.
After dinner, there was nothing to do. The adults were exhausted from working all day, so they all went back to their rooms to sleep. The five children followed their parents' lead and also went back to their rooms to lie down on their beds and try to fall asleep.
He Susu stayed in her room but didn't go to bed so early. She brought home the white paper on which she had written the outline in the cinema during the day. Now the oil lamp was lit in the room, and she took the opportunity to write the article on the letter paper when she felt inspired.
Soon she had written three pages, and He Susu read the whole article through, becoming more and more satisfied. She put the article aside for the time being, and was not in a hurry to send it to the post office.
First, she thought that if she had any new insights about the autumn harvest in the next few days, she could write another article and submit it then; second, it was troublesome to ride a bicycle anywhere on a rainy day, and she didn't want to go through this trouble, anyway, it was not an urgent matter.
It was late at night. He Susu turned off the oil lamp and went to bed.
The next day, after He Susu had lunch, He Xiuxiu came to the cinema to see her again. Of course, she saved some of the meat and vegetables from lunch for her.
He Xiuxiu took out a piece of pork wrapped in oil paper and said, "I got up early and went to the grocery store to buy this. You can take this pound of pork back home and give it to your parents as a supplement."
One pound of meat requires one pound of meat coupons. Although He Xiuxiu's family now has four employees, they never complain about having too few meat coupons.
Fortunately, she now works in a meat processing factory, and internal employees can occasionally buy some meat without tickets. This time, her mother's family is harvesting in autumn, and she wants to buy a pound of pork to bring back for her parents. Even her mother-in-law would agree if she knew about it. Usually, her parents send vegetables to their family, and now it's nothing to buy a pound of pork.
He Susu refused: "No need, big sister. You can take this pork back and fry it for Haohao and Juejue. I asked my classmates to help buy pork for Dad and Mom. Basically, they can eat meat every meal, so you don't have to worry."
He Xiuxiu insisted: "You buy meat and bring it back for your parents to eat, that's your filial piety. This pound of meat is a gift from me, your elder sister. You are not allowed to refuse it on their behalf."
At this point, He Susu had no choice but to agree: "Okay, then I'll accept it. My parents will definitely be happy when they know about it."
Fortunately, it was cooler on a rainy day, otherwise the pork would have gone bad without the well water to cool it down.
In the evening, when He Susu got off work and rode her bicycle home, she would also boil a pot of ginger water and wait for her parents to drink it when they got home from work.
When He's father and mother came back and learned that their eldest daughter had specially bought a pound of meat and asked Susu to bring it back for them, they kept praising their eldest daughter for being so thoughtful.
He's mother planned to wait until the autumn harvest and then cut some vegetables and send them to her eldest daughter's house to show her respect.
The next day, He Susu brought back three pounds of pork that she had stored in the shopping system.
Eating meat every meal was so wonderful that even though harvesting in the rain was too hard, the He family still maintained a good spirit.
The rice ears in the fields gradually decreased, revealing the original appearance of the land. This autumn harvest took a little longer than in previous years, and was completed in four days.
Because it was still raining, the village cadres discussed and decided to let everyone rest for a day. They began to worry that the cut rice ears not only needed to be ventilated, but also had to be dried as soon as possible.
On the day of rest, except for He's mother who remembered to get up to make lunch for her daughter and bring it to the cinema for lunch, everyone else had a good sleep.
The weather was good, and the sun rose brightly the next day. The villagers cheered, and the vacant land in the village dried up quickly. Under the organization of the village cadres, they moved the rice ears and spread them out to dry.
As the water in the fields gradually receded, many adults had an idea: since their children were idle anyway, they might as well send them to the fields to pick up rice. Even though they knew that most of them would be useless after soaking, what if they could pick up some good ones?
Guifang and her friends couldn't sit still, so they followed their friends to work in the fields.
□□At the brigade office, you can see the rice ears drying in the open space at a glance: "I don't know when all the rice ears will be dried. I guess a lot of them are moldy."
The old Party secretary said: "We were able to successfully complete the rush harvest, cut the rice ears, and dry them in the sun. This is better than expected. We have also completed the task assigned by the municipal government. As for the harvest, we will know in a few days."
□□: "When the fields are a little drier, it's time to organize the planting of rice seedlings. This late rice is a few days later than last year, so it shouldn't have much impact on next year's spring harvest. I just don't know whether I should wait for the commune to arrange it."
The old Party Secretary said: "To be on the safe side, let's ask the higher-ups."
□□Of course it should be good.
A few days passed quickly, and the rice ears harvested by the village were basically dried. After inspection, fortunately only 10% of the rice grains were either moldy or softened by soaking and became shriveled after drying. This was better than expected, and the villagers were also excited to hear the news.
He's father felt relieved. He's mother was glad that she had foresight and asked her daughter to ask her classmates to buy ten kilograms of polished rice and ten kilograms of brown rice, which she brought home yesterday. This can more or less make up for the reduction in grain when the grain was distributed at the end of the year.
He Susu had just sent out two articles she had written a few days ago. This time she did not submit them to a youth magazine, but to a city newspaper and a provincial newspaper.
For major events like autumn harvest that concern agriculture and people's livelihood, the articles she wrote showed the farmers' high-spirited spirit, which was in line with the style that newspapers have always published, so it was natural that she would submit her articles to the newspaper.
She just received a reply today.
Because she worked in a cinema, she filled in the cinema as the mailing address, and the reply letter was delivered directly to the cinema by the postman.
After receiving it, He Susu did not watch it immediately. Instead, she first entertained the customers who came to buy movie tickets, then went to the screening room to show the movie according to the schedule, and then returned to the ticket counter and sat down before she finally had some free time.
Just as she said before, the customers who had missed the movie due to the rain were more enthusiastic than ever after the weather cleared up, and they flocked to the cinema. Basically every screening room was filled with spectators.
He Susu was also very busy.
At this moment, she opened the two envelopes and looked at them from front to back. Both articles she submitted to the city newspaper were selected, and one of them was even placed in a prominent place in the agricultural section. The provincial newspaper only published the first article she wrote.
This kind of official media pays slightly lower fees than magazines, both are calculated at two yuan per thousand words. The city newspaper pays twelve yuan, and the provincial newspaper pays four yuan, for a total of sixteen yuan.
He Susu was very satisfied. After keeping the money, she put the reply letter back into the envelope and also kept the newspaper containing her article that came with the letter. She would show it to her family when she got home from get off work so that they could be happy too.
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