Chapter 38
After the conversation that day, neither of them made it public, keeping a common secret.
Compared with young people like Ye Manzhi, Mulan's ideas are obviously more practical and long-term.
Making Guangming Street a pilot for a "publicly run and privately assisted" primary school, and being ahead of the city, is a very easy opportunity to achieve results.
If they want to achieve results, they must do as they promised to the city, reduce the pressure on the municipal bureau, and raise funds for the school on their own.
As Xiaoye said, the winter period can indeed become a fundraising buffer period due to force majeure factors.
Therefore, when she was interviewed by the leaders of the Municipal Education Bureau as a representative of Guangming Street, she not only put forward the view that building a primary school could be "publicly funded and privately funded" like building a road, but also listed in detail the fundraising methods that the street office would use.
For example, collecting tuition fees in advance, organizing fundraisers, and providing loans from credit unions.
Anyway, he made a very clear point.
This made Ye Manzhi sigh again, the older you get, the more experienced you are, and she still has a lot to learn!
The time spent answering the questions was quite short, and when the two came out of the Education Bureau, they both breathed a sigh of relief.
They have done everything they can. Whether they can achieve the school operating indicators depends entirely on the decision of the municipal bureau leaders.
Ye Manzhi went back to wait for news.
During this period, my second brother-in-law Xu Dajun suddenly came home to inform me that my second sister had given birth to a girl in the early hours of yesterday morning and was now in the hospital.
"She gave birth early yesterday morning. Why did you only tell me today?" Chang Yue'e asked as she packed her things. "How is Erya?"
A pregnant woman has to go through the gates of hell when giving birth. She has never seen anyone notify the mother's family two days after the baby was born.
Xu Dajun's eyes were bloodshot. "Mom, Manyu is fine. I'm the only one at the hospital, so I really don't have time to inform you."
"Where's my mother-in-law?"
"Well, I don't even want to talk about my mom. You'll know when you go there."
Chang Yue'e really had no good impression of her in-laws, and she was too lazy to ask any questions. She packed a bag, called everyone at home, and went to the People's Hospital together.
In the ward, Aunt Xu was guarding the mother and the newborn baby by the bed. When she saw the Ye family come in, she immediately greeted them warmly.
"Mother-in-law, you are finally here. Come and see our little girl. How pretty is she?"
This made it sound as if the Ye family had deliberately delayed their arrival until now.
Ye Manzhi didn't bother to argue with her, so she walked over to her second sister and asked, "Sister, how are you feeling? Mom said that according to the date calculation, you were supposed to give birth a few days later, so why did you give birth yesterday?"
The second sister didn't want to talk about those things at home. She smiled and said, "There's no such thing as a punctual birth. Just give birth when it's time! Have you seen Niuniu? She looks exactly like you when you were a child!"
"Did I look like that when I was a child?" Ye Manzhi looked at the swaddling baby in Aunt Xu's arms. The little girl was so thin and small that it was hard to tell anything about her for the time being.
"Have you picked a name for Niuniu? Be sure to pick a name when you go to the police station to register her household registration. There have been many jokes at the police station when they've been trying to register newborns!"
Many newborns’ names are actually temporarily chosen by the police.
It's okay if you meet a competent police officer, but if you meet an uneducated police officer on duty, the names he comes up with are really hard to describe.
"Let's give her a nickname first. I haven't decided on a real name yet. I'm afraid it won't sound nice. How about you, as her aunt, help Niu Niu choose one? You have the highest education level in our family." The second sister herself has a low level of education, and her parents-in-law are even less likely to be trusted.
"You can name your own child whatever you want. There's nothing wrong with that. But," Ye Manyi thought for a moment, "I'll give you a suggestion. If you really can't think of a name, you can use this."
"Um."
"I've thought before that if I had a daughter, I'd name her 'Lizhu', meaning 'finding a pearl by searching for the black pearl.' To obtain treasures, wisdom and courage are both essential." Ye Manzhi said generously, "Niuniu is my older sister, so give it to Niuniu first."
When she wrote the words "Lizhu" on the edge of the newspaper, her eldest sister and her husband, who had received the notice, rushed over in a hurry.
As soon as he came in, he put two cans of milk powder on the small table next to the bed.
This attracted many pregnant women and their families in the ward to look over here.
These days, it’s great to be able to drink bagged milk powder, as canned milk powder is really rare.
Ye Manjin was dressed fashionably and was generous with her money. Standing in the ward, she was radiant.
She raised the corners of her eyes and glanced at her sister first, "How is it? I heard you gave birth to a daughter. Did the Xu family give you any trouble?"
The second sister smiled and shook her head: "No."
"Then why did you wait a day before notifying your family to come and see you? What were you doing before that?" The eldest sister squinted at Aunt Xu and asked bluntly, not lowering her voice, "Isn't your mother-in-law unhappy?"
The second child has been as soft as dough since he was young, and he dares not say a word when being bullied.
Aunt Xu was a little intimidated by the actress, the eldest daughter of the Ye family, so she smiled apologetically and said, "I was too busy yesterday and didn't have time to inform you. Manyu gave birth to a big, fat girl, so why should I be dissatisfied? Please sit down first. I'll get some hot water and pour it for you."
After saying this, he went out with the thermos.
The eldest sister took off the silk scarf around her neck, put the lambskin backpack aside, and sat down beside the bed.
Ye Manzhi watched her series of actions, turned his head to the side helplessly, and saw the two cans of milk powder on the cabinet again.
Every time my eldest sister goes back to her parents' home, she is generous and dresses up beautifully, as if she is afraid that everyone doesn't know how well she is living.
She looked at the two cans of milk powder and heard her eldest sister ask, "Did your mother-in-law really give you any trouble?"
The old couple of the Xu family had been looking forward to a grandson. The second daughter finally got pregnant, but gave birth to a girl. There was no way they could be satisfied.
"Really not!" My second sister was afraid she might misunderstand, so she had to tell the truth. "My father-in-law wasn't very happy. He came to the hospital yesterday to take a look and left. But my mother-in-law is pretty good. She's running for neighborhood committee director, so even if she's unhappy, she won't show it. Lately, she's telling everyone it doesn't matter whether it's a boy or a girl."
Ye Manzhi asked in surprise, "Aunt Xu is running for neighborhood committee director?"
My second sister nodded helplessly. "She's the leader of our neighborhood committee's paper-making group. I think she's a committee member of some kind. She said she could run for election, too. Because she wanted to run, she didn't even have time to take care of me while I was in confinement. Dajun has been staying with me in the hospital these past two days, otherwise she wouldn't have waited two days to find time to notify you."
"A neighborhood committee director needs to have a certain level of prestige and a strong base among the people," Ye Manzhi asked doubtfully. "Does she have such a strong base among the people in your area?"
The second sister waved at them, asking them to come closer, and whispered, "She's been entertaining the neighborhood residents at home these days, and she has to boil several pots of hot water every day just for the guests."
Ye Manzhi was very professional and asked with wide eyes, "Is your mother-in-law trying to bribe the election?"
Although the work of the neighborhood committee director is trivial, it is very popular among the masses.
Small handicraft industries organized by the streets usually assign tasks to the neighborhood committees, and then the neighborhood committee director is responsible for distributing tasks to each household and organizing idle labor to engage in production.
How much money each person can earn depends on the number of jobs they take. The more jobs the neighborhood committee assigns, the more they can earn.
So, even though the neighborhood committee director is not a cadre, he actually has some real power.
In addition, the street will give the neighborhood committee director a subsidy of 3-5 yuan per month.
This can also be considered an income.
It’s easy to guess Aunt Xu’s motive for running for neighborhood committee director, but why does she feel that Aunt Xu is so unreliable?
The second sister thought for a moment and said, "It doesn't seem like vote-buying. She just invited everyone to her house to make paper boxes together, chat, and then treated them to some hot water. She didn't even offer any melon seeds."
"Forget it, don't worry about her. It would be a good thing if she could be elected as the neighborhood committee director," Ye Manzhi said with a smile. "If she really becomes the director, she will have to be strict with herself. No matter what she thinks in her heart, she must appear to be able to do well on the surface."
The second sister also laughed, clasping her hands together in a mid-air bow. "I hope she'll be chosen! I won't ask her to help me take care of the kids. Let her go out and express her passion!"
The three sisters laughed together.
*
When my second sister gave birth to a child, Lao Ye and Chang Yue'e prepared a lot of red eggs and gave them to relatives, friends, and my second sister's leaders and colleagues.
As for Xu Dajun's leaders and colleagues, Lao Ye refused to care.
Ye Manzhi followed her third and fourth brothers to deliver eggs. She thought they would just give them to the relatives at home, but unexpectedly Chang Yue'e gave her ten more eggs and asked her to give them to her friends.
"My second sister gave birth to a baby, not me, so why would I give it to my friend?" Ye Manzhi pushed the egg back, "I've already given it to Qingmei."
After receiving her eggs, people have to return the gift. There is no need to give gifts to ordinary friends.
"Anyway, having a baby is a happy occasion. I'll give you ten eggs. Give them to whoever you're close to."
Chang Yue'e almost said that she would give the eggs to Xiao Wu, but due to the old man's request, she couldn't say it directly and could only push the eggs back again.
Ye Manzhi actually thought about sending Wu Zhengrong some festive eggs.
However, the first military truck independently developed by the factory finally rolled off the production line, and he needed to go to Beijing with the truck to participate in the National Day tribute with Director Shen.
We'll set off this evening.
Ye Manzhi glanced at the alarm clock. It was already past five o'clock. She wondered if he had set off yet.
She put the eggs in a cloth bag, picked a few fruits and put them in, then quickly walked out the door carrying the cloth bag.
When we walked to the factory gate, we happened to see a convoy of vehicles coming out of the factory.
This kind of convoy cannot be intercepted. She knew that Wu Zhengrong must be in one of the cars, but the convoy had already set off, so she could only stand aside and let the truck pass.
The last car slowly drove out and suddenly slowed down when it reached her. Wu Zhengrong, dressed in full military uniform, leaned out of the passenger window. With a smile in his eyes, he asked in an unusually serious tone, "Comrade Xiaoye, do you have any instructions?"
Ye Manzhi was stunned for a moment, her eyes quickly swept over the driver and the two officers in the back seat, and hurriedly handed the cloth bag into the car window. She didn't explain much, just said "Bon voyage", and waved goodbye to him.
Wu Zhengrong smiled gently, saluted her, and then signaled the driver to set off, following the convoy in front.
Looking at the dust rising in the air, Ye Manzhi felt a little melancholy.
If she married Wu Zhengrong and became a military wife, she would have to face countless separations in the future.
Why.
She walked back to the compound dejectedly and went to mailbox No. 16 as usual.
Wu Zhengrong left in a hurry, and she had no hope in her heart. But when she opened the mailbox, she found a stack of tickets inside!
Among them were several military food coupons, military meat coupons, two brown sugar coupons and a five-foot cloth coupon.
The meat and brown sugar tickets are for my second sister, to congratulate her on having a baby.
The rest of the tickets belong to her.
Ye Manzhi put the ticket away and her mood brightened again.
The pain of separation is actually nothing and is not unbearable.
whee.
Ye Manzhi bought a few pig's trotters that day and brought them home. She asked Chang Yue'e to stew them and then send them to her second sister.
"I don't know what her mother-in-law is busy with all day," Chang Yue'e complained as she took the pig's trotter. "I went there several times, but I couldn't see her every time. She didn't care about my daughter-in-law's confinement, and she didn't even look after her granddaughter."
"Aunt Xu wants to advance herself," Ye Manzhi said with a smile, "She wants to be the director of the neighborhood committee."
"Tsk, if she can be the director of the neighborhood committee, then I can be the director of the sub-district!" Chang Yue'e paused and asked, "Is she really going to be the director?"
"Haha, I'm not sure."
Recently, the six neighborhood committees in Guangming Street are preparing for elections.
Director Mu and Director Liu have organized several core meetings and have repeatedly emphasized the importance of this election.
The lists of candidates from each neighborhood committee that want to participate in the election have already been submitted to the street office.
Ye Manzhi saw Aunt Xu's name on the list of the first neighborhood committee.
Director Mu and Zhang Qinjian attach great importance to the elections of the first and second neighborhood committees.
According to Zhang Qinjian, "All other neighborhood committees have equal-candidate elections, only the first and second neighborhood committees have differential elections. We must not cause any trouble on election day!"
If it is an equal election, then the number of people elected will be the same as the number on the candidate list.
For example, if there are five people running for election, all five of them will be elected.
The only difference is that some are directors, some are deputy directors, women's directors, or welfare committee members...
Anyway, as long as she signs up, there will always be a spot for her.
However, the first and second neighborhood committees have to hold differential elections. For example, if five people sign up but there are only three positions, then two candidates will lose.
The neighborhood committee is just a mass organization, but for the street office, matters related to the masses are never trivial.
What's more, it is a time when chaos is likely to occur during elections.
Therefore, Director Mu and Zhang Qinjian were present to supervise the vote counting, and other people from the subdistrict office also had to go to the scene to maintain order.
The elections for the six neighborhood committees were not held at the same time. Zhang Qinjian was responsible for the elections for neighborhood committees 1, 3, and 5, and Director Mu was responsible for the elections for committees 2, 4, and 6.
Ye Manzhi was a little curious about Aunt Xu's election results, so when the groups were divided, she took the initiative to go to Zhang Qinjian's group.
The election of a new neighborhood committee can be a direct election or a representative election.
In order to expand the influence of the neighborhood committee among the masses and cultivate everyone's sense of ownership, the street office decided to use direct elections.
That is, all residents directly participate in voting and choose their favorite candidates.
Therefore, starting from the day before the first neighborhood committee election, Ye Manzhi followed the current neighborhood committee members and went door to door to notify everyone, mobilizing everyone to actively participate in the neighborhood committee election and vote for their preferred director candidate.
On the day of the official election, Ye Manzhi and Liu Jinbao walked through the alleys beating gongs.
"At 3:00 PM, in the open space in front of the grain depot, our Guangming Street First Residents Committee will hold a general election. Residents, please don't be late, actively participate, and cast your sacred and precious vote!"
"Comrade Xiaoye, I don't have time to vote. How about you vote for me?"
"Haha, that won't do. Voting is every resident's right. Auntie, you have to cherish this opportunity! The next vote will have to wait another year. This opportunity is so rare! Let's go to the granary for the meeting!"
Ye Manzhi walked from the street to the end of the alley, notified all the residents who were idle at home, and then turned around and rushed to the granary.
A podium has been set up on the open space in front of the grain warehouse, and a red banner reads "The Second Election Conference of the First Residents' Committee of Guangming Street."
Many residents gathered on the cement floor, which was warmed by the sun, sitting or standing there to watch the fun.
Seeing Zhang Qinjian's gesture, Ye Manzhi took the initiative to walk up to the podium and take on the hosting responsibility.
Her clear and gentle voice soon came from the loudspeaker in the granary.
"Good afternoon, fellow revolutionary residents! I'm Ye Manzhi, a cadre from the Guangming Subdistrict Office. I've been entrusted by the Guangming Subdistrict Office to come to the Guangming Street First Residents' Committee to preside over the election for the new term of the residents' committee."
"After a long investigation by the subdistrict office and enthusiastic nominations from the masses, our First Residential Committee has nominated five candidates: Zhang Huilan, Guo Dahai, He Qiang, Liu Chunhua, and Hao Yunfang."
"All five comrades are members of our neighborhood committee and have participated in our street work. You should all be familiar with them," Ye Manzhi said seriously. "The voting criteria are simple. Vote for whoever you think is most enthusiastic about the neighborhood committee's work and cares most about the people."
Someone in the audience asked, "Whoever I vote for will become the director?"
Zhang Qinjian said solemnly, "Whoever the masses elect is whoever they support. The comrade with the highest number of votes today will be the new director of the neighborhood committee."
"Then I choose Guo Dahai. He helped me repair the roof of my house."
Others expressed different opinions. "Zhang Huilan is also suitable. If there are children in the alleys who have no one to take care of them, they can send them to her. Aunt Zhang is kind-hearted."
Ye Manzhi was listening to the discussions in the audience on the stage, and occasionally she could hear the name of her second sister's mother-in-law Liu Chunhua.
It seems that they also have a certain mass base.
She tapped the microphone. "Alright, everyone, please remain quiet. If you have a suitable candidate in mind, please come up and vote. I hope you will choose carefully, make full use of the power in your hands, and cast your sacred and solemn vote!"
There were more than 300 residents who came to vote on site. The street office was short of funds and it was impossible to make voting cards specifically for a neighborhood committee election.
So, Liu Jinbao took out a bag of large beans.
Each person who goes on stage to vote takes a kidney bean from his pocket and then throws the bean into the box of the corresponding candidate.
After the election, these beans can be recycled and reused, and can be cooked and eaten after washing.
Residents lined up one by one to vote. Some who were illiterate even asked which box was Guo Dahai's or which box was Liu Chunhua's.
The five candidates all stood on one side of the rostrum, watching the voting proceed in a tense and orderly manner.
When someone votes in their own box, they should smile modestly and politely at the voters.
A total of 357 residents participated in the voting.
When the voting was over, Zhang Qinjian walked onto the podium to supervise Ye Manzhi and Liu Jinbao in opening the boxes.
In front of everyone, count each person's votes.
Finally, he announced loudly into the microphone:
"Comrade Zhang Huilan received 89 votes, Comrade Guo Dahai received 50 votes, Comrade He Qiang received 107 votes, Comrade Liu Chunhua received 99 votes, and Comrade Hao Yunfang received 45 votes."
"Through everyone's active voting, the person who ultimately received the most votes was Comrade He Qiang!"
"This election requires the selection of three neighborhood committee members. Comrade He Qiang, Comrade Liu Chunhua, and Comrade Zhang Huilan were elected with a high vote."
Ye Manzhi sighed in her heart. It seemed that her second sister's mother-in-law was quite powerful. She ranked second in the vote. It seemed that she had a good mass base and could be the deputy director of the neighborhood committee.
However, someone in the audience suddenly shouted, "That's not right. Aren't there 357 residents who voted? How did you count 390 votes?"
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