Chapter 60
After discussing with his family, Ye Manzhi decided to visit on the fourth day of the first lunar month.
"Since this is your first time visiting his home, do you need to prepare some gifts?" asked the third brother.
"Wu Zhengrong said he would prepare it." Ye Manzhi handed him the knitting needles. "Brother, please help me knit this jacquard pattern."
"He's going to be his, so our family should show some appreciation, right?"
The third brother put down his half-finished woolen trousers, took his sister's sweater and began to work quickly. Then, he remembered something and pulled two yuan out of his pocket and gave it to her. "I'll help you with the contribution. When the time comes, buy some fruit and bring it to his house."
Ye Manzhi didn't answer. She glanced into the living room and said, "You spent a lot of money sending Fourth Brother to driving lessons, didn't it? Keep the two dollars for yourself."
"I didn't spend much, mainly on cigarettes and alcohol," Ye Mantang chuckled. "Who knows how long the fourth brother can hold out? I didn't dare invest too much."
Apart from tinkering with flowers, birds, fish and insects, the fourth child has no interest in anything else.
Sometimes he even doubted whether this man was his biological brother with the same father and mother.
Ye Mantang said angrily, "If he continues to act like that this time, I'm not going to care about him anymore!"
"You've said this several times, and you haven't ignored him."
Although my third brother is the third child in the family, he has always regarded himself as the eldest son and has a strong sense of family responsibility.
Even Old Ye was worried about the reckless behavior of the fourth brother, but the third brother still stayed with him and vowed to complete the transformation of his younger brother.
Ye Mantang didn't want to mention his unfortunate brother. He stuffed two yuan into her hand and said, "Take this to go shopping. I knitted a sweater for your third sister-in-law, and this is what she gave me. After these woolen trousers are finished, there should be another fee for the labor."
Ye Manzhi: “…”
She really didn't expect that the person who was best at knitting sweaters in the Ye family would be her third brother.
I noticed Wong Tai Sin bought a lot of wool and thought he must be a knitting expert.
As a result, Wong Tai Sin knitted a sweater as if he had polio, and gave up after learning it for a few days.
The remaining wool was inherited by the third brother, who knitted a sweater in less than a week.
Use your skills to make money from your wife!
Seeing his hand speed comparable to that of a machine, Ye Manzhi happily accepted the two dollars.
She didn't actually need to worry about the gifts for the guests.
After seeing Grandma Wu's invitation, Chang Yue'e ran to the department store several times.
However, most of the things she prepared were suitable for lesbians, and she had not yet found gifts for Wu Zhengrong's grandfather and father.
The next morning, Ye Manzhi found his fifth brother at the anti-imperialist fair and wanted to ask him to help him go to the countryside to buy some Ganoderma lucidum wine or tiger bone wine.
However, as soon as she approached the carriage, she was shocked by the full cargo.
"Brother, where did you get all these things?"
In the carriage of the fifth brother, there were not only eggs, vermicelli, fungus, mushrooms, frozen sticky rice dumplings and carp, but also two baskets of Guoguang apples.
The fifth brother had just collected money for eggs from an old lady and said with a smile, "The market is too far from the countryside, so I'm selling them on behalf of a fellow villager."
Ye Manzhi: “…”
Who would believe that?
He must have bought them from the countryside and then resold them in the city.
In the past, when there was no free market, Fifth Brother often helped people bring things from the countryside.
This time with the anti-imperialist rally, he could do business more openly.
"Brother, how's your business going? How many days will it take to sell all this truckload?"
“They sold out in the morning.”
The fifth brother's eyes were shining and he was full of energy.
Since the free market was established, he sells goods in the morning and goes to the countryside to collect goods in the afternoon, making a net profit of more than ten yuan a day.
If he continues at this pace, he will be able to earn at least 150 yuan before the Spring Festival!
"Brother, you better be careful. You're reselling so many things. Be careful that the people from the Industrial and Commercial Bureau come to check you out!"
"It's okay. I have a letter of introduction from Donghe Village, proving that I'm selling local products on behalf of their agricultural cooperative."
Ye Manzhi asked, "Did you get these from Donghe Village? Are there any of our things in this car?"
The Ye family’s hometown is in Donghe Village.
The fifth brother pointed to the two small sacks on the cart and said, "I'm selling the wood ear mushrooms and hazel mushrooms on behalf of my third uncle and his family. Grandma also wanted me to sell some rhubarb rice and red beans. I was afraid that they wouldn't be allowed to be sold in the market, so I asked her to make them into sticky rice dumplings."
Ye Manzhi had a bad feeling in her heart and asked casually, "This sack has quite a lot of capacity. Is grandma going to give you all the food we have at home?"
"Well, the price is high during the New Year period, so we should definitely sell as much as we can!" Fifth Brother said happily, "I also made sticky rice dumplings from the yellow rice and glutinous rice I saved and sold them."
Ye Manzhi complained in his heart, you guys are selling so happily, but if there is a famine, there will be no food left at home!
Recently, my third sister-in-law bought a lot of canned meat, canned fish and noodles under the pretext of giving gifts for the New Year.
She could particularly intuitively feel her third sister-in-law's inner anxiety.
Even Wong Tai Sin is so scared, I guess the next few years will not be easy.
She stood by the carriage for a while, thinking, and then watched Fifth Brother pack eggs, weigh fungus, and collect money for customers.
Seeing that half of the goods in the sack were gone in no time, Ye Manzhi suddenly said, "Brother, don't sell these wood ear mushrooms and hazel mushrooms to anyone else. Give them all to me."
The fifth brother asked doubtfully, "Can't our family eat so much?"
"My colleagues at work also want to buy some. I'll take it to the office and share it with everyone." Ye Manzhi took out ten yuan and gave it to him. "I'll give you ten yuan first. If there are still people selling mountain products in my hometown, please leave some for me."
People from government agencies often purchase New Year's goods together. Fifth Brother believed it and nodded in agreement.
Ye Manzhi hesitated for a moment, then approached him and whispered, "Brother, when you go to Donghe Village again, tell our grandparents not to sell any more grain."
The fifth brother explained, "We only sell it for a while before the Spring Festival. The price is high recently."
"If you sell it now, you'll be at a loss later!" Ye Manzhi said mysteriously, "I heard that grain prices are going to go up! And from now on, you'll need grain coupons to buy both coarse and fine grains. If you sell the grain now, the little money you make won't even cover the price increase!"
The fifth brother asked cautiously, "Who told you that? Are food prices really going to go up recently?"
"I heard about it while I was in class at the Party School. My classmates in that advanced training class came from various units across the city, and some of them were very well-informed."
The channels through which Fifth Brother knows information about the cadres are completely incomparable to my own unconventional ways.
He never thought that his sister would lie to him about such a big thing, and he believed everything she said.
"Prices are high before the Spring Festival, so I'll sell them for a while. After the New Year, I'll find a chance to collect some coarse grains and store them."
Ye Manzhi said casually, "You decide for yourself. Just don't sell it at a loss."
Fifth brother is a money-grubber. As long as you tell him that selling grain now will result in a loss, he will definitely not sell the grain at a low price.
It is very likely that a batch of coarse grains will be purchased as soon as possible for stockpiling.
Ye Manzhi discussed the serious matters with his fifth brother and planned to leave with the two sacks of dry goods.
Before leaving, she glanced at the girl a few steps away. The girl was wearing a very eye-catching white rabbit fur hat.
At first she thought the other party was a customer who came to look at the goods, but she chatted with the fifth brother for half an hour, and the girl didn't buy anything and didn't leave. She didn't know what she was doing there.
"Brother, do you know that girl?" Ye Manzhi winked at his fifth brother.
"We've met twice, but we're not familiar with each other." The fifth brother took a look and then looked away, continuing to organize the goods on the carriage.
Ye Manzhi nodded and didn't ask any more questions. She said hello to him and left.
Since Fifth Brother said he is not familiar with her, then he really is not familiar with her.
Her fifth brother was handsome, and even when his legs and feet were not good, he could still attract young girls to peek at him.
Now that he has changed into special cotton shoes, he doesn't stagger noticeably when he walks, which makes him even more adorable!
During her lunch break, she carried two sacks of dry goods and ran to the new house.
There is already a Wong Tai Sin in the family who likes to store things, so it would seem strange if she also hoarded a large amount of food.
So, after getting the key to the new house, she would occasionally take the opportunity of cleaning to send some things here.
There is a cellar on the west side of the yard, which was where the original landlord stored winter vegetables. There is quite a lot of space inside.
Ye Manzhi opened the cellar door and let in some air for a quarter of an hour before climbing the ladder and carrying down two bags of wood ear mushrooms and hazel mushrooms.
She shone the flashlight on the wall of the cellar. Several bags of beans and two large bags of vermicelli were hung on a shelf on one side. To prevent the food from getting damp, she also wrapped a layer of oilcloth around the sacks.
Ye Manzhi originally followed Wong Tai Sin to buy a lot of canned meat and fish.
Unfortunately, she lacked concentration, and when she got home she tried all the dishes, including the grass carp in black bean sauce, anchovies in tomato sauce, braised pork belly, luncheon meat, and canned braised pork offal.
There are only seven or eight cans of original pork canned in the cellar, which she thinks are not very tasty. If there is no meat to eat one day, she can use this canned meat to make stews.
Ye Manzhi took out a bottle of canned yellow peaches and two cans of eight-treasure rice from her backpack.
He shone the flashlight on the can twice, and reluctantly put the eight-treasure rice and the can of original pork together.
Oh, I don’t know if it’s useful to save these foods.
It would be a pity if it expired.
*
Ye Manzhi spent a lot of money on these canned foods and grains, but the New Year's goods given to her by her unit soon made her feel less distressed.
This year, several collective handicraft societies and state-owned factories on Guangming Street have achieved good profitability.
The profits withheld by the subdistrict office were quite considerable, and coupled with the 150 yuan bonus given to the second-class model by the city, Zhang Qinjian was unusually generous.
This year's Spring Festival, the street office purchased New Year's goods according to the highest standards.
Each person received three pounds of apples, three pounds of frozen pears, three pounds of flour, two pounds of pork, two carps, and half a pound of fruit candy.
Ye Manzhi also served as the director of the coal furnace factory, and she also had a share of the factory's New Year's goods, so she got an extra five kilograms of apples, two kilograms of pork and a carp.
There were really a lot of things, but fortunately her workplace was close to home, so she worked like an ant moving house, moving a little at a time, and she was able to ship the New Year's goods back home in several batches.
After distributing the New Year's goods, Director Mu summarized the work achievements of the past year, and then called everyone to the residents' reception room next door for a one-on-one conversation.
Ye Manzhi was standing behind Liu Jinbao. Seeing him coming out of the office with a happy face, Ye Manzhi intuitively felt that the content and atmosphere of today's conversation should be very relaxed.
However, when she sat down across from Director Mu, she heard him ask, "Xiao Ye, do you have any plans to transfer jobs after the New Year?"
"Ah?" Ye Manzhi was stunned for a moment, then quickly said, "No."
She was still a little hesitant about the work of the Honglian Township Industrial Office.
And she usually won't choose things that make her hesitate.
Mulan smiled and said, "Don't be nervous. I went to the city for a meeting last week and ran into Wang Min from Honglian Township. I heard that she wants to get you to Honglian Township to take charge of industrial work."
Ye Manzhi: “…”
Why is Village Chief Wang poaching people in front of the leaders?
"Townships and sub-districts are at the same level, but the conditions in urban sub-districts are slightly better than those in townships," Mulan said amiably. "The position of director of the township industrial office sounds good, but in reality, you only have one or two temporary workers under you. Honglian Township doesn't have any major industries, so the duties of the director of the industrial office are similar to what you do now."
Ye Manzhi pondered for a while. Since the matter had been exposed, he might as well speak his mind directly.
"Director, Township Head Wang did mention a job transfer to me. She wanted me to go to Honglian Township to lead the handicraft industry, which would allow me to be promoted from level 25 to level 24. However, Honglian Township is too far from home, and I politely declined. She asked me to think about it and give her an answer after the New Year."
She has just been working for less than a year and needs to be observed for another year if she wants to be promoted to level 23.
So, she went to Honglian Township, but could actually only reach level 24.
Mulan sighed silently in her heart. The street office is a small government office, and it is actually not easy to retain talents.
The last person who transferred to the labor union of Factory 656, Xiao Liu, was a very motivated young man. He used his connections secretly, and by the time she wanted to keep him, the transfer letter had already been issued.
Ye Manzhi is not only energetic at work, but also full of ideas. He is a rare talent for mass work.
It helped her share a lot of the burden in family handicrafts and education.
Since he had received the news in advance, Mulan certainly couldn't let the person go easily.
"The conditions Honglian Township offers you are indeed good, but you have to think carefully about why so many township officials are scrambling to come to the city to work? It's not just because the living conditions are better in the city, but also because the perspective is different! Last time you met the mayor at the Anti-Imperialist Rally, do you know why he suddenly came here?"
Ye Manzhi shook his head.
She only heard that the district party secretary and the district mayor went to receive the mayor.
"The district leaders didn't meet the mayor at the market," Mulan said with a complicated expression. "They met him later at the Needle and Cotton Knitting Professional Union."
Ye Manzhi exclaimed in surprise, "Ah!"
There are a lot of factories and handicraft cooperatives on Guangming Street. The Needle and Cotton Weaving Professional Union is one of them. It is a collective enterprise in nature, but it is very large, almost the same size as an ordinary textile factory.
"When the mayor arrived at Guangming Street this morning, the Needlework and Cotton Weaving Cooperative hadn't opened yet, so he went to the market first. By the time the district leaders arrived, he had already toured the various cooperatives. The city intends to convert handicraft cooperatives into state-owned factories. Zhengyang District has the most handicraft cooperatives, and Guangming Street has the most cooperatives in the entire district."
Ye Manzhi digested what Director Mu said.
Turning all the cooperatives in the city into factories is a huge project!
There must be a lot of resistance in turning a collective into a state-owned enterprise. The mayor is really bold!
Mulan continued, "I heard from the district head that after the new year, the city will use Zhengyang District as a pilot area and establish a reform office in the district to specifically lead the work of converting cooperatives into factories. We have many cooperatives in Guangming Street, so we will definitely need to send liaison officers to work in the district. Since you are the cadre in charge of the handicraft industry, I plan to let you try it out."
"Xiao Ye, there's not much difference between doing grassroots work in urban and rural areas, but it's often rare and special opportunities that allow you to grow rapidly. Large cooperatives are mostly concentrated in cities, and Honglian Township can't provide you with this kind of opportunity to participate in large-scale reforms."
There was no need for her to continue speaking, Ye Manyi had already nodded repeatedly with excitement.
Of course she would be happy to have the opportunity to work in the district, participate in such important reforms, and not have to go too far away from home!
"Director, I will listen to you. I will continue to work hard and serve the residents of Guangming Street with peace of mind!"
Mulan nodded in satisfaction. "Okay, then you should prepare well. The district will soon establish a reform office after the New Year. Also, you've been studying at the Party School for quite some time. Even Liu Jinbao knows how to submit an application to join the Party, but why haven't you? You're not very proactive when it comes to striving for progress!"
Ye Manzhi: “…”
She felt that joining the party was very far away from her and had never considered the issue of joining the party.
Liu Jinbao actually got there first again!
How come he knows everything!
*
Ye Manzhi was inspired by Director Mu and was energized. On the way home carrying her three big carps, she was still happily humming "Red Berries Are Blooming".
When I walked to the door of my house, I happened to meet Wu Zhengrong who was pushing a bicycle with a large bamboo basket tied to the back seat.
"What are you doing?"
"I'll send you home the New Year's goods that the factory just distributed."
Old Ye and Third Brother’s New Year’s goods had been delivered long ago, and this one was obviously Wu Zhengrong’s.
"Since it's New Year's goods distributed by the factory, just keep it for yourself."
Wu Zhengrong asked, "Have you ever seen me light a fire at home?"
Ye Manzhi: “…”
It seems that it has never been opened.
He eats three meals a day in the cafeteria.
The coal stove at home seems to be only used for heating and boiling water.
"Then you can send it back to your grandparents!"
"Okay, don't be polite," Wu Zhengrong parked his bicycle, picked up the bamboo basket and walked ahead, "Hurry up and go upstairs. I'll help you take the things up. I have to go back to the factory for a meeting."
"If you have something urgent, go ahead and I'll call my fourth brother down to move it."
Wu Zhengrong chuckled softly, "It's rare for me to show my face in front of my mother-in-law, so a moment of this kind won't make a difference."
Chang Yue'e obviously did not expect that Wu Zhengrong would send her share of the New Year's goods to her father-in-law's house.
The top of the basket was covered with straw, so you couldn't see what was inside.
Even so, she still warmly invited "Zhengrong" to stay at home for dinner.
The way she addressed Wu Zhengrong changed with her mood.
At the beginning, the two parties were not familiar with each other, so she called the other party "Xiao Wu".
After drinking with him on New Year's Day, she felt that the young man was straightforward, so she changed her name to "Zhengrong".
As a result, after seeing him kissing her own daughter while drunk, Chang Yue'e went back to calling him "Xiao Wu".
When Wu Zhengrong heard her call him "Zhengrong" again, he knew that his courtesy this time had some effect.
"Auntie, I have something to do at work. I'll just have a drink of water here and then I have to go back."
Upon hearing this, Chang Yue'e hurriedly poured him a cup of warm water. There were no extra teacups at home, so she used Ye Manzhi's fancy enamel cup.
Wu Zhengrong had no time to drink water all afternoon, so he gulped down the entire tank of water, then said goodbye to the mother and daughter and hurried downstairs.
Through the frosted window glass, Chang Yue'e glanced downstairs and saw the figure riding a bicycle quickly disappeared. It seemed that the factory really had a task.
When she turned around, Ye Manzhi had already peeled off the straw on the bamboo basket.
On the top was a bag of flour, a net bag of apples and a box of cakes. These were similar to the New Year's goods that Lao Ye and the third brother had, all distributed by the factory.
Below was a rack of spare ribs, four pig's trotters and a large bundle of knife fish.
Chang Yue'e looked at the things in the basket and asked doubtfully, "Could he have bought these himself?"
The factory distributed pork and soybean oil, but I have never seen anyone distributed so many ribs.
"No, he never beats around the bush on this kind of thing. If he bought it, he'd just say it straight out." Ye Manzhi picked up a glutinous rice noodle from the pastry box and put it in his mouth, saying vaguely, "The New Year's goods distributed by different departments in the factory are different. These might have been distributed by the military representative office."
Some workshops and departments have collective bonuses, and during the Chinese New Year they will use the small treasury to give employees an additional New Year's gift.
This is the style of large state-owned factories.
Chang Yue'e looked at the pile of things on the ground and made up her mind that when her daughter visited the Wu family, she must prepare a good New Year gift!
*
Ye Manzhi worked half a day on New Year's Eve, and then spent a lively Spring Festival at home peacefully.
On the fourth day of the Lunar New Year, Wu Zhengrong, who had already paid New Year's greetings, came to the Ye family again and personally took Ye Manzhi to the provincial mansion.
"My dad had a mission at the base and couldn't come back this year." Wu Zhengrong briefly introduced the family situation. "My mom came back with my sister and my fourth brother and his wife."
"Aren't there only two brothers in your family?"
Ye Manzhi remembered that he had only one brother and a pair of sisters.
How come another fourth brother appears?
Wu Zhengrong said calmly, "Fourth brother is my cousin. After my eldest uncle died, he has been raised by my father. None of my brothers and sisters came back this time. Only fourth brother and my sister came back with my mother."
Ye Manzhi thought to himself that his parents were really weird. They threw their own son back to his hometown to be raised by his grandparents, and then brought their nephew with them to raise personally.
What's the reason for this?
Ye Manzhi didn't know the specific situation of the Wu family, so she didn't ask any more questions and soon followed him to the Wu family's old house.
Before she had time to admire the grandeur of the house, Grandma Wu, who had heard the noise and ran out, enthusiastically pulled her into the house.
Wu Zhengrong was afraid that she would not be able to adapt to the environment at home, so he followed them into the house and introduced her to her relatives first.
The younger sister Wu Xiulan is one year older than Ye Manzhi. They are the rare people of the same age in the room. She took Ye Manzhi's hand and sat on the sofa.
When I turned my head to look at my second brother, I was about to tease him when I suddenly saw him take off his military coat, revealing the green wool vest underneath.
Wu Xiulan examined it for a moment, then smiled and praised, "Brother, your wool vest is nice. This green color is quite rare."
Wu Zhengrong glanced at cadre Xiao Ye sitting on the sofa, chuckled and said nothing.
Ye Manzhi pretended not to understand the meaning of his smile and gently looked away.
She has been very busy recently, and she still has two sleeves left to knit on the Qiaolv Qiaolv sweater. The Chinese New Year is approaching, so she can only let him wear a wool vest for now. After all, it is a new piece of clothing.
When she has time, she will mend the two sleeves.
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