Chapter 115
In order to "use coal to protect steel", the city's coal-grabbing campaign is in full swing.
Little girl Wu Yuzhuo was unable to join the battle, but her fourth uncle Ye Mangui was nominated by the whole family as a coal-grabbing hero and went to the coal yard to dig coal!
Fourth Brother thought that this major battle would take at most one or two months to gather all the needed coal.
However, coal is the source of machines and the food of industry. The city is vigorously developing heavy industry, and there is no time to get enough coal!
When he first participated in the coal-grabbing campaign, Ye Manzhi was still in his second year of university, studying physics.
Later, he represented his family in several major battles.
By the time he went to the coal yard to be a coal-grabbing hero for the seventh time, Ye Manzhi was already a senior in her senior year.
"Ye Lai Ya, tell me the truth. You keep refusing to let your brother-in-law find me a job. Are you trying to get me to dig coal for you?"
Fourth brother just came back from the coal yard and ran to his sister's house.
Ye Manzhi touched her daughter's hair, told her not to be disturbed, and continued to work on the tangram. She glared at her fourth brother and said, "We're not registered in the same household registration book, and you're not going to dig coal on my behalf!"
"Why hasn't my brother-in-law found me a job yet?"
Fourth brother is really worried to death!
His life was so carefree before. He had food and drink at home and could even make money from his hobbies.
However, food has been in short supply in the past two years, and his old customers have no interest in flowers, birds, fish and insects, which has left him completely broke.
Old Ye disliked him for eating for free at home, so every time the compound called for coal seizure, he asked him to be the coal-seizing hero.
The food in the coal yard is pretty good, but digging coal is hard work!
He doesn't ask for anything else now, he just wants to find a proper job as soon as possible.
"Wu Zhengrong asked you to drive at the coal yard, didn't he? But you quit after just two days." Ye Manzhi glanced at him and said, "Our mom asked you to work at the meat processing plant, didn't she? You hated the smell of the sausage seasoning and refused to work."
Just like Old Ye said, her fourth brother has the body of a lady but the fate of a maid, and he is too spoiled and has too many bad habits.
The fourth brother asked, "What do you think about me working in a meat processing factory now?"
"Not so good, it's too late!"
The meat processing plant is not large. When Chang Yue'e first took the lead in setting up the factory, there were only nine people in the factory.
She thought that if she could herd one sheep, she would have to keep two sheep. Since she had already hired the fifth child as an accountant, she might as well recruit the fourth child as a worker.
At her age, she is not afraid of others using her for personal gain.
But at that time, my fourth brother could make money by tinkering with flowers, birds, fish and insects, and he didn't want to work as a worker in such a small factory.
Now that Fourth Brother has changed his mind and wants to join the factory again, it’s too late!
There has been a food shortage in the city in the past two years, and the lees from the liquor factories and the bean dregs from the oil presses have long stopped being sent to the street farms.
The number of pigs on the farm has dropped sharply from more than 80 to more than 20, and each one has grown very slim.
Without the source of live pigs, meat processing plants have been on the brink of bankruptcy.
The reason why the company did not go bankrupt was because the fifth brother persuaded Chang Yue'e to change her business strategy.
In the past, they only processed sausages for street farms, but now they have expanded their business to process sausages for urban residents.
The supply of meat, poultry and aquatic products in the city is tight, and the city calls on citizens to be self-reliant and find ways to raise more and eat more, raise less and eat less, or not raise or eat at all.
Every neighborhood committee on Guangming Street has managed to raise more than 20 pigs.
Therefore, the processing plant began to take on the business of stuffing sausages for individuals or organizations, barely able to maintain a balance between income and expenditure and keep the factory running.
Under such circumstances, even if Chang Yue'e was the factory director, it would be impossible for her to recruit the fourth brother to work.
Ye Manzhi complained to her fourth brother, "Who told you to be so picky before! Most companies are reducing staff to increase efficiency these days. All the existing workers have gone back to the countryside to farm. How can they possibly hire more people? Just wait a little longer. Wu Zhengrong and I are keeping an eye out for suitable jobs for you."
Fourth brother sighed depressedly.
He grabbed the orange on the table and was about to peel it when Ye Manyzhi snatched it back.
"This is our orange, you are not allowed to eat it." Ye Manyi replaced it with a small and ugly Guoguang apple for him.
The fourth brother took a bite of the apple and was so sour that he couldn't speak.
He squinted his eyes and took a long while to ask, "Why can't Youyan speak yet? My Qiqiu is only four or five months older than her, right? Now she can already complain!"
"We can speak, but we don't like to talk!" Ye Manzhi gave his fourth brother a warning look, telling him not to talk nonsense in front of the children.
Her child, Wu Yuzhuo, is over two years old and still can't speak.
Except for calling "Mom" twice when he was over ten months old, he never spoke again after that.
At one point, Ye Manzhi suspected that he had heard it wrong.
A child over two years old who can't speak is a strange sight in the entire compound.
There was originally a boy from an engineer's family who could keep her company, and the two children were silent together.
But the child from that family suddenly spoke on New Year's Day in 1962.
This made Wu Yuzhuo appear to be a backward person who fell behind.
Many people were whispering about her and Wu Zhengrong behind their backs, saying that two college students actually gave birth to a little mute!
They took their child to all the major hospitals in Binjiang, but the doctors could not explain the cause and just told them to go home and observe.
Little Wu Yuzhuo can understand what adults say, give correct responses, run, jump, eat and sleep.
Now I am also learning to read from Grandpa Wu.
Grandpa Wu made a lot of literacy cards. When he asked her which one was "fire" and which one was "I", she could point out the cards accurately.
There seems to be nothing wrong with his intelligence.
Fourth Brother squinted his eyes as he finished a sour apple, crossed his legs, and said, "If you ask me, it's mainly because you two named the child wrong! 'Youyan' is totally useless!"
"Why is it useless? Mom said that after my fifth brother and I changed our names, the effect was very good!"
When my fifth brother was a child, he had very little hair, so Chang Yue'e gave him the nickname Lai Mao. Now his hair is indeed very thick.
When Ye Manzhi was seven or eight months old, she had not yet grown teeth, so Chang Yue'e named her Lai Ya. Now her teeth are indeed white and neat.
It was Wu Yuzhuo's turn. Before she was one year old, she was called Xiao Piaoliang. She was indeed very cute and lovely.
The most important thing now is to get her to speak quickly, so after discussing with Wu Zhengrong, Ye Manzhi gave her a nickname "Youyan".
I hope she can speak soon.
The fourth brother flicked his niece's hair, causing the little girl Youyan to quickly cover her head with her hands and snort at him.
"Haha, what are you humming about? If you have the guts, come and scold me!" The fourth brother teased the child for a while, then said to his sister, "You two shouldn't have changed her name to 'Youyan'! 'Youyan' is a nice name, but your brother-in-law's last name is Wu. 'Wu Youyan', doesn't that mean 'no words'?"
Ye Manzhi: “…”
"Nickname, nickname. How can you call me by my full name? Stop causing trouble!"
She acted confidently in front of her fourth brother, but after Wu Zhengrong returned home, she complained to him.
"It's all your fault, Wu. It's caused our daughter to be unable to speak! She must have inherited this habit of being quiet from you! My mom said I loved to talk when I was little, and I could chat with anyone."
Wu Zhengrong felt that his daughter's silence had nothing to do with her surname. There were so many people with the surname Wu, and he hadn't seen anyone being stopped from speaking.
But when his wife said that their daughter might follow him, he couldn't refute it. Compared with Ye Lai Ya, he really didn't say much.
"That kid from Mr. Liu's family was able to speak on New Year's Day. He must have been frightened by the sound of firecrackers. Isn't the commune mobilizing children under 10 to go to the health center for diphtheria vaccinations? Let's take her there for a shot tomorrow. Maybe she'll be scared into speaking."
Ye Manzhi: “…”
The idea was a bit bad, but she still had high hopes for her daughter to speak up.
Giving a baby an injection is a big deal in their family.
Apart from taking maternity leave when he accompanied Ye Manzhi during her childbirth, Wu Zhengrong has almost never taken leave for personal matters.
This time, in order to accompany his daughter to get vaccinated, he specially asked for half an hour of leave from his work.
The couple took little Wu Yuzhuo to the health center together.
As soon as you enter the clinic, you can hear the children's howling one after another.
Wu Yuzhuo stared at the crying children, then looked up at her father who was holding her hand.
Although they didn't speak, the father and daughter had already reached a tacit understanding.
Wu Zhengrong explained: "They are hungry."
Ye Manzhi: “…”
She would rather Wu Zhengrong didn't understand children too well.
If adults can understand what I want without me saying anything, wouldn’t my daughter be even more reluctant to speak?
The couple did not tell their daughter that she was there for an injection today, mainly because they wanted to catch her by surprise and stimulate her to speak quickly.
When Ye Manzhi helped her expose her arms, Wu Yuzhuo had not yet realized that danger was approaching. She swung her legs and stared at the medical worker's mask curiously.
When the needle pierced her arm and the pain came, she finally came to her senses, buried her little face in her mother's arms, and burst into tears.
The couple didn't coax her, but waited for her to call mom or dad, and then went forward to comfort her.
Unfortunately, no one called out, and her parents didn't hold her. After she got the injection, she took the initiative to hug her mother's neck and sobbed on her shoulder.
After a period of self-healing, the sound gradually became quiet.
Wu Zhengrong sighed helplessly, it seemed that today's personal leave was in vain.
*
Ye Manzhi gave the child to Grandpa Wu and Grandma Wu, and then moved to the department's factory.
In the last semester of my senior year, there were no academic courses in the Department of Industrial Economics. Apart from completing my graduation thesis, I had to go to the factory for labor internship.
Although Ye Manzhi became the deputy director of the department's factory, he still had to work in the workshop when it was time to work.
As soon as she walked to the lathe today, she was called over by Chen Teye and Bian Queqiao.
"What's the new news?" Ye Manzhi asked with a smile.
As graduation assignment approaches, all kinds of rumors are flying around.
Chen Teye was the secretary of the grade's Youth League branch and was very good at scheming. Almost all the information was obtained through inquiries from him.
Today's news is no exception.
"The department needs to select students from this year's undergraduate graduating class who have strong political qualities and excellent academic performance to stay on campus and teach!"
Ye Manzhi nodded without much surprise.
Selecting undergraduate students to stay on campus is not without precedent.
Their class's counselor, Chen Ying, stayed at the school and is now an assistant teacher in the Department of Industrial Economics, responsible for teaching lower grades.
But Ye Manzhi felt that this matter had little to do with the three of them.
In Ye Manzhi's opinion, to be a teacher for students, the teacher's own professional qualities must be very strong.
Otherwise, how can we teach students?
As transferred students, the three of them did not have outstanding academic performance, and Ye Manzhi always hovered around the seventh or eighth place in the class.
Originally, she could have used her Russian language performance to raise her scores, but the Russian language class was discontinued last year, and her advantage disappeared.
Fortunately, I don’t have to take physics class anymore, and my biggest disadvantage is gone.
As for Chen Teye and Bian Queqiao, they both ranked last in academic subjects.
How could the school allow three of them to stay and teach?
Chen Teye knew in his heart that he had little chance of staying in school, but he tried his best to encourage Ye Manzhi to try to apply to stay in school.
"You're different from the two of us. We were recommended by our employers and our academic foundation was relatively weak. You got in through the college entrance exam, and your grades have been among the best in recent years. Furthermore, when the department selects candidates, it gives priority to those with strong political qualities. I think you have a good chance of staying."
Staying in a key university as a teacher is a good way out for students.
Chen Teye sincerely wanted Ye Manzhi to stay in school.
The political literacy of several transferred students is similar. They have all worked in student affairs at school and held important positions. They have all become probationary party members this year, but Ye Manzhi's performance is better than theirs.
When staying in school, assuming that everyone's academic performance is similar, we should compare their political literacy.
When assigning work units, if the political literacy is similar, the performance should be compared.
If Ye Manzhi could stay in school, he would have one less competitor when employers were selecting people after graduation.
Don't underestimate this spot.
One more person competing will have a huge impact on the distribution results!
Ye Manzhi had never considered the possibility of staying in school. She couldn't imagine herself being a teacher.
So she just heard the news and didn't take it to heart.
But a few days later, Teacher Ouyang, who had been promoted to the director of the machinery factory, called her to his office and asked her if she was willing to stay in school.
"Staying on campus has its pros and cons, but it's a relatively safe option for you," Ouyang Jin said. "Last year, two graduates from our department were offered jobs in Beijing. No one can predict how they'll be assigned this year. Your wife works in Binjiang, and your child is so young. If they assign you to a company out of town, you'll be in a difficult situation..."
"Teacher, am I really qualified to stay in school?" Ye Manyi could not hide his surprise.
"Yes, there are two spots available for students to stay on campus this year. If you're interested, I can recommend you to the department and have you take over as the director of the machinery factory."
Today's college students are judged not only by their grades but also by their politics.
The same applies to teachers.
Ye Manzhi has performed well in the research group and the machinery factory. As a college student from a working-class and peasant background, he has a certain competitiveness when applying to stay in school.
Ye Manzhi was hit by such a big pie, and her heart was in a mess and she couldn't make a decision for a while.
I told my teacher that I needed to think about it, and then hurried home to discuss it with my family.
When Ye Shouxin and Chang Yue'e heard that their daughter could become a teacher at a key university, they acted as if they had eaten ginseng fruit.
University teacher, that’s a job only cultured people can have!
The Ye family had been poor peasants for generations, and only Ye Shouxin's generation started learning to read.
He originally placed his hopes on the third brother, who was smart and hardworking.
Unexpectedly, his little girl made great achievements in her studies. Not only did she get admitted to university, but she is now going to be a university teacher!
Ye Shouxin immediately said, "Why would you even think about it? Teaching is such an honor! And once you're confirmed to stay at the school, you won't have to wait anxiously for assignments."
Ever since the Chinese New Year, Ye Lai Ya has been thinking about his graduation assignment, fearing that he would be assigned to a unit in another place like last year's graduates.
Not only did she leave her parents, but she also had to live apart from Wu Zhengrong.
This time, with the opportunity to stay in school, Ye Shouxin and Chang Yue'e both supported it with both hands.
Huang Li originally wanted to remind her sister-in-law that staying in school might not be a good choice.
But thinking about Ye Manzhi's background, she said nothing.
Maybe it is not the best choice at the moment, but in ten or twenty years, university teaching will indeed be a noble and respectable job.
Her sister-in-law is very promising in her career. Perhaps after the reform and opening up, she can become a department head or even a president of a key university.
She had figured it out, so naturally she didn't have any unnecessary thoughts.
Therefore, Ye Manzhi's eyes were almost sore from staring, but he couldn't get any useful hints from Huang Daxian.
After returning home, she pulled Wu Zhengrong aside and whispered, "What do you think of me staying in school?"
Wu Zhengrong said gently, "If you only consider the issue of staying in school, it's indeed a good opportunity. But once you're in the education system, you can't just jump out. You might be stuck in school your whole life. If you don't have a passion for a lifelong career, it's hard to achieve anything."
Ye Manzhi nodded.
"Also, university teachers need to lead projects and produce academic outputs, so you need to think about the direction of your research."
Ye Manzhi spoke frankly to him, "I've never thought about becoming a teacher, nor have I thought about leading research projects, but things will work out in the end. If I really become a teacher, I'll eventually be able to come up with a research direction. However, although my academic performance is in the top ten, except for Russian and physics, my grades in every subject are very average. I don't have any particular specialties, and I don't have any particular strengths."
She believes that scientific research requires talented people like Grandpa Wu and Wu Zhengrong.
People like her may not be able to make any achievements in scientific research. If they stay in school, they will most likely take the administrative route.
Seeing her beautiful eyebrows knitted together, Wu Zhengrong pulled her into his arms and sat her down, comforting her, "Both work and study must be based on interest. If you have no interest in being a teacher, there's no need to force yourself."
"If I don't stay in school, what if I get transferred to a big government office in Beijing like those two graduates last year when I graduate?" Ye Manzhi asked him, leaning against him. "What will we do then?"
"Are you so confident that you'll be chosen to go to Beijing? Those two graduates from last year were pretty good, weren't they?"
"I'm also very good!" Ye Manzhi said confidently, "Just wait and see, unless there are no places for us to go to Beijing this year, if there are, I will definitely be one of them!"
She is now a probationary party member!
This is the confidence that party membership gives her!
Wu Zhengrong smiled and said, "If you are really assigned to Beijing, then I will also apply to the organization to transfer to the research institute in Beijing."
"real?"
"Um."
Wu Zhengrong's studies as an associate doctorate at the Military Academy were rather bumpy.
At the beginning, there was a language barrier and communication with Soviet professors was difficult.
After finally overcoming the language barrier and making some progress in research, all Soviet experts in China were recalled by the Soviet authorities.
The two Soviet professors who taught him also left without warning.
They themselves were also helpless about such a sudden notice. According to the above requirements, all teaching materials and research materials had to be taken back to the Soviet Union or destroyed.
When Wu Zhengrong went to check the professors' dormitories, he found some undestroyed data and drawings under one of their mattresses.
I don’t know whether the other party forgot to take it away or left it there on purpose.
However, because these data and information had not been destroyed in time, he conducted subsequent research independently when the Soviet professor left and there was no other professor to teach.
After the Soviet experts left, the progress of computer research in Beijing was faster than that in Binjiang.
If he applies to work at a research institute in Beijing, there is a 50% chance that he will be approved.
"So, don't worry about living apart. Try to choose a job that suits your preferences. Generally speaking, military families can apply for special care from the school. Even if something unexpected happens, I'll try to transfer to wherever you're assigned."
Ye Manzhi became a military wife and had already made up her mind to follow the army. She thought that wherever Wu Zhengrong went, she would have to cooperate with him and work there.
However, she had never expected that there was a possibility that Wu Zhengrong would chase her!
A sour warmth suddenly surged in Ye Manzhi's heart. She turned around and sat astride the man, holding his handsome face in her hands and kissing him several times on her lips.
Wu Zhengrong held the back of her head with one hand, entwining his lips and tongue with hers, and reached into her shirt with the other hand, skillfully unhooking the steel hook of her Su-style bra.
The relaxation on her chest made Ye Manzhi subconsciously lean towards the man, lips touching his lips as she said, "The curtains are not closed, you should close them first."
Wu Zhengrong dragged her butt to pull the curtains.
However, just as they reached the window, Ye Manzhi caught a glimpse of the wooden horse in the yard. She suddenly started and asked, "Where is Youyan?"
"What?"
"Our daughter! Comrade Wu Yuzhuo!"
"..." Wu Zhengrong came back to his senses and said in frustration, "It seems like he's still playing with the taxi and the ball in the yard!"
They were so focused on the question of staying in school that they completely forgot about Wu Yuzhuo.
There would be no cases of children getting lost in a military industrial compound, but they would not be so careless as to leave a two-year-old child who could not speak outside for such a long time.
The couple quickly got dressed and went out to look for their child.
Children aged two or three have limited range of activities, and at this moment the three siblings are gathered under a big tree near the building.
When Ye Manzhi went over, Wu Yuzhuo was wiping tears sadly.
There was a boy sitting on top of the taxi in San Ge's family and he couldn't get up. The little boy was lying on the ground crying.
Compared to her own daughter, Ye Manzhi was more worried about the boy who was hit by the taxi.
Most of the people living in the military industrial compound are workers, and their living conditions are much better than those of people outside. Even though food has been scarce in the past two years, there are not many children in the compound who are particularly thin.
However, I haven’t seen another taxi as fat as this one.
The things hoarded by Wong Tai Sin were originally hidden very well, and outsiders should not be able to notice that he occasionally had some special meals.
But I don't know what's wrong with her, she actually runs her taxi like a heavy truck.
The little bit of treasure that he had tried so hard to hide was all exposed by his own son.
If it weren't for the special treatment, whose child could be raised to be so strong?
People who are the same age as him and eat the same food as him are not this fat!
Ye Manzhi asked her father to coax her daughter, while she quickly pulled up the taxi. She was really worried that the heavy truck would hurt the child!
"What's going on?" She asked Qiqiu, who was the most eloquent, to state the facts.
Qiqiu first pointed at the boy who was pinned to the ground, "He said my sister was dumb and made her cry, so the brother said he would sit on him to death!"
Ye Manzhi: “…”
Okay, okay, let’s all go home!
She couldn't argue with a two or three-year-old kid, so she could only give them each fifty lashes, criticize them each with a few words, and let them go back home.
Her Wu Yuzhuo just can't speak, he's not stupid.
How can I not be sad if someone calls me a little mute in front of me?
She chased all the kids away, and Wu Zhengrong took his daughter home with a sullen face.
Wu Yuzhuo was really sad this time. He leaned on his father's broad shoulders and cried. He cried all the way from his grandmother's house to his own home, and he still hadn't stopped crying.
Wu Zhengrong wiped her tears with his calloused fingertips. "You've been called a little mute, and you don't even know how to talk back! What's the point of crying yourself? If you have the guts, make others cry!"
The criticized child opened his arms and threw himself into his mother's arms, with two big tears on his little face.
"That's enough, she can't speak," Ye Manzhi coaxed, "We have something to say but we can't say it. When she can speak, she will definitely be able to make others cry!"
It is inevitable that children will have some small conflicts. She has seen this many times and can easily comfort her daughter with a few words, and soon she can make her daughter feel better.
Ye Manzhi didn't take the children's fighting seriously at all. She even worked two days a week and rested one day with the military representative that night, which made it difficult to wake them up the next day.
After finishing his morning exercises, Wu Zhengrong came back from the cafeteria with breakfast. While feeding his daughter, he called his wife to get up and go to work.
She is now interning at the department's factory. Her work is no different from a normal one, and she needs to clock in at the factory in the morning.
However, after shouting for several rounds, Ye Lai Ya on the bed remained silent.
Wu Zhengrong ate the remaining half bowl of egg cake from his daughter, then carried the well-fed little one to the big bed and casually ordered, "Wake up Mom for me!"
Little Wu Yuzhuo used his hands and feet to quickly crawl to the pillow, observed for a while, then threw himself on the quilt and said abruptly: "Mom, get up and go to work!"
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