No matter what happens, life goes on as usual.
As the weather grew cooler day by day, Zhang Hongmei's days were filled with joy. She taught the children to read, listened to the radio, and cooked delicious meals every day, which she would then bring to the old lady.
The old lady's favorite food is yogurt, so Zhang Hongmei makes a pot of it almost every day, for herself, for the children, and to give to the old lady.
The children are all kind-hearted and grateful to Zhang Hongmei for teaching them to read and for providing them with delicious food from time to time. So they would do their best to help her with chores and bring her fresh food.
Zhang Hongmei loved tofu the most, and in the end, she pestered the old lady to let her grandson's wife make some tofu for her.
Since the ground isn't frozen yet, Zhang Hongmei couldn't freeze tofu, so she thought of making fermented bean curd. But she didn't know how. She asked many people in the village, but none of them knew how, so she had to give up in the end.
But that couldn't stop the foodies. Since they didn't know how to make fermented bean curd, they simply pickled the tofu.
I cook tofu in different ways every day. Today I'm pan-frying tofu. I slice the tofu into thin pieces, pan-fry them in soybean oil until golden brown on both sides, mince the chili peppers and garlic, add soy sauce, and eat it as a dipping sauce.
He delivered it to the old lady and won her over.
The next day, I still pan-fried the tofu, but I stir-fried it with radish slices, and sprinkled minced garlic on top just before it was done.
The old lady's opinion was so-so.
On the third day, the old lady pouted as she ate the cabbage and tofu stew.
This severely dampened Zhang Hongmei's enthusiasm for making tofu. On the fourth day, she made tofu with scallions, and this time the old lady ate quite a lot more.
It's almost the end of the month, and it's time for exams again. This time, Zhang Hongmei brought dried pumpkin for the old principal and the others, but she herself only brought half a bag of it.
The junior high school entrance exam is just around the corner, but the number of students in the class is decreasing. Zhang Hongmei only has five students left.
Even with fewer students, the teacher didn't slack off; instead, they became even stricter in their instruction. However, physical education classes were no longer held.
Zhang Hongmei went to the principal's office and asked, "Principal, can I go directly to the second year of junior high school?"
"Sure, my old friend is the principal, but it's probably impossible for you to skip class. I'll give it a try. Are you very confident about the exam?"
"Yes, I've memorized history, math, and Chinese."
"Alright, I'll go to the county tomorrow and ask. I'll have your village's Zhu Zi tell you whether it's possible or not, but you'd better be prepared for the exam."
"No problem. I'm confident." It has to work out, no matter what. Listening to the radio these past few days, the situation seems increasingly dire. I need to focus on graduating high school quickly; I can worry about the rest later.
On the way back, Zhu Zi rode his bicycle, Liu Er Ya sat in front, and Zhang Hong Mei sat on the back. They arrived home half an hour earlier than usual.
When they arrived at Zhang Hongmei's house, Zhu Zi asked shyly, "Hongmei, are you in junior high school?"
"I'll go for it. The principal asked for me. I want to go directly to the second year of junior high. I don't know if I can pass the exam."
Zhu Zi was dumbfounded. This little girl, who was several years younger than him, was actually older than him. It was infuriating to compare oneself to others.
"Hongmei, do you think I should take the entrance exam for the first year of junior high school? I've already finished reading all the sixth-grade textbooks."
"Go see your teacher tomorrow. Ms. Liu is particularly fond of money, and since you have good grades, I think she will give you this opportunity."
"Okay, I'll ask tomorrow."
Zhu Zi was even more devastated, because his cousin was going to be in the same class as him.
Zhang Hongmei was leisurely working as a teacher at home, while Zhu Zi was suffering.
To save face, I study hard every day. Even though I can't go to the second year of junior high, I can't let my cousin go from fifth grade to the first year of junior high while I failed the entrance exam in sixth grade, right? That would be too embarrassing.
Liu Erya's application was approved by the principal, but she still had to make arrangements with the junior high school in the county.
Liu Maocai smiled with relief upon hearing the good news, and the gloom that had hung over him for days finally dissipated considerably.
Li Cuihua was genuinely happy, knowing she shouldn't dwell on her pain. She kept trying to reassure herself that life had to go on.
The two of them were studying desperately, their heads hanging from the rafters, while Zhang Hongmei did whatever she wanted.
The children were worried that it would delay her, but she shook her head and said, "It's okay, it won't delay me. I usually focus on accumulating knowledge and I won't change my study rhythm before the exam."
The villagers live on two meals a day, but outsiders can't even get a single meal; they only have porridge every day, the kind with hardly any rice.
More and more outsiders are coming to the village, all of them to borrow grain.
The villagers couldn't stand it anymore, so they went to Wang Hongxi to ask for a canteen and to demand communism.
Only in this way can we avoid offending relatives and friends, prevent our daughter from being mistreated in her husband's family, and ensure she can return to her parents' home.
In fact, Wang Hongxi and Liu Maocai had been discussing this matter with the old lady, but they hadn't come up with a plan.
The villagers surrounded and blocked him, and Wang Hongxi finally couldn't stand it anymore, so he decided to hold a meeting on December 1st.
Everyone discussed how to implement communism and how to run the canteen.
Zhang Hongmei had no objections; she was fine with whatever she said. The others murmured amongst themselves.
Those in the village who were suffering from famine naturally wanted communism, but those who lived frugally were not, which was a problem that had been bothering the three of them.
Finally, the old lady made the decision: all of this year's harvest, including all the produce from each family's vegetable garden, would be handed over to the brigade for unified management. Private property would remain untouched and belong to each individual, while the distribution of public funds would continue according to the old rules.
After all, everyone's circumstances are different, and every family has weddings and funerals.
After hearing this, most people breathed a sigh of relief, and even the few lazy ones didn't dare to object.
And so, on December 1st, the canteen in Liujiatun was officially established.
Each household had one woman who cooked in the canteen, and they were paid work points. The grain was managed jointly by Liu Maocai and Wang Hongxi, and both of them had to agree to get any grain.
It's the off-season for farming now, so we eat two meals a day, at 9 a.m. and 4 p.m.
The other laborers will also go up the mountain tomorrow. In fact, everyone has already gone up the mountain in groups to scavenge for food to take home.
This time, however, it was a collective effort. Everything collected belongs to the collective.
Zhang Hongmei didn't go up the mountain; she had plenty of things in her hands and didn't want to compete with others.
However, they discovered that many people from other villages were going up the mountain.
Liujiatun certainly had no right to stop them; the mountain did not belong to Liujiatun.
So everyone is quite enthusiastic about going up the mountain. It's better to bring this stuff home.
Zhang Hongmei didn't participate in the picking work on the mountain, and the children weren't allowed to go into the mountain either, so she became the childcare worker.
Children from poor families cherish their education. Zhang Hongmei never skimps on anything she teaches, and they always make perfect mistakes when tested the next day.
Zhang Hongmei admires people who are serious about their work and life, because she believes that this is the only way to be true to oneself, so she has become increasingly dedicated to her work.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com