After finishing cooking, he let Zhang Xingguo eat first, then took a large bowl of noodles, some brown sugar he bought from the city building, and some cloth to Liu Changhe's house.
"Grandma, I've made some cold noodles for lunch today, you should try them. I also brought back some brown sugar from the city. I'll make you a new dress out of this cloth, but I don't know how to make them, so let my aunt help me."
“My grandma hasn’t had lunch yet, so this should be easy for her to eat.”
The old lady smiled and picked up her chopsticks, took a bite, and said, "Delicious! Hongmei, did you add salt and baking soda when you made the dough?"
"Grandma's mouth is really good."
"That's right, you haven't eaten yet, have you? Go and eat."
"Oh right, Grandma, I also bought several big iron pots!"
"Yes. Why did you decide to buy an iron wok?"
"I just feel that it's not easy to go to the city, and I end up buying too much without realizing it. If your family needs anything, just come to my place to get it."
"Okay. Let's go eat. Have your aunt make me some clothes."
When Zhang Hongmei returned home, Zhang Xingguo hadn't eaten yet; he was waiting for her.
"Uncle Zhang, why haven't you eaten yet? I told you not to wait for me."
Eating alone doesn't taste as good.
After finishing her meal, Zhang Hongmei had already prepared the brown sugar water. "Uncle Zhang, I've prepared the water. I'll fetch it over in a bit."
"Zhong, are you going to herd sheep this afternoon?"
"Yeah, we walked around all morning and the sheep didn't eat much. Anyway, there's nothing else to do."
"Okay, go ahead."
In the afternoon, Zhang Hongmei carried a basket and picked a lot of wild vegetables. In the evening, the two of them made a cold salad of wild vegetables and ate rice.
A week passed in the blink of an eye, and Zhang Xingguo's house was now up and running, with even the yard fenced off. That evening, Zhang Xingguo announced that he wanted to move there the next day, and Zhang Hongmei didn't try to stop him, but she insisted on coming over for every meal.
Zhang Xingguo didn't bring any food with him this time, and they're eating Zhang Hongmei's food now. Neither of them are petty people, so neither of them cares.
On Sunday morning, Zhang Hongmei had just finished carrying water from the two water vats in the courtyard when Zhang Shouyi came over.
This time I brought mostly grain, as well as oil, salt, soy sauce, and vinegar. I didn't bring the iron pot, though, because I knew Zhang Hongmei had bought several.
As the weather gets hotter, people become increasingly irritable. The sorghum has grown taller, but it looks withered and yellow, so the chances of it producing grain are slim. The sweet potato vines have also spread out, and they are the hope of the whole village.
The peanuts in the space have been harvested four times, totaling about 10,000 jin (5,000 kg), and the soybeans should also be around 10,000 jin (5,000 kg), with even more corn on the cob, but none of it has been threshed yet. These harvests are just a drop in the ocean; Zhang Hongmei has been frantically planting and harvesting in the space these past few days, mostly corn, so these are insignificant.
Now that it was confirmed that all three sheep were pregnant, Zhang Hongmei happily went to deliver the money to Er Lengzi. This was the happiest thing for her during this period.
Liu Erya also came here often. The two of them went to the riverside in the mountains again, where the water level had obviously dropped very little.
The village well still has water, but the well rope has been extended to more than ten meters. Zhang Hongmei felt that the village should be informed about the water source, so she went to Liu Changhe's house when she returned.
"Grandma, I found a pond in the mountains. Today, my sister Er Ya and I went there and saw that the water level hadn't dropped much."
“I know about that pool. We shouldn’t go to fetch water unless absolutely necessary, it’s too dangerous. But we still need to ask the carpenter in our village to prepare wooden buckets with lids.”
Zhang Hongmei felt that experience counts, and the wisdom of the elderly should not be underestimated.
"Also, you should go into the mountains less often in the future. You two girls are really brave."
"Grandma, the sweet potatoes planted in the mountains grow much better than those in the fields. I estimate the yield will be very good."
"That's for the best. The sorghum in the fields will also produce grain, and we'll definitely be able to get through this year."
Zhang Hongmei absolutely believed what the old lady said, and the anxiety in her heart subsided.
Life goes on as usual; Monday is the end-of-month exam at school.
I went to the county government on Tuesday. I haven't received my living expenses for more than six months, so I can't let people think that I don't need them.
However, when they arrived at the county, they did not receive the money, as the county had no money to give.
"No money? No money?" Before Zhang Hongmei could say anything, a young female cadre spoke up sarcastically, "Why don't you act like a military family member? Shouldn't you be selfless? These are difficult times, how can you act like troublemakers and cause trouble for the country?"
Zhang Hongmei was about to leave, but she immediately got angry when she heard what she said.
"Auntie, what's wrong with being a military dependent? Shouldn't I sacrifice myself for you? Can I give you the money? My parents sacrificed themselves to defend the country and protect the people. Shouldn't the country have raised me to adulthood?"
The female cadre was speechless for a long time after being confronted by Zhang Hongmei. In fact, she was genuinely jealous of Zhang Hongmei. On the surface, her job seemed glamorous, but she had to hand over her entire monthly salary. Her mother only gave her two yuan a month, so seeing that Zhang Hongmei, a village girl, could receive ten yuan a month immediately made her feel resentful.
Actually, the county might not have that kind of money; it's just that she didn't want to process it for Zhang Hongmei.
Seeing that she didn't say anything, Zhang Hongmei was still angry, so she left the accounting office and went to the county magistrate's office.
A meeting was in progress inside, but Zhang Hongmei pushed the door open and went in without paying any attention. As soon as she entered the room, she burst into tears, crying, "Leaders, please help me! I'm an orphan girl, and you say I'm causing trouble for the country just because I came here to collect my living expenses. I really didn't dare to. It's just that this year's drought has made me desperate to survive, so I came here. I can understand that the county doesn't have these few dozen yuan for me, but how can you call me a troublemaker?"
Zhang Hongmei's crying and fussing made everyone at the meeting feel sorry for her. Luckily, she was wearing her old clothes today. Otherwise, with Zhang Hongmei's rosy complexion and unpatched clothes, no one would believe her if she said she couldn't survive.
The female cadre caught up at this moment, not expecting that the village girl would dare to barge into the county magistrate's office. Upon hearing her words, her mind went blank, and her face turned pale.
The county magistrate still remembered Zhang Hongmei. A former soldier and a man of principle who valued his reputation, he was furious upon hearing her words. How could a soldier risk his life so bravely, and his family be treated like this?
"Don't cry, girl. Don't worry, the country won't let you starve. Even if things get tough, you'll still have enough to live on. Lao Li, go and get her the allowance. As for Xiao Li, go home and reflect on your mistakes. Write a self-criticism when you realize your errors, and you can come back to work once it's approved."
Little Li, the clerk, looked at the county head, swaying precariously and pleading for mercy.
But this time it didn't work; she stepped on the county magistrate's landmine.
"Thank you, County Chief. I'll just take one month's living expenses. When the country is in trouble, every citizen has a responsibility. Although I'm still young and don't have the ability to contribute to the country, I will try my best to cause as little trouble as possible."
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