Chapter 101
Xu Wen looked at Sang Xiaoqing.
Sang Xiaoqing pursed her lips and said nothing.
What Xu Wen said was also very tempting to her.
How many households with a net worth of 10,000 yuan are there in the entire Wei Zhuang Commune?
But according to Xu Wen's description, it is not difficult to become a 10,000 yuan household in the south.
Of course, this is not difficult but it has certain prerequisites. You have to dare to think and act. In addition to incurring losses, there are also certain risks.
People are all the same. They only want money and don't want risks. They don't want to be separated from Xu Wen.
They have never been separated since they got married, and Sang Xiaoqing is really a little reluctant.
But think about the huge debt at home. In addition to owing Xu Wen 500 yuan, he also owed a lot of money to the brick kiln factory.
As Xu Wen said, if they have to work hard on the land and live frugally, their family will not be able to pay off their debts in the next few years.
After a long silence, Sang Xiaoqing nodded, "I do."
My brother and sister-in-law agreed, as did my parents.
Xu Wen knew what they were worried about. After thinking for a while, he added, "I am far away and can't help much. Xiaoqie's tuition will be paid by me. No matter what, Xiaoqie can't be delayed from going to school. In addition, I will provide for the family. If my brother doesn't make any money after working outside for a year, I will be responsible for the family expenses."
She was sure that Xu Wen could make money, but she couldn't make a clear guarantee and could only make such an indirect promise.
She doesn't have to pay tuition to go to college, and she also receives a partial subsidy. If Xu Wen really doesn't make any money, she can use the money to support her family.
Zhu Meizhen shook her head, "It's not like our family hasn't gone through hard times before. Didn't we have to eat coarse grains and vegetables in the early years? In my opinion, it's not wrong for a grown man like Xu Wen to go out and have fun while he's still young. It's better than being stuck in this poor place for the rest of our lives. Anyway, our family has already suffered so much from hunger, one more year won't hurt. If it works out, the whole family will benefit, if it doesn't, we can just start all over again!"
"You are quite open-minded!" Xu Qiushi was unwilling. "It's easy to make money, but how hard is life if you don't make money? It doesn't matter to me, but can you bear to let Chunsheng, who is so young, suffer with us? Besides, ordinary people need to keep their feet on the ground to feel at ease."
In short, Xu Qiushi was the most stubborn one and refused to agree no matter what.
Xu Wen couldn't help but start missing his grandma again.
If my grandmother were still alive, she would definitely say, "Only animals are always tied up at the door of the house, while men need to go out more and see the world."
As the fifteenth day of the first lunar month approached, Xu Qiushi still refused to give in.
Xu Wen was so anxious that he paced around the house all day.
Before Xu Wen opened his mouth, he didn't say anything.
Now that Xu Wen has pointed him in a direction, he can no longer just work hard to earn these few work points every day as before.
On the tenth night of the first lunar month, Lu Yuanzheng went to the commune and bought two bottles of good wine, and invited Xu Qiushi to his home for a visit.
Only Xu Qiushi was invited, and even Xu Wen was not invited to stay, so she was asked to wait at Xu's house.
When Xu Qiushi came back that day, he was basically drunk, but the next day he agreed to let Xu Wen give it a try.
Lu Yuanzheng and Xu Wen had to leave on the 16th day of the first lunar month. On the morning of the 14th, Xu Wen and his wife hurriedly packed their bags for the trip.
Zhu Meizhen was busy kneading dough to make dumplings.
In the north, dumplings are most likely to be eaten during festivals.
Dumplings are eaten during Chinese New Year, dumplings are eaten on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, dumplings are eaten on birthdays, dumplings are eaten during Mid-Autumn Festival, in short, dumplings are everything.
Lu Yuanzheng was making lanterns for Xu Qie, Dongsheng and Chunsheng.
On the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, people light lanterns.
There are also lanterns on the market, which are small square boards the size of a palm with an arched wire inserted through them. The outside is covered with an elliptical frame made of thin bamboo pieces, and a layer of cellophane is pasted on the frame with some flowers and plants painted on it.
The price is not expensive, but it is all the same.
All the beautiful ones are expensive, and ordinary people are reluctant to buy the lanterns that can only be used to light the sky.
Nine out of ten kids in the alley carry this kind of lanterns.
Lu Yuanzheng felt tired, so he asked the children to do it.
He got four thin wooden pieces of the same width and length, and hollowed out the middle of the wood, so that the whole thing looked like a rectangular mouth.
Then nail four U-shaped thin wooden boards together to form a 20-centimeter rectangle with open ends.
The word "kou" is also covered with transparent cellophane.
Get two more pieces of wood and saw them into a five-pointed star shape. The inside of the five-pointed star should fit perfectly with the top of the cuboid.
One piece serves as the bottom, and the other piece is used to hollow out the inside of the five-pointed star, forming a hollow five-pointed star.
Bend the arched iron wire, heat it up and pass it through the five stars on the bottom layer. Then nail a nail that can penetrate the wooden board between the five stars, and a simple lantern is ready.
In order to make the lantern look better, Lu Yuanzheng also picked up a pen and drew a few pictures on the cellophane.
Xu Wen felt that the lantern lacked some decoration, so he tied a few tassels with wool and hung them on the corners of the five-pointed star above the lantern.
"How did you convince Dad?" Xu Wen asked curiously, biting the wool in his mouth and moving his hands constantly.
"Nothing! I just had a drink."
Xu Wen rolled her eyes, "Are you kidding me?!" She is not a child and cannot be fooled so easily.
Lu Yuanzheng smiled and said, "Conversations between men are not suitable for women to hear."
Xu asked: "..."
"Forget it if you don't want to say it!" Xu Wen pouted.
She was really curious. After all, neither Zhu Meizhen, she, nor Xu Wen had convinced Xu Qiushi.
Lu Yuanzheng only had a drink with him, and Xu Qiushi agreed? !
Under normal circumstances, Lu Yuanzheng would have coaxed her long ago, but this time he just looked at her, raised his hand and rubbed her head, still without telling her.
Xu Wen didn’t ask any more questions.
There was only one situation in which Lu Yuanzheng would hide something from her, and that was when the content of his conversation was related to her and was for her good.
At least he thought it was good for her.
I didn't say it because I didn't want to take credit.
He is noisy at ordinary times, and he still talks more than he does about love matters.
After making the lantern, there were still a lot of wood boards left, so Lu Yuanzheng thought about it and decided to make a lantern car.
It is a car shape made of wooden boards, roughly like a tractor or locomotive. The middle of the wooden board is hollowed out, and a suitable base is nailed underneath. Then sharp nails are hammered in to insert candles.
At the bottom, four small wheels were made of wood. After they were completed, they were still painted and tied with a rope.
The final winner of this lantern was Dongsheng.
Chunsheng was the only one who could walk. He pulled the rope, watched the light of the car's candlelight flickering, and drooled with joy.
Dongsheng and Xu Qie like the five-pointed star lantern very much, and they also like Chunsheng's car lantern.
Isn't it easy for two half-grown children to take care of a one-year-old child? Not long after, Chunsheng had a five-pointed star lantern in his hand, and the car lantern was taken away by Xu Qie and Dongsheng.
The kid couldn't keep up with them and fell far behind, dragging the extinguished lantern with him and showing a silly smile with his little white teeth.
He was young and could not lift the wooden lantern, so he dragged it on the ground and it broke.
Sang Xiaoqing quickly picked it up and lit it again.
The lanterns on the fifteenth day of the first lunar month cannot be extinguished, as it will be considered unlucky if extinguished.
There was still one five-pointed star lantern left, and Lu Yuanzheng handed it to Xu Wen, "Here, my eldest daughter must have one too."
Xu asked: "..."
Okay!
It is also a kind of happiness to be treated like a child by a man.
Xu Wen took the lantern.
Lu Yuanzheng lifted the sleeve of the five-pointed star, burned the sharp tip of the nail with a lit candle, and inserted the candle.
If you insert the candle directly before it is heated, it will break.
After dinner, the Xu family went to deliver the lantern to grandma.
It means lighting the lantern and hanging it on the grave.
Even if the journey is long, you still have to send them off.
Xu Wen and Xu Qie accompanied him to buy a few lanterns and went to the cemetery to hang them for his grandparents, parents.
When they arrived at the cemetery, many families had already sent their lanterns, and from a distance they looked like will-o'-the-wisp.
Some children from poor families who really want lanterns will come to the cemetery and take them without asking.
Of course, this requires a very brave child; most children don't have that courage.
From a distance, it looks like the flames are moving by themselves, more like will-o'-the-wisp.
Lu Yuanzheng and Xu Wen saw one, but pretended not to see it.
Who would come to the cemetery to get a lantern unless they had to?
Give your child some self-respect.
Xu Wen suddenly remembered something and asked Lu Yuanzheng, "Where is your father's grave?"
This father is the real father of the expedition.
"In Weizhuang Commune."
"Aren't you going to give him the lantern?"
Lu Yuanzheng shook his head, "Not now."
Not referring to today, but to existing policies.
He added, "I can't go openly, but I went to buy lanterns for these kids this morning and I passed by and killed him."
Besides his father, Wei Zhuang also has his grandparents.
Xu Wen nodded, and suddenly remembered something, "It's a long journey!"
"Um?"
"You went to your mother-in-law's house and used an empty cigarette box to fool my brother and my mother, saying that I didn't give you money. But I saw you taking out money that wasn't the money I gave you. Also, when I soaked your clothes in a big basin before leaving this morning, I checked your pockets. The twenty yuan I gave you was still in your pocket. I left it on the table because it got wet. So where did you get the money to buy the lantern?"
Lu Yuanzheng touched the tip of his nose and whispered, "Let's talk about this when we get home."
Before Xu Wen could speak, he added, "You have to give me some face in front of my grandpa, grandma, dad, and mom, right?"
Xu Wen opened his mouth and closed it again, nodding, "Okay, let's go home!"
Lu Yuanzheng: "..."
After returning home, Dongsheng went out with a lantern to play with the children in the village.
On this day, the village will be particularly bright even without street lights.
Because the middle of the month is when the moon is the roundest and brightest.
Also, every household in the production team would hang lanterns on their doors, and children would run around the streets carrying lanterns.
They travel in groups and gangs, and wherever they go, there is light.
Normally, everyone in the production team would go to bed almost immediately after dinner, except on the tenth night of the lunar year and the fourteenth night of the first lunar month.
This day can be very enjoyable for both adults and children.
People at home will not turn off the lights early to save kerosene.
Especially on the 14th day of the first lunar month, not only kerosene but also candles are needed.
Of course, candles are in limited supply, and generally a child can light a candle lantern in one night.
A candle can burn for a long time.
After Dongsheng went out to play, only Lu Yuanzheng and Xu Wen were left at home.
The journey is long and the drums are beating.
They stayed at Xu's house during the day, but would come back every few hours to light the stove, add some charcoal and simmer the fire to prevent the stove from going out and making the room cold.
Xu Wen poured hot water into the glass bottle used for infusion, sealed it, and went into the quilt to warm it up.
She gulped down four glass bottles in one breath.
After finishing, she sat cross-legged on the bed and asked Lu Yuanzheng: "Now that we are home, can we talk?"
Lu Yuanzheng was about to open his mouth when Xu Wen added with a smile, "If you lie, go sleep in the next room."
The courtyard is a big place!
Lu Yuanzheng watched the fire grow brighter, hooked the stove cover, washed his hands in the basin beside him, dried them, and then said with a wry smile: "We are all comrades, all brothers, why bother?"
"Who is your comrade-in-arms brother?" Xu Wen didn't buy his nonsense. He pointed at him with his index finger, forbidding him to get closer. "Don't try to play that on me! Don't get close to me unless you explain clearly."
She wasn't really angry. Lu Yuanzheng wasn't such a fool. He must have had a purpose for leaving money on him.
She just wanted to deal with him. Who asked him to go to Xu's house to accuse her of something bad?
Much ado about nothing!
He clearly had two boxes of cigarettes in his pocket, but he still had to act with an empty box.
Seeing that Xu Wen insisted on settling the bill, Lu Yuanzheng took a horse whip, sat in front of the stove, and confessed honestly: "We will give you an extra month's allowance."
The legendary ten-month salary? Xu Wen raised his eyebrows, but said nothing. He calculated the expenses of the expedition during the New Year in his mind and shook his head: "No!"
Since leaving the island, the money that has come out of his hands is more than one month's allowance.
Lu Yuanzheng thought she didn't believe him, so he emphasized, "It's true! In addition, there are subsidies for family members who come to the team, and travel allowances for vacations."
His round-trip train tickets for his vacation were reimbursed.
He will be reimbursed in full, and his family will be reimbursed half.
Lu Yuanzheng thought he would have to buy a ticket to go back, so he didn't hand over the money.
Xu Wen was not really angry at first, but when he heard him say that, he tutted his tongue and said, "Your welfare benefits are really good."
Lu Yuanzheng sighed, "No matter how good the welfare is, it is not as valuable as life."
Those who are alive are called welfare.
The only thing we have for our dead brothers is a pension.
Xu Wen thought of the empty table during the Chinese New Year in the army last year, and felt a little sad for a moment. After a while, he comforted her, "It's always getting better. At least there won't be an empty table during the Chinese New Year on the island this year."
Lu Yuanzheng nodded, "Yeah." He paused and sighed, "This guy is really contradictory. In the past, we often fought wars, and I always thought about when the war would be over and there would be no more bloodshed and sacrifice. Now there is really no need to fight, and sometimes I feel a little uncomfortable."
Xu Wen knew that many warriors on the island were in this state.
She could understand: "Maybe you are too accustomed to the previous lifestyle, and the current life is too dull for you."
Lu Yuanzheng nodded. "According to the time, when we get to the island, we should be able to see the new recruits coming on board."
"So the veterans who are retiring have to leave too?"
Lu Yuanzheng nodded.
Originally, the veterans were supposed to be discharged in the winter, but the discharge rate on their island was a bit high, and to prevent it from affecting combat readiness during the New Year, the higher-ups issued an order to delay the veterans' discharge.
The veterans will be discharged after the new recruits have completed a month of training and adapted to the island.
The veterans had no objections. The military camp is easy to leave but difficult to enter, and it is a place where you can never come back once you leave.
They were willing to stay a few more days.
"Then we can go back just in time to see the old soldier off?"
Lu Yuanzheng hummed.
Xu Wen carefully studied his expression and said, "You don't seem very happy."
Lu Yuanzheng covered his face with his hands and pulled them back, sighing heavily, "Parting by life or death, which one can make people happy? This separation is sometimes a lifetime. We used to fight side by side, not to mention giving our lives to each other. During the war, food and fodder often could not reach the front line on time. Occasionally, we picked some wild fruits and had to share them.
Once we parted ways with such close people and such a close relationship, it would be very difficult to see them again, and it is inevitable that I would feel a little empty inside. Every year I have to send off a group of people, and I still haven’t gotten used to it.”
"I understand." Xu Wen said softly, "I heard a saying before, I don't know where it came from, it said 'The strongest relationship between men is the one who has carried a gun together, or visited prostitutes together.' It's really hard for you to have such a strong relationship hurt once a year."
Lu Yuanzheng is a sentimental person and he doesn't like separation.
Lu Yuanzheng was silent for a while, then asked Xu Wen: "Who said that? Call him here, I will definitely not beat him to death! The first half of the sentence is still human, and the second half... even if it is the truth, put them together, who are you insulting?"
Xu Wen blinked, "I don't know about that. Anyway, it wasn't me who spread it."
Lu Yuanzheng: "..."
After chatting for a while, Xu Wen felt a little sleepy.
"Go to bed early. You have to get up early tomorrow to go home and celebrate the Mid-Autumn Festival." Lu Yuanzheng got up and gave her warm water for brushing her teeth and washing her face.
"What about you? Aren't you going to sleep?"
"I have to go call Dongsheng back." Lu Yuanzheng put down the kettle and tested the water temperature. "Just take a shower and go to sleep first."
Xu Wen was so sleepy that he was still thinking about the clothes soaking in the big basin. "The clothes haven't been washed yet! The dirty people are leaving the day after tomorrow. If I don't wash them now, they will be gone!"
"If you can't do it, then you can't do it. It's warm in the south and you can't wear such thick clothes."
"It can't be left in the courtyard to be exposed to the wind, rain and sun for a whole year."
"Go to sleep, I'll come back and wash up." Lu Yuanzheng sat on the bed and tucked in the quilt for Xu Wen. "After tomorrow, we should go back to Rainbow Island."
Xu Wen nodded, "I really miss home a little bit."
Compared to the courtyard house, the wooden house on Rainbow Island makes her feel more like a belonging.