Chapter 5
When she got near the door, Zhang Huihui shouted towards the house: "Mom, Mom——"
Zhao Mei hurried out to greet him, looking forward to it nervously.
Zhou Jiani and the others came over with bags on their shoulders. Zhao Mei quickly stepped forward to take the bags from their hands and said in a cautious and flattering tone, "Welcome, comrades."
"Thank you, sister-in-law. Hello, my name is Zhou Jiani. This is Comrade Sun Ping, and that is Comrade Yu Wanxia. Sorry to bother you for a while."
Sun Ping and Yu Wanxia also hurried to greet them.
Seeing the new city kid talking cheerfully, Zhao Mei's dark, thin face also showed a relaxed smile. She spoke a little louder and said, "Don't bother me, don't bother me. Come into the house and rest." Then she explained unconfidently, "I cleaned the house. I mopped it several times and fumigated it with mugwort for two days."
He looked as if he was afraid that they would dislike him.
Zhou Jiani paused her gaze on the shed next to her and sighed in her heart.
The shed was surrounded by wooden boards and covered with straw mats. It had windows and doors, but it was not a proper house. However, she knew that Zhao Mei wanted to get the compensation points from the team, so she would rather let the three of them live in the shed and free up the only room to accommodate them.
Sun Ping and Yu Wanxia glanced at the simple yard and saw the shed next to it, but neither of them expected that a family of three would live there.
Yu Wanxia's eyes still lit up with a certain expectation, and she subconsciously asked: "Sister-in-law, don't you live here?"
There was only one room where they lived, so Zhao Mei's family must have lived somewhere else.
I thought it would be much more comfortable if the three of them lived in a small courtyard alone.
Meeting the bright gazes of the two girls, Zhao Mei's face flushed with embarrassment as she hurriedly explained, "We live in this shed. It's also where people usually live. Comrades, you've worked hard on the journey. Come inside and rest."
Without waiting for Sun Ping and the others to react, he pushed them into the house and greeted them warmly, "Put down your things and take a rest." He then repeatedly called out to Zhang Huihui, "Huiya, pour some water for the sisters."
Then she went around introducing them to the earthen kang in the house, the old cabinet in the corner, the small closet with double doors on the wall, the washbasin rack in the house, and the table, chairs and benches with missing corners. She was so flustered that she didn't know what to do, as if she was afraid that everyone would ask her too many questions or say that they didn't want to live in her house anymore.
Zhou Jiani understood this awkward lack of confidence all too well. She winked at Sun Ping and Yu Wanxia, then quickly smiled in approval, "Thank you, sister-in-law. The house is so clean! You're obviously a diligent person."
After receiving recognition, Zhao Mei smiled embarrassedly and breathed a sigh of relief. No one noticed that her hands were shaking with panic.
She had taken the initiative to secure the opportunity to host this group of educated youth. When the arrangement was announced, the team was reluctant, worried that Zhang Kaishan wouldn't get enough rest and that the educated youth wouldn't be able to bear the psychological burden.
But if we let the educated youth live in shanties, we are afraid that those little kids will make trouble.
It was the busy farming season, so the team naturally hoped to have less to do.
But it is also a fact that Zhao Mei's family is in financial difficulty, and the little subsidy the team gives them is very important to them.
Moreover, if you meet generous (lazy) educated youth, you can help them with cooking, washing, etc., and maybe earn a few cents or a dime, which is at least another income.
Finally, the team held a meeting to discuss the matter and agreed to Zhao Mei's request.
Zhao Mei cleaned up this small house after work these two days. She swept it over and over again, wishing she could scrape off all the dirt.
Yu Wanxia had already realized that she seemed to have said something wrong just now. She looked a little embarrassed and looked at the two temporary friends for help.
Zhou Jiani patted her arm to comfort her, looking around at the place where they would live next.
The house was just an ordinary adobe house, not very big. There was a set of worn-out tables and chairs at the entrance, and an earthen kang on the right, but it was very clean. There was a layer of old newspapers on the walls, and perhaps because of their visit, some places were covered with new used exercise book papers.
The locked cabinet had many dents and peeling paint spots, and a corner of its leg was missing, with a stone padding behind it.
But it was clean inside and out.
The same thing happened with the dining tables, chairs, and benches. Broken tiles were placed in the places where the legs were missing, so if you wanted to move them, you had to move the broken tiles along with them.
The small yard outside was also swept clean, with vegetables planted and chicken coops built in the corners.
The overall cleanup is good.
Zhou Jiani opened her two army green handbags and rummaged through them, found where she kept the candies, and grabbed a handful of fruit candies.
Zhang Huihui just happened to come in with her own thermos and said in a childish voice, "Sisters, have some water."
It was the first time for the family to receive educated youth from the city. The little girl was a little happy and her face was flushed.
"Thank you, Huihui. Have a piece of candy to sweeten your mouth." Zhou Jiani stuffed the candy into her hands. Zhang Huihui looked at Zhao Mei a little at a loss.
Zhao Mei quickly stopped him: "It's not appropriate, it's not appropriate. Comrade, you can keep this precious thing for yourself. She doesn't like candy."
What child doesn’t like sweets?
Zhou Jiani smiled and said, "Don't be polite, sister-in-law. I took it out because I really wanted to give it to Huihui. Otherwise, I would have kept it hidden."
He opened the pocket of Zhang Huihui's jacket and stuffed the money in.
Zhao Mei quickly asked Hui Hui to thank her, still a little flustered. She pointed to the half-filled bucket of water beside her and said, "This is freshly drawn water. You can use it for washing your hands and face. The water in the thermos was just boiled this morning. You can use it first. I'll go light the fire and fill your empty thermoses..."
She picked up their empty thermos and took her daughter out.
As soon as Zhao Mei left, Yu Wanxia breathed a sigh of relief. Sun Ping also sat down on the edge of the kang and whispered, "I'm not saying I despise their poor family conditions, but I just feel uncomfortable."
Yu Wanxia patted her chest and agreed, "Yeah, I didn't think of that just now... You said we come here and let them live in the shed next to us, it's really -"
The two of them looked a little conflicted.
Zhou Jiani was looking at the locked cabinet, thinking about how to arrange it. Upon hearing this, she chuckled and said, "Sister-in-law made a special effort to vacate the room and cleaned it so cleanly. It shows her sincerity. If we don't stay here, she will feel uncomfortable."
"I'm not going to say this out of turn, but the weather's perfect right now, so it wouldn't be a big deal for Huihui and her family to stay next door for a while," she continued. "Besides, my sister-in-law is a real person. If we suggest switching rooms, she'll definitely disagree. But if we ask the team to change houses out of guilt, they probably won't consider them again for this kind of hosting. So, let's just stay here and show our approval of my sister-in-law's family, don't you think?"
Sun Ping and Yu Wanxia looked at each other and couldn't help nodding. They actually felt that what Zhou Jiani said made some sense.
"Everyone, please tidy up your things. Assign sleeping areas and the use of this cabinet. Once you've arranged everything, wash the sheets before it gets dark. You won't have the time or energy to do that after tomorrow." Zhou Jiani's eyes fell on the bag of food, and another question occurred to her, "Can you cook?"
Sun Ping raised her hand: "I can cook one or two home-cooked dishes, but I can't make steamed bread or steamed buns."
Yu Wanxia shook her head directly: "I can't cook, I can't even use a coal stove... Yeah, how are we going to eat?"
There are no coal stoves here either. Zhou Jiani smiled kindly in her heart. Comrade Wanxia probably hasn't seen an earthen stove in the countryside.
Zhou Jiani can cook. Later, when short videos became popular, she learned a lot of skills from her mobile phone, but she definitely cannot take on everything.
She said, "Whether we're staying here temporarily or joining the main group at the educated youth camp, we all have to take turns cooking."
Yu Wanxia looked embarrassed, but she also knew that this was a problem that had to be faced. She said, "How about this, I'll discuss it with my sister-in-law later. When it's my turn, I'll let my sister-in-law do it for me. I'll exchange things or money with her and learn from her at the same time."
Although Yu Wanxia was a little annoyed, she quickly accepted the reality and knew that this was a long-term problem and she couldn't always rely on others for help.
I should have learned from her mother at home earlier.
Zhou Jiani and Sun Ping naturally had no objection.
Zhou Jiani smiled and said, "I can cook, but I don't plan to take shifts during this period. None of us have done high-intensity physical labor before, so our bodies need some time to adapt. I think in the first few days, after a day's work, we won't have the energy to cook. So when it's my turn, I plan to ask my sister-in-law to take over."
She couldn't be called hypocritical at this moment, nor could she be considered kindhearted. In fact, she had been through a lot in her previous life, and was an expert at farm work and housework. But now she had to consider the reality - the adaptability of her delicate little body.
Sun Ping also raised her hand and said, "Jiani, I think you're right. I'll find someone to replace me, and I'll learn how to make steamed buns and cornbread at the same time."
Yu Wanxia unconsciously leaned closer to Zhou Jiani and said, "Jiani, you know a lot."
Receiving slightly admiring looks from Sun Ping and Yu Wanxia, as if they regarded her as their backbone, Zhou Jiani laughed. This was the result of her falling flat on her face.
Several people divided up the sleeping areas and the use of the kitchen cabinets.
The small wardrobe in the room has two layers, with separate nose buckles and can be locked separately. It belongs to Sun Ping and Yu Wanxia.
Zhou Jiani used a small closet on the wall with double doors, half a meter long and wide, and only dug out thirty centimeters from the wall.
It’s really not big, two handbags stacked together can barely fit in it.
As for the sleeping arrangements, everyone spreads out their own sheets and quilts. The sheets are definitely not used to wrap things on the bed. Everyone brings replacement sheets, folds them up, and spreads the quilts on them. The kang is not very spacious, but it's okay.
Zhou Jiani counted the things in her bag and sighed as she looked at the half-eaten peach cake.
Liu Ailing ate a few pieces of two pounds of peach cakes on the way, and also consumed the steamed buns and corn cakes made of two-grain flour that her mother had packed in her bag before she left, as well as the pickled vegetables from home.
Liu Ailing didn't even move the one she was carrying.
After a simple cleanup, the three of them discussed with Zhao Meiti about cooking for them.
Yu Wanxia asked worriedly, "Will sister-in-law agree? We need to add food for three more people!"
Zhou Jiani knew it wasn't a big problem.
Zhang Kaishan was in poor health and couldn't do heavy work, but he could easily boil water, wash and chop vegetables. He could calm down and work slowly at home, and when he finished the preparatory work, Zhao Mei would come home to clean up.
At this time, he was worried that everyone would be annoyed by his illness, so he stayed in the shed and did not come out. Just now, Zhou Jiani heard a few coughs, but she deliberately suppressed them.
Zhou Jiani said, "Let's go ask my sister-in-law."
They had to provide their own food and calculate how much they ate. In the first year, the state provided for them, with a monthly ration of 35 kilograms, 80 percent coarse grains and 20 percent fine grains. After a year, they followed the brigade's allocation.
Thirty-five kilograms is not enough when there is a lack of oil and water and one has to do physical labor for a long time.
If there are no vegetables, I have to buy them from the villagers.
When staying at a fellow villager's house, they have to distinguish between the firewood and water they use. They can either carry/carry them back themselves, or use the ready-made ones and give the fellow villager some other things.
After listening to Zhou Jiani's clear and logical analysis, Sun Ping and Yu Wanxia were filled with admiration.
Sun Ping still had a feeling of unreality. After all, she was the one who watched Zhou Jiani's "acting" the whole time, but the Zhou Jiani at this moment seemed to be a different person from the noisy Zhou Jiani on the train.
I have to say she was somewhat impressed and asked, "Jia Ni, how do you know so much?"
Zhou Jiani pushed it onto her family: "My parents went out to inquire before coming here."
"Oh, no wonder."
The three of them went out to discuss cooking with Zhao Mei.
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