With the private plot in hand, spring planting began.
During the day, everyone worked in the fields to earn work points, and after work, they would go to their own plots to work. No matter how late they worked, they didn't feel tired.
Yan Ci, like everyone else, worked hard to earn work points and tend his private plot of land.
Bai Xiaoyue continued to drift through life, earning only a few work points each day, and then cooking and delivering meals to her parents and Yan Ci.
Although life was tough, it was fulfilling, and the spring planting was completed at a leisurely pace.
After much anticipation, Bai Xiaoyue finally received a reply from the provincial newspaper.
That day, she and Yan Ci were busy planting vegetables in the garden when they heard her uncle knocking on the door.
When she opened the door, she saw her uncle accompanying the postman, followed by several aunties.
It turned out that the postman didn't know which household Bai Xiaoyue lived in, so he went to find Uncle Bai, who then came with the postman.
The postman took the mail out of the package and handed it to Bai Xiaoyue:
"This is your mail, sent from the provincial capital. Because it also includes a remittance slip, it needs your signature, so I brought it over together."
Bai Xiaoyue took the email, saw that it was from the newspaper, verified that it was correct, and signed to confirm.
He took the remittance slip, saw that there was eighteen yuan, and handed it to Yan Ci.
Yan Ci understood his wife's meaning and immediately said loudly:
"Honey, the manuscript fee is eighteen yuan! You're so capable."
The aunties who were watching the commotion widened their eyes upon hearing this; so much money could buy so many things!
Uncle Bai was also shocked.
Eighteen yuan! Now that grain prices have come down, you can buy quite a lot of grain.
Bai Xiaoyue invited her uncle into the courtyard, opened the letter, and found a provincial newspaper had been sent along with it.
The editor said that the delivery was a little late because it had to be mailed along with the newspaper.
The story will be serialized in several installments. I'm sending you the first installment now, and the subsequent installments will follow.
Bai Xiaoyue glanced at the newspaper and handed it to her uncle, pointing out the article she had written.
After reading the newspaper, the old man was so excited that his face turned red, and he stammered, "This, this... is... me."
Bai Xiaoyue smiled and said, "Yes, it's you, sir."
Yan Ci also said to his uncle:
“Uncle, it’s you. Xiaoyue saw how hard you and the village cadres worked for everyone, and the whole production brigade was there too.”
Uncle Bai asked again, "Are you the author, Bai Yue?"
Bai Xiaoyue said happily, "Yes, that's the pen name I chose for myself."
Then Uncle Bai neatly folded the newspaper, put it in his pocket, and went home with a smile.
Before long, this big news spread throughout the entire production brigade.
Everyone thought that being featured in the newspaper was a very important thing.
"Did you know that Party Secretary Bai is in the newspaper?"
"It was written by the Bai family's daughter, whose husband died."
"I know, I know, it's Bai Xiaoyue, she's married to the Yan family boy now."
"You know, how is she so amazing? She could write articles after only graduating from junior high school."
...
Uncle Bai has shaken off the gloom of his daughter's wedding a few days ago and is cheerful every day. Even Grandma Bai is all smiles.
Bai's father was also very happy. For his elder brother and daughter, he even took out the wine that he usually couldn't bear to drink and asked Yan Ci to have a drink with him that night.
Some people are happy, while others are sad, such as Ye Jianguo's family.
Ye Jianguo's wife, Chen Xinghua, complained:
“You also work hard every day to serve the commune members, especially in the first two years, you didn’t get a full night’s sleep, and you were busy with food every day.”
Why didn't Bai Xiaoyue write about you? She's Jianhua's wife, practically a member of the Ye family, yet she only thinks about her own family. What an ingrate!
Ye Jianguo remained silent and focused on eating.
When Chen Xinghua saw that the man was ignoring her, she knew he didn't like what she was saying, and she couldn't continue her one-woman show.
In fact, Bai Xiaoyue wrote about every cadre in the village in her article.
Chen Xinghua didn't see the newspaper at all; she only heard from others that Secretary Bai was mentioned, so she assumed that Ye Jianguo wasn't in it.
She's just a self-righteous woman.
Bai Xiaoyue ignored the gossip in the village and focused on living a quiet life behind closed doors.
With the money from her writing, she took the opportunity to buy a lot of things to improve her life at home.
Sigh... This is an era where you have to be mindful of others' opinions even when you're using your own money.
Because Yan Ci was so persistent, Bai Xiaoyue couldn't resist him, so her morning run turned into a routine of two adults and one child.
Then, to her dismay, she discovered that she couldn't even outrun Chang Le. She was panting and sweating profusely, while Chang Le ran away with ease.
This sparked Bai Xiaoyue's competitive spirit, and she insisted on running every day. Sure enough, after running for a while, she became a different person, and she felt refreshed and energetic in everything she did and walked.
The leaders of Daqiao Commune are having a meeting to establish role models and select outstanding brigades and outstanding Party members.
Each production team has its own advantages, and each leader has their own optimal choice in mind, so the matter was at a stalemate.
Lin Jianguo from the Publicity Department came in with a newspaper: "Leader, please take a look at this newspaper before making your selection."
Commune Secretary Du Heping read the article carefully, slapped his thigh, and praised it:
"This article is very well written. It describes a group of village cadres who are dedicated to serving the people and doing practical things. Other brigades in our commune should learn from them."
Secretary Huang Xiaoping:
"In this Red Star Brigade, the brigade leader, Bai Yongjian, is a veteran Party member and a capable man. During the several years of natural disasters, no one in the production brigade starved to death."
Secretary Du made the decision:
“Such talents deserve praise. Everyone should go to various production teams to investigate and evaluate them. First, investigate other brigades, and then go to Hongxing Brigade. We will then make the final selection.”
In order to get the most accurate picture, the cadres all wore clothes covered in patches, making them look nothing like cadres.
I don't know how the commune cadres conducted the investigation, but in the end, the Hongxing Production Brigade was rated as an advanced brigade.
Bai Xiaoyue had no idea that her article actually played a role in the Red Star Brigade's evaluation for advanced personnel.
Uncle Bai was also recognized as an outstanding individual and was awarded a Flying Pigeon brand bicycle, which caused a sensation throughout the village.
Bicycles are a rare commodity; this is the first one in the entire production brigade.
Uncle Bai can't ride a bicycle, so he pushed it back, and the adults and children who came to watch followed him all the way.
Uncle Bai was overjoyed. He couldn't ride a bicycle, but even though he kept it at home, he would polish it until it shone every day.
Seeing how much her uncle cherished his bicycle and how reluctant he was to practice with it, Bai Xiaoyue asked Yan Ci to teach him.
Yan Ci led Chang Le and had his uncle push the bicycle to the large drying ground so that his uncle could practice on it, while he held onto the back seat.
At first, Uncle Bai was hesitant, so Yan Ci put Chang Le on the back seat and rode his bicycle around the large threshing ground a few times. Chang Le was so excited that she shouted loudly.
Perhaps it was seeing how easily Yan Ci rode that gave Uncle Bai the courage to try slowly.
My two cousins mastered it in just one afternoon of practice, and many young men in the village went to borrow bicycles to practice.
Uncle Bai cherishes his bicycle very much; he gets extremely upset if there's even the slightest scratch.
However, he would still lend the equipment to young people to practice, which shows that he was a selfless person.
As the weather got warmer day by day, my uncle brought back some news: a primary school was going to be built in the village.
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