"Wu Gang, thank you. If you hadn't come, we would have suffered."
Elder Chen took Zhou Jinyan to Wu Gang and said gratefully. Wu Gang saw his old leader, who was decisive, resolute and brave in the face of the enemy. Now, his hair has turned completely white and his back is no longer as straight as before.
Wu Gang's nose felt sore, and he stepped forward to shake the old leader's hand. "General, are you still being polite to me? You saved my life. I came too late, and these revolutionary scum wanted to bully you. Don't worry, this kind of thing will not happen again in the future. How are you? You must take care of yourself and see the prosperity of our motherland."
General Chen nodded and said, "Okay, I will take care of myself. I must see the prosperity of our motherland."
Ke'er went into the house, waved her hand, quickly put all the things back in their original places, and turned around to come out. Zhou Jinyan looked at Ke'er meaningfully as she entered the house and came out. He knew without a second that it was Ke'er's credit that those people didn't find anything. Now she put the things back in their original places. Ke'er, thank you. With you in my life in this life, everything is different now.
It was almost Chinese New Year, and the village farm had to hand over five of its ten pigs, one breeding pig and three pregnant sows, to the commune. The proceeds would be distributed among the villagers at the then-current supply and marketing cooperative price of 80 cents per pound. The village chief was grinning from ear to ear all day.
Because the pigs raised in the village farm are all fat and strong, they have to be sent to the commune this morning for submission. The villagers weighed all five pigs. All five pigs weighed more than 200 kilograms, and one weighed 305 kilograms. The heaviest pig raised by the villagers themselves was only 170 kilograms. Finally, the village committee decided to keep the smallest pig from the farm, slaughter it and distribute it to everyone for the New Year. The remaining four pigs and the 11 pigs raised by the villagers themselves, a total of 15 pigs, were submitted. Almost all the men in the village drove the 15 pigs to the commune. On the way, the big pig weighing over 300 kilograms attracted many envious eyes.
"Old Han, your village did well this year. You've exceeded your targets. The largest one weighed over 300 pounds. Why didn't you leave it for the villagers to celebrate the New Year? It's wrong for you to not care about the villagers. Our village chief wants..."
"You're wrong. We villagers are all highly conscious and want to give our best to the country. This is none of our village chief's business. Please don't smear our village chief."
"That's right, our village chief is a good village chief who is dedicated to us."
"Exactly, why are there so few pigs in your village, and they're all so skinny? Don't you hand over the bad ones to the state and keep the good ones for yourself?"
Qin Mancang laughed heartily. "Let's go, hand in the pigs we're supposed to hand in. Alright, alright," he called, herding the pigs forward. It was midday when the village chief returned. Grain and money were being distributed in the village drying yard. The village distributed grain twice a year: once after the summer harvest and the public grain tax, and once after the autumn harvest. Once the pigs were all handed in, the villagers began distributing grain and money. The amount was calculated based on the work points each household had earned.
The barren land of Beishawozi Village yielded little, and income was low, earning only 1.8 cents per work point. This year, villagers also received a share of the income from the village pig farm's under-requested pigs. They lined up in the drying yard, unfazed by the cold, their faces beaming with joy.
The village chief stood on the platform and said to the villagers, "Everyone, be quiet. This year, we will all get more money than in previous years. Everyone knows that this is all due to the benefits brought by Qin Feng's family. It was Qin Feng's family who applied for approval to open a farm in the village from the county. It was the piglets that the robbers found for us. And the pigs in our farm have eaten so much of the produce from Qin Feng's fields, including rice seedlings, potato seedlings, sunflower stalks, and crushed sunflower plates, which are all fed to the pigs. That's why the pigs in our farm are growing strong and fat. The commune praised our village for its skill in raising pigs. We will continue to raise more and better pigs next year to support national construction."
There was thunderous applause from below.
The village chief stretched out his hands and pressed them downwards, asking everyone to be quiet. "At the beginning, it was said that Qin Feng's family would not participate in the village's labor, nor would they share the village's grain and non-staple food. Qin Feng's family produced and sold their own food on the two mountains. After research and decision by the village committee, Qin Feng's family was rewarded with 8 kilograms of pork. Next year, we will lead our village to first manage the three barren sand mountains, plant trees and grass, and grow potatoes and sweet potatoes. Second, we will raise 20 pigs and 1,000 chickens on the farm. Next year, our lives will be better and we will get more money, right?"
"Yes." The voice resounded through the sky.
At this time, Qin Feng stood up and said, "Thank you all for your trust in our family. Next year, we will work even harder to manage Daqingshan and Xiaoqingshan, plant more trees, and explore good ways to control sand and cultivate grass and trees to better generate income for our village. Thank you to the village chief and the village committee for the reward. 8 kilograms of pork is too much, we can't accept it. The reward of 2 kilograms is enough for our family to make dumplings and have a good New Year."
Ke'er and her family clapped their hands in support of what Qin Feng said. In the end, the village committee had no choice but to cut a piece of good meat with more fat for Qin Feng's family.
That evening, a bonfire was lit in the village drying yard, and the entire village attended a pig-killing feast. Each household submitted food according to the number of attendees. There were no specific types of food: dried vegetables, fresh vegetables, sweet potatoes, potatoes, corn, anything was acceptable. The villagers would bring in cornmeal and make pancakes with it. Qin Feng's family had all come, and there was plenty of food. Sweet potatoes, potatoes, dried vegetables, and cabbage were pulled in on a wheelbarrow, attracting a crowd of onlookers. They all helped to carry the food down to the open-air dining hall. The aunts, sisters-in-law, and young wives were busy washing and chopping vegetables, cooking meat, mixing noodles, and making soup.
While no one was paying attention, Ke'er put a handful of braised pork powder into the pork pot and stirred it with a large spoon. Immediately, an old lady saw it and exclaimed, "Ke'er, dear, this is not a place you can come to. It will be ugly if you get burned."
Ke'er smiled and ran over.
At mealtime, everyone lined up to get their food. Each person received a bowl of broth with two or three pieces of meat, sweet potato chunks, corn chunks, dried vegetables, and Chinese cabbage—a hodgepodge of stews. Adults also received two palm-sized corn tortillas, golden and crispy, with a crunchy bite. The sweet potatoes were soft and sweet.
"The broth this year is so fragrant. Even the state-owned restaurants in the county can't compare to it. It's delicious."
"That's right, the broth is especially delicious this year."
Ke'er held the bowl and sipped the soup, hiding her achievements and fame.
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