Chapter 12
Before the crops in Xu Di's space matured, the school went on autumn harvest holiday. In fact, it is not a serious autumn harvest holiday. This time is called learning farming.
There aren't many students who can come to class in their second year of high school, and those who have connections have all left.
For the rest, I just live my life to see if there is a chance to find a job that allows me to stay in the city.
Apart from those who have no other choice, people like Yang Dani who are ignorant of the sufferings of the world would yearn to go to the countryside and clamor to support rural construction and make a difference.
In fact, the rural people were extremely disgusted with these educated youth.
Therefore, there was no unified arrangement for them to study agriculture in their second year of high school, but they had to solve it on their own.
At the Yang family, Yang Dani was talking to her parents about going to the countryside.
"Your deskmate, which deskmate?"
Yang's mother looked worried. She knew her daughter's personality well. To put it nicely, she was simple-minded. To put it bluntly, she was naive.
There is only one daughter in the family. She is spoiled by the whole family and is raised to be a little too naive.
"It's Xu Di. Her grandmother's home is in the countryside. I want to go to the countryside after graduation. Xu Di told me to go to the countryside first and do farm work for a few days to see if I can adapt. We can't cause trouble to the farmers, right?"
When Yang's mother heard this, she knew that this kid named Xu Di wanted her silly girl to give up.
If it really works, she will have to thank this girl very much. Her daughter, Dani, seems easy to talk to but is a bit stubborn. Once she makes a decision, no one can say anything, except that she herself has figured it out.
"Okay then. I'll take you there whenever you leave tomorrow."
"Mom, I'm already sixteen, not a child anymore, why do I need you to send me off?"
Yang Dani felt that she had grown up and her mother could no longer treat her as a child.
"I know you've grown up, but when you go to someone else's house, don't you have to bring food with you? Can you carry it by yourself?"
Mother Yang didn't even look at Xu Di, she was still worried.
"Yes, they can't use the food coupons."
Yang Dani was convinced, she really didn't have much strength.
The next day, Xu Di waited for Yang Dani and her daughter at the school gate.
"Xu Di, this is my mother. She helped me get the rations."
"Mom, this is Xu Di, and her brother Xu Jun."
"Hello, Auntie. I'm Xu Di, Yang Dani's deskmate. My family works at the Red Star Machinery Factory."
Xu Di quickly greeted them and introduced himself. If you don't tell your parents about your background, won't their parents be worried?
"Xu Di, Dani is going to trouble you. This child has never suffered and can't do anything. Please help auntie teach her, but don't add burden to the farmers."
"Understood, don't worry, Auntie."
Yang Dani and Xu Jun didn't hear the hidden meaning behind the two people's words, and they were still discussing where to catch sparrows and roast them.
Seeing that Xu Di understood what she meant, Yang's mother handed the things to them.
"Auntie, let's go to the Niufang Brigade in the suburbs. This is the brigade headquarters' phone number. If you have any questions, just call this number and ask for Accountant Xu. That's my grandfather."
Xu Di handed the note he had written in advance to Yang's mother, and then took Yang Dani and Xu Jun to get on the bus.
"This child is really sensible. When her daughter, Dani, grows up, she will be half as good as this child."
Xu Dike didn't know what Yang's mother was thinking, she was just empathizing. In her previous life, when her son wanted to go out with his classmates, she was worried in many ways.
"Xu Di, my mother always treats me like a child and never lets me go no matter what I do. You see, when you go out, your mother won't come to see you off."
Yang Dani felt embarrassed that her mother treated her like a child.
"Dani, I'm going to my grandma's house, so my mom doesn't need to send me off. Your parents will definitely be worried about you going to a strange place."
Xu Di comforted the child who was eager to grow up because she didn't know the price of growing up.
Yang Dani thought about it and felt that what Xu Di said made sense, and she became happy again.
After a bumpy ride to Niufang Brigade, Yang Dani vomited as soon as she got off the car.
“Ugh…Ugh…”
At that time, there was no such thing as overcrowding in the cars. They were very crowded, like bean buns, with people squeezed one on top of the other. There were not only people in the cars, but also live chickens and ducks. You can imagine the smell.
"Xu Di, why is there a live chicken in this car, and it's pooping?"
"Having a car in the countryside is already good enough. Many places don't have access to cars at all, and people have to walk or take a bullock cart to go out. My grandfather's home is considered a suburb, which is much better than ordinary rural areas."
Nowadays, many rural areas have no electricity and no cars.
"Yeah?"
Yang Dani followed Xu Di into the village with a confused look on her face.
"Xu Di is back, is it vacation time?"
"It's vacation time, I came back to see my grandparents."
Xu Di greeted the aunties and sisters she knew. Yang Dani looked at the man holding the sickle. He had a very tanned skin, was thin, and had small cuts on his face and hands.
"Grandma, I'm back."
Xu Jun ran into the yard first, not knowing whether his grandmother was at home.
"Xu Di is back. Is he bringing his classmates here?"
"Grandma, this is my classmate Yang Dani, she's here to learn agriculture. This is her ration, please accept it."
Xu Di explained clearly that her grandmother knew very well that when visitors came to visit at this time, they had to bring food rations.
"Okay, I got it. Let her live in the same room with you. It just so happens that we are harvesting corn these days, so you can come along."
"Got it, grandma, we'll go to the fields this afternoon."
Xu Di took Yang Dani to her room, where she always had her own room.
"Your grandfather's yard is really big and spacious."
"Well, my grandfather's family is small, and the house was newly built in recent years. Most families have more than ten people, and children rarely have their own rooms.
My sister wrote back saying that in Yunnan Province, they all lived in a dormitory with more than 20 people, and the educated youth from other places also lived with several people in one house. ”
Xu Di spoke casually. Yang Dani thought about the scene of more than twenty people living in one room, which was a little hard to accept.
After having a simple meal of steamed corn bread at noon, Xu Di took Yang Dani, who had changed her clothes, to go to the fields.
"Dani, break off the corn cobs and throw them into the backpack like this. When the basket is full, carry it out."
Xu Di demonstrated to Yang Dani. She cracked the corn cobs. Yang Dani used both hands and tried her best, but failed to crack the corn cobs.
I worked for a whole afternoon and broke two baskets of corn cobs. My hands were covered with blisters and the pain made me cry.
In the evening, we still ate cornmeal steamed buns and stewed beans without meat.
"Dani, does your hand still hurt?"
"It hurts, it hurts so much. Xu Di, is it like this in all villages?"
"Yes, there is no time to be idle all year round."
Xu Di knew that Yang Dani was a little hesitant. Going to the countryside was really not as good as she had imagined.
"In spring, we plant seeds; in summer, weed; in autumn, we harvest. There is no time to be idle. During the busy farming season, we have to go to the fields before dawn and work until dark before we can go home.
After returning home, the men tended their private plots while the women cooked, washed clothes, and fed the chickens and ducks, and were busy until bedtime. ”
Xu Di was not trying to scare Yang Dani, this is how life is in the countryside.
At that time, mechanization was not yet popular, and there were no pesticides or chemical fertilizers. Everything depended on manual labor. How could it not be tiring?
Yang Dani fell asleep, and in her dream she was still peeling corn cobs, she was so tired.
"Dani, get up, it's time to go to the ground."
Xu Di woke Yang Dani up and she was finally freed from her dream of picking corn.
The blisters on my hands broke and it hurt a lot. It was hot and stuffy in the cornfield, and the corn leaves were scratching my face. She couldn't even carry that basket of rice corns... Thinking of this, Yang Dani felt scared.
Xu Di ignored the retreating look on Yang Dani's face and pulled her out of bed.
If she is not allowed to experience the hardships of rural life, she will think that going to the countryside is a good thing. Apart from causing trouble to the farmers, I thought I could really do something big!
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