Chapter 97

Li Dong quietly returned home, trying to be as quiet as possible, but with so many things to carry, he had to make two trips and still couldn't finish. The noise woke up Xiaojuan.

"Da Da."

"Don't get up, it's still early. I'll make breakfast, and you can get up after that."

It was late October, and the weather was getting colder. The average temperature now was about ten degrees lower than in the future.

Li Dong put the rice and flour into the rice jar, the bedding and mosquito net into the wooden cabinet, and wrapped the other miscellaneous items and hung them in the basket. He placed the rubber boots, gloves, towels, red flower oil, and pain-relieving ointment for work together. The vegetable seeds, iron spade, and saw were stuffed under the bed, and two pairs of shoes for autumn were laid out. The oil, hot pot ingredients, and seasonings were organized and put into the kitchen cabinet. After organizing, Li Dong hung the meat he brought, which included some braised beef and mutton. He didn't bring any pork because Huang Xiaotian had given him a few pounds of meat coupons that he hadn't used up yet.

He put the film can on the side and started to cook breakfast. For the two of them, he made some noodle soup with an egg. He only had one egg left, having forgotten to bring more this time. He cut some beef to go with it, making it a good meal.

The hot noodle soup with some chili sauce smelled delicious. Xiaojuan got up and was happy to see there was meat again. This time, she didn't ask where the meat came from, knowing Da Da's capabilities. The little girl was actually quite proud but worried that Da Da might get used to spending too much.

"Xiaojuan, when will the college entrance exam results be out?"

Li Dong slurped a mouthful of noodle soup, which was very hot, and asked casually.

"Next week."

Xiaojuan was a bit worried but more excited. Being in the top hundred of the college entrance exam meant a few yuan in rewards.

Li Dong thought to himself that the manuscripts he had sent out should also have results next week. Although not as exaggerated as a hundred, he had sent over twenty. He was a bit anxious, hoping at least one would be accepted.

Fortunately, he hadn't told Xiaojuan, or it would be embarrassing if none were accepted.

After breakfast, Li Dong sent Xiaojuan to school. The weather was getting colder, and the wind was biting. "Look at my forgetfulness. Scarves are popular this year. I should have bought some yarn when I saw it was selling well last time."

It would have been great to bring some scarves, even if just for their own use.

After sending Xiaojuan, he hurried to work. The task for the day was simple: breaking up large clumps of soil in the fields, digging ditches in the wheat fields, and clearing the soil from the ditches. The old ox pulled the plow, and Li Dong and the others followed behind, breaking up the large clumps of soil.

They did this all morning. In the afternoon, they collected and bundled the dried corn and sorghum stalks, stacking them in the warehouse. These were the winter feed for the livestock, which needed to be well-fed to work the fields in the spring.

The work wasn't tiring, and they finished half an hour earlier than usual. Everyone chatted about the movie they had seen a few days ago, laughing and joking as they walked back to the village.

"Han Weiqun, wait a moment."

Just before entering the village, Li Dong called out to Han Weiqun, who looked puzzled. "What's up?"

"About the vegetable seeds."

Li Dong said, "I've bought them. Come over and get them later."

"Really?"

For several days, Li Dong had only talked but not acted, and Han Weiqun had started to regret it, thinking the vegetable planting might not happen.

When the other families heard the seeds were bought, they looked pleased. If it was delayed a few more days, they would have to start the river work, which would take over half a month, and they would miss the planting season.

When Li Dong distributed the seeds, he felt a bit embarrassed. He had boasted that a winter of vegetables could exchange for a family's food supply, but now it seemed challenging. "I checked in the city. The purchasing station is buying a lot of vegetables, but the price is a bit low. Cabbage is 1.2 fen per pound."

"1.2 fen, half an acre of cabbage is about 1,500 pounds."

Before Li Dong could finish, everyone started calculating. Half an acre of cabbage would yield 18 yuan, which wasn't much but wasn't insignificant. Moreover, after planting cabbage, the land could still be used for other crops like beans or corn in the spring.

"We'll plant it."

Han Weiqun calculated more precisely. His family's plot was at least one acre, which would yield about 3,000 to 4,000 pounds of cabbage, worth 40 to 50 yuan. That was a significant amount, enough to buy food for half the winter.

Planting wheat or rapeseed would be difficult for the winter. Without food, the children couldn't go hungry. It was better to plant cabbage and exchange it for food, or at least have more winter vegetables.

Han Weiqun agreed, and with the support of the village leaders like Han Weijun, the other families also decided to plant cabbage. The village contributed 10 yuan for the seeds, which wasn't much but was still money.

Li Dong didn't refuse and took the money. In the evening, he leveled his family's plot and, when no one was around, mixed in a bag of fertilizer from 2018, sowed the cabbage seeds, and watered them.

When Xiaojuan returned, she saw the plot was leveled and the seeds were sown. She was very happy and picked some bamboo sticks to plant around the plot, planning to make a fence.

"Da Da, we need to make a scarecrow. Sparrows like to eat the seeds."

"Sure, we'll do it tomorrow."

Li Dong took out a small spade and gave it to Xiaojuan. "This is your birthday gift. Do you like it?"

"Yes."

Xiaojuan took the spade, which looked very nice. She found a wooden stick to use as a handle.

"The handle, Da Da has prepared it for you." Xiaojuan attached the handle and secured it with a nail. She tried it in the backyard plot and found it very useful.

This would make collecting pig feed much easier, and the little girl set off with her basket.

"Come back early."

For dinner, Li Dong steamed cornmeal buns. The cornmeal was ground from their own corn, mixed with flour to make the buns. He planned to make more to take to the autumn work.

He added some chopped braised beef and chili sauce to the buns, making them more fragrant.

Xiaojuan ate two large buns and a big bowl of sweet potato porridge. "Xiaojuan, I'll be working on the river for a few days. I've steamed a few baskets of buns and hung them on the beam. Steam them in the morning and evening. The ones with wrinkles have meat inside."

Xiaojuan was too young to cook porridge or rice, but buns required strength, which she lacked. Li Dong decided to make more and take them to school to steam for a small fee, along with a bowl of hot water.

"I know."

"You can ride with Uncle Weihe. I've already arranged it."

Li Dong had to work on the river, and with only the two of them at home, he was the only one who could go.

Sure enough, the next morning, Han Guofu announced the date for the river work. "The day after tomorrow at 8 AM, meet at the village entrance."

Li Dong's name was on the list, and he was assigned to the major work, clearing the river channel.

This was a tough job, and Han Weiguo and the others looked worried.

The Qiu River was not small, and the river mouth was deep. The work would be exhausting and time-consuming.

"At least ten days."

"Maybe more than ten days."

It could take half a month, but then Han Guofu announced a better piece of news. "The commune will provide one pound of food per day."

That was good, at least they wouldn't have to bring their own food. Although one pound might not be enough, they could save it and avoid going hungry.

The next day, Li Dong rode his bicycle to the village entrance, with a spade tied to the bike. "Brother Li, I'll go with you."

The village cart was too bumpy, and the bicycle was more comfortable and faster.

"Sure."

Li Dong rode the bicycle with Han Weiguo, and they set off in the morning sun, envied by the others. This time, Han Village was responsible for the upstream part of the Qiu River near the city.

"Let's visit the city later."

On the first day, only a few officials and Li Dong rode bicycles to work.

Many young girls glanced at Li Dong, who was tall and strong, looking honest and capable. Some even inquired about him, making Li Dong a bit proud.

However, the next day, the young girls who had been glancing at him yesterday now avoided him, as if he were something terrifying.

"What's going on?"

Li Dong muttered, but he had no time to think about it and hurried to eat breakfast.

"Brother Li, here."

The soybean porridge was good, and each person got two buns. However, Li Dong didn't have enough, so he took out some buns he had brought and steamed them. The cornmeal buns didn't attract much attention, but Han Weiguo, who was close to Li Dong, noticed the good stuff inside, the meat.

On the river work, the meat allowance was very small, and the quality was poor. Each person got at most one piece of meat, which had been fried.

In the morning, there was hardly any oil, and the coarse grain buns made everyone happy. Li Dong drank half a bowl of porridge and quickly refilled it, as Han Weiguo had told him that the soybean porridge wasn't enough to fill you up.

There was only so much, and if you filled your bowl halfway, you could quickly refill it to have one and a half bowls. If you filled it completely, it would cool down, and the pot would be empty by the time you finished.

"Brother Li, your cornmeal buns smell good."

Han Weiguo, the sly one, got half a bun. Li Dong, remembering the morning, asked, "What's going on?"

Half a meat bun, Han Weiguo smacked his lips, hesitating to speak. "Brother Li, there might have been a misunderstanding."

Han Weiguo, seeing Li Dong's glare and fearing he would take back the bun, quickly explained.

It turned out that someone had inquired about Li Dong and learned he was the lazy and gluttonous Li Dong from Han Village. The young girls immediately changed their attitude, fearing he would bother them.

"Who did this? Who ruined my reputation?"

Li Dong was angry. He was a hardworking person, not a lazy glutton.

Han Weiguo, munching on the meat bun, didn't speak, thinking to himself, "Brother Li, this is partly true. Don't worry, you'll find a wife. If not, there's a young widow in another village, not even forty."

If Li Dong knew what Han Weiguo was thinking, he wouldn't give him a single piece of meat.

I'm a future farmer writer, not a lazy glutton.

While Li Dong was musing, the commune post office received a letter from the city, one of which was for Li Dong, from a Beijing publisher.

"A publisher?"

The postman glanced at it, surprised. He had heard of Li Dong from Han Village, one of the few educated youth who had settled in the commune, but with a bad reputation.