At dusk, the wind and sand are rolling in, and the dust is flying. If the wind is stronger, it may be called a sandstorm.
The sun was setting in the west, the light was dim, and the clouds on the horizon were also dyed red.
Over the empty Jintan Village, birds and smoke rise from cooking fires, and every household has begun cooking.
In the courtyard of the adobe walled city, a woman with a dark complexion wearing a gray cotton coat and a headscarf picked up a bundle of dried corn stalks from under the shed and was about to walk into the house where the smoke was rising.
When I stood up and looked up, I happened to catch a glimpse of several figures riding bicycles outside the wall, approaching from far away, passing outside my home.
The person riding in the front was none other than Du Bao, who had grown a head taller than two years ago. On the back seat of Du Bao's bicycle, there was a boy who looked like him. The difference with Du Bao was that the boy The face covered with pimples is none other than Debao's cousin Yang Gawa.
There is a bicycle next to it, and the rider is Shui Wang.
Compared with three years ago, the appearance of the three of them has not changed much, but their heights have all grown up. Even their originally thin bodies are stronger than at the beginning.
Young people are growing up. Following Wang Zhong, the three of them eat a lot of meat, and their meals are never short of food.
"Debao, you're back!"
The woman shouted over the wall.
"Back!" Debao on the bicycle had a smile on his face.
The three of them separated at the intersection and went home.
"Dad! Mom! I'm back!" Debao couldn't wait to shout before he reached the door of the house.
"Auntie!" Gawa also shouted with a smile.
"Back!" Debao's mother came up with a smile on her face, holding a towel in her hand. Looking at the gray-faced two, she immediately frowned: "Look at this!"
As he spoke, he used towels to help the two of them dust themselves off.
"Mom! Where's my dad!"
While beating the dust, I looked left and right, but there was no sign of the horse calling for water.
"We're going to your brother Wang Zhong's house. You and Ga Wa quickly pack up and we'll go there too!"
"Just now your brother Wang Zhong came over and said that his family is stewing mutton today and asked us to go to his house for dinner! If there is anything, I need to discuss it with your father and you two."
"Discuss with us?" Debao and Gawa looked at each other and saw the confusion in each other's eyes.
"Okay, hurry up and wash up first. We'll find out later!" Debao's mother said with a smile.
The two of them quickly ran to wash off the dust and change their dirty clothes and shoes.
When the three of them rushed to Wang Zhong's house, Shui Wang and Li Dayou also arrived. The old party secretary and Ma Huanshui were sitting on the kang, smoking dry cigarettes. There was a plate of peanuts and melon seeds on the kang table.
Debao's mother ran to the kitchen to help. Wang Zhong and Shui Hua were both in the kitchen, and Shui Wang's mother was also there.
"Okay, Auntie is here too. Just leave this place to us. You go and accompany my uncle and the others!" Shui Hua pushed Wang Zhong out.
Wang Zhong shook his head helplessly, "Okay, okay! Slow down, don't be anxious, I'll call uncle and the others! Slow down!"
Now Shuihua's belly is so bulging, as if a rubber ball has been stuffed inside, and her already round and round face has become a little plumper.
"Don't worry, go over there. We're here to watch! We won't worry about your water splash!" Debao's mother teased Wang Zhong with a smile.
"That's right!" Shui Wangniang agreed with a smile.
Wang Zhong was thick-skinned and didn't think anything was wrong. He was just a splash, and his pretty face was not as red as the two elders said.
Wang Zhong wiped his hands and took off his apron, "I'll leave the splash to the aunties!"
Watching Wang Zhong go out, Shui Wang's mother looked at Shui Hua and said, "Shui Hua, just give me the command. Mom Debao and I will do it!"
"Auntie, it's not like I can't move!" Shuihua said.
"How can this be the same!" Debao's mother also said quickly: "You still have one in your belly now, and the baby can smell the oil fumes."
Shui Wang's mother helped Shui Hua sit on the stool in front of the stove: "Okay, I know you can't sit still, just help us watch the fire! Your aunt and I will do the rest!"
It's said to be watching the fire, but actually it's just sitting. The two aunts are both people who work on the stove all year round. The mutton has been stewed in the pot. It will be ready when the time is up. Right now it is pancakes and steamed buns.
Move the steamer to the big pot, put the steamed buns directly into the steamer, the water has already boiled, the two aunts work together to make pancakes, one kneads and rolls the dough, and the other is responsible for frying, they cooperate tacitly, and their movements are skillful. There is really no need for water. Flower helper.
When women get together, they naturally have no time to talk, gossiping about this and that.
Teach Shui Hua their pregnancy and child rearing experience, various taboos, and things to pay attention to.
Shui Hua listened very carefully and remembered every detail in her heart. There were no elders in Wang Zhong's family, only Wang Zhong, and her mother had also left early. There were no elders to teach her these lessons from experience. For the aunts' experience Naturally, I dare not take it lightly.
Pancakes came out one after another and were stacked in the grate. After more than twenty were baked, the two of them stopped.
The mutton in the pot was almost simmered, so he scooped out two pots and brought them to the Kang in the main room for guests.
"dinner time!"
The men sat inside and the women sat outside.
Pancakes and steamed buns made of cornmeal are the staple food, and there is only one dish, mutton stewed with potatoes.
But in this era, it is already extremely abundant.
Usually everyone's staple food is either stick noodles or potatoes. Throughout the year, we rarely see Rouxingzi. The family finally raises a few sheep, which are sold to make money, rather than eaten at home.
"This mutton is delicious!" Since the mutton was brought in, Li Dayou's eyes have never left the mutton. He closed his eyes and smelled the aroma of the meat, with an impatient smile on his face.
"You look cowardly!" The old party secretary glanced at him angrily, his eyes full of contempt.
For this son, the old branch secretary never thought highly of him.
"Uncle, I asked someone to get a few bottles of Wuliangye. Let's have a taste today!"
"Wuliangye?" Li Dayou's eyes lit up and he swallowed.
Each person had a white enamel vat, and the wine that Wang Zhong poured was naturally not available to Debao and the others.
"Come on! Let's not talk about the empty stuff, let's take a bite first!"
"A whole mouthful!"
Everyone raised glasses to each other, drank heavily, and ate large pieces of meat. There were smiles on their faces, and it was very lively.
"Eat meat!"
"Eat meat!"
"You're welcome, eat hard!" Wang Zhong greeted everyone.
"Don't be afraid that you've finished eating. There's still a lot in the pot! Just add more when you're done!" Shui Hua also greeted everyone cheerfully and put two large pieces of fat and white meat in De Hua's bowl: "De Hua, eat hard! Qian Don’t save it for your brother Wang Zhong!”
"Well! Thank you Sister Shuihua!" Dehua is Debao's younger sister and Ma Huashui's third daughter. She is still studying with Teacher Bai in Yongquan Village. She usually follows Gawa's mother, who is their aunt who lives in Yongquan Village. It’s almost the Chinese New Year in Quancun, so Debao’s mother took her over to celebrate the Chinese New Year with everyone.
Originally, Ma Huashui and Debao's mother wanted to take Gawa's mother over to celebrate the New Year, but Gawa's mother refused to leave Yongquan Village, saying she was afraid that Gawa's father would not be able to find her when he came back.
Ma Huanshui and Debao's mother had nothing to do about this. Gawa's father had been running away for more than ten years, and there was still no news at all. He didn't know whether he was dead or alive.
"How are your results?" Shuihua asked with a smile.
"The results are not bad!" Although she said this, the smile on Debao's mother's face could not be concealed.
"Dehua must work hard, study hard, go to high school, and take the college entrance examination. Best of all, go to Yanjing!" Shuihua said to Dehua.
"How can she pass the exam and go to college? If she can be lucky enough to go to a technical secondary school, she is blessed by her ancestors!"
"Auntie, you can't think so. Things are not as good as before. In the future, education will get better and better, and competition will get bigger and bigger. Nowadays, technical secondary school students will be assigned jobs after graduation, but when they get there, it will cost them At that time, it won’t necessarily be the case.”
"No jobs are assigned to technical secondary school students? How is that possible!" Not to mention Li Dayou, even Ma Huashui, the old party secretary, and Debao looked in disbelief.
After all, Defu is the best example. After graduating from the agricultural school, he was first assigned to the Dao Agricultural Technology Station, and then seconded to the Diaozhuang Office. Now the staff has been transferred to the Diaozhuang Office.
Wang Zhong took a piece of mutton to the old party secretary and said: "The central government has made it clear that in the next few years, the package allocation for graduates will gradually be reduced, not only for technical secondary school students, but also for college students and college students. reduce."
"In a few years, maybe even after graduating from college, there will be no allocation!"
"The central government really issued a message?" The old party secretary looked at Wang Zhong with burning eyes, a look of disbelief on his face.
Wang Zhong smiled and said: "Uncle, why did I lie to you? Besides, do I dare to make such nonsense?"
Everyone shuddered and took a closer look, it was indeed the case.
"We don't even have distribution, so what's the point of studying so hard! What's the use of taking exams for technical secondary schools and universities?" Li Dayou said angrily.
"Uncle Dayou, that's not what you said!" Wang Zhong said with a smile: "If you were an employer, a college student, a technical secondary school student, and a farmer who had never studied, which one would you choose? ?”
"That must be a college student!" Li Dayou replied without thinking, but he reacted as soon as the words were spoken.
Wang Zhong smiled and did not continue to pull Li Dayi apart. Instead, he turned to the crowd and said: "We farmers have no skills and cannot help the children. The only thing we can do is to provide them with education. Let them work hard to learn knowledge in school, and when they graduate, they can find their favorite jobs and earn a lot of money even if they are not assigned."
"Farmers work hard all their lives with their faces turned to the earth and their backs to the sky. They are busy from the beginning of the year to the end of the year without stopping for a moment. But in the end, they still have to look at God's face and rely on God to provide them with food. If the year is not good, The crops in the fields will fail, and once the harvest fails, we won’t be able to harvest food, and we won’t have enough to eat.”
The old party secretary picked up the teapot and took a sip, and said in a sad tone: "Chongwazi is right! We farmers, since ancient times, have always relied on the sky to make our living."
"Dehua, do you want to work in the fields with your father and your mother from now on, or do you want to sit in the office and receive your salary comfortably!"
"I want to get my salary!" Dehua thought for a while and said firmly.
"Then study hard, go to high school, and go to college. It's best to go to Yenching University. If you can get into Yenching University and graduate, you might be able to become a county chief!"
"I listen to Brother Wang Zhong! I want to be the county magistrate!" Dehua nodded and said firmly.
After saying that, she turned to her mother and said, "Mom! I want to study, and I want to be the county chief in the future."
"You're such a coward and you still want to be the county chief!" Debao's mother said angrily.
"Auntie, don't dampen the child's enthusiasm!" Wang Zhong said sternly: "Dehua, if you want to get into Yanda University, your current grades are not enough. You have to work harder. At least you have to be the first in the county. It’s possible.”
"She's like this. If she doesn't get first place in the class, she'll give it to the whole county!" Debao's mother rolled her eyes and said angrily.
Dehua gritted her teeth and said firmly: "I will work hard!"
Seeing her like this, Wang Zhong said seriously: "Then you should eat more meat and eggs. If possible, ask your mother to cook you another bowl of goat's milk every day. Use your brain when studying, eat more, eat more." The nutritious ones will make your brain work faster!"
Dehua looked at the mutton in the bowl, put a large piece of it into her mouth, and chewed it: "I want to supplement my nutrition!"
The serious expression and the funny look with a mouth full of mutton immediately made everyone laugh.
The atmosphere was also pushed to another level.
After three rounds of drinking, everyone's cheeks were slightly red from the alcohol.
Wang Zhong also took advantage of his drunkenness to talk about his intention to contract land and open up wasteland to try other businesses.
Unexpectedly, as soon as these words came out, the originally lively atmosphere immediately changed, and the smiles on everyone's faces gradually disappeared one by one.
Li Dayou looked Wang Zhong up and down: "Chong Wazi, you don't have a fever, do you?"
"Uncle Dayou, don't be joking, I'm very well behaved, why do I have a fever!"
"If you don't have a fever, why are you talking nonsense?"
Ma Huanshui woke up instantly, stared at Wang Zhong, and warned with a solemn expression: "Chong Wazi, this is not a joke. Have you thought about it?"
"Call Uncle Shui, I've thought about it!" Wang Zhong nodded seriously.
"Over there at the brick kiln, let uncle and uncle Shui watch it together. If anything happens, just discuss it directly with uncle. If I have time, I will go there and take a look. If something happens that I really can't solve, I’ll solve the problem later.”
"You idiot, you really don't want to give up, do you?" Li Dayou's face was not very pretty, his eyes were wide and a little bloodshot, as if he was anxious.
"Uncle Dayou, don't worry!"
"I've thought about it!" Wang Zhong said: "The brick kiln makes a profit. I will give 50% of the dividends every year, 10% of which will be given to my uncle and uncle Shui. From now on, the brick kiln will have to take care of you two. point."
"The remaining 40% is used to support the children in our Yongquan Village and Jintan Village to study. As long as they are in high school, I will cover their tuition, tuition and miscellaneous fees. It will be paid out of this money, and For those who are admitted to school, whether they are technical secondary schools, junior colleges, or universities, I also cover the tuition fees. Each child will be given a cash reward. A technical secondary school award of 500, a junior college award of 800, and an ordinary undergraduate award of 1,000. If you pass the exam, For the heavy snowfall of Project 985, one person will be rewarded 1,500 yuan!”
"If you get admitted to the top domestic universities such as Yan University and Shuimu, the cash reward will be two thousand!" Wang Zhong raised two fingers and raised his hand above his head, and said loudly.
Everyone was stunned by Wang Zhong's words, their faces full of astonishment.
"Chongwazi, are you serious?" After a while, the old party secretary was the first to come to his senses!
Wang Zhong nodded and said: "No matter how poor you are, you cannot afford education; no matter how miserable you are, you cannot suffer for your children!"
"Why are we in Xihaigu so poor? Is it just because we can't grow crops in the land?"
"No! No! The poor land is just one aspect. Even if the soil is fertile, just growing crops can only fill our stomachs. If we want to be rich and live a better life, we need advanced talents. We need advanced talents. is the appropriate method!
We are poor here, and those highly educated advanced talents are now focused on running to the big cities along the coast. What can we do to attract them in our ravines, Gobi Desert, and places without even water?
A great man once said that if there are no conditions, we will create them. Since there are no outside talents, then we will train our own talents, send our own children to study, and go to universities outside to learn advanced knowledge.
When they succeed in their studies in the future, they can come back and lead our fellow villagers, use the knowledge they have learned to build our hometown better, and turn this Gobi Desert into a real fortress in Jiangnan! Take off the poverty label from the heads of those of us immigrants in Diaozhuang Village, and turn it into a wealthy village that ranks among the top in the country! "
"Brother Wang Zhong, after hearing what you say, I want to go to school too!"
Debao looked at Wang Zhong, who was high-spirited and talking, his face filled with confidence, and he said something out of nowhere.
But as soon as he finished speaking, he was hit on the head.
"You are such a coward, you don't even take a picture of yourself by peeing. Are you a student?" Ma Huashui glared at Debao and cursed.
In the past two years, Mai Miao went to study in the county town, and Debao was beaten with the soles of Ma Huanshui's shoes and whipped with a cane. The beatings hit Debao on his back and the skin on his buttocks was raw, but he didn't even hum. I refuse to study anymore.
And his grades in school were simply terrible.
"I'm just talking, I'm just having fun with it!" Debao felt pain, rubbing his head, with a look of grievance on his face.
"Okay!" Debao's mother felt sorry for her son and glared at Ma Huanshui: "Just say it properly, what are you going to do?"
Ma Huashui snorted and turned to look at Wang Zhong: "Chong Wazi, this is no joke. You will spend a lot of money every year doing this!"
"Uncle Shui, don't worry. I know it well. I've thought about it carefully. We only have a small number of people in Yongquan Village. Even if we include Jintan Village here, there are not many children studying, especially those who are of the right age to take the exam. The reason why I made this decision is that as long as the children have a head start, they will definitely be more attentive when they study. As long as one or two talents come out, they can come back to help us build in the future and lead us to become rich. Then we The cost paid is nothing.”
