The booming era begins with the director of the Propaganda Department!

Chapter 290 Stupid object!

After thinking about Tian Xiaozao, Zhang Shenfei thought of Chen Xueru again. He wondered how the baby in her belly was doing.

When we met before coming, Chen Xueru said that the baby had started to move, her early pregnancy symptoms had disappeared, and now she had a good appetite.

I think, since this child is good at eating, he will definitely become a fat girl/boy in the future.

When he thought about having his own child for the first time in his two lifetimes, Zhang Shenfei felt a strange warmth in his heart.

After thinking about Tian Xiaozao, Chen Xueru, and the unborn child, Zhang Shenfei looked at the watch and found that it was just past eight o'clock.

I still can’t sleep!!!
He simply stood up, took out a newly bought cowhide belt and a small bell from the space, and a small iron rod about ten centimeters long with holes that could be drilled, and began to study it.

Although he has been doing office work since he started working, Zhang Shenfei has always received comments from his teachers since elementary school that "this student has strong hands-on ability"! !

In a short while, the leather belt and the small bell were turned into a collar by his skillful hands.

Zhang Shenfei stretched out his hand and estimated the diameter, which was just the right size for Elena to wear.

nice!!
He nodded with satisfaction, then picked up the collar with two fingers and gently turned it, and the bell made a pleasant crisp sound.

At the moment, the only thing missing is a rope... This is easy to do. Zhang Shenfei found the unused rope that had been coated with oil from the space and fixed it on the collar.

Then it is perfect.

Very good. When I get back and have time, I will try it with Elena.

After finishing all this, it was already past ten o'clock. Zhang Shenfei put the collar, bell and rope back into the space, climbed back into bed and fell into a deep sleep.

A good night's sleep.

The next day, when Zhang Shenfei got up and washed, he smelled the aroma of large white steamed buns coming from the kitchen.

Steaming buns early in the morning is a very high standard.

By the time he finished washing up, breakfast was already on the table.

Big white steamed buns, cold beans, a large plate of fried eggs, sticky millet porridge, and a small dish of white sugar on the side.

Even the driver, Xiao Ma and Xiao Wang, and Director Sun of Nantai Commune were already sitting at the dining table.

"Director Zhang, conditions in our countryside are limited, not as good as in the city. I just made something casually this morning, so please make do with it." Seeing Zhang Shenfei appear, Director Sun stood up quickly.

"You're welcome. This breakfast has eggs and vegetables. It's already very rich." Zhang Shenfei said this not as a greeting.

Although the living standards of ordinary citizens in Beijing have indeed declined since the start of the planned economy.

But this year's situation is particularly obvious. Not to mention others, even Liu Haizhong can't guarantee to have a fried egg every day, and the others can only be worse off.

While a few people were having breakfast, they heard the squealing of pigs and the noisy voices of male members outside the door.

Zhang Shenfei figured out that everyone was trying to get Xiaozhuang into the car.

Today's millet porridge is really good, but considering that we have to travel at noon, we may not be able to eat it.

Zhang Shenfei drank two large bowls of millet porridge with sugar, and ate two large white steamed buns with eggs and vegetables.

After eating and drinking, the few of them came to the gate of the commune accompanied by Director Sun.

A large group of members had already gathered here, and everyone was grateful to Zhang Shenfei for helping them harvest the grain yesterday.

Knowing that they were going back to the city today, they spontaneously came to the gate of the commune to see them off.

"Director Zhang, this is the corn wine that our family brews ourselves. Let you have a taste of it." A bearded member of the cooperative said as he handed over a pot of wine.

"These are the pheasants and rabbits I shot in the mountains. They are not good stuff, but you can just eat them for fun." An old lady also handed over a basket.

"Director Zhang, Lian the driver, these are the mushrooms I picked on the mountain and dried. You can use them to stew meat in the winter. They are delicious."

"Thank you for helping us yesterday, my dear workers. We don't have much at home, and I saved these eggs."

"And me, and me, these are the shoes I made myself..."

A group of members gathered around, carrying bags, baskets and hampers, and without saying a word, they stuffed the things in their hands into Zhang Shenfei and even the driver's hands.

"Thank you, but we can't have it."

"No, this is our sincere gift!!!"

"Oh, okay then. Thank you all..." Zhang Shenfei could hardly hold his hands.

When I turned around, I found Xiao Wang holding a chicken in his left hand, a duck in his arms, and a basket full of potatoes on his back.

As for the pony? ? He held eggs in both hands, a chicken egg in his left hand and some other egg in his right hand, but he was not idle anyway.

Well, it seems that I have to collect this thing today.

Zhang Shenfei smiled helplessly. He didn't want to accept the gifts, but the members were too enthusiastic. In the end, he could only keep thanking them.

……

All the local specialties were loaded onto the truck with the help of the members and placed on the back of the truck bed.

Xiaozhuang, a fat pig with a fat head and big ears, was in the front of the truck bed, placed in an iron cage. He even had a big red flower made of red silk on his head, and was dressed up like a newlywed.

Nantai Commune was some distance away from Sijiu City. Director Sun was afraid that Xiaozhuang would starve, so he thoughtfully put some pig food in the iron cage.

After the big truck rumbled out,

Shen Fei half leaned out of the passenger seat window and waved to the people following behind.

"Goodbye!! Goodbye!!! Goodbye comrades, please don't send me off anymore."

"Go back, go back."

He retreated back into the cab only when he could no longer see the others.

"Director, these farmers are so enthusiastic and simple." Lian Jiashi couldn't help but sigh.

"Who says it's not true?" Zhang Shenfei also sighed, "No matter what era it is, the farmers are the ones who suffer."

Life is hard digging in the soil for food, and even after decades, the situation will not improve.

"Thanks to the existence of the commune, farmers' lives have become much better." Even the driver didn't know what Zhang Shenfei was thinking, he just spoke out of his feeling.

He has been a driver for many years, traveling all over the country, often going to the countryside. No one can see the changes in rural areas more clearly than him.

Since collectivization, those small villages have been united and gathered together to build water conservancy and infrastructure, including schools, bathhouses, supply and marketing cooperatives, and hospitals.

How is this not getting better???

"I hope so. I hope everyone will get better and better." After hearing his words, Zhang Shenfei fell into deep thought.

……

The way back was as difficult as the way there, just like the eighty-one difficulties that Tang Monk went through to obtain Buddhist scriptures.

Along the way, even the driver was busy repairing the car, adding water and cleaning the wheels, and he was having a lot of fun.

Fortunately, they set out from Nantai Commune at six in the morning and finally arrived near the steel mill at two in the afternoon.

A fat pig weighing 250 kilograms was considered very fat in that era when white-striped pigs had not yet been introduced. A commune might not produce just one in a year.

Such a pig would be the focus wherever it goes, but for the steel mill, what they value more is not Xiao Zhuang's body, but the political significance it represents.
This year is the first year of national collectivization. As a supporting unit of Nantai Commune, the steel rolling mill helped them build a lot of infrastructure.

The big fat pig sent by Nantai Commune represents the friendship between the peasant brothers and the working class big brother.

It also represents the achievements and political performance of the steel mill in helping the commune.

So no matter from which perspective, the steel mill must treat this matter as a big deal as much as possible, and the wider the impact, the better.

On the day when Zhang Shenfei drove to Nantai Commune, Director Yang began to organize activities to welcome the fat pig Xiaozhuang.

This morning at around eight o'clock, as soon as the workers arrived at the factory, they began to clean, put up banners, and prepare for the welcome party.

At two o'clock in the afternoon, Chief Qiao of the Security Department was standing on a high roof. He was the first to spot a large truck approaching the factory from afar. He immediately ran to the factory director's office at the speed of a 100-meter sprint to report.

Not long after,
The workers heard the voice of Director Yang coming from the factory loudspeaker. "Workers! Comrades, today is the day to welcome Xiaozhuang into the factory.

I declare that throughout the entire steel rolling mill, except for the security department and instrumentation staff, no one can be left their posts.

All the remaining employees must go to the auditorium to attend the commendation meeting and the welcoming meeting.

"Repeat!!! Fatty Xiaozhuang will be arriving at the factory soon. All workers, please go to the auditorium immediately to attend the welcoming ceremony for Fatty Xiaozhuang."

"Comrades, fellow workers, Xiao Zhuang is here!!!"

"Xiao Zhuang is here!!!"

"Xiao Zhuang is here!!!"

The broadcast was repeated three times, and the entire steel mill was in an uproar.

"Xiao Zhuang is here, Xiao Zhuang is here."

"Xiao Zhuang is really coming."

"Hurry... hurry, hurry to the auditorium, Xiao Zhuang is coming."

"Finally I have meat to eat. I am drooling in my dreams every day."

"I was just talking about it. I dreamed about Xiao Zhuang last night, and I chased him and gnawed him."

A large number of workers poured out of the workshop, running and shouting loudly.

Starting from the Chinese New Year this year, purchase restrictions on pork, mutton and beef were implemented.

The Han people are allowed to eat half a catty of pork and five ounces of beef and mutton per month, while the ethnic minorities are allowed to eat one catty and four ounces of beef and mutton per month.

In theory, this ration is not too small, but the problem is that no one is willing to eat the entire ration.

Most of the time, people used their meat coupons to buy fat to make lard, and the lard residue left over from refining was used to cook or make dumplings.

The only times of the year when people could really stew meat were during the Mid-Autumn Festival and the Chinese New Year, but the meat coupons did not increase during these two times.

It can be said,
Most people in the steel mill haven't had a good meal of pork for more than half a year.

The appearance of fat pig Xiaozhuang is definitely as important as the Chinese New Year in the hearts of everyone in the steel rolling mill.

As soon as the driver drove to the gate of the steel rolling mill, he saw that Lao Qin and Lao Dong had already opened the gate wide.

There was also a banner hung at the factory gate with a few big words written on it - Welcome home Fat Pig Xiaozhuang.

Well, in order to welcome Xiaozhuang, a special banner was made.

This is much more upscale than the general banner that Zhang Shenfei had previously used to prepare blind dates for the male workers in the factory and the female workers in other factories.

The truck went all the way into the steel mill and did not stop, but drove straight to the entrance of the auditorium.

Finally, with a squeak, the truck stopped firmly at the door of the auditorium.

Zhang Shenfei opened the passenger door, jumped out of the car swiftly, and waved to the people waiting at the auditorium entrance.

"Hello comrades, we are back from Nantai Commune!!!"

No one paid any attention to him.
He just stretched his head and looked into the truck: "Director Zhang, you are back? Where is Xiaozhuang?"

"Where's Xiao Zhuang? Where's Xiao Zhuang?"

"I just miss Xiaozhuang..." Even Director Yu said so.

Ah, this...

I am the deputy director of a steel mill after all. How can I be inferior to a pig? Zhang Shenfei's eyes flashed with embarrassment.

But he quickly calmed down and told everyone that Xiaozhuang was in the back of the truck.

"Okay, okay, the factory is holding a welcome party for Xiao Zhuang. Director Zhang, you should pack up and come in quickly."

Director Yang walked to the back stall, looked Xiao Zhuang up and down with a gaze as if he was looking at his first love, then turned to Zhang Shenfei and said.

"Okay. The road is dusty, I'll go wash my hair." Zhang Shenfei nodded and waved to Sha Zhu.

"Silly Zhu, quickly organize people to take Xiao Zhuang down, clean him up, and send him to the auditorium."

Sha Zhu immediately ran over and said, "Brother Da Fei, go ahead. I promise to complete the task."

After washing up and changing his clothes, Zhang Shenfei walked into the auditorium and sat next to Director Yang.

The steel rolling mill auditorium is very large and can accommodate several thousand people.

At this time, all the workers were either sitting or standing below, while the leaders were sitting on the side of the stage. There was a microphone wrapped in red cloth on the table in front of them.

Everyone is ready and just waiting for Fat Pig Xiaozhuang to appear.

Seeing Zhang Shenfei coming over, Yan Jiecheng trotted over with a big red flower in his hand: "Leader, this is for you."

Ah, this...

Zhang Shenfei remembered the big red flower on Xiaozhuang's head and quickly refused.

If I also wear the same big red flower, wouldn't it be the same as bowing to heaven and earth, and then to my parents, like Xiaozhuang?

He quickly waved his hands: "No, don't do these formalities."

"Leader, you are very conscious." Yan Jiecheng gave a thumbs up.

After walking out with the big red flower, he casually placed it on the table beside him.

……

In the auditorium,
Director Yang cleared his throat and began to speak:
"Comrades, today is the ceremony to welcome the fat pig Xiaozhuang. But I want to talk about another thing first.

As everyone knows, our deputy factory director and canteen director Comrade Zhang Shenfei went to Nantai Commune yesterday to welcome Xiaozhuang.

However, when he arrived at Nantai Commune, he encountered a heavy rain. The wheat in Nantai Commune was still drying at the time. If it rained, everything would be ruined! ! ! ! "

"At this critical moment, our deputy director Zhang acted decisively and led the company's drivers and Xiao Wang and Xiao Ma from the security department to help Nantai Commune harvest grain...

With their help and the help of the trucks, the grain of Nantai Commune was finally stored in the warehouse before the heavy rain came. "

"Comrade Zhang Shenfei led the workers to help Nantai Commune harvest grain, which was our selfless friendship with our peasant brothers.

Therefore, the factory decided to commend Comrade Zhang Shenfei and give him an additional reward of 10 yuan! ! ! ! The other three people will each receive a reward of 5 yuan."

As soon as he finished speaking, there was a burst of applause.

Director Yang waved his hand, signaling everyone to stop, and then began to introduce the real protagonist of today - Xiao Zhuang.

As soon as the speech started, thunderous applause broke out in the auditorium, which was much more enthusiastic than the previous one.

Zhang Shenfei couldn't help laughing. In that era of material scarcity, leaders were no better than pigs!
Director Yang saw everyone's enthusiasm for Xiao Zhuang, so he stopped wasting time and directly shouted with the microphone: "Okay, I can see that everyone is waiting anxiously, so I won't waste time.

Let us welcome the big fat pig——Xiao Zhuang!!!"

"Pig, pig, pig!"

"Pig, pig, pig!"

There was a shout in the auditorium.
The side door of the auditorium banged open, and Sha Zhu, with a big red flower on his chest, walked onto the stage in a heroic and proud manner, leading Xiao Zhuang, who also wore a big red flower on his head.

Ha ha ha ha! !
A burst of small noises suddenly broke out in the auditorium, as if it could blow the roof off.

"Silly Zhu, are you going to get married???"

"My sister-in-law doesn't look like a local!!!"

"Can my sister-in-law's inability to speak be cured???"

A group of people started playing cymbals.

(End of this chapter)