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

Chapter 336 A Pack of Wolves!!
After a fierce battle, Zhang Shenfei rode his bicycle back to Yenching University under the cover of night.

Days pass one after another, and the problem of food continues.

Fortunately, this situation is not serious in subsidized university campuses.

In addition to studying, hanging out in the library, and playing chess with Old Wang every day, Zhang Shenfei also carried out the work of the Student Union in an orderly manner.

Soon it was the golden autumn of October, and it was another weekend evening.

The weather was still a bit hot, and after each household in the courtyard had prepared dinner, they set up a small table in the middle courtyard, put the food on it, and ate in the only bit of cool air.

Although there were many children, none of them were fighting or running around. They all sat quietly at their tables, staring at the food eagerly.

The six members of the Yan family sat around a low table.

On the low table stood a basket of cornmeal cakes with burnt bottoms, a large plate of pickled radish, and cornmeal porridge, but it was much thinner than in previous years and could clearly reflect a person's shadow.

Yan Jiefang wolfed down a pancake, and while his parents were not paying attention, he reached into the basket to grab another one.

With a snap, a pair of chopsticks were unsheathed like sharp swords and attacked quickly.

The next second, two red streaks immediately appeared on the back of Yan Jiefang's slightly strange, chubby hand.

"His father, you hit him too hard... Look at his hand, just say one word and it will be done." Aunt Yan said with some dissatisfaction.

If the swelling doesn't go away in a day or two, won't I have to spend money to buy ointment?
However, Yan Jiefang misunderstood what his mother meant, thinking that someone was on his side, and immediately shouted that he would still be hungry even if he only had a cornmeal bun for a meal.

"I'm still growing. If I'm delayed in my growth, what will I do in the future!!!" He muttered, but his father didn't say anything and he didn't dare to continue reaching out for the biscuit.

Yan Bugui snorted coldly and didn't want to pay any attention to Yan Jiefang's nonsense.

Unexpectedly, Sha Zhu came over with a net bag containing a lunch box. After watching the whole thing, he not only found some jokes for nothing, but also gave some comments:
"Uncle Yan, you are so stupid. It's just a cornmeal pancake. The child is not hungry. Why is it wrong to eat one more? Is it necessary for you to do that?"

As he spoke, he was thinking about the portion of braised cabbage he had just given to Sister Qin at the door.

The remaining pot-fried tofu is saved for myself to eat in the evening, and it is delicious when washed down with a little wine.

Yan Bugui looked at him and chuckled, "Silly Zhu, it's easy for you to talk so easily. Our Jiefang only produces 28 kilograms of sperm every month, and now there is a 30% discount, which means 19 kilograms and 6 ounces per month.

Six taels and six cents a day, which adds up to two taels and two cents in every meal... I have already calculated this.

It’s okay for him to eat an extra 2-liang-2-liang cornmeal cake today, but will you make up for the shortfall tomorrow for our family? ? ? "

After saying that, shut up and take a break.

Talking is very energy-consuming. In the past year, apart from teaching students, he has rarely spoken so much and has basically never given long speeches.

It was because I was so angry at the fool Zhu who was talking without any hesitation today that I was willing to waste so much saliva.

Well, after saying this, I felt like I had just wasted half a bowl of cornmeal porridge.

But then again,
The more the amount of food decreases, the more people eat.

Not to mention others, just himself, in the past a cornmeal pancake and a bowl of porridge were enough for him in the morning.

But I still eat like this, and I feel so hungry before nine o'clock.

The little boys in the yard, including the two in their family, were even worse. They cried out for hunger as soon as they left the table, and their eyes were all green.

Fortunately, he knew how to manage his life and told his children to go to bed after dinner.

Don't talk, don't open your eyes, and if you can't sleep, just close your eyes to minimize your energy consumption.

Sha Zhu just said something mean to Yan Bugui, but he didn't expect that he would be retaliated by the other party, and he immediately felt unhappy:

"No, why should I give you money? You are so flattering!!! If your family is hungry, that is your family's business. What does it have to do with me???"

After saying this, as if to deliberately anger Yan Bugui, he shook the lunch box in his hand.

This time,
The families gathered in the yard to eat were all unhappy.

"Silly Zhu, how can you talk like that? It has nothing to do with you, what are you talking about?"

"The cook is awesome. He will never starve to death in H years!!"

"Humph, in that lunch box...we are all hungry, while they are eating delicious food and drinking spicy drinks...tsk tsk tsk tsk, it's all fat and cream..."

"Don't push me too hard, I have to go to the security department to take a seat!!"

The last person to speak was Mr. Chen, who had already retired, had little energy and was in poor health.

In addition, most of the food was given to the children, and his feet had long been too fat to fit into shoes. There were holes left when he pressed them, so he could only wear slippers.

But this is not an isolated case. There are people gaining weight every month in Siheyuan, so no one takes it seriously.

Now that Uncle Chen had spoken, the others immediately fell silent.

But they all looked Sha Zhu up and down with inquiring and calculating looks in their eyes, which made his heart pound.

Looking at the crowd's red eyes and indignation, and listening to their chattering, Zhang Shenliang couldn't help but sigh at the foresight of his younger brother and his old lady.

I rented a house early and let the whole family eat outside. When I returned to the courtyard, I ate corn noodles and drank cold water like everyone else.

Look at the silly Zhu who has caused public outrage!!!
Even someone as honest as Zhang Shenliang could see that the girl was in trouble.

They all lived in the same courtyard, and everyone counted the rice in the pot every day, but He Yuzhu could have a full meal every day, and he even bullied those who were starving. Why? ? ! !
How many people looked at his lunch box with envy, and they did have the same idea in their mind, but they just lacked an opportunity.

Today, this guy has walked into the muzzle of a gun.

can only say,
No matter when, it is safe to integrate into the masses!

"You are such an idiot, you deserve to be reported." Xu Damao stared at Sha Zhu and sneered, "A guy like you won't survive more than three days in the palace!!!"

It was rare for Sha Zhu to not fight back. At this moment, he always felt that he was surrounded by a group of wolves.

Seeing that Sha Zhu had caused public outrage, the deaf old lady could not stand it anymore and scolded Yi Zhonghai, who was only concerned with feeding his daughter and had no intention of intervening in all this.
"Silly Zhuzi, what are you talking about? If you have nothing to say, just carry me home on your back!!! I'm tired and want to sleep."

Sha Zhu realized it slowly but finally came to his senses. He immediately and obediently ran to the deaf old lady, stuffed the lunch box into her hands, and prepared to carry her away from the place of trouble.

But at this time,

A young-looking female cadre wearing a formal dress walked into the middle courtyard carrying an oil-paper bag.

"Director Tian, ​​this is the Ik candied dates that the district gave us as a subsidy for the last meeting. They just came down today, and I brought them to you."

"Please help me, Xiao Gu, for making this special trip." Tian Xiaozao took it. The two exchanged a few polite words, and then she saw him out.

In fact, Tian Xiaozao had never known that there was a place called YiLke in the world.

However, since I joined the subdistrict office and became part of the G department, I have been attending meetings and studying frequently, and my knowledge has broadened a lot.

She knew that Iraq's relations with the United States were strained and it was sanctioned by the United States. Its economy was blocked, which made it unable to sell the candied dates it relied on for export.

In order to help Iraq out of its predicament, the Chinese government decided to import candied dates from Iraq, a country with which China had only established diplomatic relations a few years ago.

Candied dates??? Sweet!!! Good stuff!!!

When Tian Xiaozao came back after sending the people away, everyone, especially the children, all looked at the oil paper bag in Tian Xiaozao's left hand.

In an age of material scarcity, people always have an extreme desire for sweetness.

All eyes were staring, as if they wanted to penetrate the oil paper with their eyes, and then turn their eyes into hooks to hook the bag of Ilk candied dates into their mouths and devour them with relish.

After swallowing the saliva flowing out of their mouths, everyone began to complain: Today is really strange, in a short while, Sha Zhu and Tian Xiaozao showed off their wealth.

However, they dared to confront Sha Zhu, the eighth-level chef at the steel rolling mill, but did not dare to openly provoke Tian Xiaozao, who had already become the G-department of the street.

Even though he was jealous to death, he cursed Tian Xiaozao, the "Sugar Bean G Department" a thousand times.

Some people were even planning to take Tian Xiaozao along when they reported the incident to Sha Zhu, but on the surface they could only pretend that they didn't care at all.

Only Shazhu was very happy. Wasn't it that someone was helping him divert his attention?

Although he had a good relationship with Brother Dafei, the situation was critical and he couldn't care less.

After working in the unit for several years, Tian Xiaozao is no longer the little sun who used to strive to be an activist in the street with full enthusiasm.

She did not ignore the indescribable emotions in everyone's eyes, but just sighed in her heart that Dafei was worthy of being Dafei.

I had greeted her a few months ago. Usually, the whole family keeps a low profile and she has grown up in a sneaky way.

If there are some extra foods that really need to be known to others, you should make it clear and especially don't eat them alone in front of everyone.

Never test the dark side of human nature, these are Zhang Shenfei’s original words.

This time, everyone who was going to the meeting was present. Secretary Gu was not good at doing things, so he explained the situation directly in the yard.

So Tian Xiaozao quickly walked to his own dining table, opened the oil paper package, and invited everyone to come and taste it.

Everyone just felt that Tian Xiaozao seemed to be having hysterics.

"Dates, ah, no, Director Tian, ​​you really want us to eat such delicious dates???"

Looking at the orange-red translucent shape, the overall luster has a bit of waxy feeling, it seems like candied dates pickled in sugar water, Yan Bugui couldn't help swallowing hard.

"This, this thing looks like candied fruit, it must be a good thing, it must be very sweet, and it must be delicious!!" Although he did not eat the candied dates, Yan Bugui said three affirmations in succession.

Tian Xiaozao smiled politely: "I don't know, I've been to the district for so many meetings, and this is the first time I've received a subsidy...

It is said that this time they purchased it to aid Iraq. I guess they purchased too much, so it was our turn... Well, you try it. There are not many dates, so we divide it according to the number of people, one per person."

After receiving an affirmative answer from Tian Xiaozao, Yan Bugui immediately took action.

The dates felt sticky and damp in the hand, just like candied fruits stuck together.

When you put it in your mouth and take a bite, the thick meat is so sweet, as sweet as honey, so sweet that it makes you choke...

"Mr. Yan, are these Ikola candied dates delicious?" Jia Zhang asked, staring at Yan Bugui's mouth.

"Delicious and sweet!!!" Yan Bugui didn't finish his words and immediately grabbed five dates that he had been eyeing for a long time, "You said one for each person. I just ate my own, so now there are exactly five, not one more or one less."

He spread out his hands to show everyone. There were indeed five dates, but they were relatively large in the bag...

Everyone else also rushed forward to grab the dates.

Although Tian Xiaozao said that each person can only take one, but the YiLke dates are of different sizes, so only those who take the big ones can take advantage, right? ? ?
Soon, the candied dates wrapped in oil paper were divided up.

The children in the courtyard could no longer hold back. They grabbed the candied dates and stuffed them into their mouths, sucking on them with big gulps and shouting with joy.

The adults were happy eating the candies, but as they were having fun, they felt a little sad when they saw the ecstatic faces of the children.

After all, it's just a date, why are you so happy? ? ?

After eating the dates, Jia Zhang still had the pit in her mouth. She began to stir her tongue and comment on how the dates were too sweet, a little greasy and a little bitter.

"After tasting it carefully, I find that the dates produced in our Langyuan garden are not as good as them." Jia Zhang closed her eyes and savored the taste.

The dates in Langjiayuan are big in size but have small cores. They taste sweet but not greasy and can replenish blood.

It’s a pity that it has been nearly a year since she last ate the dates from there.

"What do you know, sister-in-law? These are from Iraq. How can they be the same as the dates here?" Liu Haizhong sneered, looking like the wild boar from Jia Zhang who couldn't eat fine bran.

After saying this, he glanced secretly at Tian Xiaozao, hoping that she, the street G-department member, would remember that he had bravely confronted Jia Zhang for her.

"That's right, I give it to you for free, but you still complain about it. You're really like a beggar who complains about the rotten food." Xu Damao also said hurriedly.

Qin Huairu saw her mother-in-law, the pillar of the family, being besieged, and hurriedly asked, "Where is Yi L Ke? How far is it from our city?"

"Who knows? Anyway it has to be farther than Baocheng..." Xu Damao said and glanced at Sha Zhu.

"Fuck you!!!" Sha Zhu wanted to get up, but was stopped by the deaf old lady.

"I think it should be next to the beautiful country."

"Maybe it's not far from the Little Country..."

"No, they are in the desert. It is said that the people there eat these candied dates three times a day..."

"Why are you talking about this? Talk about something else!!"

Everyone in the courtyard was talking about it. Those who had been thinking about reporting Tian Xiaozao as a member of the sugar bean department no longer had those little thoughts in their minds after eating the Yike candied dates.

In order to cover up his past dark thoughts, he attacked Sha Zhu and accused him of not being as broad-minded as Tian Xiaozao.

"Director Rentian finally brought back a bag of candied dates and distributed them to everyone, but you are just standing there, bringing back leftovers every day. Who else has seen any of them except the Jia family?"

"Who brings leftovers? Don't criticize me, my lunch box is empty!!!" Thinking of the wolf-like looks everyone gave him just now, Sha Zhu hurriedly explained.

home at night,

Zhang Shenfei couldn't help but sigh when he heard Tian Xiaozao recount what happened in the courtyard this evening:
"Now you know why I asked the whole family to go to Yunju Hutong for dinner?"

"I knew it a long time ago, but I didn't expect... You don't know, the way everyone looked at Sha Zhu today, it was as if they wanted to eat him..." Tian Xiaozao was still frightened.

"Then do you think Shazhu should be sympathized with?" Zhang Shenfei propped up his head and looked at her.

Tian Xiaozao pondered: "He always said that he took the leftovers, but in this situation, how could there be leftovers in the steel mill?"

To put it bluntly, isn't it just that Sha Zhu who withholds the workers' food rations every day?

Most of the residents of the courtyard house work in the steel rolling mill. What Sha Zhu did was equivalent to withholding other people's food rations and showing off in front of others.

Thinking about it this way, it seems understandable why everyone in the courtyard hates him.

"That's right!" Zhang Shenfei stroked Tian Xiaozao's hair gently, "Some people in the courtyard have long been dissatisfied with Sha Zhu, and it's actually good to talk about it today.

If Shazhu behaves well in the future and doesn't bring leftovers, at least not when he's eating, even if he's reported by J, it shouldn't be a big deal since he hasn't been caught in the act."

But if he still doesn't repent and continues to bring his lunch box, it's hard to know what will happen.

"By the way, tell my eldest brother and eldest sister-in-law tomorrow that we will only eat one meal a day in Yunju Hutong, and it must be in moderation."

Zhang Shenfei noticed that even with powder on, their child's complexion still looked much better than other people in the courtyard.

So after careful consideration, it was decided that from now on, everyone should eat only until they are 70% to 80% full. Even so, it is still much better than other people of this era.

At least, they had fine grains for that meal.

Tian Xiaozao knew what her man meant, so she naturally agreed.

Early the next morning,
After a night of intense fighting, Zhang Shenfei felt refreshed. He took out the letter from Yuan Longping from the table, which he had picked up yesterday but had not had time to read, and opened it.

Yuan Longping said in the letter that he had returned to Nanhu Province for one and a half months, and that the rice seedlings were growing well after transplanting, and after confirmation by industry experts he had contacted, it was 100% confirmed that they were natural hybrid rice.

Next, his task is to wait for the rice seedlings to mature, save the seeds and sow them again, and study whether they are hereditary...

At the end of the letter, he gave a brief account of the current situation in his Nanhu Province.

"Some time ago I had a dream that I could enjoy the shade under the rice... I know the road ahead is long and difficult.

But I believe that as long as the problem of cross-border rice can be solved, people will no longer have to endure the suffering they are experiencing today."

When Zhang Shenfei was watching intently, Qin Huairu came to his door.

"Director Tian, ​​Director Zhang, you haven't gotten up yet? The sun is shining on your butt."

"How can I not get up? Isn't it just lying down to reduce consumption..." Tian Xiaozao opened the door weakly and spoke weakly.

"Well, it's always like this. Our kids Banggeng and Xiaodang no longer play around in the alley every day. They just squat in the corner and stare blankly, saying that they can't run anymore..." Qin Huairu said and then changed the subject.

"Director Tian, ​​some relatives came from my mother's family. My uncle brought my cousin here. I want to cook a meal for them, but we don't have any white flour at home..."

As Qin Huairu spoke, her eyes were filled with sadness and shame.

Relatives from my mother's side came over, and they came all the way from Changping. They even brought five kilograms of dried sweet potatoes as a gift.

As the only daughter of the Qin family who married into the city, shouldn’t she be treated to a good meal?

But it was already the end of the month and the food at home was running out.

After welcoming her uncle and cousin into the house and sitting down to drink tea, Qin Huairu walked around the kitchen.
There was only a small handful of noodles in the noodle jar, and no rice at all. There was corn flour, but how could I use it to entertain my mother's relatives?
Not to mention whether she would be laughed at if she got back to the village, she couldn’t even show it herself!!!
Qin Huairu wanted to ask her mother-in-law for some money to buy some flour at the Pigeon Market, but was rejected again. She had no choice but to borrow from every household in the yard.

"Just now, the elder uncle lent me three taels of flour, and the elder uncle Xu in the backyard lent me one tael, asking me to make a dumpling soup for them.

But I thought that my uncle hadn’t come to the courtyard for two or three years, so I couldn’t make the dumpling soup, so I wanted to make vegetarian noodles for them…”

To make two bowls of noodles with gravy, you need at least eight taels of white flour mixed with water.

Thinking of this,

Qin Huairu couldn't help but complain in her heart that her uncle and cousin came at the wrong time. If they had come when Sha Zhu was at home, she wouldn't have made it so difficult.

Tian Xiaozao took out half a pound of flour ticket from his pocket and handed it over: "This is what my father gave me yesterday, asking me to give it to Dafei to replenish his body. Sister-in-law, you can take it first since it will be of great use to you."

"Thank you, Director Tian. Don't worry, I will return the food coupons to you tomorrow morning when Shazhu comes back tonight... No, no, anyway, I will return the food coupons to you immediately." Qin Huairu held the food coupons in her hand and left with many thanks.

"Wait until you have enough money. There is no need to rush now."

"Your family is not rich, so I won't be in debt for long." Qin Huairu's voice came from a distance.

The favor of half a pound of flour ticket was considered very great in that era, and Qin Huairu was filled with gratitude at this moment.

After Tian Xiaozao closed the door, he sat on the kang and began to sigh:
"Da Fei, why are our lives getting worse and worse?"

As they are all married girls, she can actually empathize with Qin Huairu's situation.

No, it’s not just Qin Huairu.

There is also the woman next door who gave birth but had no milk due to bad fantasies, and the old lady who was so hungry that she vomited saliva in order to save food for her child.

And the thief who went to the countryside to steal corn in the middle of the night just to feed his 80-year-old parents...

She had seen so much suffering in the world over the past six months that even though she used to be lively and optimistic, she gradually became pessimistic.

“Will all this ever be over?”

Zhang Shenfei hugged Tian Xiaozao and patted her shoulder: "Everything will be fine. There will be bread, milk, and everything..."

Although everything is very chaotic now, at least there are still many agricultural researchers like Yuan Longping who are still working hard to ensure that people have enough food to eat and no longer go hungry.

As long as you close your eyes and persevere, spring will always come and flowers will bloom.

(End of this chapter)