My 1978 Hotel

Chapter 112: The high-priced brothers are in jail, and writer Li has a small influence.

"Well, okay, I'll pick you up tomorrow morning with a bullock cart."

Han Anjun came back specially in the evening. It turned out that the Cultural Center in Tongcheng County organized an exchange meeting for writers and literature lovers. It was quite formal. They would set off early the next morning and take a tractor to the commune.

We arrived at the commune compound around ten in the morning, and then went to Hanjiaba. As for transportation, we had to walk. The commune wanted to help solve the transportation problem, but there was really no way. In recent days, because of the busy work of drought relief and disaster reduction, almost all the commune cadres went to the production team to work.

There were only a few unimportant staff members left in the entire commune. As for transportation, it was difficult to find one. At that time, it was not like the later generations, where almost everyone had a car, and it was rare to find bicycles in the commune compound.

As soon as Li Feng got the news, he went to Han Fuguo to borrow an ox cart. Han Fuguo hesitated for a while before agreeing, mainly because of the cultural center's face. Otherwise, he might not have lent the ox cart to Li Feng.

Early in the morning, as soon as Li Feng finished washing up, the team members came to his door carrying wooden buckets or wooden basins.

"Auntie Big Foot, how many loaches did you catch yesterday?"

"Not much, less than two pounds."

"Oh, that's a lot. I have nearly a kilogram at home." An Ning was holding a wooden basin, which was full of fish and shrimps. Although there were not many loaches, there were quite a few other fish and shrimps, at least six or seven kilograms.

"You have a lot of other fish at home, but I only have two pounds of knife loaches." Aunt Big Foot took a look. Not to mention that her family had the most knife loaches, she thought to herself that she should go back and tell her husband at home, and then go there to take a look at it again in the evening, but she must not let others know.

The other families caught more or less, with Anton, Anyou, and Anyu all catching around a pound each, along with some other miscellaneous fish. My sister-in-law's family actually caught over three pounds of eels. "Eels are great!"

There is no way. The number of knife loaches is getting smaller and smaller. I am afraid I can only bring back some eels. As for the miscellaneous fish, I will see when the time comes. After all, these creatures are not easy to raise. Soft-shelled turtles will also work, but unfortunately there are not many soft-shelled turtles caught. So far, there are less than twenty soft-shelled turtles.

So far, we have harvested quite a lot of eels, almost 30 kilograms, and almost 60 kilograms of loaches. We can harvest about 10 kilograms a day, which is pretty good. Of course, it is still a little short of Li Feng's goal.

"Auntie Big Foot, two catties and one ounce, sixty-three cents, and two and a half catties of small fish, twenty-five cents, that makes a total of eighty-eight cents. I'll give you one dollar."

"Oh, one dollar. I don't have any change."

Aunt Big Foot was delighted. Her grandfather and his men worked up all night yesterday and made no loss. They earned 88 cents, which was almost the same as a day's work for three strong laborers.

"It's okay, 12 cents. I'll keep it in mind for you and deduct it tomorrow."

"Well."

Aunt Big Foot took the dollar and carried the wooden bucket home happily. Other families came forward one by one, weighed the loaches and miscellaneous fish to sell for money. Those who got the money were very happy, and those who didn't catch any or caught little looked at those who caught more with envy.

There were also a few families who looked at the Li Feng family who had to queue up every day, and they felt so jealous, especially the Han and Wang families who had a bad relationship with Li Feng. They complained a lot, and who wouldn't be envious of the three or five cents they earned a day.

"Sister-in-law, three pounds of eels and two pounds of miscellaneous fish, one yuan and ten cents." Li Feng handed the money to the sister-in-law. One yuan and ten cents was more than the work points the sister-in-law earned in three days. It could buy more than ten pounds of repurchased grain, not to mention relief grain.

If she could earn this much money every day, her family would have enough food for two months. She called out to her sister-in-law to take it. "Dad, I'm going home first."

"to make."

Seeing that the fish and shrimp were almost bought and no one was coming anymore, Li Feng went back to his house and poured the razor-sharp loaches into a broken water tank, the yellow eels into a wooden barrel, and the miscellaneous fish and shrimp directly into a large wooden basin. He would process them later when he had time, and the small fish and shrimp would be dried directly in the sun.

The bigger ones can be stewed. I was lucky today and got several kilograms of big crucian carp. There were guests coming at noon, so I braised the crucian carp, fried some dried shrimps, and stewed some miscellaneous fish. These were just a few simple dishes. As for the stir-fried eel, forget about it because eels are easy to raise. I'd rather eat the miscellaneous fish first.

"Da Ya, Er Ya, Wen Juan, quickly get the dishes and chopsticks."

In the morning, I made a simple pot of mixed fish and some flatbreads. The flatbreads were incredibly delicious when soaked in the fish broth. "Delicious, one for each of us." Li Feng had hand-pulled the flatbreads, about a foot long and weighing about a pound, made entirely of unleavened dough.

One pancake of this thing is equivalent to a dozen small steamed buns. It is very filling and chewy. In particular, the pancake is mostly stuck on the iron pan to form a crispy crust, and one-third of it is soaked in fish soup, with the aroma and oiliness of the fish soup. It tastes both meaty and delicious.

"good to eat."

Zhang Wenjuan now feels that it is really good to be an educated youth in the countryside. The delicious food that she could not eat in a year at home, she ate all in less than half a month at her eldest brother's house. Her stomach could not tolerate meat before, but now her stomach has adapted to it and she can eat as much meat as she wants. She no longer gets diarrhea after eating two pieces of meat.

"It's delicious, eat more. There are plenty of fish and shrimp in the pot. Each person can have a bowl."

Not to mention that the flatbreads were really delicious. White flour mixed with cornmeal made it even more fragrant. Of course, it was sifted cornmeal, which was much finer. I happened to have piglets at home, so I sifted the cornmeal residue for them to eat. After dinner, Daya and Erya cleared the dishes and Zhang Wenjuan went to feed the pigs.

Li Feng didn't have much to do, so he cleaned up the house and went out. "Daya, remember to close the door when you leave."

"I understand, Dad."

"Oh, by the way, remember to write something."

Li Feng has been teaching Daya and Erya how to write these days, and Zhang Wenjuan is also helping to teach them. However, the girls' cultural level is a little low, and Li Feng is thinking about whether to send them to school. But in the end, he gave up. Zhang Wenjuan doesn't seem to be a good student. Forget it, she is quite good at raising pigs.

"Well, I'll write after I finish washing the dishes."

After explaining everything to his family, Li Feng went to the brigade to borrow an oxcart. He then discussed the matter with Han Futian. "What's the point of this discussion? I don't know how it's so dry in our countryside right now. Everyone's busy with drought relief efforts, while these city folks are eating commercial grain and don't have to worry about food."

Li Feng could still say that these people were really full, but they were doing it for his sake. Besides, they were giving him face by visiting the Shangliang Cultural Center last time. Otherwise, Yang Ming would not have been able to get such new color films and color projectors, which were treasures.

"Uncle Futian and Uncle Fuguo have both agreed, what do you think?"

"Go, you're really not only not helping but also causing trouble."

In the end, Han Futian approved it, but told Li Feng, "You better hurry up and don't delay the work."

"know."

Li Feng quickly agreed and said he would talk about it after he got the ox cart. After harnessing the ox cart, Li Feng did not delay and drove straight to the commune. He had not been to the commune for a few days, and his family really needed some food and daily necessities. For example, he had used too much oil to eat fish recently.

The lard jar is almost empty, so I have to buy some pork to refine the oil. Fortunately, Li Feng has a good relationship with the pig farm and can get a few more pounds of meat coupons every month. Now he has two pounds of meat coupons in his hand. He came to the meat stall and bought a piece of half fat and half lean meat early. As for the all-fat meat, it was gone by now.

"It's been a busy day."

The dirt road was already dusty, and now that it was dry, the dust was even more flying. Li Feng had no choice but to wrap a towel around his head. He really didn't like wearing hats. "Finally, we're here."

He took off his towel and patted himself down, but even then, Li Feng was still covered in dust. There was no other way. Not to mention the countryside, even in the city, the only people who wanted to be clean were officials. They didn't usually go out, and when they did, they had to have a car. Otherwise, even riding a bicycle would leave you covered in dust, so it would be hard to keep yourself clean.

"Go exchange the remittance first."

When they arrived at the post office, Wu Xiaofeng and Huang Xiaoli were not there, only Bai Jie was there. Li Feng was not very fond of Bai Jie. "Remittance slip?" Bai Jie took it and took a look at it, and was shocked. It was more than 100 yuan.

Wow, that’s as much as three months’ salary for her. She knew that Li Feng didn’t come to exchange the money for her several times recently. Usually, it was either Huang Xiaoli or Wu Xiaofeng, but he only came to her when the two of them were not around.

Unexpectedly, this guy is really capable. Alas, Bai Jie feels a little regretful. You know, Li Feng is in his thirties and still has no wife. Her age is a good match, and he has a very good job. If it weren't for the previous misunderstanding.

Maybe it's possible. You know, being this man's wife is not bad. I heard that this month's subsidies plus the money sent by relatives alone are thirty or forty yuan, not counting the royalties. That's hundreds of yuan. There are few young cadres in the entire commune or even the county who can compare with this salary.

Li Feng didn't know what Bai Jie was thinking, otherwise he would definitely spit in her face. What are you dreaming of? He has a wife and will definitely not have an affair. He is not that kind of person. At most, he will make a few female friends.

"What's wrong? Can't redeem it?"

"Sign it."

Bai Jie spoke in a slightly softer tone. She was usually not polite at all to those who came to do business. A bunch of country bumpkins expected her to be polite when she came from a county town. What a joke! It was a good deed that she didn't scold them.

After exchanging the money, Li Feng casually put it in his pocket and asked for the readers' letters. Bai Jie rarely helped to find them. "There are quite a few. Are these packages?" Bai Jie was a little stunned. Usually, these were done by Huang Xiaoli and Wu Xiaofeng. She and Li Feng had a bad relationship, so she didn't care much about Li Feng's affairs.

Unexpectedly, Li Feng received so many letters from readers, and many of them were special registered letters. She knew what these letters usually contained: cloth coupons, food coupons, foreign exchange coupons, and parcels.

These are real things being sent, and they are all labeled. This is malted milk, and there are also candies, biscuits, and fruits. These are all real good things. There are several packages, at least four or five pounds.

Being a writer, this is too good to be true. Bai Jie doesn't know that most writers don't have this kind of treatment. Because "Scars" was not published, it became even more popular than it was after it was published. The more you ban a banned book, the more young literary people like it these days.

Moreover, the educated youth regarded Li Feng as their spokesperson and leader, and were willing to write letters and send things to Li Feng. There were quite a lot of educated youth and literary youths across the country, tens of millions or even hundreds of millions. If this guy didn't have a publishing house to send letters to, then he could only give them to Li Feng, the author.

The address was clearly written at the bottom of the manuscript for "Scars." If it weren't for the remote mountainous area, readers would have already come to the address. Li Feng took the letters and parcels and put them in the basket. He didn't have time to talk to Bai Jie and headed straight for the supply and marketing cooperative.

I bought the pork, but I was out of soy sauce at home. So I came here with a soy sauce bottle to buy a full bottle. I had almost no food coupons left, but luckily they were enough to buy two pieces of dried tofu. Coincidentally, I still had some dried tofu today.

"Okay, this is enough for now."

After buying the things, Li Feng drove the ox cart to the commune. Unexpectedly, the exchange writers and members of the literature lovers club were not there, so Wu Shengnan came over.

"That's right, I have something to talk to you about."

Huang Shengnan seemed quite anxious, and Li Feng was a little confused. What could be more important than welcoming the exchange writer? "What is it?"

"Your cousin has been reported."

"What's the matter?"

Li Feng was a little confused. Who was reported? His cousin, the brothers Gao Ju and Gao Cheng. They had been out for almost ten days, going to the previous village to purchase porcelain and the like. Of course, they did it secretly, and they were shaving people on the surface.

"why?"

How did he get caught? Li Feng was a little panicked. Getting caught these days is not a good thing.

Wu Shengnan had just learned a little bit of information, not much, and now she knew she had been reported for sneaking around and asking about something. Oh my god. She was being treated as a spy. Damn it! Li Feng was really panicking. This was no joke.

What if he is imprisoned and sentenced to a few years? In even more extreme cases, he may even be shot.

“Who reported it?”

Li Feng didn't care about communicating with writers anymore. His own employees were the most important. Without them working, he could not make more than two dollars in ten days or half a month just by relying on the few work points he earned. It was far from enough to buy knife loaches.

How could he not be panicked? Besides, Gao Ju and Gao Cheng helped him pack up his things. If something happened, Li Feng would definitely feel guilty.

"The barber of the production brigade."

Wu Shengnan shared the news with Li Feng. It turned out that the barber in the brigade had reported him. Generally, the larger brigades had their own barbers. Even if there were no barbers in the three or five neighboring brigades, they would still have barbers contracted to them.

At the end of the year, either the brigade gave work points, or other brigades gave food, so there was always some income at the end of the year. This had already been allocated and settled. Who would have thought that when the brothers Gao Ju and Gao Cheng came, they shaved their heads relatively well, so it was nothing serious for some young people to get their hair cut secretly.

It didn't prevent the barber from earning work points and food, but who would have thought that several young men from the brigade would actually start to stir up trouble and want to give the contract to the brothers Gao Ju and Gao Cheng. The two of them also had letters of introduction, and the place was not too far away, so it would not be a big problem for them to come two or three times a year.

This has affected other people's interests. In addition, some of Gao Jue and Gao Cheng's behaviors were somewhat suspicious. If they were not reported, the report and investigation would reveal that they had done a lot of things.

Porcelain, silver coins—these are all considered "Four Olds." Anything else must be sold to the state. Normally, that's fine, but now that they've been caught, there's no easy solution. Fortunately, the county officials called Wu Shengnan as soon as they received the news. After all, Gao Ju and Gao Cheng's letters of introduction said she was a cousin of writer Li from Hanjiaba.

He is a writer, and a famous writer in the county. He has a good relationship with Wu Shengnan. He told Wu Shengnan the news as soon as he got it.

"There won't be a sentence, will there?"

Li Feng thought, this is really troublesome, this is bullshit. "Where are they now?" The worst-case scenario is that Li Feng takes the two of them back to the modern era. As for what happens next, the worst that can happen is that they won't come here again.

The Space-Time Hotel has suspended operations. Of course, this is the worst outcome, and Li Feng definitely doesn't want that.

"I've already spoken for you."

Wu Shengnan said, "I'm afraid it won't be out for a while. It's not a big problem, but there are some issues with those things."

"That's good."

It's good to be able to come out. As for the things, forget about them for now. I'll talk about it after I come out. I'm really unlucky. "Oh, now I have to treat the writers who come here well." The identity of a writer is too useful, I have to manage it well.

(End of this chapter)