The golden age began in 1977

Chapter 16: Firecrackers blasted, gongs and drums roared (asking for your recommendation votes on Monday)
Liu Eryi became Qian Jin's orderly.

Liu Eryi packed his luggage for the trip to the countryside, wiped the enamel pots clean, and folded his clothes neatly.

Qian Jin flattened the golden box and stuffed it between the bed boards, placing a copy of Red Flag magazine on top.
"You don't have to work hard every day, take a break later."

"But Eryi, you have to watch the house for me. Don't open the door to anyone who comes—the neighborhood committee just caught two vagrants who were picking locks yesterday!"

The four little ones nodded in unison, just like four chicks pecking at rice.

Speaking of the large amount of supplies, he explained, "I don't have much left to eat."

"Because I don't have much to bring back to the city, I'm going to try to exchange more food with the villagers this time."

He gave the uneaten grains to Liu Dajia and left him a bowl of pickles.

No meat can be left.

Too extravagant, too eye-catching.

It’s okay if you eat it secretly under your own control, but if it is taken out and seen by the neighbors, it will definitely be a big trouble!
They also had pickles for dinner.

For the four little ones, this is still a very delicious food.

Pickles in the 21st century are made with plenty of ingredients, including spices and oils.

Qian Jin had bought cheap and ordinary pickles, which were still greasy after being poured into the bowl.

In comparison, the pickles in Sixiao's family are mostly radish tops soaked in salt water, which are not of the same quality.

After tasting it, the four children immediately nodded: "It's more delicious than meat."

Qian Jin met up with Xu Weidong in the morning.

Xu Weidong was wearing an old military uniform. Seeing him carrying a shoulder bag and a net bag, he was stunned:
"Are you going to support the farmers or to the market?"

He glanced at the can of pickled vegetables and said enviously, "Wow! The shredded mustard greens are so oily. They must be a special supply from the department store, right?"

Qian Jin tightened the hemp rope and said, "Isn't it said that I can exchange it for mountain products in the countryside? I spent all the money and tickets at home."

Xu Weidong suddenly realized: "Oh, you really are planning to go to the countryside to do business. OK, I was right about you, you are very courageous."

Then he chuckled and came forward with the money: "We agreed to split it up, I want to take advantage of you."

Qian Jin said, "Okay."

When you are in an unfamiliar place, it is good to have someone you know to take care of you.

After meeting, the two took the bus to the Agricultural and Industrial Bureau.

The Agricultural and Industrial Bureau and the Municipal Armed Forces Department are neighbors. The two units share a large playground. Today, the labor assault team's reporting work is being carried out on the playground.

At this time, the playground was filled with the sound of gongs and drums, and firecrackers were blasting. The slogan "Grasp the Revolution and Promote Production" was pasted on the wall, which was so fresh that it could be rubbed with red paint.

There were more than a dozen leaders standing on the rostrum, and the agricultural support teams from various units were holding red flags and shouting incessantly.

Xu Weidong was surprised: "This agricultural support campaign is on a huge scale."

"Maybe it's because the typhoon came too quickly." Qian Jin pinned the red armband of 'Taishan Road Labor Commando' on his arm.

He glanced around and saw that the walls of the playground were covered with mobilization orders to support the autumn harvest in rural areas.

The air was filled with the smell of ink and sweat, and the song "The East is Red" played on a loop on the loudspeaker mixed with the noise of the crowd, which shocked and surprised him.

But he knew that such a scene would be hard to see again.

Starting next year, the economy will take the lead, and this kind of support for agriculture and border areas activities should come to a halt.

"Old Qian! Here!" someone shouted.

Qian Jin looked over.

The red flag waved by Zhu Tao swept across Zhou Yaozu's liberation cap.

Zhou Yaozu counted the number of people and found that their team was only two people short of being complete.

Everyone gathered together to smoke and chat, completely unmoved by the current scene.

The same is true for other teams.

Qian Jin discovered that the enthusiasm he saw at the beginning was just superficial. Upon closer inspection of the people who participated in supporting the labor, each of them was either full of grumbles or complaining continuously.

At this time, someone called out to him: "Qian Jin, Qian Jin, has anyone seen Comrade Qian Jin?"

It was Liu Youniu who came.

Qian Jin smiled: "Brother Niu, why are you here too?"

Liu Youniu said: "This time we have to rush to harvest corn before the storm arrives. The task is very heavy. Basically all major units in Haibin City have mobilized labor activists to participate."

"Our unit definitely had to send someone. No one wanted to go to the countryside and suffer, so I took the lead. After all, I'm from the countryside."

He suggested that Qian Jin and his team go with him to the Hongxing Liujia Production Team: "That's my hometown. We're familiar with the place and the route. It'll be easy to talk and handle things when the time comes."

"Okay." The members of the Second Assault Team were happy to do so.

The mobilization meeting for the agricultural support action opened.

The leaders took turns speaking.

The ideological level is very high, but it is not enough to just talk about it. Several leaders have to personally lead teams to go to the countryside to support agriculture.

This time, not only Xu Weidong, but also the other members of the second team said: "It wasn't like this before. This agricultural support campaign is so grand."

"The summer flood response was nothing compared to this time."

"Oh no! We're not really going to the front lines this time, are we? The specifications are wrong!"

After the mobilization meeting, staff from the Agriculture and Industry Bureau came to check the procedures.

He stamped the receipt with his official seal, waved his hand, and said, "Okay, now that you're all here, let's clear the way to Emmas."

More than a dozen bicycles set off in a mighty procession.

We walked along the dirt road leading to the Hongxing Liujia Production Team again. This time, the scene was grand when we arrived at our destination.

Liu Youniu rode his bike to lead the way to the threshing ground, and a big red banner came into view from a distance - Warmly welcome the city's labor assault team to support our team's autumn harvest!

Twenty or so children lined up, banging on enamel basins.

When they came, they started banging away.

At the front of the team was an old man in a Zhongshan suit. He took two quick steps and wrapped his rough hand around Zhou Yaozu's hand:
"Comrades, our fellow villagers have been waiting for you!"

Liu Youniu laughed out loud: "Uncle Wangcai, that's enough. We came here on our own. We don't have any photographers or reporters from the city."

Liu Wangcai, the production team leader, also laughed and said, "Don't talk nonsense. We're not doing this because we value the photographers or anything like that. We value the leaders who came to support us."

Liu Youniu said nonchalantly, "How can there be a leader? These four are my colleagues, and that team are my neighbors on the street."

"We are on the same street as Jiaqing." Liu Youguang, who followed, said with his head held high.

Liu Wangcai asked, "Then we don't need to worry about appearances?"

Zhou Yaozu said, "No need. Captain, please find us a place to stay. We can put down our gear and get to work."

The typhoon has landed and they must race against time.

But it was already noon.

Liu Wangcai said, "The emperor has no need of hungry soldiers," and asked someone to bring the prepared lunch.

A large bowl of boiled corn, a large bowl of sweet potato noodles, and chopped toon leaves to go with the rice.

The Chinese toon pickled in spring can be preserved until autumn, all thanks to the willingness to add salt.

The chopped salty toon still retains a bit of the freshness of spring. It tastes great when sprinkled into the noodles. With a clove of garlic, Qian Jin feels that it is more fragrant than any seaweed rice.

The team members were all hungry and ate voraciously.

Only Liu Youniu was squatting outside the door and eating cold steamed bread.

Liu Wangcai tried to pull him away, but he waved his hand and said, "Uncle Wangcai, our family can just eat this. I am better off than the other members of the cooperative."

The members had no time to rest or eat.

At noon, the elderly and children from the family came to bring some food. They took the time to eat a few bites in the field, and then continued to work hard in the field.

The cornfields in autumn are surging with yellow waves, and the straw is rustling in the autumn wind.

The old farmer waved his sickle to cut through the dead leaves, and the woman behind him carried a basket to pick corn.

The men picked up their hoes and grabbed the corn stalks by the roots and tied them into bundles. After they were tied up, some people carried them away and piled them into haystacks at the edge of the field.

The commandos were tired after pedaling all the way, so entering the farmland was just a formality.

Liu Youniu is an exception.

He was indeed like an ox, working a field by himself.

After diving into the ground, he grabbed the corn cob with his left hand and swung the hoe with his right hand, hitting the corn cobs left and right, and the corn cobs he broke off slammed into the basket, making the grasshoppers on the edge of the basket jump around.

The children who were waiting rushed over immediately to catch the grasshoppers, then turned around and roasted them over the fire and stuffed them into their mouths.

After autumn, grasshoppers are full of seeds and make a crackling sound.

Zhou Yaozu is an honest young man.

Seeing his teammates were all lazily, he encouraged them: "Comrades, let's work harder and learn from Brother Liu Youniu!"

Zhu Tao said, "Hey, Liu Youniu Gen is in this team. The food here is to feed his relatives. He must be working hard, right, Lao Qian?"

Qian Jin smiled without saying anything and worked hard to break the corn.

be honest.

This job is really not for humans.

He thought digging the sewer yesterday was hard enough, but compared to breaking corn, it was still a pleasure.

The corn stalks are very tall, taller than a person.

The withered and dried corn leaves have sharp edges, which are like small saws when they sweep across the skin, leaving red scars, which hurts!

That’s not all. There are a lot of tiny hairs on the corn leaves. They are covered in sweat, and when the hairs float onto their skin, they immediately get stuck and it makes them itch unbearably!
All in all, it was both painful and itchy. Qian Jin had never suffered such pain before.

There is no way to suffer.

He has plans for the production team and must establish a good image.

An old farmer was working in a nearby field.

Qian Jin soon discovered that farm work required a rhythm.

So he gritted his teeth and followed the old master's rhythm, and soon his sweat-soaked rayon shirt became a tight-fitting garment.

The old farmer noticed this and straightened his hunched back, saying with a smile, "You are quite a good comrade. You are really able to endure hardships."

"Take a break, take a break, drink some water to quench your thirst."

"We are here specifically to endure hardships and are mentally prepared." Qian Jin stood up and wiped the sweat off his face with his clothes.

My clothes were soaked and I couldn't even wipe my face dry.

Look at the old farmer next to him.

The other person wiped his palm across his chin, and beads of sweat fell on his dark skin like pearls, already soaking his coarse cloth jacket.

Everyone feels bad!

Xu Weidong was like a flea-bitten monkey, jumping and hopping, scratching and clawing.
"These corn leaves are even more evil than the capitalists, they only target the tender flesh!"

Liu Wangcai looked at it for a while and shook his head: "Forget it, the city leaders are too delicate and fragile to withstand this 'sea of ​​fire and sword'."

"Let them gather corn and push the carts."

"Erlan, take a few women with you to replace them."

(End of this chapter)