Starting with vegetable greenhouses in 1988

Chapter 15 Wang Tietou

The village committee is located in the center of the village, next to the consignment shop. To be precise, the consignment shop is a shop rented from the village committee.

However, in those days, few people called it the village committee; villagers were more accustomed to calling it the brigade, which was simpler and clearer.

The village committee is a large courtyard facing the street, and half of the red paint on the lintel that reads "Daying Village Party Branch" has fallen off.

In the southwest corner of the courtyard stood a carport with an old-fashioned tractor parked inside; further in was a makeshift basketball court, with tender green grass sprouting from cracks in the cement floor. To the east was an open space; at night, the village committee was the only place in the village with lights, and the courtyard became a gathering place for the children.

Even decades later, Li Zhe still remembers the scene of catching grasshoppers to feed the chickens in the village committee courtyard every summer night.

Not only do people like lights, but insects do too.

His mother always said that she would fatten up the chickens so he could eat their eggs, which was his motivation for catching grasshoppers every day. But no matter how hard he tried to recall, he had no memory of eating eggs.

On the north side of the compound is a row of brick buildings, from east to west: broadcasting room, duty room, general office, finance office, rest room, and warehouse. Although the place is not large, it is fully functional.

"Knock knock." Li Zhe knocked on the door of the duty room.

"Come in," a loud voice rang out from inside the room.

Li Zhe pushed open the blue wooden door. The duty room was not large, only a dozen square meters, with two rows of desks.

A square-faced man sat behind the desk, wearing a gray cloth shirt tucked into his army green trousers, and newspapers were rustling loudly in his hand.

"Uncle Wang," Li Zhe greeted with a smile.

"Oh, it's Li Zhe. You've come at the right time. I was just about to come find you." Wang Tietou put down the Hebei Daily and pointed to the stool next to him. "Sit down and chat for a while."

"What do you want from me?" Li Zhe asked, somewhat puzzled. Although the two had interacted in their previous lives, it was after Old Li passed away when Wang Tietou saw his house collapse and helped him a lot.

Li Zhe deeply respected this village Party secretary. He was a veteran Party member who had served as a production team leader and militia company commander. He had been the village Party secretary of Daying Village since the early 1980s. He was fair and just, unafraid to offend people, and deeply trusted by the villagers.

Of course, this village party secretary is not without his flaws; once he's made up his mind, no one can change it—he's incredibly stubborn.

Wang Tietou was not his real name, but a nickname. However, because so many people called him that, over time people forgot his real name. Even the gift registers for weddings and funerals listed him as Wang Tietou.

In his past life, he encouraged the villagers to grow vegetables in greenhouses. He helped Li Zhe build the greenhouses a lot. After spending more time with him, Li Zhe also figured out his temperament.

"Old Sun from the credit union came to the village to check the accounts and said, 'You little brat, you borrowed six thousand yuan? Do your parents know? You can't just spend that money recklessly.'"

In those days, credit unions would communicate with the village committee when approving loans to understand the applicant's family and economic situation in order to ensure the safety of the loan. Li Zhe was not surprised and did not hide anything, telling them about his loan to build a vegetable greenhouse.

The key point is that building their own vegetable greenhouses is in response to the Ministry of Agriculture's "Vegetable Basket Project," contributing to solving the problem of people's difficulty in accessing vegetables.

Wang Tietou, a veteran Party member with high awareness, showed an approving expression on his face. "That's right, young people need to have ideas and drive; only then can the country have hope. However, we ordinary people rely on the weather for our livelihood, sowing and harvesting according to the agricultural season. Do you really think this greenhouse can grow vegetables in winter?"

“I have confidence and the skills. The country has been promoting vegetable planting technology, otherwise why would the credit union approve the loan? As the old man said, practice is the sole criterion for testing truth. Just wait for my good news.”

"If this really works out, it will be a new path for our village. I don't know anything about the technology, but I can help you with the land. Just let me know."

"I've come here today because I need your help."

"What is it? Go ahead and say it."

"I want to rent a tractor from the village."

Wang Tietou looked at him with a scrutinizing gaze, "You can drive a tractor?"

"I learned it when I was working at the agricultural research institute, so I have no problem with it."

“The tractor is the property of our village collective. The busy farming season is just around the corner, and it’s the time to put in the effort. We can’t afford any problems. What are you going to do with the tractor?”

"This morning my family picked some fresh corn, and we're going to take it to Beijing to sell."

Upon hearing this, Wang Tietou's face fell, and he said irritably, "It's only the beginning of September, the corn kernels aren't even ripe yet. Isn't this just wasting food? A few years ago, a reprimand and a deduction of work points would have been the least of it..."

In previous years, when food supplies were tight, harvesting fresh corn early was considered wasteful. Only during lean seasons would some families be forced to pick tender corn early to stave off hunger. Large-scale harvesting of tender corn was absolutely forbidden. Li Zhe was well aware of this, and it was precisely because he knew this that he felt there was a market for selling tender corn. In a few years, as the economic market matured and people became more resourceful, more people would sell fresh corn, and this business would no longer be profitable.

"Uncle Wang, you've misunderstood me. I didn't want to pick the corn early either, but there was nothing I could do about it."

It's already September, the weather is getting colder, and the greenhouse needs to be built. I need to clear the land first; if we wait until the corn is ripe to harvest, it will be October, and the construction will definitely be delayed.

I took out a loan of several thousand yuan to build the greenhouse, which put me under a lot of pressure and made me unable to sleep at night.

My parents didn't want to harvest the corn early, and they even scolded me for it. But now that things are like this, I'm thinking of renting a tractor from the village to transport the fresh corn to Beijing to sell, so that the people in Beijing can also try some fresh corn. It'll be a nice change of pace, a new dish to eat, and it won't be a complete waste.

Wang Tietou picked up the white porcelain mug, took a sip of water, and felt much better. "Renting a tractor is not cheap. I don't want to end up losing money on the rental fee instead of making any profit."

"It doesn't matter how much or how little I earn; I just want to do my part for the people of Beijing."

Wang Tietou nodded, took out paper and pen, and wrote a note: "Go to the finance office to pay for the fuel. Be careful when driving the tractor. This is village collective property. Don't bump or knock it."

"Okay." Li Zhe took the slip of paper, which stated that the gas cost was 20 yuan, just enough for a round trip to Beijing. He knew this was a discount. "Uncle Wang, thank you." As he spoke, he took out two packs of Lotus cigarettes from his pocket. "Keep these two packs."

Wang Tietou waved his hand, "Take it, take it, go back and give it to your father."

“You can keep it. My dad doesn’t smoke.” Li Zhe said, then got up and walked to the office door.

Old Li loves to drink, but he's really not a smoker.

"Come back, I haven't finished yet." Wang Tietou called Li Zhe back. "Have you ever been to Beijing? Do you know how to get to the market?"

"I've never been there before, I'll ask around when the time comes." In his previous life, Li Zhe had been to the capital, but the times were different and the roads had changed a lot.

Wang Tietou chuckled, "You dare to come to the capital without even knowing the way? Aren't you afraid of being arrested as a spy?"

"Uncle Wang, do you know how to get to the capital?" Li Zhe asked knowingly.

“Last year, there was a vegetable shortage in Beijing, and many people couldn’t afford vegetables. I responded to the town’s call and, on behalf of the village committee, collected a batch of vegetables in the village and transported them to the Chongwenmen vegetable market to sell. I know the way well.” Wang Tietou took out paper and pen and drew a route map for Li Zhe. Although his drawing skills were not very good, he clearly marked the general route.

Wang Tietou's delivery of vegetables to the capital was not for profit; he sold the vegetables at prices even lower than the market price. He saw a reflection of himself in Li Zhe, which was why he was willing to help.

……

North of Daying Village.

Old Li, Li Weidong, and Zhao Tiezhu were harvesting corn in the field.

Li Weidong kept glancing at the dirt road in the distance. "Dad, are you really going to let the second son go to the capital to sell corn?"

Although Langfang City is close to the capital, even if it is only separated by a road, Jizhou is still Jizhou. For Li Weidong, going to the capital city is not a small matter. He has only been there once in his life.

Old Li snorted, "I don't approve of him going to Beijing to sell corn, and I definitely don't agree with him taking out a loan to build greenhouses."

"He's so enthusiastic about building the greenhouses, do you think he'll listen to you?"

"If you know he won't listen to me, why even ask?"

Zhao Tiezhu wanted to laugh, but he was too embarrassed to do so, so he forced himself not to laugh out loud.

Li Weidong looked embarrassed and didn't dare to retort. This was really his father. He could only complain about his younger brother, "This kid is impulsive. 'Iron Bull' is the village committee's precious asset. Do you think Secretary Wang would lend him the car so easily?"

"Iron Ox" is the nickname given by the villagers to the village's only tractor, and it holds great significance in their hearts.

Old Li nodded, "That makes sense. Wang Tietou is intolerant of anything. As long as it's village collective property, no one else can take even a feather. He's always been like this since he was young, and he's never changed..."

Just as Old Li was about to reminisce about his past hardships, a "putt-putt" sound came from the end of the field.

(End of this chapter)