1979: Reopening Wenhao Road from the Village

He Yan blushed slightly. "Is it really appropriate for a grown man like me to keep going to a young woman's house?"

"What are you afraid of? Lin Xi just told you to go ahead and borrow books. They weren't afraid, so why are you?"

"Besides, neither of them is married, so what's there to be afraid of?"

The more He Yan listened to this, the more something seemed off. However, he couldn't figure out what was wrong with what Chen Weidong had said, so he could only choose to flee in panic.

"I'm going back now. Remember to go to work tomorrow."

"Little cabbage!"

Chen Weidong shook his head. When it came to studying, he might not be as good as He Yan and the others, but when it came to dating and marriage, he was more than qualified to be He Yan's teacher.

……

Liang Xiao peeked out from behind the wall, glanced at He Yan and Chen Weidong's backs, and couldn't help but start to have all sorts of wild thoughts.

What are they doing gathered together?

Are you secretly discussing returning to the city?

He wanted to ask Fu Xiao, but considering Fu Xiao's cold attitude lately, he stopped himself.

He gave Chen Weidong's house one last, fierce look and spat on the ground.

"What's with the attitude! I've had this submission for so long, and it still hasn't been published."

Thinking of this, Liang Xiao's eyes lit up, and he had an idea.

……

Early the next morning, Chen Weidong arrived at the horse pen, but He Yan had not yet arrived.

"Wei Dong is here!"

"I heard you went home recently?"

"No, they went to revise the manuscript?"

"Weidong, when will the manuscript be published?"

……

The horse herders hadn't gone out yet; they were all huddled together chatting. When they saw Chen Weidong arrive, they all asked him questions out of curiosity.

"Let's get back to work once we've rested. The sooner we go, the sooner we'll be back!"

Wang Jianshui had just finished counting when he spoke up to stop everyone from asking questions.

When everyone saw Wang Jianshui arrive, they quickly found their saddles, put them on, opened the sheep and horse pens, and rode their horses, herding the sheep towards the pasture.

"Uncle Wang."

"When did you get back?"

"I just arrived last night. I have to thank Brother Duan Haiping. Luckily I met him on the way, otherwise I probably wouldn't have gotten back until the middle of the night."

"Oh, you ran into Hai Ping. He didn't even offer to come in for a meal or sit down."

"Brother Haiping said he had to return the tractor to the agricultural machinery station and couldn't stay any longer."

"I knew it."

Wang Jianshui nodded understandingly. "You've almost recovered now. How about you go back to herding?"

"I won't go. My child is too young at home, and I need to help take care of him. Thank you for your concern, Uncle Wang."

Chen Weidong knew that Wang Jianshui was helping him. After all, in the herding team, not only did he get more work points, but he was also more free. At least he didn't have to come to the horse and sheep pens to shovel manure every day, which was smelly.

Therefore, most people in the livestock team prefer to herd livestock and are unwilling to do logistical work.

However, for him, logistics was easier. Although he didn't get as many work points as he did herding, he only had to work for a short time in the morning and evening.

He spends the rest of his time at home, taking care of the children and writing articles.

Unlike herding livestock, which requires leaving early in the morning and returning late at night, this activity doesn't take up the entire day.

"That's true."

Wang Jianshui nodded understandingly. After all, Su Man was the only person in Chen Weidong's family. In other families, at least there would be elderly people who could help out.

"Uncle Wang, has the matter of returning to the city been finalized yet?"

Chen Weidong asked Wang Jianshui in a low voice.

"We had a meeting last time, but the secretary hasn't been decided yet. It should be settled around the next meeting. When will your article be published?"

Upon hearing Wang Jianshui's question, Chen Weidong understood that Yang Shulin and the others were waiting for news about his manuscript.

"It should be soon."

Chen Weidong replied, secretly praying that "October" could be released sooner.

"Uncle Wang, which family in the village sells eggs? I'd like to buy some."

"Eggs! Several families raise chickens, but it's hard to say whether they've sold them or not. I suggest you go check with Accountant Yang first."

After Wang Jianshui finished speaking, he left. Chen Weidong finished his work at the horse stable and gradually realized what the other person meant on his way back.

He turned and walked towards Yang Shuzhi's house.

"Accountant Yang, Accountant Yang, are you home?"

"Old Yang went to the brigade. Why don't you go to the brigade and find him?"

A middle-aged woman came out of the house.

"Aunt Yang, I'm Chen Weidong from the educated youth settlement. I heard you raise chickens. I wonder if you sell eggs? I'd like to buy some."

"So it's Chen, the educated youth. You're selling? Come in quickly."

Aunt Yang immediately opened the door and led Chen Weidong into the house.

"Please sit wherever you like, I'll go get it for you."

A moment later, Aunt Yang came into the house carrying a basket filled with eggs, separated by weeds to prevent them from breaking.

"Chen Zhiqing, how many do you want? These eggs were all laid in the last few months."

"Aunt Yang, how much are these eggs?"

"The price in the county is 1.1 yuan per jin now. Just give me 1 yuan, no meat coupons needed. That's the price in the village now."

Private transactions in the village are generally cheaper than the market price, since selling to a purchasing station can fetch 30-40% less than the market price.

Therefore, most people prefer to sell to villagers, which allows them to earn more money and saves them the trouble of going to the purchasing station.

"Then, Auntie, could you give me twenty jin first?"

Chen Weidong took out two ten-yuan bills and handed them to Aunt Yang. Yesterday, Su Man had given him the remainder of her family's savings, and now more than half of it was gone in an instant.

Spending money like water, when will I ever achieve financial freedom!

Buy whatever you want!

Aunt Yang took out an old steelyard balance. Such steelyard balances are very popular in rural areas. The small one can weigh between 1 liang and 30 jin, while the large one can weigh between 100 and 300 jin.

In the village, the most common tool for buying eggs, weighing salt, and selling grain is the old steelyard scale.

For valuable or small quantities of items, such as medicinal herbs, gold and silver, and tobacco, a "short steelyard" is used. This steelyard has a thin beam and a small weight, and its accuracy can be down to the cent.

When weighing large quantities of grain or distributing rations, both measuring cups and steelyard scales are used.

"Auntie, I'll be going now. I'll bring the basket back to you later."

"No rush, sit for a while and have some water."

Aunt Yang greeted him politely, saying that she had met Chen Weidong once or twice before but had never spoken to him, though she had heard other villagers talk about him.

I knew he was a sent-down youth at the designated settlement. He wasn't very reliable a few years ago, but his personality changed a lot last year after he got kicked by a donkey. I heard from Yang Shuzhi recently that one of his articles was successfully submitted and might even be published in the newspaper.

"No, Auntie, I'll come over another day when I have time."

Chen Weidong didn't take it seriously. He was just here to make an impression. Anyway, it didn't matter where he bought the eggs, so he might as well patronize Yang Shuzhi's shop.

"Wei Dong is back?"

"Yeah, I just got back."

I haven't seen you for several days.

……

I ran into a few acquaintances on the street and chatted for a bit.

"Look at him, he's a great writer after all, buying sheep and eggs."

A woman looked at Chen Weidong's retreating figure and said enviously.

How did you know they bought eggs?

"Those eggs in the basket—Chen's family didn't raise chickens, so they must have been stolen if not bought."

"A great writer? That's not necessarily true."

"What's going on? Has something changed?"

……