Spring Breeze Twenty Years

Chapter 764 Harvest

Chen Hui laughed and said to Xiao Wei, "They're all your buddies, how come you're so cunning? Brother Wang is too naive."

Xiao Wei said, "Take it slow, learn slowly, it'll get better with time. That's just how rural people are—narrow-minded, but kind-hearted. They're trying to find relatives."

Chen Hui said, "No wonder people from the countryside always get bullied when they come to the city and can't make money. Sigh, their lifestyles and habits are so different; it's like two completely different worlds."

Xiao Wei said, "You'll get better as you go out more. You learn the fastest by experiencing setbacks."

Chen Hui said, "But if everyone learns the ways of the city, will they still be simple, honest country people? Can they still stay in this village, farming and herding sheep?"

Xiao Wei looked at the field, shook his head, and said, "I reckon when our generation gets old, there won't be many people left in the countryside. Young people will definitely have to leave. Doing something in the city is better than digging in the soil. Brother Wang, how much did you earn this year?"

Zhang Wang said, "This year it's a bit more. Fourth Uncle bought mountain products, and with what came from the fields, he made about three thousand yuan. The majority of it came from the mountains. Your sister-in-law and I walked all the way to Qinggangzi."

Chen Hui asked, "How much grain did you sell?"

Zhang Wang said, "How much could there be? The land is so small. Including your land, it's about 20 mu in total. This year's harvest was pretty good, about 20,000 jin, which sold for less than 6,000 yuan. After deducting the cost of fertilizer and seeds, we can only keep about 1,000 yuan, maybe 1,500 or 1,600 yuan."

Chen Hui was speechless: "Damn, farming, and you only earn this little bit after a year? What are you going to do with it?"

Xiao Wei said, "In the countryside, we eat everything we grow ourselves, so we don't have to spend much money. We usually save the money we make from selling our produce. It's a completely different lifestyle from that of city dwellers."

Chen Hui said, "That's way too little! Over 20,000 jin for just over 1,000 yuan? Holy crap! Isn't that just forced labor?"

Xiao Wei said, "It's mainly taxes. You have to pay grain and money according to the amount of land you have. My brother is doing alright, but some families have to borrow grain to eat after paying their taxes, and some even rely on loans from the credit union to survive. That's why there's a preference for sons over daughters in rural areas. Boys are like land and laborers, while girls lose their land after marriage and can't do heavy work."

Chen Hui didn't understand and looked at Xiao Wei. Xiao Wei said, "Boys are given land when they are born, understand? The land is allocated according to the number of people. There is uncultivated land, cultivated land, mountain land, and valley land. The amount is different for each person. If you stay here for your whole life, then this land will be with you for your whole life. It will always be yours. Girls are also born with land, but their share is less than that of boys. After they get married, the land goes with them, understand? It goes to their husband's family."

After that, like joining the army or going to school, once you leave, you become a town resident, and the land here is gone. Every year the village re-regulates and redistributes land, and every year there are arguments about it. Besides the per capita land, there's also the public land, which makes the arguments even fiercer; everyone wants a bigger share. There's not much profit to be made in the countryside, so why are the village head and team leader so eager to take the position? A bigger share means less money on machinery and equipment, and after a few years, you'll be rich.”

Chen Hui asked, "What if... what if there isn't enough land to cultivate?"

Zhang Wang said, "Just find a place to clear land yourself, as long as you don't cut down trees, go far away, and don't take over other people's land. My dad cleared all that land himself."

Chen Hui said, "You can just clear land whenever you want? And nobody's going to compete with you?"

Zhang Wang said, "It's hard to say. Usually, no one argues about it. They're all from the village, and they generally can't bring themselves to do it. Even if the village accepts it, they'll still give compensation."

Xiao Wei said, "Alright, what's the point of saying all this? Get your wife up and get ready, we'll go sit with Uncle for a while. Aren't you going to tell him?"

Zhang Wang nodded, went inside to wake his wife, and then came out to get in the car with Xiao Wei and Chen Hui and head towards their old family home.

"Xiaowei, you changed your car? Isn't this the same one as last time?"

Xiao Wei said, "Yes, it's been changed. That one was given to the people below."

Zhang Wang touched the seat cushion enviously. Chen Hui said, "When we get to Fengtian, Brother Wang, you should also get a driver's license. There are plenty of cars available. You can get one to drive then."

They arrived at the old man's house in the time it takes to exchange two sentences, and the three of them got out of the car and went into the yard.

It was rare to see Comrade Zhang Fu at home. His hair was styled in a perm, parted to the side, and he wore a polyester shirt, Western-style trousers, and gleaming leather shoes. He was sitting on the edge of the kang (heated brick bed) talking to his step-aunt. When he saw Xiao Wei and the others enter, he gave a casual nod. The old man, leaning against his luggage on the kang, smoked: "Are you blind or mute? Can't you see your brother and Xiao Wei? Are you older than them?"

Zhang Fu's face twitched as he called out, "Brother, second brother."

Xiao Wei chuckled and sized up Zhang Fu: "You've gotten quite handsome. What's going on? A blind date?"

The old man snorted, and Zhang Fu said, "What blind date? I'm not looking for a country girl. I want someone from the city, or at least the county town. This is the fashion trend now, everyone in the county and the city dresses like this, isn't it fashionable?"

The old lady laughed and said, "My sons are so handsome, Xiaowei and Xiaofu. Wouldn't they be presentable if they dressed up? Not embarrassing, right?"

Xiao Wei smiled and nodded: "Well, to be honest, Xiao Fu is indeed quite handsome, but he's a bit too thin." Zhang Fu looks more like his mother. Regardless of anything else, his aunt is indeed outstanding in appearance. Zhang Fu is also handsome and tall, now he's half a head taller than Xiao Wei.

The old man tapped his pipe: "What's the use of being good-looking? Is it food to eat or money to use? If a person isn't honest, it's all for nothing. Xiao Wei, when did you arrive?"

Xiao Wei said, "I just arrived. I came to pick up Wang Ge and his wife and came to tell you. Are you coming to stay with me for a few days? I haven't seen my dad for a while. He was talking about you the other day, saying that you should all spend Chinese New Year there this year."

The old man was packing tobacco into his pipe and said, "I was planning to come over and check on things after the harvest, but I can't now. It rained a couple of days ago before the grain was drying, and I slipped and fell. I didn't think much of it at the time, but I've started feeling unwell these past few days. It's hard to walk. I'll have to rest for a bit. Are you leaving today?"

The old man said, "The hip bone is connected to the waist, so it's hard to explain. It's nothing serious, it'll be fine after a few days of rest. The bone should be okay. It's just that I might have strained it a bit because I was in a hurry to harvest the grain."

"Oh dear, Xiao Wang has been sent away. Without him, I can't even finish harvesting the grain. This big, pretty radish at home is useless; he disappears without a trace when it comes to work. He's gone out to make big money, but I never see any of it; we always have to come back for it."

Zhang Wang asked, "Did Dad, Dr. Ding, come and examine you?"

The old man said, "He's here. He left a few pills. That's about all he's good for. You can't count on him for anything else. He's okay for headaches and fevers, but it's a waste of time to ask him for anything else." Dr. Ding was the village's barefoot doctor. Although the barefoot doctor system has been abolished, people in the village still go to him for anything.

(End of this chapter)