The Sweetness of the Seventies-Chapter 62 - Autumn Harvest Commendation Meeting_1
Chapter 62: Chapter 62 Autumn Harvest Commendation Meeting_1
Chapter 62 -62 Autumn Harvest Commendation Meeting_1
The rain fell at night, but while the people of Qijia Village could sleep peacefully, those from the surrounding villages sighed with worry, their grains soaked in the rain, facing another year of hunger.
Early the next morning, adults and children from Qijia Village all rushed to the threshing ground.
Despite covering the grains with plastic tarps the previous afternoon, people were still anxious that the overnight wind and rain might have blown the plastic and dampened the grains.
Their concerns were laid to rest only when the tarps were removed to reveal dry rice.
They wouldn’t have to go hungry this winter!
Village Chief Qi had not slept well the previous night, and now, seeing everyone arrived, he made arrangements before heading to the big canteen to eat and then go home to rest.
At the big canteen, when Village Chief Qi saw Qi Xiaoyan washing dishes, he quickly walked over and said, “Xiao Yan, we owe you big time for this; otherwise…”
“Dad, don’t rush to praise me; it was all thanks to you and those young people from the city.” Qi Xiaoyan wiped her hands and served her father some food, “Dad, eat something quickly.
You didn’t sleep well last night.
Have a good meal, then go over there and rest!”
Daughters who showed filial piety were truly a blessing!
Village Chief Qi took the bowl of rice and ate heartily.
If not for his daughter, he wouldn’t have been able to eat so at ease, worrying instead about the grains being wetted and losing their food supply.
Qi Xiaoyan was very pleased because she had spoken up to remind her father, preventing him from making a mistake and instead enabling him to make a significant contribution, which would only increase the villagers’ support for his decisions.
Because they saved the grain, the villagers were in high spirits.
Before noon, news spread that Hujia Village, Wangjia Village, and many other villages in Taoyuan County hadn’t taken preventative measures before the downpour, and failed to properly cover their rice.
After baking in the heat all afternoon and throughout the night, the inside of the grains had grown hot.
They had spread them out to dry first thing in the morning but, unfortunately, some of the grain was still ruined.
Qijia Village had many relatives from Hujia Village and Wangjia Village, and at first, news of the misfortune of others made them relieved, but then they became worried that relatives short on grains would come to borrow from them.
These days, grain was life itself, more vital than money.
If you lent it out, you might not have enough for yourself; if you didn’t, those relatives might starve.
After Village Chief Qi had woken up from his nap, he called a village meeting at the threshing ground during the afternoon rest time.
Following yesterday’s incident, it was essential to hold a general village assembly to summarize experiences and commend exemplary role models.
“Do you know why our village was able to avoid this rain?” Village Chief Qi stood on the elevated platform and spoke loudly.
“It was Chief Qi’s wise decision!”
“Yes, if not for the Chief, we wouldn’t have managed…”
Everyone began praising Village Chief Qi for his astuteness.
Village Chief Qi waved his hand and said with a smile, “This wasn’t my merit.
It was my daughter Xiao Yan, Wang Lei, Zhang Qingshan, and a few other young people from the city who noticed ants moving in lines from lower to higher ground and foam in the ponds—these were all signs of impending rain.
It’s because of them that I prepared early to protect our village’s grains.
These people are the true heroes of our village, and so we are holding today’s meeting to praise them.”
“Ah, so it was Xiao Yan!”
“Those young people from the city are also commendable…”
“Educated people really are smart…”
Previously, everyone thought these city kids were delicate, but now, hearing Village Chief Qi commend them, the villagers were impressed and gave them thumbs-up.
Wang Lei and Zhang Qingshan also stood up and clasped their hands towards the villagers, saying, “Though we are from outside, now that we’ve been allocated to Qijia Village, we are half villagers of Qijia.
Of course, we had to speak our minds.
If we said anything wrong, please don’t take it to heart, uncles, aunts, and elders!”
“Caring about the grain, caring about our Qijia Village, even if you say something wrong, it’s okay; we’re not unreasonable people,” Qi Shuming laughed heartily.
“Yesterday was so sunny; who knew it would rain?
You all have scientific knowledge, if you have any good suggestions, feel free to speak up.
If it’s wrong, at most it’s just a bit of wasted effort, but saving the grain is what matters most.
Right, everyone, isn’t that the case?”
“Exactly, exactly,” everyone echoed in agreement, their views of the young people from the city beginning to change.
Village Chief Qi spoke up again, “Now that it’s the busy farming season, I won’t say much.
After the rush is over, there will be a commendation ceremony where we will properly reward these young people from the city.”
“They should be properly rewarded…”
The majority of the villagers were sensible; those who had made significant contributions deserved a reward.
After finishing at the threshing ground, the farm work proceeded smoothly.
The weather remained good after that rain, and not until the last grain had entered the granary and the sun still shone brightly did everyone finally breathe a sigh of relief.
Following the rain, the county’s commune had sent people to assess the damage caused by the heavy rain.
Villages that acted quickly saved some of their crops, while the slower ones suffered total losses due to the wetness and incurred heavy losses.
Arriving at the most remote Qijia Village, they were pleasantly surprised to find not a single grain had gotten wet.
The person in charge of the inspection was extremely pleased — this was a prime example of Taoyuan County’s foresight!
They told Village Chief Qi directly that after the busy season, he should report to the commune, and County Chief Liu would personally commend him and Qijia Village.
Village Chief Qi, with his account book and beloved black notebook, had Qi Ergou drive a ox cart to the county town for a meeting.
As the secretary of the village, Village Chief Qi had worked properly and saved the people’s loss.
He was personally awarded by County Chief Liu with a Hero brand fountain pen and a bottle of blue ink.
Qijia Village successfully completed its autumn harvest mission and received the most rewards: twenty straw hats, twenty towels, and a few wash basins and kettles.
After returning to the village, Village Chief Qi, Zhao Dajiao, and other village cadres decided on the list of honorees, held a commendation meeting, and invited the advanced individuals to the stage to receive their awards.
Qi Xiaoyan, He Tiantian, Sister Wu, and Ye Xiaofan each received a new towel.
Wang Lei and Zhang Qingshan each got a kettle.
Although these items were not many, they helped the villagers to recognize the young people from the city anew, and it was considered an unexpected gain.
The rest were distributed to the exemplary laborers in the village; those who received something were well-known for their hard work and were generally acknowledged by everyone.
Someone like Lin Xiaoru, who was sneaky and lazy, shouldn’t even dream of it!
Back in the city, Sister Wu simply took away Wang Lei’s kettle; she and Ye Xiaofan shared a room, so the two of them shared a kettle.
Wang Lei and Zhang Qingshan, who shared a room, used one kettle.
Seeing that Sister Wu, Ye Xiaofan, and He Tiantian had received items, Lin Xiaoru felt envious.
They had all worked too, so why did those people get something and she didn’t?
Huang Jingli had the wisdom to know her place.
Even though she envied them, she was well aware that her efforts were not as serious as the others, and it was understandable that she did not receive a reward.
The other two young men from the city had all received rewards, only Li Mingkai hadn’t, which embarrassed him, and he stayed in his room, refusing to come out.
When Huang Jingli went to cook, she had just finished when Lin Xiaoru and Li Mingkai came out.
Seeing only three bowls of mush on the table, Lin Xiaoru frowned and said, “We had so much grain for the month; has it really been finished so quickly?
Besides, we were eating at the big canteen during the busy farming period.”
Li Mingkai, hungry with his stomach growling, was also unhappy.
Just having a bowl of mush would mean waking up hungry before sleeping.
Upon hearing this, Huang Jingli felt blocked in her heart.
Her face flushed with exasperation, she said, “Before the farm rush, who said we should eat better to have the energy to work?
By saying that, are you implying that I’ve been stealing the food?
Since that’s the case, let’s just eat separately then!”
