"That's exactly what you guessed."
Du Tonghe was surprised by the answer.
The team leader paused and said, "Our Hongxin Brigade has produced a good child. I have a premonition that this child might be the hope of our Hongxin Brigade."
Both Du Tonghe and Chi Ge agreed with this.
Su Xiaotian was very smart, and her knowledge of agriculture was indeed unique.
"So, I don't want too many people to pay attention to her," Su Changjiu said with a very solemn expression.
"Team Leader, did you discover something?" Du Tonghe hesitated before asking.
Su Changjiu smiled and said, "In Hongxin Brigade, nothing can escape my eyes."
Neither Du Tonghe nor Chi Ge doubted this. Anyone who could hold the position of team leader for so long was definitely not ordinary.
But precisely because they believed what Su Changjiu said, they became even more worried.
For some reason, they always felt that Su Xiaotian had a secret.
Even though they didn't know what the secret was, they had always harbored this suspicion.
"The Su family's life is getting better and better. Although I don't know why their lives are getting better, it's definitely related to Xiaotian. Do you understand?"
Su Changjiu also looked troubled when he said this.
He had secretly observed the Su family for quite some time, but in the end, he hadn't observed anything.
This was the only thing he couldn't control in Hongxin Brigade.
Du Tonghe and Chi Ge felt this even more deeply.
After all, they had benefited a lot from the Su family over the past year.
Not to mention anything else, the wild game they obtained every few days was quite miraculous.
Were those pheasants and rabbits waiting specifically for the Su family to catch them?
It had to be said that these two were close to the truth.
The wild game the Su family obtained had very peculiar sources; they were almost caught casually.
Of course, the prerequisite was that Su Xiaotian had to be present to catch them casually.
"Team Leader, I'll shamelessly accept this credit," Du Tonghe nodded solemnly.
Su Changjiu smiled and said, "Professor Du, your diligent guidance has allowed our chicken farm to develop so well. This first batch of eggs should be sent to you."
"Team Leader, you are too kind," Du Tonghe quickly refused.
But once Su Changjiu made up his mind, no one could stop him.
Du Tonghe eventually accepted the dozen or so eggs.
Su Changjiu also publicly stated at the member meeting that the good development of the brigade's chicken farm and the increase in grain production this year were all due to Du Tonghe's contributions.
He also seemed to subtly reveal that although Du Tonghe was a capitalist, he was also the father of a martyr and an expert in agriculture.
The people in the brigade were simple and honest. After knowing that Du Tonghe's son had sacrificed his life fighting the Japanese in his early years, their previous aversion to Du Tonghe, whom they had once considered an exploitative capitalist, lessened.
From then on, the four people in the cowshed, apart from living in the cowshed, had the same treatment as other members.
Whatever other families had, these four also had.
The children of the Su family began their daily routine of going up the mountain to find good things.
Chi Yiyuan also went with them every day.
Baskets of mountain goods were carried down. The Su family had stored a lot, and the cowshed also had a considerable amount.
Although no one was watching the cowshed this year, Chi Yiyuan still carefully hid their share of the mountain goods.
Looking at the abundance of mountain goods in the cave, Chi Yiyuan felt that it was enough for them to eat throughout the entire winter.
Of course, with Su Xiaotian around, mountain goods were not the main focus; the main focus was the various types of wild game.
Chi Yiyuan had personally witnessed Su Xiaotian leading her brothers to obtain a wild goat, nine wild rabbits, and twelve wild pheasants in the past month.
But if it were just these, it would have been fine. What surprised Chi Yiyuan the most was that Su Xiaotian had also found a wild boar that had run headfirst into a tree stump while going up the mountain.
That wild boar, perhaps confused by the cold weather, had directly hit a tree stump and never recovered.
The more than a hundred jin wild boar was carried down the mountain by the Su brothers, Su Lao Er and Su Lao San.
They did not dare to bring the wild boar directly back to their own home. Instead, they cleaned it on the mountain, carefully concealed all traces, and then brought the meat down the mountain.
The Su family left a leg and four feet of this wild boar for the cowshed, and took the rest home.
This time, Grandma Su did not eat it all directly.
She cleaned the wild game in the backyard behind everyone's back and preserved most of it.
In the hearts of Grandma Su and the others, a steady stream was the way to go. The fact that they could obtain so much wild game now did not mean they could continue to do so in the future.
By preserving it, it could be eaten for a long time, enough to last until next summer.
It was only then that Du Tonghe and Chi Ge learned from Chi Yiyuan that mountain goods and wild game were readily available to the Su family.
"Grandpa, do people really have differences in their fate?" the young boy couldn't understand.
He had been educated since childhood to believe in science, but the fact that Su Xiaotian could find so many good things when she went up the mountain was not something that science could explain.
He had also tried going up the mountain himself several times, even taking the same path as Su Xiaotian, but he couldn't find much mountain goods.
"This is something that science cannot solve. In fact, there are many things in this world that science cannot solve," Chi Ge could only explain, "Xiaoyuan, people's destinies are always different. Some people are naturally luckier than others. Xiaotian might be such a person!"
Chi Yiyuan seemed to understand but didn't ask further.
Anyway, as long as this good luck belonged to Su Xiaotian.
At this moment, Hongxin Brigade became bustling again.
Why?
Hongxin Brigade had electricity!
The members of Hongxin Brigade would no longer need to use kerosene lamps and could now use electric lights!
On the night the electricity was connected, Grandpa Su stared at the bright electric light and murmured for half the night.
If the light hadn't been too dazzling, he would have kept staring at it.
Su Xiaotian, Su Xiao Jiu, and the others clapped their hands and laughed happily.
The little girl's smiling eyes curved, and her bright face was even more dazzling than the electric light.
"Xiaotian, why are you so happy?" Grandma Su asked, hugging her little granddaughter.
"Grandma, with electric lights, we won't have to read and write under kerosene lamps anymore. Grandma and Mom won't have to do needlework under kerosene lamps either," Su Xiaotian said joyfully. "Electric lights are much brighter than kerosene lamps."
"Yes, yes! We never dared to imagine this before! Electric lights are like little suns, illuminating the whole room."
"Even the emperors of the past didn't use electric lights. Fortunately, it's a new society now, and we poor people can live such a life!" Grandpa Su chimed in.
"Dad, you're absolutely right," Su Lao Er said foolishly. "Although the emperors lived well in the past, they definitely never used electric lights!"
"They were laying wires the year before last, and we waited a year last year. I thought this year would be in vain too, but then it finally came!" Qi Liangying also became excited.
"We can have a bright and glorious New Year this year. When the New Year comes, we'll turn on all the lights brightly!" Su Lao Da's eyes twinkled with joy.
Similar conversations to those in the Su family were happening in other households in Hongxin Brigade.
Many children were so happy that they ran back and forth in the village, from one house to another, busy and bustling.
The younger children of the Su family could no longer resist and joined their friends in their joyful running.
Grandpa Su and Grandma Su also unusually did not restrict the children, letting them go.
Because of the electricity, Hongxin Brigade was bustling and lively all night.
Even late into the night, the sounds of excitement could still be heard.
In fact, some elderly people in Hongxin Brigade were so excited that they couldn't sleep for several nights.
The educated youths from the city were also uncontrollably excited.
They were used to electric lights in the city, but once they arrived in the countryside, they had no choice.
They could no longer remember how bright and clean electric lights were.
In the beginning, they couldn't adapt to kerosene lamps.
After lighting the lamps at night, black soot flew everywhere, and by the next day, their nostrils and faces were covered in black soot.
"Finally, I don't have to stare at a sooty face all the time anymore," Sang Chunlan smiled, her eyes almost squinting.
Teacher Yu also felt happy watching her, but in the end, he said nothing, only giving Sang Chunlan a deep look.
Another year had passed, but what he thought of remained only in his thoughts.
Two days after the electricity was connected, it was the twelfth lunar month.
This was always the happiest time for farmers, as they not only received their grain but also didn't have to go to work.
Especially this year, the members of Hongxin Brigade were even happier.
Because of the significant increase in grain production, each household received an extra tens or hundreds of jin of grain.
They could have a prosperous New Year.
The Su family was no exception; all dozen or so members, inside and out, were overjoyed.
Grandma Su took half of the wheat distributed this year and asked Su Lao San and Su Lao Er to mill it.
"Mom, why are we milling so much at once?" Su Lao Da was astonished, looking at the several hundred jin of grain.
His mother had never milled more than fifty jin at a time before.
"It's because we have a lot of wheat this year. I was thinking of steaming more white flour steamed buns for the New Year. Our daughters-in-law haven't brought anything good to their maiden homes during the New Year for years. This year, let each of them take ten white flour steamed buns and a wild pheasant and a wild rabbit back to their maiden homes."
Liang Xiu, who was busy loading wheat onto the cart nearby, was slightly surprised to hear this.
The Su family's life had not been easy, and they had indeed not brought anything presentable when they returned to their maiden homes over the years.
However, a white flour steamed bun was a valuable gift, let alone adding a wild pheasant and a wild rabbit.
"Mom, what you said makes sense," Su Lao Da was not someone who was stingy.
If they didn't have the conditions, it was fine. Now that they did, they had to give their wives some face.
"I just wonder if our Hongxin Brigade's chicken farm will distribute some eggs to the brigade members this year," Su Lao Er thought, tilting his head.
If each person could be given a few eggs for the New Year, their family's life would be even better.
"Our family has six chickens, and we get five or six eggs every day. We eat them all ourselves, and you're still not satisfied?" Grandma Su glared at Su Lao Er.
"Mom, what are you saying? Who would ever have too many eggs?" Su Lao Er quickly replied.
"Second Uncle, from now on, we'll have eggs every day. We can steam them, boil them, or stir-fry them, and you'll get tired of eating them," Su Xiaotian said with a smile, pulling on Su Lao Er's collar after hearing their conversation.
Su Lao Er picked up his little niece and said, "Oh, I'll listen to our Xiaotian. I'll wait for the day when we get tired of eating eggs."
At this time, Su Lao Er didn't know that a few years later, there would indeed be a day when he would get tired of eating eggs. At most, he was just thinking that Xiaotian would think so.
Just as the members were busy milling flour and preparing New Year's steamed buns, Director Li personally came to Hongxin Brigade.
This time, he came with a truck to pick up eggs.
As the New Year was approaching, being a person who valued etiquette, he did not come empty-handed.
The director of the cake factory gave cakes as gifts.
Li Changqing prepared over twenty jin of cakes to express his gratitude to those who had worked hard at the chicken farm.
Although it looked like a large bag of cakes, it was not much per person, only two jin.
However, it was enough to make these young girls and young wives happy.
In rural households, most people were reluctant to buy pastries like cakes, and many had only heard of cakes but never eaten them.
Chang Chunzhi, for example, had never eaten a cake before, and she was extremely happy to see them now.
"Thank you so much, Director Li."
Wang Xianghua was pushed forward by the girls to express her gratitude to Director Li!
Wang Xianghua stood awkwardly opposite Director Li, rubbing her hands uneasily and saying.
"You are too kind. It is I who should thank you for working so hard to raise these chickens so well," Director Li was so happy that he was almost dazed.
With the New Year approaching, the cake factory's task was still far from complete.
To procure eggs, Director Li was so worried that his hair was almost falling out.
Fortunately, at the critical moment, he received news that the Hongxin Brigade had accumulated several thousand eggs, and asked him to find a way to transport them to the county town.
This was agreed upon in advance. Hongxin Brigade was not responsible for delivery; Director Li had to arrange for someone to pick them up.
Wang Xianghua was a rough person and didn't know how to communicate with people, so the atmosphere became awkward.
Just as Wang Xianghua was feeling very embarrassed, Su Changjiu arrived.
"Director Li, you only needed to arrange for someone to come, why did you come in person?" Su Changjiu said with a polite smile.
This was their major client, Hongxin Brigade. With the cake factory, Hongxin Brigade's chicken farm no longer had to worry about eggs. Apart from those handed over to the commune, the rest could be given to the cake factory.
"I must come in person to express my gratitude. Thank you so much, Captain Su." Li Changqing extended his large hand and firmly grasped Su Changjiu's hand.
This action made Su Changjiu feel a moment of discomfort.
Director Li was excited. He looked at Su Changjiu with a gaze full of gratitude, as if he had seen a savior.
Over the past few months, he had racked his brains and found many people, and obtained some eggs, but they were just a drop in the bucket compared to the large quantity of eggs required by the cake factory.
Fortunately, now that he had eggs, would the cakes be lacking?
He was confident that he could make the cake factory flourish.
He would work overtime before the New Year to produce more cakes, so that everyone in the county could eat cakes!
"Director Li, if your factory increases its production, do you need workers?" Su Changjiu rubbed his hands, suppressed his awkwardness, and finally asked.
Li Changqing was a smart person and immediately understood Su Changjiu's intention.
"Director Li, you reminded me. We do need workers. Although our factory has some workers, we are still short of a few. If your Hongxin Brigade has diligent, capable, and literate people, recommend a few to me. Not many, just four or five will do."
Li Changqing had been planning to recruit workers recently. Since Hongxin Brigade had raised this issue, he might as well give Hongxin Brigade face and give them the recruitment opportunity.
Su Changjiu had just asked casually, but he didn't expect Director Li to agree and even want four or five people at once.
This time, it was Su Changjiu's turn to be happy.
Li Changqing also specifically visited Grandpa Su and Grandma Su and said that Minister Chen would come to visit the elderly couple after he finished his work.
Grandpa Su and Grandma Su thanked Li Changqing. Since Li Changqing brought many gifts, Grandma Su took out a wild pheasant as a return gift.
Li Changqing smiled and accepted it, saying, "Thank you, elderly couple. Wild pheasants are rare and good things!"
"They are not valuable, not comparable to the gifts Director Li brought. Please don't dislike them!" Grandpa Su said politely. "However, Director Li, you cannot bring gifts next time you come."
Although this Director Li had no ill intentions, Grandpa Su knew that he was bringing them because of Chen Zi'an.
They couldn't accept them, nor could they refuse them.
"To be honest with you two, I lost my parents when I was young, and I grew up eating from many families. Seeing you two makes me feel close, as if I'm seeing my own parents."
Li Changqing's words left Grandpa Su speechless for a moment.
Li Changqing, as if oblivious, continued, "Back then, when my parents passed away, it was thanks to kind people who helped me survive."
"But times have changed. I don't know where the people who helped me back then are now."
"I heard that you two also helped many people in your early years, so I wanted to get closer to you two."
"If the people you helped in your early years have the same thoughts as me, perhaps they can also give back to the kind people who helped me back then."
What he said was from the heart.
Li Changqing's parents died early, and he grew up with his uncle and aunt. However, his uncle and aunt doted on their own children and paid little attention to him, their orphaned nephew. Sometimes, they didn't even give him a full meal.
It was also because Li Changqing was ambitious that he joined the army in his teens.
In the army, he met Xiang Hui, they got married, and later, after demobilization, Li Changqing did not return to his hometown but followed his wife.
Because of his military merits, he got a good job, and coupled with his hard work, he achieved his current success.
Since Li Changqing had said so, Grandpa Su and Grandma Su didn't say much more.
Just after seeing Li Changqing off, Su Changjiu was about to urgently call a meeting of the cadres to discuss how to determine the candidates for the cake factory when he heard another piece of good news.
[Author's Note]
Babies, if you are satisfied with the reading, please give a five-star review! Thank you for your continued support.