Back with the team, Su Xiaotian resumed her busy yet fulfilling life.
Having been away for so long, Su Xiaotian had to check on the crops in the fields.
Even though the summer harvest was over, the Hongxin Brigade had a considerable amount of land, and the autumn crops alone covered a vast area.
It took Su Xiaotian more than ten days to inspect all the fields.
After this round of inspections, Su Xiaotian was relieved. Except for a few plots that were slightly deficient in fertilizer, the rest of the land showed good growth.
This year was definitely going to be a bountiful harvest!
"Grandpa Du, I see this patch of land is lacking nitrogen fertilizer. We need to find a way to supplement it, otherwise, it will affect the crop yield."
Su Xiaotian carefully observed this patch of cornfield and, after a brief communication with the crops, reached this conclusion.
However, she didn't want to be too definitive, just in case she was wrong.
Although she could communicate with these newly grown crops, it wasn't as smooth as communicating with mature old trees.
"I was just suggesting to the team leader a couple of days ago that we should add more sheep manure to this plot. Sheep manure is high in nitrogen and has good effects on increasing yield, making it the best fertilizer." Du Tonghe said with a satisfied smile.
This child, Xiaotian, was teachable.
At such a young age, to possess such abilities, if she could go to an agricultural university in the future and apply her knowledge, she would truly be a talent.
"Grandpa Du is amazing!" Su Xiaotian immediately began showering him with praise.
Du Tonghe chuckled, "I'm already this old. If I didn't even know this basic common sense, wouldn't I be inferior to even a little kid like you?"
Su Xiaotian also smiled. The sight of the old and young walking in the sunset was very heartwarming.
While Su Xiaotian was busy darting around the fields, the members of the Hongxin Brigade welcomed a happy event.
Li Zhuzi was finally getting married.
This bachelor, who was twenty-eight years old, was finally getting married, which meant the Hongxin Brigade would have one less single man and one less person potentially reliant on the state in the future.
From the team leader to the members, everyone was very excited.
The Old Su family treated Li Zhuzi like their own child and naturally put in their best efforts.
From the moment the wedding date was set, Grandma Su took time to bring her daughters-in-law to help Li Zhuzi tidy up his dilapidated home.
If Li Zhuzi could get married, the biggest credit should go to Su Xiaotian.
Li Zhuzi's scabby head was cured by Su Xiaotian's prescription.
Li Zhuzi wasn't a bad person to begin with; he was just held back by his scabby head.
Now, with a head full of thick, black hair, Li Zhuzi's status instantly rose by more than a notch.
Coupled with the Old Su family's constant reminders to wash his clothes and bathe frequently, Li Zhuzi shed his unkempt appearance and became even more attractive.
Young girls and married women alike said that Li Zhuzi was a handsome lad.
With newfound confidence, Li Zhuzi's voice became much louder.
Li Zhuzi's new bride was from Wang Xianghua's maiden village.
The girl was named Wang Cuicui, an excellent young woman, capable of handling any task, both inside and outside the home.
The only downside was that her family had a blind father. Wang Cuicui was filial and insisted on bringing her father with her after marriage.
However, in those times, it was difficult enough to support one's own family, let alone an extra blind father.
This situation caused Wang Cuicui to be delayed until she was twenty-five, still unmarried.
Wang Xianghua took the opportunity to visit her maiden village and told Wang Cuicui about Li Zhuzi, and then conveyed Wang Cuicui's request to Li Zhuzi.
When Li Zhuzi heard this, it wasn't asking him to move in, just to support an elder, which wasn't a big deal.
Looking at Wang Cuicui, she was good-looking, proper, and efficient in her work, so he agreed.
After meeting Li Zhuzi, Wang Cuicui found the young man to be good-looking and also agreed.
With both parties in agreement, the wedding was about to take place.
"Zhuzi, although your family's conditions are poor, you can't mistreat the girl." Grandma Su said as she helped Li Zhuzi wash bedding, chattering away.
"I know, Auntie. But as you know, I'm penniless! I was thinking of making a set of clothes for Cuicui."
Li Zhuzi really couldn't afford anything more.
"Zhuzi, since you're making clothes, let's make a new set for both of you," Qi Liangying said with a smile. "Your clothes are worn out, and they won't look good at the wedding."
Li Zhuzi lowered his head and mumbled after a while, "I want to, but after saving for so many years, I only have enough fabric for one set of clothes. I was thinking of borrowing Xiaojun's clothes to wear these past couple of days."
Xiaojun was the team leader's son, twenty-four years old, and had served in the army for several years, possessing a crisp military uniform.
"Wearing a military uniform is fine too!" Qi Liangying didn't urge him further upon hearing Li Zhuzi's words.
Grandma Su looked at Li Zhuzi and said, "Zhuzi, I know you've saved some money over the years. I have some cloth coupons here, take them and use them."
Li Zhuzi was alone in his family. He earned a good number of work points, and after calculating annually, he received a small sum of money. Although it wasn't much, over the years, he had saved quite a bit.
"Auntie, this won't do. Cloth coupons are so rare. You should keep them for your own family." Li Zhuzi quickly declined. "Besides, your few children will need to find wives in a couple of years."
Compared to money, cloth coupons, though not valuable, were even rarer.
Li Zhuzi felt too ashamed to have Grandma Su give him all the cloth coupons her family had saved.
"I'm not giving you much, just enough for one set of clothes. When my children find wives, if you still have some left, you can help me out again." Grandma Su said as she scrubbed the coarse cotton quilt cover.
Qi Liangying didn't expect that her casual remark would prompt her mother-in-law to give cloth coupons to Li Zhuzi.
She regretted saying that extra sentence.
Although the family had received more coupons recently, who could ever have too many coupons in this era?
However, her mother-in-law was in charge of the household, and she knew that even if she said something, it would be in vain.
Therefore, Qi Liangying did not object.
"Auntie, I will be very filial to you in the future!" Li Zhuzi said emotionally.
"No one has it easy. It's just helping out. If your life gets better, Auntie can rest assured!" Grandma Su smiled kindly.
The elderly couple had been accumulating good deeds their whole lives. Perhaps it was because of their good deeds that their family's life became better and better.
Because of this thought, Grandma Su became even more gentle and kind.
On the day Li Zhuzi got married, Li Changqing brought a batch of chicken feed, which included ingredients like bone meal and bean dregs that Su Xiaotian had been looking for.
Su Xiaotian was overjoyed. With these as a base, she wasn't afraid of the chickens not growing well.
However, she couldn't always rely on Li Changqing for help; she needed to find ways to procure these feeds herself.
Su Xiaotian pondered when she should go to the city to look for ways to obtain them.
Li Changqing, having stumbled upon the happy occasion and hearing that the Old Su family was helping with Li Zhuzi's wedding, even Chen Zi'an and his wife came, happily rushed to Li Zhuzi's house and gave a gift of five yuan, calling it "sharing the good luck."
A five-yuan gift was considered a substantial gift in the Hongxin Brigade.
After all, only immediate family members would give a one-yuan gift; ordinary villagers would usually give fifty cents or a bowl of grain, or a few eggs.
Li Zhuzi, with a small red flower pinned to his chest, sincerely held up his wine glass to thank Li Changqing.
Li Changqing patted Li Zhuzi's shoulder and smiled politely, "We are all from the Li family. Perhaps we were even related five hundred years ago. Brother, don't be so formal with your older brother."
He had visited the Hongxin Brigade many times and had heard that Li Zhuzi had a close relationship with the Old Su family, as close as their fourth son. It was because of this that he was willing to give Li Zhuzi more face.
Li Zhuzi also smiled and politely said, "You are from the city, unlike us country folk..."
Li Changqing looked at Chen Zi'an, who was talking to Su Changjiu, and smiled, "What's different? Aren't we all just two eyes and two legs?"
The Old Su family warmly invited Li Changqing to sit at the banquet.
Since Chen Zi'an was present, Li Changqing graciously accepted the invitation to stay for the meal.
The rural banquet wasn't elaborate. The best dishes were stir-fried eggplant with minced meat and stir-fried chives with eggs; the rest were all home-grown vegetarian dishes.
Chen Zi'an, Li Changqing, Su Changjiu, Grandpa Su, and a few elders from the brigade sat at one table.
Li Changqing observed quietly and noticed that Chen Zi'an had no airs and could speak cordially with everyone at the table.
Such a person was truly capable of achieving great things. Perhaps this young Minister Chen would have a future beyond this!
This discovery made Li Changqing even more determined to foster a good relationship with Chen Zi'an.
Although his previous intentions were disrupted by his ignorant wife, it should still be possible to rectify them now.
The simple banquet concluded with everyone enjoying themselves.
In the evening, Chen Zi'an and his wife, along with young Chen Yuanbai, returned to the county town in the same car as Li Changqing.
The Old Su family helped Li Zhuzi and his wife clean up the mess before heading home.
As the Old Su family was leaving, Wang Cuicui, with a blush, pressed a portion of untouched food, which had been set aside in advance, into Liang Xiu's hand.
"Third sister-in-law, my eldest sister-in-law was busy today and couldn't come. Please help me deliver this dish."
Liang Xiu smiled as she looked at the blushing Wang Cuicui.
This was truly a clever and considerate girl. She hoped she would live well with Li Zhuzi.
Clever people's lives wouldn't be too bad.
The fifteen hundred chickens in the chicken farm delighted Wang Xianghua and kept her busy. She, along with several young women and wives arranged by the team leader, worked diligently in the chicken farm with great enthusiasm.
Under Wang Xianghua's dedicated care, the chicks grew rapidly. By the golden autumn of October, they had all grown to resemble adult chickens.
During this time, Su Xiaotian had also been busy.
While she was studying, she came across another book on chicken farming.
This book was even more systematic and comprehensive than the previous one, filling in the gaps from the earlier book.
After studying this book, Su Xiaotian had a systematic grasp of the knowledge of chicken farming. Moreover, with the system's enhancement of her ability to integrate knowledge, she was practically a giant in theory.
After organizing her thoughts, she passed on some of the techniques that could be used at this stage to Wang Xianghua.
Since Wang Xianghua began to be responsible for the chicken farm, she couldn't understand some of the theoretical knowledge Su Xiaotian spoke of. After several such instances, she finally realized the disadvantages of not studying.
Therefore, she made time to study. No matter how busy she was, she would definitely attend the literacy classes organized by the brigade every evening.
Furthermore, when she attended the literacy classes, she was different from others. She listened very attentively to the teacher's lectures, unlike other women who sat below chatting and doing needlework.
In addition, at the chicken farm, she would also ask Su Xiaocao and Su Xiaomei, two junior high school graduates, for advice on some issues.
"Xiaomei, look, how do you read this character? I remember you taught me, why do I keep forgetting?"
"Xiaocao, how do we calculate the daily consumption of chicken feed for our chicken farm? My memory isn't good, why do I keep forgetting?"
Su Xiaomei and Su Xiaocao often said that Wang Xianghua was going crazy and they were afraid of her.
When Wang Xianghua heard this, she was not annoyed but proudly said, "I'm actually a studious person. If I had the chance in good times, I might have been even better at studying than you. It's just that back then, girls didn't have the opportunity to study, which was a waste!"
"Auntie, are you perhaps planning to have my father recommend you as a worker-peasant-soldier university student?" Su Xiaocao couldn't help but tease Wang Xianghua, seeing her demeanor.
"You're even teasing me now!" Wang Xianghua said, "My Xiaotian said that if you can't read, you won't even be able to find a toilet in the city."
Su Xiaocao and Su Xiaomei exchanged glances.
Believe it or not, such a thing had happened.
"Last year, someone from Dongfeng Brigade went to the city and entered the wrong toilet. A grown man ran into the women's restroom and was almost arrested as a hooligan," Su Xiaomei said.
"When I heard that, I thought it was impossible, but now that I think about it, it's entirely possible!" Su Xiaocao also said.
"Didn't I say so? You two girls are still young, you can't waste your time. When you reach my age, it will be too late to regret it," Wang Xianghua said as an experienced person.
"Auntie, we have already graduated from junior high school. High school... we can't attend it now."
"Xiaotian said that regardless of whether we are in school or not, we must study. The great leader also said that one should learn as long as one lives, so we mustn't waste time."
Su Xiaotian had often urged them to study at home, and Wang Xianghua was very familiar with her words. Now, she spoke them fluently.
"Uncle's wife, you are right. Xiaocao and I will start studying diligently from tomorrow."
"That's the way it should be. If you study well, perhaps in a year or two, you might have a chance to be recruited for a job!" Wang Xianghua also liked these two diligent and hardworking girls.
Especially Xiaocao, the daughter of the team leader, did not just lie around because her father was the team leader; instead, she excelled in everything.
Su Xiaomei's expression dimmed for a moment, then she smiled again, "I don't dare to think about job recruitment. I just hope our chicken farm does well, and I can earn more work points to subsidize the family."
"Xiaomei, in life, there are many changes. Things will get better in the future." Wang Xianghua said sympathetically, putting her arm around Su Xiaomei's shoulder. "You also need to advise your mother a bit. Everything will be alright."
Xiaomei used to be such a cheerful and lively girl, but because of her useless father, she had become like this!
It was fortunate that Taohua was courageous.
"I know, thank you, Auntie. We'll study together, and maybe in the future, we can even go to a worker-peasant-soldier university!" Su Xiaomei said with a smile.
People are like this; if they put their minds to it, there's nothing they can't learn.
After several months of diligent study, Wang Xianghua could roughly understand newspapers.
Although there were still some characters she didn't recognize, she was completely different from half a year ago.
Su Xiaotian said that such a spirit of learning should be praised and called on the entire family to learn from Wang Xianghua.
"In the future, our family will have university students!" Su Xiaotian declared confidently.
The family must have university students, and certainly not just one, but seven or eight, or even ten university students.
*********
Time flew by. As the cold wind swept across the ridges of the Hongxin Brigade, Wang Xianghua's excited shouts echoed throughout the brigade.
The only thing that could make Wang Xianghua so excited was that after months of hard work, the Hongxin Brigade's chicken farm had finally produced eggs.
The brigade members heard the news and soon gathered at the chicken farm.
Adults and children, countless people came to join in the excitement, as if it were a festival.
"Team leader, team leader, look! There wasn't a single egg yesterday, and today there are suddenly more than a dozen." Wang Xianghua held several eggs in her hands. They weren't big, but they were round and beautiful to look at.
Wang Xianghua was so excited that she was almost in tears. It had been four months of day and night work, and finally, there were results.
"Auntie, you mustn't cry. There will be more eggs tomorrow. If you cry now, what will you do tomorrow?" Su Xiaotian said with a playful grin, tugging at Wang Xianghua's clothes.
After being told this by her little niece, Wang Xianghua was no longer overwhelmed with emotion. Indeed, this was just the beginning; the number of eggs would only increase in the future.
The brigade members burst into laughter. Some of the female members even stepped forward to touch the eggs in Wang Xianghua's hands.
"The eggs from the chicken farm are no different from our own!" one honest person even blurted out, making everyone laugh even harder.
"I heard that several brigades failed in raising chickens, and I was always worried about our brigade's chickens. Now it's good, it's really good!" some elders muttered.
"Although we have seen eggs, we are still some distance away from successfully raising them. Comrade Wang Xianghua, you are a dedicated, diligent, and hardworking good comrade. Without your hard work, our chicken farm would not be where it is today!"
Su Changjiu was also extremely excited. It was rare for him to praise Wang Xianghua.
"Dad, we others also worked very hard!" Su Xiaocao said with a smile.
"I know, I know, everyone is a good comrade!" Su Changjiu was so excited that he was almost dancing.
After chatting enthusiastically for a while longer, everyone dispersed.
"I need to go to the commune and inform Director Qian. He was the leader who first supported our brigade in building the chicken farm."
Even in his excitement, Su Changjiu did not forget the age-old principle of sharing good news with leaders.
"Team leader, when you get to the commune, please also tell Zi'an to pass the message to Director Li."