When the tractor drove to the door of the construction and installation company, the doorman recognized Li Long and came out to greet him.
Li Long asked his second brother Li Anguo where the house he rented was located.
"Where else can it be? In the back." The guard was very familiar with this and pointed to the north and said, "Over there, it's all to the edge of the ground, and someone has built two or three rows of bungalows there. The house your brother rents is in the middle of the last row That bungalow.”
“Are they working now?”
“What kind of work are they doing now? I can’t do anything in this winter, so I’ll go back to work again in the spring. .”
"What about the salary?" Li Long was a little worried.
"The salary will be paid as usual. There is just no bonus." The guard said with a smile: "If you have to work this winter, you will get a bonus."
Li Long gave The doorman handed me a pack of cigarettes, which I bought on the way, and asked for some hot water. Then he drove the tractor and went around the back under the guidance of the guard.
To be honest, it is quite winding here. If no one is there to guide you, you may not be able to drive to the back.
When he arrived at the bungalow, he saw children playing, who were not yet in school. Li Long saw Xue Qin and Xueping.
The two children were somewhat familiar with Li Long's tractor. They froze in the snow for a while. When they saw Li Long taking off his robber hat, they immediately cheered and ran over here.
The children playing with them were a little confused and a little envious. Not many people can afford a tractor these days.
"Xue Ping Xue Qin, are your parents at home?"
"Yes, brother Junshan is here, brother Yongqiang is also here."
Okay, The seniority is a bit confusing.
Li Long was a little confused. Since the construction company had stopped working, why didn't Yang Yongqiang go home?
Why doesn’t Li Junshan go home?
Well, we’ll find out when we meet. Li Long carried the two children into the bed of the tractor, and then drove the tractor forward.
The tractor can only be driven to the roadside. The distance between the front and back of the bungalow is actually quite wide, but it has been opened up as a vegetable patch, leaving a very narrow distance for people to walk, only two or three bicycles side by side.
The land here has been maximized.
After turning off the fire, Li Long took the two children down. They immediately ran to the door of the house, shouting as they ran:
"Dad, Mom! My brother-in-law is here! My brother-in-law is here. !”
Many people opened their doors and looked outside.
It is a rare thing to have guests at home in the winter. After all, at this time, it was still an era when correspondence was the mainstay, and it was still an era when ox-carts and horse-drawn carriages were the main means of transportation.
If distant relatives come over in the winter, they are distinguished guests.
Li Anguo and Chen Lirong both came out, as well as Li Junshan and Yang Yongqiang.
Li Long discovered that Yang Yongqiang had gained weight!
And it’s whiter than summer!
It should be that if you don’t work in the winter, you will become fatter if you keep it.
The same goes for Li Junshan, but it is obvious that Li Junshan pays more attention to grooming than before. His hair is combed smoothly, parted in a three-quarter part, and his sideburns are neatly cut.
Both Yang Yongqiang and Tao Daqiang were influenced by Li Long. They both have short crew cuts, and their hair is slightly longer than a short cut, otherwise they would be regarded as reform-through-labor prisoners.
After seeing Li Long, they all laughed, and then came over to help Li Long move things.
"Xiaolong, why are you here at this time?" This is Li Anguo.
"Xiaolong, are you okay on the road? Are you not freezing?" This is Chen Lirong.
"Uncle, you drove all the way here? That's awesome!" This is Li Junshan.
"Brother Long, I feel that you are getting more and more powerful." This is Yang Yongqiang, "Did you hit the yellow sheep on the way?"
Li Long responded one by one, and finally said to Yang Yongqiang:
"There were a lot of yellow sheep along the way, but I was very vigilant and I only caught one. If you have time and patience, you can catch several in a day."
"Is it far from Kuitun? "Li Anguo suddenly asked.
“The one I shot is far away.” Li Long said, “But I saw yellow sheep on the Gobi Desert to the east more than ten kilometers away from Kuitun Military Station. When there is no car, there are yellow sheep on the roadside. , eating the wheat straw that fell when the cart passed by. ”
Li Anguo nodded thoughtfully.
There were rice noodles, yellow sheep and haggis on the tractor. Everyone was carrying something, even Xueqin was holding a rocking handle.
Xue Ping didn’t catch her, so Li Long took down the bag of food he bought on the way and let her take it, including the sesame cakes he bought at the beginning, the fruit candies he bought later, and river noodles, etc. , and said it was for them to buy and eat.
Xue Ping immediately became happy.
When they were in the team, the two children could often eat snacks. On the contrary, after they came to their father's side, Li Jianguo had salary and bonuses at the beginning. It was okay at that time, but later he didn't survive. Now, with only a basic salary, there are far fewer snacks to eat.
Now that Li Long has bought so many snacks, the two of them are naturally very happy.
Although they knew that they would not be able to eat all they wanted at once, they knew that their parents would not compete with them for this little food. Both children had smiles on their faces. They even smiled when they passed by and saw a child playing with them. And a proud expression.
After entering the house, Li Long found that the house... was really not big.
There are two rooms inside and one outside. The area of the two rooms is not as big as Li Long’s spare house in the yard of the team. Chen Lirong should be the most touched.
The outside of this house is the kitchen and utility room, and on the left is the door leading inside. There are two beds inside, one large and one small. There is an old cloth sofa against the west wall. In front of the sofa is a coffee table, which can also be regarded as a table.
A large group of people poured into the room, and the room suddenly felt crowded. On the contrary, the two children liked this kind of crowding, walking in and out of the gaps among the people, and laughing.
Li Long has discovered that the two children can occasionally speak Mandarin.
There are many people in the Central Plains area of Kuitun, but children are still required to speak Mandarin when they go to school. It should be the children Xueping and Xueqin played with said so, so they learned it.
After all, childhood is the fastest time to learn a language.
Li Junshan and Yang Yongqiang consciously went inside and sat on the edge of the bed. Li Long sat on the sofa. After Chen Lirong put down her things, she started to prepare tea.
There weren’t that many cups at home, so I used bowls.
The two children asked Chen Lirong to share some candies and sesame cakes with each other, and sent them off to play. These days, children wear thick clothes and are not afraid of being cold. Although they may have runny noses from time to time outside, they will not catch a cold.
The room is quieter this way.
Chen Lirong poured tea for everyone and stayed in the kitchen, listening to what was going on in the room.
In front of me are four bags of rice noodles and a large yellow sheep weighing at least forty or fifty kilograms.
Even if Li Long takes away some meat, it will be enough for his family to eat for a long time.
And these rice noodles are enough for them to eat until the New Year at least.
In fact, many families who rent houses here still eat a mixture of coarse grains and fine grains, but they don’t use it at home. The last time Li Anguo came back with his family, he brought some rice and noodles, and now he has so much more.
When I was in the fourth team, I never lacked meat, but Chen Lirong preferred to live in this small courtyard with Li Anguo.
Of course, if she could eat more meat, she would be willing to do so. It’s okay for adults to have a hard time, but mainly for children. Xue Ping and Xue Qin obviously didn't look as good as they did in the village.
Li Anguo first asked about his father and mother's health. He felt relieved when he knew that they were both in good health. But then he said guiltily:
"My place here is too small, otherwise I would have taken my parents over to live with me for a while."
The three brothers all have filial piety, and none of them It's good for mom and dad to push things out.
“Can Grandpa San still catch fish?” Li Junshan asked.
"Catch, now we can only smash holes in the ice to catch fish." Li Long said with a smile, "I won't sell it anymore. It's too cold now. Your third grandfather said that he really wants to catch fish. If he sells it, the fishmonger in the market will scold him behind his back.”
In fact, Li Qingxia is certainly not afraid, but now Tao Daqiang has to take care of his wife and children. No one catches fish with Li Qingxia, so Li Jianguo naturally doesn't trust him.
There were so many pigs to deal with at home, and Li Jianguo couldn't go there alone, so he let the matter go. So although Li Qingxia occasionally went to break holes in the ice to get some fish, he only ate it himself.
It is very good to get fresh fish to make fish soup in winter.
Li Long told Yang Yongqiang about the situation at home again. Yang Yongqiang felt relieved knowing that his parents were fine and his sister was working hard in school.
"Why don't you go back? Aren't you dead now?" Li Long couldn't help but ask.
"I won't let you go back." Yang Yongqiang was helpless, "I have to stay until the end of the year. The company also has a militia training in December, and all of us have to train. Right now, we have to stay in our position at all times, and single people have to go to the cafeteria to eat... …”
Well, there’s nothing we can do about it.
Yang Yongqiang also said that after December, it will be easier to turn over the New Year. Then he would be able to go back after having some time off. They asked Li Long why he came here.
“Didn’t I make some money from harvesting wheat this year? The harvester I used was ordered from Kuitun Agricultural Machinery Factory. I plan to order a few more next year. My elder brother has one at his place. , Daqiang will also buy a tractor next year..."
Li Long didn't say anything about Xie Yundong and Liang Dacheng, mainly because Yang Yongqiang was here and it was hard to provoke him.
Yang Yongqiang suddenly regretted it.
I became a worker and ate the commercial food that everyone dreamed of.
But the total salary for a year will not exceed 500. If you want to save money to buy a tractor for dad, it will take ten years!
The kind that doesn’t eat or drink!
Tao Daqiang was able to buy a tractor after following Li Long for two years.
This gap—did I make the wrong choice?
But I am a worker!
Even Li Long is a temporary worker!
Except for the reborn Li Long, how many people can imagine what Team Four will develop into in the future? It is unimaginable and no one can imagine it.
Almost every household in the fourth team's descendants has a building in Ma County, Shicheng or Beiting Prefecture, and some even have more than one house.
Children almost never go to school in the township. The worst are in the county, or go to a key school in Shicheng, or even a key school in the state.
In the summer, I stayed in the yard of the fourth team. In the winter, I slaughtered the pigs and chickens and went to live in the city.
Whether Yang Yongqiang regrets it or not will only be known after thirty years.
Of course, you may not regret it. After all, many resources in cities are really not comparable to those in rural areas.
Except for the big guy Li Long.
Knowing that Li Long had something serious to do, Li Anguo asked:
"Then when will you go?"
"Early tomorrow morning." Li Long said, "Stay. I have to get rid of this yellow sheep later, and then Take a leg and go see Chief Ma."
"That's right." Li Anguo nodded, and Chen Lirong in the kitchen outside was relieved. Most of the yellow mutton was left at home, even though it was smelly. A little bit, but what else can I dislike at this time?
Meat in the butcher shop almost costs two yuan a kilogram!
And the offal can also be eaten, as well as the oil.
For a while, Chen Lirong seemed to be returning to her life in Team Four. At least for the past two or three months, she no longer had to worry about the lack of meat in the cooking.
"Do you need to peel the skin?" Li Anguo shook his head and said, "You do your business, we will peel the skin and so on. By the way, have you eaten?"
"Eat on the way." Li Long actually intended to eat at his second brother's place, but he gave up the idea now. The kitchen is too small and has too few things.
Let the second brother and his family eat the things you bring.
"As long as you have eaten it." Li Anguo also believed it and said, "I don't care if the food in the shops on both sides of the road is delicious or not, at least it can fill your stomach."
"Uncle Anguo, do you think we can get a gun and take some time to hunt down some yellow sheep?" Li Junshan suddenly asked Li Anguo.
"Um...I'll ask when I get there. I've spoken to one of the people from the security department twice, and I don't know if they will lend me a gun."
Li Long. He didn't answer. He definitely couldn't put this gun here. He was going to save his life on the way back.
After chatting for a while, Li Long stood up, took out his knife, went to the kitchen, and started skinning the sheep.
The sheep has not completely melted, but it is easier to skin. The fat between the skin and the muscles is slightly hard, which prevents Li Long from scratching the skin when splitting.
"Second brother, this yellow sheep is a type of antelope. Keep the horns of this yellow sheep. If the child has a high fever, you can scrape some powder and wash it with water to drink, and he will be fine."
As soon as Li Anguo heard this, he immediately went over and cut off the horns of the yellow sheep with a knife, and hid them carefully.
It is very troublesome for children to have colds and fevers at this time. Usually after taking medicine, it's okay. If the fever continues, the child may burn to death, so Li Anguo takes it so seriously.
Li Junshan and Yang Yongqiang were both envious, and at the same time they were determined to use their guns to kill yellow sheep.
Although they are not married yet, who doesn’t want to prepare something for the future?
Li Long peeled off the yellow sheepskin, and Chen Lirong boiled water and began to process the internal organs.
Li Long removed one leg, lifted it and said to Li Anguo:
"Second brother, you guys talk first, I will go find Section Chief Ma."
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"Chief Ma should be at home too. Do you still remember the way?" Li Anguo said, "Do you want me to take you there?"
"No need. I can go there by myself."
There are three here. Li Long wants to take Li Anguo but not those two. Although Li Anguo is his brother, it is not good to favor one over the other.
It’s better not to take them at all.
Li Long carried the yellow lamb leg and started the tractor and drove to the family area of the Jian'an Company.
As expected, Section Chief Ma was at home. After Li Long knocked on the door, he opened the door. After seeing Li Long, Ma Aihong was stunned for a moment, and then said with a smile:
"Hey, Comrade Li is here, fast forward, fast forward, why are you still taking things?"
" I caught a yellow sheep on the way, why don't I cut off its legs and come here to see you?" Li Long said casually.
"Not bad, not bad. It's really good that you can think of me. How are you, Old Li?"
"Chief Li is very good. I'm quite busy recently, and I can't compare with you." Li Long said with a smile.
Ma Aihong's wife came over and took the leg of lamb from Li Long's hand with a smile.
This leg of lamb must weigh five or six kilograms, enough to last for several days.
Ma Aihong learned about Li Long's newspaper appearance and chatted a lot with Li Long. Li Long asked the second brother sideways about when he would be assigned to the family home.
Ma Aihong also explained that Li Anguo had just become a full-time employee and there were still three or four families lined up in front of him, but he also guaranteed that Li Anguo would definitely be able to live in a family home next year.
Because the company has already planned to build it.
After leaving Chief Ma's house, Li Long drove his tractor to the state-owned canteen to eat, and then went to find a state-owned hotel to stay.
The guest house of the Jian'an Company is not open in winter, so Ma Aihong has no way to arrange Li Long to the execution office.
Early the next morning, Li Long arrived at Li Anguo's house with some breakfast bought from the breakfast stall. Under Li Anguo's complaints, he had breakfast with everyone with a smile, and then drove the tractor to Li Anguo's house. Kuitun Agricultural Machinery Factory.
As soon as he arrived at the agricultural machinery factory, Li Long saw several harvesters placed outside the workshop.
Obviously, Director Du did not strictly abide by the agreement with Li Long and was already building a harvester.
But Li Long can imagine it. Especially after his stories were published in the Autonomous Region Daily, Factory Director Du should have expected that the market for harvesters would be opened.
The sound of the tractor attracted the attention of the guard, and soon someone came over to check, register, and then let Li Long in.
Li Long also got his wish and saw Factory Director Du with oily hands in the workshop. He was producing harvester parts with the workers.
Seeing Li Long, Director Du came over with a smile, spread his hands to show that he could not shake hands with Li Long, and said:
"Comrade Li Long, you are finally here. If you don't Come on, I’m really going to call you.”
Li Long pointed at the harvesters and said:
"Even if I don't come, you are still working, isn't it pretty good?"
"That's different." Du Chang The director shook his head and said, "We still hope to keep improving. I want to know first-hand data from you. Is that harvester really easy to use? There is nothing wrong with it?”
After all, Li Long used that harvester to cut thousands of acres of wheat fields. The first practitioner, the data he got here is the most real.
"Don't tell me, there are some minor problems." Li Long naturally came prepared and said with a smile, "Then let's find a place to talk slowly?"
"Okay." Director Du knew that Li Long would not just come to talk about the data of the harvester. He was also mentally prepared. The two people must have a serious talk.
Director Du's room has a local heater, and the temperature is not bad, it is better than outside the workshop.
Li Long took off his coat and put it on the back of the chair. After waiting for a while, Director Du washed his hands and entered the office. Someone came over and poured water, and then left.
Director Du took out a notebook and a pen and looked at Li Long.
Obviously, he planned to take a good note of it. (End of chapter)