Free Web NovelChapter 1170: Chapter 1170: Xiwang
Now Li Family Village is already registered at the commune; people bring their grain to be milled by the cartload.
"Yun Qiang, didn’t you just come a few days ago? How come you’re here grinding feed again?"
"Too many mouths to feed in the village. Didn’t we just buy another fifty pigs? We’ve got to feed them, right?"
"I’ll grind your Fish Bone Powder first, otherwise everyone else’s will still have that fishy smell."
"That’s perfect."
Li Yungui went to find Wei Kaiyun and Old Yang. "We still have to buy coal, otherwise the work at the pig farm is going way too slow."
"Don’t rush, a few more days and it’ll be done. The hearth is too hard, the cement surface cracks easily. If you’re in a hurry you can burn some wheat straw."
"I am in a hurry. Seeing all those pigs squeezed together, I’m afraid they’ll get sick."
"That’s not something to rush over. These few days just feed them half-full. Wait till they fully adapt, then we’ll talk."
None of them really knew how to raise pigs, but Wei Kaiyun had still picked up quite a bit of experience.
The people running the pig farm over there said the idea was: keep them a bit hungry, they don’t get sick as easily.
"I’ll keep an eye on this. Let Brother Cunshan go to fluff the cotton. But he’s illiterate, sending him to the grain depot might cause trouble."
"Village Chief Li, you’ve got so many educated young people, don’t let them sit idle."
Li Yungui knew Old Yang meant the educated youths, but the one he trusted was Guodong.
"Village Chief Li, it won’t be long before it’s time to distribute grain and money again. Even if you don’t use them, they still have to get the same work points and grain as everyone else."
Li Yungui frowned. "Yeah, we can’t treat them differently from the villagers."
"So you have to use them. Put people where they’re suited. There are a few pretty honest ones."
"Got it. This time I’ll send Tao Chunhe, Xu Chunshan, and Shen Youjun to go along to fluff the cotton."
"Now that’s the way. Playing favorites won’t work; use their abilities. That way nobody feels wronged, right?"
"Alright, I understand. I’d thought about it before, just worried the villagers would be unhappy."
"What’s there to be unhappy about? If you never use them and still give them too much money, that’s when folks get upset."
"And for this pig farm, you should assign a few educated youths to work there too. Use whoever needs using, don’t overthink it. If they don’t behave, give them the hardest jobs."
At this, Qu Xiaoli finally put her work down and found a few skilled women with both sons and daughters to make a wedding quilt for her son.
"Xiao Li, this new house of yours is really something."
"What’s ’something’? We had no choice, we’ve emptied out the family savings.
There are so many kids at home, they all need a place to live, right?"
"You really have a good heart, and you don’t even mind your nieces and nephews."
"What’s there to mind? All three kids are good. I like a lively house."
"Haha, your place sure is lively. Once Manjiang’s wife gives you a big chubby grandson, it’ll be even livelier."
"Me, I think grandsons and granddaughters are all the same. I like pretty little girls. Look at our four brothers, there are only two girls among us. Third’s kid we haven’t even seen yet."
"What’s there to be dissatisfied about? Sons are great. Old Chen’s got six daughters, and still dreams of having a son."
"Too much of anything stops being special."
The six women chatted and laughed, their hands never stopping their needlework. freewёbnoνel.com
"This cotton is really nice."
"I bought it from Teacher Jiang’s place last year. It really is good stuff."
"Xiao Li, how many quilts are you preparing?"
"Four."
"Any girl who marries into your family is going to live the good life. Forget about money, just having an easygoing mother-in-law is enough to make the girls fight to get in."
Qu Xiaoli only smiled. That kind of talk she really couldn’t respond to. Once Manjiang’s marriage was settled, she could start on Chaoyang’s.
"Xiao Li, what kind of girl do you think Chaoyang will find in the future?"
Qu Xiaoli felt helpless; she hadn’t bitten on the earlier comment precisely because she was afraid they’d ask this.
"How would I know? It depends on what Chaoyang wants, doesn’t it? Besides, his dad and I can’t have the final say on his marriage. We still need Xiao Wei and Teacher Jiang to nod their heads."
"That’s right, a disciple is half a son."
"When Chaoyang starts looking for a wife, you’ll have to change your threshold, it’s going to get worn out from all the people stepping over it."
The women burst out laughing. It was true: Chaoyang counted as an outstanding young man in all the nearby villages.
"As for Chaoyang’s marriage, I really don’t plan to meddle. Chaoyang’s been obedient since he was little, rarely gave the two of us any worry. He knows what he should do."
"Xiao Li, I really envy you. Yun Gui treats you well, and all your kids are sensible."
"Sensible, my foot. They’re raising a ruckus every day, it’s exhausting just looking at them."
Even though Qu Xiaoli said that, the smile on her face gave her away.
"You should be content. I heard from my Xiao Lian that your Manjiang is Doctor Liu’s favorite. He’ll definitely practice medicine with Doctor Liu in the future."
"Changhe doesn’t like to talk, always like a gourd with a sealed mouth. That’s the only reason he can settle down and focus."
All the village women really did envy Qu Xiaoli: her man was the village chief, her eldest son was serving in the army, and her second son was someone who’d definitely have a promising future. Who wouldn’t be jealous?
Everyone wanted to form marriage ties with their family, which was why they kept asking about Chaoyang. But she just shut them down directly. There really wasn’t anything they could say to that.
Today Li Xue also didn’t go to work. She stayed home to cook, since you have to provide meals for people making your quilts.
"Xiao Li, all the good things fall to your family. Xue’s fiancé is really something—good-looking lad, and his family’s well-off too."
"The two young people like each other. But my Xue really is good, she’d do fine anywhere."
Of course—she had a dad who was a high-ranking official and an uncle who was the village chief.
On top of that, the girl really was likable—talkative, always smiling, and steady at work.
Just look at her walking in and out all day long; even in the busy autumn season, the house was spotless.
Sigh, there was just no comparing.
Still, their kids weren’t bad either. Among these six families, three had team leaders, and the other three had children studying accounting with Teacher Jiang. This year they’d started doing actual work. Their futures wouldn’t be bad.
Li Xue put the rooster on to stew, adding some stacked-stalk eggplants, green beans, potatoes, and vermicelli.
It was the largest iron pot, filled right to the brim.
The six women working smelled the aroma of stewed meat and all felt satisfied inside.
Three big basins of sorghum rice were steamed, and she also stuck two rounds of sweet pancakes around the sides of the pot.
This kind of meal was already very good.
"Xue looks so slim, I didn’t expect her to be this capable, cooking for such a big family all by herself."
"Exactly. She’s tidy and quick with her work, even if it’s tiring. Her family’s clothes and shoes are always clean."
"That Lv Zhiqing has good eyes and good fortune, finding a good girl like Xue."
Cheng Lin and Hongling came back. "Mom, my dad said he’s not coming home for lunch. He went to find my Brother Hongjun and the others."
The women all knew he’d gone to collect money. Even though the money belonged to everyone, each family still had a share, right?
"Did Master Wei go with them?"
"No, it was my brother-in-law who went. My dad’s teaching my brother-in-law how to drive the cart. We wanted to go too, but my dad wouldn’t let us."
"You two need to settle down a bit. With you carrying on the way you do, who would want to take you along?"
