I am Jia Dongjin in the Siheyuan (Courtyard House)

Chapter 81 Planting Vegetables

Those who are near the water get the moonlight first, and those who face the sun get spring early.

Soon, Jia Dongjin brought his cousin from the countryside, along with Qin Huairu's father. The two men served as technical "directors." The two elderly men temporarily lived and ate at the steel mill's guesthouse and received subsidies, essentially making them temporary workers at the steel mill.

For the two elderly people, this was a great joy, and both families' circumstances improved significantly.

If the land reclamation is successful, the two old men will have accomplished a great feat, and there will be many potential benefits to come.

Unlike in his previous life, Jia Dongjin dared not bring Qin Jingru here, and Li Huaide would never agree. He could only let Qin Jingru farm in Qin Family Village for the time being to earn some food.

Land reclamation is a major undertaking, especially organizing thousands of people for land reclamation, which is almost like organizing a large-scale campaign.

The steel rolling mill had experienced leaders who quickly gathered two thousand family volunteers aged between ten and fifty. Among them, the older and weaker people worked with the security department to take charge of security work.

Everyone brought their own food. The steel mill was only responsible for making some porridge or starch soup. These family members did not receive a penny of wages. The steel mill only gave them work points recorded in the books. With these work points, they could collect the corresponding number of sweet potatoes when the sweet potatoes were harvested in September.

"Full of enthusiasm, there is great potential."

"Self-reliance and hard work"

"Workers boost production, family members grow melons and vegetables."

In Sijiu City, sweet potatoes are called "digua" (地瓜). After harvesting sweet potatoes, radishes can be planted, so calling it "planting melons and vegetables" is not wrong.

Slogans were posted one by one, and acre after acre of wasteland was reclaimed.

In May 1959, the steel rolling mill did not delay production. The factory's employees alone reclaimed 3000 mu of wasteland, which was planted with sweet potato vines and interspersed with other crops such as pumpkins and potatoes that could replace grain.

We can't just bury our heads in hard work; we also need to look up and see where we're going.

Jia Dongjin took out paper and pen and stroked his chin.

In the steel rolling mill workshop, the families of the steel rolling mill workers responded to the call for "self-reliance" and launched a wave of self-reliant construction. They carried hoes and came to the barren mountains and wilderness to clear land and build fertile fields. With their hands and shoulders, they built 3000 mu of fertile land. With their lives and sweat, they carved out a paradise on earth next to the steel rolling mill.

In the steel rolling mill workshops, pre-shift and post-shift meetings also became platforms for promoting self-reliance. Inspired by the self-reliance project, workers spontaneously gathered after get off work to launch a technological innovation movement. Lacking advanced equipment, they manufactured it themselves; lacking imported raw materials, they substituted domestically produced ones…

To promote the steel rolling mill, Jia Dongjin wrote a publicity article and sent it to the Sijiucheng Daily and the publicity department of the Ministry of Metallurgical Industry. This finally attracted reporters, who began to investigate the steel rolling mill's self-reliance project.

"We dare to change the world, and the families of the steel mill workers have the power! All the employees of our steel mill, including their families, are full of confidence in the harvest, in production, and in the country," Li Huaide told reporters with deep emotion.

Of the 3000 mu of wasteland reclaimed, 2000 mu were outside the steel rolling mill, which shows Li Huaide's courage and determination. He risked his life for progress.

At this time, people were working hard everywhere in Beijing. The Chongwenmen city wall had been transformed into a vegetable garden, and people had begun to plant melons and vegetables.

As it turns out, this magical country is never short of smart people, nor is it short of action; hardship and toil are nothing to them.

Li Huaide won a big red flag for the steel rolling mill. He was full of confidence in himself. Growing sweet potatoes was not a high-tech project. With the help of experienced farmers, he just had to wait for a smooth harvest in September. He was a rising star, the kind that was unstoppable.

In Beijing, the steel rolling mill was not the first unit to take action, but it was definitely the first major unit to take action.

In fact, 3000 mu (approximately 200 hectares) is not a large area; it's roughly equivalent to an area one kilometer wide and two kilometers long. This size is not considered large, similar to the area of ​​some large parks.

For example, the Summer Palace covers a total area of ​​approximately 290 hectares, far exceeding the area of ​​3000 mu.

A large number of leading cadres were concentrated in Beijing. In order to ensure the daily consumption of this special group, Beijing adhered to the principles of prioritizing key areas, catering to special needs, going all out, and ensuring absolute safety in the supply of materials and commodities.

The official name of the "special needs" institution was "Sijiucheng Food Supply Station," but it was commonly referred to as No. 34.

Its predecessor was the Food Security Department of the Fifth Division of the Eighth Bureau. Early in the establishment of the People's Republic of China, a special food supply station was set up to ensure safety. Initially, it was a division-level unit with four sections and one office, and it managed several dedicated production bases. The largest of these was the Jushan Farm, which specialized in the production, processing, and preparation of high-quality grains, oils, vegetables, fruits, meat, chickens, ducks, eggs, milk, and other by-products. The base had specialized facilities including a slaughterhouse, a meat processing plant, a pastry and confectionery processing plant, a cooked food production workshop, and a testing laboratory.

These facilities were state-of-the-art at the time; even the pigsties and cattle farms were designed and built by experts.

Subsequently, the special supply work became increasingly sophisticated and comprehensive. By 1956, this long-term "task" was under the jurisdiction of the Third Commercial Bureau of Beijing, and later transferred to the Second Commercial Bureau. On this basis, it was further enriched and improved, and a complete set of long-term mechanisms was established, which continues to this day.

The "special needs" are "special" in three main aspects: first, safety (absolute safety, without a single mistake); second, high quality and high standards; and third, convenience. To achieve these, every step of the food process, from raw material production, harvesting, purchasing, monitoring, processing, preparation, testing, packaging, transportation, distribution, and acceptance, is handled by dedicated personnel, specialized workshops, specialized equipment, dedicated warehouses, and dedicated vehicles. This ensures five guarantees: quantity, quality, variety, timeliness, and safety, with meticulous attention to detail, unwavering commitment, and absolute safety.

"Special needs" goods include: grains and oils, pork, beef and mutton, poultry, all kinds of eggs, all kinds of seafood, dairy products, wild game, pastries, candies, snacks, condiments, canned goods, tobacco, alcohol and tea, cooked food, fresh vegetables, dried fruits, nuts, vegetables, groceries... as well as daily necessities, hospitality items, etc., which are rich, diverse and comprehensive, and full of the best.

Special supplies are of utmost importance. To ensure absolute security, all business personnel and staff are selected from the Municipal Bureau of Commerce, but security personnel and laboratory technicians are selected separately. Staff members are not only politically reliable and ideologically sound, but their backgrounds and family members are also rigorously vetted.

Due to their outstanding work performance and the satisfaction of their clients, they have received numerous commendations, and nine of them have been granted the privilege of being received by the elderly.

In addition, there are "special supplies for the military," "special supplies for state banquets," "special supplies for the Two Sessions," "special supplies for foreign experts," and so on. Although they all fall under the category of "special supply," their specifications and standards vary.

Here, we take athletes as an example (unlike foreign countries, we have a "national system" where sports funding is allocated by the state). For athletes, coaches, referees, and team leaders who are about to participate in international competitions (Note: during the difficult period, only one international event was held in Beijing, namely the 26th Table Tennis Championships), and who are training in Beijing, each person is provided with 2 liang of fresh meat per day, which provides strong support for the athletes.

Anyone who reaches the national "Master Athlete" level will be provided with 4 liang of fresh meat per day during the competition in Beijing (according to research, only two people enjoyed this treatment at that time: Chen Jingkai (weightlifting) and Mu Xiangxiong (swimming)).

For athletes, coaches, referees and team leaders who are about to participate in the national competition, each person will be provided with 1.5 liang (50 grams) of fresh meat per day during the training and competition period.

There was also a "remittance ration": During difficult times, in order to earn as much foreign exchange as possible to replenish the national treasury, preferential policies were implemented for the supply of goods to the relatives of overseas Chinese in mainland China. For any foreign currency remitted from abroad that was converted into RMB more than 100 yuan, the recipient could use "remittance certificates" to increase the supply of grain by 6 kg (rice, flour, and beans each accounting for 1/3), cooking oil by 1 catties (either peanut oil or soybean oil), white sugar by 2 jin, fresh meat by 2 jin (pork, beef, or mutton), and cotton cloth by 10 feet.

These actions, like the steel mill's self-reliance project, effectively ensured the operation of society and reflected the wisdom of the Chinese people.

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"With wind and sun exposure, it would be a disservice to your darling face if you didn't apply some face cream."

On the banks of the Chaobai River, Jia Dongjin took out his newly bought skincare products, which were actually just face cream, and smeared them haphazardly on the woman's face and hands.

The self-reliance project was a big deal, something a small electrician couldn't possibly get involved in. Jia Dongjin was self-aware enough to only share in the benefits, so he would bring his wife to the river to catch fish in his spare time, which also helped him relax.

"Don't let anyone see you."

The woman pushed away the man's mischievous hand, sat quietly by the river, and watched him go down into the river to set up fishing nets, fish traps, and bait the water for fishing.

It wasn't until the man went ashore to rest that he shamelessly rested his head on the woman's thigh, and the woman shamelessly hugged the man's head in return.

As the saying goes, "One who stays near ink gets stained black." In the first month of her marriage, Qin Huairu was constantly influenced by Jia Dongjin, and her skin quickly became incredibly thick.

"I hated you back then, and I deliberately pushed you down in order to cover for someone else, almost giving you away to someone else."

The woman gently stroked the back of the man's head, her face showing lingering fear as she spoke.

The original owner's sins were undeniable, so the man could only shamelessly shift the blame to the alcohol, saying, "Huai Ru, you were a bastard because you were drunk back then. I'll spend the rest of my life atoning for it, okay?"

"Dongjin, I will treat you well for the rest of my life. You were really a jerk that day. If you hadn't been so rude and made me hate you, we would have gotten married long ago. You wasted a whole year of our lives and almost let Liu Hong ruin me. You also almost let Zhang Qin steal you away."

Jia Dongjin was so ashamed that he could only suggest that he quit drinking. Qin Huairu chuckled and said, "Mother-in-law is really something. The elders' words are reliable, and they see through things. Marrying you was really a good thing. I'm very grateful to you now. I love how you treat me like a jerk. It's good that you're a jerk every day. If you're not a jerk to me, it means I'm getting old."

Upon hearing this, Jia Dongjin looked horrified. He stared at the woman for a long time before shaking his head and sighing, "The old man was right. When a woman gets lively, there's nothing left for a man to do."

What does "laugh out loud" mean?

It means cheerful or outgoing.

In this situation, even if Jia Dongjin had ten times the courage, he wouldn't dare utter the word "wild." He could only avoid the main point and wait to be a scoundrel to the woman that night.

"Huai Ru, would you like to hear me sing?"

"Of course I would! I listen to radio songs all the time, but those songs are too far removed from my own experience, I don't really understand them. Could you sing something new?"

"Fresh?"

Jia Dongjin scratched his head in a fake manner. He was really no good at singing old songs, but he had plenty of new songs, guaranteed to be plentiful and satisfying.