mchenry-crisis.org Chapter 29 Major Events
Chapter 29 Major Events
The bicycle was lent out four times, and more than a dozen households in the courtyard used it, but only 8 catties of cornmeal were received in return, which made Jia Zhangshi unhappy.
"Mom, eight pounds of cornmeal isn't a small amount. You should be content. Not everyone is as stingy as Yan Lao, who would go all the way to the countryside to buy cheap goods just to save five cents or a dollar. Most people just go to the ghost market a little further away to buy it, and several families can share it. It's not worth the effort and time."
The so-called "ghost market" refers to a place where suburban farmers sell their agricultural products. These people would rush to Beijing in the middle of the night to make a living and start selling their products at dawn. They would sell early and go home early. This was an early form of the pigeon market.
Jia Dongjin was repairing a broken bamboo basket with a wire.
"Dongjin, why are you repairing the bamboo basket?" Qin Huairu asked curiously. The bamboo basket was too broken and had no value for repair. Even if it was repaired temporarily, there were too many holes and the holes were too big, so it couldn't hold anything.
"It'll be kept secret for now; you'll find out in a few days."
Chinese cabbage, also known as "song" or "white cabbage" in ancient times, is described in the *Compendium of Materia Medica* as "clearing the intestines and stomach, relieving chest discomfort, and quenching thirst after drinking alcohol." Su Dongpo once praised it, saying, "White cabbage is like lamb and pork, emerging from the earth like bear's paw," implying that cabbage is as delicious as lamb and pork and like bear's paw growing from the earth. Qi Baishi loved both eating and painting cabbage, creating many paintings of it that captured its plumpness, tender whiteness, and vibrant green color, making them all appear incredibly lifelike. Dishes like braised cabbage with pork belly and braised cabbage with pork meatballs were once signature dishes of the Mei and Hou families in Beijing. It is said that Lao She loved to use mustard greens made with Chinese cabbage to entertain visiting relatives and friends every winter.
In early November, just as dawn was breaking, Jia Dongjin put on a cotton-padded coat, gloves, a hat, and a scarf, and went with He Yuzhu and others to a nearby vegetable store to buy Chinese cabbage. Only then did Qin Huairu understand what was going on.
The famous winter-stored Chinese cabbage in Beijing is renowned, but its origins can be traced back to 1958.
In 1958, the government mobilized resources from all sides to "store cabbage for winter," and citizens registered to supply vegetables with "resident shopping certificates." Thus, the history of storing cabbage in Beijing during the winter officially began.
Every year at the end of October, people in Beijing begin to prepare to store Chinese cabbage, as there are basically no fresh vegetables available after winter sets in. Generally speaking, a family of three needs to store nearly 200 jin (3 catties) of Chinese cabbage. It sounds like a lot, but the weight of the cabbage is considerable, with each head weighing about 10 jin (10 catties).
Selling cabbage is not like selling other vegetables, where you use a weighbridge. Fortunately, cabbage is cheap, so people aren't too picky. They just put in a few dozen cabbages, call out a number, and then load them onto a cart.
Don't underestimate the value of winter-stored Chinese cabbage. During the three years of hardship, Chinese cabbage saved the lives of many people in Beijing.
People buying and storing Chinese cabbage have come up with all sorts of ingenious ways to transport it home, using bicycles, handcarts, tricycles, and even bamboo strollers.
Chinese cabbage is stored in a cellar and needs to be adjusted regularly to prevent it from spoiling due to improper storage, which is called "being spoiled by overheating" in olden times.
If you had the means, you could also make sauerkraut, which would keep it for longer, but back then not every family had a large vat.
After the cabbages are brought home, they still need to be dried and stacked, which is an important part of storing cabbages. The whole family works together, with adults passing the cabbages from hand to hand and children carrying large cabbages to help move them.
As for what kind of Chinese cabbage is firm, whether it is green or white, and how to store it to keep it from drying out and wilting, everyone has their own experience in storing Chinese cabbage for winter.
These winter-stored Chinese cabbages are divided into first-grade, second-grade, third-grade, and fourth-grade cabbages, ranging from 2 cents to 1 cent. Each family doesn't just buy a few kilograms or a dozen kilograms, but buys two or three hundred kilograms at a time. Back then, a family of six or seven might have to buy four or five hundred kilograms, which was quite a sight.
A single head of Chinese cabbage for winter storage weighs nearly ten pounds. A hundred or eighty pounds may seem daunting, but it's actually just a few heads. Once you buy them, you've stored them for the entire winter.
"Dongjin, you're something else. Your brother used to buy third-grade vegetables, which only cost one cent per pound."
"Silly Zhu, if you keep nagging, you can just take the vegetables home yourself."
He Yuzhu was as foul-mouthed as ever, offending people as soon as he opened his mouth. The neighbors grimaced at his words. Jia Dongjin had no choice but to look at the Yan family members who were marching on foot, and then rode his bicycle quickly toward the courtyard.
Like Yi Zhonghai and He Yuzhu, Jia Dongjin bought first-grade vegetables that cost 2 cents per pound.
When it comes to buying groceries, the mutual help among neighbors in Beijing is evident. Everyone helps each other out, with some queuing up early, some taking charge of purchasing, and others handling transportation.
When resources are scarce, people can only help each other to make things a little easier; otherwise, no matter how many heads and six arms you have, you can't withstand the hardship.
Without Yi Zhonghai even needing to lift a finger, He Yuzhu and Jia Dongjin took turns riding their bicycles, making only five trips. With the help of broken bamboo baskets, they easily carried the 300-jin cabbage back to the courtyard.
Throughout the courtyard, everyone was busy drying Chinese cabbages, and the children happily played around the piles of cabbages, filling the courtyard with a joyful atmosphere.
When they bought a large quantity of Chinese cabbage for the first time, none of them had any means of transportation. Despite Jia Zhangshi's objections, Jia Dongjin provided his bicycle to the people in the courtyard for free. This was the first time the Jia family had been indebted to the people in the courtyard.
Yan Fugui was reluctant to lend a bicycle, so he mobilized his whole family and they marched back to the courtyard house on foot, each carrying two large cabbages.
Yan Jiedi was a little girl. She carried a large cabbage for several miles, and tears welled up in her eyes from exhaustion.
"Uncle, when it comes to cultured people, they are truly remarkable. They have a deep understanding of the spirit of not being afraid of hardship or death. I, He Yuzhu, admire Uncle."
After arranging the cabbages on the flower bed in the middle courtyard, He Yuzhu smoked a cigarette and teased Yan Fugui, which made He Yushui next to him shake her head in anger.
"What? Free transportation for moving cabbages?"
Upon learning that the bicycles could be used for free, and seeing the resentful looks in his family's eyes, Yan Fugui was so angry he almost fainted.
His eyes darted around, and he forced a smile at Jia Dongjin, saying, "Dongjin, your third uncle only bought 150 jin today, and he'll need to buy another 150 jin tomorrow. You won't need to pay for the cart tomorrow, right?"
"Uncle, don't be angry. Zhu Zi just said he was going to pick you up by bike. I didn't expect you to come back so quickly. Don't worry, buying winter vegetables is a big deal. There will definitely be no charge tomorrow."
There was no need to offend anyone, so Jia Dongjin quickly tried to smooth things over for He Yuzhu.
The next evening, everyone in the courtyard was stunned. Yan Fugui had fallen and was bruised and swollen. He limped back to the courtyard.
It turned out that Yan Fugui, in order to make the most of the free opportunity, actually rode his bicycle to the countryside to buy Chinese cabbage. As a result, he fell on the way. He saved 1 yuan by buying 100 jin of Chinese cabbage, but spent 3 yuan to repair his bicycle. He was so embarrassed to tell anyone about the loss.
Finally, with Jia Zhangshi's murderous gaze, Yan Fugui gave the Jia family two jin of cornmeal, losing both face and substance.
"Dongjin, do you see? Old Yan is stingy, but he really has it tough. This is how ordinary people live. You can't get by if you're not careful. Saving a penny is like earning a penny."
After accepting the cornmeal, Jia Zhangshi, unusually, did not laugh. Instead, she sighed and lamented the hardships of life.
"Mom, I will definitely study hard and deeply understand the spirit of being frugal."
Privately, Jia Dongjin disagreed. He shook the book in his hand and whispered to the Qin Huairu sisters, "If you could make money by just bowing your head and working hard, then donkeys would be the richest people. You can't get rich by being stingy and frugal. You have to look up and see where you're going and find ways to make money."
"Brother Dongjin, why are you looking up at the road? Is this a sign of opening up many avenues to wealth?" Qin Jingru quickly chimed in.
"There'll be a windfall at the end of the year. Let's see if you have the ability to seize it," Jia Dongjin said mysteriously in a good mood.
"Dongjin, stop showing off. Go deliver tomato sauce to those three old bastards, no, to those three stewards, and while you're at it, give them some dried fish. You're all grown up, don't you understand any social etiquette?"
Jia Zhangshi took out three bottles of tomato sauce and then took out a packet of dried fish from the cupboard, dividing them into three equal portions.
Regardless, the Jia family lived in a courtyard house, and even if it wasn't for their own benefit, they still had to treat the three stewards with utmost respect.
She was very satisfied with Jia Dongjin, but she didn't understand his way of doing things. He usually only cared about being close to the He family and Xu Damao, and didn't pay much attention to the three stewards, only maintaining a superficial respect.
The old man's words made sense, and Jia Dongjin did not argue, but honestly went to deliver the gift.
Not long after, the three women arrived at the Jia family's house and returned the gifts. Liu Haizhong's family gave a standard gift of five jin of cornmeal and two eggs; Yan Fugui's family gave a less generous gift of only five jin of cornmeal; Yi Zhonghai's family gave the most generous gift of two jin of cornmeal and a small piece of cured meat. Gao Cuilan left with a beaming smile after eating roasted sweet potatoes at the Jia family's house.
"See? Your grandpa is your grandpa. These three stewards care a lot about face. Giving them gifts won't hurt. You're still young. Before you've grown up, just be obedient and respectful."
Jia Zhangshi looked smug. Every year she would send tomato sauce to the three old bastards, but this year she added dried fish. As a result, the return gift was exceptionally generous. She even received eggs and cured meat for the first time, which was obviously due to the improvement of the Jia family's financial situation, indicating that their status had risen compared to previous years.
"Mom, I give up, you're something else!"
Jia Dongjin quickly gave a thumbs-up, his face full of admiration, but inwardly he shook his head. Ever since he got a secure job at the steel mill, he had no respect for the three old men, even though Jia Zhangshi was right.
Jia Dongjin and Jia Zhangshi were not actually on the same wavelength. He was now preoccupied with advancement and focused on currying favor with Wang Dali, the head of the electrician team. He believed that everything in the courtyard was trivial, while advancement at work was the real priority.
Before the end-of-year assessment in 1958, the atmosphere at the steel rolling mill suddenly became tense.
These days, there are very few ways to earn extra money. Not everyone has a skill, and if workers want to earn more money, they can only rely on improving their job grade.
No one dared to be careless; everyone studied diligently every day, and some even worked overtime at night.
People carry the expectations of their families, and a raise of one grade in salary would significantly improve their family's monthly finances, making it a very important matter.
Jia Dongjin was the same. Unlike before, he temporarily abandoned his inconsistent work schedule and worked diligently for more than a month, spending his time with team leader Wang Dali whenever he had free time.
He had a library card and borrowed many books from the library. Whenever he had free time, he would stay in the electrical engineering group reading. He filled a notebook with notes, which often led to him being teased, with people laughing at him for trying to look like an elephant.
"Team Leader Wang, how about I give it a try? I went to the library a few days ago and looked at some books about electrical distribution boxes."
The electrical distribution box is crucial to whether the workshop can produce in the afternoon, so it is an urgent and important matter. Factory Director Yang came to check on it several times, and Workshop Director Guo Da Piezi was extremely anxious, promising to send him a pack of Daqianmen cigarettes.
Even after the two electricians were dispatched and fiddled with it for a long time, they still couldn't fix it.
Among the electricians, the oldest deputy leader, Lao Miao, was very experienced. He was in a state of slacking off before retirement, but he was also pulled up to give him a try, but he was helpless.
Jia Dongjin volunteered, and Wang Dali looked at the new recruit, frowned, and said, "It's almost time to eat."
Eating is the most important thing in the world. Wang Dali now has a very good impression of Jia Dongjin. Otherwise, given his hot-tempered nature, he would have scolded this arrogant newcomer long ago.
"It's alright, just bring me two steamed buns, or better yet, two kinds of steamed buns made from a mixture of flour and water."
As Jia Dongjin was leisurely smoking, Li Huaide, the logistics director, walked over angrily with two team leaders from the electrician group.
Li Huaide was furious. Director Yang didn't criticize the electrician, but instead took his anger out on Li Huaide, who was in charge of logistics.
No one wanted to take the blame, so Li Huaide didn't waste any words. He rolled up his sleeves, glanced at his watch, and said sternly, "Delaying production in Workshop One is a major accident. It's 12:30 PM now. I'll give you 30 more minutes. Once that time is up, I'll call the power supply bureau. From this month until the New Year, all the electricians' subsidies will be withheld to thank the experts from the power supply bureau for their support."
The electrician team leader and deputy leader, their faces dark with embarrassment, awkwardly shuffled a three-bedroom, one-living-room structure on the floor with their feet. Jia Dongjin hurriedly asked in surprise, "Team Leader Wang, what you just said was pretty much right. I just turned on the power and tested it, and it seems the distribution box has been repaired."
"Is it fixed?"