Traveling back to 1977

Chapter 163 I am very gentle
The exam is still ongoing.

Captain Yang and his two companions were still chatting idly, discussing something that everyone already knew, yet they seemed quite engrossed in it.

Accountant Liu said, "I took my primary school graduation exam in the commune. It took almost an hour to walk there. That morning, I ate breakfast at the commune primary school: tomato and egg soup with two big meat buns."

"The year I took my graduation exam, I had stir-fried eel slices and shredded pork with green peppers for lunch. I ate four bowls of rice with three dishes and a soup. But when I went back after the exam, it rained heavily. I caught a cold that night and threw it all up. It broke my heart."

Chen Fan, uh... ugh.

Captain Yang scratched his head. "If you can't say it, you can say something else."

Accountant Liu said, "One year I failed my exam and only got a 'good' grade. I didn't dare show the report card to my father, and in the end I still got a severe beating."

Chen Fan watched the drama unfold peacefully, amazed that the older generation's educational experiences were so fascinating.

After chatting for a while, Captain Yang gave Accountant Liu and Warehouse Keeper Huang a wink. The two of them rolled their eyes and nodded slightly to indicate that they had received the signal.

Then Captain Yang turned to Chen Fan and smiled kindly, "Little Chen, when do you plan to fire that clay pottery blank?"

Chen Fan stared at him in astonishment. "Huh?"

After a moment of surprise, he realized, "Oh, well, we have to wait for the clay to dry completely before we can glaze it and start firing."

We were just talking about exams back then, and the next second you're asking me about pottery?
Captain Yang tapped his pipe, refilled it with tobacco, and grinned, "Is pottery making difficult? Is it easy to learn?"

Chen Fan lowered his head, his mind racing, and he vaguely guessed what Captain Yang meant.

Good heavens, could it be that they've taken a liking to my kiln-firing skills?
Then his mind raced, and he silently considered the pros and cons.

Having already demonstrated expertise in cooking, electronics repair, culture, and veterinary medicine, and having also organized a "veterinary training class," he is more than capable of establishing himself in Lujiawan. Whether or not he continues to develop new skills is actually not a significant factor.

What benefits would it bring to me to share my kiln-firing skills?

It doesn't seem to have any particularly special benefits.

Even if he were to add the title of "head of the ceramics factory," it would only mean a few more work points, which would be nothing more than icing on the cake.

If we don't take it out, what are the consequences?

Actually not.

Just like the many craftsmen in the production team—carpenters, bricklayers, bamboo weavers, brewers—they just made their own things, without affecting others, and others couldn't affect them either.

Of course, this also makes it impossible to maximize profits.

Chen Fan shared his skills, teaching everyone how to cook turtle, which earned him the favor of the entire brigade. He also took the initiative to demonstrate his ability to repair electrical appliances, which secured him a job as a broadcaster. Furthermore, he proposed setting up the brigade's own veterinary class, which garnered the attention of the entire brigade. All of these actions demonstrated his commitment to maximizing his own interests.

In an era when business is impossible, the smartest approach is to transform skills into tangible, attainable assets, rather than stubbornly hiding them and suffering as a result.

So, should we continue to teach pottery making techniques now?
He didn't want to, mainly because he was too lazy to get involved. However, refusing also requires skill.

Chen Fan suddenly took the cigarette that Huang Laosi had just handed him off his ear, lit it with Captain Yang's light, exhaled a puff of smoke, and whispered to Captain Yang, "Captain, I understand what you mean."

When Captain Yang heard this, his smile widened.

Accountant Liu and custodian Huang exchanged a smile, thinking to themselves, "He's a cultured man after all; he understood before I even said a word."

Chen Fan continued, "To put it this way, if it's just about setting up a pottery kiln to fire some things for my own use, I definitely won't hide it. As long as the team has the materials ready and a few people are available, I can start working anytime."

Upon hearing this, Captain Yang and the other two couldn't help but nod slightly.

Judging from Chen Fan's performance over the past month, he is definitely not the kind of person who hoards good things and refuses to share them. He readily teaches the family craft of roasting turtle, which can be passed down through generations. Even though the veterinary station only wanted him to study veterinary medicine, he took the initiative to propose that the production team set up its own veterinary class and teach everyone what he had learned from the veterinary station.

Such a spirit is exactly the same as that of Lei Feng and Zhang Side.

If they were to say that Chen Fan was unwilling to teach them the art of pottery making, they themselves would find it impossible.

Then Chen Fan said,
"But, putting aside whether I can fire pottery or what my pottery-firing skills are, let's talk about two issues. Fired pottery requires clay and firewood. If our production team sets up a pottery factory to produce pottery, where will the clay and firewood come from?"

Upon hearing this, Captain Yang and his two companions were stunned.

We looked at each other and then fell silent.

Right, where do clay and firewood come from?

Regardless of other places, Lujiawan is a small river bend, surrounded by water on three sides and connected to the commune on the other.

Half of the land is paddy fields, half of the remaining land is dry land, and the last quarter is uneven earthen slopes. If one could dig earthen slopes to make kilns, it wouldn't be impossible.

But what about firewood?
You have to report to the commune forestry station to cut down trees. How many times can ordinary miscellaneous trees be used to fire kilns?
They had previously thought that they should definitely build this pottery kiln in Team 6, so as to bring some benefits to the members of Team 6. Now it seems that, let alone Team 6, even the entire Lujiawan area, it is a big question mark whether this kiln can be built.

Unless the commune intervenes, it's unlikely. The four brigades in the south do have several firewood mountains and a charcoal factory that specializes in burning charcoal. But the county already has a ceramics factory. Would they agree to let the commune set up another one?
Chen Fan took a puff of his cigarette, showing a conflicted attitude, then held it in his hand and let it burn. He then said, "As long as we can solve the problems of clay and firewood, after the veterinary training course is completed, I will definitely study pottery-making techniques seriously and train a group of pottery-making technicians for the brigade."

Captain Yang suddenly realized, "That's right, the most urgent task now is to secure one of the only two veterinary positions, not some distant pottery factory."

He immediately nodded and said, "Yes, yes, the most important thing right now is to run this veterinary class well. We'll select the students first, and then you can teach them properly. Make sure they get their rural veterinary certificates. We can talk about the pottery later."

Accountant Liu quickly added with a smile, "I'll have to trouble you to discipline them properly in the future. If anyone disobeys, just hit them. If anyone dares to disobey, just tell me, as long as their surname is Liu, I'll beat them to death!"

The custodian, Huang, followed up by saying, "The same goes for the Huang family. Once a member of the Huang family is selected, I'll give you a whip. If you encounter someone who doesn't obey, beat them to death as long as you don't kill them."

Chen Fan's lips twitched slightly. Actually, I'm very gentle, not that violent.

(End of this chapter)