60s: I have a store

Chapter 628 Hard Work and Busyness
Zhou Yimin wanted to help, but his grandmother pushed him out: "You can just sit and rest, chat with your grandfather, I'll take care of the kitchen work."

Grandma busied herself in the kitchen. She took out a few tender cabbages from the cellar and a few potatoes. After washing them, she shredded the cabbages and cut the potatoes into chunks.

The fire in the stove was lit, and the flames crackled and licked the bottom of the pot. Grandma poured some oil into the pot, and after the oil was hot, she added chopped green onions to sauté until fragrant. First, she added the potato chunks and stir-fried them until the potatoes were golden brown. Then she added shredded cabbage and continued to stir-fry. Finally, she sprinkled salt on top, and a fragrant dish of stir-fried cabbage and potatoes was ready.

The old man wasn't idle either. He cracked the eggs into a bowl, stirred them evenly with chopsticks, and poured the eggs into the hot oil in the pan with a "whoosh." He stirred them quickly with chopsticks, and the golden eggs soon became fluffy, emitting an enticing aroma.

In addition, Grandma took out a few pieces of cured pork she had made herself from the jar, sliced ​​them thinly, and stir-fried them with green peppers. The rich aroma of the cured pork mixed with the slight spiciness of the green peppers made one's mouth water just from the smell.

She also cooked a pot of corn porridge, the thick porridge filled with the aroma of corn.

Before long, the table was filled with food: golden scrambled eggs, fragrant stir-fried cabbage and potatoes, stir-fried green peppers and cured meat, a bowl of cucumber salad, hot corn porridge, and freshly steamed cornbread.

Looking at the table full of food, Zhou Yimin felt a warmth in his heart. He picked up his chopsticks and took a bite of scrambled eggs. The eggs were tender and flavorful, just like the taste he remembered.

Grandpa and Grandma sat beside him, constantly putting food on his plate. Watching him eat with relish, their faces were full of gratified smiles.

"Eat more, Yimin, look how thin you are," Grandma said, putting another piece of cured meat into his bowl.

"Mmm, Grandma's cooking is really delicious," Zhou Yimin said, his mouth full, his words muffled.

The family sat around the table, eating hot food and chatting about everyday things, creating a warm atmosphere in the small house.

Before we knew it, it was afternoon, and the sun was gradually setting in the west, casting a warm yellow halo over the village.

Zhou Yimin told his grandparents that he had to go out to run some errands, and then drove his motorcycle away from Zhoujiazhuang.

The old man and Zhou Yimin's grandmother knew what Zhou Yimin was going to do, so they didn't stop him, since it concerned the entire village.

Instead of going directly to the transportation location, he first drove around several nearby roads, carefully observing the surroundings. After confirming that there were few pedestrians on the road and no familiar faces, he parked his motorcycle next to a secluded grove of trees.

All around was quiet, with only the rustling of leaves in the wind.

Zhou Yimin closed his eyes, concentrated, and a familiar store outline slowly appeared in his mind.

"Ten thousand catties of coarse grains, a mixture of millet, cornmeal, and sorghum." Zhou Yimin clearly issued the instruction in his mind.

Almost the instant the command was issued, the mental store responded, displaying a list and quantity of the required supplies on a virtual receipt.

After confirming that everything was correct, Zhou Yimin mentally completed the "payment" process.

The next second, when he opened his eyes, a pile of grain had appeared out of thin air on the open ground in front of him. Bags of millet, cornmeal, and sorghum were piled up into a small mountain, emitting the unique fragrance of grain.

Although these coarse grains don't taste as good as refined grains, they are very filling and will be enough for the villagers of Zhoujiazhuang to eat for a while.

Zhou Yimin looked around and found some old canvas and wooden planks. He carefully covered the grain with them, leaving only a small part exposed. It looked like a pile of ordinary junk, and you couldn't tell it was grain unless you looked closely.

He checked the open space again to make sure there were no problems and it wouldn't attract attention before driving his motorcycle towards Zhoujiazhuang.

By the time they returned to Zhoujiazhuang, it was completely dark. Every household in the village had lit up their kerosene lamps, and the scattered lights looked especially warm in the night.

Instead of going straight home, Zhou Yimin rode his motorcycle to the old Party Secretary's house.

He knew the old Party Secretary was still waiting for his news, so he needed to tell him about the grain situation to put his mind at ease.

The old Party Secretary was sitting on the kang (a heated brick bed) smoking his pipe. Although his brows were not as furrowed as they had been in the morning, they still carried a hint of worry.

Hearing the sound of a motorcycle outside the courtyard gate, his heart skipped a beat, and he quickly got up to go out and greet them. Seeing Zhou Yimin, the old Party Secretary hurriedly asked, "Yimin, about the grain..."

"Old Party Secretary, everything's arranged. The grain is right next to the woods outside the village," Zhou Yimin said with a smile and a nod.

"There are 10,000 jin (5,000 kg) of cargo, and we'll have to trouble the village's able-bodied people to help transport it back."

The old Party Secretary's eyes widened instantly, and the pipe in his hand fell to the ground with a "thud." His voice trembled with excitement: "Ten thousand catties? That's wonderful! I'll go and gather the people right away!"

As soon as he finished speaking, the old Party Secretary turned and ran out the door, shouting at the top of his lungs, "Everyone in the family who can work, come out! We're going to transport grain outside the village!"

His voice echoed through the quiet village, and the kerosene lamps in every household flickered. Soon, men came running out of their homes, dressed in their clothes and carrying carrying poles and sacks.

When Zhou Zhiming heard that the grain needed to be transported, he immediately started the village's only tractor, and the "putt-putt-putt" of the engine was particularly loud in the night.

In less than fifteen minutes, more than twenty strong laborers had gathered at the village entrance.

After counting the number of people, the old Party Secretary shouted, "Everyone get on the tractor! Yimin will lead the way. Let's go and transport the grain back!"

Everyone climbed onto the tractor's trailer, and Zhou Zhiming stepped on the gas, the tractor following behind Zhou Yimin's motorcycle, billowing black smoke.

Before long, they arrived at the secluded grove of trees.

Zhou Yimin lifted the canvas and wooden planks covering the grain, revealing mountains of grain sacks.

Moonlight filtered through the leaves, illuminating bags of millet, cornmeal, and sorghum, filling the air with the rich aroma of grains.

"My goodness, so much grain!" a man exclaimed in surprise.

"How many kilograms must this weigh? It looks terrifying!" another person exclaimed, clicking their tongue in amazement.

Everyone was shocked by the sight before them. Although Zhou Yimin had helped the village solve its material problems before, they still couldn't help but be shocked every time they saw so much grain.

They looked at the bulging grain sacks, then at Zhou Yimin, their eyes filled with admiration.

"Yimin is truly a lucky star for our village!" the old Party Secretary exclaimed, tears welling in his eyes.

Zhou Yimin said with a smile, "Everyone, stop standing there and hurry up and load the grain. Let's try to get it all back tonight."

Everyone then came to their senses and began to pack the grain into sacks.

Some carried grain sacks to the tractor, while others carried two sacks of grain on shoulder poles towards the village. The woods suddenly became lively, with the creaking of the shoulder poles, the shouts of the men, and the engine sounds of the tractors all blending together to create a symphony full of hope.

Zhou Yimin looked at the busy crowd and a gratified smile appeared on his face.

He knew that with this grain, the villagers of Zhoujiazhuang would no longer have to worry about food.

Everyone then came to their senses and began to pack the grain into sacks.

But the 10,000 jin of grain piled up there looked like a small mountain, and the village only had Zhou Zhiming's tractor. Anyone with eyes could see that this trip would definitely not be able to transport it all.

The old Party Secretary immediately made a decision: "Zhiming, you go back with a full truckload, call the people who stayed behind in the village to unload, and come back as soon as you're done. The rest of you stay here and we'll transport it in batches!" The villagers of Zhoujiazhuang immediately sprang into action. Some bent down to pick up the grain bags and pass them to the tractor, while others stood in the truck bed to receive them, stacking the grain bags neatly.

The grain sacks were heavy, each weighing over a hundred pounds. The men's faces were flushed, and beads of sweat quickly appeared on their foreheads, trickling down their cheeks and dripping onto their mud-covered clothes.

No one complained of being tired; they were panting heavily, but their hands moved quickly.

"Add two more bags!" Zhou Zhiming shouted from the driver's seat, patting the side panel of the tractor's bed.

"This old fellow is really sturdy!"

Two more bags were stacked on top, and the truck bed was finally piled up like a small tower.

The old Party Secretary shouted "Stop!" and selected four men to follow the tractor back: "You guys go with the truck, go back and finish unloading quickly, so that Zhiming can go and come back as soon as possible."

The tractor started up with a "putt-putt-putt" sound, and the grain sacks in the trailer swayed gently with the bumps of the vehicle.

At this time, although most villagers were not called to help transport grain, no one could sleep because of such a major event that concerned the entire village's food supply.

In many homes, kerosene lamps were lit until late into the night, and shadows flickered on the window paper, with hushed conversations faintly audible.

When the rumble of the tractor came from outside the village, the area around the warehouse instantly became lively.

The villagers who were originally guarding their own doorsteps suddenly gathered towards the warehouse, as if by prior arrangement.

There were elderly people wrapped in cotton-padded coats, women holding children, and teenagers standing on tiptoe, all with anxious yet expectant expressions on their faces.

The open space in front of the warehouse quickly filled with people, all craning their necks to look in the direction of the village entrance, not daring to even breathe loudly.

"They're here! They're here!" someone shouted, pointing to the lights in the distance.

Everyone turned to look, and saw the tractor's headlights like a beam of light, getting closer and closer in the darkness, and the "putt-putt" sound getting louder and louder.

When the tractor stopped at the warehouse entrance, and the cargo bed was piled high with grain sacks, a low gasp of amazement erupted from the crowd.

"There really is food!" An old woman excitedly wiped the corner of her eye.

"So much! Enough to feed our village for a while!" The man next to him rubbed his hands together, his eyes gleaming.

The four men who had come back with the truck jumped off and directed the villagers who were helping to unload the grain.

The women quickly found sacks and carrying poles, and the children wanted to lend a hand, but the adults laughed and stopped them.

Everyone worked together to unload the grain sacks from the truck and carry them into the warehouse.

The grain sacks made a dull thud when they hit the ground, but to the villagers, it sounded more beautiful than any other sound.

Without taking a break, Zhou Zhiming jumped into the driver's seat and was about to head back: "I'll go make another trip, you guys unload first."

"Zhiming, slow down!" someone shouted from behind.

The tractor drove away again, but the warehouse remained bustling.

The villagers gathered around the freshly unloaded grain. Some gently patted the grain bags to feel the weight of the grain inside; others chatted intimately with each other, their worries vanishing.

"Thanks to Yimin, otherwise our village would have really run out of food."

"That's right, Yimin has never forgotten the people in our village."

The discussions were filled with gratitude, and everyone's face radiated satisfaction.

As Zhou Yimin watched the tractor drive away, he turned to the people who remained and said, "Everyone, take a break and take turns keeping an eye on the grain. It's the lifeblood of our Zhoujiazhuang village."

The men sat in a circle on the ground, and someone took out a pipe and handed it to them. They took turns smoking, but their conversation never strayed from the grain in front of them.

"Yimin is really capable; he managed to get so much grain in such a short time."

"That's right. With this grain, our village can at least have a peaceful two months."

Before long, the roar of a tractor came from afar.

Zhou Zhiming parked the truck, jumped out, and wiped his sweat: "All unloaded! Hurry up and load the second truck!"

Everyone immediately stood up, even more energetic than before. This time, the loading was even more compact, with the grain sacks in the truck bed packed tightly together.

The old Party Secretary sent three more people to accompany the truck, and specifically instructed them: "Be gentle when unloading, don't tear the bags."

After making three trips back and forth, there wasn't much grain left, so the men simply carried the grain sacks back to the village.

Under the moonlight, a group of people carrying grain sacks moved along the ridges of the fields, like a series of moving silhouettes.

Some people, finding it boring, even started humming a village tune, their singing carrying far through the night.

By the time the last bag of grain was delivered into the village's granary, it was already dawn.

The men sat slumped at the entrance of the granary, covered in sweat and unable to lift their arms, but their faces were full of reassuring smiles.

Looking at the granary overflowing with grain, the old Party Secretary paced excitedly back and forth at the door, repeatedly muttering, "That's good, that's good, our village is saved..."

Zhou Yimin leaned against the door of the granary, looking at the scene before him, and breathed a sigh of relief.

He knew that this grain not only solved Zhoujiazhuang's urgent problem, but also reassured the villagers.

Seeing everyone collapsed on the ground from exhaustion, the old Party Secretary couldn't help but say, "Everyone has worked hard tonight, so we don't need to start work this morning. We can start work this afternoon!"

Everyone was very happy to hear what the old Party Secretary said. After all, they had worked hard all night, and it was good to be able to get some rest.

The old Party Secretary continued, "Everyone has worked hard. You can go back and rest now."

Everyone was already feeling the strain, so they all went home.

Looking at the grain in front of him, the old Party Secretary felt a great sense of security. He had originally planned to be frugal, but after this experience, he realized how difficult it was to buy grain. He thought about how everyone had worked hard all night.

We're definitely going to have a good lunch today to give everyone a proper boost.

(End of this chapter)