1994: Vegetable farmers strike back

Chapter 115 Nampo Island

"In June, the commissions for Chinese cabbage (14060 catties), water spinach (3276 catties), and amaranth (983 catties) were calculated."

“另外，德良和贵慧是11号开始收菜，10号前德海和赵玉收了840斤；11号~27号，四个人合计收了11125斤；
From the 28th to the 30th, Qi Yongfeng and Huang Juan harvested 2095 kilograms, including 983 kilograms of amaranth..."

After waking up, Li Xiu took the small notebook to Chen Jiazhi for inspection, and Chen Jiazhi also looked at it carefully.

840 jin*0.03=25.2 yuan;
11125*0.03=333.75/4≈83.5；

敖德海夫妻：83.5*2+25.2=192.2，29.5*8+29*8=236+232=468
Total salary commission: 660
敖德良夫妻：83.5*2=167；22.5*8+22*8=356
Total salary commission: 523
戚永锋夫妻：2095*0.03=62.85+983*0.03=92.34；26天*8+25.5天*8=412
Total salary commission: 505.

Qi Yongfeng also received a separate subsidy for selling vegetables: 18 days * 15 = 270 yuan.

And four temporary workers, each working for about 6 days, for a total of 192 yuan. Jinfeng and Xiaoxia also received 6 yuan in overtime pay each.

The total salary and commission expenses are 1892 yuan, of course, not including bonuses.

Other expenses were not specifically counted, but there was 2.6 yuan in the passbook, and the family once again had more than 7000 yuan in cash.

No matter how much you invest, the remaining money will gradually increase~
……

After reading it in one breath, Chen Jiazhi felt refreshed and gave Li Xiu a thumbs up.

"It was calculated very carefully, and there's nothing wrong with it. It's amazing."

"Huh~ That's good."

Li Xiu also breathed a sigh of relief: "I calculated it several times, just in case I made a mistake."

"Well, you've worked hard. You can rest at home for a while this afternoon, listen to some music, and then go out for a walk later."

"Today we are going to plant seedlings~"

"It's okay, Dehai will watch over it."

"Then I'll go to the village and buy some rushes and imperata roots, and then make some duck soup. It'll clear your heart and reduce internal heat."

"When did you learn this?"

Chen Jiazhi was a little surprised that there were three traditional crops on Nanpu Island: water chestnuts, water chestnuts, and rushes.

Water chestnut cake is a delicacy made by many families in the village. Chen Jiazhi was deeply impressed by it, but it is only sold around the winter solstice.

The scientific name of water chestnut is Eriobotrya japonica, and the seedlings have just been planted. Besides rice and vegetable fields, this is the most abundant thing in the village.

Li Xiu smiled and said, "Zhao Yu told me about it, and I want to give it a try."

"I'll go shopping with you."

"Okay, you haven't taken me out for a long time. Let's ride a bike. It's too hot to walk."

Li Xiu became very excited when talking about going out. Since she came to Dongxiang Vegetable Market, she seldom went out and had only been to the village a few times. When Chen Jiazhi said they wanted to go together, she hurriedly made arrangements.

Wash your face, change your clothes, and take a straw hat~
The Flower City Panyu has developed rapidly in recent years, but Nanpu Island is not one of them. It has its own rhythm, is neither too hot nor too cold, and still retains its rural style.

Some of the houses in the village are extremely simple and can only shelter from wind and rain. The fields dotted with ditches nourish many fish and insects, attracting more egrets, which forage in the paddy fields in alternating movements.

In addition to traditional crops, vegetables, pomegranates, bananas, flowers, etc. are also rapidly grabbing living space.

"Jiazhi, what kind of flower is that?"

There were two people in a car. Li Xiu pointed to a big tree at the entrance of the village. The tree was nearly twenty meters tall, with a huge crown. The tree was full of bright and eye-catching red flowers in full bloom.

"Phoenix trees, there are many of these trees in Flower City, also known as fire trees."

"So lovely."

"Well, there are many beautiful flowers in Flower City."

"Where are we going?"

"Orange Tree Village."

It had been a while since they left the vegetable market, and the environment began to become unfamiliar to Li Xiu.

Jushu Village is the first developed village on Nanpu Island. It has residential areas, schools, and commercial streets.
It is less than two kilometers away from the Dongxiang vegetable market, but Li Xiu has never been there.

Supermarkets, video stores, dessert shops, convenience stores, clubs, barbecue stalls, Hong Kong-style tea restaurants...

Li Xiu was enjoying shopping so much but didn't know what to buy.

But there is Chen Jiazhi.

He pulled the somewhat bewildered Li Xiu to the tea restaurant.

The waiter at the bar had a fashionable Hong Kong style short hair, and wore a retro shirt and a stylish denim suit, which looked very fashionable at the time. In comparison, Chen Jiazhi and Li Xiu's clothes looked a bit rustic.

"What do you two want?"

"Two cups of mango sago."

"Total 24 yuan."

The waiter didn't move, waiting for the two to pay. After hearing the price, Li Xiu grabbed the corner of Chen Jiazhi's clothes with her fingers.

Chen Jiazhi took out the money and paid it directly.

"Please hurry up."

"OK, wait."

The waiter was a little surprised. The two men had dark skin and ordinary clothes. There was a straw hat hanging on the bicycle next to them. They looked like ordinary workers. He didn't expect them to be willing to spend money on such an expensive dessert.

Mango sago was all the rage in Hong Kong in the 1980s and 1990s, and later spread to mainland China. Now it’s a true luxury dessert!

The two found a place to sit down. They were surrounded by fashionable men and women. They looked at them from time to time, and their eyes revealed a sentence: Where did this old-fashioned guy come from?

Li Xiu was very reserved and whispered, "Jiazhi, it's too expensive!"

Two cups of that stuff cost 24 yuan, which Li Xiu thought was a sky-high price. How many pounds of meat could you buy with that?

Chen Jiazhi smiled and said, "It's okay. Just try something new. I can afford it now."

After a while, the waiter brought two glasses of mango sago in iced glass cups. It is actually a dessert made of mango, grapefruit, coconut milk, evaporated milk and sago.

Each person is also provided with a silver spoon, highlighting the exquisite Hong Kong style.

Both of them were a little uncomfortable.

Li Xiu was still reserved. He usually worked in the fields and had never been to such a high-end place. Everything he saw seemed curious.

Chen Jiazhi was obviously not interested, but he still had to take care of Li Xiu's emotions.

What is this?

Just go to a fucking milk tea shop!
There are several of them in every shopping mall in later generations.

He doesn't like to drink, but he can't help but his son and daughter-in-law like it, so they often order things like Farewell My Concubine and Shanghai Auntie...

Hey, his daughter-in-law was still drinking it during her pregnancy, so he remembered that Li Xiu must be able to drink it too.

"How about trying it?" Li Xiu scooped a spoonful of food into his mouth, his eyebrows gradually curved.

"It's sweet and sour, delicious, but too expensive. You should try it too~"

Chen Jiazhi tasted the 1994 Mango Pomelo Sago. In this hot summer day, it was really comfortable to drink a cup of this, and the ingredients were very rich, so they must be real.

How can it be bad? It’s only 12 yuan per cup!

It would be sold for hundreds of yuan in the future.

I didn't expect that he was also that...something...petty bourgeois.

Yes, this is it!

Li Xiu ate bite by bite, sometimes smiling, sometimes feeling conflicted. If she ate too fast, she would be reluctant to eat, but if she ate too slowly, she would be worried about how late it was and that there was still work and workers in the fields.

It took them about ten minutes to walk out of the tea restaurant.

"Let's go home, Jiazhi."

"Since we're here, let's buy something else."

Another half hour passed, and the two of them went through a lot of stuff: two watches, notebooks, magazines, work shirts and pants, and cassette tapes.
The most expensive items were two Seagull watches, which cost more than 400 yuan.

Afterwards, Chen Jiazhi rode his bike around and bought some things like teal, rush, etc. from an old lady who was selling things on the roadside.

"Jiazhi, that house is so beautiful."

"In a few years, we'll buy one too."

"Is it expensive?"

"One might cost 200,000 or 300,000 yuan. This house is well-renovated and will have a river view. The living environment is also quite good."

"So expensive."

“We earn a lot.”

The two looked at the houses passing by, including high-rise buildings and garden houses. The buildings had smooth lines and bright colors. There was a gurgling spring in front and a natural river behind, with flowers adorning the trees. They also saw the name of the community: Lijiang Garden.

Chen Jiazhi suddenly felt that Nanpu Island was pretty good.

Many places on the island still retain the rural charm. The key is that there are many farmlands, which makes it very convenient for growing vegetables and living.

"It's decided, Xiu, I'll buy a house here in the future."

"Ah, are you really buying it?"

"purchase!"

"Aren't we moving?"

"Nanpu Island is so big, and there's so much farmland, it wouldn't be hard to find another place to grow vegetables. Just think about it, if I had a house here, I could bring my parents over to look after the kids, and buy a car so I could go home anytime. It would be so comfortable growing vegetables!"

"How much does that cost?"

“I can earn it back no matter how much money I make.”

"me and you togather!"

The bicycle moved steadily along the road. The ground was covered with the fiery red blossoms of the flamboyant trees. The lotus flowers in the pond were also in full bloom. In the paddy fields, some people were planting rice and some were growing water chestnuts. Li Xiu, holding the waist of the man in front of her, wore a straw hat and sat sideways on the back seat, humming a song and swinging her legs from time to time.
When he was almost at the vegetable market, Chen Jiazhi went to a roadside shop and bought a big bag of mung bean popsicles, 5 cents each, for a total of only 10 yuan.

After arriving at the vegetable market, he gave one to each of the six permanent workers and four temporary workers, and also gave some to his second sister and Brother Yi.

They all took it happily.

Even Yi Dinggan smiled at him, seemingly calming down. "Did you take Li Xiu out?"

"Well, I went to Orange Tree Village for a stroll."

"What did you buy?"

"Watches, tapes, magazines, and other small things. I also bought a duck and rushes. Li Xiu is going to make soup at home."

"anything else."

"And one of them drank a cup of mango sago."

"What is this? Is it expensive?"

"This dessert comes from Hong Kong. It's 12 yuan a cup. You can take your second sister there to try it next time."

When they heard that it came from Hong Kong and knew the price, Yi Dinggan and Chen Jiafang, who were sitting on a shoulder pole and eating popsicles, were stunned. The mung bean popsicles in their hands suddenly lost their fragrance.

"Hmm~"

Chen Jiafang was wearing a straw hat that covered most of her face. Sweat was pouring down her face. She hadn't been out of the vegetable market for a long time.

"Jiazhi, is that Yangzhi delicious?"

"Yangzhi Ganlu tastes sour and sweet. Li Xiu likes it very much. Let Brother Yi take you there when you are free. Don't stay in the vegetable market all the time. The orange trees by the river are quite lively. There is also a garden community. You can go there more often. It's not far away."

Yi Dinggan was dissatisfied: "You talk as if you often take Li Xiu out. This is not the first time."

Chen Jiafang said faintly: "I haven't done it once yet~"

"I'll take you there tonight!"

"We need to harvest the vegetables."

"Then go tomorrow at noon!"

"Good~"

Yi Dinggan said it in a decisive manner without any hesitation, and he was thinking in his heart that he must order a cup of mango sago as well, no, two cups!

After chatting for a few words, Li Mingkun came over with a cigarette and said, "Jiazhi, do you have any more popsicles?"

Chen Jiazhi took the cigarette and opened the plastic bag on his hand: "Take it."

"Okay, thank you."

Li Mingkun only took one and then ran to Bai Yan happily.

There were so many popsicles that other vegetable farmers came to ask for them. Some wanted to pay, but Chen Jiazhi confiscated them.

It’s not that they can’t afford it, it’s just that vegetable farmers rarely go out to the market during the day. If you want to buy something, they usually bring it back after selling the vegetables in the morning.

Occasionally, I go out to buy some agricultural and sideline products at the market in Dongxiang Village.

Chenxu is similar to the market or fair in other places, but the name is different in different places.

In short, I'm still in the village.
Some women are more withdrawn and may not step out of the market for a week or a month.
At dinner time, Li Xiu became the center of the group of women, who all gathered around her and asked her questions.

Huacheng is still quite unfamiliar to many of them.

(End of this chapter)