Starting with vegetable greenhouses in 1988

Chapter 18 Family
At eight o'clock in the evening, it gradually got dark.

Li Weidong stood at the village entrance, gazing into the distance. At first, he remained calm, but the longer he waited, the more uncertain he became.

He paced back and forth, feeling uneasy. "It's so late, why isn't he out yet? I hope nothing bad has happened."

A faint light appeared to the north, gradually approaching along the dirt road.

"Put-put..." A motor sound rang out.

Li Weidong breathed a sigh of relief; this was the only tractor in the entire village, so it couldn't be wrong.

By this time, it was completely dark, and Li Weidong couldn't see very clearly. When the tractor got closer, he called out, "Second brother, is that you?"

Li Zhe stopped the tractor. "Brother, what are you waiting here for?"

"How can I not worry if he doesn't come back so late?"

"They say the capital is close to us, but it actually takes a long time to get there. Get in the car, I'll take you back."

Li Weidong climbed onto the tractor and then saw that the trailer was empty. "Dad, where's the rest of the corn?"

Old Li said with a smile, "They're all sold; not a single one is left."

"You sold an entire acre of corn? Really?" Li Weidong was somewhat incredulous.

Why would I lie to you? If you don't believe me, ask Zhu Zi.

"Hehe, Brother Weidong, they're all sold out. It's a pity you weren't there today, so you didn't see how popular our corn is."

"How much did it cost?"

Old Li raised his chin. "Guess?"

"Dad, why are you being so mysterious?" Seeing that his father was in a good mood, Li Weidong knew that the price must have been good, so he boldly said, "100." After saying that, Li Weidong immediately doubted himself, "No, no, there's the car rental fee too. It should be at least 120."

Old Li was somewhat smug, the difference in amount was huge. "Alright, stop guessing, you can't guess anyway, let's talk about it when we get back."

The tractor was noisy, so Li Weidong didn't ask any more questions. He figured the exact number was hard to guess, but it wouldn't be more than 20 yuan off. If it could really sell for 140, that would be quite a lot, and it wouldn't have been a waste of time.

The Li family's old house.

Wang Xiuying was sewing shoe soles when she heard a thumping sound outside. She threw the shoe soles on the kang (a heated brick bed) and ran outside.

Seeing the tractor parked steadily at the door, she breathed a sigh of relief. Ever since the father and son drove the tractor to Beijing, she had been worried sick.

"Dad, you all go down first, I'll take the tractor back to the brigade."

Wang Xiuying said, "Forget it, don't you even know what time it is? The accounting office has been locked for a long time. Just leave it at home and return it tomorrow morning."

"That's fine too." Li Zhe backed up the car, turned it around, and drove into the yard.

Wang Xiuying asked her husband, "Why are you so late? Did something happen?"

Old Li brushed the corn silk off his clothes. "It's nothing. We finished selling the corn at five o'clock. We were just a little late because we weren't familiar with the roads."

Wang Xiuying peered into the car. "Have all the corn been sold?"

"Sold out, damn it, guess how much it made?"

Wang Xiuying had been waiting for so long and was already feeling uneasy, so she had no interest in playing games with him. "Stop talking nonsense, how many did you sell?"

"224."

"How much?" Wang Xiuying asked, somewhat incredulous.

"Two hundred and twenty-four yuan."

Wang Xiuying exclaimed in surprise, "My goodness, why are you selling so many! You're not kidding me, are you?"

"Why would I lie to you? An ear of corn sells for six cents, do the math yourself."

"Where's the money? Let me count it."

Old Li looked at his second son. "Mother, don't rush, let's go inside first."

The corn was planted by his parents, and Li Zhe didn't intend to take the money. However, selling the corn was his idea, he organized the event, he set up the stall, and he saw how much work everyone did. He also had to share the profits.

"Yes, yes, the food is ready. I'll heat it up. Boss, make them some mung bean soup to quench their thirst. Zhu Zi, make yourself at home, don't be shy."

"Okay, Auntie."

Li Zhe and his two companions quickly washed up, sat in the main room and drank a bowl of mung bean soup. Under the expectant gazes of everyone, Li Zhe put his backpack on the table and took out a wad of bills.

"I made a total of 224 yuan from selling corn this time. I paid 20 yuan for the car rental, 3 yuan for the stall fee, and 0.5 yuan for sanitation management. After deducting these, I had 200.5 yuan left. Next is the labor cost for everyone: I got 15 yuan, Zhuzi got 10 yuan, Dad got 10 yuan, my older brother got 5 yuan, and Mom and my sister-in-law cooked at home, so they each got 1 yuan. Does anyone have any objections?"

Zhao Tiezhu said, "Brother Zhe, isn't the pay too high? I couldn't earn this much even if I drove all day."

Li Zhe said, "No one here is an outsider. Ever since I had the idea of ​​building a greenhouse, you have all put in a lot of effort and helped me for free. I have seen it and I remember it."

Now that we're making money, I can't keep it all for myself. Here, take it; this is all I have. When the vegetable greenhouses become profitable, you'll receive not only a salary but also a monthly bonus.

Li Weidong laughed and said, "Zhuzi, you should just keep it. If you don't accept it, I won't be able to take it."

Seeing that no one had any objections, Li Zhe began to distribute the money. Since everyone had contributed different amounts of effort, the amount they received was also different. He gave the remaining money to Lao Li.

Old Li had just happily accepted the money, but before he could even enjoy it, his wife snatched it away and started counting it.

Wang Xiuying grinned from ear to ear, counted the money twice, then frowned slightly, "Second brother, this amount seems wrong, it's only 153.5, shouldn't it be 158.5?"

"On the way back, I bought two pounds of smoked pig's head at the market."

"Look at my memory, how could I forget this? I'll go cut the meat and make it a snack for you guys with your drinks." Wang Xiuying was unusually easy to talk to today and took it upon herself to do it.

Upon hearing this, Old Li couldn't help but smile. He went inside and brought out the bulk liquor that Li Zhe had bought earlier, saying with a laugh, "We've been busy all day, let's have a couple of drinks to relax."

Pouring wine is a task that should be done by the younger generation, but whenever they drink at home, Old Li doesn't allow anyone else to do it. He sets out five glasses and pours five glasses of wine before the dishes are even served.

Boiled peanuts, cucumber salad with pork head meat, scallion salad with tofu, green bean salad, stir-fried loofah, and scrambled eggs with toon sprouts.

The little girl had already eaten dinner, so Wang Xiuying didn't let her sit at the table again. Instead, she served her braised pig's head and scrambled eggs with toon leaves in the east room. The little girl's eyes lit up when she saw the braised pig's head. She didn't even bother to pick up her chopsticks, grabbed a piece of braised pig's head and stuffed it into her mouth. "Delicious! This meat is so delicious!"

"Eat slowly, don't choke." Wang Xiuying handed a pair of chopsticks to her daughter.

"Mother, you eat too." The little girl picked up a piece of chubby pig's head meat and handed it to Wang Xiuying.

"You eat by yourself, all of this is for you. I'll eat outside." Wang Xiuying patted her daughter's head and left the east room.

Outside, bowls and chopsticks were already set out, and everyone sat together.

Old Li raised his glass and said, "Come on, we made money selling corn today, let's have a drink."

"cheers."

Wang Xiuying also took a sip. She didn't want to be a spoilsport, but her family's previous circumstances didn't allow it. If she could make money, who wouldn't want to live a life of luxury? "Zhuzi, start eating."

Wang Xiuying turned to look at Li Zhe, "Second brother, tell me, how much did you sell today?"

"Yes, second brother, tell me quickly." Li Weidong was also curious. He really regretted not going, otherwise he could have earned ten yuan, and his wife would have been overjoyed.

Li Zhe slowly picked up a piece of scrambled eggs with toon leaves and put it in his mouth. He hadn't eaten it for years. People who didn't like this dish thought it was bitter, but people who liked it couldn't get enough of it.

Li Zhe put down his chopsticks and recounted his experience of going to the city to sell vegetables.

Li Weidong slapped his thigh and said, "If only I went, Zhuzi and I could sell at the Dongdan vegetable market without having to sell to those vegetable vendors at a low price."

Li Zhe said, "It's no use you going. Dongdan vegetable market also charges a stall fee. Even if we sell it ourselves, we might not earn more than if we wholesale it to others. Vegetable vendors also have stalls in Dongdan vegetable market, and that's where they make their money."

"Second brother, take me with you when you sell corn tomorrow."

Li Zhe put down his chopsticks. "The corn is all sold out, what's the point of going anywhere else?"

(End of this chapter)