Hearing Song Wei’s words, the brigade leader and the surrounding crowd were instantly filled with righteous indignation.
“Bah! What a scumbag!”
Someone even sneakily kicked the people lying on the ground.
When the police arrived and saw the people sprawled on the ground, they were stunned.
“Who hit them?”
“Here, here!” The young men following the brigade leader raised their hands.
The brigade leader quickly stepped forward. “Comrades, if you have questions, please talk to him.”
He pushed Lin Zhen forward.
The police were puzzled. “You guys beat them? But you don’t look like you’ve just been in a fight. No injuries?”
A scuffle where the other side had so many armed people, but only one side was down, and the other was unharmed?
“I am injured! They hit my arm; it’s still hurting.”
The speaker was Jiang Xiaowan’s father, nearly fifty years old, with quite a bit of gray hair.
The police: “…”
In the end, the culprits lying on the ground were taken away. After Lin Zhen and the others finished their statements, they were released.
They still needed to continue buying New Year’s goods.
Pulling a cart loaded to the brim, they made their way back since Song Wei wasn’t the only one with a shopping list—others had their own, too. Back in the village, the goods would be distributed.
As soon as the tractor reached the village entrance, it was met with the enthusiastic cheers of the villagers.
“How’d it go, Brigade Leader?”
“All sold out! Hahaha…”
“Wow, look at all those New Year’s goods!”
“Mine’s here! Song Zhiqing helped me get some.”
“And mine too! I asked for sugar and red paper couplets!”
The brigade leader quickly shouted, “No pushing, one at a time!”
It stayed lively until late at night before Song Wei and the others could finally rest.
What a tiring day.
Yet some, still excited, retold their “heroic” battle against the gang of thieves, embellishing the tale with artistic flourishes.
“The police even praised us!”
This drew exclamations of admiration from the crowd.
Back at the educated youth dormitory, Song Wei tidied up, bathed, and fell straight into bed.
She slept soundly and woke up refreshed the next morning.
The village’s gong rang again.
While other villages were hunkering down for the winter, Ping’an Village was abuzz with activity. Clad in thick cotton jackets, villagers yawned and rubbed the sleep from their eyes as they headed out with baskets, making their way to the greenhouses to harvest fresh vegetables.
With many hands at work, the greenhouse was soon cleared, and the vegetables filled an entire tractor.
Today, Song Wei didn’t join the others but stayed home to chat with the aunts.
“Song Zhiqing, someone’s here at the village entrance! They came in a car!”
A car—something rarely seen even in their small town. In the city, only the mayor had one.
Hearing this, the aunts perked up, and they hurried to the entrance.
A black car was parked at the wheat field, surrounded by villagers who didn’t dare get too close.
Song Wei squeezed her way through the crowd and saw five well-dressed individuals standing by the car—two middle-aged men, an elderly gentleman, and two younger individuals. One of the middle-aged men appeared to be the driver.
Jiang Wenyong, the brigade leader’s eldest son, along with the village chief and a few respected elders, were receiving the visitors.
However, it was evident that they felt a bit out of their depth.
“Excuse me, is Comrade Song Wei part of your brigade?”
“Here! Song Wei is here!”
Before Song Wei could step forward, the aunts enthusiastically responded, their proud expressions as if they were the ones being sought.
Song Wei: “…”
She stepped forward, and Jiang Wenyong visibly relaxed.
They really didn’t know how to interact with such high-ranking visitors.
“Hello, Comrade Song Wei. We were sent by the authorities to inspect your brigade’s vegetable greenhouses. This is Professor Ren from the Agricultural Academy.”
A middle-aged man standing beside the elderly professor shook her hand and introduced himself.
Song Wei immediately understood; this must have something to do with the elderly gentleman she met at the Friendship Hotel.
She smiled brightly. “Comrades, have you eaten? How about we sit down for a meal and some tea?”
Since Song Wei couldn’t cook, she led the group to the brigade leader’s house.
Unfortunately, most of the key decision-makers in the brigade were out selling vegetables.
Nevertheless, Song Wei kept the atmosphere lively and invited the record keepers responsible for noting greenhouse data to join.
“Auntie, I’ll have to trouble you with the cooking.”
Aunt Xinghua waved it off. “Oh, it’s no trouble at all. It’s my duty. But you’ll have to handle hosting; I wouldn’t know what to say to such important people.”
Though usually warm and outgoing, the visitors’ urban sophistication and official status intimidated her.
While the meal was being prepared, Song Wei chatted with the visitors about the greenhouse operations.
“Greenhouses aren’t that difficult to manage. Once you understand the principles, you can make them even better. But I do have one request regarding this technology.”
“A request? For something meant to serve the country? You’re leveraging it as a bargaining chip?”
One of the young female assistants frowned, muttering under her breath.
The atmosphere immediately grew tense.
“Silence!”
The elderly professor sternly rebuked her before turning to Song Wei. “It’s reasonable. Let’s hear your request.”
Song Wei glanced at the disapproving assistant but remained unaffected.
“In our village, there’s a sandy area unsuitable for traditional crops. Most plants there wither, yet we still expend significant labor trying to cultivate it. I’d like to propose using that land for watermelon farming.”
The professor nodded. “Sandy soil is indeed suitable for growing watermelons. After we inspect the greenhouses, we’ll survey the area. If it’s feasible, I’ll file a report with the local government.”
Aunt Xinghua served dishes made from greenhouse-grown vegetables. At the table, while the male and female assistants displayed some arrogance, the rest were cordial.
“This is good! Tastes just like seasonal produce.”
“But the growth isn’t identical,” Bai Yunjiao explained. “We use a thick layer of wheat straw on the greenhouses to retain warmth, but that reduces sunlight. The vegetables inside are weaker compared to seasonal crops, with lighter-colored, yellowing leaves.”
The professor didn’t interrupt and let her speak.
Bai Yunjiao was passionate about her work. She not only recorded data daily but also studied numerous agricultural books. Her knowledge made her observations credible.
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