After distributing the grain, as the weather grew colder, the brigade embarked on building vegetable greenhouses. Alongside this effort, the final eagerly anticipated event of the year arrived.
Their brigade was about to hand over the mission pigs.
This year, Ping’an Brigade had raised ten pigs in total, a number maintained on the insistence of the educated youths. In previous years, the brigade had only raised six pigs.
Half of the mission pigs were to be handed over, while the other half remained with the brigade.
Thanks to the efforts of the educated youths, the mission pigs in the sty were plump and robust. By applying their knowledge of pig farming, they had brought a pleasant surprise to everyone.
“This year’s mission pigs are such a delight! Look at those big hindquarters—they must have plenty of fat!”
The brigade members gathered around the pigsty, beaming with joy as they admired the mission pigs.
“The educated youths in our brigade are really something. Though they might not be the strongest in manual labor, they know a lot. It seems studying really does teach you useful knowledge!”
Though exhausted, the rewarding results brought genuine smiles to the faces of Bai Yunjiao and the others.
Since Bai Yunjiao began managing the greenhouses and studying pig farming, no one in the brigade had called her a “seductress” who lured men anymore.
Raising pigs was tiring but didn’t require as much physical strength.
While relying on the men had been easier in the past, Bai Yunjiao had always felt mentally strained. Now, though mentally fatigued, she felt profoundly fulfilled.
The brigade leader also smiled broadly. “There’s no need to weigh these mission pigs—their weight is definitely sufficient. Let’s have some young fellows drive them to the commune for handover!”
At his call, several strong young men entered the pigsty to herd the pigs.
Seven pigs were driven away, leaving three for the brigade to slaughter and enjoy for the New Year.
Among the seven pigs, five were mission pigs. After handing them over to the commune, the brigade would receive some monetary and voucher subsidies.
The remaining two pigs were sold to the meat processing plant, which would also provide payment and vouchers, though at a higher rate than for the mission pigs.
The educated youths also went along, as these pigs were the result of their careful efforts.
As expected, all the mission pigs met the standards and were the fattest and heaviest among those from the surrounding brigades!
This left other brigades puzzled: “Why has Ping’an Brigade changed so much this year?”
Their rice yield had doubled, and their mission pigs were exceptionally well-raised.
What had Ping’an Brigade done to achieve this?
Some people secretly inquired in Ping’an Brigade and managed to catch some information.
“It’s the educated youths—the pigs were raised by those educated youths!”
When this news spread, other brigades were incredulous.
“What? Those city-educated youths who can’t carry heavy loads or shoulder burdens? You must have heard wrong!”
After the educated youths were sent to the countryside, their relationships with the villagers were mostly strained. Moreover, they were often looked down upon for their farming skills.
But now, to be told that such well-fed mission pigs were raised by these educated youths—it seemed almost too far-fetched to believe.
“I heard it right. They said the educated youths learned pig farming techniques from some books.”
Upon hearing this, the cleverer minds in the other brigades fell into thoughtful silence.
Farming, pig rearing, and chicken raising—these were skills passed down through generations among peasants. Everyone learned them from childhood, so it had never occurred to them that such knowledge could also be acquired from books.
Now, the educated youths of Ping’an Brigade had shown them just how much could be learned from books.
However, such books were scarce.
Bai Yunjiao and the others had only managed to obtain them through connections.
Even if other brigades wanted to find these books, they wouldn’t know where to look.
Unable to find the books, they could only try to build relationships with the educated youths in Ping’an Brigade to learn from them.
Ping’an Brigade suddenly became a bustling place, with many people from other brigades coming to “visit relatives.”
Some outright asked their relatives for tips on pig farming.
They had seen the three pigs Ping’an Brigade had kept for the New Year slaughter—plump and robust, no smaller than the mission pigs, each weighing nearly 400 jin.
The educated youths’ compound was the liveliest spot, with educated youths from other brigades also joining the excitement.
Song Wei even caught sight of the male and female leads Zhao Yuyin had mentioned.
It was mainly because Zhao Yuyin’s reaction was so obvious that Song Wei guessed immediately.
As expected of characters with protagonist aura, the two had ended up together even though they weren’t in Ping’an Brigade. Their subtle interactions made it clear.
Moreover, the male lead exuded an air of upright integrity, while the female lead was the capable and efficient type.
Song Wei’s first impression of them was quite favorable.
However, she didn’t interact with them much.
“Quite a few strangers have been showing up lately,” Song Wei remarked, lounging in Lin Zhen’s recliner and munching on a delicious roasted mantou.
Lin Zhen nodded. “The spies have taken advantage of this opportunity to blend in.”
With the increased traffic, it was easier for spies to infiltrate.
For Lin Zhen and his team, the fear wasn’t that they would come—it was that they wouldn’t.
“I’ve spoken to the brigade leader about organizing a movie screening in our brigade before Minor New Year. Winter is when snakes go dormant, so they’ll likely seize the chance to act during this season. We’re creating that opportunity for them.”
Song Wei frowned. “Won’t it be too cold for anyone to go watch a movie?”
“They’ll come,” Lin Zhen replied. “Even if it’s freezing or snowing, they’ll still show up.”
Leave a Reply