Chapter 30: Chives Stir-Fried with Eggs

Xia Ning’an found an abandoned courtyard, took out the oil press, and then went out to find five oxcarts. She had the machine loaded onto the carts and returned to the village.

At the village entrance, a group of aunties were sitting under a big tree, sewing shoe soles and gossiping. When they saw Xia Ning’an bringing the oil press back to the village, they were all excited.

“Oh, Xia family’s daughter is really capable. She even got the machine back.”

The aunties under the tree immediately swarmed around the oxcarts, chattering away.

This new development in the village distracted them.

“So that’s what an oil press looks like. Can this machine really extract oil?”

“Ma Xiaocui, don’t touch it. What if you break it?”

“How can such a big iron lump be broken by me?”

Everyone was chattering until the team leader came over and quickly shooed them away.

Ever since he knew Xia Ning’an was going to the county to fetch the machine today, he hadn’t sat down for a moment. He kept going to the village entrance to check, and finally, the machine arrived. He couldn’t let these old women break it.

“Go do whatever you need to do. Don’t crowd around here.”

He said as he led the oxcarts to unload the things in a warehouse of the newly built oil mill.

After more than ten days of hard work by the villagers, the oil mill was finally finished. Now, they just had to wait for the cement floor to dry before the machines could be moved in. During this time, with the support of the commune leaders, Xia Ninghao had reached a cooperation agreement with the commune’s supply and marketing cooperative and state-owned restaurants. They had already signed purchase contracts.

Tomorrow was the day for the oil mill workers’ assessment. They would first recruit 12 people to be responsible for the daily work of the oil mill and 5 purchasing agents to be responsible for collecting raw materials from nearby villages and towns.

The whole village was very excited about the village’s collective factory. Finally, they had the opportunity to be workers and earn wages. They heard that the oil mill would give 10 work points per day, 10 yuan per month, and coupons at the end of the year. So, every household was eager to get into the oil mill. Even the educated youth were secretly hoping to get a spot at the oil mill.

When Xia Ning’an returned home, her family had already eaten. They left her some coarse grain porridge and steamed buns. After eating, she saw that Lu Zecheng wasn’t taking a nap.

“Zecheng Ge, why didn’t you rest for a while?”

“I’m not sleepy now. I’m just listening to the radio. Have you finished eating?”

“Yeah, I’m done. Zecheng Ge, the bandages on your eyes will be removed the day after tomorrow!”

Lu Zecheng was a little excited.

“An’an, do you think my eyes will really be fine?”

Xia Ning’an said decisively, “Don’t worry, they’ll definitely be fine.”

“Yeah, I hope my eyes can get better. That way, I can see what you look like.”

Xia Ning’an laughed. “Zecheng Ge, have you forgotten what I look like?”

“I feel like the you in my memory isn’t the you now. So, I want to see what you look like now.”

Xia Ning’an~~~~

He’s so perceptive! Even though he can’t see, he can still sense that she’s different. He’s truly an amazing soldier.

She wondered what kind of feelings he had for the original owner. What if he realized she wasn’t the original owner, but the person he wanted to marry was the original owner? What should she do? …

“Zecheng Ge, what if you see me and find out that I’m not the way you like?”

“As long as it’s you, I won’t dislike you.” Lu Zecheng’s ears turned red again.

He’s so easily embarrassed~~~

That night, Xia Ning’an made a pot of sour fish, a bowl of pork bone and yam soup, a plate of spicy shredded potatoes, pork and cabbage stewed with vermicelli, a plate of chives stir-fried with eggs, and rice and steamed buns from the space.

After dinner, the family was about to soak their feet and go back to their rooms when they heard a knock on the door.

Xia Ninghao opened the door and saw a male educated youth named Jiang Hua. He invited him into the hall.

“Xia Huiji, Xia Changchang, hello. I came to ask about the recruitment situation tomorrow.”

He said as he placed a pack of Daqianmen cigarettes and two bottles of wine on the table.

The Xia family father and son looked at each other, then at Xia Ning’an. Xia Ning’an motioned for Xia Ninghao to handle it himself.

“Jiang Zhiqing, this recruitment is based on the principle of fairness and openness. This is the village’s first collective enterprise, and we will definitely treat everyone with care. As long as you have the ability and are willing to work hard, you will definitely have a chance. Take these things back. It’s not easy for you to be away from your family. Keep them for yourself.”

Jiang Hua saw that Xia Ninghao said this, knowing that there would be no backdoor this time. He could only take the things and leave.

Soon, four or five groups of people came to the house. The door was knocked again. The few people looked at each other helplessly. Xia Ninghao went to open the door. This time, it was the team leader.

“Team Leader, why are you here?” Xia Ninghao asked curiously.

“I came to see how your family is doing.”

The team leader entered the house with his eye bags.

“My family has had several groups of people come today. I guess your family has had quite a few too. I came to hear what Xiaohou thinks.”

Xia Ninghao patted his chest and said, “Team Leader, don’t worry. I’ll handle things according to the rules and regulations. I will never bring shame to the team.”

“Yeah, I’m relieved to hear you say that.”

“Did your family eat chives tonight? I smell chives.”

The team leader sniffed and asked.

Why would they have chives at this time?

“Team Leader, your nose is really sharp. We had chives stir-fried with eggs tonight.” Xia Ninghao said proudly.

“It’s almost freezing. How come your family has chives to eat?”

Xia Ninghao leaned closer to the team leader. “Uncle, my little sister taught us how to grow vegetables in boxes. I’ll cut some chives for you to take home later.”

The team leader put his tobacco pouch on the table and said anxiously, “Take me to see it quickly.”

“Okay, I’ll take you to see something amazing.”

Xia Changhai led them to Xia Ninghao’s room.

As soon as the team leader entered, he was stunned. Was he seeing things? There were so many vegetables growing in this room. It was cold outside, but inside, it was full of spring, with cilantro, napa cabbage, chives, and Chinese spinach ready to be harvested. There were also celery and garlic chives that were almost ready to eat. There were also chili peppers, tomatoes, cucumbers, pumpkins, eggplants, and bean vines that were very tall. There were also several boxes of white things that looked like mushrooms.

“Changhai, am I seeing things? How did your family do this?” The team leader asked incredulously.

“This is a method my daughter taught us. You see, this is called oyster mushroom. It tastes like meat when stir-fried. It’s so delicious. Don’t you think these things could sell for a good price if they were sent to state-owned restaurants?”

“Of course!” The team leader slapped his thigh and said.

“Do you think our village can do this?” Xia Changhai asked the team leader.

“We can. Everyone can grow these box vegetables. We can have the village collect them and sell them. It’s just that we don’t know how to grow this thing called oyster mushroom. Besides, this is the first time we’ve seen it. Will anyone want it?” The team leader said as he leaned closer to the oyster mushrooms, sniffing them carefully to see what they smelled like.

Xia Changhai called Li Fang to come in and cut some oyster mushrooms to stir-fry a dish for the team leader to taste.

Li Fang took a piece of meat from the large jar in the courtyard, sliced it, and stir-fried it with the oyster mushrooms.

The team leader ate it and said it was delicious, even more flavorful than hazel mushrooms. It was plump and chewy, and it really tasted like meat.

“Changhai, can we buy the mushroom spawn?”

“No problem. As long as the villagers want to grow them, An’an can ask someone to buy the spawn.”

“How is the spawn sold?”

“An’an said the spawn is 1.6 yuan per jin. One jin of spawn can produce 8-10 jin of oyster mushrooms. One jin of mushrooms can be sold for about 4-60 cents in state-owned restaurants.”

“Then let’s do it. What are we waiting for?”

The team leader asked Xia Changhai’s permission, took a box of oyster mushrooms to the village committee, and also cut some chives, garlic chives, and picked some cilantro to take to several village cadres’ homes.