1994: Vegetable farmers strike back

Chapter 142 Nighttime Transactions at the Market

"Take care, Mr. Hong. I'm sorry to have troubled you to make a special trip to bring me back."

"No trouble at all, no trouble at all. I should be thanking you. I just regret not being able to invite you to dinner sooner."

After lunch, Hong Zhong felt he had gained a lot and had a sudden realization. He thanked everyone repeatedly before riding away on his motorcycle.

Chen Jiazhi washed himself before going back to his room for a nap.

Li Xiu leaned against the wall and joked, "You've got Boss Hong all sweet-talked, haven't you? He introduced you to the driving school, so why is he treating you to dinner?"

"That's real skill. Didn't you see he thanked me?" Chen Jiazhi smiled smugly.

"Tell me about it."

"Okay, okay, let me have a drink of water first."

Chen Jiazhi filled an enamel mug with cooled boiled water from the kettle, took a comfortable sip, and remarked on how convenient it was to have boiled water at home whenever possible.

After drinking the water, Chen Jiazhi sat on the bed, side by side with Li Xiu, leaning against the wall to enjoy the breeze from the fan.

"Actually, it's nothing. I just discussed with him how to run an agricultural supply store."

"Do you still understand this?"

“I don’t really understand, but Boss Hong is also a novice. He was tricked into buying a lot of inferior goods, and I pointed them all out for him.”

"That's impressive," Li Xiu praised, then asked, "By the way, how's the driving school? Have you enrolled yet?"

Chen Jiazhi laughed and said, "Of course, the money has been spent. I just need to study and take the exam as usual. With my talent, I can get my driver's license in a month without any problem."

"Okay, you should get some rest. I'll write down the workdays."

"Yes, I bought the water pump and knife that Dehai and the others asked for this morning. I'll have them pick them up this afternoon."

"Okay, I've got it. Go to sleep now."

Li Xiu then took out his old notebook from the bedside table and started flipping through it.

Chen Jiazhi ignored her and fell asleep. Soon after, he began to snore softly.

Li Xiu flipped through the notebook for a while, then stared at Chen Jiazhi for a bit before taking out the notebook she was using to make notes.

The summer heat and the incessant chirping of cicadas made Li Xiu feel tired and weary, but she still persisted in writing down her notes, one after another.

Everyone wrote down what tasks they did in the morning, how much they did, how many hours they worked throughout the day, how many hours they worked overtime, how many supplies they used, etc. The handwriting wasn't very clear, and was sometimes crooked, but the content was rich.

...

"Hmm~"

When Chen Jiazhi got up, he felt sweaty all over and his heart felt empty and listless.

After-nap symptoms.

Especially in the sweltering summer, when he is alone at home, the darkness that encroaches from all around makes him feel as if he is in another world.

Actually, I just overslept again.

Looking at the time, it was 7:30. After a good night's sleep, Chen Jiazhi slipped on his slippers, went to the door, lit a cigarette, and his mind gradually cleared.

He washed his face again, stood at the edge of the dam and looked out over the vegetable fields, his brows furrowing slightly.

Only Ao Dehai and Qi Yongfeng were watering the plants with hoses; the others had started harvesting.

They should have just finished catching up on the fat.

In addition to the regular top dressing for leafy vegetables, he also sprayed potassium dihydrogen phosphate on cowpeas, which he bought at the state-run supply and marketing cooperative at noon.

Potassium dihydrogen phosphate is a phosphorus and potassium compound fertilizer with high water solubility, suitable for foliar spraying. Since the 50s, it has been widely used in horticulture and cash crops in Europe and America.

in the country, the Ministry of Agriculture has been explicitly recommending the use of potassium dihydrogen phosphate for several years, and some regions even offer subsidies for it.

Applying appropriate amounts of fertilizer to cowpeas can effectively improve their resistance to adverse conditions, protect flowers and promote fruit development during the pod-setting stage, and effectively increase yield.

However, potassium dihydrogen phosphate is also a major area of ​​counterfeiting, and he was scammed several times in his previous life.

This time, he shared some experience with Hong Zhong, but he also had other motives in giving Hong Zhong his guidance.

I stood in the dam area for a while, watching the vegetable fields bathed in the afterglow of the setting sun. There were lush green vegetables, farmers wearing straw hats, and local dogs.
If city dwellers came, they would probably praise the beautiful rural scenery.

Chen Jiazhi withdrew his gaze, went back inside to eat the dinner left for him, and then went out to plot number 6-5.

This is 0.5 mu of Chinese cabbage planted on July 1st. The seedlings have been thinned and fertilized. Ao Dehai is watering it.

"Dehai, leave the rest to me. You call Yongfeng and go harvest the vegetables first."

"Good~"

The task of harvesting vegetables was heavy, but Ao Dehai didn't hesitate. When he took the water hose, Chen Jiazhi noticed that Ao Dehai's clothes were soaked, and he couldn't tell whether it was sweat or water from the ditch.

As he turned to leave, there were still marks on the back of his clothes from the water pipes, covered in mud.

Although there are water pumps and pipes now, which is better than using a manure scoop to water the plants, it is still not easy for one person to water them with a pipe.

Because the land is very long and the water pipe is also very long, you have to drag the water pipe along. The water pipe is also filled with water, so it will only get heavier and heavier the further you go, which is very strenuous.

Previously, there was only one water pump, and it was always a man and a woman working together; the woman would water the plants, and the man would pull the water hose.

There are now two water pumps, but due to the heavy workload, Ao Dehai and Qi Yongfeng each took a water pipe to water the plants.

You have to water the plants while carrying the hose forward, and you can't damage the vegetables while dragging the hose!
It is a test of both physical strength and skill.

When Ao Dehai suggested buying another water pump that morning, Chen Jiazhi had considered that he would find two temporary workers to help.

I didn't expect it to be one person per machine.

One water pump requires two people, and two water pumps also require two people. The manpower remains the same, but the efficiency is doubled.

Where can you find workers like that?

But now he has at least one.

This feeling became even stronger after experiencing the intensity firsthand.

After watering several vegetable plots on either side, Chen Jiazhi had no choice but to put the hose on his shoulder, holding the metal hose with his left hand and the plastic hose behind his back with his right. Using his hands, shoulders, waist, and back simultaneously, he dragged the hose forward, watered a few more plots, and then repeated the same motion.
In his previous life, after Chen Jiazhi upgraded to a greenhouse, watering became automatic, and he hadn't experienced watering like this in a long time.

There was no nostalgia, just a desire to get it over with quickly. After watering the plants, it was completely dark. Chen Jiazhi breathed a sigh of relief, rewarded himself with a cigarette, and then began to pack up the hoses and pumps.

The water pipe can be rolled up and placed in an empty shade net area, but the water pump needs to be taken back to the warehouse.

After finishing all that, Chen Jiazhi went to visit all three vegetable collection teams.

In the No. 2 kale field, we even saw Li Xiu, dressed in a floral long-sleeved shirt and trousers, sitting on a small stool helping to harvest the vegetables.

There are three other people: Ao Dehai, Zhao Yu, and Huang Juan.

Chen Jiazhi stood with his hands on his hips, watching Li Xiu harvest vegetables for a while. Her fingers were still flying across the screen at a fast pace. He didn't know what to say for a moment, and he was also numb to the urge.

After standing in the darkness for a while, Zhao Yucai was the first to notice his arrival.

"Hey, Mr. Chen~ when did you get here?"

"Just arrived too."

Chen Jiazhi took a few steps forward, squatted down next to Li Xiu, and helped her harvest vegetables. He didn't say anything to her, and Li Xiu continued harvesting vegetables as if nothing had happened.

"Mr. Chen, how's this kale?"

"It's alright, it's grown quite a bit."

How much does Chinese kale cost per pound now?

"We have three yuan and three yuan fifty."

"That's expensive too. It must cost eight or nine thousand yuan per acre. The boss is going to make a fortune this month. He should give us a lot more bonuses."

When Zhao Yu said this, he made no attempt to hide his true intention: to get more bonus money.

Chen Jiazhi understood why she had struck up a conversation with him, and couldn't help but smile. They really were a very well-matched couple.

Zhao Yu is straightforward, while Ao Dehai is meticulous and hardworking.

He wasn't opposed at all, and laughed heartily, "Don't worry, don't worry, I'll definitely give you and Dehai a big red envelope each!"

"Hahaha, okay, I've got it. One for each of you."

“You’ll all get some.” Chen Jiazhi glanced at the vegetable basket and then asked, “How much kale did you harvest?”

Ao Dehai said, "It's only a little over 100 jin. We were just harvesting transplanted bok choy. Why don't you two go back first, boss and boss's wife?"

Chen Jiazhi thought for a moment and said, "It's okay. A customer will come to the market to buy vegetables later. I'll go back then."

"Come to the market to buy vegetables." Ao Dehai pondered for a moment, then asked, "How many kilograms of kale do you need?"

“Give him half, 250 jin.”

"Then I'll take the kale I've collected back first."

"Let's collect them first, and then take them back together when we have enough."

"That has to work."

They chatted for a while, then fell silent again; only the sound of picking vegetables remained in the vegetable field.

The kale wasn't even arranged in two neat rows; a few stalks were just piled up in one hand, one hand after another, basket after basket, and it was done very quickly.

By the time a light truck arrived in the dam area, the vegetables were almost ready to be harvested.

Chen Jiazhi shouted, telling Qi Yongfeng and Ao Deliang to also bring vegetables home, before turning back to shout to Li Xiu.

"Let's go, Xiu, let's go back."

"I'll finish this quickly, then you can leave."

Chen Jiazhi was still waiting for her.

Seeing this, Zhao Yu stood up and took the half-full of food from Li Xiu's hand. "Boss lady, you go back now, we can handle it."

Li Xiu then got up and walked back, pretending not to see Chen Jiazhi's gaze.

After Chen Jiazhi waited for her to walk ahead, he bent down, put his head down, and with a burst of strength, carried the basket of vegetables on his shoulder back.

Heiwa'er Hong'an was already waiting in the dam area, and Yi Long was trying to communicate with him.

However, the two often talked at cross purposes and couldn't understand each other's words. Hong An was relieved when Chen Jiazhi returned.

"Mr. Chen, am I too early?"

"No, it's about right." Chen Jiazhi took the cigarette offered by him, tucked it behind his ear, and didn't smoke it right away.

"Let's make it clear first, I can still give you half of the mustard greens and kale, but the price has gone up to three yuan and sixty cents a pound."

"It'll go up by one cent." Hong An smiled easily. "Okay, then it'll be three dollars and sixty cents."

By this time, a lot of people had already gathered in the courtyard, and upon hearing the price, they all started speaking in various authentic local dialects.

In short: Expensive.

There are hardly any outsiders left in this house, and they are all from the mainland. They don't even have a basic concept of 'smuggling' and aren't afraid of it being leaked.

Before long, all the vegetables for Heiwa were brought back.

Not too much, not too little, I rounded it up to a whole number: 500 jin of bok choy, 250 jin of kale, and 250 jin of mustard greens.

Fortunately, Heiwa was driving a light truck today, and there were many people with him, so he loaded 1000 jin of vegetables in no time.

Then you just wait to pay the bill.

The moment Heiwa pulled out the money, Chen Jiazhi could feel the restlessness in the air.

People like Li Xiu, Chen Jiafang, Zhou Yuqiong, Bai Yan, Ao Dehai, and Ao Deliang, who had never been to the market before, stared intently at him and Heiwa'er.

Heiwa gently twirled his fingers, flipping through the blue-black hundred-yuan bills 35 times before stopping, and then pulled out a few loose bills.

"Here you are, Mr. Chen, that's 3550 yuan in total."

Chen Jiazhi calmly accepted it, but the crowd became a little restless, making various exclamations such as "Oh my god!", "Wow!", "Awesome!" and so on.

Heiwa'er Hong An smiled, seemingly enjoying the feeling.

(End of this chapter)