1994: Vegetable farmers strike back

Chapter 157 Different Kinds of Joy and Sorrow
Full of wine and food.

Chen Jiazhi and Yi Dinggan arrived outside, chatting and joking around on the steps.

Soon after, the other men, who had also finished lunch, sat down one after another.

Inside, the radio was playing Leslie Cheung's "Silence is Golden," while outside, there was a lively atmosphere that hadn't been seen in a long time.

Only after drinking would people talk so intimately and directly.

This is what is meant by "truth comes out when one is drunk."

Yi Dinggan said, "Jiazhi, Lao Li, Lao Guo, and I have known what you're thinking for a long time, but we all want to give it another shot. Now it seems the situation is not very good."

If we can't make ends meet by the end of the year, you can't abandon us!

Chen Jiazhi raised his eyebrows and smiled, "Don't say such discouraging things. What if you succeed? Then we'll be each other's support and help each other out."

Li Mingkun still didn't drink, and said, "It's a bit difficult. I've been on edge ever since I put this money in."

Taking advantage of his drunken state, Chen Jiazhi asked, "Old man, you've always been as steady as a rock, how come you had the guts this time?"

Li Mingkun retorted, dissatisfied: "What do you mean by 'as steady as an old dog'? I'm also daring and willing to fight, okay?"

Guo Mancang, standing to the side, didn't hesitate to expose him, "He doesn't have any guts. It's all because Bai Yan wants to try again, and my Yuqiong wants to give it another shot."

"I knew it! You guys are all so tough, especially Old Li..."

"Damn it, I'm going back to sleep. I don't want to talk to a drunkard." Li Mingkun cursed as he left.

After chatting and catching up for a while, the crowd gradually dispersed. Chen Jiazhi quickly washed up and went back to his room.

On the day of work recording, Li Xiu was wearing a blue and white floral dress, her hair tied in a ponytail, and sitting quietly on a stool.

Chen Jiazhi stepped forward and said, "Let me do it."

Li Xiu looked up and glanced at him. His expression was normal, so she knew he hadn't drunk too much. After all, it was just two bottles of beer; for him, it was just enough to rinse his mouth.

"It's alright, you should get some rest."

"I don't want to sleep, I'll watch for a while."

"What's so interesting about recording work days?"

"I'm looking at beautiful women."

Li Xiu gave a slightly embarrassed and reproachful look, but didn't say anything more.

Chen Jiazhi sat down next to her, staring intently at her.

The beauties of 1994 were not as flashy or competitive as those of later years, but true beauty lies in its understated elegance.

It is said that clothes make the man and a saddle makes the horse, but Li Xiu has clearly surpassed that level.

Wearing a faded blue and white short-sleeved shirt and patched blue trousers, with a full chest, rounded shoulders, a small nose, and bright black eyes, coupled with a face that was slightly red with shyness, even dressed plainly and walking on a dimly lit street, she would still attract attention.

Chen Jiazhi simply watched nakedly.

"Didn't you buy new clothes? Why aren't you wearing them?"

Li Xiu stopped writing: "Why wear new clothes in the market? It's not good if you get them dirty or torn."

Chen Jiazhi laughed and said, "If you wear them out, wear them until they're worn out, and you don't like them anymore, you can just buy more."

"You've only had a few good days, and you're already getting tired of the old and looking for something new?" Li Xiu rolled her eyes at him. "Stop messing around and go to sleep. I forgot what I was memorizing earlier."

Chen Jiazhi then went to bed. Whenever he had a moment of free time, he would unconsciously start thinking about those things.

...

In the evening, perhaps due to the afternoon showers, the heat dissipated considerably.

However, the road was neither slippery nor wet.

Chen Jiazhi and Li Xiu strolled along the gravel road, surrounded by lush green vegetable fields. Busy figures were scattered throughout the fields, but the two of them were enjoying a rare moment of leisure.

The two people and two dogs walked and stopped, one after the other, not going into the vegetable field, but leaving the market and heading towards the riverbank.

The river that encircles Nanpu Island flows eastward, turning and bends, passing Dongxiang and Jushu Village, before flowing onward to join the mighty Pearl River.

The scenery along the riverbank is breathtaking. The market town connects to the villages, and the tranquil river flows between the two banks. Small boats dart back and forth on the water, while pedestrians stroll along the banks. The setting sun casts a soft glow, and a warm breeze gently blows.
Chen Jiazhi said, "It would be great if we could capture these scenes on film."

"If you have time tomorrow, you can buy the camera."

"Let's wait until after the baby is born before going, or maybe we should stay at the hospital for a couple of days?"

"Hmm~" Li Xiu hesitated for a moment, "I'll just stay at home, I'll be fine, they all did it this way~"

Hand in hand, we gaze upon the flat fields, where birds flit about and butterflies dance in circles.
Along the riverbank, banana trees grow in clusters, their lush green leaves concealing layers of banana fruits that hang densely from the treetops like strings of shimmering green jade, almost breaking the tree trunks under their weight, and seemingly exuding a captivating fragrance.

I walked along the riverbank in an arc from the east side of the market, until I reached the Dongxiang Ferry in the southwest of the market. Then I passed through a lush white sugarcane grove before entering the market area again.

The last rays of the setting sun were about to disappear, and night was about to fall.

Only then did she leisurely walk home, Li Xiu occasionally rubbing her belly. She only spoke again after reaching her own vegetable garden.

"Jiazhi, shouldn't we pick the cowpeas tomorrow?"

The cowpeas hung from the vines, visible from afar on my way home.

Chen Jiazhi hummed in agreement and then said, "You shouldn't get involved."

Li Xiuwei said with slight dissatisfaction, "Why? You promised before that I could lend a hand."

"Don't worry about having a baby." Chen Jiazhi smiled. "If you want to pick them, I'll plant more later. I'll plant whatever you want to pick until you get tired of it."

"Wouldn't it be alright to come out and take a look?"

"That's no problem. I brought you out for a walk too, so just be careful."

"Yes, I'm in the vegetable field."

Passing through the third group of cowpea fields, there are small, dense mustard seedlings next to it.

Li Xiu said, "It would be a pity to throw away the seedlings when thinning them out. We can dig up some of them and transplant them. Anyway, there is a shade net, so we can just cover them up after planting."

"Not bad, you even know this."

“I looked at your notebook.” Li Xiu paused, then turned around and said, “You wrote very detailed notes in it, and you also summarized the mustard greens from the past ten days or so.”

"I've seen it all," Li Xiu repeated before continuing to walk forward.

"You wrote that 3 mu of land produced more than 5100 jin of mustard greens, which exceeded expectations, but the quality was sacrificed because the harvest was delayed. The mustard greens grew too big, but because the heads were too thick, many heads rotted. According to the growth time, the yield was substandard, and it also affected the quality and harvesting efficiency."

"Yes, I remember it very clearly."

"I have a very good memory."

"Great!"

Chen Jiazhi noticed that her steps were much more cheerful, and said, "I underestimated the temperature here. Fortunately, it was sunny for several days after the typhoon. If the rain had come a few days earlier, the mustard greens might have suffered heavy losses."

"You're amazing. If I hadn't seen your notes and summaries, I would still be clueless and wouldn't understand anything."

The mustard greens sown the day before yesterday have all sprouted, and like the previous two batches, they are sprouting very densely. However, high temperature and humidity require sparse planting.

Therefore, when thinning seedlings, many seedlings will be pulled out. It would be a waste to throw them away, so some mustard greens can be transplanted instead.

Chen Jiazhi had the same plan.

Before the advent of shade nets, the Pearl River Delta region had no history of cultivating and transplanting mustard greens, Chinese cabbage, and Chinese kale seedlings in the summer.

However, in the late 90s, as shade nets gradually became more widespread, more seedlings were planted in the summer.

...

In the early hours of the morning, Yi Long weighed the vegetables in the dam area, adding more if necessary.

Chen Jiazhi said that the seeds of kimchi hearts and kale should be sown during the day, as the quality of these two vegetables will be worse if they are transplanted in the summer.

The quantity of vegetables was the same as yesterday: 22 pieces of bok choy and 8 pieces of kale. The prices were also unchanged: 70 yuan per piece for bok choy and 60 yuan per piece for kale.

The kale given to Hong'an was 2.5 yuan per jin, and there were exactly 200 jin.

Because he was worried about his family, Chen Jiazhi didn't delay at all. He would deliver the goods, collect the money, and leave, often finishing a deal in just a few words.

At stall number 56, Xu He had just picked up his vegetables and paid for them.

"Mr. Chen, you should have some free time these days since we're running low on vegetables. Shall we go to Jiangxin Market together during the day?"

"I'm busy, something came up at home." Chen Jiazhi didn't even look up, taking notes on the next order in his notebook.

"Xiaolong, deliver two packages of bok choy to Fatty Liu. The money has already been received. Remember to bring back yesterday's basket of vegetables."

"I'll go."

Xu He stood to the side, looking rather displeased: "So, when are you free?"

"Please wait a few more days. I really have some things going on at home these days, I'm not lying."

Chen Jiazhi then greeted the next regular customer, collected the money with just a few words, and cleared out the store again after delivering the food.

Xu He was still standing to the side, offering him a cigarette and saying, "Then I'll wait for your news."

Chen Jiazhi took the cigarette and nodded: "Don't worry, I won't go back on my word, but I can't guarantee the effect!"

"It's alright. You offer your suggestions; how to proceed is someone else's business."

After confirming that Chen Jiazhi still remembered the matter, Xu He left, and Chen Jiazhi also took stock of today's accounts.

All the customers who were supposed to come have arrived.

As for some old customers who have disappeared, such as Sister Zhang, who mainly does retail, she complained that his vegetable prices were too high and that she could only buy them in bulk, so she hasn't come for a few days.

Chen Jiazhi believes there's another reason: he's gotten much darker from the sun, and his once stunning looks are no longer what they used to be.
I still feel a little regretful.

After looking at the accounts for a while, I saw that my income was 2520 yuan, which was a few dozen yuan more than yesterday. After Yi Long finished delivering the goods and returned the cart, I rushed home.

It was not yet 3 o'clock.

He breathed a sigh of relief when he got home and saw Li Xiu fast asleep.

Then, he gently carried the bucket of seeds to the yard, scooped them out, wrapped them in cloth to germinate them, and then went to bed to rest.

The early morning field patrol is also very rushed; after arranging the work, I go home for a while.

The same goes for sowing seeds. After starting, he handed over the task to Ao Dehai and Qi Yongfeng and went home.

He also cooked lunch, which Li Xiu found quite unsettling. During her lunch break, she asked, "What's wrong with you today? You seem a bit off."

"I feel like the baby will be born today."

"Is it you or me who's pregnant? I can't feel it."

"Anyway, be careful not to pick cowpeas this afternoon."

"Okay, you should go to sleep."

Even while sleeping, Chen Jiazhi was restless, constantly looking back, and only fell asleep peacefully at four o'clock.

Around 5 o'clock, Li Xiu took a stroll in the vegetable field and looked at the cowpeas. Ao Deliang was already preparing to harvest them.

On her way back, she saw Chen Jiazhi watching her from afar at the door.

"You should ask me to go out with you."

"It's nothing, I'm just taking a walk. Why are you acting so strange today?"

"..."

Having already passed the time of his birth in his previous life, Chen Jiazhi realized that he was being too nervous, even though he hadn't taken it to heart at all in his previous life.

After dinner, Yi Long wanted to go fishing for eels in the wild again, but Chen Jiazhi remained unmoved and did not go.

They didn't go to the fields either.

We're out of bok choy today, so we only have some kale and cowpeas. There's not much kale left either, so we don't need him to help.

After taking a walk, Li Xiu and I listened to music and the news at home, occasionally jotting down notes.

I'm also very anxious. This little brat still won't come out. He has to practice driving tomorrow morning, and his test is the day after tomorrow.

In the early morning, the tricycle was empty, carrying only eight pieces of kale and about two hundred kilograms of cowpeas.

Chen Jiazhi felt relaxed, his heart filled with longing to go home.

Chen Ze, Lao Wu, Xu He, Juanmao, Liu Pangzi, and other long-time customers all wore long faces.

The bok choy is gone, not a single piece left.

The only option is to look for it in the market.

When they saw the misshapen and cracked fruits in the market, and how much effort it took to get the vegetables, they truly felt the difference.

Old Wu sighed silently when he saw that the bok choy he had bought needed to be prepared again.

The first day I missed Chen Caixin.

The next day, Chen Jiazhi returned home anxiously. Li Xiu was still not making a move and was even chatting and laughing as she helped her second sister clean the kitchen.

But he lost patience, found a car, took Li Xiu to the hospital, and asked Huang Juan to help accompany her.

He then went to practice driving. After finishing, he went to the hospital to relieve Huang Juan, but there was still no movement. So he found a corner to catch up on sleep.

While he was sound asleep, he heard Li Xiu's somewhat anxious shouts.

"Jiazhi, hurry, hurry, she's about to give birth!"

Perhaps for every young family, the birth of a newborn is like a miracle.

Love, from the very beginning, reaches its boiling point; it is full and pure, enduring and patient, and also kind.
Many people like them live their entire lives for only two goals: the children they gave birth to and the children who gave birth to them. Perhaps they should also live more for themselves.

(End of this chapter)