60s: I have a store

Chapter 16 Drilling a Well
Zhou Yimin also started to make promises for his grandparents.

It’s true, the elderly just like to hear this.

Sure enough, as soon as the old man and the old lady heard that their eldest grandson was renovating a house and preparing to get married and give birth to great-grandchildren, they started fantasizing in their minds and had forgotten everything else.

"Okay, okay! Have more children and grandma will help you take care of them." The old lady smiled so hard that her teeth were showing.

She put away the milk powder and brown sugar first.

She had never seen much milk powder, so she couldn't tell the difference between good and bad. But this brown sugar was the best she had ever seen, it looked smooth and had no peculiar smell or impurities.

Now, sugar is still scarce in China.

The situation may improve next year, because in 1960, around November this year, the Cuban leader will visit China.

You should know that Cuba has a tropical rainforest climate, and its agriculture is mainly based on sugarcane cultivation, which accounts for 55% of the country's arable land. Their industry is also mainly sugar production, accounting for more than 7% of the world's sugar production, and their per capita sugar production ranks first in the world, and they are known as the "World Sugar Bowl".

In order to strongly support the economic construction of socialist countries and meet domestic sugar supply, my country signed an agreement with Cuba to import 40 tons of Cuban sugar annually.

From now on, Cuban sugar will become the memory of a generation.

"Big brother, big brother..."

The voices of Lai Fu and his two siblings could be heard from outside, getting closer and closer.

"Wipe your nose and wash your hands." Zhou Yimin said to Sanxiao.

Especially the kid who came here, his snot was almost flowing to his lips, but he took a deep breath and sucked it back in. Zhou Yimin's stomach churned when he saw it.

Laifang is better, but she likes to suck fingers.

If their parents asked them to do so, they would have dealt with it casually, but when their eldest brother asked them to wipe their noses and wash their hands, they did not dare to be careless and completed the task seriously one by one.

Zhou Yimin scooped a bucket of water, went under the jujube tree, and washed the hands of the three little ones.

The water used for washing hands was also used to water the jujube trees.

"Brother, look how clean I washed it." Lai Fang opened his palms and showed them to Zhou Yimin.

Zhou Yimin nodded: "Yes! Very good, come in! Your aunt will make you some milk powder in a while."

When the grandmother inside heard what her grandson said, she had no choice but to open a bag of milk powder, take out a bowl, put a spoonful of milk powder into each bowl, add warm water and stir evenly.

A milky aroma emanates.

"Drink! Remember your big brother's kindness."

It was this sentence again, which made Zhou Yimin laugh and cry.

The three little guys, where have they ever tasted something so delicious? They licked the bowl clean.

Everyone drank a small bowl except the old man, who liked drinking wine and was not interested in drinking milk.

"Go and call your mother back." The old lady ordered after Lai Fu finished drinking.

……

In the village canteen, the old party secretary and others looked at the potatoes with smiles on their faces. With these potatoes, their village no longer had to worry about food shortages before the grain harvest.

"You are the ones who killed the deer. Each of you should take ten kilograms of potatoes home." The old branch secretary still made some sense.

If anyone still talks behind his back, don't blame him for making trouble.

Chow Tai Fook and others did not hesitate and picked up ten kilograms on the spot.

They deserve this.

"What is that?" asked the old branch secretary, pointing at the iron lumps.

"I don't know. I'll move Uncle Sixteen's things to him later."

When the old branch secretary learned that Zhou Yimin had returned to the village, he also planned to follow him and thank him in person.

Thanks to Zhou Yimin, the village was able to obtain so many sweet potatoes and potatoes. Otherwise, the tragedy of people starving to death would have happened in their Zhoujiazhuang.

Chow Tai Fook carried the ten kilograms of potatoes home in a swagger.

He was qualified to be arrogant, after all, he brought back ten kilograms of food for his family. "What a complacent guy! If you dare to go into the mountains without permission next time, I will break your legs." Zhou Dafu's father glared at him.

Besides, a deer can only bring back 10 kilograms of potatoes. Why are you so proud? You are like a fool. Why do you go back to the village after getting the prey? You can just take it to the city and it won't belong to the collective.

Zhou Dafu did not dare to refute his father. Instead, he took out the uneaten meat buns, broke them apart, and shared them with his three younger brothers and sisters.

"Brother, the meat buns are really delicious."

After his brothers and sisters finished eating, they licked their fingers several times.

……

The old branch secretary followed the people moving drill rods and others to Zhou Yimin’s grandfather’s house.

In the room, Zhou Yimin's grandmother and third aunt were cutting cloth, praising the cloth. Especially Zhou Yimin's third aunt, it was the first time for her to touch a whole piece of cloth in her life.

My children are so lucky to have such a capable brother.

Not only did they provide food and drink, but they also let them wear new clothes. She couldn't help but sigh that her husband was wise enough to "entangle" Zhou Yimin's grandparents.

Over the years, Zhou Xuqiang has almost treated himself as a son to the two elders.

The blessing has finally arrived.

Thinking of this, she felt as if all the hard work had paid off.

"Make the clothes bigger so that the child can grow taller easily," said the old lady.

"Yes! Aunt, I know."

Outside, Zhou Yimin gave cigarettes to the people who helped him move the water pump parts, one Daqianmen per person. Those guys took the cigarettes, but were reluctant to smoke.

"Yimin, it's really thanks to you this time." The old branch secretary said to Zhou Yimin.

"Secretary, don't say that. You handed the prey to me to help me achieve my goal, and we are mutually beneficial. Originally, I didn't get a regular job so soon, but with two wild boars delivered to the factory, I'm set." Zhou Yimin said with a smile.

"That's good. Next time there are prey, I'll give it all to you." The old branch secretary immediately expressed his opinion.

Zhou Yimin's grandfather snorted: "You still have some conscience."

The old branch secretary didn't dare to contradict him. Although he was old, he was of a lower generation. Strictly speaking, he had to call Zhou Yimin's grandfather his uncle.

"By the way, what are those used for?" the old branch secretary pointed at the parts and asked curiously.

"That's a hand-cranked water pump. I'm going to dig a pressure well over there and install this water pump there. Are you free? If you are, please help me."

"Oh? You know there's water over there?"

The old branch secretary and others were very surprised.

It was no problem to help, but digging a well was not that simple. You know, it took the whole village a week to dig their previous well.

Digging a well is a very uncertain business.

You have to choose a good location first. If you choose the wrong location, you will either dig four or five feet deep and still not find water, or the water you dig will be too salty to drink, or even bitter, and several days' work will be wasted.

"We can find out whether there is water by drilling. It only takes one or two hours," said Zhou Yimin.

An hour or two?

That’s okay, let me play with you!
The old branch secretary immediately assigned the person who had just moved the parts to another place.

"Yimin, how do we do this? Tell me." A man asked, rolling up his sleeves.

At this time, Zhou Xuqiang also came over.

"This is the drill rod, you..." Zhou Yimin taught them.

"Let's."

Zhou Xuqiang and two strong men started first and began drilling at the position designated by Zhou Yimin.

This was the first time they had encountered this method of drilling a well, and it felt very new. In fact, they had no expectation of whether they could drill out water.

(End of this chapter)