60s: I have a store

Chapter 21 Magnifying Move

Zhou Yimin had originally planned to return to the city right after dinner and ask his third uncle to ask Master Chen to make four more parts for the water pressure wells and bring back some food, as he couldn't make any good dishes with the food in his kitchen.

However, the village chief Wang of Shangshui Village came and said that he also wanted to hunt in exchange for food.

Then let's go back tomorrow! It will save us from the hassle of going back and forth again.

Besides, it would be dark soon, and grandma didn't want him to take risks. If he met bad guys on the way, it would be troublesome. In this era of hunger, some people would take risks.

The old lady was somewhat resentful of the old Party secretary. Why did he always ask his eldest grandson to handle village affairs? What do you do for a living? If you can do it, do it. If you can't do it, don't do it.

There is a pressurized well, so using water is convenient.

The water tank was already full of water. Grandma was very satisfied and her smile was raised with joy.

Zhou Yimin took a bath. He was a southerner in his previous life, and some habits could not be changed in a short time.

It’s just that the bathing environment here is not very friendly.

He thought about renovating his grandparents' place. Besides making it more comfortable for them, he would also come back often in the future.

So, after taking a bath, he discussed it with his grandfather.

"Grandpa, how about we build two more houses next to each other on the right side of our house? And we can also renovate the inside of the old house at the same time." Zhou Yimin said.

The old man was stunned and thought: Even if you come back to stay overnight, will it be enough for you to stay?

There is an empty room next to it!
"Need it?" he asked.

Building two more houses and renovating the interior of the old house will cost a lot of money.

He felt that since they were all old and used to living in this house, there was no need to renovate it. Wouldn't it be better to save that little money and give it to the eldest grandson to support his family in the future?

Zhou Yimin understood the old man’s psychology.

It seems that I have to use my ultimate move again.

"Grandpa! I'm going to come back and stay here more often in the future, so please make sure everything is done well!

Besides, when your grandson and I get married, won’t your granddaughter-in-law come back often? When we have children, won’t your great-grandson and great-granddaughter also need a room to live in? How can we accommodate them here?"

Before the old man could say anything, the old lady became anxious.

"Yes, yes, we need to build a bigger house. It may not be big enough to live in in the future." She was already fantasizing about her eldest grandson giving her a bunch of great-grandchildren.

"Then I'll go find someone tomorrow." The old man couldn't wait to think of his future granddaughter-in-law, great-grandson, and great-granddaughter.

It seems that this trick is really effective and Zhou Yimin has tried it many times and it has worked.

As night fell, Zhou Yimin was so bored that he could only wander around the "store".

Grandma came in with the only kerosene lamp in the house and placed it in Zhou Yimin's room. There was no electricity in Zhoujiazhuang, and every household used kerosene lamps or candles.

Kerosene lamps are the most common lighting tool in rural areas.

Just like the one that grandma brought in, it has a lamp head shaped like a toad with its mouth open. The lamp head is made of copper, while the lamp base and windshield are made of glass.

A more advanced kerosene lamp has more claws around the lamp head, and a small gear next to it that can control the rise or fall of the cotton rope. The lower part of the cotton rope extends into the lamp holder, and the lamp head matches the lamp holder through a thread, so the lamp head can be tightened on the lamp holder.

The lamp holder is filled with kerosene, and the cotton rope absorbs the kerosene to the rope end. As long as you light the rope end with a match and cover the lamp tube, you can light the lamp.

In addition, there are kerosene lamps that are windproof and can be used outdoors or in the field.

The nightlife of that era was simple and unpretentious. A couple would even have a little show, while everyone else would go to bed early to avoid wasting kerosene and candles.

Because of this, every time a projectionist came to the village to show a movie, it would cause a sensation in the whole village.

The next day, grandma steamed white flour buns and boiled eggs.

This time, they didn't steam the steamed bread separately, lest Zhou Yimin would get angry. However, they still left the eggs for Zhou Yimin. Grandma wanted to squeeze the toothpaste for her eldest grandson.

After eating, Zhou Yimin saw his grandfather calling people in the village who knew how to build houses. He also went over, took out a cigarette, and gave one to everyone.

"Wow! Daqianmen, I haven't smoked this cigarette yet! Yimin, how do you plan to build it?" Zhou Zhiming couldn't bear to smoke it and put it away.

He is in his forties, but is of the same generation as Zhou Yimin.

Just now, Zhou Yimin's grandfather, who is also his great uncle, had told him that it was Zhou Yimin's idea to build another house, so he simply asked Zhou Yimin what he thought.

Zhou Yimin immediately put forward his requirements, especially the bathroom.

Zhou Zhiming memorized it silently and didn't feel strange. It was normal for his cousin to be particular about his living environment as he had lived in the city since he was a child.

"This might cost some money."

"It's okay! Brother Zhiming, just build it according to my instructions. If there's anything missing, tell me and I'll find a way to get it back. By the way, call a few more people to help, and get it done as soon as possible. You can have dinner at my place."

"That's no problem!"

Now who in the village doesn't know that your family has the best food? They are all envious, but not jealous.

"By the way, do you have any beams available at home?"

There are only a few materials used to build a house: stone, mud bricks, wood, and tiles.

Stones are used to build the bottom foundation of the house. Mud bricks can be made by yourself using a mold and air-dried. Wood is mainly used to make wooden boards for doors and windows and beams for the roof. Tiles have to be bought from tile kilns.

Among these materials, the beams have the highest requirements. Not all wood can be used as beams. First of all, the trunk must be straight, and the wood must not be easily deformed or cracked.

Wood that can be used as beams is generally more valuable.

Seeing his grandfather shaking his head, Zhou Yimin asked, "Does anyone have any spare ones?"

"Dachun's house! He has more than a dozen pieces of good wood."

"Okay, I'll go to his house and talk later."

Zhou Zhiming thought for a moment and continued, "Yimin, if it's convenient for you, please bring back some cement and lime."

Limestone is also fine. As long as it is calcined at high temperature, it can become quicklime. Quicklime can be turned into slaked lime for plastering walls by adding water.

"Okay, I'll prepare it." Zhou Yimin took it.

Master Gu can definitely prepare all these materials.

"Then let's do this! I'll take some people to look for stones. There are some unused mud bricks in the village. You can go and tell the old Party secretary how much you have used and return them later.

Don’t worry about the tiles. After the beams are put up, I will go to the tile kiln to pick out the best ones for you.”

There is a tile kiln not far from Zhoujiazhuang, where the craftsmen are called tile kiln workers. Although the job of a tile kiln worker is hard, it is also a job that many farmers envy.

"Then I'll trouble you, Brother Zhiming."

Zhou Zhiming waved his hand. He also had to thank Zhou Yimin for the meal. Not to mention the food, it was definitely better than that in the village canteen, and the wages were much better than earning work points in the fields.

After watching Zhou Zhiming leave, Zhou Yimin followed him out and went straight to Dachun's house.

He didn't know the Dachun family, but it didn't matter, Lai Fu and the others were here and could lead the way.

Since it was he who proposed building the house, he naturally couldn't trouble grandpa and grandma too much.

Thanks to brother Su Laomai for the 500 reward!

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(End of this chapter)