Reborn in 1977

Chen Fan sat at Fourth Master Lu's house for more than an hour. He didn't stay for a meal. Around ten o'clock in the morning, Chen Fan and Zhou Yali said their goodbyes.

Fourth Master Lu didn't try to persuade them to stay.

He had already reached a tacit understanding with Chen Fan. There was no need for formalities between them. If Chen Fan wanted to stay for a meal, he would definitely start cooking himself. Since he didn't, it meant he wouldn't be staying.

The road was slippery with ice and snow. After the two left the house, they mounted their horses and quickly arrived at the brigade headquarters.

As usual, since it wasn't the busy farming season, several brigade leaders were on duty inside the headquarters.

Chen Fan's arrival quickly livened things up.

With Zhou Yali present, he had to exchange a few simple greetings. After Zhang Cui'e ran over from the broadcasting station behind the building, Chen Fan handed Zhou Yali over to her, asking her to take her around the village. He himself stayed in the office to talk with the leaders.

Chen Fan poured himself a cup of hot tea, took out his dry tobacco pipe, pinched a wad of tobacco, lit it, and plopped down on the bench by the side. He looked around and asked curiously, "Where did Third Tiger go? I haven't seen him these past two days."

If it were before, as long as Zhang Wenliang was free, he would definitely go to Chen Fan to drink as soon as he knew Chen Fan was back.

But he didn't see him yesterday afternoon after returning, and he didn't see him this morning either, which was a bit strange.

Hearing Chen Fan's question, Secretary Yang, Captain Zhang, and Deputy Captain Ye all turned their heads and looked at Xiao Liewen.

Xiao Liewen chuckled, took a puff of his cigarette, and said with a smile, "Not long after you left last time, he and the members of the brigade's directly subordinate militia platoon were conscripted by the county's armed forces department and haven't returned to this day."

Chen Fan's eyes widened upon hearing this.

He had left at the end of November, and today was already January 23rd, almost two months. What could require them to be conscripted for so long?

Moreover, although they were militiamen, they were only militiamen. What use could conscripting them be?

Just as Chen Fan was about to ask, Xiao Liewen said seriously, "Their whereabouts are currently classified. I, along with everyone else, don't know where they are or what they're doing. The duration of their mission is also unknown.

I know that your Shifu Lin and the others can definitely find out, but you must not try to find out. This is a matter of discipline, understand?"

Chen Fan frowned slightly, looking at him and blinking.

Looking at Xiao Liewen's serious expression and the awkward smiles on the faces of the other leaders, a bit of understanding dawned on him.

It was possible that they didn't know where they were or when they would return after completing their mission.

But Chen Fan didn't believe that they didn't know what they were doing.

Militiamen were just militiamen. In fact, they were the last line of defense in the national defense system. If there were no special reasons, militiamen would generally never be the first to be conscripted.

But now, Zhang Wenliang and the others had not only been conscripted, but they were also carrying out a secret mission.

If Xiao Liewen and the others didn't know anything about the inside story, how could they have easily let them go?

Moreover, they didn't ask about it afterwards and even forbade him from finding out?!

Thinking about their special characteristics and the current time, Chen Fan dared to bet that they were very likely in some forest, studying, or rather, being studied by a group of special warfare experts on jungle warfare.

Thinking of this, Chen Fan couldn't help but click his tongue and take a puff of his cigarette.

Worry.

Including Zhang Wenliang, the brigade's directly subordinate militia platoon had a total of 11 people. These 11 people were not fixed, but were selected from the strongest among the more than 200 people in the entire brigade's militia company. Naturally, they were also the people who had the best grasp of tactics.

It would be best if these people could return safely. If they hadn't returned by the end of the first lunar month, then he would have to make a trip there.

After all, tracing back to the source, he was the one who caused this matter. If he hadn't competed with Zhang Wenliang, Zhang Wenliang wouldn't have become interested in jungle warfare, and naturally, there wouldn't have been the events that followed.

Xiao Liewen didn't know what Chen Fan was thinking, and he had already guessed the mission that Zhang Wenliang and the others were carrying out.

On the contrary, he was in a good mood, with a bit of pride on his face, and said, "Don't worry too much. Now that the world is at peace, even if there is a mission, it won't be their turn to go into action.

They were conscripted, mostly to perform some auxiliary tasks, just beating the drums on the sidelines, and there won't be any danger."

Chen Fan pondered for two seconds and asked, "Besides Third Tiger and the others, has the county conscripted anyone else?"

Xiao Liewen glanced at him, "I just said not to ask, have you forgotten so quickly?"

The corners of Chen Fan's mouth twitched. Well, he was now even more certain of his guess.

However, there was no way to tell them about this. Could he say that he was sure that a war was about to break out and that they might go to the front line, so they should quickly send them back, otherwise their lives would be in danger?

It was just that they were old and didn't have the skills of Zhang Wenliang and the others, otherwise, if they were called over, they would definitely go without hesitation.

He wasn't allowed to ask, and he couldn't say anything.

Chen Fan could only sigh faintly and turn to look at Secretary Yang, asking, "Secretary, it seems that Sister-in-law Xingxiu's due date is before the New Year, has she given birth yet?"

Hearing this, Secretary Yang immediately beamed with joy, grinning and laughing, "She gave birth, she gave birth, she gave birth to a big, fat boy."

Captain Zhang also smiled and nodded repeatedly, "She's resting at home now, Third Tiger can be considered to have successors."

That's good.

Chen Fan smiled and stood up, saying, "Then I'll go take a look."

Xiao Liewen waved his hand, "Go, go, but don't stay too long. Only Third Tiger's mother is at their house. Take a look and come back."

Chen Fan nodded, "Got it."

Then he turned and walked out.

Zhang Wenliang's new home was not far from here, also within the scope of Team 5, next to the old village, with a long earthen mound raised as the new residential base for Team 5.

Chen Fan walked all the way over and saw a row of neatly arranged two-story red brick buildings. The first house was Zhang Wenliang's.

He knocked on the door and went in, greeted Zhang Wenliang's mother, and then went into the room to see the little baby.

The room was heated by a fireplace with a chimney, with an opening in the window to exhaust the waste gas outdoors, almost exactly the same as the one used in Chen Fan's home.

The room was warm. Yang Xingxiu was sitting on the bed, with the little baby sleeping soundly beside her. Seeing Chen Fan come in, she took the initiative to pick up the child and hand it over.

Chen Fan held it and looked at it. It was a very cute little bean. Fortunately, Zhou Yali didn't come, otherwise, she would probably hold it and be reluctant to let go.

After holding it for a while, he put the baby next to Yang Xingxiu, then took out a golden longevity lock with bells and stuffed it into the baby's swaddling clothes.

Yang Xingxiu didn't decline out of politeness, smiling and thanking the baby on his behalf, saying that she would invite him to dinner when Zhang Wenliang returned.

After staying for less than ten minutes, Chen Fan said goodbye and left.

Returning to the brigade headquarters, after chatting about Yang Xingxiu and the baby's situation, the topic turned back to business.

Secretary Yang tapped his dry tobacco pipe, knocked the ashes out of the bowl, replaced it with a leaf cigarette, lit it, and said to Chen Fan, "This year's (lunar calendar) income is good, much better than last year. However, the investment is also large, so your dividend this year is about the same as last time.

When the factory is put into production next year and we see the benefits, next year's dividends will definitely increase a lot."

Chen Fan bit his cigarette holder, not caring about the ten thousand or so yuan, but asked, "What about the teams?"

Captain Zhang smiled and said, "The situation in each team is not much different. A strong laborer with full work points can get more than 4,000, which is much better than last year."

Chen Fan frowned slightly, "But compared to the brigade headquarters, there is still a big gap."

Secretary Yang nodded, "This is indeed a problem. After distributing production to the groups, the production teams all use the small team as the accounting unit, but the work point income of the brigade headquarters is still based on the production of the small teams, so the value of the work points is not much different. But since the brigade headquarters started its own sideline units, this has widened the gap."

He looked up at Chen Fan, frowning slightly, "It's just that the income of each team has been good in the past two years, and the teams are also relying on the brigade to have such good benefits, so there are not many people in and out of the village who are gossiping."

Chen Fan raised his eyebrows slightly, exhaling a puff of smoke, "Not many, so there are some."

The four of them nodded almost at the same time. Ye Shubao let out a long breath and said seriously, "Although it is said that each team is independently accounted for and responsible for its own profits and losses, and no one can be blamed for earning more or less, in reality, there will definitely be differences."

Xiao Lie tapped his tobacco pipe, sighed, and said, "Actually, apart from the grain aspect, which requires each team to strictly complete its task, the other extractions and unified expenses are basically paid and independently borne by the brigade headquarters. This is one of the reasons why most members don't have much objection to the dividends."

Ye Shubao continued his words, "Another reason is that all the side businesses are still in the investment stage, including the earliest livestock breeding, also because of the construction of the food factory, we can see that there will be greater benefits in the later stage."

"These two reasons can basically stabilize the situation for another year or two."

"But after a year or two, when all the side businesses start to generate benefits, how to distribute so much money will be a big problem."

He looked around, then looked at Chen Fan, "If it's still like now, where a few people in the brigade headquarters can get one or two times more dividends than ordinary members, it's definitely not appropriate."

Chen Fan took a deep breath and frowned tightly.

After taking a few puffs of smoke, he raised his head and looked at the others, and suddenly asked, "Strictly speaking, the People's Commune is a three-level ownership system, and the brigade only coordinates in the middle. If there are problems with the teams below, are there any problems with the commune above?"

Hearing this, Secretary Yang immediately laughed and said, "The retained portion we handed over this year is almost the sum of the other four production brigades, do you think they have a problem!"

Chen Fan smacked his lips, exhaled a long breath, and smiled, "It seems that the commune is also eyeing this piece of fat meat in Lujiawan."

Captain Zhang waved his hand and said, "It can't be completely said that way. On the one hand, Nanhua Commune has not been considered a poor commune for a long time, and it still has some foundation, not to the extent of 'eyeing the fat meat'.

On the other hand, our Lujiawan has not forgotten the brother units in its own development. The four brigades of Ganjia Village, Hongxing, Shengli, and Bailang Lake have also had very good benefits this year, almost on par with our income last year. Their contribution to the commune is also a lot.

Moreover, didn't we set up a Lujiawan Industrial Park with the commune? When this industrial park is completed, it will definitely contribute a large amount of tax revenue, and the commune can still get benefits.

Therefore, the pressure from the commune is not a big deal. The main thing is to think carefully about how to balance the internal situation."

Chen Fan looked at the four leaders, thought for a while, and said, "Actually, there is a better distribution method, but if the steps are too big, it's easy to get into trouble."

Secretary Yang exhaled a puff of smoke, looked at him and said, "Is there anything that's not so troublesome?"

Xiao Lie also nodded, "Even if the effect is a little worse, it's fine."

Chen Fan smiled, "Yes, and it's very simple."

Looking around at everyone, he continued, "Everyone knows about Huaxi Village, right? Just copy them."

Hearing this, the four of them were immediately refreshed and looked at him together.

Xiao Lie even said quickly, "Tell me, what is Huaxi Village like?"

Now Huaxi Village has long been famous throughout the country, and it has not been heard that they have any inappropriate places. If we learn from the distribution method of Huaxi Village, whether it is the top or the bottom, no one should be able to find fault.

Thinking of this, the hope in the eyes of the four people became even stronger.

Chen Fan changed a pot of tobacco, lit it, and said, "Let me talk about our current situation first. Although Lujiawan has developed side businesses in the past two years and made a lot of money, in terms of distribution model, it is no different from most ordinary production teams.

In terms of grain, food rations are distributed according to the proportion of the harvest, and the rest is used to pay public grain, purchase grain, etc., and if there is any surplus, it will be included in the brigade warehouse as a regulatory grain depot for the entire brigade for emergencies.

Or the surplus grain is included in the annual income of the team, and when the dividends are distributed, it will be distributed as materials.

In terms of production income, the team is the accounting unit, and the distribution is strictly in accordance with the amount of work points."

He looked around at everyone, "Is that right?"

The four nodded together, "Yes."

After a pause of two seconds, Xiao Lie asked curiously, "Could it be that Huaxi Village is not like this?"

Chen Fan nodded and continued, "The distribution method of Huaxi Village is different from ordinary production teams. They use a work point plus welfare model, and there is also a hidden investment category."

Before they could ask questions, Chen Fan explained, "Work points are easy to understand, the same as everyone else, there is no difference. The specific thing is that they take out a few tenths of the overall income each year for distribution. This number can be adjusted artificially. If you want to issue more, you can calculate more, and if you want to issue less, you can calculate less.

As for welfare,…"

Speaking of this, he turned to look at Secretary Yang and smiled, "For example, during the Spring Festival last year, every household was building houses. When we build houses, each household bears the cost, while in Huaxi Village, money is taken from the public account and arranged uniformly."

Hearing this, Secretary Yang and the other three understood what the welfare item meant.

Building houses, repairing roads, building water towers, hydropower stations, these are all welfare, and in the future, they can also build nursing homes, kindergartens, expand schools,… So many things, in the end, aren't they benefiting every member!

In this way, most people should not have any objections, and at the same time, the amount of dividends is reduced, which will not be too conspicuous. This is also a good way.

Chen Fan continued, "I just said that there is also a hidden investment category."

Speaking of this, he paused, looked at Secretary Yang and smiled, "Uncle Yang, if I build a food factory, I will take out the formula and guide the workers' technology. How do you calculate this?"

Secretary Yang blinked, "Count you as having one more work point?"

Chen Fan smiled, did not directly answer his words, but turned to say, "In Huaxi Village, they will convert this item into investment, which is to occupy a share, and when calculating the income, they will first give a dividend for one share, and the rest will be used as the income standard, and the amount of work point dividends will be proposed in proportion.

This hidden investment can be technology, or management, or…"

Speaking of this, his voice was already inaudible, and he also raised his hand to make a gesture, "Money."

Hearing this, Secretary Yang and the others gasped, and couldn't help but look around and look at each other.

After a few seconds, Xiao Lie was still a little unbelievable, "Have they already reached this point?"

Chen Fan nodded and said softly, "Of course, the public still makes the decision. Even if you invest money, it only accounts for a very small share and does not have any say."

He spread his hands and said, "It hasn't even reached the level of joint public-private ownership back then."

Xiao Lie exhaled a long breath and nodded lightly, "Understood."

He said, shaking his head gently, "But they are also bold enough."

Chen Fan smiled and said nothing.

These things he said are not information that can be publicly found now, but things that later people specifically studied the Huaxi Village model and summarized.

In another two years, or rather, starting from the current time point, Huaxi Village will use this bundling model to recover a large part of the dividends that have been issued as investment capital, and bind everyone on the same boat, so that so many affiliated companies can be rapidly developed.

This set of things has advantages and disadvantages, which will not be discussed for the time being. But no matter what, Chen Fan dared to be sure that Secretary Yang and the others would not adopt this model, let alone investigate it, so he spoke without any scruples.

The reason why he said it now is just to drop a lead, to prepare for future changes.

As expected, after thinking for a moment, the leaders simply discussed it, and Secretary Yang made a decision.

He took a puff of smoke and smiled softly, "Investing more money in production and the welfare construction of the members is a good idea. The distribution model of Huaxi Village is indeed worth learning from.

But that hidden investment can be delayed."

Speaking of this, he also joked with Chen Fan, "It's not that I'm reluctant to give you technical shares. Speaking of which, these side businesses were all established under your guidance. How about one work point for each side business?"

Chen Fan hummed twice and smiled, "I don't dare to take so many dividends. Retaining a coordinating work point for a veterinarian is already conspicuous enough. If I give more work points, I'm afraid I'll be scolded behind my back."