Chapter 49
◎Grain Crisis 2◎
Wangxiang Village, where Yu Juanfang’s parents’ family lived, had not planted this high-yield grain seed. Their village’s production team wanted to wait a year to see the situation, and thus avoided the fake grain seed that was advertised to have a tenfold yield. This year’s wheat could be harvested normally, but to prevent any accidents, the old Yu family’s brothers still took out all the valuable things at home and rushed to the county to buy some grain to have on hand.
Hearing this news, Yu Juanfang breathed a sigh of relief. This was a blessing in disguise.
Zhang Guixiang stayed at home today and did not go to the production team to work. After the second and fourth branches’ families had rushed to the county town to buy grain, Yu Yahong and Wu Fangmei did not forget to go to their parents’ homes and some of their closer relatives to inform them about buying grain.
Zhang Guixiang was originally shelling edamame. Seeing this situation, she also became a little restless. She simply covered the edamame with a winnowing basket and was about to go to the brigade committee to ask about the situation when she heard Su Baocai’s roaring voice from the loudspeaker, calling for a meeting. “All villagers, attention! Immediately gather at the threshing ground! Everyone gather!”
“I’ve called everyone here today to talk about three things. These matters are of great importance, so I will only say them once! First, there is no high-yield grain seed that can increase the yield tenfold. It’s all fake! The ears of wheat that grow are all empty husks! Everyone, hurry up and gather all the money you have at home and go to the county town to buy grain!” Su Baocai’s voice seemed to be torn from his chest, hoarse and bloody. “Second, each household should keep this quiet for now, especially don’t let the neighboring villages hear about it. The grain reserves in the county probably won’t last for two days!”
“Third, thanks to the persistence of some of the commune members, our production team only planted half of the new grain seeds. I have already checked the wheat of the old grain seeds, and it can be harvested normally in ten days. From today on, people will be arranged to guard the wheat fields in shifts every day. Even if you don’t sleep or eat, you must guard this life-saving grain! If anyone steals the wheat, regardless of whether they are relatives or not, they will be tied up and taken to the brigade committee!”
The crowd instantly exploded.
An old man, trembling and leaning on a cane, said, “Baocai, you can’t joke about this. Our whole village has worked hard to take care of the wheat for a year. It’s only a few days before the harvest. Now you’re telling everyone that it’s a fake grain seed. Isn’t this going to kill us? The grain reserves at home are already gone. We’re just waiting for the harvest from the fields!”
“Even if there’s half of the wheat, after paying the public grain, how much will be left for us?”
“How is that possible! The wheat seedlings in the fields are thick and strong, and the ears of wheat are plump and full. We’ll be able to harvest the wheat in a few days! Everyone will be able to eat white flour buns!”
The villagers were unwilling to believe it. For the past year, they had worked from dawn to dusk, watering and fertilizing, weeding under the scorching sun, and protecting the seedlings in the heavy rain. How many blood blisters on their hands had turned into calluses? They had saved their own rations to feed the draft oxen strong. Their eyes were bloodshot from staying up late, all just to wait for the wheat in the fields to grow. Now they were being told that a whole year’s hard work was all for nothing?!
Su Baocai’s face was as black as a charcoal block. If he could, he would have wished that this news was fake. But the facts were right in front of him. There were no wheat kernels in the ears of wheat!
Su Baocai had been the brigade leader for many years and would not joke about such an important matter. Someone who was quick on their feet had already run to pick some of the new grain seed’s wheat and came back. “Everyone, look! What is this?!”
“Empty? How could this be? It’s all empty wheat husks!” The villagers’ faces were full of panic.
“I’ve picked the ears of wheat from every corner of the field. I can’t find a single wheat kernel in the whole wheat field!”
“This… didn’t they say it could increase the yield tenfold? How could it be all empty wheat husks?!”
“Damn it! My family’s surplus grain is only enough for three days!” The cry of Auntie Zhang’s mother next to him pierced the noise, her white hair trembling in the wind. “We only have that little bit of money left at home. How much grain can we buy!”
“What should we do? Not only did our production team plant this new grain seed, but all the dozen or so communes in our county also planted it. All these dozen or so communes won’t be able to harvest any grain!” Someone had already realized the seriousness of the problem. A terrible famine was about to sweep over them.
“A famine is coming!” Someone shouted in despair, instantly igniting the suppressed panic.
Zhang Guixiang clutched her sleeve tightly to keep herself from collapsing on the ground. Her ears were filled with the sound of crying and cursing.
“Stop arguing!” Su Baocai picked up the loudspeaker and slammed it on the stone table. The loud noise made everyone fall silent. He staggered and held onto the nearby stone mill. “If you don’t want to starve to death, go home and get your money now! Remember—don’t show your wealth on the road!”
Before he could finish speaking, the crowd had already scattered like a disturbed hornet’s nest. Zhang Guixiang was pushed around by the panicked crowd. She finally managed to steady herself and, not believing it, rushed forward and grabbed Su Baocai’s arm. “Su Baocai! Make yourself clear. How could the ears of wheat be all empty husks?! They all said that the grain seed could increase the yield tenfold. We’ll be able to harvest the wheat soon, eat white flour buns until we burp, and our family will be able to build a new house soon. My Tiedan and Gousheng will also be able to get new wives…”
“Open your eyes and look! All the dozen or so communes in the county have planted this damn thing. In less than half a day, the threshold of the grain store will be trampled!” Su Baocai had already had his son go to the county town to buy grain, but he couldn’t rest easy until he saw the grain. He had no time to argue with her here!
Su Baocai broke free from her grasp. Zhang Guixiang stumbled and fell to the ground. Her palm was scraped by the rough ground, and blood oozed out, stinging.
…
After Yu Juanfang and Tangtang returned from the brigade committee, they hurriedly took the one hundred and fifty catties of national grain coupons from their home and ran to the commune grain station. When they arrived, it was a little after seven in the morning. There were not many people at the entrance of the grain station. They queued for forty minutes before it was their turn. According to the ratio of 30% fine grain and 70% coarse grain, they bought forty-five catties of white flour and one hundred and five catties of cornmeal. The moment they held the grain in their arms, their hearts finally settled down a little.
Needless to say, the white flour was a good thing. The cornmeal was also a good thing. It could be used to make corn cakes and cornmeal buns. The texture was solid, and it had a real sense of satiety. And good cornmeal would have a light, sweet taste.
No matter what happened with Juesheng and the others, by mixing a little other coarse grain into the white flour or cornmeal and adding more water, this one hundred and fifty catties of grain could last for a while.
The mother and daughter carried the 150 catties of grain back home. They had originally thought that Su Juesheng and the others would be back by dark, but they waited until midnight and still didn’t see their husband and sons return.
They didn’t see them the next day either.
On the third day, Yu Juanfang was in no mood to cook. The leftovers from two days ago were just heated and left, and left and heated. She didn’t sleep either, just stayed at home and waited every day. Tangtang was worried about her mother being alone, so she simply asked for leave from school and waited at home with her.
Fortunately, the village was in a state of chaos now, and no one paid too much attention to their family.
It wasn’t until the third day that Tangtang finally persuaded Yu Juanfang to go back to her room to rest for a while. Just then, she heard a familiar but tired voice from under the window. “Tangtang, open the door quickly.”
It was Brother Juesheng! Tangtang’s eyes lit up. She quickly lifted the heavy bolt on the main hall door. Su Juesheng entered the house under the cover of night. Tangtang saw that his eyes were bloodshot, he was unshaven, and his clothes hadn’t been changed for several days. Before she could call out to him, Su Juesheng stopped her. “Shh, we’ve bought the grain. It’s hidden in the back mountain. Dad and the others are guarding it. I came back early to let you know, so you won’t worry.”
Hearing this, Tangtang was relieved. Yu Juanfang also got up at this time. It was quiet at night, with only the occasional sound of a dog barking, but no one paid any attention. The sky was very dark tonight, and the moon was hidden behind thick clouds. The four Su family father and sons carried the grain back to the Su family’s courtyard under the cover of darkness. The mother and daughter were at home to receive them. They worked together to move the grain next to the earthen kang and then stuffed it into the pit.
It was almost dawn before all the grain was properly stored. They put the removed bricks back, so that it would not look out of place. The paper bag that Zhou Shunian had given them was stuffed with five hundred yuan. Adding the one hundred-odd yuan that Yu Juanfang had gathered, they had spent a total of four hundred yuan to buy more than one thousand three hundred catties of grain. Adding the 150 catties of grain that Yu Juanfang and her daughter had bought from the grain station, this much grain was enough for their family to eat for seven or eight months, until the next year’s grain was harvested.
As for the remaining two hundred yuan, Su Juesheng had his mother keep it. Tangtang, Juexiao, and Juesheng were all still in school and had to pay tuition and living expenses. And if there was any emergency at home, it could also be used.
After moving the grain, the whole family was exhausted. They collapsed on the floor of the main hall, panting heavily and drinking water in large gulps.
A rooster’s crow cut through the night sky, and a sliver of dawn appeared in the east. Yu Juanfang wanted to get up from the floor to cook breakfast for the family. Tangtang stopped her mother and said she would cook breakfast. She insisted that Yu Juanfang go and rest for a while.
“You’ve barely slept for the past three days, and you haven’t eaten properly. You’ve been worried about Dad and my brothers all the time. If you don’t rest for a while, your body won’t be able to take it.” Tangtang was a little better than her mother. Although she was also worried, she still ate normally and slept normally.
“Mom, just listen to Tangtang and go and rest for a while. I’ll go and help too. Although I can’t cook, I can still make congee,” Su Juesheng said.
Juexiao and Juesheng also persuaded her. A gratified smile appeared on Yu Juanfang’s face. She felt that she was truly happy at this moment. Her children were all good children who knew how to be considerate. “Then I’ll go and sleep for a while.”
Tangtang went into the kitchen. She first scooped a spoonful of rice from the rice crock, washed it carefully with cold well water, and then found a few fresh sweet potatoes in the corner, peeled them, cut them into small pieces, and put them in the pot to cook.
Su Juesheng had already started the fire. Seeing this, he added two large pieces of firewood to the stove. The flames licked the bottom of the pot, and the bubbling sound was mixed with the fragrance of sweet potatoes. Tangtang lifted the lid of the pot and gently crushed the sweet potato pieces that were sticking to the pot with a wooden spoon, letting the sugar seep into every grain of rice.
After about half an hour, the hot and thick sweet potato congee was ready. The pickled vegetables in the pickle jar had been pickled for more than twenty days and were now ready to eat. Tangtang took them out, carefully cut them into shreds, and arranged them. In the middle was a bowl of old sauce, which looked very tempting.
At six in the morning, the Su family began to eat breakfast in the main hall. The sweet potato congee was in a coarse porcelain bowl. With a gentle stir of a spoon, the sweet fragrance of the sweet potatoes mixed with the grain fragrance of the white rice hit their faces. The steam was dense and lingering, with a few drops of oil floating on top. The congee was cooked well, and every grain of rice had bloomed. The rice oil had been cooked out. The sweet potatoes were cooked until they were soft and melted in the mouth. The family held their bowls and drank the large pot of congee until not a drop was left, even licking the rim of the bowl clean.
They were all thinking in their hearts.
It’s so good to have grain to eat.
After breakfast, they hastily washed the bowls and chopsticks. There was nothing more to say. They all went back to their rooms to sleep, wishing they could make up for the three days and three nights of sleep they had missed.
…
After the family’s grain problem was properly resolved, the next day, Su Juesheng had to return to the army.
Yu Juanfang wanted him to take some grain back to the army, but Su Juesheng said there was no need. The army was not short of grain. Yu Juanfang could only give up. She ground ten catties of wheat and made dozens of white flour pancakes for him to eat on the road.
The small stone mill at the entrance of the old Su family’s house was originally shared by the four families. When they moved to the new house, Yu Juanfang thought that they might make tofu in the future. She asked the other three branches, and they all said they didn’t need it. So, she gave two yuan to the others and moved the stone mill from the old house. It was placed next to the crabapple tree in the courtyard. Now it was just right for grinding wheat, so they didn’t have to go to the stone mill at the village entrance and attract attention.
The chaos outside lasted for four or five days before it gradually calmed down. No matter how unwilling they were to accept it, they could only accept this reality. Those who had money would find various ways to buy high-priced grain. Those who had no money could only be anxious. And as Su Baocai had said, the situation in their village was not too bad. At least there was still half of the wheat that could be harvested normally. Then they could use this wheat to exchange for other coarse grains like sorghum and dried sweet potatoes. After eating wild grass and tree bark for a while, they could always get through it.
Some villagers, to vent their anger, pulled up the wheat seedlings grown from the fake grain seeds and scattered them everywhere, wishing they could grind the bones and scatter the ashes of this “tenfold high-yield grain seed” that had deceived them so much, to relieve the hatred in their hearts.
Zhao Goudan, who had been the most vocal on the day the grain seeds were selected, was inexplicably beaten up one night on his way home.
When the eldest daughter-in-law of the Su family, Zhang Guixiang, was passing by a villager’s house, the owner of the house suddenly opened the door, and with a whoosh, a basin of dishwater was suddenly poured out, drenching Zhang Guixiang from head to toe. Zhang Guixiang was so angry that she cursed at the door for half an hour. There were onlookers outside. She could only hide back in the old Su family’s house in disgrace.
With the earthen pit under the house full of grain, Yu Juanfang’s heart was no longer flustered. She remembered that Tangtang had once picked a basket of paper mulberry fruit, but at that time, she was busy worrying about the grain and was in no mood to deal with this basket of paper mulberry fruit, so she had thrown it aside.
When she remembered this basket of paper mulberry fruit, the wild fruit had long been overripe and had rotted. After Yu Juanfang tidied up, she called out to her daughter, who was feeding the chickens, “Tangtang, shall we go up the mountain to pick paper mulberry fruit?”
A smile appeared on Tangtang’s face. “Alright, I’ll go with Mom!”
As she spoke, she quickly finished scattering the shriveled rice grains in her hand, went back to her room to change into a set of clothes suitable for the mountain, and then went out with a bamboo basket and Yu Juanfang.