pertwk Chapter 47
Chapter 47
Another day passed, and the time for Liu Jiawang to audit a class at the county's No. 1 Middle School was set for Monday.
On the morning before their departure, the boat reached Baiyang Town, and the three of them took a bus to the county seat.
There weren't many people on the bus. Liu Jiawang sat by the window with a notebook spread out on his lap.
The pencil stub kept scratching at it.
He is drawing a route map.
From Baiyang Town to the county seat, from the county bus station to the county's No. 1 Middle School, you have to make a few turns and cross a few intersections.
All the landmarks along the way are clearly marked.
"The main gate of the county's No. 1 Middle School faces south, with two plane trees at the entrance and Xinhua Bookstore opposite."
Walk from the bus station eastward along East Street, past two intersections.
Turn left at the third intersection and go all the way to the end.
Liu Jiawang didn't even look up, muttering to himself.
When we arrived at the county's No. 1 High School, Sister Deng was already waiting at the entrance.
She was wearing a clean white shirt today, and her hair was neatly combed, clearly showing that she had taken special care of it.
Standing next to her was a middle-aged woman wearing glasses, surnamed Wu, who was the dean of studies at the county's No. 1 Middle School.
Director Wu looked through the letter of introduction and then at the textbooks and notebooks that Liu Jiawang had brought.
I especially looked at the notebook filled with maps of Baiyang Lake; I flipped through a few pages.
His expression changed from businesslike seriousness to unexpected interest.
"Did you draw this?" Director Wu asked, pointing to a map of the water depth distribution in Nanwan Bay on his notebook.
"I drew it."
Based on the actual water depth data measured by Chen Rong in our village, combined with the records of Nanwan hydrology in the county annals.
Some of these are my own deductions.
Director Wu closed his notebook.
She said that Liu Jiawang's situation could be arranged to audit classes in the second year of high school, specifically in the humanities stream.
The student status issue will be determined based on the exam results for the semester.
If my grades rank in the top 20 of the class, I can be officially promoted to a permanent position next year.
She also said that the school library is open to auditors, who can read freely during their free time.
Sister Deng's eyes reddened with excitement, and she repeatedly said "good".
Liu Jiawang kept his head down, clutching his notebook in both hands.
He hesitated for a while, finally managing to utter only, "Thank you, Director Wu."
After completing the enrollment procedures and meeting with the homeroom teacher, the matter was finally settled.
After leaving the county's No. 1 High School, Chen Zheng went to the county's pharmaceutical company's retail store alone.
He placed the slices of sand ginseng, the he shou wu, and the piece of tree tongue on the counter one by one.
The shopkeeper first picked up a slice of sand ginseng, looked at it in his reading glasses, then pinched a slice and put it in his mouth to chew.
It's said to be wild-grown, and the quality is quite good; the cross-section of this batch of sand ginseng has very dense annual ring patterns.
It's been growing for several years, and it's a grade higher than ordinary goods. I'll take it all, at 1.2 yuan per jin.
Then he picked up the piece of he shou wu (Polygonum multiflorum), looked at it over and over for a long time, and said he would take all three pieces.
It is in perfect condition with no digging damage, and the cross-section is light yellow without being hollow, making it a top-quality item.
Priced separately, three dollars for a total of ninety cents.
Finally, he picked up the piece of tree tongue and examined it for a long time, turning it over and over in his hands.
He then took out a magnifying glass and carefully observed the texture of the mushroom cap for a long time before slowly opening his mouth.
"There are relatively few varieties of this tree tongue; it's the kind that grows on old oak trees."
This type of tree tongue is called "Xiangzhi" in traditional Chinese medicine, and it is more valuable than ordinary tree tongue.
In addition to its usual effects of aiding digestion and relieving stomach discomfort, it also has a calming effect.
Your piece is in perfect condition; the edge of the cap is undamaged, and the texture of the tubes is clear. It will not lose any weight after drying.
According to the grading standards of the pharmaceutical company, this should be rated as above level two.
An old traditional Chinese medicine doctor once specifically asked me to keep an eye out for this, saying that it's a very effective adjunct treatment for insomnia.
I'll take this piece; I'll charge you 1.5 yuan as if it were in perfect condition.
One dollar and fifty cents.
This price far exceeded Chen Zheng's expectations.
He originally thought this piece of oak tongue was worth at most a few cents, but he didn't expect that a good quality oak could sell for this price.
He remembered the wild woods on the way back to the village, where there were still a few clumps of unharvested twigs on the old oak tree.
If I have the chance to pick mushrooms again next time, I will pay more attention to the integrity of the caps and the picking method, so as not to damage the edges and appearance.
The three items—Adenophora stricta, Polygonum multiflorum, and Aristolochia debilis—sold for a total of a little over three yuan.
The numbers may not seem like much on their own, but this is the first time he's made money from mountain products, which makes it all the more significant.
The fish in Baiyang Lake are a visible resource, while the medicinal herbs and mushrooms in the mountains represent a completely new path.
If you take both routes at the same time, you can still catch fish in the mountains when the lake freezes over in winter and you can't fish there.
He carefully tucked the change from the pharmacy into his inner pocket, thanked the pharmacist, and pushed open the glass door to walk out.
It was already getting dark outside, and the streetlights were on, casting a pale yellow light on the street.
Liu Jiawang and Chen Zheng met at the Dongfeng Hotel.
Chef Qian asked the kitchen staff to cut a plate of braised beef for them to take with them.
On the bus back to the village, Liu Jiawang didn't say much, holding his notebook the whole way.
Looking out at the dark fields, I would occasionally write a few words in my notebook by the dim light in the carriage.
After getting off the bus in Baiyang Town, Chen Zheng and Liu Jiawang broke up.
Liu Jiawang carried the snakeskin bag home and turned around at the corner.
Chong Chenzheng waved the notebook in his hand.
"Ah Zheng! If I pass the next exam, please come to the county's No. 1 High School, and I'll show you around the library!"
It was already late at night when I got home.
Zhang Cuihua left him some food: a bowl of mixed grain porridge and a plate of stir-fried shredded pork with pickled vegetables.
There was also half a flatbread, which was covered with a cloth and placed on the stove.
Chen Zheng squatted at the kitchen door and ate his meal by the light of a kerosene lamp.
A black cat suddenly appeared out of nowhere, squatted down at his feet, looked up at him eating, and meowed.
He picked out the last small piece of meat and put it on the ground, whereupon the black cat bent down and carried it away.
The next morning, he went to the fishpond to sort out the work he had done over the past few days.
Autumn is deepening; the grass by the pond is beginning to wither and turn yellow, and the reeds in the reed marshes are all white.
When the wind blows, the white reed fluff floats everywhere, landing on the water like a light snowfall.
When the fry grow to three or four inches long, their tails become stronger when they swim, and they splash more water when they fight for food.
Chen Zheng squatted on the bank of the pond and used the bamboo pole with the white wooden board attached to it to test the transparency again.
Thirty-two centimeters, three centimeters shallower than last time, the fatness is increasing.
He wrote down the data in his notebook.
I plan to take two more tests before winter arrives to get a clear picture of the water quality changes.
Days slipped by one by one.
A few days later, the cornfields at the east end of the village began to be harvested on a large scale.
Old Chen led Chen Zheng and Chen Rong to the fields to pick corn cobs. They picked for three days, and a small mountain of corn was piled up in the yard.
Zhang Cuihua sat on the doorstep peeling corn husks, and then hung them to dry in the yard.
A vast expanse of golden yellow, so bright in the sunlight that it was blinding.
Chen Feng squatted in the corn pile, picking out the reddish and hard ears of corn, saying he wanted to save them as seeds to plant next year by the courtyard wall.
That morning.
Chen Zheng had just gotten up and was squatting by the well washing his face when he heard a series of urgent bicycle bells ringing on the village road.
He looked up and saw a trail of dust rising from the dirt road in the direction of Lijiawan, where Li Quan was riding his old-fashioned bicycle.
With a roll of something tucked between the back seat and a net bag of oranges hanging from the handlebars, it pedaled over in a flurry.
"Ah Zheng!" Li Quan called out from outside the courtyard gate.
"Your method of soaking in salt water works!"
After soaking for three days, the white spots on the gills of the sick fish had faded by 70%!
Less than twenty died, and the remaining hundred or so were all saved!
The Zhao family downstream listened to my advice and staggered their inlet and outlet water outlets, and so far none of their plants have gotten sick!
Not only my family, but seven or eight fish farmers in the entire Lijiawan area all use your recipe!
He leaned his bicycle against the courtyard wall and untied the rolled-up item from the back seat.
It was a banner, red with yellow characters that read, "Exquisite skills and benevolent heart help farmers," in eight large characters.
He unfurled the banner and insisted on hanging it in Chen Zheng's main room.
They said it was the sentiment of all the fish farmers in Lijiawan.
Chen Laosan walked out of the main room, looking at the brocade banner with a very complicated expression on his face.
Chen Zheng noticed a thin layer of light in his father's eyes.
That man who once said that one person can walk fast while a group can walk far.
She probably never imagined that this statement would come true for her son.
Putting aside the matter of the banner, Chen Zheng pulled Li Quan to sit down in the courtyard and asked him about something more important.
Among those farmers, does anyone know Sun Maocai from Zhaojiadu?
Li Quan paused for a moment, then thought for a second and said, "Sun Maocai? I know that person well."
His son, Sun Xiaozhu, worked with me in the production team.
The Sun family owns several acres of land in Zhaojiadu and also raises several boxes of fish.
However, the details about his land are a bit unclear; I heard it was bought from the Zhou family.
At this point, he suddenly realized something.
"That land deed you have in Zhaojiadu, could it be the one belonging to the Sun family?"
Chen Zheng nodded and said a few words about the land deed.
The four mu of land that the Sun family is currently cultivating was originally the Zhou family's ancestral property, and the original land deed is in their possession.
After listening, Li Quan stuffed the remaining orange segments into his mouth, his cheeks puffed out, and chewed for a long time before swallowing.
Sun Maocai is different from Wang Laoliu; he's an honest man.
His father spent real money to buy the land back then, but the paperwork was incomplete.
All they had was a written document from the Zhou family; there was no formal land deed.
He had been trying to get the land deed replaced for years, but the town said they couldn't find the original records and couldn't replace it.
The fact that Chen Zheng possessed the original land deed was not bad news for Sun Maocai.
He now has a way to completely clarify property rights.
Li Quan stood up and clapped the orange juice off his hands.
He said he would go back and find Sun Xiaozhu, and ask Sun Maocai to find a time to meet with Chen Zheng.
Both sides are reasonable people, so this matter can be resolved.
After seeing Li Quan off, Chen Zheng turned another page in the book of his grievances.
That night, he squatted in the yard and wrote his diary entry by the moonlight.
The notebook is already more than half full, containing everything from fishpond water quality data to mountain produce picking records.
The training course notes were filled with dense text detailing the progress of land title negotiations.
On the last line, he wrote.
In Lijiawan, seven fish farmers achieved a cure rate of over 80% for diseased fish. The salt water soaking method is extremely low-cost and suitable for widespread application.
The next morning, Zhang Jianguo rushed over excitedly, saying that the cornfield at the east end of the village had been damaged by the wind the night before.
Everyone else's land was fine, but Wang Laoliu's plot had four rows of land collapsed.
Zhang Jianguo's eyes shone brightly as he spoke, and he tried hard to suppress the upward curve of his lips.
Chen Zheng placed the feed bucket on the bank of the pond and turned to look at Zhang Jianguo.
"Last night, a northwest wind was blowing. The land at the east end of the village is blocked by an old locust tree to the north and a sloping earthen hill to the south."
Wang Laoliu's land is located at the confluence of two winds.
The wind blew in through the gap between the tree and the earthen slope, and it blew right into his field.
This is determined by the terrain; it can happen every year.
Zhang Jianguo nodded as if he understood but not quite.
He squatted down and helped Chen Zheng crush the feed and scatter it into the pond.
In the afternoon, Chen Zheng went to Teacher Zhao's house and reported everything that had happened recently to Zhao Deming.
Zhao Deming, wrapped in a cotton-padded coat, sat on a bamboo chair and listened with his eyes half-closed.
"Wang Laoliu's corn has nothing to do with you. As for Zhang Jianguo's pigs, someone will take responsibility for them sooner or later."
Your current focus is on two things.
The fishpond will be ready for harvest at the end of the year, along with those land deeds. Don't get distracted by anything else.
Then he brought up something even more important.
Yesterday, Director Fang called and mentioned four plots of land in Baiyang Town.
The two plots of land that were requisitioned by the town government to build an agricultural machinery station cannot be reclaimed under policy, but compensation can be applied for.
The other two plots are in private hands, and the Land Authority is investigating what supporting documents the current owners possess.
We will notify you in writing of the results.
Zhao Deming also revealed a crucial piece of information.
Director Fang revealed that, according to the county's latest agricultural support policies...
In cases like this, where the original land title is held and proof of long-term agricultural land use can be provided,
You can apply to the government for a partial property rights clarification subsidy; the subsidy amount varies from place to place.
The highest percentage can be 30%.
This is a newly added clause in the new document, which many people are unaware of.
Chen Zheng kept this in mind and asked a few questions about the eligibility requirements for the subsidy.
Zhao Deming said he needed three materials.
The original land deed, proof of cultivation history issued by the village committee, and the property rights investigation report from the land administration bureau.
The third item is what Director Fang is currently working on; once it's finished, he will send it directly to Chen Zheng.
After that, life was peaceful for a long time.
The village's threshing ground was piled high with corn cobs and sorghum ears, and several old men squatted beside the piles of grain, basking in the sun and smoking.
They chatted about this year's harvest and their plans for next year.
The water level of Baiyang Lake began to drop, and the villagers cut the reeds along the lake to make mats.
A ring of mudflats was exposed in the waters of Nanwan.
The dark brown silt was drying in the sun, emitting a strong, fishy smell.
The fish fry in the pond have grown to four or five inches long.
Chen Zheng reduced the feed to once a day, and fixed the feeding time at noon.
The water temperature measurement records have accumulated a thick stack of data, from the beginning of autumn to the white dew.
The temperature began to drop slowly.
That day, after he finished tidying up the feed buckets, he remembered the few dollars he had earned from exchanging mountain produce.
And there were still some acorns left to be picked in that wild forest.
Taking advantage of the fact that things are relatively calm on the lake these days and the fishpond is stable, he plans to go into the mountains again.
I don't expect much in return.
The main purpose was to survey the distribution of medicinal herbs in the mountains one last time before winter.
Let's continue with the clues about the wild ginseng that we couldn't find last time.
While we're at it, let's see if that patch of pine mushrooms is still there, and if we can pick a few more pieces of better quality acorns from that old oak tree.
He re-examined the tools he had used on his last trip into the mountains.
The machete was sharpened, the hemp rope was dried in the yard, and the cloth bag was washed clean and the holes were sewed up.
The soles of the liberation shoes he wore last year were worn flat, so he used a red-hot pair of hot tongs to re-stain them with anti-slip treads.
Chen Rong helped him fold the cloth bags and put them into his basket.
He then took two freshly baked flatbreads from the kitchen, wrapped them in cloth, and stuffed them into the top layer of his basket.
Just as he was about to go up the mountain, the postman knocked on the gate.
The young man was tanned and thin, with a military green canvas mailbag on the back of his bicycle.
He pulled a brown paper envelope from the parcel and handed it to Chen Zheng.
The envelope was printed with the red lettering of the Qingshui County Agriculture Bureau. The seal was opened.
Inside was a mimeographed notice and a printed list.
The notice stated that...
A commendation meeting for exemplary livestock farmers across the county was held at 9:00 a.m. on the 16th of this month in the county government auditorium.
The sixth line of the list prominently features Chen Zheng from Lutang Village.
I glanced down the list again, and the third line read Li Quan of Lijiawan.
He folded the notice, put it back in the envelope, and placed it under his pillow.
Chen Zheng got up very early on the day of the commendation ceremony.
Zhang Cuihua got up even earlier than him.
A kerosene lamp was lit in the kitchen, and noodle soup was simmering in an iron pot.
She pulled out the blue cotton Zhongshan suit that had been hidden away in the closet; it was the one that Chen Laosan wore when he was young to attend a meeting at the commune.
It was always kept at the very bottom of the camphor wood chest, stacked neatly, and the smell of camphor balls was pungent.
She took out the clothes and carefully examined them under the light of the kerosene lamp.
The collar is not worn and the sleeves are not frayed.
There was only a small, faint oil stain on her chest, which she wiped repeatedly with a damp towel until it faded a bit.
"Mother, this dress belongs to Father."
Chen Zheng came out of the inner room and was stunned when he saw the Zhongshan suit in Zhang Cuihua's hand.
"Your father said that you can't wear that patched shirt to the county meeting today."
This was his best piece of clothing when he was young, and he only wore it twice.
Zhang Cuihua unfolded her Zhongshan suit and held it up against Chen Zheng.
The clothes were a little big, but the cuts were generally loose back then, so wearing them actually made one look more dignified.
Chen Zheng put on his Zhongshan suit and buttoned it up one button at a time.
The fabric is a blend of polyester and polyester, which is more structured than cotton and gives a strange yet reassuring feel when worn.
Zhang Cuihua took two steps back, looked him up and down, straightened his collar, and nodded.
He turned around and went to the kitchen to get the noodle soup.
Chen Rong came out of the house and saw Chen Zheng wearing a Zhongshan suit. His eyes lit up.
He placed the pair of clean, worn-out canvas shoes on the threshold.
Chen Feng also poked his head out from under the covers, rubbing his eyes.
Seeing his brother wearing new clothes, he jumped up and circled around Chen Zheng twice.
He reached out to touch the button that gleamed with a dark light, but pulled his hand back halfway.
After finishing his meal, Chen Zheng pushed out the borrowed old-fashioned bicycle.
He hung the cloth bag containing his notebook and training certificate on the handlebars.
Zhang Cuihua stuffed two flatbreads and a bamboo tube full of herbal tea into her cloth bag.
Old Chen squatted on the doorstep, a pipe dangling from his mouth, watching his son get on the bicycle seat.
"When you get to the county, don't be nervous when you see Deputy County Chief Xu. Your father spoke with him back in the day."
"That happened thirty years ago."
Chen Zheng glanced back at his father, pushed off with his foot, and the wheels rolled across the dry mud in the yard, leading him out of the gate.
It takes about an hour to cycle from Lutang Village to the county seat.
The dirt road was full of potholes, and the wheels rolled over one mud pit after another, making the cloth bag on the handlebars sway back and forth.
The cornfields on both sides of the road have been harvested, leaving only withered yellow stalks standing in the fields.
The temperature is a bit colder than it was a few days ago.
He rode for half an hour, his breath wafting in front of his face, and his fingers were stiff from the cold.
When we arrived at the entrance of the county government auditorium, there were already quite a few people there.
The auditorium has gray brick walls, and a banner with red background and white characters hangs above the main entrance.
Warmest congratulations on the successful convening of the county-wide commendation conference for exemplary livestock farmers.
There was a row of bicycles parked in front of the gate, as well as two tractors and a jeep.
The jeep was green with a white license plate on the front; it was the official car of Deputy County Head Xu.
Chen Zheng leaned his bicycle against the wall, locked it, straightened the collar of his Zhongshan suit, and walked into the auditorium.
The auditorium wasn't very big; it could seat about two hundred people.
A white cloth was laid out on the platform, along with a row of enamel mugs and microphones.
The first three rows of seats were occupied by thirty representatives of livestock farmers, followed by agricultural technicians and village officials from various townships.
Chen Zheng found his seat in the first row, on the side.
There was a red paper strip with his name on it pasted on the back of the chair.
The note was written with a brush, the characters were neat, and the ink was rich.
These positions weren't assigned randomly.
He had just sat down when someone tapped him on the shoulder.
It was Li Quan. Today he was also dressed in a clean Zhongshan suit, his hair was cut, and his beard was shaved clean.
I feel much more energetic now.
"Ah Zheng! I knew you'd come!"
I was looking at the list at the door just now, and you were sixth, three places ahead of me!
Li Quan said in a low voice.
As the two were talking, the loudspeaker in the auditorium blared.
A staff member in a gray uniform walked to the podium on the side of the stage and cleared his throat.
He made some opening remarks, such as welcoming all the guests and asking everyone to keep quiet.
Subsequently, Xu, the deputy county head in charge of agriculture, came out from behind the stage.
He was wearing a gray Zhongshan suit with a fountain pen clipped to his pocket.
He sat down in the center of the podium.
He opened the folder in front of him and began to speak into the microphone.
"The county-wide commendation meeting for exemplary livestock farmers is now beginning."
Chen Zheng noticed that his hands were covered in calluses and his knuckles were large, which did not seem like someone who sat in an office all year round.
This detail confirms what Master Qian had said before.
Deputy County Head Xu started his career as an agricultural technician, spending several years working at the grassroots level. Nothing could be hidden from him.
Deputy County Head Xu first reported on the county's aquaculture production data for this year.
The aquaculture area, output, and output value are all calculated based on actual data.
The speech was interspersed with specific examples from time to time.
A family in a certain village of a certain town used to receive relief grain.
Later, I raised two fish ponds, and this year was the first time I delivered surplus grain to the grain station.
So-and-so from a certain village raised fish for three years and supported his two sons through high school.
He used these examples to illustrate the role of animal husbandry in driving the rural economy.
After giving the overall report, he picked up his enamel mug, took a sip of water, and then picked up another list.
"Now, I will announce the list of outstanding breeding demonstration households in the county this year, a total of ten comrades."
Those whose names are called, please come to the stage to receive your awards.
The first name he read was from Lijiawan.
Li Quan suddenly stood up, paused for a moment in his seat, and then strode onto the stage.
The second one is from Zhaojiadu, and the third one is from Baiyang Town.
The fourth, the fifth, and the sixth.
Deputy County Head Xu pushed his glasses up and read aloud, "Chen Zheng, Lutang Village."
Chen Zheng stood up and straightened the hem of his Zhongshan suit.
Walk out from the first row, near the side, and walk up the steps to the stage.
The stage lights were much brighter than those in the audience, making people's eyes glaze over.
He stood among the ten outstanding model households, facing the gazes of Deputy County Head Xu and all the representatives.
Deputy County Head Xu received the certificates of honor and bonus envelopes from the staff and distributed them one by one.
When it was handed to Chen Zheng, he paused for a moment.
"You're Chen Zheng? From Lutang Village?"
"Yes, County Magistrate Xu."
We met at the trade fair.
You said you were studying freshwater aquaculture back then, and I never imagined that in less than six months you'd be standing here.
I've heard Master Qian and Lao Zhou mention you.
You said you helped several fish farmers in Lijiawan cure gill rot, and the method you used was both economical and effective.
Is that so?
Chen Zheng quickly organized his thoughts.
"yes.
The method used is salt water soaking, as the fungi causing branchial fungus cannot survive in a salinity environment of 3 to 5 parts per thousand.
Zhou Haiming, a technician from the county's aquatic products company, explained this principle in a training course, and I tried it out when I got home.
Finding that it really worked, they told Li Quan of Lijiawan.
Seven or eight fish farmers in their village used this method, and the survival rate of diseased fish exceeded 80%.
Deputy County Head Xu nodded and handed him the certificate of honor.
The certificate cover is made of red plastic with gold lettering.
Deputy County Head Xu handed him the bonus envelope again and gently patted him on the shoulder.
"Keep up the good work. It's rare to see someone your age with this kind of dedication."
Not only does he raise fish himself, but he also helps others treat fish diseases; this spirit is worth promoting.
After the commendation ceremony, Deputy County Head Xu gave a special explanation regarding the support loans.
The loan amount for ordinary model households is 500 yuan, and the loan amount for outstanding model households is 1,000 yuan.
The interest rate is half that of ordinary agricultural loans, and the repayment period starts from three years.
The application materials require three things.
Application form, breeding plan, and recommendation letter issued by village collective economic organization or township agricultural technology station.
After he finished speaking, he added a sentence.
After the meeting, those who received the commendation for outstanding demonstration households should go to the Agricultural Bureau office to find Director Fang and get the application form.
He will review it personally.
After the meeting, Chen Zheng went to the Agricultural Bureau office to pick up a loan application form.
The staff member was a round-faced girl with two braids.
He took out two forms from the drawer: a loan application form and a loan usage commitment letter.
Chen Zheng folded the watch and tucked it into his notebook.
As he left the office, he ran into Li Quan in the hallway.
Li Quan was also clutching a loan application form in his hand, his face beaming.
He pulled Chen Zheng to the window at the end of the corridor and whispered that he had already made contact with Sun Maocai.
When Sun Maocai heard that Chen Zheng had the original land deed for that piece of land, he was so excited that he couldn't sleep all night.
He said that the land had been a source of anxiety for years; he wanted to sell it but dared not, and wanted to build on it but dared not.
Because the property rights were unclear, even the contracting agreements were temporary.
Director Fang has already issued a property rights investigation report, confirming the validity of the land deed.
The written agreement in the Sun family's possession can also prove the sales relationship.
The new policy that Teacher Zhao Deming mentioned, the property rights clarification subsidy, is just enough to cover part of the Sun family's losses.
After both sides discussed it, they realized there was room for negotiation.
"He said he wants to talk to you in person. When are you free?" Li Quan asked.
Chen Zheng thought for a moment and said next Monday.
Today is Tuesday the 16th, and there are still several days until next Monday, so he can finish writing the loan application.
Organize the breeding plan and submit it to Director Fang.
While the awards ceremony and the loan are important, the land title issue cannot be delayed either.
Of the seven land deeds, the one in Lijiawan is about to be resolved, and the one in Zhaojiadu will be resolved soon as well.
The remaining four plots are in Baiyang Town. The two plots that were taken by the town government are going through the subsidy process.
As for the other two pieces being recovered from private individuals, we'll have to wait and see after he meets with the person in charge.
As the two were talking, a person walked over from the other end of the corridor.
Chen Zheng looked up and saw Zhou Haiming.
Today he was wearing a dark blue Zhongshan suit with a fishery company work badge pinned to his chest.
He was holding a stack of documents in his hand.
He walked over and greeted Chen Zheng:
"I just finished reporting on the winter fish disease prevention and control work to Deputy County Head Xu, and I just happened to run into you, which saves me the trouble of making a special trip to Lutang Village."
He handed over a stack of documents.
Chen Zheng took it and saw that it was a briefing issued by the Provincial Fisheries Research Institute. It was mimeographed and the paper was a bit rough.
The briefing was titled "Notice on Key Points of Breeding and Disease Control Techniques for Famous, Special, and High-Quality Freshwater Aquaculture Varieties."
Zhou Haiming said that this briefing is internal material, and the Provincial Fisheries Research Institute publishes it every quarter.
Distribute to aquatic technology extension stations in various cities and counties.
This issue features the latest developments in the artificial breeding of mandarin fish.
The provincial government conducted a pilot-scale experiment at the Danjiangkou Reservoir, and the survival rate of mandarin fish fry exceeded 20%.
Although 20% is still too low compared to the four major freshwater fish species, it is much better than the previous less than 10%.
Chen Zheng took the briefing and turned to that page.
The briefing outlined the technical approach of the Provincial Fisheries Research Institute.
Oxytocin was injected to induce gonadal development in the parent fish, and spawning and fertilization were completed in a circular pool simulating natural water flow.
The initial feed for fish fry consists of rotifers and brine shrimp nauplii, and the water temperature is controlled between 22 and 25 degrees Celsius.
He had learned these terms in a training course.
I can understand most of it, but I still need to go back and study it with Teacher Zhao.
"Zhou, could you give me an extra copy of this briefing? I'd like to show it to Professor Zhao as well."
"This one is for you. I've already sent out the one for Teacher Zhao."
Zhou Haiming smiled and patted Chen Zheng on the shoulder.
"The people from the provincial institute are coming to our county for an inspection next month. I'll arrange for them to visit your fishpond then."
It was already afternoon when we returned to Lutang Village.
Chen Zheng returned the bicycle to his neighbor, pushed open the gate, and saw that the yard was full of corn cobs drying in the sun, a vast expanse of golden yellow.
Zhang Cuihua sat on the doorstep peeling green beans, while Chen Feng lay on the ground drawing fish with chalk.
He drew a large one, then a small one, muttering to himself.
Chen Rong isn't here; he's probably gone to the fishpond.
Chen Zheng took the certificate of honor out of his cloth bag and placed it on the square table in the main room.
Chen Laosan came out of the house, picked up the certificate, and looked at it over and over for a while.
He put the certificate back on the table, took out a pipe from his pocket, filled it with tobacco, lit it, and took a puff.
Smoke billowed from his nostrils, turning pale blue in the autumn sunlight.
"If your grandfather were still alive, he would have to treat you to a drink today."
After saying that, he tucked the pipe back into his waistband, turned around, and went into the kitchen.
After a while, the sound of rummaging through drawers and cabinets could be heard from inside.
He came out carrying a dusty earthenware jar, the mouth of which was sealed with a red cloth covered with a thick layer of dust.
He placed the earthenware jar on the table, dusted it off, and untied the red cloth.
It's a jar of aged wine, with a strong aroma. It's rice wine that my grandfather brewed himself when he was alive, and it's been stored for at least ten years.
"Your grandfather buried this jar of wine. He said it would only be opened when a successful son in the family came along."
He took out two rough porcelain bowls, filled them, and pushed one of them in front of Chen Zheng.
He picked up the bowl himself, clinked it against the glass, tilted his head back, and gulped it all down.
Chen Zheng picked up the bowl and took a sip.
The rice wine has a mellow taste, with a sweet and spicy flavor.
When it was time for dinner, Zhang Cuihua prepared a table full of dishes.
The braised crucian carp was caught by Chen Rong from Dongwan. The crucian carp was about the size of a palm, with tender meat and few bones.
The eggs for the stir-fried chives and eggs were from our own chickens, and the chives were grown in the yard; they grew back after each harvest.
The fish head tofu soup was stewed until it turned milky white, with a layer of finely chopped scallions floating on top.
There was also Zhang Cuihua's specialty, braised pork belly, with three layers of fat and lean meat, fatty but not greasy. Chen Feng ate more than half a bowl by himself.
The family sat around the square table, the yellow light of the kerosene lamp illuminating everyone's faces.
After finishing his meal, Chen Zheng took out the provincial fisheries research institute report that Zhou Haiming had given him.
I read it carefully under the kerosene lamp.
The briefing was more detailed than what Zhou Haiming had verbally described.
In addition to experimental data on the artificial breeding of mandarin fish, there are also several new technical indicators for winter fishpond water quality management.
Winter monitoring frequency of dissolved oxygen levels, and the optimal location and size of openings in the ice surface.
A simple method for making thermal insulation materials for deep water areas.
Some of this content is covered in the training course handouts, but the presentations are more practical.
He copied the key data from the briefing into his notebook.
While copying, I remembered something: the acorns that hadn't been harvested in that wild forest.
Last time, the old shopkeeper at the pharmacy said that oak mushrooms have a calming effect and are effective for insomnia.
Although Zhao Deming's health has recovered well since his serious illness, he has never been very energetic.
I often can't sleep at night, and sometimes I'm still reading books in the middle of the night.
If I can gather a few more good quality oak mushrooms, I'll keep one for my mother to keep in reserve.
Give another piece to Teacher Zhao, and the rest can be sold to the county pharmacy.
This idea made him set the date for his trip up the mountain for the day after tomorrow.
Tomorrow I'll write the loan application and breeding plan, and the day after tomorrow I'll go into the mountains.
The next day, Chen Zheng spent the entire day hunched over the square table in the main room writing materials.
The loan application was the key document, and he revised it four times.
I wrote two full pages the first time, but I felt it was too verbose.
I deleted half of it the second time, but then I felt it was too simple.
The structure was readjusted for the third time.
It is divided into four parts: the current status of the fishpond, existing difficulties, loan purpose, and repayment plan.
The fourth time, I carefully considered the wording, removing every empty phrase.
The current state of the fishpond: There is a fishpond at the east end of Lutang Village, with a water surface area of 3.2 mu.
More than 1,200 fry of the four major freshwater fish species were released into the water in August, and they are currently growing well.
It is estimated that about 2,000 catties of mature fish will be harvested by the end of the year.
There are difficulties; the fishpond area is too small, making it difficult to achieve economies of scale.
The dissolved oxygen level fluctuated significantly after the water temperature dropped sharply.
Currently, the cost amortization per mu (unit of land area) for a single fishpond is too high. Expanding the scale can reduce the fixed costs.
The loan is intended to be used to dig two new fish ponds next spring, bringing the total to three fish ponds, including the existing one.
The total water surface area has been expanded to more than six acres.
The reinforcement of the embankment in Xintang, the installation of inlet and outlet gates, and the purchase of retaining nets require initial funding.
The purchase of fish fry, oxygenation equipment, and winter insulation materials also require expenditure.
The repayment plan is based on this year's fish prices.
The three fish ponds are expected to produce between 4,000 and 5,000 catties of fish annually, at an average price of 0.8 yuan per catty.
With an annual income between 3,200 and 4,000 yuan, the net profit after deducting costs can cover the three-year installment repayment.
After he finished writing it, he read it through from beginning to end again.
We ensure that every piece of data has a source and that every expenditure has a basis.
The logic of the entire application is coherent from beginning to end.
The aquaculture plan was written separately as an attachment to the loan application, and it contained more detailed information.
The specific location and area planning for each fishpond, and the design concept for the water inlet and drainage system.
The species and density of fish fry stocked, feed formulation and cost accounting, expected yield and harvesting schedule.
List them out one by one.
Most of the content of this plan was written based on the knowledge Zhou Haiming shared and the suggestions given by Lin Xiaoyun's father.
It also incorporates my own observations and data analysis from the past few days.
These two documents together make up a thick stack.
Chen Zheng folded them neatly, put them in a kraft paper envelope, and placed it under his pillow.
Early on the third day, he went into the mountains.
This time the goal is clear: to avoid taking the long way around.
We carefully explored the forest we had previously discovered at the border between the low-lying and deep mountain areas.
The key items to find are three things: wild ginseng and oak mushroom.
There was also a patch of pine mushroom nests that I hadn't had time to explore in detail before.
If you're lucky, you might find other mountain products, which would be an extra bonus.
Having learned from the previous experience, we were much better prepared for this trip into the mountains.
In addition to the usual machete, hemp rope, and cloth bag, he also brought several small bamboo tubes.
Chen Rong helped him saw the bamboo tube and sanded the inside with fine sandpaper.
I made a special trip to the reed marshes by Baiyang Lake to cut a bundle of reed stalks and cut them to a length suitable for stuffing into the opening of a bamboo tube.
This was the inspiration he gained from the training course and Teacher Zhao's manuscript.
Different varieties of herbs and mushrooms have completely different requirements for preservation after harvesting.
Adenophora stricta and Polygonum multiflorum can be dug up and put directly into cloth bags, but pine mushrooms turn brown as soon as they are touched.
They must be packed separately in breathable containers; otherwise, if they are kept in a cloth bag for most of the day, their appearance will be completely ruined.
Before heading into the mountains, he once again checked the small patch of herbs he had transplanted himself at the entrance of the courtyard.
The few ginseng seedlings were seed roots he had deliberately saved when he dug ginseng last time.
After moving it back, we've been taking care of it with a shade net.
It has now settled into its pot and is growing quietly in the shade at the base of the courtyard wall.
The vines of Polygonum multiflorum climbed up the bamboo trellis, and the newly sprouted tender leaves trembled slightly in the morning breeze.
The topic of transplanting medicinal herbs was something that Teacher Zhao mentioned casually.
Since there are wild resources in the mountains, instead of walking several miles to collect them each time...
Why not try transplanting a small batch locally?
Firstly, it's convenient to take care of, and secondly, it can be kept for seed, which can be planted on the ridges around the fishpond when the scale becomes larger.
This idea is just the beginning.
But Chen Zheng had already made up his mind that every time he went into the mountains, he would bring back a few good-quality seedlings.
He walked along the same route for about an hour and first arrived at the wild forest with old oak trees.
I only glanced at it last time.
This time he brought a machete and a long bamboo pole, and made a point of clearing out the bushes under the tree.
After cleaning, several clusters of well-preserved oak mushrooms were found on the back of the tree trunk.
The cap is a size larger than the one we picked last time, with slightly curled edges and clear texture of the duct layers.
The color is dark brown, and the surface is covered with a thin layer of white frost.
That's the spore powder naturally secreted by the cap, which is also the most concentrated component of Ganoderma lucidum's medicinal effects.
He carefully used a machete to cut the acorns off the tree trunk, trying not to damage the edge of the cap.
Wrap it in the clean lotus leaves you brought, put it in the bamboo tube, plug the mouth of the bamboo tube with breathable reed stalks, and then put it in a cloth bag.
I picked four pieces in total, and all of them were in better condition than the last one.
The most complete piece is about the size of an adult man's palm, with no damage to the edge of the cap.
After harvesting the acorns, we continued deeper into the mountains.
After crossing a ridge, we found the few remaining Polygonum multiflorum plants that we had hidden on the sunny hillside last time.
He loosened the soil again, took the two largest pieces, and left the two smaller ones buried deep inside.
They made stone markings that only they could recognize.
The quality of this Polygonum multiflorum is better than the previous one. The cross-section is yellow and lustrous, and the growth rings are dense, indicating that it has been growing for quite some time.
They searched the hillside for almost an hour, but still couldn't find the Codonopsis pilosula.
Unlike sand ginseng, wild codonopsis grows in large patches.
It is scattered, often hidden deep in the bushes, and cannot be found without careful digging.
But the environmental conditions here are correct.
The slope is sunny with thick soil and dense vegetation, and there are traces of water flow nearby.
He added another note to his notebook, drawing a simple map of the terrain features in the area.
I plan to bring Chen Rong along next time; the two of us searching separately will be more efficient.
As he left the deep mountains and headed outwards, he took a detour to the pine forest to take a look at the pine mushroom nest.
There were far fewer pine mushrooms than last time, probably because the weather had turned colder.
But he found a small patch of newly grown tea tree mushrooms under the pine tree.
It's not very big, with a light brown cap and a slender stem; it's very tender.
Tea tree mushrooms can sell for seven or eight cents a pound at the county's vegetable market, and even more expensive in restaurants.
He picked the tea tree mushrooms one by one and put them into another bamboo tube, collecting a total of twenty or thirty mushrooms.
He left the mountain as the sun began to set.