Go back to the prosperous days and become a layman

Chapter 504 503 Stone Mill
When they got home, Tang Zhitong was untying the rope. Zhang Guifang heard the noise and came out of the house, bringing out the gold quilt and silver bed.

"Wenwen said this morning that it was time for you to come back." Zhang Guifang took two quick steps, wanting to help her son carry the bag.

"Hey, you have to come back, right? Do you have a cat?" Tang Zhitong handed the bag to his mother and picked up the sack himself.

There is a saying among the people: Men don't keep cats, and women don't keep dogs.

As for the reason, there are many different opinions. Tang Zhitong has never explored it because he has never thought of raising this thing. Firstly, the hair loss is very annoying. Secondly, you will develop feelings for it as you raise it. The lifespan of these small animals is generally shorter than that of humans, so it is inevitable that they will be sad.

"Oh, our house was invaded by rats a while ago, and Wenwen brought one back from her colleague." Zhang Guifang sighed and thought of the sausages destroyed by rats. They were sausages, made of meat, and she felt sad when she thought about it now.

"Will it work? It's such a small one." Tang Zhitong looked at the kitten staggering behind its mother, crying in a baby voice, which sounded very cute.

"Cats avoid mice. Don't underestimate this small cat. We haven't seen any mice since it came to our house." Zhang Guifang's words revealed a hint of pride.

"That's fine, it's not in vain." Tang Zhitong saw that his mother liked the cat very much, so he suppressed the mouse and just hid, not stopping the complaints.

However, Tang Zhitong plans to discuss with Xiao Wang to train the cat from a young age and develop the habit of urinating at a fixed place.

Both cats and dogs have the habit of marking their territory with urine, but dogs don't jump up and down after all, so even if they mark, they will only do so on the ground. But cats are different. They will mark their territory on beams, roofs, quilt covers, tables and chairs, large vats, etc., as long as they can reach any place, they will definitely do so.

Especially this time I brought back corn, and the big jar for storing grain was really to the cat's liking!

After peeing or pooping, use your claws to dig it out and bury it...

Tang Zhitong was not just worrying about nothing, but he had actually seen it.

When I was young, there was a small store near my hometown. In order to protect the things inside from being destroyed by mice, the owner kept a cat in the store.

As a result, one day, a customer came to buy sugar, and when the boss scooped it up, it lumped together, turned yellow, and smelled like urine!
It is said that a rat dropping can spoil a pot of soup, and a cat urine can spoil a bowl of sugar.

Tang Zhitong didn't even dare to think about that scene. It was said that the basin of sugar was thrown away later, but he never heard what the cat did with it.

"Mom, please go back and clean out the big jar and put the corn in it. There is still some left, and I will slowly carry it home." After entering the main house, Tang Zhitong put the sack in the west room where he used to sleep.

There is a large jar in the west room, which was the jar used by Grandma Tang to store grain in the early years. This jar has been there since Tang Zhitong can remember.

In Tang Zhitong's impression, many people in the north use jars to store grain.

In my old home, neighbors also used this kind of large clay jars to store grain. A few used double-mouthed jars to reduce the floor space of the jars and increase storage capacity.

The so-called paired jars are made by stacking two generally large pottery jars mouth to mouth, with the bottom of one facing upwards and the gap in the middle sealed with yellow mud.

The bottom of the upper jar was chiseled out in advance to allow people to enter and exit, and was used as an entrance and exit for loading and digging grain.

Tang Zhitong heard from his elders that before liberation, people did not like to talk about who was rich or who had a monthly income of ten thousand yuan. At that time, they all compared food.

From ordinary people to rural landlords, everyone stores grain and uses grain to measure whether a family is rich.

If a family had a few pairs of jars of grain, it would be a big deal and matchmakers would come to their door frequently.

Therefore, Tang Zhitong particularly understood that in the past few years when the wage system had not yet been implemented, the old city used millet to replace wages and measure prices.

"How much grain did you buy this time?" Zhang Guifang was very proactive and did what she said. While her son took off his hat, she emptied the jar and let her son pour the corn in.

"About four or five hundred kilograms, but most of it is corn. I will bring it home slowly later." Tang Zhitong estimated a number.

Tang Zhitong wanted to report more, but the amount of money he paid in public to Zhang Guifang and Xiao Wang was not much.

In the current situation, it is not appropriate to have a price that is too low. I can only quote this much first, and then secretly put more corn into the jar later. This will ensure that my family members don't starve.

"Not a small amount, not a small amount. It must have taken a lot of trouble, right?" Zhang Guifang was very satisfied with the amount. After collecting the food, the mother and daughter started chatting.

"It's okay. My uncle knows someone there, so it's not a big deal." Tang Zhitong used his uncle as a shield.

"Oh, then how are your uncle and aunt doing? Are they short of food?"

"Of course we are short of food, but my uncle knows some people and can buy low-priced food from our neighbors in the east. So we don't have a hard time." Tang Zhitong continued to lie in an attempt to reassure Zhang Guifang.

"Okay, that's fine. Is it cold over there? I heard it's very cold. Have you used the clothes Wenwen lent you?" Zhang Guifang was relieved to hear her son say that.

"I'm using it, but it's a good thing I brought it with me, otherwise my feet would be frozen. As my aunt said, dogs over there would like to lift up their front paws to walk during the winter. Look at what I'm wearing on my feet, they're Brother Wangzi's Ula shoes." Tang Zhitong told his mother about the temperature over there while speaking and gesturing.

"Oh, you wore it, but he still has something to wear? Do you want to send it back immediately?" Zhang Guifang is kind-hearted and always thinks of others.

"No need. My uncle has several pairs. He hunted a lot of prey in the past, and the skins were either made into coats or shoes. They have no shortage of them." Tang Zhitong said nonchalantly. The two rabbit skins he had thrown there were enough to offset the amount of leather needed for this pair of shoes.

"Okay, you didn't eat the rations at uncle's house in the past, did you?"

"Emm... I ate it. Not only that, I also brought back some dumplings. Mom, you don't know how enthusiastic my aunt and my aunt are. I can't stop them at all. I tried to try to stop them, but they got really anxious! But when I left, I left some food for them." Tang Zhitong told the "truth" this time.

"Oh, okay, as long as you don't let your uncle and aunt suffer. I heard that life outside is more difficult than in our city."

"Well, don't worry. Uncle and aunt didn't suffer any loss. But you can't go out and shout that our family bought grain from outside. Once people know about it, there will definitely not be enough to borrow." Tang Zhitong instructed.

"I know. I am old now. How can I not distinguish the important from the unimportant? I will remind Fengzhi later."

"Okay. Mom, please heat up some food for me. I came back hungry this morning. After I finish eating, I'll go out and look for a stone mill. I need to grind the corn into flour."

"Oh, what time is it? Why haven't you eaten yet? I'll heat it up for you." When Zhang Guifang heard that the child had not eaten, she immediately went out to get the pot.

Tang Zhitong was also busy, putting away the bag he had brought back.

In addition to the dumplings brought back, the other bags were taken to the wing room first. After being away for ten days or so, I did a lot of work there while wearing my coat, and the surface of the officer's coat was a little dirty. This one had to be washed before it could be sent back.

Tang Zhitong took off his shoes and washed up.

I walked to the desk and found a note from Xiao Wang: Will you come back today? I miss you so much.

Tang Zhitong thought about it, picked up the pen next to him, and wrote on the note:
As soon as I got off the car, I felt the warm wind of the city. I knew that it was your thoughts that warmed the cold wind. I want to say that I miss you too.

Then I drew a ^.^ at the back.

The daytime temperature in Sijiu City is still above zero degrees. Tang Zhitong did not dare to take out all the frozen pears and frozen persimmons that Jin Yumei had stuffed for him. He left some in the space, but he took out all the salted goose eggs.

"Mom, my sister-in-law brought me some fruits from over there. I stuffed them in my clothes to keep warm for fear that they would melt. Let's try them later. These goose eggs are pickled. My sister-in-law gave them to me." Tang Zhitong put everything on the table, then found a plate, put the frozen pears and persimmons in it, and let them thaw slowly.

"Why do you bring everything home and snatch food from the children? Is your sister-in-law okay?" Zhang Guifang complained, then she remembered that her niece-in-law was still pregnant.

"It's fine, don't worry, it's okay." Tang Zhitong didn't say anything back. Jin Yumei was indeed the best nourished one in his uncle's family. She didn't look noticeably thinner this time.

After saying that, Tang Zhitong grabbed the little kitten that was circling around his trouser legs and meowing. The little guy might have smelled the fishy smell on him.

"Mom, have you given this cat a name?" Tang Zhitong held the kitten's neck with one hand and pinched the pads of the kitten's front paws with the other hand. When he pinched, the nails came out, and when he let go, the nails went back. It was quite fun.

"Get up and call Beibei. Put it down quickly, wash your hands and eat. It's very dirty." Zhang Guifang served the hot rice and urged.

"Who named it? It sounds pretty nice." Tang Zhitong smiled, put the kitten on the ground, washed his hands and ate.

"Fengzhen. Fengzhi wanted to call her Baibai. I said how could I call her an elder, but she stopped me. Besides, the color is not right. It's not pure white. There's yellow on it."

"Haha, Baibai is yellow, which is quite appropriate." Tang Zhitong laughed, broke off a piece of steamed bread, handed it to Beibei's mouth, and said to the little kitten: "Beibei, you can't go on a blind date. You have to catch mice frequently, can't be fickle, and can't have a sore back."

"You're talking nonsense again. Can a cat have a backache?" Zhang Guifang was confused.

"Yeah, cats don't have backaches, but people may not."

After dinner, Tang Zhitong dug a hole in the yard, planning to bring back some "sand" from outside to serve as a convenient sand basin for Beibei.

Look, the sand sent by the three people from the east was used by Beibei in just a few days.

"Mom, I'm going out for a while to see if I can buy a stone mill." After digging the pit, Tang Zhitong went into the house to say hello to Zhang Guifang, then put on his hat, scarf and gloves and prepared to go out.

"Eucalyptus, please be careful with the eucalyptus you bring back." When Tang Zhitong was about to go out, Zhang Guifang came out and warned him worriedly.

"Okay, Mom, don't worry. I'll go check it out today and bring it back in the evening." Tang Zhitong knew that Zhang Guifang was worried and was afraid of attracting other people's attention.

Stone mills are mostly found in rural areas. It may be an exaggeration to say that every household has one, but every village definitely has one, the only difference is the number.

In the early years, stone mills were large tools used by northern farmers to peel crops. Rice, wheat, corn, millet, sorghum, beans, and even dried sweet potatoes had to be crushed with this thing before being processed and eaten.

In the 1990s, Tang Zhitong used this thing a lot. After school, he would throw down his schoolbag and go to push the mill. The pancakes and pig rations for the family were all ground out of this thing.

Even the wild leeks picked from the mountains are crushed and processed into leek sauce with this thing.

Before the two unifications, the owners of grain stores in the old city either used electricity or livestock to pull large millstones, and had already eliminated the stone mills. The people in the city also got used to buying food, so the stone mills were gradually eliminated and moved to the countryside.

This is just like the millstones from the countryside returning to the city decades later and being used as paving stones in the park. Ultimately, they are all the recycling of waste that has been eliminated by the times.

Tang Zhitong did not wander around the city. Instead, he rode his bicycle directly through the East Gate, followed Jianguomenwai Street, turned into Xidanwang, and headed towards Qinzikeng.

There was a man named Zhang Laosan in Zhuzikeng. At the beginning of the year, he exchanged toon buds with Tang Zhitong.

Tang Zhitong thought very clearly. Everyone was in difficulty right now. There was a mill in almost every village. Since he needed one this time, of course he would exchange it with someone he knew. Anyway, Zhang Laosan didn't even know his name.

Tang Zhitong only knew that Old Man Zhang lived in Qinzikeng, but he didn't know where his home was. However, he knew that there was a Chinese toon tree in his house.

Although the Chinese toon tree was dry and had no leaves at this time, it did not prevent Tang Zhitong from recognizing the tree.

It was winter and there was no one on the roads in the village. The news from the radio station was broadcast from the loudspeaker and floated in the sky over the village.

Tang Zhitong found a family that had toon trees and knocked on the door.

"Who is it?" The door inside creaked open, and the person who spoke was not very strong.

"My fellow villager, I want to ask you about someone. Do you know where Zhang Laosan lives?" Tang Zhitong asked through the door.

"Go east, there's a house with a bamboo gate and adobe wall, right next to the east-west road, and the gate faces west." The person inside had no intention of coming out, so he replied and then closed the door.

"Okay, thank you." Tang Zhitong thanked him without caring whether the other person could hear him or not, and walked forward according to the instructions.

As for why they don't go out, Tang Zhitong can probably understand it. It's nothing more than trying to move as little as possible to reduce physical energy consumption.

After finding the house the fellow villager mentioned, Tang Zhitong looked up into the yard and saw a tall Chinese toon tree. He then knocked on the door and asked, "Is Uncle Zhang home?"

"Who is it?" I shouted several times, and after a long while, there was finally a sound from inside.

"Uncle Zhang, at the beginning of the year, let's have Chinese toon." Tang Zhitong lowered his voice and gave a reminder through the door.

"Oh! Coming, coming!" Old man Zhang remembered it instantly and hurried out to open the door for Tang Zhitong.

(End of this chapter)