Era: Craftsmen in the Siheyuan

Chapter 287 In full swing
After a simple celebration, various activities became more intense.

The company also followed the advanced trends and issued clear regulations on setting up a "big canteen".

When Xu Deyong was in the village, he could see thick smoke coming out of the earthen stove in the distance during the day.

In order to meet the target, the commune once again selected some of the team's laborers to participate in smelting.

Of course, compared with some other places in the country, it is already pretty good. At least there are still some young and strong laborers left.

Moreover, after the "big canteen" was established, people were not allowed to keep food at home, and the harvest did not belong to them.

Corn cobs fell to the ground, and some members were too lazy to pick them up.

This has resulted in a strange phenomenon: although this year is a good year, the yield is high but the harvest is not.

……

Three days later.

In the production team where Xu Deyong was located, Zhou Shan formally announced the requirements and regulations of the commune regarding the establishment of a "public canteen."

Zhou Shan said firmly: "These are the regulations. There is no room for bargaining. Besides, other places have already implemented advanced experience. We are latecomers."

"From now on, everyone just needs to work and produce, and eat in the cafeteria. It doesn't cost a penny, and you can eat as much as you want!"

When everyone heard this, there was a buzz of discussion:

"If we hand over all the food we eat, what will we do if there is a famine?"

"Then those who have more food at home will suffer a loss!"

"Do we have to hand in the chickens and ducks we raise? It's better to eat them ourselves..."

“Shh, don’t talk nonsense…!”

"Captain Zhou said, 'All pots, bowls, and utensils must be handed in.' We will not eat at home anymore, but in the cafeteria."

"Is this certain? Why does it feel a little unreliable?"

"If I could really eat as much as I want, it would be better than being at home...!"

.........

Xu Deyong looked at this scene and couldn't help but sigh in his heart. The starting point of many things was good, but it was a pity that they were too idealistic.
In the office canteen, people ate to their heart's content. Before, every family lived frugally, with each person eating an average of one kilogram of food per day. After that, each person ate more than three kilograms per day.

Moreover, in even more areas, long before public canteens were established, people were extremely worried when they heard that they would have to collect their own food for free and eat together in the canteens.

Especially those who have plenty of food at home, who would be willing to pay more? Naturally, they eat to their heart's content and also eat the chickens, ducks, and pigs at home.

The situation was similar in the production team where Xu Deyong was located. Within a few days after Zhou Shan announced the establishment of a public canteen, every household quietly killed chickens and ducks, and the food was better than during the Chinese New Year.

Of course, everyone is still relatively "restrained", or reluctant to give up, so some old hens that lay eggs diligently are still kept.

For example, Aunt Sun couldn't bear to kill the two old hens, but the crowing rooster disappeared.

Xu Deyong also got to eat the chicken thanks to his luck!

The public canteen was set up at the brigade’s headquarters. A new shed was built, several large stoves were erected, and all the pots, pans, and food from each family were gathered together. That was considered a completed canteen.

On the day of its establishment, people from the cooperative came down to provide guidance and called on everyone to donate their iron pots and other items at home for smelting.

Since we will eat in the canteen in the future, we won’t need the extra iron pots and shovels at home. In short, except for the necessary farm tools, all other iron objects should be donated!

The team was busy until the Cold Dew Day on the 9th. Half of the crops in the fields had been harvested, and it was time to sow the key wheat.

As a result, everyone became even busier with limited manpower, leaving home early and returning late, working day and night!

At this time, the system of "one leveling, two adjustments, and three collections" and "three-level ownership, team as the basis" was implemented.

All members, male, female, young and old, earn work points and are divided into different labor types based on their physical strength.

All members, regardless of gender, who are 18 years of age or older are full laborers, while young men and women under 18 and women over 50 years of age are half laborers.

The entire labor force works three times a day, 2 minutes in the morning, 4 minutes in the morning, and 4 minutes in the afternoon, totaling 10 minutes for the whole day, which is called "one work".

If converted into money, it is only about one cent.

A semi-laborer working a day will be credited with 6 work points. If he works overtime in the morning, he will also be credited with 2 more work points, so he can earn 8 work points for the whole day.

The distribution system implements the principle of "six parts for labor and four parts for work".

If a family had no labor, they could only get six tenths of the goods, which had to be paid for, that is, the money owed to the production team. The members called the money owed to the production team "six cents" and the money paid back to the production team "taking six cents".

When Xu Deyong and his colleagues went to the countryside, their work was calculated based on "one day's work".

However, the continuous high-intensity work these days has made Chen Xueru and Yang Dian very tired.

Fan Jinyou could barely keep up, but he was too tired to think about anything else.

According to the gossip spread by the team members, Chen Xueru was so tired that she cried in her sleep at night!
Only Xu Deyong was still able to handle the job with ease, and gradually became the main labor force. Everyone in the team would give him a thumbs up when mentioning him.

Moreover, Xu Deyong's skills gradually became apparent. He was able to repair various baskets, carts, and farm tools. He could always fix them and continue to use them after tinkering with his tools.

If he wasn't so busy, there would probably be more people asking him to pack up their things!

I am busy all the time. I sleep when I close my eyes, work when I open my eyes, and eat at the right time. The days repeat in this cycle.

After the busy Double Ninth Festival, it is now the Frost Descent and the autumn harvest is coming to an end. It is time to take a breath, but it is still impossible to rest.

In addition to the various autumn harvests and the end of planting, cabbage is also about to be harvested, so the later management should be strengthened.

After all, cabbage is the main dish on people’s tables throughout the winter, so we cannot ignore it.

The next day, October 10, an editorial on "Running the Canteen Well" was published in the newspaper.

The editorial put forward specific requirements for running a large canteen well, such as diversifying the meals in the canteen, combining coarse and fine rice, both dry and liquid rice, having a variety of dishes, both vegetables and soup, and trying to provide free condiments such as soy sauce, vinegar, onions, garlic, and chili peppers.

We should pay attention to improving the food. We should try to eat meat two or three times a month and have dinner on festivals.

The canteen must be hygienic, have its own vegetable base, provide proper dietary care for elderly members, children, the sick, and pregnant women, and use old houses to convert dining halls or build new simple dining halls as much as possible. Detailed requirements have been made for every detail.

In some places, the "supply system" has been restored.
For a time, "eat to your heart's content and work hard to produce" became a slogan that spread across the country.

At the same time, Xu Deyong and his colleagues' working days were coming to an end.

After work that day, Xu Deyong received a letter from Xu Huizhen, which contained news that surprised him greatly...!
…………

(End of this chapter)