Era: Starting from cave dwellings in northern Shaanxi

Chapter 290: Find something to do?

For Shuangshui Bay, time is like a galloping wild horse. In a blink of an eye, the weather began to turn cold, and the temperature dropped particularly sharply this year.

In the eleventh month of the lunar calendar, a heavy snow fell without warning, dyeing the entire Shuangshui Bay white.

In the past, snow was enough to make people happy because it could ensure a good harvest next year.

But this year, the snow came a little early and was not very welcome.

Because the roads leading to the city were all covered with thick snow, even though the team leader Sun Enguo mobilized people to clear the snow overnight, there was still not much effect.

In addition, due to the terrain, as soon as the snow was cleared in front, the north wind swirled from behind and blew the snow back onto the road.

As a result, tractors carrying coal cannot pass normally.

The coal dug out from the mine can only be piled up in the coal yard. With so much traffic, the white snow has even turned black.

As for the mine, it does not hinder digging at all, and the temperature is higher than on the ground. You can roll up your sleeves and work hard without feeling cold.

However, the brick kiln stopped working, causing complaints from the members working there.

Over the past six months, the brick kiln has also made great contributions to Shuangshui Bay.

The contribution of brick kilns can be seen in research institutes, schools, water towers, canals, and village roads.

Once the brick kiln stopped working and it snowed heavily, the construction team also had nothing to do.

As for the snow in the village, there was no need for mobilization, people cleaned it up spontaneously.

The only thing that is not affected is probably paper-cutting.

The old brigade office has long become a paper-cutting painting base, and the plaque certified by the county is now hanging here.

Inside the cave, lights were on even during the day, the stove was burning red, and many women took off their cotton jackets and talked while cutting paper. The content of their conversations seemed to be vaguely related to children.

In the new brigade office, Sun Xiangyang was reading a letter. Since he became the branch secretary, he was less free than before.

Like before, on snowy days like this, he prefers to stay at home.

Now he can only stay in the office, in case something happens and others can't find him.

Of course, unlike the old branch secretary who was always meticulous, Sun Xiangyang completely continued his style when he was the team leader in the coal mine, delegating power as much as possible and being a hands-off boss.

The two team leaders were now busier than before under his orders.

This gave him the opportunity to hide in the office to drink tea and read letters.

The letter was sent from Hong Kong, and the sender was Huang Jinling.

There was only one message in the letter: she was going to live in Shuangshui Bay for a while.

In fact, when she was in Shuangshui Bay, she was looking forward to spending the winter here, because she grew up in Hong Kong and had never seen what snow looked like.

After hearing that it snows heavily here in winter, I became very interested in going there.

Now, winter has finally come. Huang Jinling, who has been under house arrest in Hong Kong for almost half a year, could no longer bear it. Finally, she persuaded her father to come to Shuangshui Bay again.

The reason why Huang Yaoxiong agreed to let his daughter come to Shuangshui Bay was naturally related to the fact that his daughter had survived a life-threatening crisis at the age of eighteen and Sun Xiangyang had weighed her fate.

Because according to Sun Xiangyang, although Huang Jinling safely passed the age of 18, according to the results of weighing her horoscope, her death was only postponed, not eliminated.

Although he didn't know whether it was related to Shuangshui Bay, Huang Yaoxiong didn't dare to gamble. As long as he could postpone it, what did it matter even if he let his daughter come to Shuangshui Bay to live for a period of time every year?
Just from the words of the letter, Sun Xiangyang could feel Huang Jinling's joy and impatience.

He just smiled at this.

He was not worried about how Huang Jinling would come. As Huang Jinling's nanny and bodyguard, he would definitely follow her.

And Huang Defa should also come.

The other party had said before that he would come by at the end of the year to reconcile the accounts with him.

Although he handed over the investment company in Hong Kong to the other party with confidence, Huang Defa could not forget the existence of Sun Xiangyang.

As for whether the other party would do something secretly, Sun Xiangyang was not actually worried. Not to mention that the other party really wanted to do so, as long as they met, they would not be able to hide it from him.

Another thing is that he is quite trustworthy about Huang Defa's character.

There is also his relationship with the Huang family and his identity as a Feng Shui master. Anyone who is not a fool knows what to do.

"Secretary, what are you so happy about?"

At this moment, the office door was pushed open, and Sun Enguo walked in covered in snow, just in time to see the smile on Sun Xiangyang's face which had not yet disappeared.

In the past, when Sun Xiangyang was the captain, everyone called him Captain Xiangyang, or just called him by his name, and those who were not familiar with him also called him Captain Sun.

But since he became the branch secretary, everyone has unified the way they address him, calling him simply "branch secretary" without any prefix.

Just like before when everyone just called him old branch secretary.

"Someone wants to visit us."

Sun Xiangyang said casually.

"Who?"

Sun Enguo immediately asked with interest.

After all, no one who has visited Shuangshui Bay has had a simple experience.

"That girl Lingling."

Sun Xiangyang replied.

"Hey, your apprentice is coming? This is good news."

Sun Enguo also smiled.

I'm afraid no one in Shuangshui Bay can simply regard Huang Jinling as Sun Xiangyang's apprentice.

After all, the other party’s surname is Huang, and he is also the buyer of Shuangshuiwan paper-cut paintings.

It can be said that without the Huang family, the paper-cut paintings in Shuangshuiwan would be just some waste paper, with no other use except to look good when pasted at home.

It was because of the Huang family's acquisition that Shuangshuiwan became the hometown of paper-cutting paintings, earned foreign exchange, and brought many benefits to Shuangshuiwan.

Although the income from paper-cutting paintings is far from comparable to that from coal mines, no one can deny the role of paper-cutting paintings. The ability to earn foreign exchange is enough.

What's more, according to Sun Xiangyang's plan, the scale of paper-cutting painting will continue to expand in the future, until it starts to acquire from outside and gather more paper-cutting painting talents, making Shuangshuiwan a real paper-cutting painting hometown and a major pillar of Shuangshuiwan.

Of course, Huang Jinling's personality is also key, she is very likable.

If she really had that kind of willful and capricious personality, she probably wouldn't have received so much recognition in Shuangshui Bay, and even Sun Enguo's tone wouldn't have been like that.

"Well, how's the trip to town?"

Sun Xiangyang nodded, then asked.

"No, the snow is a bit heavy this time. We can't climb up the slightest slope. We can only wait a few days until the snow around us freezes."

Sun Enguo shook his head.

"It's like this in winter. There's no other way. We'll just have to make do with it this year. When we have more money next year, we'll buy a 75." Sun Xiangyang said.

"There's no need for the crawler tractors that came out a couple of years ago. A 75 is enough, and it's cheaper. With that kind of tractor, even tilling the land will be easier in the future."

When talking about tractors, Sun Enguo's interest immediately became high.

Although the jeep registered under the name of the institute is very impressive and everyone wants to ride in it, in Sun Enguo's eyes, this kind of jeep is not practical at all. It would be better to replace it with a tractor, especially a crawler tractor that can go uphill and downhill, even in the rain and snow.

In this way, the coal from Shuangshui Bay will no longer be unable to be transported out due to weather reasons.

"No matter if it's 75 or 65, forget it this year. If I hadn't lent the money out, I could still think about it."

Sun Xiangyang couldn't help but said.

If we lend the money out and expect the carton factory to pay it back, it may take two or three years.

But there is nothing we can do about it.

Who made Shuangshuiwan have so much money in its account before, which made people jealous?

In addition, Shuangshui Bay has received so many benefits that many people would be dissatisfied if it were really stingy.

To put it simply, Shuangshui Bay is eating alone.

To put it bluntly, there's a bit of disunity.

As for who we shouldn’t unite with, is there any need to say it?

Although Su Huiwan is watching from the county and blocking Shuangshui Bay, the right thing to do is to make more friends and fewer enemies.

So, the money was nominally guaranteed by Su Huiwan and lent to the carton factory, but in reality, it was a little bleeding to avoid some people becoming jealous and making small moves in secret.

Besides, Sun Xiangyang was confident that the carton factory would be able to pay him back. After all, he was the one who made the high-end health-preserving dates. Even if he had no confidence in the county, he still had confidence in himself.

Facts also verified his idea.

This money will just have to be repaid later, but it will definitely come back and not be wasted.

If it were borrowed by another factory, it would be like throwing meat buns at a dog.

Previously, the county helped promote Shuangshuiwan as the hometown of paper-cutting paintings, and sent a plaque in the name of the county. This was not only Su Huiwan's credit, but the 500,000 yuan that was loaned out undoubtedly also played a big role.

Especially after making money from high-end health-preserving dates, anyone who is not stupid can see the benefits in the future.

Invisibly, the relationship between Shuangshuiwan and the county was eased.

In the future, if Shuangshuiwan’s research institute achieves some results and really wants to start developing industry, it will also need the support of the county.

In Sun Xiangyang's opinion, the money was not borrowed in vain. In the long run, various tangible and intangible benefits will only be greater.

If one day Shuangshuiwan really poaches people from the surrounding production brigades on a large scale, even if the lawsuit is brought to the county, it will favor Shuangshuiwan.

Who made Shuangshuiwan strive for success?
If you have the ability, you can lend a few hundred thousand to the county.

"Let's lend it out. After all, Deputy County Magistrate Su has helped us so much. As long as we are not ungrateful, we won't have any objections in Shuangshui Bay."

Sun Enguo said immediately.

Even though some members didn't understand at first and complained secretly, team leaders like Sun Enguo saw it clearly and only supported it without any opinions.

What's more, it was Sun Xiangyang who made this decision.

"By the way, after the snow, the brick kilns, construction teams, and members who farm the land are now idle and have nothing to do. Many people have come to me, hoping to find some work. What kind of work can you find for them?"

Sun Enguo then talked about the purpose of his visit.

Although it has been a busy year, with the current income of Shuangshuiwan members, they can take a good rest, spend the winter in seclusion, and reward themselves without worrying about not having enough to eat.

But seeing that the coal mine and paper-cutting painting did not affect production and he was still earning 20 to 30 work points a day, even when he was resting at home, he was always worried and uneasy.

It would be better to find some work to do, earn some work points, and then have a good year.

As for snow clearing in the village, it is all voluntary and does not count as work points at all.

As for the road leading to the county town, everyone tried it and then turned back.

So now I'm idle.

Especially for those who grow crops, there is actually not much activity in the fields after winter.

"I want to work."

After hearing what Sun Enguo said, Sun Xiangyang fell silent.

That’s why we say that workers and farmers these days are the most hardworking, because the popular idea now is that labor is the most glorious and lazy people are to be despised.

But in essence, if you don't work, you won't have food to eat, and you have no right to lie down.

It is even more impossible to rely on your parents for support.

I can't even get enough food to eat and I'm hungry, what are you asking for?
However, for a moment, even Sun Xiangyang couldn’t think of what else he could do.

There is no shortage of people at the coal mine. It is now working in three shifts and is fully staffed. Those untrained members who go down the mine will not only be of no help, but will only cause trouble.

Not to mention paper-cutting painting, the level has just reached saturation, and most of the remaining people don't know how to do it.

Classes are going on as usual at the school, but that has nothing to do with those members. Not to mention that the school is not short of teachers now, even if it is, they are not qualified to be teachers.

The research institute is more professional, so even if Sun Xiangyang goes there, he will have to study hard and start from scratch.

So the question is, what kind of work can be done in Shuangshui Bay now?

Seeing that Sun Xiangyang was also stumped, Sun Enguo spoke up again: "I thought about it for a long time before coming here, but I couldn't think of what kind of work they could do. I asked them to rest at home, but they were not willing to do it."

Sun Enguo said this with both helplessness and a bit of pride.

Looking at the entire county, or even the entire region, which production brigade can compare with Shuangshuiwan?
When it snowed in winter, other production brigades had to tighten their belts and stay at home during the winter, but Shuangshuiwan was truly qualified to rest and did not have to worry about going hungry.

Previously, wages were paid monthly, so every household saved a lot of money, except for a lot of money squandered in the supply and marketing cooperatives in the beginning. Later, everyone realized that the supply and marketing cooperatives were there and would not go away, so they could just buy whatever they needed in the future.

On the contrary, the money in your hand is gone once you spend it.

So later on, people stopped spending money.

Even food was stockpiled by every household.

When paying public grain in the past, Shuangshuiwan used money to pay for it directly. However, the grain produced in Shuangshuiwan now is gradually unable to supply everyone in Shuangshuiwan, and they even have to buy it from outside.

It’s better to just do something easier.

After all, paying money to replace public grain is cheaper and more affordable than buying grain from outside.

And even though many people are idle now, most families have someone working in the coal mine or in a paper-cutting painting group, which means there is still someone earning money to support the family.

So, they are purely 'idle'.

Or, when you are used to being busy, you feel a little overwhelmed and confused when you suddenly have free time!

(End of this chapter)