Chapter 325 Maximizing Benefits
"Uncle, aunt, are you two here to pick up Xiaoxian from school?" At the kindergarten gate, teacher Liu Yuanyuan saw Liu Zhiye and his wife and smiled brightly. She greeted them warmly, with surprise and kindness in her tone.

Liu Zhiye and his wife are Liu Yuanyuan's cousins. The two families are within the fifth degree of kinship, and they are in the fourth degree of kinship with her father.

What are the five mourning clothes? I guess many people today don’t understand it. The five mourning clothes are the five categories of relatives for whom mourning clothes should be worn after a relative dies.

The first mourning clothes are mainly for the closest relatives, who must wear the most tattered mourning clothes during the funeral. The first mourning clothes must be for those who have a direct relationship with the deceased, such as the deceased's parents, children, etc.

The second mourning period is mainly for brothers and sisters, grandchildren, nephews, uncles, aunts, etc., who should wear more worn clothes during the funeral. In the second mourning period, the deceased's grandfather is the common ancestor of everyone.

The third generation of the deceased is the deceased's great-grandfather, that is, his grandfather's father, who is the common ancestor of everyone.

The fourth generation is more distant. Usually, everyone is not very close, but they are all direct descendants of the deceased's grandfather's grandfather (great-grandfather).

The fifth degree of kinship is the most distant of clan relations, and can be simply understood as children born to relatives in the fourth degree of kinship.

Going beyond the fifth generation does not mean that everyone has no common blood relationship, but that the relationship is not that close. People of the same generation can only be described as brothers, younger brothers, older sisters, and younger sisters.

Although Liu Zhiye and Liu Yuanyuan's father are fourth-generation relatives in the family tree and seem a little distant, in fact, Liu Zhiye's grandfather and Liu Yuanyuan's great-grandfather are real brothers.

These two elders are not only closely related by blood, but are still alive and well, witnessing the historical changes of the family.

Therefore, because of the older generation, the two families are truly one family.

Liu Zhiye, the best in the family, is deeply respected and loved by the younger generation.

They know that today's happy life is all due to his hard work and unremitting efforts. His achievements have not only won honor for himself, but also brought prosperity to the family.

"Yuanyuan, how does it feel to be a kindergarten teacher? Do you like this job?" Gan Ning liked this girl who had just graduated from junior high school and wanted to help her.

Liu Yuanyuan, a young and energetic girl, was full of enthusiasm for Gan Ning's question. She smiled and showed her two little tiger teeth and replied, "It feels great, auntie. I like to be with children. Seeing them grow up happily makes me happy too."

Liu Zhiye nodded slightly, a smile on his face, "As long as you like it, interest is always the best motivation for work." He thought this arrangement was a good one. Although Liu Yuanyuan's academic performance was average, she would be able to cope with the needs of life after graduating from junior high school. Besides, the Liu family is no longer the same as it used to be.

Gan Ning glared at Liu Zhiye, dissatisfied with his irresponsibility.

However, she really liked this cheerful niece and hoped that she could go to a higher education institution to continue her studies instead of being trapped in the village all her life with no end in sight.

Although the living conditions in Liujiazhuang are not much worse than those in Beijing, Gan Ning deeply believes that only by continuous learning and going out to see more can one make life more colorful.

So, she advised succinctly: "Yuanyuan, as a kindergarten teacher, continuous learning and self-improvement are essential. Only in this way can you use a more scientific and professional way..."

Liu Yuanyuan opened her mouth in astonishment and asked in disbelief: "Aunt, do I need to go to a professional school to be a kindergarten teacher?"

Gan Ning smiled and asked back: "What do you think? my country has had specialized kindergarten teacher education as early as the 30s. Don't think that being a kindergarten teacher is just an easy job, there is a lot of knowledge involved."

"I'm just asking you, do you want to study?"

Liu Yuanyuan nodded like a chicken pecking at rice, with a determined light in her eyes: "Aunt, I want to go. I love early childhood education. If I can learn professional knowledge in depth, I will go without hesitation."

Liu Zhiye also thought this arrangement was good, "Xiao Ning, do you have any connections?"

Gan Ning nodded and said to them, "Do you still remember Uncle Zhang who came to our wedding?"

"He is the principal of the Beijing Kindergarten Normal School!"

"Innocent children, innocent children, the subject of the future world's good and bad, pure heart, do not know harm or benefit, enjoy playing, do not care about right or wrong. Social value lies in sacrificing myself, sacrificing myself to benefit others. First benefit the children."

"This is their school song. I also grew up in the kindergarten affiliated with this school when I was a child." Gan Ning was stuck in a brief response.

Then, she said to Liu Yuanyuan, "The high school entrance exam is just a few months away. I suggest you find your second uncle (Liu Jingzhai) and ask him to tutor you in cultural subjects. Then apply for this school this year!"

"Don't worry, as long as your academic performance is about the same, I will definitely help you get into this school."

Liu Yuanyuan nodded happily, "Thank you! Auntie, you are so kind!" Then, she remembered something, "Thank you! Uncle, you are so kind too!"

Liu Zhiye and Gan Ning laughed when they heard this, "This kid...hahaha..."

"Ding-dong..." It's time for kindergarten to be out of school.

Upon seeing this, the old men and women who were chatting nearby immediately gathered at the gate of the kindergarten, anxiously watching their grandchildren.

After a while, a group of children, led by their teachers, walked out of the classroom in an orderly manner.

"Huzi! Look here... look here..."

"Lingling, grandma is here..."

"Hurry up! We have stewed chicken at home. If you go back too late, you won't be able to eat it!"

"Wow! There's chicken to eat..."

"You little bastard, why are you so naughty? You tore my nice clothes again. Tell me, did you get into a fight again..."

In this hustle and bustle, Liu Zhiye did not feel confused, but felt unusually calm. This kind of down-to-earth liveliness, full of vitality, is exactly what he pursues.

Xiaoxian widened his eyes, trying to find his grandparents among this group of elderly people, but unfortunately he couldn't find them after searching for a long time and was feeling disappointed.

Suddenly, Xiaoxian saw her parents smiling and waving at her. She called out in surprise: "Dad, Mom, are you here to pick me up?" Her mood instantly became happy, and she threw herself into Liu Zhiye's arms without hesitation.

"Are you happy?" Liu Zhiye kissed the little girl.

"Happy! Xiaoxian is the happiest! Dad, you and mom just come to pick me up every day!" The little girl squinted her eyes, hugged his neck tightly, and smiled with squinted eyes.

Gan Ning pretended to be jealous, "Okay, little thing, you only want to hug daddy, so mommy doesn't need to hug you, right?"

The little girl was a smart person. She immediately "betrayed the revolution", threw herself into Gan Ning's arms, and kissed her as if to please her.

In this way, the family of three returned to the old house, talking and laughing all the way.

………………

The house seemed particularly deserted at the moment, with only my aunt and Deng Ru, two sisters-in-law, busy at home.

"Zhiye, let's eat steamed buns for lunch today! It may be a little late, so if you are hungry, just eat some first."

"These are the locust flowers your aunt picked specially for you. Let's make locust flower buns!"

Upon hearing this, Liu Zhiye smiled and said, "This is good. I won't eat anything else and will save my stomach for this." He has always loved game, and locust flower buns are one of the unforgettable delicacies in his memories of his previous life.

Of course, in those days, people ate things like locust flowers, wild vegetables, sweet potato leaves, and horsetail leaves because there was nothing else to eat and they had to do so.

Moreover, if you eat these things without filling your stomach with oil or water, then you are not enjoying yourself but suffering.

Therefore, the deliciousness of locust flower buns cannot be separated from the embellishment of meat. Without it, the taste will be greatly reduced.

Liujiazhuang's life is getting better and better, and the villagers can enjoy a meat meal every now and then. Therefore, ordinary things like Sophora japonica flowers have also transformed into treasures in the eyes of the villagers in the past two years.

The pig farm in Liujiazhuang is now large in scale, raising more than 20,000 pigs. These pigs are not only supplied to various units, but the remaining ones can also be enjoyed by the villagers. Although the number is small and cannot be supplied freely, it is enough to ensure that the villagers can eat pork once at every big market.

Nowadays, villagers no longer need meat tickets to buy pork. This change has undoubtedly added a lot of convenience to their lives.

Of course, outsiders cannot buy it without a ticket. This is just a benefit for the villagers.

If it were not for the limited supply of pig feed, Liujiazhuang's pig farming industry would have continued to grow.

One of their long-term goals is to ensure that meat is included in every meal on the villagers' tables.

In response to this issue, Liu Zhiye and three other uncles including Liu Yuanhai conducted an in-depth discussion. In their view, food is the primary need of the people, and no matter when and where, food is always the top priority for people.

Although Liujiazhuang is economically prosperous, wealth alone is not enough to meet people's needs. Material conditions are equally important, and at present, people's greatest wish is to have meat every meal.

The livestock industry is a major consumer of grain. However, in this era of food shortage, people can hardly even guarantee their own food and clothing, so how can they have surplus food to feed pigs?

The food supply in Liujiazhuang is becoming increasingly tight. With the increase in the number of factories and the influx of migrant workers, the food problem is becoming more serious.

Except for the cash crop "Jingxi Rice" which can barely maintain sales, other food crops are almost all used for self-sufficiency, and the food problem has become very serious.

Liu Zhiye and others had actually anticipated this phenomenon a long time ago. This is the inevitable result of the start of industrialization.

The local population of the village is close to 13,000, of which more than 4,000 work hard in various factories and enterprises, and almost every household has someone who has become a worker.

In addition, there are more than 10,000 migrant workers and students who are not engaged in agricultural production activities.

The remaining population in the village, apart from the elderly and children, consists of less than half of the labor force. These people have to rely on growing food to feed so many people. The pressure can be imagined.

Although the village has vigorously developed agriculture in recent years, not only expanding the scale of planting but also introducing fertilizers and mechanization, which has brought a new look to agricultural production, all this still seems difficult to compete with the rapidly developing industry in the village.

To solve the food problem, large-scale agricultural production is the only way. However, the geographical environment of Liujiazhuang is extremely unfavorable. The surrounding area is mostly mountainous, and plains are scarce, and are gradually being occupied by large-scale "greenhouse" planting.

In times of food shortage, the wise thing to do is to turn to meat and fish to increase protein and fat intake, thereby reducing dependence on food.

This not only meets the body's nutritional needs, but also alleviates the pressure on food supply to a certain extent.

Then again, the bottom line is that we must expand the scale of breeding and increase the output rate of livestock such as pigs, sheep, and chickens.

“There is very little good land left in our village, and most of it has been reclaimed.

Most of the remaining land is located in mountainous and hilly areas, where irrigation conditions are extremely inconvenient and the people have to rely on the weather for food.

In addition, these lands are scattered, with patches here and there, which is not conducive to large-scale mechanized planting. "The third uncle said worriedly.

Liu Yuanhai frowned, as if he disagreed with Liu Zhiye's idea. After all, farming was still the specialty of old farmers like them.

But Liu Zhiye continued confidently: "Uncle, I think we may need to adjust our thinking.

In fact, it is not impossible to grow crops in hilly areas. We can grow drought-resistant crops, such as corn, sweet potatoes, potatoes, soybeans and other high-yield crops.

The key is to keep up with the supply of fertilizers and pump water for irrigation, so the yield will not necessarily be low."

Everyone nodded, unanimously agreeing that this was a good idea. Although these crops were coarse grains, they had extremely high practical value in the breeding industry.

Corn stalks, sweet potato leaves, etc. will not be wasted and can be used as silage. Sweet potatoes are dried and easy to preserve, and can be eaten by humans and animals.

In addition, sweet potatoes, soybeans and potatoes are not only food crops, but also representatives of cash crops. In the cold winter in the north, vermicelli made from them is indispensable on the dining table of every household.

These vermicelli are crystal clear and have a smooth taste, and are a delicious delicacy on the tables of northern people.

Not only that, sweet potatoes, soybeans and potatoes can be further processed into vermicelli, starch, tofu, tofu skin, soybean oil, fermented tofu and other products. By opening factories for large-scale production, market demand can be met, becoming a potential industrial chain.

"Hey! The difference between people is really obvious. We are still worried about how to fill our stomachs, while others are already thinking about how to create greater value while meeting basic needs."

Liu Yuanhai shook his head helplessly. Everyone's thinking failed to touch the core, but Liu Zhiye's words were like a revelation, revealing the essence of the problem. This is the gap between people, simple and profound.

Uncle didn't expect that farming would involve so many twists and turns. "Third brother, how about we do it?"

Liu Yuanhai slapped his thigh decisively, his eyes gleaming with determination: "Of course we have to do this, and we have to act quickly. Spring is here, and we have to finish it before this season's sowing."

"Contact the experts and professors at the Agricultural University to see if there are any improved varieties with higher yields and better drought resistance. We can serve as the experimental fields of these universities."

"In addition, we will add another bean product factory and a sweet potato and potato deep processing factory. If you don't know how to do it, go out and learn it, and invite people to come back..."

"We will try to eat our own vermicelli, tofu, and stinky tofu after winter this year, haha..."

The old Beijingers love to eat tofu. For hundreds of years, there have been countless tofu-making workshops in the capital, which are referred to as tofu shops.

There are more than a dozen place names related to tofu, including Tofu Hutong, Tofu Pond Hutong, Tofu Lane, and Datofu Lane.

There are even more types of soy products, including frozen tofu, dried tofu, shredded tofu, tofu skin, frozen tofu, fermented tofu, stinky tofu and so on.

Especially the shredded tofu, which is an indispensable snack for people in Beijing.

Old Beijingers have many ways of eating tofu, such as green onions and tofu, which is the most common side dish for Beijingers. Maybe because they love it so much, there is a Chinese idiom "green onions and tofu - one green and two white".

At the beginning of spring, I would go up to the roof of the house to pick some Chinese toon and mix it with tofu. The taste was unparalleled.

Of course, the most common way is to stew cabbage with tofu, add a handful of vermicelli, and if conditions permit, add a few slices of pork belly. The taste is unparalleled.

"Stinky tofu, fermented tofu, Wangzhihe's stinky tofu", the old Beijingers only recognize Wangzhihe's stinky tofu. At that time, it was not popular to buy bottled stinky tofu. Every time after buying stinky tofu, they had to ask someone for some soup so that they could go home and use it to mix noodles.

In addition, there is another way to eat Wangzhihe stinky tofu, which is to spread it on freshly fried steamed bread slices or corn bread slices. It smells stinky but tastes delicious.

Moreover, Liu Zhiye knew clearly that today's soybeans were not the genetically modified soybeans of later times. These were authentic soybeans originating from China, and the taste of the tofu made from them was incomparable to that of genetically modified soybeans.

So, in just a few words, they finalized the grand blueprint for 1964. The planned planting area exceeded acres, covering a variety of crops such as corn, potatoes, sweet potatoes and soybeans.

Not only that, they also plan to add two food processing plants to expand new economic growth points.

Correspondingly, the scale of pig and chicken farming will be further expanded. It is planned that by the end of 65, the output rate of live pigs will reach more than heads.

There are 500,000 laying hens, 300,000 broiler chickens, and 120,000 broiler ducks.

Beijing stuffed duck, as the originator of meat duck in the world, is the main raw material of Quanjude roast duck. This duck is bred by the cross between Hu duck in the south and white duck in Chaobai River in Beijing, and has the characteristics of delicious meat and fat but not greasy.

Speaking of stuffing ducks, this has become a new business that the village has independently developed. Thanks to the unique water conservancy advantages, this place has become an ideal place for raising ducks.

Therefore, Liujiazhuang reached an agreement with Quanjude Roast Duck Restaurant, promising to supply at least 100,000 ducks every year.

Recently, Liujiazhuang is actively applying to higher authorities to build a professional slaughterhouse in the village, aiming to make full use of the village's rich breeding resources and maximize profits.

(End of this chapter)