At 9:30 in the morning, Village Chief Fan gave the order, and the mushroom garden burst into warm applause, announcing that the picking activity had officially begun.
After the applause, I don’t know who took the lead. The children sang children’s songs in unison:
"The little girl picking mushrooms carries a big bamboo basket on her back.
In the early morning, I walked through the forests and hills with my bare feet.
She picked the most mushrooms, as numerous as the stars.
The mushrooms she picked were the biggest, as big as the little umbrella filled with baskets, baskets, baskets, baskets…"
The twins each carried a small basket and carefully picked mushrooms while singing children's songs under Grandma Zhou's careful instruction.
Soon, the two brothers picked a basket full.
"Dad, Dad, look..."
Little Pudding quickly ran to his father, holding up the basket and showing off.
Zhang Hao took the basket and poured the mushrooms into the big bucket next to him, while not forgetting to praise:
"It's amazing. I picked a basket so quickly. Keep up the good work!"
After saying that, he returned the basket to his younger son.
Little Pudding flashed the scissors in his hand and said confidently: "Dad, I want to be the first."
This picking activity is divided into three groups, namely children's group, youth group and adult group. The top five in each group will be rewarded, and the prizes are cash.
The first place is awarded 10,000 yuan, the second place is 5,000 yuan, the third place is 3,000 yuan, the fourth place is 2,000 yuan, and even the fifth place is rewarded 1,000 yuan.
Of course, in order to ensure fairness, all contestants must be villagers of Shawei Village. Otherwise, with such a high bonus, those who sign up will definitely exceed the threshold.
The twins have already agreed that no matter who gets the bonus, they will contribute it and buy a big toy for their unborn sister, one that is bigger than life, plush and adorable.
"Don't just pick mushrooms, pay attention to safety, especially be careful with the scissors. Don't hurt yourself or others. Take your time and don't grab them."
Zhang Hao warned again.
Although scissors are dangerous items, they are also daily necessities, and they are not to the point of giving up eating due to choking.
Little Pudding waved his hand impatiently: "I know, Dad, you have said it several times."
Zhang Hao saw his eldest son coming over, so he took the basket and educated them together: "You two, remember, it doesn't matter if you don't get the bonus. When the summer vacation comes, your father will take you to work during the summer vacation, and you will still be able to do it."
Earn enough money to buy gifts.”
In fact, the so-called summer job is more like a parent-child activity in a strict sense. After all, the two little guys are too young, so it is mainly about experience.
"Dad, where are we going to work?"
Big Pudding suddenly asked curiously.
"Don't ask yet, you two will know when the time comes." Zhang Hao patted his sons on the shoulders one by one, "Go to work quickly! Otherwise, the first place will be taken away."
The twins reacted, immediately turned around and ran away.
Just after ten o'clock, Li Dajuan and Zhou's mother finally arrived. They looked at the big pudding and the little pudding who were working hard, feeling both relieved and distressed.
"Mom, why didn't Hua Qing come?"
"Your wife is pregnant and is not suitable for going to crowded places. Besides, she herself is unwilling to go out."
Li Dajuan explained casually.
Zhang Hao couldn't help but worry: "Then leave her at home alone?"
"Zhang Hao, don't worry. Before we leave, we asked Xiao Ma to come into the house to accompany Hua Qing. There won't be any problems."
Mother Zhou answered helpfully.
"That's good!" Zhang Hao breathed a sigh of relief.
Next, two elderly people took over Zhang Hao's work. Zhang Hao was also happy and relaxed, cheering for his sons while chatting with the villagers.
It was a rare opportunity for the villagers to get up close and personal with Zhang Hao, and they quickly gathered around him. Some wanted to get close to each other, some wanted to discuss cooperation, but most of them wanted to inquire about the inside story.
"Director Zhang, there are rumors on the Internet that the consul is going to take the blame and resign. Is this true?"
"I don't know either." Zhang Hao shook his head and then expressed his opinion: "However, I think there is a high probability that it is a rumor. There is a state of emergency and a war at the moment. The consul will not be replaced easily.
.”
"But when public dissatisfaction boils, someone must be responsible, right?" Someone said angrily.
In fact, the people are not complaining all about the defeat. In comparison, the power restriction policy is even more unpopular.
Zhang Hao wanted to tell everyone that this is a new era and we can no longer look at problems with the old ideas, but he couldn't say it directly because it was too sensitive.
So he avoided the serious matter and said lightly: "Don't worry, everyone, I think someone will be responsible. At least the military will replace a large number of incompetent people."
"Director Zhang, when will this power rationing end?" someone else asked.
"This power outage is mainly due to the loss of oil fields in the Middle East, resulting in energy shortages. I'm afraid it won't end in a short time. Everyone must be mentally prepared."
Zhang Hao tried to remind him.
"Fuck, it's such an unreasonable disaster."
"I would say that Consul Ji should step aside and replace him with someone who knows military skills. He can directly kill those Europeans so that we, the common people, will not suffer."
As soon as these words came out, someone retorted on the spot:
"Are you stupid? In this situation, who dares to let soldiers come to power? They are not afraid of becoming soldiers..."
Seeing this, Zhang Hao quickly interrupted: "Okay, it's normal for everyone to have grievances, but the matter has come to this, no matter how much complaining it is, it won't help. Let's just pay more attention to the life in front of us."
"Lao Zhang, do you think we can expand the size of the mushroom garden?" Village Chief Fan immediately responded.
"To be honest, I don't recommend expanding the scale. After all, mushrooms are low in calories and can be used as a change of taste. It's just wishful thinking to expect them to replace food rations." Zhang Hao shook his head.
"That's better than nothing, right?"
"That's true, but I have a better project here. Do you want to listen to it?"
Zhang Hao showed a smile. This was an idea that came to him just now.
Village Chief Fan was overjoyed and couldn't wait to say: "Old Zhang, please stop showing off and tell me quickly!"
"I propose to build another earthworm farm. Earthworms are meat after all, and their nutritional value is much higher than mushrooms. What do you think?"
"Earthworms? Is this edible?"
Someone raised doubts.
Without waiting for Zhang Hao to answer, Village Chief Fan waved his hand and rushed to answer: "Why can't you eat it? I remember when we were young, it was popular to mince earthworm meat and pork together to make steamed buns, not to mention how fragrant it was.
"
"vomit……"
Several young women couldn't bear it on the spot.
"What's there to vomit?" Village Chief Fan tried to comfort him: "Earthworms are also called earthworms. Earthworm buns can cure hemorrhoids. Many people have eaten them."
Someone immediately echoed: "The village chief is right. Dilong steamed buns can indeed improve hemorrhoids. Add more pork and seasonings. In fact, the taste is not bad."
"How long has it been and are you still picky? I know many of you still have meat at home, but no matter how much meat you have, you will eventually run out of it. We have to prepare for a rainy day."
Village Chief Fan spoke with sincerity and sincerity.
Zhang Hao nodded: "What Uncle Fan said is true. To put it bluntly, this earthworm farm cannot be built just because you want to. It depends on luck."
"Old Zhang, how do you say this?"
Village Chief Fan was surprised and asked quickly.
"Although the threshold for earthworm farming is very low, it is not as simple as everyone thinks. In addition to meeting the necessary insulation conditions, you also need feed."
"Dr. Zhang, don't earthworms eat soil?"
"That's not ordinary soil, but humus soil. If you want earthworms to grow quickly and have high yields, it's best to feed them with feed. Otherwise, you won't even be able to make back the heating bills, and you won't be able to make ends meet." Zhang Hao explained patiently.
Village Chief Fan frowned: "Old Zhang, you mean this feed is not easy to get?"
"That's right." Zhang Hao nodded, "Our company has feed, but we can't sell it to you."
"Why not?"
"Because the WFP has strict management, if the village wants to build an earthworm farm, it can only go to the WFP to find a way." Zhang Hao said honestly and honestly.
"Is this possible?" Village Chief Fan asked worriedly.
Zhang Hao seemed confident: "It's definitely possible. The village can try to set up a nursing home. Nursing homes are public welfare, so it shouldn't be a big problem to find connections."
This is the most common way of borrowing money in dreams.
"Nursing home? This is a good idea!"
The more Village Chief Fan thought about it, the more reliable it became.
Others also followed suit and praised:
"Listening to your words is worth ten years of reading."
"Director Zhang's brain is still very fast, no wonder he can achieve such a big undertaking."
Zhang Hao waved his hand modestly: "In addition, I have one more thing to remind everyone. After all, this matter is just a side ball. You need to pay attention to two points."
"What two points?"
"First of all, we must keep a low profile as much as possible. Do you understand the principle of making a fortune by keeping silent? Secondly, the scale of the breeding farm cannot be too large, and it must be limited..."
Village Chief Fan nodded repeatedly when he heard this, and then took out his notebook from his pocket: "Old Zhang, please speak slowly, I'll take a note and write it down. Don't forget it later."
"How about this? I'll go back and compile a detailed document and send it directly to the village headquarters in a few days."
In the spirit of "sending the Buddha to the West", Zhang Hao took the initiative to take over the trouble. This was also to avoid mistakes in the process and fall short of the success.
"That couldn't be better!"
Village Chief Fan was immediately happy.
…
Half an hour later, the picking activity officially ended.
After weighing, a total of nearly three thousand kilograms of shiitake mushrooms were harvested this time. It looks like a lot, but if it is distributed equally per person, each person can barely get a little more than one kilogram, and it will be gone after two or three meals.
.
However, fortunately, the mushroom garden can have a long flow of water, and the accumulation is still quite considerable.
You know, the reason why many families cannot survive is because they are short of a few kilograms of food.
After the weigh-in, the award ceremony followed.
After all, the twins suffered a disadvantage due to their age. They couldn't compete with the older children. Neither of them made it into the top five, and in the end they only got a consolation prize.
When Little Pudding heard the result, his face immediately dropped, he pouted, and he felt so sad that he wanted to cry.
The big pudding was slightly better, and his complexion did not change.
Seeing this, Li Dajuan quickly pulled her grandson into her arms and comforted her softly: "Our little pudding is already very good. When you two grow up, you will definitely get the first place."
"Grandma, are you telling the truth?"
Little Pudding looked up at grandma.
Zhou's mother wiped away her grandson's tears: "Of course it's true. You two are only in the first grade. You have small hands and weak strength. How can you possibly compare with those fourth and fifth grade students?"
"Then I have to grow up quickly."
Little Pudding finally burst into laughter.
The consolation prize is a basket of mushrooms, which weighs about two kilograms. In a sense, it is no less heavy than the fifth place winner.
After getting the mushrooms, the twins did not stay anymore, but went back with their grandma. It was almost eleven o'clock and they needed to go home to prepare lunch.
Village Chief Fan transported all the mushrooms back to the village headquarters, and then notified all the villagers to come and collect the mushrooms. The village instantly felt like celebrating the New Year.
Everyone has a smile on their face.
As for the tenants in the village, they have already surrounded the village three floors inside and three floors outside. On the one hand, they want to watch the excitement, and at the same time, they also want to try to see if they can get some bargains.
With more people and greater strength, it took less than half an hour to carve up all the mushrooms.
Let me add here, mushrooms are not free.
After all, the cost of cultivation is there.
The biggest cost is electricity. The mushroom garden uses electricity from wind turbines. The price of electricity is not cheap, and the price of mushrooms will naturally rise with the tide.
This was originally agreed upon, and the profits from the mushroom garden would be used to subsidize the construction cost of the wind turbine.
After the last villager received the mushrooms, Sandra, who was gathered around the gate, suddenly pointed to a pile of mushroom stalks and residue on the ground and asked:
"Village chief, are these mushrooms for sale?"
"you want?"
"Well, I can buy it at the original price."
Sandra nodded.
Village Chief Fan's eyes widened: "A hundred yuan a pound, are you willing?"
"Of course, as long as the village is willing to sell it to me."
Sandra was decisive.
These mushroom stalks and residues are actually edible. It doesn’t matter if they are expensive. The key is that you can buy them. If you buy them, you will make money.
Village Chief Fan immediately turned to look at Zhang Hao who was standing aside. Originally, the rubbish was intended for him to take back and feed the pigs, so it could be regarded as waste.
Zhang Hao nodded slightly: "Uncle Fan, just sell it to this eldest sister!"
After all, he himself doesn't want to see waste.
"Okay, then sell it."
"Thank you!" Sandra said gratefully.
At the same time, other tenants saw this and also made purchase requests.
Village Chief Fan waved his hand: "Stop arguing, you all line up first. Each person is limited to buying two kilograms until sold out."
"Village Chief Fan, I want two kilograms, but I have no money now. Can I keep the account?"
"I also want two kilograms. I have money with me. You can sell it to me first."
Village Chief Fan took the opportunity to announce loudly: "You are all your own people. Of course you can keep accounts and make up for it later. If you don't have money this month, it will be the same next month. Don't put too much pressure on everyone."
"Thank you, village chief!"
The tenants instantly became excited.
This time it was faster, everything was sold out in less than five minutes.
Those who bought it were overjoyed, as if they had gotten a huge advantage; those who did not buy it were all crestfallen, regretting that they were late and had missed the opportunity.