All refugees were promised a daily ration of up to five kilograms of potatoes for those who participated in the excavation.
Just such a promise was enough to stimulate their enthusiasm for work, and as a result, Salinchkin gave them higher remuneration.
The "Stakhanov Competition Movement" during the Second Five-Year Plan period greatly stimulated the economic construction of that period. Salinchkin still has fresh memories of those passionate years.
He knows that the people like heroes and the people long for him to become a new hero. The people also know that once he becomes a hero, he and his family will prosper.
Seizing this mentality of the people, Salinchkin decided to launch a labor competition.
"Each labor team has completed its work for the day, and team members can receive five-kilometer potato exchange coupons. Workers have the right to redeem potatoes as needed, and excess coupons can be accumulated. Note that the daily redemption limit for each person is ten kilograms.
The command headquarters encourages the people to learn from Comrade Stakhanov. It is hereby stated that any group that exceeds twice the amount of work will be given an extra 100 grams of bread and a grilled fish per person. Those who exceed twice the amount will be given an extra 100 grams of bread and a piece of grilled fish. I got four hundred grams of bread."
The grassroots political commissar read some docile documents, and after the recipients understood them, their enthusiasm for work increased unprecedentedly.
They retreated to the southern swamps, thinking that their food situation would be even worse than their previous lives. They never thought that the meals provided by the local Soviets were incredibly rich!
Among the 25,000 refugees, in addition to the 6,000 young women who were urgently incorporated into the militia, there were thousands of young children and the elderly, who were excluded. Among all the workers carrying tools in the fields, There are eleven thousand pure refugees.
On July 31, soldiers and civilians braved light rain to dig at least half of the potato fields around the three collective farms.
On August 1, all the people who were mobilized not only cleared the farmland around the farm, but also continued digging deep into the forest and farmland in remote areas.
Eleven thousand refugees, all Lenin's Young Pioneers, and soldiers who ended the Right Bank settlement battle, participated in the "Potato Harvest Battle" of unprecedented scale.
Therefore, the number of people participating in the battle actually amounted to more than 30,000, which far exceeded Salinchkin's initial estimate.
Mobilization under the Soviet system was very efficient. With so many people digging in the fields, the results of the day would be astonishing.
In the past few days, Yang Mingzhi was still concerned about the changes in the war situation. He was not very concerned about the agricultural harvest process. He only hoped to get an exciting result-the harvested food was enough for the Guerrilla Republic to survive the winter smoothly.
A person's destiny depends on self-struggle and the process of history. Yang Mingzhi would never have imagined that the Battle of Gomel behind enemy lines that he directly planned, induced, and commanded had already made him famous in Moscow! He was not only Bono Malenko strongly recommended the excellent commander to Stalin. Based on the intelligence on Gomel and Mogilev possessed by the top Soviet officials, Stalin also knew that this man was clearly fighting a beautiful battle in Belarus!
Yang Mingzhi had no idea what kind of plans the higher-ups would have for him, and he didn't want to know at the moment. There was only one thing he wanted to know most on August 1st - the battle report of the Kovpak Corps and its next action plan.
Therefore, he knew about the "Potato Harvest Battle". In the evening of that day, several staff officers who returned from the trip reported the fact that large amounts of potatoes were accumulated in various granaries, which made Yang Mingzhi very happy.
The "battle" achieved a real victory.
Thirty thousand soldiers and civilians rushed to various fields. Everyone stood in the cool muddy water, some dug with wooden shovels, and some just started digging.
Since all the fields are basically arranged in a matrix of 100 square meters, each team immediately sweeps them one by one and places a branch tied with a rag on the excavated farm pestle to mark it.
The dug potatoes are scrubbed in muddy water, and the branches are removed and thrown directly into the cart. When the cart is full, the team members push it to the waiting receiving department to weigh and bear the weight, and quickly record it in the book.
Who doesn't want to get more food? There were even people who stole the results of other groups during the "Battle". After such people were found out, they were taken away and stuffed into a solitary room.
Zero tolerance for thieves also maintains morale and objectively unites the public. Punishment is limited to individuals and other team members are not affected.
Summer is the peak growing season for potatoes. Because throughout July, the guerrilla republic went all out to deal with the war, many farmland excavation plans were not implemented. And because of the irrigation of large amounts of ammonia, the potatoes to be dug further expanded, so in August
One day of digging in a remote area, a large number of giant potatoes the size of two fists were unearthed. The overall harvest was jaw-dropping.
In farmland close to the village, the potato harvest per hectare generally reaches forty tons, and in remote farmland, the potato harvest generally exceeds fifteen tons.
It can be said that without the ammonia irrigation produced by the fertilizer plant and the relatively abundant rainfall in Belarus, such harvest results would not have been achieved! It also exceeded the results of the hit harvest operation in early May.
In fact, according to the optimistic outlook in May, the guerrilla republic can harvest up to 200,000 tons of potatoes before winter. This outlook is based on the fact that there will be no major military operations in July and the entire population will be involved in production.
No matter how you think about it, the idea of 200,000 tons is too optimistic.
However, the reality is not a disaster. In the evening, a large number of potatoes are stuffed into the cellars of large and small granaries, especially in giant granaries like Montenegro. Faced with a dazzling array of potatoes as big as cans, who can say that today is not a bumper harvest?
Woolen cloth?
After concentrating their efforts on an eleven-hour "battle", the farmland of the three major collective farms was completely wiped out.
Because the grassroots staff weighed every cart of potatoes, the data written in the notebooks had already begun to be compiled, but the data was too complicated, and it would take the relevant personnel an entire night to calculate the results.
Although real data is not available, the storage capacity of the granary is limited.
In order to prepare for the coming winter, the granaries have been expanded. Currently, granaries of all sizes can store a total of 100,000 tons and kilograms of potatoes. Currently, 70% of the granaries are filled with potatoes. This means that, including the original inventory,
The granary has already stocked 70,000 tons of potatoes!
In fact, just from the perspective of survival, a person can survive by eating one kilogram of potatoes a day. The current per capita amount of potatoes is as high as 700kg per person. Even if a person eats two kilograms a day, he can live for nearly a year!
Of course, it is impossible to operate the food supply in this way, because the remaining warehouses still have a large inventory of flour, which is food for the soldiers. There are also canned goods and pure sugar that are purchased from short orders.
In addition to digging for potatoes, the military and civilians also dug up the vegetable fields.
Carrots, radish, cabbage, and even peppers for seasoning, because it was the harvest season and it was raining, I simply dug them out!
This "battle" cannot simply be summarized by how many potatoes were dug. It is true that the operation actually initially solved the guerrilla republic's food problem for the winter. It was also the largest military and civilian mobilization carried out by the command besides military operations.
Yang Mingzhi has been staying in the headquarters, sheltering from the rain, guarding the remote control of the pile of radio stations in the communication room, and studying the map with a magnifying glass and pencil.
A drizzle of light rain fell until dusk, and throughout the day, the blacksmith village was really lively with people coming and going. People who had not gone to work in the fields were dumbfounded by the loaded carts returning, but they also seemed to have taken reassurance and were full of hope for the future.
There is no unexplored farmland anymore. After a long day of high-intensity work, people are physically exhausted but mentally very excited.
At this time, it was the turn of Salinchkin and Lyudbalev to fulfill their commitments.
There is nothing better than a sumptuous meal to celebrate today's harvest.
Let’s look at the refugees who went to the fields. They went to a special place to receive exchange coupons, and then went to the designated granary to receive food. The results of how many potatoes each group dug were immediately available, so each group member was receiving their reward.
At that time, I knew exactly how much I should receive.
The Soviets of the Partisan Republic embody its justice!
Today, more than 60% of the teams completed the task more than double the target, and 20% of them exceeded the target by twice the target. The craziest group actually exceeded the target four times.
How should this team be rewarded? The personnel who distributed supplies had to report directly to Lyudbalev himself. Unexpectedly, all members of the team were actually invited directly to the Soviet office.
"You want to praise Stakhanov. If one of us really has such a mission, how should we reward him?" Lyudbalev once asked.
"Haha, the amount of excavation set for them is already very large. If a group of excavation kings appears, all members of the group will receive...well, the second-level guerrilla medal."
In Salinchkin's view, they could not become recipients of the Order of the Red Banner of Labor anyway, and besides, the Partisan Republic did not have such an order in stock.
On the contrary, there are a huge number of first-level and second-level guerrilla medals airdropped, and it is reasonable to issue them.
After this group was received by Lyudbalev and Sarinchkin, all members were awarded the "Partisan Order of the Second Class", which was even more significant than the material rewards they deserved.
Each labor group is organized on a family basis, and almost all of the people participating in the labor force are women in their forties.
The war caused a large-scale death of men. Women not only became the main force of the labor force, but also became the backbone of the future army in the guerrilla republic.
It's just that for pure laborers, they should not receive the "Guerrilla Medal", which is awarded to soldiers who have made meritorious service in killing the enemy.
Obviously, Salinchkin did not intend to rigidly implement the National Defense Committee's decision in this regard. He had great power in Belarus. When it came to issuing medals, he was shocked when he learned that a group had completed four times the workload.
Yu decisively handed out medals.
This matter does not end so simply!
Although the detailed statistical results have not yet been calculated, anyone with a discerning eye can see that the grain in the granary is piled up like a mountain, and it can feed even 100,000 people living here.
Next, the propaganda department had an excellent propaganda case, which was posted on the newspaper columns of each collective farm and in the "Novgomel Times" distributed in small quantities. The front page headlines would be occupied by the labor teams who had won the medal.
After a protracted war, we must return to production and construction in the future, so publicizing the heroic deeds of this labor group is the most appropriate thing to do.
On the evening of August 1, the potatoes and vegetables excavated were immediately served on the tables of the soldiers and civilians.
All the soldiers took turns eating in various canteens. The staple food was bread slices and potatoes, supplemented by cabbage, radish, Agaricus bisporus, catfish meat, canned beef, and sauerkraut soup. Currently, Belarusians all like sour food, but they don’t
They like spicy food very much. They are very sensitive to chili peppers, so the soldiers had a variety of expressions after drinking this soup.
Regarding the airdrop of pepper seeds a few months ago, Yang Mingzhi specifically applied to his superior, Timoshenko himself.
Yang Mingzhi prefers chili peppers. As long as he has chili peppers, he can fry the most authentic Chinese home-cooked dishes with his own hands. Drying the chili peppers can be preserved throughout the winter. In such a boring and cold winter, he can cook the most authentic Chinese dishes.
Wouldn't it be nice to eat hot and sour potato shreds?
He requested this airdrop based on his personal likes and dislikes, and the seeds were sown, watered, and fertilized on time. Considering that the commander liked this, the canteen not only sent a small stove to the headquarters, but also sprinkled a handful of fresh chili peppers into the soup.
The soldiers were deeply stimulated by the chili pepper, and then their appetite increased greatly!
Capsaicin, which produces a slight sensation of burning the oral mucosa, becomes the source of crazy secretion of dopamine in the brain. These soldiers who have been busy in the mud for a day drink spicy soup. Not only do they feel comfortable all over, but the sour and spicy feeling is irresistible.
.The soup prepared was consumed quickly, and the canteen had to hurry up and cook new ones.
"Alas! If all the peppers are consumed, Comrade Commander will definitely be angry." A cook muttered worriedly while cutting red peppers.
"So we have to keep some of it as a special treat for the commander. He is only one person, so he shouldn't eat a lot." The chef ordered his subordinates to work overtime. He arranged for two cooks to carry baskets.
Deliver meals to the headquarters.
…
On the other hand, in the evening, Yang Mingzhi finally received the telegram he had been waiting for!
On August 1, the Guerrilla Republic was in the process of mass production, and the Kovpak expedition also captured the town of Turov.
The content described in the telegram surprised Yang Mingzhi. He never expected that Kovpak would actually meet an expert in city defense. While he was impressed by the German 74th Division, he also realized that the Soviet army had successfully captured the city.
Yang Mingzhi also learned many things, such as the weather conditions there were better than those in the swamps, new evidence of the German massacre was discovered, and the troops executed all the traitors and rescued civilians.
What excites him the most is Natasha's performance. The entire command headquarters was shocked by her.
Yang Mingzhi suppressed his excitement, while Yevlov and Fuming were as happy as children.
"As far as I know, Pavlyuchenko has retreated to the rear, and her combat record does not exceed 300. Now our Natasha's combat record has reached 400."
"This record is beyond doubt! Comrade Fomin. You should pay special attention to the fact that she is underage, a Belarusian, a guerrilla fighter, and a member of the Lenin Communist Youth League. Her identities and her record will become
An excellent publicity target. I think Natasha deserves a second Gold Star."
The "Military Big Three" in the headquarters were no longer happy about Natasha's new achievements.
After all, this telegram also recorded a lot of negative news. For example, there were a large number of wounded in the army, hundreds of people had colds, and a large number of daily necessities and light weapons and equipment were seized. Because the German army decided to blow up the bridge, it was unrealistic to go north to fight, and they continued to the west.
We are about to enter the territory of Pinsk, where we must break away from the defense zone of the German 74th Division, and we will inevitably have to engage in firefights with new enemies.
Yang Mingzhi felt that Kofpak's plan to go south and withdraw in a roundabout way was very correct. Besides, didn't they also have legitimate reasons for going south?
The three of them fully supported Kovpak's decision without any argument.
Yang Mingzhi took the time to draft a response message, agreeing with all his decisions. At the end, he added the sentence "pay tribute to Natasha".
For the time being, both Balzen and Natasha are under the command of Kovpak. They are the elite among his elites. Yang Mingzhi is somewhat unhappy about losing them temporarily, but he also hopes that they can continue to make contributions.
"My dear, you have to listen to Igor and take care of yourself. Don't be arrogant about the four hundred achievements. In any battle, you must protect yourself first and don't take risks." Yang Mingzhi prayed in his heart.
When his stomach growled, the cafeteria finally brought dinner.
There was nothing special about dinner. The main food was black bread slices and roasted potatoes, but there was soup in a tin bucket. The smell it gave off was mouth-watering.
"Haha! Today's grain harvest is great. Today's potatoes are bigger than yesterday's!" Yevlov had already rolled up his sleeves, reached for the plate on the table, grabbed one and ate it.
Yang Mingzhi watched the cook serving him soup. He asked happily: "Did they also dig up the pepper fields?"
"Yes, sir! To be honest, they also took away the ungrown ones."
"Really? Maybe they can wait a little longer. Chili peppers like water, so they won't be soaked to death directly."
At this point, nothing could help. Yang Mingzhi just wanted to eat. He took a sip of the soup, and the refreshing spicy taste filled his mouth.
"Yeah! It's very delicious! So, are there any fresh chili peppers in the cafeteria?"
"Yes! The chef knew that you liked this, so he kept a lot of it. The rest has been added to the soup and distributed to the soldiers."
Yang Mingzhi nodded: "This is a good thing, and I am happy to share it with my comrades. Since there is still some in the canteen, grab a handful for me! Well, bring me 500 grams!"
"As you command!"
The cook trotted away with the empty basket, and Yang Mingzhi called a guard: "Run to the communications platoon dormitory, notify Periya Liuna, and ask her to come to the headquarters immediately. Just say that the commander has a gift for you.
.”
The guard also trotted away. Yevlov asked curiously: "Periya? What gift do you have for her?"
"Of course they are fresh chili peppers!" Yang Mingzhi laughed secretly: "You have no idea that the child grew up in an area rich in chili peppers in distant China. She likes eating chili peppers very much. Her love is reflected in her name.
superior."
"Okay! You are so thoughtful! As for me, I think chili with vodka is more exciting!" (To be continued)