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Chapter 115: 1981
Chapter 115: 1981
Zhang Xiuping had only been back from her family visit for a few days when the Gregorian year 1980 came to an end, ushering in 1981.
For the people of Naye Village, 1980 was a truly extraordinary year.
That summer, the village began to divide the land among households, shifting from communal farming to individual farming. The villagers were incredibly enthusiastic, treating their rice fields like sacred grounds. The result was a bountiful harvest in the fall.
In the Bo Bai region, besides the summer and autumn rice harvests, there was usually one more wheat planting season. The wheat was typically sown after the autumn harvest and could be harvested by the Winter Solstice.
However, this year, the land division caused some delays, pushing the wheat harvest later than usual.
Apart from the bumper harvests of rice and wheat, every household raised more livestock and poultry than in previous years. Many villagers also worked at the pottery and brick factories, and Deng Shirong’s family had hired several people to help cultivate their orchard.
Overall, the village’s income this year was significantly higher than in previous years.
Of course, even with the improved conditions, it was still impossible for most households to eat meat every day like the Deng family. Most people just ate a few more meals, and only a few families could afford to eat meat more frequently.
On New Year’s Day 1981, the pottery factory paid out wages again.
Unlike modern factories with fixed paydays, Deng Shirong and Deng Yungui’s pottery factory paid the workers after each kiln load was fired and sold.
This month, Deng Yuntao, the master potter, was delayed by his wedding, so the large pots were produced more slowly, and the firing process was postponed by over a week. As a result, the workers received their wages later than usual.
Deng Yuntao’s pay for the month was only 186.5 yuan.
Despite being married, Deng Yuntao kept a little money for himself and intended to hand the rest over to his father as usual.
However, this time, Deng Shirong did not take the money. Instead, he said, “You’re a married man now. From now on, you can keep the money you earn for yourself and your wife.”
Deng Yuntao’s eyes widened in surprise, and he excitedly exclaimed, “Alright!” He then tucked the money back into his pocket, already imagining how happy his wife would be when he handed it over to her that evening.
Perhaps, when he made certain requests that night, his beautiful wife wouldn’t refuse him anymore!
The other workers at the pottery factory watched Deng Shirong’s actions with amazement.
Deng Yungui, with a look of admiration, said, “Uncle Jiu, you still have several sons to raise. You need to send them to school and help them get married. Yet, even though you haven’t divided the household yet, you’re letting Yuntao keep his wages. I’m really impressed!”
Deng Shirong smiled and replied, “I’m quite open-minded. If I couldn’t earn money, then Yuntao, as the eldest, would naturally have to contribute to the family by handing over his earnings for me to allocate. But now that I can earn money, it’s my responsibility to raise my children, so there’s no need for Yuntao to bear that burden.”
Beside him, Deng Changyuan, who had grown up with Deng Yuntao, looked at his old friend with envy.
Deng Changyuan worked at the pottery factory and had to hand over his entire monthly wage to his parents. His mother would then give him a few yuan as pocket money.
Although his mother said the money was being saved for his wedding, he was an adult and wanted to keep his own earnings.
Deng Yungui nodded thoughtfully and said, “Uncle Jiu, you’re right. I should learn from you.”
...
The next day was the big day for Zhang Kangmei and Deng Changmei’s wedding.
In the afternoon, the groom’s family sent over the ancestral offering, which included about eighty pounds of pork, two chickens, two ducks, two geese, a generous amount of candy and cookies, and the necessary wine and rice.
Here is the rewritten chapter with non-English characters replaced with their English equivalents or transliterations, following the provided guidelines:
Additionally, there was a twenty-dollar envelope.
After the groom's family delivered the ancestral offering, the relatives of the Deng family also started to bring their gifts over.
The relatives were quite generous, not only bringing a large number of gifts but also of good quality. The dowry for Rose (Changmei) was certainly impressive.
This was quite normal, as Rose was marrying a carpenter.
While carpenters may not have the same status as potters in this era, they were still one of the top professions in the countryside. Many relatives didn't have a single decent piece of furniture, so having a carpenter in the family was highly beneficial.
As the matchmaker, Sylvia (Shirong) also sent a piece of Dacron fabric.
Around three in the afternoon, the bride's family sent over the gift for the matchmaker.
It included about two pounds of five-flavored pork, a twenty-dollar envelope, two packs of cigarettes, two bottles of wine, and two pounds each of candy, cookies, rice, sesame, peanuts, black beans, yellow beans, red beans, and green beans.
The gift for the matchmaker was quite generous.
Daisy (Xiu Ping), though married, was still unfamiliar with the custom of thanking the matchmaker. After all, her current father-in-law had been her matchmaker, so there was no such process for her.
After the people delivering the gift left, Daisy asked, "Father, does the bride's family also need to give a thank-you gift to the matchmaker?"
Sylvia smiled and explained, "Generally, the thank-you gift is given by the groom's family, but if the bride's family is satisfied with the marriage, they might also give a gift to the matchmaker."
Daisy nodded in understanding. "I see!"
Lily (Yunzhen) added with a smile, "Sister-in-law, the thank-you gift from the bride's family is usually not much. The real big gifts will come from the groom's family tomorrow!"
Daisy felt a bit excited, wondering what kind of thank-you gift her father-in-law would receive the next day.
Sylvia said, "Lily, take these things back and store them. I need to go to Rose's place to see if there's anything I can help with. I'll have dinner there. You two can cook whatever you want at home."
"Got it!"
Lily responded, and once her father was out of sight, she and Daisy put everything away. Then, she asked, "Sister-in-law, what do you want to do with the five-flavored pork?"
Daisy blinked and said, "Lily, how about we make braised pork? I've always wanted to learn how to make it."
Lily nodded and smiled, "Sure, let's make braised pork. I learned it from Dad. The hardest part is caramelizing the sugar, but the rest is pretty simple. You're so smart, I'm sure you'll pick it up quickly."
Daisy eagerly said, "Back at my parents' place, I didn't have many chances to cook. I mostly just helped with the fire. My mom isn't a great cook, so even though I watched her cook a lot, I never really learned much.
Now that I have the opportunity, you have to teach me. When you get married, I can cook for Dad too."
Lily smiled in approval, "Sister-in-law, you have a good heart. As long as you don't mind the hard work, I'll teach you. Once you have a good foundation, Dad can help you improve your cooking skills even more."
"Daisy, you make it sound like I'm a spoiled lady from a wealthy family. Cooking isn't hard. I did all sorts of chores back at my parents' place."
"Ha, let's not talk any more. Making braised pork takes a while, so let's get started now!"
"Sure, let's do it!"
Editor's Note (unchanged)
The editor confirmed that the book will go on sale this Friday at 12 PM. With so many free chapters, the author is showing a lot of sincerity. I hope everyone will subscribe and support the book when it goes on sale, and continue to follow it. Thank you!
(End of Chapter)
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