Chapter 370： duck down

Chapter 370 Duck Down

Huo Lang was hesitant and let Si Ningning hold the vest. He obeyed the suggestion and squeezed it. He didn't pay much attention to it at first, but he felt the softness in his palm. He arched his eyebrows and raised his eyes, looking at Si Ningning. Ning Ning.

"This is…"

He asked: "Is it filled with duck feathers?"

"Yeah." Si Ningning nodded vigorously, folded her hands and smiled while lying on the table and looking at him, "How is it? What do you think?"

Huo Lang withdrew his gaze and took the vest as if he had found some rare object. He held it in his hand and looked at it and pinched it repeatedly. "It's very soft. It's light and airy in the hand. Can it be so thin to keep out the cold? And it's so thin." Where did you get your unique little coat?”

Horang didn't mean anything else when he asked about the origin. The main reason was that he had never seen it before and had never heard of anyone using duck feathers to make clothes.

"I bought it by chance in Beijing before I went to the countryside. It's very warm. I've worn it for a long time, and the shoulder ring and pocket edges are frayed. I've put another layer of fabric on the top."

Si Ningning’s expression flickered, and she stretched out her hand to touch the new routing of the sleeves on the shoulders and sides of the vest.

Huo Lang looked over in response. Before he could say anything, Si Ningning urged, "It's really warm. I kid you not... do you think it can be done?"

“Hmm…” Huo Lang said in a low voice.

Hand holding this duck-feather dress in your hand, you can feel the warmth gradually gathering in the palm of your hand without covering it very much. It should be indeed warm, but after all, it is thin. It is hard to say whether it can really keep out the cold.

But having said that, in the past few years in Province H, Huo Lang has seen everything going on here.

Cash crops such as cotton are generally only grown here and there. There is no space or money to form grassroots production brigades to plant them extensively. Therefore, not every household can afford cotton.

Often it takes several years to save a pair of cotton-padded clothes and a winter quilt. If the family has a large population and cotton and fabric resources are in short supply, it may not be possible to save them even in five or eight years.

This is not an exaggeration.

If duck feathers can really be used... let alone side jobs and so on, it would be good to be able to take care of a few people in the production team.

However, holding the soft vest and squeezing it again, Huo Lang also discovered some details.

The clothes are so soft, obviously not all duck feathers can be used. How many feathers does a duck have?

Only soft duck feathers are available. How many ducks are needed to make one piece of clothing?

Huo Lang's heart sank slightly. He slowly handed the clothes back to Si Ningning and said in a calm and mature tone:

"It looks pretty good, but after all, we and Uncle San De are not in the same brigade commune. I can go over and talk about it. The specific situation depends on what they want."

Si Ningning blinked and nodded seriously: "Of course!"

Although the plan is to use the things available around me to create income, it is not that easy to do it. There are many ways to do it.

We don’t know what the situation is yet, so Si Ningning can’t say much.

Just wait for Huo Lang to bring back the exact news later. If Gu Sande is willing, then we can say further details.

"Yeah." Huo Lang nodded, looking sideways at Si Ningning for a long time, and then said reluctantly: "Then I'm leaving? Send the rabbit to Uncle Hong Bing's house first."

Si Ningning smiled and nodded, waving his palms inward and the backs of his hands outwards, "Go quickly. Before, I only heard my uncle scold others for working hard. Don't let him scold you this time."

“That can’t be done.”

Huo Lang chuckled. He and Si Ningning went to the room where the rabbits were kept. They asked Si Ningning which ones he wanted to keep and which ones he wanted to send away. Then he sorted out the rabbit cages. He had long legs and hands. It is large, with wide opening and closing movements. One hand can firmly clamp the edges of two rabbit cages, and four rabbit cages can be lifted in one breath.

Fortunately, the rabbit cage made of bamboo strips is not that heavy. The cages made of wooden frames are really heavy. When cleaning up, Si Ningning would have to call Xu Shuhua and one of them to come with her to clear the cage. Carry it out.

Not to mention that there were rabbits flopping around in the cages, Huo Lang just picked up the four cages and walked out like a normal person.

Si Ningning was frightened by what he saw, and followed Huo Lang in small steps. At the same time, he advised: "There is no need to rush this matter. Otherwise, you can make one more trip. Four cages are too much..."

"It's okay, just go and rest." Huo Lang smiled hoarsely, his arched eyebrows raised happily, and he looked unconcerned, "I'm not stupid, can I still hold my breath and carry it to the team if I can't carry it anymore?"

“That’s hard to say.” Si Ningning muttered softly.

Huo Lang listened to her muttering. When he stepped down the doorstep, he looked back at Si Ningning with a smile and coaxed: "Okay, I'll be back in a while. You can rest for a while, or go and see what to pack. "

"knew."

Si Ningning nodded in response.

Under the eaves of Wu Qingcheng's house, she stood on the steps and watched Huo Lang leave. It was not until Huo Lang turned the corner of the house that his figure was no longer visible, and then she slowly turned around and entered the house.

The days went on smoothly. Si Ningning checked in at the literacy class at a fixed time every day, and then stayed there all day long. He was just as busy as he was, but the young guys on the team were busy every day. Being ordered by Zhao Hongbing, he ran around here and there, either carrying wood here, throwing slabs or moving bricks there.

The young men kept complaining, but they did not dare to say anything blatantly. However, their family members, such as their wives or mothers, knew that it was Si Ningning who started this matter, so they talked about it privately at frequent intervals. Someone would come to the literacy class and talk to Si Ningning during the short time after class.

Si Ningning is the teacher of the literacy class in the team. He used to raise pigs and cultivate mushrooms. It can be said that he shines in the team.

She can be regarded as a popular person in front of Zhao Hongbing. Those elder sisters-in-law and younger daughters-in-law did not dare to say harsh words to offend her, and some of the words they came over to say were for no other reason than to inquire about her raising rabbits, either openly or covertly. How confident are we, whether it can be done, and how many manpower will need to be fixed in the future?

Mostly because of the mushroom incident before, these people did not get the first few places to learn the technology of cultivating bacterial strains. Later, they saw Jin Zhi and Osmanthus leading the comrades of other production teams with the advantage of being first scholars and receiving ration rewards. They were excited. Some are envious, and some feel short-changed.

When they heard that Zhao Hongbing was going to cause trouble again recently, and it was Si Ningning who came to support him, these people immediately couldn't sit still. They had some scruples the first time, and they really didn't expect this, so they didn't make it. This was the second time, and they couldn't miss it again.

It's just that raising rabbits is different from cultivating bacterial strains. The original bacterial strains were cultivated by Si Ningning through hand-to-hand experiments. Now when it comes to raising rabbits, she has to take care of the literacy class. She can be a nominal military advisor at most. She would help keep an eye on it and give some appropriate suggestions. For other things, she just didn't have enough time to intervene.

Part of the reason was that it was still in its infancy and Si Ningning had never known Zhao Hongbing’s detailed plan. Therefore, when these people came to ask her, her answers were also very one-sided, most likely:

"I can't say anything about these things. It depends on the captain's arrangements."

Or: "Nothing else. When the time comes that this matter really needs to be done, I guess there is a shortage of manpower to clean and mow the grass? Just clean it up diligently. There is nothing too technical."

Those elder sisters-in-law and younger daughters-in-law didn't understand anything, so they believed what Si Ningning said. They thanked Si Ningning with kind words and waved, and went home together.

Song Xiaoyun, who was caught in the middle, was a bit difficult to deal with. The literacy class ended at noon, and the children all went to the dormitory cafeteria not far away to eat. Si Ningning took out his lunch box from his bag, originally thinking of having something to eat in the cafeteria at noon, but before he left the classroom, Song Xiaoyun stopped him. The door was blocked.

“Ning Ning…”

"Well…"

Song Xiaoyun suddenly appeared, startling Si Ningning.

Si Ningning patted his chest and saw clearly that it was Song Xiaoyun. Then he took a breath and asked, "What's wrong, Xiaoyun? What's the matter?"

Glancing at the sky outside the door, Si Ningning turned slightly and walked out, "It's time for lunch, have you eaten?"

She walked slowly towards the small canteen, while Song Xiaoyun followed her beside her, stirring her hands.

Song Xiaoyun's eyes flickered and she hesitated to speak. Finally, when Si Ningning opened the lunch box and was about to go to the pot to let Xu Shuhua get her two potatoes, she reached out and held Si Ningning.

"Ning Ning... I, I want to say a few words to you. Let's go and talk to the side, okay?"

This twisted unusual tone, there is something that is unknown, Si Ningning frowned slightly. After thinking about what happened in these two days, her jaw slightly looked at Song Xiaoyun:

“You want to ask me about raising rabbits in my team?”

Song Xiaoyun was stunned and subconsciously wanted to say "no", but when the words came to her lips, she paused again and nodded hesitantly.

Her slender eyebrows were unwrinkled, and her face looked aggrieved and like a doormat. Seeing her state, Si Ningning took a deep breath and asked:

“Is it you who asks, or is someone else asking you to ask?”

“Yes, it’s me...it’s me.”

Si Ningning was suspicious, "Really?"

“Hmm, uh-huh!”

Song Xiaoyun nodded hurriedly.

She didn't want to tell the truth, so Si Ningning didn't stop asking.

Asking too clearly won’t solve anything, and may even cause trouble for yourself.

Si Ningning told Song Xiaoyun what she had said to the other elder sisters-in-law and younger wives. Those words might sound perfunctory, but they were the truth.

However, these words that could convince the sisters-in-law in the team could not convince Song Xiaoyun.

She held Si Ningning's sleeve and shook it, "Ningning, we are all educated youths, and we are friends after all. Don't use these words to prevaricate me. Just tell me a little, just a little, okay? I promise not to tell anyone. "

“This is the truth, what can I say to you?”

The worry in Si Ningning's eyes gradually faded away, and her expression became colder.

But Song Xiaoyun seemed unable to see the impatience rising gradually on her face, and continued to pull her and said reluctantly:

“I’m not physically strong and I really need this kind of job with more work and less labor! Can you help me? If I don’t get any useful information, they won’t look good on me when I get back!”

At the end of the sentence, Song Xiaoyun's voice changed slightly, with a tone that was tense and angry. It was so sharp that Si Ningning couldn't help but tilt her head and rub her ears.

Si Ningning caught the information in this sentence and quickly asked:

"Them? Who? Your mother-in-law? Or Zhao Yongle's brothers?"

Song Xiaoyun opened her mouth, but in the end she pursed her lips and lowered her head to avoid talking.

To be fair, Song Xiaoyun didn't say anything excessive, nor did she make any excessive moves towards Si Ningning, but for some reason, looking at her like this, Si Ningning just felt angry.

At the moment, I was too lazy to say anything, so I turned around and left after grabbing my lunch box.

When Song Xiaoyun came out, Mrs. Zhao said harsh words. Thinking of those words, Song Xiaoyun immediately reached out and pulled Si Ningning.

If she didn't ask anything, there would be another question about whether she would be scolded when she went back. Just thinking of Mrs. Zhao's ugly and gloomy face like a coffin board made Song Xiaoyun feel suffocated.

At the moment, she couldn't care about anything. No matter whether Si Ningning would see her joke or not, she cried and begged:

"My mother-in-law asked me to come... We are separated now but we still live together. I have to look at her face every day and listen to her words, Ning Ning, I can't stand it, please help me! If I get I will definitely do this job well!”

Si Ningning was in a very complicated mood. What she said was true. Song Xiaoyun didn't believe her, and there was nothing wrong with what Song Xiaoyun said.

After thinking about it, Si Ningning softened his tone and chose to explain calmly: "I am busy with the literacy class every day. Raising rabbits is really not my responsibility. The captain is busy renovating the old house these days. He has never spoken to me. You may believe it or not as to his ideas and arrangements, but I really don’t know.”

After taking a breath, Si Ningning continued:

"There is never a free lunch in the world, and there is never any job with more work points and less labor. Even if you see it, it is not real. After all, whether people are working **** the back, whether they are somewhere else Make sacrifices and contributions that you don’t even know about.”

"In the end, you chose this path yourself. We have advised you, but you didn't listen. Now that the matter has come to this, there is no point in saying anything else. You have to live your life whether it is good or not. You can't always see it. Live by other people’s faces.”

"You have gone to school, read books, and know how to write. You are not an illiterate country woman. You are more knowledgeable than most people here, but why do you live like this? Why are you being picked on? You have to reflect."

"Go back. If you really want to find a decent and stable job in the team, it's more practical for you to go to the captain than to me."

Si Ningning breathed a long sigh of relief, broke away from Song Xiaoyun's hand and walked to the stove under the shed. After Xu Shuhua handed her two potatoes, she quickly closed the lunch box.

Digression:

Compile the outline and ask for leave.

(End of this chapter)