Chapter 573: Negotiating with Factory Director Du

When the tractor drove to the entrance of the Construction and Installation Company, the guard at the gate recognized Li Long and came out to greet him.

Li Long then asked for the location of the house rented by his second brother, Li Anguo.

"Where else could it be? In the back." The guard was very familiar with this, pointing north while saying, "Over there, right to the edge of the land, someone built two or three rows of single-story houses there. The house your brother rented is the single-story house in the middle of the last row."

"Are they at work now?"

"What work are they doing now? No work. In this deep winter, nothing can be done, so everyone was sent back, to work again when spring comes."

"Then what about the salary?" Li Long was a bit worried.

"The salary is paid as usual. It's just that there's no bonus," the guard said with a giggle. "Like me, I still have to work this winter, so I get a bonus."

Li Long handed the guard a pack of cigarettes, which he had also bought on the way, and took the opportunity to ask for hot water. Then, under the guard's guidance, he drove the tractor around to the back.

To tell the truth, it was winding and twisting here; if no one had guided him, he might not have been able to drive to the back.

When he reached the single-story houses, he saw small children playing; they were of an age not yet in school. Li Long saw Li Xue Qin and Xueping.

The two children were still somewhat familiar with Li Long's tractor; they were stunned in the snow for a while, and when they saw Li Long take off his robber mask, they immediately cheered and ran over here.

The children playing with them were a bit confused and also a bit envious. In this day and age, there really weren't many people who could afford a tractor.

"Xueping, Li Xue Qin, are your mom and dad at home?"

"Yes, Brother Junshan is here too, and Brother Yongqiang is here too."

Alright, the seniority was a bit messy.

Li Long couldn't figure it out; since the Construction Company wasn't working anymore, why didn't Yang Yongqiang go home?

Why didn't Li Junshan go home?

Alright, he would know when he saw them. Li Long carried the two children onto the tractor's cargo bed and then drove the tractor forward.

The tractor could only drive to the side of the road. The distance between the front and back of the single-story houses was actually quite wide, but it had been turned into vegetable plots, leaving a very narrow distance for walking, only enough for two or three bicycles side by side.

The land here was utilized to the maximum.

Turning off the engine, Li Long carried the two children down, and they immediately ran towards their front door, shouting as they ran:

"Dad, Mom! My little uncle is here! My little uncle is here!"

Many families opened their doors to look out.

Having guests at home in the deep winter was considered a rare event. After all, at this time, it was still an era where communication was mainly by letter, and an era where ox carts and horse carts were the main means of transportation.

Having distant relatives come in the deep winter meant they were honored guests.

Li Anguo and Chen Li Rong both came out, as did Li Junshan and Yang Yongqiang.

Li Long discovered that Yang Yongqiang had actually gotten fat!

And he was whiter than in the summer!

It must be that he didn't do any work after entering winter, and he had become white and fat from resting.

Li Junshan was the same, but it was clearly noticeable that Li Junshan paid more attention to his appearance than before; his hair was combed very smoothly, a side part, and his sideburns were cut neatly.

Yang Yongqiang and Tao Daqiang, influenced by Li Long, both had crew cuts, with hair slightly longer than an inch, otherwise they would be mistaken for labor reform prisoners.

Seeing Li Long, they all smiled and then came over to help Li Long move things.

"Little Long, why did you come at this time?" This was Li Anguo.

"Little Long, was everything okay on the road? You didn't freeze, did you?" This was Chen Li Rong.

"Little Uncle, you drove all the way here? Amazing!" This was Li Junshan.

"Brother Long, I feel you're getting more and more amazing." This was Yang Yongqiang. "Did you hit this Mongolian gazelle on the way?"

Li Long responded one by one, and finally said to Yang Yongqiang:

"There were quite a few Mongolian gazelles on the way, but they were very alert, so I only hit one. If you have time and patience, you can hit several in a day."

"Is it far from Kuitun?" Li Anguo suddenly asked.

"The one I hit was far away," Li Long said. "But I saw Mongolian gazelles on the Gobi desert ten-plus kilometers east of the Kuitun military station. When there were no cars, they were by the side of the road, eating the wheat straw that fell off when the grass-hauling trucks passed by."

Li Anguo nodded thoughtfully.

There were rice and flour on the tractor, as well as the Mongolian gazelle and sheep offal. Everyone was carrying things, even Li Xue Qin was holding the crank handle.

Xueping didn't grab one, so Li Long took down the bag of food he bought on the way and let her hold it. There were the sesame pancakes he bought at the beginning, fruit candies he bought later, and Jiang noodles, etc., and said this was bought for them to eat.

Xueping immediately became happy.

When they were in the team, the two children could actually eat snacks often; it was only after they came to their father's side that it was okay at the beginning when Li Jianguo had a salary and bonus, but later when there was no work and only a basic salary, the snacks they could eat were much fewer.

Now that Li Long had bought so many snacks, the two of them were naturally very happy.

Although they knew they couldn't eat their fill all at once, they knew their parents wouldn't fight with them for this little bit of food, so both children had smiles on their faces, and even when they passed by other children playing together, they had proud expressions on their faces.

After entering the house, Li Long discovered that this house... was really not big.

Two rooms, inside and outside, the area of the two rooms was not as big as the idle room in Li Long's courtyard in the team. Chen Li Rong must have felt this the most deeply.

The outer room of this house was a kitchen with a utility room, and the door on the left led inside. Inside, there were two beds, one big and one small. Against the west wall was an old cloth sofa, and in front of the sofa was a coffee table, which also counted as a table.

A large group of people crowded into the house, and the house suddenly felt crowded. The two children actually liked this crowding, weaving back and forth in the gaps between people, and even giggling.

Li Long had already discovered that the two children's speech was already occasionally mixed with Mandarin.

There were many people from the Central Plains here in Kuitun, but children were still required to speak Mandarin in school. It must be that the children Xueping and Li Xue Qin played with spoke like this, so they learned it.

After all, when it came to learning a language, childhood was the fastest.

Li Junshan and Yang Yongqiang consciously went inside and sat on the edge of the bed, Li Long sat on the sofa, and Chen Li Rong began to prepare to pour tea after putting the things down.

There weren't that many cups at home, so they used bowls.

The two children let Chen Li Rong divide some candy and sesame pancakes for each of them and sent them out to play. In this day and age, children wore thick clothes, so they weren't afraid of freezing; although they had runny noses from time to time outside, they wouldn't catch a cold.

Only then was it quieter in the house.

Chen Li Rong poured tea for everyone and stayed in the kitchen, listening to the movement in the house.

In front of them were four bags of rice and flour, and a large Mongolian gazelle weighing at least forty or fifty kilograms.

Even if Li Long took away some meat, this meat was enough for their family to eat for a long time.

And this rice and flour was enough for them to eat until the New Year at least.

Actually, many families who rented houses here were still eating a mix of coarse and fine grains, but their family didn't need to. The last time Li Anguo brought his family back, he brought some rice and flour, and now there was so much more.

When they were in the Fourth Team, they never lacked meat to eat, but Chen Li Rong was more willing to live in this small courtyard with Li Anguo.

Of course, if they could eat more meat, she was naturally willing too. It didn't matter if the adults suffered a bit, it was mainly for the children. The complexions of Xueping and Li Xue Qin were clearly not as good as when they were in the village.

Li Anguo first asked about his father and mother's health, and knowing that they were both in good health, he felt relieved. But then he said guiltily:

"My place here is too small, otherwise I would have brought father and mother over to live for a while."

All three brothers were filial and didn't have the intention of pushing their father and mother away, which was quite good.

"Is our Third Grandfather still catching fish?" Li Junshan asked.

"Yes, now he can only smash ice holes to catch fish," Li Long said with a smile. "And he's not selling them anymore. It's too cold right now. Your Third Grandfather said that if he really went to catch fish to sell, the fishmongers in the market would curse him behind his back."

Actually, Li Qing Xia certainly wasn't afraid, but right now Tao Daqiang had to take care of his wife and children. No one was catching fish with Li Qing Xia, and Li Jianguo naturally couldn't rest assured with him alone.

There were so many pigs at home to deal with, and Li Jianguo couldn't go himself, so this matter was put aside. So although Li Qing Xia occasionally went to smash ice holes to get some fish, he only ate them himself.

Being able to get fresh fish in winter to make fish soup was very good.

Li Long told them about the situation at Yang Yongqiang's home again. Yang Yongqiang knew that his parents were fine and his sister was studying hard, so he felt relieved.

"Why aren't you going back? Isn't there no work right now?" Li Long couldn't help but ask.

"They won't let us go back," Yang Yongqiang was also helpless. "We have to stay until the end of the year. In December, the company also has a militia training, and all of us have to train. Right now, we have to stay in our posts at any time, and the singles have to go to the canteen to eat..."

Alright, there was no other way.

Yang Yongqiang also said that after December, it would be easier after the New Year. When the time came, there would be a period of vacation, and he would be able to go back. They asked Li Long again what he came for.

"Didn't I earn some money from harvesting wheat this year? The combine harvester I used was ordered from the Kuitun Agricultural Machinery Factory. I plan to order a few more next year. I'll put one at my eldest brother's place, and Daqiang also wants to buy a tractor next year..."

Li Long didn't mention Xie Yun Dong and Liang Dacheng, mainly because Yang Yongqiang was here, and it wasn't good to stimulate him.

Yang Yongqiang suddenly felt a bit regretful.

He had become a worker and was eating the commodity grain that everyone dreamed of.

But calculating it, his annual salary wouldn't exceed five hundred, and wanting to save money to buy a tractor for his father would take ten years!

That was without eating or drinking!

And Tao Daqiang could buy a tractor in two years following Li Long.

This gap—could it be that he had chosen wrong?

But he was a worker!

Even Li Long was just a temporary worker!

In this day and age, except for Li Long who was reborn, how many people could imagine what the Fourth Team would develop into in the future? They couldn't imagine it, and no one could imagine it.

In later generations, almost every household in the Fourth Team had apartments in Maxian, Shicheng, or Beiting Prefecture, and some even had more than one.

!.

Children almost never went to school in the township school; the worst was in the county, or they went to key schools in Shicheng, or even key schools in the prefecture.

In the summer, they stayed in the courtyard of the Fourth Team, and in the winter, when the pigs and chickens were slaughtered, they went to live in the city.

Whether Yang Yongqiang regretted it or not, he would only know after thirty years.

Of course, he might not regret it; after all, many resources in the city really couldn't be compared with the countryside.

Except for Li Long, this big cheat.

Knowing that Li Long had serious business, Li Anguo asked:

"Then when are you going?"

"Tomorrow morning," Li Long said. "I have to deal with this Mongolian gazelle in a while, and then take a leg to see Section Chief Ma."

"This is as it should be." Li Anguo nodded, and Chen Li Rong in the kitchen outside also breathed a sigh of relief. Their family could keep most of the Mongolian gazelle meat; although it was a bit gamey, what else could they complain about at this time?

Meat in the meat shop was almost two yuan per kilogram!

And those internal organs could be eaten, and there was oil.

For a moment, Chen Li Rong felt as if she were returning to the life in the Fourth Team; at least for these two or three months, she wouldn't have to worry about not having meat in her stir-fries.

"Do you need me to peel the skin?" Li Anguo shook his head and said, "You do your serious business, we'll do the peeling and such. By the way, have you eaten?"

"I ate on the road." Li Long actually had the intention of eating at his second brother's place, but he dismissed this idea at the moment. This kitchen was really too small, and there were too few things.

As for the things he brought, he should let his second brother's family eat them well.

"It's good that you've eaten." Li Anguo believed him and said, "Whether the food in the shops on both sides of the road is good or not, at least it can fill your stomach."

"Uncle Anguo, do you think we can get a gun and take the opportunity to hit a Mongolian gazelle?" Li Junshan suddenly asked Li Anguo.

"That... I'll go ask when the time comes. I have spoken to someone from the Security Section twice, but I don't know if they will lend out a gun."

Li Long didn't answer; he certainly couldn't leave this gun here; it was for saving his life on the way back.

After chatting for a while longer, Li Long stood up, pulled out the knife he carried, went to the kitchen, and began to peel the sheep.

The sheep hadn't completely thawed, but it was actually easier to peel the skin this way. The fat between the skin and the muscle was slightly hard, and when separating them, it allowed Li Long not to cut the skin.

"Second Brother, this Mongolian gazelle is a type of antelope. You keep these Mongolian gazelle horns well. If the children have a high fever, you can scrape some powder off and mix it with water for them to drink, and they will get better."

As soon as Li Anguo heard this, he immediately went over and used a knife to get the Mongolian gazelle horns off and hid them preciously.

At this time, children catching colds and having fevers was quite troublesome. Generally, if they got better after taking medicine, it was fine, but if they had a persistent high fever, it was possible to burn the child stupid, so Li Anguo valued it so much.

Li Junshan and Yang Yongqiang were both very envious, and at the same time, they strengthened their determination to borrow a gun to hit a Mongolian gazelle.

Although they weren't married yet, who didn't want to prepare for the future?

Li Long peeled the Mongolian gazelle skin, and Chen Li Rong over there boiled water and began to deal with those internal organs.

Li Long unloaded a leg, carried it, and said to Li Anguo:

"Second Brother, you guys chat first, I'll go find Section Chief Ma."

"Section Chief Ma should also be at home. Do you remember the way?" Li Anguo said. "Do you want me to take you there?"

"No need. I can go there myself."

There were three people here; Li Long wanted to take Li Anguo but not the other two. Although Li Anguo was his own brother, it was never good to favor one over the other.

It was better not to take any of them.

Li Long carried the Mongolian gazelle leg, started the tractor, and drove towards the family area of the Construction and Installation Company.

Section Chief Ma was indeed at home; he opened the door after Li Long knocked. After seeing Li Long, Ma Aihong was stunned for a moment, then said with a smile:

"Yo, Comrade Little Li is here, come in, come in, why did you bring things?"

"I hit a Mongolian gazelle on the way, so I cut off a leg to come and see you," Li Long said very casually.

"Not bad, not bad, it's really not bad that you could think of me. Is Old Li okay?"

"Section Chief Li is very well. He's been quite busy lately and can't compare with you guys," Li Long said with a smile.

Ma Aihong's wife came over and smiled as she took the sheep leg from Li Long's hand.

This sheep leg must have been five or six kilograms, enough to eat for quite a few days.

Ma Aihong knew about Li Long being in the newspaper and chatted with Li Long about quite a bit. Li Long took the opportunity to ask from the side when his second brother would be able to be assigned to the family courtyard.

Ma Aihong also explained that Li Anguo had only just become a regular employee, and there were still three or four families ahead of him, but he also promised that Li Anguo would definitely be able to move into the family courtyard next year.

Because the company had already planned to build it.

Coming out of Section Chief Ma's house, Li Long drove the tractor to the state-run canteen to eat, and then went to find a state-run hotel to stay in.

The Construction and Installation Company's reception house didn't open in winter, so Ma Aihong had no way to arrange for Li Long to stay in the reception house.

Early the next morning, Li Long carried some breakfast he bought from a breakfast stall to Li Anguo's house, ate breakfast with everyone with a smile under Li Anguo's complaints, and then drove the tractor to the Kuitun Agricultural Machinery Factory.

As soon as he arrived at the Agricultural Machinery Factory, Li Long saw several combine harvesters placed outside the workshop.

Clearly, Factory Director Du hadn't strictly followed his agreement with Li Long and was already building combine harvesters.

And Li Long could imagine it. Especially after those things of his were in the Autonomous Region Daily, he thought Factory Director Du must have anticipated that the market for combine harvesters would be opened up.

The sound of the tractor attracted the attention of the guard, and very quickly someone came over to check, register, and then let Li Long in.

Li Long also saw Factory Director Du, whose hands were full of oil, in the workshop as he wished; he was working with the workers to produce parts for the combine harvester.

Seeing Li Long, Factory Director Du came over with a smile, spread his hands to indicate he couldn't shake hands with Li Long, and said:

"Comrade Li Long, you've finally come. If you didn't come again, I would have really had to call you."

Li Long pointed to those combine harvesters and said:

"Even if I didn't come, you guys were doing the same thing, isn't that also quite good?"

"That's different," Factory Director Du shook his head and said. "We still hope to strive for perfection and want to know the first-hand data from you. Is that combine harvester really very easy to use? And there wasn't a single flaw?"

After all, Li Long had harvested several thousand mu of wheat fields with that combine harvester and was the first practitioner; the data he obtained here was the most authentic.

"You don't say, there really were some small flaws." Li Long was naturally prepared and said with a smile, "Then shall we find a place to talk slowly?"

"Good, good." Factory Director Du knew that Li Long certainly wouldn't just come over to talk about the data of the combine harvester; he was also mentally prepared, and these two people certainly had to have a good talk.

There was earth heating in Factory Director Du's room, and the temperature was okay, better than outside the workshop.

Li Long took off his coat and hung it on the back of the chair. After waiting for a while, Factory Director Du washed his hands clean and entered the office. Someone came over to pour water and then left.

Factory Director Du took out a notebook and a pen and looked at Li Long.

Clearly, he planned to take good notes. (End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 574 =====