Reborn in 1977

Chapter 167: Got the Certificate

First, I went to see how Squad Leader Xiao's pickled vegetables were doing. Both vats of sauerkraut were pickling nicely. Apart from a layer of white film on the surface, the brine and cabbage tasted pure, with no signs of spoilage.

Xiao Liewen looked at Chen Fan, "How is it?"

Chen Fan nodded and smiled, "It's good. We can make it tomorrow."

Xiao Liewen clapped his hands and laughed, "Good, good, good! The snow hasn't melted these past few days. If it snows again tomorrow, it'll taste even better."

Chen Fan covered the vat and gestured with his hand before walking out, laughing as he said, "I wouldn't have guessed you were so poetic. Snow and pig-killing stew really do go well together."

Xiao Liewen led him outside, "Hey, what's so poetic about that? It's just a memory. It was snowing heavily when I ate pig-killing stew back then."

They chatted as they walked along the pond. Passing the earthen-walled house, they went through a narrow path between the two houses, and after turning a corner, Chen Fan finally saw the thatched cottage he was talking about.

No wonder I hadn't seen it before. The thatched cottage was hidden in a grove of miscellaneous trees, almost invisible from a distance. Following a ridge, they approached a small courtyard enclosed by a bamboo fence. Two old hens were strolling inside, unafraid of people passing by, just clucking incessantly.

The door of the house was open, but no one was inside. Xiao Liewen went up and called out twice, but there was no response. He pointed to the back and said, "He must be tending the vegetable garden in the back. The old man can't sit still for a moment. Wait here, I'll go look for him."

Just as he was about to leave, he turned back and whispered, "When you see him, call him Fourth Master. Don't say anything else, and don't stare at his legs."

Chen Fan nodded repeatedly, "Understood, I'll remember."

Only then did Xiao Liewen walk around the house to the back.

Chen Fan carefully examined the thatched cottage, his brow furrowing.

This was an even more rudimentary house than the earthen-walled one, usually used as temporary housing for duck herders, lake watchers, or river workers. Unless someone was desperately poor, they wouldn't live in such a house.

This type of house was built with a bamboo frame, then plastered with clay. There were no wooden pillars inside, no beams on the roof, and the roof was made of a bamboo mesh covered with straw.

A heavy rain could wash away a section of the "outer wall," so after every heavy rain, it needed to be replastered with clay for reinforcement.

Or a typhoon could collapse the entire house.

Of course, you wouldn't have to worry about being crushed to death. At most, you'd suffer some minor injuries.

But living in such a house would be too difficult.

However, considering Fourth Master Lu's identity, perhaps it was intentional.

Thinking of this, Chen Fan could only remain silent.

Before long, Xiao Liewen came back with an old man who looked to be in his seventies. Chen Fan glanced at him and, seeing him nod slightly, quickly stepped forward and respectfully greeted him, "Hello, Fourth Master."

Although the old man's hands and feet were covered in mud, his clothes were neater than those of most commune members, and his demeanor was also different from the average person.

When he saw Chen Fan, he looked him up and down before smiling and nodding, "Hello, hello."

Then, he raised his hand and limped to lead them inside.

The thatched cottage had only two rooms. The outer room served as both the main room and the kitchen, while the inner room was a very small bedroom.

Once inside, Fourth Master Lu changed his shoes, washed his hands in a basin, dried them with a faded towel, neatly folded the towel, and placed it on the washstand before turning around to pour tea.

But Xiao Liewen waved his hand, "Don't bother, we're not guests."

Fourth Master Lu didn't listen and still poured two bowls of plain water, handing them to the two men, smiling as he said, "Guest or not, it doesn't hurt to have a drink."

Chen Fan took the bowl with both hands, thanked him, and took a sip.

Xiao Liewen smiled and shook his head, taking a sip before placing it on the nearby table.

Then, pointing at Chen Fan, he said to Fourth Master Lu, "This is him, Little Chen, our team's announcer. There's no doubt about his education, but his calligraphy is nothing to write home about. Anyway, he's already famous in the South Lake Commune, our Luciawan's 'cultured man'. If he writes something outside and his calligraphy is worse than a dog's scribbles, won't people laugh him to death? That's why I want to ask Fourth Master to teach him."

Chen Fan also grinned obediently, "Sorry to trouble you, Fourth Master."

Fourth Master Lu remained noncommittal, taking out a writing brush from the table drawer.

Let's call it a writing brush for now. It was a thin bamboo tube with some unknown hairs stuck on top, resembling a brush, but clearly homemade.

Fourth Master Lu dipped the brush in water and handed it to Chen Fan, smiling as he said, "Come, write a few words."

Chen Fan didn't feel awkward, taking the brush with both hands, rolling up his sleeves, and writing his name on the table.

Fourth Master Lu couldn't help but chuckle when he saw it, "You probably haven't learned calligraphy before, but that's good. A blank sheet of paper is easier to teach."

Xiao Liewen stepped forward, bent over to look at the brush in Chen Fan's hand, and turned to look at Fourth Master Lu, "Is this chicken feather? Should we start practicing with a soft brush?"

Fourth Master Lu nodded and said to Chen Fan, "There are three types of brushes: soft, mixed, and hard. If you start with a hard brush, you'll only be able to use hard brushes in the future and not soft ones. But if you start with a soft brush, you'll be able to use both soft and hard brushes in the future. My suggestion is to start with a soft brush."

He paused and smiled, "Of course, it also depends on what you want. If you want to achieve quick results, you can practice with a hard brush directly."

Chen Fan said without hesitation, "I'll listen to Fourth Master and start with a soft brush."

He didn't understand anything about hard or soft brushes. He just had faith in the skill panel.

Fourth Master Lu nodded in satisfaction and picked up the brush in his hand, smiling as he said, "Normal soft brushes use goat or rabbit hair. Chicken feather brushes are not uncommon, but very few people are skilled at using them, because chicken feathers are scattered and cannot achieve the four virtues of a brush: 'pointed, round, uniform, and resilient.' Historical records show that among those who were good at using chicken feather brushes throughout history, only Su Dongpo was truly proficient. Huang Tingjian, one of Su Dongpo's four scholars, Dong Qichang of the Ming Dynasty, and Zhang Zhidong and Zhang Tixin of the Qing Dynasty could also use them, but they were slightly inferior to Su Dongpo."

He paused and smiled again, "However, in recent years, I have been idle and without brushes to use, so I can only make my own chicken feather brushes. I have gained some experience and am not inferior to my predecessors. If you can start with a chicken feather brush, although it will be more difficult, once you master it, practicing with other brushes will be easy."

In other words, he believed that he was no less skilled than Su Dongpo in the art of chicken feather brushes.

That was awesome.

Apart from understanding this point, Chen Fan didn't know what the other things he said meant. Anyway, he didn't understand soft or hard brushes, chicken or rabbit hair. He was just waiting for Fourth Master Lu's guidance to activate the calligraphy skill panel and embark on the road of frantically leveling up his skills.

It would be best if he could combine hard-pen calligraphy and brush calligraphy into one, earning experience points for two skills with one effort. That would be awesome.

Next, apart from waiting for the time to return to the broadcasting station and turn off the broadcasting machine, Chen Fan stayed here listening to Fourth Master Lu give basic lessons.

From the basic brush techniques, hiding the tip, revealing the tip, side tip, and center tip, to the basic strokes of "lift" and "press," as well as the application of the eight basic strokes of horizontal, vertical, dot, slash, downward stroke, hook, upward stroke, and fold, Chen Fan finally understood why Xiao Liewen wanted to hit someone after seeing him write the character "永" (yong, meaning eternity).

On the surface, it was a character, but in the eyes of calligraphers, it was not a character at all!

Especially after activating "Brush Calligraphy" and merging it with "Hard-Pen Calligraphy" to become the "Calligraphy" skill, Chen Fan had a deeper understanding of writing. Looking at the characters he had written, he really couldn't bear to look at them.

After finally finishing the first basic lesson, Chen Fan returned to the educated youth spot fully armed.

As a result, as soon as he got home, Jiang Lili informed him, "Your homestead certificate has been processed. It's at Squad Leader Yang's house. He wants you to go get it directly when you get back."

The homestead certificate had already been processed?

Wasn't it supposed to be given after the veterinary training class people got their veterinary certificates?

Chen Fan was stunned at first, then put down his things and ran out.

Never mind, since the certificate had been processed, he would go get it first.

From today on, I'm a landlord with land!

(Homestead certificates, although it's 1981, it's about the same)