Reborn in 1977

“Ah? Your dad was also a ‘staying-at-a-point cadre’?”

After lunch, Huang Ying and the other two, having accepted the “pig-raising mission,” scrambled to go out and cut pig grass, setting a beautiful goal to raise Teacher Chen's pigs to 200 jin, launching a big satellite!

Without having to work, Chen Fan sat in the kitchen, drinking tea and chatting with Jiang Lili, who was washing dishes. The topic was naturally the ‘staying-at-a-point cadre’ they had just discussed.

Jiang Lili nodded with a smile while washing the dishes, "It was about 10 years ago. At that time, my dad hadn't been transferred to the city's cotton mill and was still working in the Textile Industry Bureau. He was selected to be stationed in a production team near Yunhu City, where he lived for more than half a year, guiding them to improve cotton planting and picking processes, which increased cotton production a lot. It was also because of that ‘staying-at-a-point’ experience that the city leaders saw his ability to manage production, which led to his transfer to the cotton mill."

Chen Fan drank his tea, a thoughtful look in his eyes.

In the 1970s, the First Light Industry Department, the Second Light Industry Department, and the Textile Industry Department merged into the Ministry of Light Industry. It wasn't until 1978 that the Textile Industry Department would be restored. Therefore, 10 years ago, the Textile Industry Office at that time had not yet merged with the other light industry offices of the local committee, but was solely responsible for managing all textile-related work in the Yunhu area.

In that era when ‘cotton, grain, and oil’ were dominant, this unit had considerable power.

Moreover, for a long time, the whole country was implementing the policy of ‘taking production as the center.’ Being transferred from a government unit to a factory unit, even if it was a lateral move, could be considered a ‘promotion,’ let alone an upward transfer.

It seems that Jiang Lili's father is quite capable.

But the next second, Chen Fan shook his head, dismissing the thought. His capabilities have nothing to do with me, why think so much.

However, he was quite interested in the matter of ‘staying-at-a-point cadres,’ and immediately asked, "Did he tell you about his ‘staying-at-a-point’ experience?"

Jiang Lili slowed down her dishwashing, smiling as she said, "Of course, not only did he tell me, but he told me many times, almost every year. That production team wasn't very far from our cotton mill, only about 20 miles away. People from their team often came over."

Speaking of this, she suddenly paused, lowered her head, and said, "I heard my sister say that after my dad's job adjustment, people from their team came several times."

Chen Fan raised his eyebrows slightly, his eyes darting around, just as he was about to speak.

Jiang Lili suddenly raised a smiling face and said, "Let me tell you a few interesting things."

Chen Fan looked at her, the corners of his mouth turned up, "Okay."

Jiang Lili smiled and said, "I also heard it from my dad. He encountered many things when he was ‘staying-at-a-point,’ which were very interesting. Well, let me start with the ‘three togethers.’ In the beginning, the production team my dad went to had a total of 32 households, excluding one collective household of educated youth and one ‘errand runner,’ there were still 30 households left…"

She had just started when Chen Fan raised his hand, asking in confusion, "What is an ‘errand runner?’"

Jiang Lili was first stunned, then looked at him in surprise, "You don't know what an ‘errand runner’ is?"

Chen Fan looked blank, "Is it strange not to know? Is it someone specifically responsible for running errands for the production team?"

He was repeatedly thinking in his mind, which one in Lujia Bay is an ‘errand runner?’ Thinking about it, it seemed that whenever there was something, Secretary Yang and the other leaders liked to find Zhang Wenliang. Could it be him?

Jiang Lili stuck out her tongue and gave a light cough, explaining, "An ‘errand runner’ is a single household in the team, only one person in the household, not married, and no one cares about him. If it was just like this, he wouldn't be called an ‘errand runner.’

The main thing is that he doesn't like to work, just loafing around all day, and doesn't think about his future. He runs around like a wild horse without reins, living one day at a time, not caring about tomorrow. That's why he's called an ‘errand runner.’"

Chen Fan blinked wildly. So that's what it meant?

Thank goodness, when listening to the first half, I thought she was talking about me.

In that case, isn't this ‘errand runner’ similar to the unemployed layabouts and hooligans in the city?

If there's any difference, it's probably that the ‘errand runner’ is just lazy and doesn't do bad things that harm others and benefit himself?

After explaining the ‘errand runner,’ Jiang Lili continued to tell the story of her father's ‘staying-at-a-point’ experience in the production team, "There was such an ‘errand runner’ in that production team. His parents died early, and he separated from his brothers when he was young. He was 30 years old and hadn't married yet. He didn't raise chickens, ducks, or pigs, and he was also sloppy when working. My dad set him as the first target, determined to change him, let him get rid of his backward status, and preferably get married and start a career…"

The dishes in the kitchen were washed, but Jiang Lili had only just started. She transferred to the “Comprehensive Office” to continue speaking.

Chen Fan pretended to spread out a textbook on the table, smiling as he said, "In case someone suddenly comes in, having a book can cover things up."

Jiang Lili didn't know what she was thinking, her pretty face flushed, and then she pretended to be nonchalant as she took the textbook in front of her, "I can just read while I talk."

Chen Fan curled his lips slightly. It's possible to read while listening, but how can the person speaking read the book?

Sure enough, she was just covering things up.

He also took out a notebook and pen, preparing to take notes.

Seeing his actions, Jiang Lili couldn't help but hesitate, "Are you… going to write it down?"

Chen Fan didn't need to ask to know what she was thinking, and immediately smiled, "Don't worry, I just think it's interesting for cadres to go to the countryside to ‘stay-at-a-point,’ and I want to accumulate some material to write a novel about it."

After a pause, he added, "Besides your father's affairs, you can also talk about the affairs of the ‘staying-at-a-point cadres’ who came to Lujia Bay, either what you saw with your own eyes or what you've heard. That way, you won't have to worry about someone recognizing whose story it is based on the plot."

Hearing this, Jiang Lili's expression improved, and she nodded with a smile, "Okay, then I'll tell you everything I know."

One spoke, and the other wrote. By the time Huang Ying and the others came back carrying pig grass, Chen Fan had already written more than a dozen pages of paper, enough to piece together a full-length novel.

However, he planned to write it as a collection of stories, with the characters and background unchanged, and each story written as a chapter. This would directly reduce the difficulty, equivalent to a short story, perfect for him to practice his writing skills.

After writing a few story chapters, it would be much easier to start writing medium-length and long novels.

Seeing them come back, Chen Fan naturally closed his notebook, walked out to take a look, "Wow, you cut so much pig grass?"

Huang Ying wiped the fine sweat from her forehead and said with a smile, "The more the pigs eat, the better they will grow."

Chen Fan said with a smile, "It's not good to overeat either. Like people, pigs need to leave some room in their stomachs, otherwise they'll easily get indigestion. It's better to eat less and more often than to eat too much at once. Besides, these are two piglets. No matter how much they can eat, how much can they eat?"

He really didn't expect these three girls to be so down-to-earth. They cut three loads of pig grass at once. Not to mention two piglets, even two big pigs couldn't finish it.

He was the authoritative veterinarian in the team, so Huang Ying and the other two naturally believed him, looking at the three loads of pig grass with regret, "What should we do with the extra?"

Chen Fan said with a smile, "It doesn't matter. The lambs and two horses can also eat it, but you don't have to cut so much in the future. You should also leave more time to study. I'm still waiting for you to finish your high school knowledge so I can teach you practical skills."

Huang Ying and the other two immediately nodded repeatedly, excitedly carrying the pig grass to the back.