Reborn in 1977

Chapter 462: Old Rules

Unlike the pure natural lake of the Bailang Lake Production Team, the ponds in Lujiawan were basically formed by transforming low-lying areas, and the terrain was even lower than the paddy fields.

A large pond was only a little over one mu in area, and a small one was less than three fen. Such small ponds were very common in Lujiawan and the other 3 production brigades. Almost every team had a dozen such ponds, but the total water surface area was only about ten mu.

Then, under the background of large-scale production, these ponds were all transformed into fish ponds for raising fish, and the output of the fish ponds also became an important source of income for the production team.

Unfortunately, the Nanhai Commune also had Bailang Lake. When it came to selling fish, no one could compete with them, after all, they were professionals.

Therefore, the fish raised in these fish ponds in Lujiawan were actually very few that could be sold. Except for the supply and marketing cooperative purchasing some large fish as a gesture of goodwill, the other smaller ones were basically distributed to the commune members as welfare benefits.

In the past, these fish were also the most common meat for commune members' families, because most of the pigs raised by their own families would be sold, leaving only a few pounds for the New Year. These unsold fish were then salted, dried in the wind, and taken out to eat when the children in the family were craving meat or when guests came.

Therefore, these fish ponds also pinned the commune members' hopes on meat.

Although the days in Lujiawan were much better this year, the habit of yearning for fish was still retained.

In the pond below, the water pump had stopped roaring, and more than thirty strong laborers stepped into the pond, which still had a lot of water, and vigorously scooped up fish with fishing nets.

This kind of fishing net is not the small fishing net used for fishing, but a fishing net propped up by two bamboo poles. The two ends of the fishing net are tied to the top of the bamboo poles, with lead weights added to one side and floats added to the other. In this way, when the bamboo pole is poked into the water, it sinks on one side and floats on the other, forming a large opening that swallows the fish into the net.

Because it looks like a crescent moon when lifted up, it is also called a moon net.

(Moon Net)

The moon net is the most commonly used tool for fishermen here. Even if the water is not drained, as long as the school of fish can be found, a net can still bring a great harvest.

Of course, after draining the water, the technical difficulty is even lower. To put it simply, "anyone can do it."

Otherwise, so many people would not go into the water to fish together.

At this time, most of the water in the pond had been drained, and most of the fish were concentrated in the puddles at the bottom of the pond. A scoop with the net would bring a full net of fish, and then they would vigorously drag it ashore with the fish and mud.

Chen Fan looked at the scene below with curiosity.

He was not looking at the fishing, but at the waterproof gear on the commune members.

This waterproof gear was not the same as the waterproof gear of later generations.

As everyone knows, waterproof gear is made of rubber, just like the material of rain boots, and the biggest function is waterproof.

But rubber was expensive at this time, and was even listed as a strategic material. Even the most common rain boots were very expensive.

Therefore, the waterproof gear of this era only had rubber on the bottom of the shoes. Above the shoes, it was oilcloth, which was also waterproof, but extremely bulky.

Well, it was the kind commonly used on cargo ships and Jiefang trucks.

It is conceivable how heavy it would be to wear such a large piece of oilcloth on the body.

Even so, such a piece of waterproof gear was not cheap.

However, Chen Fan saw more than thirty sets in front of him, and he couldn't help but ask, "When did our team buy so many sets of waterproof gear?"

The No. 6 team of Lujiawan could not afford it before, but now they can afford it, but there is no need to buy so many!

Secretary Yang was staring at the situation below. When he heard Chen Fan's words, he was stunned for a moment. When he reacted, he waved his hand and said with a smile, "These waterproof gears were all bought back last month, but not all of them were bought by our team, but were ordered from the supply and marketing cooperative by all the teams together.

Each team bought 3 pieces, a total of 36 pieces. Our team was the first to drain the pond today, so we borrowed the waterproof gear from other teams to use."

Accountant Liu smoked a cigarette beside him and said with a soft smile, "It is only this year that everyone has made money that they can afford such a piece of waterproof gear worth 30 or 40 yuan. In the past, there was no waterproof gear at all. They would take off their pants and go into the water with bare legs."

Chen Fan widened his eyes, "Ah? In such cold weather, go into the water with bare legs?"

"Isn't that right."

The security guard Huang suddenly pointed to another direction, "Look there, that's how we used to fish."

Chen Fan looked in the direction he was pointing, and saw a few people standing by the pond, sorting out a large fishing net. The length of this fishing net was exactly equal to the width of the pond.

Team Leader Yang also looked over there and said softly, "In the past, there were no water pumps. To drain the pond and catch fish, everything was done by manpower. First, arrange two good hands to cast the net…"

He turned to look at Chen Fan and explained with a smile, "Casting the net is different from using a scoop net here. It requires higher skills and experience, especially to pay attention to sinking the fishing net to the bottom, but it must not be pressed into the silt, so ordinary people can't do it. It must be experienced fishermen."

Then he pointed to the side with fewer people, "Look, they are now setting up the net and will go into the water soon. Now that there is waterproof gear, they can go into the water wearing cotton trousers. Even if a little water gets in and wets them, it is a hundred times better than taking off their trousers.

Two people cooperate, one person on each side pulls the fishing net and drives it forward along the edge of the pond. When the fishing net is scooped all the way from the bottom of the water to the opposite side, the entire fishing net will almost catch most of the fish inside."

(Setting up the net)

Team Leader Yang flicked the ash from his cigarette, looked at the two old masters dragging the fishing net little by little in the water, and then looked at the other side of the pond, where dozens of people were dragging fish with scoop nets, laughing and talking like it was a festival, and couldn't help but feel a little lost.

After a moment of愣神, he came back to his senses and continued, "After setting up the fishing net, it is a troublesome task to haul in the net. It is impossible to drag it with one or two people. At least 10 people have to pull it together to drag the entire fishing net to one location.

Even so, it is impossible to drag all the fish up at once. In the middle, people have to go into the water, holding buckets and basins, and constantly pick out the fish and carry them ashore, so that the weight in the net will not increase too much.

Until the fishing net is finally dragged ashore, this net is considered to be finished."

(Hauling in the net)

After he finished speaking, Chen Fan curiously asked again, "Didn't you say to drain the pond? If you fish like this, you won't drain the pond, and there should still be a lot of fish in the water, right?"

He still remembered that on the first day he came here, he picked up a dozen large turtles in the pond. At that time, the pond was dry, with only a few puddles of water in the small pit in the center.

At that time, there was no water pump, so how did they pump the water?

Accountant Liu next to him immediately laughed and said, "It is not easy to raise fish once, so we will definitely not miss the fish at the bottom of the water."

As he spoke, he pointed to the ditch next to the pond, "Do you see that ditch? Although the pond is lower than the paddy field, it is still slightly higher than the bottom of the ditch. As long as the field ridge that serves as the bank base is dug away, and a net is used to block the outlet, the water in the pond can flow into the ditch, and then the soil is filled back.

When it is time to store water next year, water will be poured into the ditch from the river, and then water will be drawn from the ditch into the pond,"

He gestured with both hands, "Use a thick water pipe, first put it in the ditch to fill it with water, and then throw one end into the pond, and the water will continuously pour into the pond."

Hearing this, Chen Fan nodded suddenly, "I understand, the siphon effect."

Team Leader Yang and the other three were stunned for a moment. What the heck was that?

The siphon effect?

Is there such a saying for watering?

Team Leader Yang shook his head and then said, "Actually, this method was taught to us by one of the first group of educated youths who came here. Before that, we all used small waterwheels to irrigate. It would take more than half a month just to fill these dozen ponds, but now it is much more convenient."

While the few people were talking, baskets of fish were carried to the field ridge, and fish kept jumping out of the buckets and baskets, attracting bursts of cheers from the children, while the adults ignored the mud on the fish and went up to catch them with their bare hands.

Then these fish were picked up and taken away.

After all that effort, the water in the first fishpond had been completely drained. Only small fish remained in the mud, while the water in the adjacent pond had also been mostly pumped out. Countless fish, both large and small, thrashed in the little water left, making their final struggles.

Those who had been busy scooping fish with nets were now somewhat exhausted. They took off their waterproof overalls and handed them to another group of people. However, they didn't rest either. Instead, they rolled up their pants legs, each taking a basket in one hand and a small net in the other, and stepped into the mud with the women and older children to scoop up any fish that had been missed.

(Picking up the leftovers)

Meanwhile, at the other pond where they were still using the "traditional fishing" method, they had already hauled in one net and moved on to other ponds.

Before they could leave, several people began digging at the banks, preparing to drain the pond.

Chen Fan's curiosity was piqued again. "Captain, if you can just drain the water directly, why bother pumping it out? It's such a waste of fuel!"

Captain Yang chuckled twice and said with a smile, "Pumping the water out with a pump at most lets a few small fish escape, and it doesn't damage the banks. Although the banks can be filled back in after being dug up, if we happen to have spring floods and a few more heavy rains, the soil won't be firm enough and could collapse, flooding even the rice paddies.

Also, directly digging a hole to drain the water not only makes the banks unstable, but if the fishing nets aren't secured tightly and get washed away by the water, that would be terrible. Half the fish in the pond would escape, and even if we could get them back, it would take a lot of effort.

So, for draining a pond to catch fish, it's best to use a pump."

Chen Fan blinked. Digging a hole had so many considerations?

After speaking, Captain Yang suddenly stood up and pointed at the pond, laughing and scolding, "San Gouzi, didn't you see the big guy behind your butt?"

A boy of fifteen or sixteen, standing in the mud, immediately froze his legs and turned around 180 degrees. He immediately saw a large carp burrowing into the mud and pounced on it excitedly.

But that carp wasn't easy to catch either. It flicked its tail and did a carp leap, splashing countless mud, spraying San Gouzi all over. It then jumped into another puddle.

Before it could celebrate its escape, a bamboo basket descended from the sky and accurately scooped it up. A second later, it could only thrash its tail and hit a few small crucian carp and loaches in the basket, unable to jump out again.

Seeing this scene, everyone around burst into laughter. Captain Yang slapped his thigh on the high bank. "Useless fellow."

A man in his thirties threw a silver carp into the basket and shouted loudly, "San Gouzi, you're no good. It was right in front of you and you still couldn't catch it."

The boy called San Gouzi wiped his face, shook off the mud on his hands, and looked at his appearance, unable to help but curse, "Since I'm already dirty, today I'll fight these fish to the death."

After speaking, he didn't care whether he would be splashed with mud and pounced at a silver bream not far away, stirring up countless mud splashes, causing the people not far away to laugh and scold.

Basket after basket of fish were carried away. Chen Fan, feeling a little bored, followed the people transporting the fish uphill.

Passing through the woods on the slope, and then past a house, they reached the village's "main road."

Walking down the dirt road, they arrived at the livestock shed, which had the largest open space in the village.

At this time, basket after basket of fish were sent here, then directly dumped on the ground, and the carriers rushed back to the pond without stopping.

On the open space, twenty or thirty women were squatting on the ground, busy picking out the fish.

They first picked out the big fish and threw them into several large wooden buckets filled with water next to them. Each bucket contained the same type of fish, making it easier to sell when the supply and marketing cooperative came to purchase them.

The other fish were not thrown around randomly either. They also had to be sorted, but these fish didn't have such good treatment. They were just thrown directly on the ground, one type of fish in a pile. If a fish jumped out, it would be kicked back in immediately.

It was snowing today, the weather was cold, and there was no water. Before long, these fish would lie motionless on the ground.

After a while, Huang, the administrator, came over first.

He held a notebook and directed people to weigh the fish on the ground.

Seeing this scene, Chen Fan trotted over.

Huang, the administrator, glanced at him and took the initiative to explain, "The big fish will all be sold to the supply and marketing cooperative, so there's no rush. We can weigh them when they come to buy them later.

These small fish are to be distributed to each household, so we need to count the number of each type of fish, and then distribute them according to the number of people and work points."

He pointed to a basket of silver bream that had just been weighed and said, "Silver bream and carp are the best fish. In the past, during the New Year, supplies were scarce, but you couldn't not serve a few good dishes when guests came, so every household would prepare a plate of 'watching fish.'"

Chen Fan blinked. "Watching fish? Only to be watched, not eaten?"

Huang, the administrator, nodded with a laugh. "Yes, just to be watched, not eaten. A fish weighing about a pound is fried in oil until golden brown on both sides, then braised in soy sauce. It's placed on a large plate, and it must look good.

Then, starting from the thirtieth day of the New Year, the family eats the reunion dinner. After that, every time a guest comes, the plate of fish must be brought to the table and must last until the fifteenth day of the New Year before it can be eaten."

Chen Fan's eyes widened. A fish left for half a month, wouldn't it spoil?

Before he could ask, he realized, right, the temperature at this time was low. If it happened to be a rainy or snowy day, or even a cloudy day, the temperature would hover below 0 degrees Celsius. Only when there was a lot of sunshine would it rise to about 15 degrees Celsius.

But even when the sun was shining brightly, the temperature in the house was not high, usually around 7 or 8 degrees Celsius.

In this kind of weather, it was indeed possible to preserve it for half a month.

Then he thought of another question, "What if the guest eats it?"

Huang, the administrator, laughed while keeping accounts, "It won't happen."

He turned to look at Chen Fan. "As long as they are locals, they know this rule. 'Watching fish' is the host's face and the guest's 'morality.' Under normal circumstances, guests will definitely not touch the watching fish with their chopsticks."

Speaking of this, he smiled bitterly again, "If there really is an ignorant person who pokes the fish, then you have to eat the fish in advance and make another one."

Hearing this, Chen Fan raised his head and tried hard to recall, did he touch the fish on other people's tables during the New Year last year?

Then he heard Huang, the administrator, say, "But this rule doesn't apply to you."

Chen Fan looked at him blankly. "Why?"

Huang, the administrator, suppressed a smile and said, "Who in Lujiawan doesn't know that you only half understand the old rules? They all say that ignorance is bliss, and no one will argue with you about this.

Besides, you fish and eat fish all year round, I'm afraid you're already tired of eating fish. If there's fish on the table and you're willing to use your chopsticks, that means you're giving the host face, which is completely different from the old rules."

Looking at Huang, the administrator, Chen Fan couldn't help but be silent.

Could this be the legendary double standard?

After a moment of silence, Chen Fan said, "Lujiawan isn't short of money this year, won't they still continue to follow the old rules?"

Huang, the administrator, nodded, his eyes fixed on the women weighing the fish, while saying, "The old rules still have to be followed, but they can be changed. In addition to watching fish, you can also make one or two more fish dishes, otherwise, if you put a plate of fish on the table, the guests won't know whether to eat it or not."

Chen Fan nodded and said with a smile, "That's also a good idea."

The fish were constantly being sent over there, and they were constantly being sorted and weighed here.

Chen Fan watched for a long time and felt a little bored, so he said hello to Huang, the administrator, and prepared to go back.

At this time, Huang, the administrator, waved his hand and shouted, "Pick two pounds of miscellaneous fish over here."

Huang Ying's mother immediately rushed over with a basket and handed it to Chen Fan with a smile, "Teacher Chen, here you are."

Chen Fan was stunned when he saw Huang, the administrator, said to him, "I know you don't lack fish to eat, but this fish has a different meaning, it's the collective achievement of the team."

As he spoke, he pointed to the basket and said with a smile, "Today, everyone will not make big fish, but they will definitely use small fish to make a bowl of fish jelly. Huang Ying can make it, you can try it."