Changing Goat Milk

After a while, Chen Yongqiang brought over some cooled rice porridge, and the little wolf cub lowered his head and sniffed the rice porridge in the bowl.

Perhaps it was too hungry, because it began to lick the food little by little with its tiny tongue.

Lin Xiulian squatted beside the bamboo basket and sighed, "At least she's willing to eat a little."

Looking at the wolf cub's weak appearance, Chen Yongqiang said, "Just drinking rice porridge won't help it grow strong; we need to get some goat milk."

Just then, the village head, Yang Dahai, shouted through a loudspeaker from afar: "Attention everyone! Head to the village committee compound immediately for a meeting! The land distribution is now under the household responsibility system!"

Land is the lifeblood of farmers, and this land distribution is crucial to the harvest every year thereafter.

Chen Yongqiang straightened up. "This is a big deal, we have to go."

Lin Xiulian quickly stood up: "Should I go too?"

Chen Yongqiang refused, saying, "Your household registration isn't in our village, so it's no use going there."

On the village road, villagers gathered from all directions, walking in twos and threes toward the village committee compound.

Chen Yongqiang told Lin Xiulian to stay at home while he went to a meeting at the village office.

The villagers quickly gathered in the village committee courtyard.

Chen Yongqiang spotted Wang Guixiang and Liang Meie in the crowd at a glance. They exchanged a few glances and then looked away without saying hello.

Village chief Yang Dahai cleared his throat: "I mentioned it to everyone a few days ago. How's everyone's thinking about the household responsibility system? In our village, should we divide the land or not?"

His words immediately sparked a heated discussion among the villagers.

"Splitting it! It should have been split long ago!" He Jun, impatient as ever, was the first to shout.

"With everyone eating from the same pot, whether you're diligent or lazy, it's all the same. Who would bother to serve others?"

"You can't say that!" The old accountant adjusted his glasses.

"Collective farming has its advantages; in the event of natural disasters or man-made calamities, you can help each other. But if you divide the land and work individually, and something goes wrong, who will you turn to?"

"Exactly, without any rules, how do we divide fertile and infertile land? By drawing lots or using lotteries? Wouldn't that create chaos?" someone worriedly echoed.

Chen Yongqiang listened silently to the arguments around him, and he had already made up his mind: he supported the household responsibility system.

If he continues to rely on the communal system, his system space will have little room to function.

Chen Yongqiang knew better than anyone that dividing the land and farming individually was an inevitable trend; it was just a matter of when.

But he didn't rush to express his opinion; he simply stood quietly in the crowd, observing everyone's reaction.

Yang Dahai pressed his hands down:

"Ladies and gentlemen! Quiet down and listen to me!"

"The household responsibility system and the division of land for individual farming were not decisions I made on a whim, nor were they forced orders from above."

"In Xiaogang Village, they secretly divided the land by pressing their fingerprints, and the grain yield doubled that year! How could that be fake?"

"I didn't call you all here today to listen to me chant sutras. It's so that everyone in the village can decide their own future! Those who agree on the division, tell me how it should be divided fairly."

"Draw lots!" someone shouted from the crowd.

"Whether a field is fertile or poor depends on luck; nobody can blame anyone else! It's fair!"

"Yes! By drawing lots! It's all up to God!" Several people who usually couldn't do much manual labor at home immediately chimed in.

For them, the lottery meant an opportunity—a chance to snag that coveted piece of prime riverside land that everyone wanted.

The old man was so angry his beard trembled. "Land is the lifeblood of farmers, how can it be treated like a game? The yield difference between fertile and barren land is huge. By drawing lots? Those with good luck will grin from ear to ear, but those who draw poor land on the mountain ridge will starve! Isn't this just creating conflict!"

"Then how do you suggest we divide it? By headcount? By work points? Or by those old accounts in your accounting books?" He Jun retorted sarcastically.

The courtyard immediately erupted into chaos again.

Some insisted on distributing the land according to the existing labor force, some demanded it be distributed equally among the population, and others brought up old grievances, saying how much effort each family had put into reclaiming the land back then.

Both sides have their own reasons, and neither can convince the other.

Looking at the arguing crowd below, Yang Dahai knew that the land distribution issue would not be resolved today.

"Alright! Stop arguing!"

"Dividing the land is a major issue. If opinions differ, let's put it aside for now and go back to think it over!"

He then changed the subject: "Regardless of whether the land is divided or not, that irrigation ditch at the entrance of our village must be repaired! It's crucial for watering the crops in the spring; if we delay any longer, no one can expect a good harvest!"

"Starting tomorrow, each household must send at least one able-bodied person! Bring your tools and assemble at the village office!"

Yang Dahai observed everyone's reactions and added, "Repairing the irrigation canal is a matter for the whole village; it concerns the livelihood of every household. Everyone should actively participate. Meeting adjourned!"

As Chen Yongqiang walked home amidst the dispersing crowd, his mind was already racing with plans.

"I have to spend all my days repairing irrigation ditches, so I can only hunt at night." He planned his nighttime trip into the mountains.

The irrigation canal that the village is going to build this time originates from the Qingba Reservoir at the foot of Qinglong Mountain.

The thought of that vast expanse of water stirred something within Chen Yongqiang.

The reservoir is still collectively owned, but he knows that it won't be long before the authorities open it up to individual contracting.

"Once the policy opens up, we'll fight tooth and nail to get our hands on Qingba Reservoir! Such a great body of water, if we could contract it out to raise fish... that would be a real goose that lays golden eggs."

The thought made his heart flutter, but the most important thing now was to accumulate initial capital as soon as possible. "Contracting a reservoir costs a lot of money, and without money, you can't do anything."

Chen Yongqiang returned to the gate of his own courtyard, but did not rush to go in. Instead, he turned his gaze to a courtyard a few dozen meters away.

That was Old Sun's house next door. He remembered that Old Sun raised a few sheep, so he wanted to go and trade some sheep milk with him to feed the wolf cubs.

The courtyard gate was ajar, and Chen Yongqiang called out twice from outside, "Uncle Sun? Is he home?"

No one answered from inside, but a faint cry of a baby could be heard.

Chen Yongqiang hesitated for a moment before pushing open the courtyard gate.

In the courtyard, several baby clothes were hanging out to dry. A young woman wearing a blue and white floral blouse was sitting on a small stool under the eaves with her back to the door, breastfeeding her child, revealing a small section of her fair waist and back.

Hearing footsteps, the woman turned around in a panic and hurriedly pulled down her clothes to cover herself.

Upon seeing something he shouldn't have, Chen Yongqiang immediately turned his face away and said in a deep voice, "I'm sorry, I'm looking for Uncle Sun."

The woman was Wang Juan, the daughter-in-law whom the Sun family had married into last year. Chen Yongqiang would only greet her politely when he ran into her, and they weren't really familiar with each other.

Wang Juan straightened her clothes and replied, "He went to herd sheep. What do you need him for?"

Chen Yongqiang hesitated for a moment before asking for goat milk, but ended up saying the wrong thing.

"I want to trade some milk with Uncle Sun."

Upon hearing this, Wang Juan's face immediately turned red: "Huh?"

Chen Yongqiang realized he had said the wrong thing: "I wanted goat's milk, not yours!"