Chapter 2 Stepsister Arrives

"I don't understand anything. After all, I've been in the art troupe all my life. I'm completely in the dark when I came here." Su Xiangxiu's voice was just outside the door. It still sounded so sweet, like the singing of an oriole.

"In order to welcome you girls from the Shanghai Art Troupe, we have prepared bunk beds. Come in quickly," Zhu Xiaojie said enthusiastically.

"A big bunk bed? Then all the sisters can squeeze together and chat. Hehe, so happy." Xiangxiu's voice was a little puzzled: "But where is my sister? I really miss her so much, but why doesn't she come out to greet me?"

"Comrade Xiangxiu, since you are from the art troupe, we have separately arranged dormitories for you. You don't need to live with everyone else. Come with me." It was Feng Mingxun's voice, still so low and hoarse, and full of masculine majesty.

"But I haven't seen my sister yet. I have to meet my sister first." It was Xiangxiu's voice again.

But then Feng Mingxun's voice came: "You can see her tomorrow. The production task is too heavy. We urgently need your help."

"Okay then. I'll listen to my leader." With that, the two of them left in the wind and snow.

One can imagine how restrained and introverted Feng Mingxun would be at this moment.

Of course, he always wore a Zhongshan suit with the buttons tied tightly. His handsome face was so elegant that he looked like he had walked out of a landscape painting from the Republic of China.

I still remember that in the first life, when the two of them worked together, Xiangyu had a meeting with Feng Mingxun at night. She was attracted by his gentle and plump face, who was only 28 years old.

Or maybe it was his erudite, wise, and determined thoughts that infected her, for when she couldn't help but kiss him, he actually slapped the table.

"Su Xiangyu, can you put your personal feelings aside and focus on production and construction?" he said angrily.

She felt so ashamed at that time. The 400 million people in China still couldn't get enough food. People in Shanghai and other big cities in the capital were working diligently and were waiting for this group of enthusiastic female educated youth to donate food from the border town. But what was she doing? She was actually thinking about defiling the person she admired the most.

That day, Feng Mingxun sent her to the Harlin Ranch, the farthest ranch under the farm, and asked her to herd sheep on the ranch for a day in the wind and snow.

The wind was so strong and the snow was blowing so hard.

"How many people are still hungry? Our country has only been established for a few years. If we don't hurry up to develop production, how many people will starve? How can we strengthen our army and country and expand our motherland?" Thinking of Feng Mingxun's firm admonition in her mind, Xiangyu lost her way in the wind and snow.

That day, several employees from the chemical plant secretly went out hunting and came across her fainted in the snow and rescued her.

It was not until later that Xiangyu accidentally discovered that Xiangxiu could eat unlimited eggs from the farm and had brown sugar and white sugar at any time, but they had to use extremely stupid and even cheap labor to exchange for these things. Only then did she realize that Feng Mingxun's firmness and principles were nothing in front of Xiangxiu.

I finally finished reading the section about temperature in "How to Make Hens Lay More Eggs in Winter". I took out my precious hot water bag and filled it with water boiled by Zhu Xiaojie. This bag of water could warm the cold sweet potatoes in her stomach and make her feel more comfortable for at least half a night.

[Now take over the chicken coop and start raising chickens.] The system continued to issue its orders.

Su Xiangyu then closed the book and put it into her schoolbag, and prepared to go find her current fiancé, Feng Mingxun, the farm's production director.

"Have you heard that Su Xiangxiu, the little star of the Shencheng Art Troupe, is also coming to our farm to work in the border areas?" On the way, some confused female educated youth were discussing this.

"I heard that she came to cut in line on her own initiative because she missed her sister Xiangyu so much." Someone else said.

Xiangyu sneered in her heart, thinking that this kind of words can only be used to deceive ghosts.

In fact, there is no blood relationship between Su Xiangxiu and Su Xiangyu. Her biological father is said to be the driver of Du Yuesheng, a famous gangster in Shanghai in the old society. He died of illness shortly after liberation.

It just so happened that Su Xiangyu's biological mother also died of illness, so Su Xiangxiu's biological mother and Su Xiangyu's father started a new family.

Both of them drank Erguotou. When they started a new family, stepmother Yue Hongling changed Su Xiangxiu's surname to Su because she was afraid that the background of Su Xiangxiu's biological father would affect her daughter.

The first time they cut in line, it was Su Xiangxiu who got the lottery, but her stepmother begged her, and her father was a stepfather after having a stepmother, so Su Xiangyu was allowed to come in Su Xiangxiu's place.

Now, the reason why Su Xiangxiu brought several girls from the art troupe to the border town to settle down and work in the countryside was simply because the organization found out her background and she had to come down.

Is it an accident? A surprise?

Feng Mingxun hid Xiangxiu's file very well, fearing that others would know about it.

Who could have imagined that he, the director of a production farm, with so many educated youth looking up to him as a guiding light, could love a little girl so humbly.

But unfortunately, Su Xiangxiu would never marry him. After leaving the farm, she had several romances, and each time the men died for her, lived for her, and even banged their heads against the wall for her.

Until one day, Su Xiangyu's professor went into business, and her husband, who had a neat temperament, gentle and handsome appearance, met Su Xiangxiu and fell in love with her at first sight.

So, he decisively took away all the capital of the two without Su Xiangyu's knowledge and gave it all to Su Xiangxiu. Then, he became her husband from Su Xiangxiu's brother-in-law, ending Su Xiangxiu's romantic life where everyone loved her and flowers bloomed wherever she went.

The farm office is also Feng Mingxun's dormitory. Basically, he works here day or night.

"Should I call you brother-in-law or Director Feng? I'm a little embarrassed." Xiangxiu's voice was still sweet, and a little timid.

This kind of timidity made the man want to protect her body, and the relationship between the two people became closer all of a sudden.

Feng Mingxun whispered, "You can't call me brother-in-law, you have to call me Director Feng. Between your sister and I..."

That cold tone, wanting to draw a line in the sand, was vividly conveyed.

There were a few other people in the room, they were office staff. Basically, production tasks were discussed in the office and then instructions were given.

Su Xiangyu was the captain of the female educated youth team on the farm, so she was also qualified to attend the meeting.

"Comrade Su Xiangyu, the comrades from the art troupe brought by your sister are all very enthusiastic and have given us some very useful suggestions." Feng Mingxun raised his head and said when he saw Su Xiangyu come in.

There is another female comrade, Zhu Lin, Feng Mingxun's cousin, who works as a warehouse manager on the farm.

She said, "Yes, the clam oil Xiangxiu brought is particularly useful. Compared with her, Su Xiangyu, you are destined to carry a hoe."

Of course, as the girlfriend of the farm director, Su Xiangyu always gets up earlier than the chickens, sleeps later than the cats, works harder than the cows, and eats worse than the pigs.

For twelve months and fifty-two weeks in a year, Su Xiangyu is always a model worker, and no one can compete with her because of her high level of awareness and hard work.

Feng Mingxun stood up and said, "The most important task for the educated youth on our farm is to dig drainage ditches, but the weather is freezing. The educated youth are enthusiastic, but the earth is ruthless. Once the land is frozen, it cannot be dug. Xiangxiu brought a new idea. She said that we can bring the karez from 30 miles away to the farm, and then use the temperature of the karez groundwater to melt the upper soil, and then dig drainage ditches. How about this idea?"

Of course, he never even glanced at Su Xiangyu, the person he had publicly acknowledged on the farm.

To him, everyone is a screw, including himself, and the goal is labor, production capacity and output.

Only the art troupe brought by Su Xiangxiu was different from the others. She brought him new vitality and hope.

The drainage ditch is like a trench in the border town. Because the soil in the border town is highly alkaline, there must be a deep drainage ditch next to each piece of land to remove the alkali from the soil. The workload of this kind of work is very huge. Even digging in the summer can be exhausting, let alone in winter when the land is completely frozen.

Recently, Su Xiangyu was almost driven crazy by digging drainage ditches. Most of the female educated youth were already tired and cold, numb, and didn't even notice that their noses and ears were frozen and rotten, and their whole bodies were covered with frostbite.

"I don't agree." Just when everyone present thought that Su Xiangyu would also applaud Xiangxiu's new idea, she said this.

Xiangxiu's face immediately darkened, and even Feng Mingxun's face darkened: "Comrade Su Xiangyu, what's wrong with you? Do you have a better idea?"

"Digging drainage ditches in winter is unscientific in itself. We only had 15 kilograms of fine grains and 15 kilograms of coarse grains a month, and we didn't even have cotton-padded clothes and cotton shoes. The male educated youth couldn't bear carrying hoes and fighting the frozen ground every day, let alone the female educated youth. Digging drainage ditches is tiring enough, and adding digging karez is double the workload. The educated youth simply couldn't bear it." said Su Xiangyu.

After hearing this, Xiangxiu immediately stretched out her hands and said, "Sister, the girls in our art troupe are not afraid of hard work. We are the new generation that grew up in the new society. We will dedicate our sweat and youth to the country just like you, really."

Feng Mingxun's face gradually turned green, and he tapped his hands on the table: "Su Xiangyu, you are afraid of suffering and exhaustion, and want to avoid labor. The educated youth are not afraid of being tired, but you are tired? Think about it, if we don't work and have no output, how can the organization support us? Pay attention to your consciousness and your thoughts."

Yes, he always doubted her.

Even though she was hit on the head and bleeding from hail while trying to rescue corn that was crushed by hail, in his opinion, since she shed blood and sweat but no tears, she was only barely qualified in terms of thinking.

But it was this kind of person who would brave the wind and snow to go to the county town to find Huangfu to reduce the inflammation for Su Xiangxiu just because she broke a finger.

It was because Xiangxiu was so fragile, helpless and desperate: "Am I going to die, brother-in-law? I'm so afraid that I will die and not see you and my sister get married."

What do you mean by sharing hardships and struggles? In the eyes of men, women who know how to act coquettishly have the best life.

The oil Zhulin put on her hands smelled like the clam oil Su Xiangxiu brought from Shencheng. It smelled delicious.

Of course, she was also the one who always looked down on Su Xiangyu the most.

In her opinion, among the 500 female educated youth on the farm, if you, Su Xiangyu, can become the partner of my Feng Mingxun, you should work in the fields until you die of exhaustion. It would be your honor.

"Comrade Su Xiangyu, if you want to be lazy just say so. At least I, like all the educated youth, have the enthusiasm and confidence to reclaim another 2,000 acres of fertile land before spring comes. I won't lie there and think that just because I'm the director's girlfriend I can rest easy like a wealthy capitalist lady." Zhu Lin said sarcastically.

After reading "How to Make Hens Lay More Eggs in Winter", Su Xiangyu said: "We can engage in animal husbandry, such as raising chickens. If the farm can provide 5,000 kilograms of eggs to the organization in a month, the significance and value of its labor will be much greater than digging drainage ditches."

"You're kidding, Su Xiangyu, letting hens lay eggs in winter," Zhu Lin said sternly.

Feng Mingxun also said: "It goes against common sense in physics. It is simply impossible."

"I have my own method, and I hope you will listen to it," said Su Xiangyu.

Zhu Lin said sternly, "Then you can raise them yourself. There are almost no eggs in the chicken coop now. If you can really make the hens lay eggs in winter, I will respect you. If not, Su Xiangyu, I tell you that all your accumulated honors will be revoked by the farm. We have the right to do this."

Outside the office is the honor column, and in the honor column, a row of small red flowers are pasted next to Su Xiangyu's name.

These little red flowers can be exchanged for the qualification to return to the city first in the future, or for a pass to be arranged for priority in work. If they are really revoked, it means that Su Xiangyu's two years of work on the farm have been in vain.

Let me ask her, does she dare to make a bet?

Everyone was silent. Suddenly, Su Xiangxiu pouted her red lips and said, "Let's listen to my sister. My sister is angry."