As soon as Deputy County Mayor Gu proposed to thank Su Qinghe, Secretary Hao wrote it down. He felt that when he returned to the commune, he should also express gratitude to Su Qinghe on behalf of the commune.
Such a big contribution must be rewarded.
At the moment, they could only show support in the name of the Yellow River Production Team. Guo Changsheng hurriedly searched the office of the production team and found two towels. There wasn’t even an enamel cup...
Secretary Hao frowned when he saw what was brought—it really was shabby.
Deputy County Mayor Gu didn’t think anything was wrong. He used this opportunity to meet his relatives under the pretense of giving thanks. As for formal recognition, the county had already submitted the application. His daughter-in-law’s contribution was so great, it couldn’t be casually erased under his watch.
But this matter couldn’t be rushed. They had to wait until the entire county, and even the entire city, began using this fertilizer. Only then could a formal application be made.
The group of people brought the two towels and a temporary "Ideological and Ethical Model Award" and went together to Lao Su’s house.
At Lao Su’s house, Gao Xiulan was happily talking with her daughter.
She felt both distressed and happy when she learned that her daughter would be studying again. “Later, Mom will cook some meat for you. Your dad sent pork back. Let’s steam rice and eat. He even sent a lot of white rice home.”
Gao Xiulan smiled as she spoke.
Su Qinghe was also very happy to see her mother like this. She now asked the system to deliver things to their house regularly every Thursday—one catty of meat dishes and five catties of rice.
After the mother and daughter finished chatting, they heard a noisy commotion outside.
The two of them hurried out, and as soon as they stepped outside, Sanya ran over. “Milk, Auntie, a lot of people are here!”
Gao Xiulan raised her eyebrows. “What are they doing here? Didn’t I say not to disturb our young crops? Why are they coming here now?”
As she walked out, she saw Deputy County Mayor Gu entering the courtyard. His stern face instantly softened, and a smile bloomed like chrysanthemums. “Oh, aren’t these my in-laws? Long time no see. Look at you, getting more and more energetic—”
Hearing the tone rise and fall, Deputy County Mayor Gu shivered. This was his mother-in-law, after all. He quickly smiled and said, “I came today to thank Comrade Su Qinghe on behalf of the county. Comrade Gao Xiulan, you raised such a good daughter. She brought great benefits to our county. She’s an outstanding comrade!”
Hearing Deputy County Mayor Gu speak in standard Mandarin, Gao Xiulan knew that her in-laws came to show off. She immediately followed his lead. “Deputy County Mayor Gu, you’re right. My girl has been good since she was young. She’s always been selfless. Even if she had food, she wouldn’t eat it herself. She always rushed to help others first…”
Su Qinghe had just stepped out of the house and nearly tripped over the threshold when she heard that. Fortunately, she was holding the doorframe. Her face flushed with embarrassment...
Guo Changsheng couldn’t help but cover his face as he listened.
Deputy County Mayor Gu fully agreed. “That’s right. Qinghe is a good child. Since arriving at our old Gu’s house, she has been hardworking and sincere. Even her influence on my eldest and second sons has made them more active and serious at work.”
He nodded repeatedly. “Thank you, Comrade Gao Xiulan. We all have to thank you.”
Secretary Hao smiled. “Shall we present the award now?”
Guo Changsheng couldn’t bear to listen anymore. He was afraid they might reveal something if this dragged on, so he hurriedly said, “Yes, yes, here are the towels and certificate. Let’s have the county magistrate give them out.”
Gao Xiulan quickly pulled Su Qinghe forward. “Look at my daughter. She’s embarrassed about doing good things. She’s such an honest child.”
Deputy County Mayor Gu smiled. “Comrade Su Qinghe, today we have to rush back to the county to promote the fertilizer, so we didn’t prepare a proper ceremony. But since the commune and production team cadres are all here, we represent everyone in presenting you this certificate. We hope you maintain your noble character and high consciousness.”
Su Qinghe replied solemnly, “I will remember the organization’s teachings, follow the organization’s arrangements, and continue to work hard. I will strive to do even more and do even better.”
No, no, she didn’t want to trigger the task of working hard to upgrade. No… Actually, yes. She still had to try her best to upgrade...
“Well said, well said.” Secretary Hao clapped.
Then he said to Deputy County Mayor Gu, “Lao Su’s family has a glorious history. Comrade Su Qinghe’s father, Comrade Su Dagen, sacrificed his life for the country. Her younger brother is now a militia member in our commune. And now, Comrade Su Qinghe has made another contribution to the people. Truly remarkable.”
“That’s right. Our family is red,” Gao Xiulan said excitedly.
Deputy County Mayor Gu smiled. “The children of heroes are heroes too. They are all good children and good comrades.”
He took the certificate from Guo Changsheng’s hand and presented it to Su Qinghe. Then he handed her the two towels, placed them in her hands, and shook her hand. “Keep working hard! I look forward to the day you realize your dream of saving the dying and healing the wounded.”
Su Qinghe nodded. Deep inside, she wanted to cry. She knew she shouldn’t have bragged...
After the awards and commendation were given out, Gao Xiulan wanted to invite her in-laws to stay for a meal before leaving.
Deputy County Mayor Gu waved his hands. “We really can’t delay. I have to report the fertilizer situation to the county and city. If it goes well, it might even reach the provincial level.”
When Gao Xiulan heard this, she asked, “Then doesn’t that mean the province will have to know about our young crops?”
“Yes,” Deputy County Mayor Gu nodded. “They must.”
Gao Xiulan was momentarily stunned from excitement. She froze for three seconds, then waved her hand immediately. “Go quickly! Don’t delay! Hurry and get to work. Cadres must serve the people.”
Deputy County Mayor Gu: “...”
After returning home at noon, the whole family looked at Su Qinghe with admiration.
Only Su Aidang wasn’t at home. He had gone to the commune to serve as a militia member and would only return late at night.
Gao Xiulan gave Su Qinghe a big piece of meat and said, “Didn’t I say before, your elder sister is both lucky and capable? You didn’t believe me then. Do you believe it now?”
Everyone nodded in agreement. Of course they believed it. Even people in the province needed to know their eldest sister. She was truly amazing.
It was unimaginable!
It turned out that Mom had always been right to be kind to their eldest sister. She favored her for a reason. After all, the eldest sister was capable and cared for the family. If it had been them, they’d do the same.
After lunch, everyone rushed to clean the kitchen without being told.
Su Qinghe was sent to take a nap by Gao Xiulan.
However, Su Qinghe couldn’t sleep. She had to level up quickly. So when the family’s children went out, she got up quietly to start tidying up.
Gao Xiulan had already gone out with her broken enamel cup to brag. At the moment, Da Ya, Er Ya, and San Ya were gathering firewood in the yard. When they saw Su Qinghe get up, Da Ya hurried over and said, “Auntie, just call us if you need something. Why did you get up?”
“It’s alright, you guys keep busy. I’ll find something small to do.”
“No, how can we let Auntie work?” Da Ya said stubbornly. “Milk said that Auntie is capable. Let her have a good rest.”
Er Ya and San Ya also stared at Su Qinghe, not letting her work.
Su Qinghe glanced at the three of them, then said mysteriously, “Auntie is sick. I have to do a little work occasionally to get better. If I don’t work now, I won’t recover.”
No, she wasn’t sick at all. She just didn’t want to be cured!
The three girls believed her immediately. Everything Auntie said in the past had come true. In their hearts, her words were the truth.
So they nodded. “Auntie, we’ll help you work.”
“No need. Just wipe the table or something. You should be learning to write. When things get better next year, you’ll go to school.”
Su Qinghe figured that after the famine, the team would reopen its elementary school.
She’d have to remind Captain Guo when she had the chance.
She had already accumulated five skill points. Cleaning was now a breeze for Su Qinghe.
After working for over an hour, she finally cleaned her room, the hall, and the kitchen yard.
The three girls watched Su Qinghe’s smooth and skillful work in awe.
Auntie was right. She wasn’t lazy. She used to be sick. Otherwise, she could do anything better than anyone.
They had to study hard like Auntie—and work even harder!
“Ding… Congratulations to the host…”
She received a skill point just as she hoped. Su Qinghe looked at the various cleaning supplies in her reward bar with satisfaction.
Just four more...
Early the next morning, Su Qinghe packed up and rushed to the county.
On the road to Hujia County, several vehicles were heading this way.
Everyone from the previous investigation team was there, along with a thin cadre in his fifties, wearing glasses.
The veteran cadre said, “What do you all think of Hujia County’s report? Director Yan, tell us your thoughts.”
“Secretary Jiang, I think Comrade Gu Guodong, who is in charge in Hujia County, is reliable. I believe we can trust him. Let’s conduct a field investigation. If it’s feasible, I suggest first promoting the fertilizer throughout Hujia County, then extending it to nearby regions. For farther areas, let the province decide.”
The others didn’t comment. Even if the fertilizer showed good results here, who could say whether it would work in other places? What if it only worked in Hujia County but didn’t work elsewhere? If there was no harvest, could they blame the fertilizer?
Secretary Jiang nodded. “I heard the fertilizer was discovered by a young comrade from a state-run hotel?”
“Yes, Su Qinghe.”
“This name sounds familiar…” Secretary Jiang thought for a moment.
The secretary beside him said, “She’s the braised pork master I mentioned before.”
“Oh, right! It’s her,” Secretary Jiang said in realization. He looked at Lao Yan. “You brought back the meat last time. Comrade Xu Xiangguo even praised it, saying the braised pork was delicious—fat but not greasy.”
Lao Yan smiled and nodded. “Yes, I was going to bring some home for my wife, but when I got to the office, I ran into the comrades from the province. So we all shared it for lunch.”
Secretary Jiang laughed. “Comrade Xu Zhigang is sharp. After Vice Governor Xu’s praise, he made sure everything returned to normal right away.”
Lao Yan said seriously, “This young comrade is really capable. Comrade Xu Zhigang did a good job this time.”
Everyone laughed. Xu Zhigang was the general manager of the city’s state-run hotel, overseeing all hotels in the counties below. He usually didn’t know much and just relied on experience. He often made jokes, but it didn’t matter during normal times.
Secretary Jiang smiled. “If things go well this time, let’s all try that braised pork Vice Governor Xu praised.”