“Hey, what did Brother Ding say? In fact, it doesn’t matter. I just think that Brother Ding is an expert and I want to ask Brother Ding to give me some advice.” Ye Xiaoming said quickly.
"I just want the villagers to make some money and live a better life. Brother Ding, you are a capable person from the capital. Can you help me with some ideas?" Feng Shijie also said.
Xiang Nan nodded, "Without investigation, you have no right to speak. So, if you have time, let's go to Wangmiao Village first to understand the situation."
“Okay.” Feng Shijie and Ye Xiaoming said immediately.
Xiang Nan then bought some braised pork, side dishes, beer, etc. at the food street at the entrance, and drove Feng Shijie and Ye Xiaoming to Wangmiao Village.
“It’s so comfortable to ride in a luxury car, and it’s not even bumpy on such a rough road.” Feng Shijie said with emotion.
He has been repairing cars for more than ten years. This is the first time he has ridden in such a good car. It feels really different. The suspension is really good.
Ye Xiaoming was also filled with emotion.
Such a good car, he may never be able to afford it in his life.
…
After arriving in Wangmiao Village, Xiang Nan drove the car to his parents' home according to Feng Shijie's instructions.
“Mr. Ding, these two are my parents.” Feng Shijie introduced.
“Uncle, aunt~” Xiang Nan greeted politely.
“Mom and Dad, this is Mr. Ding from Beijing.” Feng Shijie introduced again.
His parents didn't know who Xiang Nan was, but since they were their son's friends, they were naturally very enthusiastic and asked Xiang Nan to sit down.
Feng Shijie gave the food and wine Xiang Nan bought to his mother and asked her to go to the kitchen to take care of it. He also asked his father to invite a few people.
Those people are all his good friends, and they are all honest and responsible villagers. They come to drink with Xiang Nan to entertain him, and to talk about the situation in the village.
Although he cares about Wangmiao Village and has never forgotten his duty, after all, he has settled in the city and cannot stay in the village for more than a few days throughout the year, so he does not have a deep understanding of the situation in the village.
“Brother Ding, let’s go for a walk in the village before everyone arrives?” Feng Shijie said with a smile again.
Xiang Nan nodded and walked around the village accompanied by Feng Shijie.
Wangmiao Village is not big, with only about a hundred households, and it takes less than fifteen minutes to go around. The roads in the village are full of potholes, and most of the houses are low and dilapidated. Even in the new century, many people don't even have TVs in their homes.
This can be seen from the antenna mast. At the beginning of the new century, when cable TV and Internet TV were not yet popular, rural areas needed to use antennas to watch TV and receive signals.
The antenna must be placed on a pole and erected high to better receive TV signals. Therefore, as long as there is an antenna pole in the yard, you can know whether there is a TV at home.
Xiang Nan was also born in the 1980s and grew up in a rural area. As far as he knew, at the beginning of the new century, although his village was not very wealthy, every household had a TV. Black and white TVs were also phased out, and color TVs began to become popular.
Hence, the poverty in Wangmiao Village is more serious than he thought.
…
“Are there any skilled people in the village?” Xiang Nan asked.
"These are the people I just found." Feng Shijie said quickly, "Zhou Guozheng, Wu Zhiming and Li Tiejun are good at carpentry work. Zhiming's skills are better. Guozheng used to work in the sand foundry in the county, but later the factory closed down. I'm back. I heard that he has good skills and is the backbone of the factory.
Then there is Uncle Liu from the east end of the village. He used to work as a lathe in the Gucheng Machinery Repair Factory. He retired long ago and is now farming at home. "
“Well, what do these people have to do with you?” Xiang Nan asked again.
"Okay, I'll invite Uncle Liu here soon." Xiang Nan ordered.
Feng Shijie nodded. When the two returned to Feng Shijie's home, they saw that those people had been invited.
The dining table was also set up in the courtyard, and wine and food were served.
"Brother Ding is my friend. He came from the capital. I want to find someone to drink and chat with, so I invited you here." Feng Shijie said with a smile, "Let's have a good drink with Brother Ding. Drink as much as you can, but not as little as you can." drink."
When everyone heard this, they naturally agreed.
“Brother Ding, sit down, let’s drink first.” Feng Shijie greeted.
"No hurry, wait for Uncle Liu." Xiang Nan waved his hand, and then dispersed the cigarettes he brought to everyone.
Although he is not a big smoker, he always carries a pack with him in case of emergencies.
After all, in this society, tobacco and alcohol are very practical communication tools.
Sure enough, after a circle of smoke was dispersed and the smoke was puffed out, everyone's relationship became closer unconsciously.
…
After a while, Uncle Liu arrived and the banquet officially began.
“Come on, let’s raise a toast together, let’s do it first~” Feng Shijie greeted.
Everyone raised their glasses and drank one.
Xiang Nan personally poured it on Uncle Liu and asked with a smile, "Uncle, how are your health and bones?"
“It’s not bad, I can still do some farm work.” Uncle Liu agreed.
“I heard that I used to be a lathe worker. How many years have you been working?” Xiang Nan asked again.
“I started working as an apprentice at the age of sixteen and worked until I retired. If I had no other skills, I would do this.” Uncle Liu said with a smile, he was quite proud of his skills.
Xiang Nan nodded, "How is the income from farming?"
“It’s not that good. The average person has less than two acres of land. They are busy all year long and the food they produce is barely enough to eat.” Uncle Liu waved his hand.
“That’s right, it’s not profitable to farm now. You have to spend money on this and that. After we finish the calculation, it’s good to be able to make a living.” Wu Zhiming curled his lips and said, “It’s better to go out and work.”
"It's not possible to work part-time. Don't say you can't find a job. Even if you find a job, you may not be able to get paid." Li Tiejun waved his hand, "I worked outside for three years, and in the end I didn't lose anything. I might as well stay in the village, anyway. And the food is hot in your mouth."
“Made, you are young and have no use for your arms. What’s the big deal?” Zhou Guozheng said angrily.
“I heard from Shijie that you were working in the sand foundry in the county, but you have nothing to stop working at?” Xiang Nan asked again.
“Hey, the factory is gone.” Zhou Guozheng explained, “How can the state-owned sand foundry in the county produce ordinary agricultural machinery and tools and compete with other private sand foundries?
It's not precision casting, nor is it high-tech. People set up a shed and set up a stove in a private yard, and they just scraped together 10,000 or 20,000 yuan to start it. How big is the stall of the state-owned factory? Originally, the officials worked more and the workers worked less. If the workers did not work hard, what do you think the cost would be? Who will buy your stuff? It would be strange not to close the door. "
Xiang Nan nodded.
“Brother Ding, don’t just chat, eat food.” Feng Shijie greeted.
Xiang Nan nodded while picking up some dishes, but the focus was still on understanding the situation in the village.
Poverty alleviation is not an easy task, and a large amount of detailed research must be done to formulate accurate plans accordingly.
Otherwise, a slight difference would be a huge mistake. At that time, not only the people will be deceived, but even oneself will be deceived.