Chapter 259 Calcium Carbide Lamps and Rural Food Rations and Income Structure

yard.

Although the child stopped twitching, Wang Mengde found that there were a lot of black spots in his nose, which made him feel uneasy.

Could it be that he has some other illness?

He moved quickly and stretched out his hand to take the patient's pulse.

Seeing that his expression was not right, Tian Laba was also startled. He quickly squatted down and carefully observed his grandson's nostrils.

After taking a look, he smiled and said, "Meng De, it's okay. The dirt in your nostrils is because there was a power outage at home these days. We lit a kerosene lamp at night and he was close to it, so it was blackened.

I usually like to be careless when washing my face, and maybe some snot came out just now, and it stuck together, so there is this black stuff."

As he said that, he didn't mind the dirtiness and stretched out his fingers to poke directly into the nostrils of the little dog, and then two pieces of black dirt came out.

The production team in Shahe Commune had access to electricity last year.

However, the weather is hot in the summer, electricity consumption increases dramatically, and priority must be given to supplying industry, so power outages are common.

In a month, we have to stop at least a dozen times, and sometimes even for two or three days at a time. Everyone is used to it.

In fact, in this era, not to mention in rural areas, even in cities, it is normal to have power outages every now and then.

Including the most important cities like Beijing, there are several times every month.

If there was no power outage in a certain month, everyone would be surprised and would inevitably complain about it.

After hearing his words, and considering that there was no other problem with Xiaogoudan's pulse, Wang Mengde breathed a sigh of relief: "It's good that everything is fine."

"Tian Laba, didn't the commune distribute calcium carbide lamps before? They don't have any ash when lit, and you don't need to buy kerosene. Why are you so wasteful and actually light a kerosene lamp at home?"

Seeing that Xiaogoudan was fine, Wang Tianshi finally put her mind at ease. She turned her attention to other things and took the opportunity to criticize Tian Laba.

The so-called calcium carbide lamp is an item unique to this era.

This is a lamp that does not require oil or electricity to illuminate. You just need to put some stones and drip some water into it, and it will keep glowing.

Such a magical lighting lamp is also called Gas lamp.

The luminous principle of calcium carbide lamp is to use calcium carbide (chemical name is calcium carbide) to react with water to generate acetylene, which burns and emits light after being ignited.

Its structure is also very simple, consisting of two upper and lower chambers and an air outlet, and can even be cast directly from pig iron.

When electric lights were not yet popular, it was the "hero" that brought light to thousands of households.

Before and after liberation, there was a shortage of kerosene in the country, let alone electric lights.

This type of lamp is used for lighting in the vast rural areas and in the homes of citizens in some towns.

Of course, this calcium carbide lamp is not without its shortcomings.

To sum up, the main problem is that the water intake is not easy to control.

If the water inlet valve is opened too wide, excessive water will produce a large amount of acetylene, and the gas will be discharged from the water inlet valve, causing bubbling.

At the same time, since calcium carbide often contains a lot of impurities, the acetylene gas produced is impure. When it burns, it will have an unpleasant odor and sometimes even catch fire.

Some improper operations result in acetylene being discharged only from the lamp holder hole, making a squeaking sound, and the force causes many lamp holders to bulge.

Of course, despite its many shortcomings, it is still a treasure for rural residents.

When Wang Hao and Wang Mengde were young, they often read and studied under the calcium carbide lamp.

In the courtyards of Nanluoguxiang, a small number of residents still use this instead of kerosene when there is a power outage.

A representative example is Yan Bugui's family.

Until the 1970s and 1980s, many areas were still using it. When electric lights became popular and kerosene was in stable supply, the calcium carbide lamp gradually disappeared from the stage of history.

“Hey, I still have some kerosene left at home, and I’m afraid it will fly away if I don’t use it for a long time.

Sister, I will pay attention in the future. When the kerosene at home runs out, I will not buy more and will use calcium carbide lamps for lighting. "

Tian Laba scratched his head a little embarrassedly, then said with a smile.

In fact, he couldn't stand the stench. Every time he lit the fire for a long time, he would vomit, so he reluctantly spent money to buy some kerosene and light it at home.

But now he didn't dare to argue with Wang Tian.

Not to mention that the Wang family has become wealthy now and several members of the family are workers. Even his eldest grandson is still relying on Wang Mengde for treatment.

"Humph, save some money. Puppy Egg will need a lot more money in the future."

Wang Tian was just taking advantage of the situation just now. Seeing that Tian Laba admitted defeat, she gave him some advice.

"Well, I see."

Tian Laba nodded and said, then turned to Wang Mengde:
"By the way, Meng De, you just said that you can cure Xiao Gou Dan's epilepsy.

Please prescribe some medicine for me, I will go to the commune hospital to get it right away."

"Well, Uncle Grandpa, I'll write you a prescription first. You can go to the commune hospital and get the medicine according to the prescription. When you come back, soak the Chinese herbs in warm water for half an hour.

Then don’t pour out the water, just simmer it over low heat, and boil it until the water is about half full.”

As Wang Mengde spoke, he took out a pen and paper from his bag and began to write quickly.

Over the years, he has gained rich experience in treating epilepsy, and the prescriptions he uses are very mature. He can write down the types and dosages of herbs needed without hesitation.

After finishing writing, he pondered for a moment, and then said to Tian Laba:
"Uncle, we need a medicine inducer, which is a hen with white feathers. Stew it into chicken soup. After taking the medicine, drink a bowl of it every half an hour or so.

Remember, hens of other colors will not work, only hens with white feathers will be effective."

In the process of Chinese medicine treatment, many strange medicinal ingredients are needed, some of which are even incredible and incomprehensible.

Only by being familiar with the tricks inside can you understand the mystery.

For example, the medicine he prescribed this time had clear restrictions.

"Ah? You need hens with white feathers? Meng De, how many of these are enough?"

Tian Laba was a little confused, and he asked nervously.

In the 1960s and 1970s, although the rural areas implemented large-scale collectives, they went through several years of difficult times.

The country still encourages farmers to raise poultry and livestock such as chickens, ducks, rabbits, and pigs, and also allows breeders to buy and sell them.

Of course, it is only allowed to be sold to purchasing stations or supply and marketing cooperatives, and not allowed to be sold to middlemen or speculators.

In some areas, farmers are encouraged to sell their agricultural products or poultry and livestock to supply and marketing cooperatives or purchasing stations.

For every few pounds of eggs sold, in addition to the payment according to the purchase price, a certain number of cloth coupons, sugar coupons, etc. were also given.

When you sold a pig to the state (the food station was responsible for purchasing it at that time), you would be given some meat coupons, grain coupons, etc. based on the weight of the pig.

The regulations at that time were that if a farmer raised one pig, he had to sell it to the state; if a farmer raised two pigs, he could slaughter one after selling one to the state.

The interests of the country, the collective and the individual must be taken into account. Of course, the number of chickens and ducks raised cannot exceed the limit. Some regions limit each species to no more than five, while others limit it to seven.

In this day and age, chickens are the farmer's money jar. Oil, salt, sauce and vinegar all depend on eggs. The housewife knows the egg-laying pattern of each hen very well.

If the hen doesn't see eggs on the day it should have laid, people will suspect that they have laid them somewhere else and will look for them in a nearby firewood pile, where they can often find them.

If a chicken has this problem, the housewife will pay special attention to it and observe where it lays eggs.

Tian Laba's family also raised five hens, which they treated very preciously and they would not easily bear to kill them for food.

But for the sake of my grandson's illness, no matter how reluctant I was, I had to grit my teeth and kill it and stew it into soup.

What made him embarrassed was that Wang Mengde had just said that the soup would only be effective if it was made from hens with white feathers.

He thought about it and realized that among the hundreds of households and hundreds of hens in Tiangezhuang, there were only a few white ones.

If only two or three are needed, he would swallow his pride and exchange his own with other families. It was no problem since they were all relatives after all.

But if this is too much, it will be a bit troublesome.

"Uncle, you'll probably need about three. The exact number will depend on how many you need after taking the medicine for a while."

Wang Mengde explained.

"Okay, I'll send the child home later, and then go to the commune to get the medicine."

When Tian Laba heard that only three were needed, he felt relieved.

The three sons have also separated from the family. Each family provides a chicken. If they tighten their belts this year, they can still make ends meet.

As long as my grandson's illness can be cured, it's all worth it.

"Oh, by the way, Uncle, let me tell you something else.

First of all, don't let him climb trees, go to rivers, or go near wells. If he has an attack, tilt his head and pinch the philtrum like this.

By the way, be careful not to eat old sow meat, as it will make you sick. Also, in the afternoon, ask him to come over and give me acupuncture."

Wang Mengde gave further instructions carefully.

Epilepsy is very incompatible with sow meat, so it is necessary to avoid it.

"Okay, I remember."

Tian Laba repeated it twice, and after making sure that nothing was missed, he took the puppy back.

After everyone left, Wang Tian pulled Wang Mengde together and chatted in a low voice.

Mainly asking about the situation of several children.

When he learned that He Shengnan was pregnant again, he was overjoyed and said repeatedly: "Great, great, next year we will have another baby.

When your cousin gets home from get off work tonight, I will urge him to have another child as soon as possible. Meng Qi can also get married in a year or two."

Maybe he was thinking about how the Wang family would become more prosperous in the next two years, so he couldn't help laughing as he spoke.

No wonder she was so happy.

Not to mention now, even in a few decades, in rural areas, you can be poor, but you cannot have no one in your family.

Once there are few people in a family, it is very easy to be bullied.

After a simple lunch at the old man's house and a short rest, I gave Gougoudan acupuncture for another 20 minutes.

Wang Mengde prepared to go back only when the sun was about to set and it was no longer so hot outside.

Village head.

Wang Tianshi and Wang Jinghui accompanied him as he walked slowly forward.

"Grandpa, grandma, it's a little hot outside. You can go back. I'll come again next week."

Wang Mengde saw that their foreheads were covered with sweat and hurriedly tried to persuade them.

He will be giving acupuncture to Gou Goudan next week, so it's a good opportunity for him to come over and spend more time with the two elderly people.

As his grandparents get older, he cherishes the time he can spend with them even more.

"Well, when you come next week, don't bring any more food or provisions, and don't give us any more money. Keep it for yourself. Shengnan is pregnant again, and she needs nutrition right now."

Wang Tian took his hand and spoke in a low voice.

This time, Wang Mengde brought ten kilograms of flour, two canned food, and a can of malted milk given to him by President Lu.

"Grandma, there are many more of these at home. Don't worry, Shengnan won't be treated unfairly."

"Oh, Meng De, this is not the same as the past two years. This year, God is kind to us. The summer grain harvest is very good. When the team distributes the grain, we should save it a little. It will be enough for a year.

Your uncle, aunt, and cousin's wife all earned work points in the production team. Your grandfather and I picked up manure every day, planted vegetables in our private plots, and raised a few chickens and ducks.

The most important thing is that your cousin and his younger cousin both work at the meat processing plant and eat public food. Their lives are much better now than they were a few years ago."

Seeing that he didn't listen to her, Wang Tian hurriedly started counting on her fingers.

In this era, farmers' food rations were divided into three parts:

One portion is the basic food ration, which has nothing to do with whether or not one participates in labor. Both adults and children must be given food according to a certain ratio.

The second portion is the work points and food rations. Whoever works harder gets more work points and more work points and food rations. Whoever works less gets fewer work points and food rations when food is distributed in the fall.

The third part is to look at the amount of fertilizer handed over to the production team. The higher the score for the fertilizer (pig manure, grass ash, manure water, etc.) handed over to the production team, the more food rations you will get.

The three portions added together are all the food rations a family needs in the year.

Combined with some vegetables, fruits, and wild vegetables, although it still can't fill my stomach, it can barely get me by.

It is much better than the difficult period in the past few years.

At the same time, farmers' actual income also mainly comes from three aspects:
The first is the income distributed by the production team based on work points and actual scores; the second is the income from private plots, mainly from growing vegetables, fruits, etc.; and the third is the income from family breeding.

Of course, due to industrialization and other reasons, the actual income in rural areas can be left over very little.

Many members not only made no money throughout the year, but even owed money to the production team.

If a family member is seriously ill, it can be said that the family will not be able to get back on their feet for three to five years.

"Grandma, let me be honest with you. We are in the city. If we were not afraid of the bad influence, we would have no problem eating white flour every meal. We have thousands of dollars in savings at home.

So, you can keep these food and money.

By the way, you must not tell anyone about this, not even to me or the others."

Wang Mengde had no choice but to reveal some of the information.

For fear of scaring his grandparents, he understated the amount of his savings. A few days ago, when chatting with He Shengnan, he learned that the family savings were almost tens of thousands.

(End of this chapter)