Claiming Idle Non-arable Land Resources

The brigade captain's house was no different from anyone else's. It was made of stone, too, though its roof tiles were newer and more neatly arranged, and dried fish still hung beneath the eaves.

Aqi was playing by the door. When he saw him, his eyes lit up and he came racing over. "Uncle Haichao, what brings you here? Grandpa, Uncle Haichao's here!"

After calling out, the boy eagerly led him to a stool by the door and sat him down, then pulled some peanuts from his pocket and placed them in his palm.

"Uncle Haichao, have some peanuts. My mom just boiled them. They're really tasty."

"You're treating me to peanuts? That's awfully kind of you. You eat them."

"You're a guest, so go ahead and eat. We have lots and lots more at home. I'll go get some." With that, he dashed off.

The plump peanuts were still warm in Chen Haichao's hand. He didn't stand on ceremony and shelled one to try it.

When Brigade Captain Wang heard his grandson calling, he came out at once, beaming. "Haichao, you're here? Has your family finished cooking New Year's Eve dinner? Your auntie just stewed a pot of pig's trotters. I'll have her put some in a bowl for you to take home later, so you'll have another hearty dish."

"No need, Brigade Captain. That's very kind of you, but I just wanted to ask about a policy."

"Oh? What do you want to know?"

"I wanted to ask, as long as it doesn't interfere with my work for the brigade, could I contract some idle wasteland on the shore or the village's abandoned old salt fields? That should count as developing a sideline too, shouldn't it? Would it be allowed?"

He had mentioned the wasteland on the shore so he wouldn't seem too intent on the old salt fields. If it really was allowed, he could say he would take a look before deciding.

Brigade Captain Wang was a little surprised, then sank into thought. "What made you want to contract a beach or salt fields all of a sudden? Those old salt fields have been abandoned for ages and are falling apart. Don't tell me you want to make salt yourself?"

"My family's too poor. My sisters will all be getting married one after another, and by next year, I'll probably be the only young worker left in the family. My parents aren't in very good health, and there are still two little ones to raise. We have to find a way to bring in more income; we can't just rely on the few work points we get from the brigade."

"These are considered good years. Every year, our work points can still be exchanged for a little money. If it were a bad year, we might work the whole year and still end up owing the brigade."

"Even though we can still get a little money at the end of the year now, it has to last into the next year. Before that year is even over, we have to go around borrowing money again."

Brigade Captain Wang nodded. "That's true. Ten-odd years ago, a whole year's work wasn't enough to put food on the table, and every family ended up owing the brigade grain."

"Your parents dote on their children, too. Even with so many mouths to feed, they kept sending their girls to school, doing their best to let them study if they wanted to. Otherwise, you wouldn't be this poor."

"Who else would let their girls study so much? At most, they'd go to elementary school for a few years and learn to read. The more hard-hearted ones wouldn't let them go to school at all. They'd keep them home to work and earn work points, saving on tuition and avoiding the loss of those points."

Chen Haichao sighed. "That's why we're poor. My sisters feel guilty about spending so much of the family's money on school and missing out on work, so they all want to help the family for a few more years and earn some work points to support the little ones."

"I was also thinking that the policy seems to allow families to develop sidelines. Other places seem to contract out wasteland and barren hills, so couldn't we learn from them?"

"Of course, it definitely can't interfere with brigade work. I know what matters most. Collective work is the foundation; a personal sideline is just a little extra on the side. We have to put the collective first."

"When the time comes, whatever the shore or the old salt fields produce will definitely be sold to the commune's aquatic products station in the collective's name, fulfilling the collective's sideline sales quota."

Brigade Captain Wang frowned and pondered the whole time. After Chen Haichao finished, he paused for a long while before saying, "We can talk about production and sales quotas later. I need to think about it first. As for contracting, we don't have any local policy explicitly allowing it, so we can't just blunder ahead."

Chen Haichao looked helpless. Policy came before everything.

"Let me think. We can't 'divide up cultivated land or contract the big fields out to households,' but for non-arable land like tidal flats or abandoned old salt fields, an application under a different name should be possible..."

He was instantly delighted. "Under what name?"

"Claiming the brigade's idle wasteland on the shore, claiming non-arable land resources, sideline management and upkeep, or fixed targets with a bonus. Those terms should work."

"I remember that Document No. 75 from not long ago said that, provided the production team maintains unified accounting, doesn't split up its main fishing or farming operations, and ensures attendance for work points, it's permissible to run diverse operations and develop sidelines. It doesn't count as a capitalist tail, and it doesn't count as dividing the land for individual farming."

"Later, I'll find the document and read it more carefully to see exactly what name we should use for the arrangement. We mustn't violate policy. Everything has to be done according to policy; the eyes of the masses are sharp."

Fixed targets with a bonus could mean "three fixed targets and a bonus": fixed output, labor, and costs, with a bonus for exceeding the output target.

"Four fixed targets and a bonus" generally meant fixed land, output, work points, and costs, with a bonus for exceeding the output target.

There were also five fixed targets and a bonus.

Chen Haichao was all smiles. "All right, then. Once work starts again, sorry to trouble you to find the document and take a look, Brigade Captain. I'm in no hurry. It's New Year's Eve, after all, and coming over was a bit of an imposition. It's just that I'm the kind of person who acts right away; once I thought of it, I wanted a clear answer."

"Ho ho, it's all right. We're not busy on New Year's Eve, either. If you have any questions, you can come ask me anytime. You can come for a chat even if there's nothing the matter. It's no trouble. Your whole family is hardworking, so life won't be bad for you in the future. Once your younger brothers and sisters grow up, your parents will be able to enjoy the good life, too."

"I hope so. Being a little poor isn't frightening; what's frightening is being so poor there's nothing to look forward to."

"That won't happen. Life gets better year by year now, and the country is always thinking of the working people at the bottom, hoping everyone can have enough to eat and warm clothes to wear."

"Ha ha, if there's nothing else, I'll head back. I won't disturb your New Year's celebrations."

Brigade Captain Wang caught hold of him and said with a smile, "Wait..."

"Aqi, go tell your grandma to put some pig's trotters in a bowl for your Uncle Haichao to take home."

"Right away!" Aqi called eagerly as he ran toward the house. "Grandma, put some pig's trotters in a bowl for Uncle Haichao! Grandpa said so, and make it a big serving! Put in lots! Lots of meat!"

Chen Haichao couldn't help laughing. This kid was worth getting to know! Generous! Openhanded!

He politely protested, "No, no need. We have fish and meat at home, and shrimp, crabs, snails, shellfish-the works. It's already a feast. There's no need to add another hearty dish; we won't finish it. You should keep it for yourselves."

"It's fine. You don't have to stand on ceremony with your uncle. We stewed a whole pig's trotter, a great big pot of it."

Just then, Li Lanxiang came out carrying a huge bowl filled to the brim with pig's trotters. Smiling, she said, "Hurry and take it home to eat while it's hot. You can return the bowl later."

Aqi said, "Uncle Haichao, eat lots. I told Grandma to give you more meat, piled high."

"Thank you. Then I won't stand on ceremony?"

"I want to go play with the twins. Can I come with you? Their Xiao Ba is so cute."

"Sure. When you've had enough fun, you can bring the bowl back with you."

"Okay, okay!"

The pig's trotters smelled wonderful. Chen Haichao took the bowl. "I'll be going, then. Thanks very much."

Tears wet the rice with pig's trotters, and he swore to earn a million!

As he walked, he kept breathing in the scent of the meat, nearly dazed by its fragrance. Children by the roadside kept sniffing, their mouths almost watering.