Transmigration: On the Gossip Front
Chapter 508 - 509 Sister Flowers Educated Youth 26_1

Chapter 508: Chapter 509 Sister Flowers Educated Youth 26_1

Commander Guo thought that the autumn harvest would start at the beginning of September and be finished by early October, since their location was relatively far north.

Although there were machines, a significant amount of manual labor was still needed.

His idea was, if possible, to finish the house construction before the harvest began. As for the kang and such, they didn’t need to rush that much.

Once Commander Guo said this, everyone who had been thinking of complaining stopped in their tracks, no longer daring to grumble.

If they didn’t work hard, there was a real possibility that they would have nowhere to live by winter.

No longer complaining, everyone followed the lead of the old educated youth with construction experience and began working efficiently.

Commander Guo and the others were very satisfied when they saw that those who had complained were now hustling to work.

"That’s how it should be," he said. Telling them to work hard was not as effective as letting them understand the consequences of not taking their work seriously.

Feng Dan now hoped everyone would work quickly. "I wonder if the other teams will send people to help out."

"How should I know?" Shen Jie said so, but deep down, she felt it was improbable they would receive help.

She had heard old educated youth say that they had been reclaiming wasteland recently. Not only the new teams but also the existing ones had opened up quite a bit of wasteland.

Every team had new members, for whom they also needed to build new houses and tend to the crops.

Even though they were all part of the farm, Shen Jie felt there must be some internal competition.

"Who knows when it will be our turn," Feng Dan said, trying to appear calm, but the prospect of living without a house was no laughing matter.

Yesterday, Shen Jie had climbed to the top of the small mound. It wasn’t very high, being a modest mound, and she didn’t know whether it was natural or made from piled-up soil from excavation.

All she could say was that the area wasn’t large, and it got smaller toward the top, so the houses built there would probably not be very big.

Of course, these were just her assumptions. How the construction would actually take place would be up to the leaders’ decisions.

So, with the men laying the groundwork for the houses and the women weeding, they finally reached the end of August.

The parcels mailed from home had also been received. Taking advantage of the good weather, she could air out her quilts and other items properly.

In the Northeast, the weather could cool down suddenly, and to avoid waking up from the cold, it was essential to prepare early.

Looking at the construction site on the small mound again, Shen Jie sighed. Despite everyone working overtime, even with some teams coming to help, it was overwhelming for a brand-new team starting from scratch.

Feng Dan also looked worriedly at the houses across the way, "Xiao Jie, do you think we’ll make it in time?"

"We definitely will," Shen Jie said confidently. "The biggest issue might be that we end up on the top."

No one wanted to be at the very top. The daily commute, especially up and down the hill, involved a long walk.

"I’m thinking, maybe by the time it’s our turn, the rooms won’t be too big. Probably just enough for two people to share one room."

If that were the case, she would be truly happy, overjoyed in fact.

Two people per room? Although Shen Jie had been unhappy about the daily trek up and down the mound, the prospect of sharing a room with just one other person lifted her spirits considerably.

"Really? Can it really happen?" If that were true, it would indeed be great news.

"I’m just guessing," said Shen Jie, looking at Feng Dan’s cheerful face. She really worried about how deflated the girl would be if it turned out not to be true.

Huo Lei and Zhao Yu were also lying on their beds, pondering, "Do you think we’ll be assigned houses now or later?" Zhao Yu’s hope, of course, was the sooner, the better.

Although there were definitely houses, when to move in was a big question.

But how to make the decision really wasn’t something he could decide on his own; he still had to ask Huo Lei.

"It depends on whether you want to live in a double room or a quadruple room." Huo Lei knew how Zhao Yu would choose, but he let him decide for himself.

"Of course, a double room." When they started work, they had often heard their coworkers complaining about roommates snoring.

Having already feared living in a quadruple room, Zhao Yu was now even more panicked.

"Then you’ll get a house later." Huo Lei knew he needed to explain the reason, or Zhao Yu would certainly make a fuss.

He slowly explained his reasoning, "Of course, this is just my guess. You can check it out for yourself."

Zhao Yu thought for a moment, "Then I’ll follow your advice." Since he was young, he knew and understood one principle—that following Huo Lei was never wrong.

"Do you think we should give Shen Jie and the others the priority to choose the houses first?" With so many educated youth, their relationship with them was still decent.

Would Shen Jie and the others be willing to choose their houses first? Huo Lei thought this possibility was slim, "You ask them."

If his good friend wanted to ask, he would let him do so.

Zhao Yu didn’t understand the deeper meaning behind his friend’s words, but since his friend had said so, he went to Shen Jie and the others the next day.

Shen Jie knew that Huo Lei and his partner worked very hard, sometimes even removing their shirts due to the heat and attracting lots of attention.

Shen Jie had only seen it once or twice and couldn’t help but admire their impressive physiques.

While they didn’t have six-pack abs, at least they didn’t have potbellies—there, the flesh was really firm.

No, that was off-topic. They were kindly asking if she wanted to choose a house early, and her thoughts were wandering off, "We’ll not choose first, let everyone else choose."

"We’ll choose later." It seems everyone is smart, Shen Jie thought it must have been Huo Lei’s idea to choose later.

"Are you choosing later too?" Zhao Yu was startled, "Aren’t you worried?"

"The autumn harvest is coming up soon." Everyone is getting up early to work these days, and as long as it’s visible, they don’t stop working.

There was no choice; the houses weren’t built yet, and everyone was worried that if they didn’t work hard, the houses they just got allocated might slip away.

"That’s possible, after the harvest we can build the houses." Shen Jie felt maybe they would soon change strategy and build the exteriors of the houses more quickly.

Her only hope was that they wouldn’t rush and compromise the quality of the houses.

Despite everyone rushing, a few houses still weren’t built yet, and the autumn harvest was just around the corner.

Commander Guo looked at the empty foundations of the houses and wondered what to do, "Get the houses built."

"As for the kang and whatnot, no rush." A kang needs to be heated, then the bricks must dry thoroughly; otherwise, it’s bad for one’s health to sleep on it.

In the past, every time a house was finished, they would also complete the kang and the drain in the side room, which was used for bathing or as a place for a toilet.

This supporting facility, thought of during house construction and costing a few extra bricks, allowed girls to bathe at home when it was hot.

This kind of facility, of course, was welcomed by both the old and new educated youth, and Commander Guo wouldn’t oppose it.

The result was that the already tight construction schedule was delayed once again.

As a result, those who hadn’t been allocated houses were understandably nervous, and those who had already received houses, they were even more afraid to slack off.