Early in the morning I rushed to the place where I saw the iron pillar yesterday.

From a distance, I saw someone busy somewhere. When I got closer, I saw that it was Tie Zhu and the others working there.

I hurriedly greeted Tie Zhu warmly. Seeing that he was about the same age as an adult, I called him uncle. "Uncle Tie Zhu, you guys came really early."

Tie Zhu: "Master Mu, it's early for you too."

I felt embarrassed when Uncle Tiezhu called me that, and quickly said: "Uncle Tiezhu, you are the master. I am the apprentice. You call me apprentice."

Tie Zhu smiled, and the others also followed suit: "Old Tie, Master Tie, you have accepted a disciple, I'm afraid you will have to prepare a table of wine for your brothers."

Others said: "If you are afraid of becoming a disciple, you should bring a rooster."

Everyone was laughing and joking, and the atmosphere quickly became harmonious.

Tie Zhu briefly introduced me to everyone, so we got to know each other. Everyone went to work separately.

I saw some bicycles randomly placed on the bank of the river, so I asked, "Do you come to work by bicycle?"

Tie Zhu: "Yeah. We went out before dawn, and it will be almost bright when we ride here."

Me: "Aren't you from Wattang?"

Tiezhu: "Yes, some of us are from Dama Township, some are from Heibao Village, and some are from Xiatang."

Me: "Then how do you calculate your wages when you come to work?"

Tie Zhu: "This is more flexible. It is usually calculated based on the project quantity. Sometimes it is also calculated based on the number of days."

Me: "This is quite special."

Tie Zhu: "Actually, you will understand gradually. The hard work of building river embankments is not so precise. The project is a rough figure, and the salary is also a rough figure. People of our age have no money when they go out.

What kind of culture? Culture without culture, technology without technology. Everyone used to be either a miner, or some masons, plasterers, and, yes, carpenters. Let's get together and do some temporary work with Hu Bayao. That's fine.

Earning some cigarette money can also help support the family. More importantly, I can take care of my family without having to leave my hometown."

Me: "Are you saying that sometimes you are afraid of not getting paid when you go out to work?"

Tie Zhu: "Yes. If you go out to work, especially those of us who work in mud and water, people don't care about you at all. If you don't do it, there are many people who will do it. They will deduct your wages for any excuse. You work hard and follow the project department.

Regardless of whether they work with the engineering team, running around here and there, they may not be able to get their wages until the end of the last year. Some even don’t even have the travel expenses to go home during the Chinese New Year. They even ask their father to sue their grandmother, so they can borrow some travel expenses back.

.I’m so scared..."

I wanted to ask Tie Zhu to take me to see other spots, but I was afraid of delaying his work, so I stopped talking and concentrated on watching them work.

A worker joked to me: "You were sent by Hu Bayao as a supervisor, right?"

I looked at him. I saw that he must be in his forties. His hair was like messy straw growing randomly on his head. His clothes and pants were very shabby, and he had a pair of black water shoes on his feet.

There are still a few reddish-brown patches on the heels. He is using his rough and strong hands to hold the stones to build the fort ridge.

I quickly said: "I'm not here to be a supervisor. I'm here to learn from everyone."

Another worker with a sharp mouth and monkey cheeks took over and said: "You are not here to supervise the work, but you are here to repair the fortress? Do you want to learn how to lift stones?"

The others also laughed.

Uncle Tiezhu said: "Don't give them ordinary knowledge. They are all joking with you."

Me: "Uncle Tie, do you have any drawings for repairing the fort?"

Tie Zhu took out a folded piece of paper from his trouser pocket and handed it to me. "Is this the drawing you are talking about?"

I took it and took a look, and it turned out to be a simple construction drawing. How simple is it? You can put it this way. It simply marked the construction of the fortress with stones, similar to a schematic diagram.

Tie Zhu: "We won't look at these drawings."

Me: "Why?"

Tie Zhu: "The drawings are mainly for inspection and acceptance. Let's repair the fort. It doesn't depend on the actual situation. Build the stones from below, and add some cement mortar to the sides to fix the stones. Basically, it is based on the width of the bottom.

A shape that narrows at the top.”

Me: "Trapezoid."

Tie Zhu: "Yes, it's just a trapezoidal shape. Then when it's a little higher than the ridge, just smooth the top surface and it's done."

Me: "Well, it's still not complicated."

Tie Zhu: "It's not complicated. It's just some physical work."

Me: "Uncle Tiezhu, I heard there are more than fifty places. Are you the only one who can cultivate it?"

Tie Zhu: "No. There are three groups doing repairs. We are just one of them, there is another group above, and there is another group below the bridge. Each group has more than a dozen places. It is the small foremen who are responsible for organizing the repairs."

Me: "Uncle Tiezhu, you are also the foreman."

Tie Zhu smiled and said: "That's right. We are all the same. We work the same as everyone else and get paid equally. We just have to worry more than them. We have to be responsible for organizing cement, sand and stones.

.Then I am also responsible for keeping statistics on everyone’s working days.”

Me: "Uncle Tiezhu, can you take me to see these two groups?"

Tie Zhu: "No problem. Since Ba Yao handed you over to me, he also trusted me. If you don't bring it up, I will bring it up and take you to see it. You have to play here first and watch everyone do it.

Work. I'll take you to see it after lunch."

Hearing this sentence, I felt a little doubtful. "Eat lunch?" How rare is it for someone to give you lunch? Thinking about it, I found my question funny. I couldn't help but ask: "Uncle Tiezhu, where are you having lunch?"

Woolen cloth?"

Uncle Tiezhu pointed to the small bamboo basket slung on the bicycle. I quickly walked over and took a look. It turned out that they had brought their lunch in their own lunch boxes. It was just that the lunch was already cold by the time noon was reached, so how could they eat it?

In this cold weather, everyone lives far away from the river embankment. In order to save time, we took the food to the construction site to eat. I really wanted to see what they were eating, but I felt that I was so rash to open it.

It's very rude to take other people's lunch boxes, so I gave up the idea.

I recalled that my father used to mine in the mines. Like other miners, he would get up before dawn and make some breakfast. Then he would put the remaining food in a teapot and take it to the mine for lunch.

.What they use is not a lunch box because it is inconvenient. They use a teapot to put it in because it has a handle. When they pick up some firewood at noon, they use wooden sticks to support it on both sides, and then connect it with wire to form a bracket. Make an iron hook on the wire

, the handle used to hang the teapot. Using the teapot to hold rice is convenient for heating the rice without fear of the raised firewood ash falling into the rice.

Those hard and difficult days are really unforgettable. Look at these workers now, they are all middle-aged. They are the backbone of a family, there are old people at the top and young people at the bottom. They are suffering and tired outside, and they don’t care.
Chapter completed!