Chapter 198 Delicious Honey

"Hey, how come Qiangzi is so capable? He built this apiary in no time!"

"Look at what you said. You know he's a high school student from the city. He's a real cultured person!"

"Tsk, if that's what you said, why don't the young men and women in the educated youth camps know how to raise bees?"

"Well, this should be because Qiangzi is a genius!"

"So! After all, Qiangzi is more capable. It's really lucky for our village that he was assigned to our village!"

"Forehead"

Similar discussions were heard in various production teams in Jinshanbao. On everyone's face, there was either envy or admiration, and almost no one was jealous.

no way!
Although they were all peasants and could barely read, they still understood the principle that one should wear a hat that fits one's size.

If they had the ability to open a apiary, they would have already run it on a large scale long ago with such a large mountain area under their belt, and there would be no chance for a young man from outside like Li Guoqiang to run it.

Precisely because they don't have that ability, they can only feel envy and admiration for Li Guoqiang's success in running a apiary, and even a hint of secret joy.

Anyway, they don't have to do any work, and they can get a generous extra income at the end of the year. Where can you find such a good thing?

Soon, it was noon.

Li Guoqiang took a look at the trench that had been dug to one meter wide and half a meter deep, then looked at the swarm of bees flying in the sky. Then he flashed back to the outside of the apiary and took out a collection box containing the swarm of bees from the small world.

Then, he walked towards the apiary while holding the collection box. After a while, he saw Li Xiuqin, Ma Guifang and Zhang Mei'e who were cooking in the yard.

Among the three of them, the oldest is only twenty-five or twenty-six years old, and each of them looks quite charming and attractive, so they look quite pleasing to the eye at this moment, at least much better than those rough men.

However, it was not Li Guoqiang's idea to let them come to the apiary to work. Compared with letting men come, it was obviously more cost-effective to let women come.

After all, the women in the village can only earn 8 work points by working in the fields, while the men can earn 10 work points, just like coming to the apiary.

The difference between the inside and outside is 2 work points per day, which is not a small number in a year.

What's more, the work in a apiary is not very hard, and there is really no need to waste labor.

In addition, allowing women to come and help with work can also ensure that Li Guoqiang occupies a dominant position, thus avoiding any power struggles. This can be regarded as a goodwill gesture from the brigade to Li Guoqiang.

Soon, Li Xiuqin, Ma Guifang, Zhang Mei'e and others found that Li Guoqiang had returned, and then hurriedly greeted him with enthusiasm:

"Hey! Qiangzi, you're back!"

"Well, Qiangzi, please go inside and rest for a while. The food will be ready soon!"

"Come on, Qiangzi, give me the box!"

"Don't!"

When Li Guoqiang saw Ma Guifang trying to get the trap box, he quickly stopped her and said, "Don't touch the box yet. There's a nest of bees in it. Don't scare them."

"what?"

Ma Guifang was slightly stunned when she heard this, then asked with shining eyes: "Are you saying there is a nest of bees in this box? Did you just bring it back from the mountains?"

Hearing this, Li Xiuqin and Zhang Mei'e looked at the collection box in surprise, as if wondering how this box could collect all those flying bees?

"Ok!"

Li Guoqiang nodded, then laughed and replied, "I'm lucky today. I found this nest of bees not long after entering the mountain. Wait here for me. I'll put this nest of bees into the beehive first, and then make some honey for you to taste."

After saying that, he turned around and walked into the apiary with the collection box.

Li Xiuqin, Ma Guifang, Zhang Mei'e and others looked at Li Guoqiang's back, hesitated for a moment, but finally couldn't resist their curiosity and quietly followed Li Guoqiang, wanting to see how he did it.

In fact, Li Guoqiang did not want to keep it secret, but he was worried that Li Xiuqin, Ma Guifang, Zhang Mei'e and others did not have protective clothing and did not understand beekeeping techniques, so they would be stung by bees accidentally.

In addition, this also affects whether he can successfully obtain honey rewards in the future, so naturally he cannot delegate these key steps to others.

Before long, he successfully placed the queen bee in the collection box into the compartment of the beehive, and then poured the other worker bees and drones directly into it and quickly closed the lid.

During this process, many bees took him as their target and some were even smart enough to attack his hands, face and other exposed skin.

However, because he had already mastered the Ming Jin, he allowed the force to bounce out before the bee's stinger could pierce his skin.

So, there was no threat to him at all.

When Li Xiuqin, Ma Guifang, Zhang Mei'e and others saw this scene, they were so frightened that their faces turned pale.

As country people, they know very well how painful it is to be stung by a wasp.

Although bees are not as poisonous as hornets, the sight of them swarming together so densely is really scary.

At this time, even if Li Guoqiang did not explain to them, they all understood why Li Guoqiang asked them to wait for a while in the wooden house.

At the same time, they also understood why Li Guoqiang specifically instructed them to make mesh protective clothing, the purpose of which was to better protect their safety.

Thinking of this, they were instantly moved and grateful.

Fortunately, Li Guoqiang did not ask them to take care of the bees right away. Otherwise, they couldn’t imagine how they would go out and see people after being stung like pigs.

After a while, Li Guoqiang turned around after finishing his work, walked quickly to Li Xiuqin, Ma Guifang, Zhang Mei'e and the others, and asked with concern, "Um, I didn't scare you, did I?"

"without!"

"no!"

"Are you OK?"

Hearing the question, Li Xiuqin, Ma Guifang, and Zhang Mei'e shook their heads to indicate that they were not scared. Among them, Li Xiuqin even took a step forward, got in front of Li Guoqiang, and asked nervously while observing him.

"It's okay!" Li Guoqiang took a step back and waved his hand, saying with a smile, "Don't be scared by the bees flying around me. In fact, as long as you understand their habits, you won't be stung by them easily."

"That's good!"

Li Xiuqin, Ma Guifang, Zhang Mei'e and others couldn't help but breathe a sigh of relief when they saw that Li Guoqiang was really fine.

While they were patting Tuantuan and Yuanyuan, Li Guoqiang cleaned out the remaining bees in the collection box, then walked towards the wooden house with the collection box.

Seeing this, Li Xiuqin, Ma Guifang, Zhang Mei'e and others hurriedly followed.

When they returned to the wooden house, Li Guoqiang first put the collection box on the ground, then took out a small piece of orange honeycomb from the collection box and handed it to them. He smiled and said, "Here, this is the honey I dug up by the way. Would you like to try it and see if it tastes good?"

"This isn't a good idea!"

Li Xiuqin, Ma Guifang, Zhang Mei'e and others looked at the small piece of sweet and tempting honeycomb and looked at each other in confusion, not knowing whether they should reach out to take it.

After all, this is wild winter honey that you can’t buy even if you have money!

Even these beehives do not need to be kept to feed the bees. They have not contributed anything at the moment and it is really embarrassing for them to take advantage of them.

When Li Guoqiang saw this, he broke the honeycomb into three parts without saying a word and stuffed them into the hands of the three of them one by one.

In his opinion, since Li Xiuqin, Ma Guifang, Zhang Mei'e and others are already his, he should take better care of them.

Moreover, as he is familiar with human nature, he understands very well that the relationship between people can only remain stable if it is mixed with certain interests.

Otherwise, if you simply use rules to restrain people, it will sooner or later lead to disunity.

Li Xiuqin, Ma Guifang and Zhang Mei'e saw that they couldn't refuse, so they didn't try to refuse anymore. They put the honeycombs in their hands to their lips with some anticipation and took a light bite.

As their teeth pressed on the honeycomb, a stream of golden honey like quicksand quickly seeped out of the honeycomb and flowed between their lips and tongues, instantly making them feel a rich and sweet taste.

Then, under the natural reaction of the body, they unconsciously increased the force of sucking, allowing the honey to fill the entire mouth, then slide down the throat into the esophagus, and then fall into the stomach.

Because of the body's strong demand for sugar, this process makes them feel a very strong sense of satisfaction.

Li Guoqiang looked at the greedy looks on their faces and felt a little happy. Then he took out a small piece of beehive from the collection box, broke it into three parts, and handed them to them respectively, determined to feed them all at once.

In fact, these bee honeycombs are not the best. The best is the royal jelly which is specially for the queen bee to eat.

Scientific research has shown that royal jelly contains more protein, fatty acids, rich B vitamins, and various minerals such as calcium, magnesium, iron, manganese, and selenium, and has a strong nourishing effect on the human body.

It was just because royal jelly was relatively rare, tasted sour and slightly spicy, and was not noticeably sweeter than honey, and a portion of it had to be used to feed the queen bee, so he did not give it out to Li Xiuqin, Ma Guifang, Zhang Mei'e and the others to taste.

At this time, the addicted girls saw Li Guoqiang handing them the honeycomb again. They took it without thinking, and then impatiently put it in their mouths and chewed it slowly.

Only after squeezing out the last drop of honey did they reluctantly spit out the chewed beeswax.

Then, they saw that Li Guoqiang wanted to give them some honeycombs to eat, so they quickly waved their hands to indicate that enough was enough.

Although they like the taste of honey very much, eating honey directly like this is really too sweet. They didn't feel it when they ate the first piece of honeycomb, but after eating the second piece, they already felt a little sweet in their throats and couldn't eat it anymore.

Compared to eating honey directly, it is more appropriate to soak it in water.

Seeing this, Li Guoqiang did not force them, but took three small pieces of honeycomb, wrapped them in oil paper, and asked them to take them home later to let their families try them.

This way you can show your gratitude to others without leaving any trouble for the future.

No matter when, you must know that those who eat alone will not have a good ending.

In addition, brigade and production team cadres such as Ma Chunmei, Xu Yuliang, Xu Guanglu, Xu Yu'an, and Sun Zhongping also had to donate a piece of honeycomb.

After learning that everyone would have a share, Li Xiuqin, Ma Guifang, and Zhang Mei'e did not refuse Li Guoqiang's kindness. They immediately and neatly put away the beehives, then enthusiastically pushed Li Guoqiang into the wooden house and sat him on the kang, letting him wait for them to prepare the meal like a landlord.

If they weren't already taken, they would probably want to give Li Guoqiang some sweet treats.

However, because of this, they can be more relaxed with their hands and feet.

Amid the pushing and pulling, Li Guoqiang felt like a ball, bouncing back and forth.

Fortunately, he climbed up into the fire pit and sat down in time, so he didn't give anyone an opportunity to take advantage of him.

Not long after, Li Xiuqin, Ma Guifang, Zhang Mei'e and others brought up several pots of steaming food, which included not only white flour buns, but also a cured fish and a pot of chicken stewed with mushrooms, which showed their sincerity.

Adhering to the social principle of give and take, Li Guoqiang didn't hesitate to reach out and grab a big soft steamed bun, put it in his mouth and took a big bite.

When Li Xiuqin, Ma Guifang, Zhang Mei'e and others saw Li Guoqiang's performance, a look of admiration flashed in their eyes, and then they hurriedly sat around Li Guoqiang and had dinner with him.

This kind of treatment is unparalleled in the surrounding area.

Fortunately, Li Guoqiang has always left people with the impression that he is kind, honest and serious, so there is no need to worry about causing concern and scruples among their families.

After the meal, Li Xiuqin immediately talked about the progress of the production of mesh protective clothing, while Ma Guifang and Zhang Mei'e asked about the next work to be done.

Originally, according to Li Guoqiang's idea, he planned to wait for a while until the number of bee colonies increased a little, and then let Li Xiuqin and others come over to help with some chores.

For example, cleaning, inspecting the apiary, paying attention to weather changes, observing and recording the status of the bee colony, etc.

These things will basically not affect his contribution to beekeeping, nor will they affect his ability to obtain additional rewards in the end.

However, since Li Xiuqin and others have already arrived early, he can only go with the flow and explain to them what they need to do every day.

By the time everything was explained, it was already past one in the afternoon.

Under the gaze of Li Xiuqin and others, Li Guoqiang took the empty trap box and quickly left the apiary. Then he quickly arrived at the private apiary deep in the mountains and continued to dig ditches and set traps.

As he was digging, he suddenly heard a slight noise in the woods not far behind him.

(End of this chapter)