Back to 1978

Chapter 78 Departure
On October 1978, 10, all the cadres of the Zhongping Production Brigade and the cadres of each production team, except Han Laogou, stood in front of the brigade office, looking at the 28 Zhongping young men who had assembled in front of them, carrying their beddings.

Han Laogou was pushing his bicycle and standing on the left side of the more than 200 people. Like them, he looked at the commune secretary Yin Qianfeng who was standing at the team entrance and slowly scanning the young men, waiting for him to give a speech to the young militiamen who were about to set off for the reservoir construction site.

"Comrades, I know that the autumn harvest work in the team has just ended. You should take a good rest after a long autumn. I also know that many comrades have complained privately that the Douzhuang Reservoir is 70 or 80 miles away from Zhongping Commune. What does it have to do with us whether it is repaired or not? Why should we follow suit?" The 49-year-old Yin Qianfeng looked at everyone and delivered a speech before departure without a script:

"That's right, that broken reservoir has nothing to do with our brigade. We are all farmers, and we can't hide it from others. Our brigade uses groundwater for irrigation, not the reservoir. But comrades, although our commune is separated from theirs by dozens of miles, in the eyes of our superiors, we are one family, all from Bingyang!"

"Why build a reservoir? The documents say that the original Douzhuang Reservoir was a Class II project built in 1959 and can prevent floods that occur once in a hundred years. Bullshit!"

"Because we were poor and had a shortage of supplies, the reservoir was built like a colander, leaking and escaping every year!"

"The production teams in northern Bingyang have to fight floods and disasters during the flood season. The earthquake two years ago damaged the dam and the reservoir completely lost its function. However, in the past two years, Bingyang County is about to lose its reputation as a bumper harvest county because of the damage to such a dilapidated reservoir!"

"The reservoir that we in Zhongping see as useless is a panacea in the eyes of our brothers and sisters in other communes! Hundreds of thousands of acres of farmland near the reservoir rely on it for irrigation and flood control!"

"Because the reservoir has lost its function in the past two years, of the 230,000 mu of arable land in the northern part of Bingyang County, only 140,000 mu of arable land can actually produce food in the past two years. A full 90,000 mu of arable land is forest land! Due to the lack of water conservancy projects, it is impossible to produce normal irrigation benefits. 90,000 mu, what does it mean? The 5,000 mu of Zhongping Brigade is the famous harvest brigade in Yaoshan. 90,000 mu means nearly 20 harvest brigades like Zhongping!"

"Some people say, Yin Qianfeng, no matter how much you say, it's useless. Even if it's 900,000 mu of land, it's not Zhongping Brigade's! That's right! But, I can say for sure today that if we support the labor force to complete the Douzhuang Reservoir expansion project quickly and well, our county will be able to keep the title of Fengshou County. By then, the province will have two fertilizer plants settled in our Fengshou County!"

"We are all farmers, and we all know that fertilizer is a good thing! It can increase crop yields! In the past, when our teams used fertilizer, we had to ask the county and the commune to purchase it according to quotas. After it came back, it was distributed to each team like golden beans. When we applied fertilizer on the fields, we really spread it one grain at a time, for fear of waste."

"But if the province puts two fertilizer plants in our Bingyang County to support the agricultural development of our county! Will our commune and our brigade still be short of fertilizers in the future? We will definitely not be short of fertilizers! With more fertilizers, crops will have higher yields. By then, all the young and old men in Zhongping and all the members will be able to eat good harvests!"

"From this point of view, the construction of Douzhuang Reservoir was for us! So that we can use the fertilizers from our county fertilizer factory earlier, and no longer have to suffer the trouble of not being able to buy fertilizers in the past! It is also for you, so that you and the young and old men around you can harvest more food and have enough to eat!"

"And I promise that as long as you are at the construction site, the cadres of our Zhongping Commune will also be with you there. I'm putting my words here! No matter what day it is, as long as you are still at the construction site and the project is not finished, if you don't see the cadres on duty at the construction site at the front-line command center, and you want to report a problem but can't find anyone, just come back and smash my office, Yin Qianfeng! I won't say a word!"

"Finally, I hope that all comrades will remember the unique bravery and courage of our Zhongping Production Brigade, the revolutionary spirit of charging ahead and not returning home until the enemy is defeated, and work hard at the Douzhuang Reservoir construction site to prove with practical actions that everyone in our Zhongping Brigade is a hero!"

"I, Yin Qianfeng, and all the comrades from the commune and the brigade who were unable to participate in this river engineering mission are waiting for you to return with red flags and honor!"

As he finished speaking, everyone applauded loudly. Ge Baosheng, who was standing next to Yin Qianfeng, winked at Xie Hushan, who then shouted:
"Zhongping Production Brigade River Engineering Militia Assault Brigade! Everyone, turn right! March in step!"

Han Hongbing walked at the front of the team, carrying a roll of luggage on his back and holding a red flag fluttering in the wind. More than 200 young militiamen from Zhongping followed him, walking along the road towards the county town.

The brigade secretary Han Laogou pushed his bicycle and followed the team. He wanted to personally send these young men over, see that they were settled, and then pick them up personally when the construction period was over.

On both sides of the village road, the members of the brigade were looking at the team that was leaving. The elders of the families with children in the team kept shouting:

"Son! Don't kick off the quilt when you sleep at night! Don't catch a cold!" "San'er, don't drink cold water in big gulps while working, or you will hurt your lungs!"

"Da Xi, eat the country with the same energy you use to eat your father at home! Don't eat like a pig at home, or you will be embarrassed to eat outside!"

"Da Chong, come here, mom will hold the quilt tighter for you so it won't fall apart halfway!"

Xie Hushan walked at the end of the team, and he was responsible for ensuring that no one fell behind.

After all, they needed to walk fourteen miles first, and then meet up with young militiamen from other communes who were participating in river engineering tasks, and then take a convoy of military Dongfeng vehicles to transport them to Douzhuang Reservoir.

"Third brother! Xie Hushan!" A female voice sounded on the roadside.

Xie Hushan turned his head and saw Taozi, a girl with a red hairband tied up in her braids. She had been standing on the roadside with her grandmother, watching the team pass by. Now she trotted over and handed a pair of cloth shoes to Xie Hushan a little embarrassedly.
"I rushed out another pair last night. Don't worry about wearing out your shoes when you're working on the construction site. If they break, just get new ones to avoid hurting your feet. I'll make you another pair at home and have someone from the team bring it to you when it's ready."

Taozi was sent to Xie's house by her parents and Old Lady Meng the day after the harvest. During the slack farming season before the Spring Festival, she would live with her grandmother at Xie's house.

In the area of ​​Bingyang County, it is considered natural for a girl who has been engaged to stay at her husband's home during the slack season. On the contrary, a girl who does not go back to live with her husband after being engaged will be regarded as an oddball, causing everyone to suspect whether someone from either family is dissatisfied with the marriage.

"Thank you." Xie Hushan took the cloth shoes and tucked them into his waist, smiled at the other party, and prepared to leave.

"Grandma said, don't worry about home. I will take good care of you and you just take care of yourself. If there is anything, ask someone to bring it back. If there is good news, ask someone to tell grandma directly. If it is something difficult, ask someone to tell me first." Taozi watched Xie Hushan finish his words and turned to leave.

"Taozi." Xie Hushan called her.

Taozi turned around and looked at Xie Hushan. Xie Hushan came closer, gave her a word of advice in a low voice, and then stepped back.

Taozi smiled and nodded at him, then ran back to her grandmother and helped her stand on the street together.

Although her face was flushed because Xie Hushan had leaned too close to her, she still waved at Xie Hushan openly and spoke softly to her grandmother.

Instead, grandma just waved casually at Xie Hushan and focused on listening to what the girl said, not caring at all that her grandson would be gone for three months.

Xie Hushan was walking on the road, thinking about what the girl said. This Taozi girl was a hundred times better than his own sister Daxiu.

I just set out on my way. Daxiu, that girl, didn't study hard and ran out with her classmates to watch the fun. She also greeted me, but she never thought of telling me that she could help take care of her grandma, nor did she care about what would happen to me at the construction site. She just opened her mouth and said:
"Brother, if there's anything delicious or fun over there, remember to bring me some back!"

(End of this chapter)