War Military: From 1978

Chapter 273 The Family of a First-Class Hero!
In Shanghe Township, the village, which was already bustling with activity after Chu An's sudden return home, suddenly became lively as night fell.

"Wow~"

Many dogs started barking.

"Xiao An, how long are you planning to stay at home this time?"

Chu An now has people helping him push his bicycle, and he is now accompanied by twenty or thirty neighbors.

Adults and children, men and women, young and old, are all present.

There are no entertainment activities in the countryside these days.

Even the government is advocating for later marriage and childbirth, and fewer but better births, so some families are even trying to restrain themselves from engaging in recreational activities with their spouses.

Because of this, now that Chu An has returned, the villagers who heard the news all came out to see what was going on.

"I can only stay for a few days. My vacation is too short, and the travel time is too long!"

"Why only a few days? You've been fighting hard, can't you stay home a little longer?"

"Yes! How can you calculate the time spent on the road? Xiao Chu, you've made such a great contribution, you'll probably stay home for at least a month!"

The surrounding villagers all spoke Chu An's familiar yet unfamiliar local dialect.

But before Chu An could say anything more, as they approached the location of his home from memory, a series of firecrackers suddenly went off ahead.

This scene surprised Chu An as well.

This was a treatment he had never received in either of his lives.

They even set off firecrackers to welcome me home; what a treat!
"Comrade Xiao An, welcome home!"

The production team secretary led a group of people running over at a brisk pace.

Chu An saw familiar faces in the crowd.

There are family members, as well as neighbors and relatives.

"Uncle Wang, you're too kind!" Chu An stood at attention and saluted.

"Brother!" the girl exclaimed excitedly!
Chu An's younger sister rushed over and grabbed Chu An's arm.

"Little sister!"

Chu An smiled and greeted her, then looked at the other family members who had come to stand before him.

"Mom and Dad, eldest brother, second brother!"

"Eh!"

"He's gotten darker, but he seems stronger too!" Xu Sanmei's eyes were brimming with tears.

"It's good that you're back, it's good that you're back!" Chu Guiyun stood to the side, the honest and simple man was clearly very happy, but he didn't know what to say.

"Xiao An, this is too sudden! Why didn't you write a letter beforehand?" The older brother said with a smile, but also with a hint of reproach.

"Hehe. Well, wasn't I trying to give you a surprise?" Chu An said with a smile.

"You child!" Xu Sanmei's tone was also a little reproachful and surprised, but her calloused hands held Chu An's hand tightly and wouldn't let go.

Chu An's heart softened.

"Anzai has really made something of himself!"

"That's right, he's become an officer in the military!"

"Old Chu, you're grinning from ear to ear!"

The path is now crowded with people, and the villagers haven't stopped talking.

Chu Guiyun chuckled and took out cigarettes to hand out to the villagers.

Soon, the line moved forward.

Seven or eight minutes later, Chu An arrived at the doorstep of his home.

At a glance, Chu An saw two large red lanterns hanging at the front door and two plaques on the red brick wall.

"Family of a First-Class Hero and Exemplary Individual!"

"Family of a First-Class Hero!"

The red brick and wooden door, the simple house with no eaves or roof covering the second floor.

Even the two large red lanterns hanging outside the gate are fixed to the red bricks on both sides of the gate with iron frames.

But these two plaques are exceptionally large and conspicuous.

“Brother, these two plaques and lanterns were delivered a few days ago. Originally, the plaque we had hanging at home was the one you received last year for the Second Class Merit Award, but now it’s been moved inside because there’s no more room at the entrance.”

The younger sister, who was holding Chu An's left arm, saw Chu An looking at the plaque and immediately whispered something in Chu An's ear.

She's smiling all the time now, and she's incredibly proud to have such a great brother.

Indeed, after everyone at school found out that Chu An was her brother, they all looked at her with new respect, and the school even organized more than one activity to learn from her brother.

They even arranged for her to give a speech and recount Chu An's past!

"The local leaders said last time that they didn't know when you would be back, so they sent the plaque first. If they had known you would be back now, they would have definitely sent it when you returned!"

The squad leader next to him also spoke up, following Chu An's gaze.

To be honest, every time he saw those two plaques on Chu An's door, he couldn't help but sigh.

He never imagined that such a remarkable person could emerge from his poor, remote hometown.

A first-class meritorious serviceman, a first-class hero and role model!

Villagers would say during their leisure time that even if a ghost passed by Chu Laosi's house, it would have to salute before leaving.

The cancellation of the Special Merit Award means that this was already the highest honor a soldier could receive!
That night, the commotion at the Chu family's house continued until nearly 11 p.m. All the leaders from the production brigade had arrived, as had several town leaders.

It wasn't because it was nighttime, nor because Chu An had just returned and was tired from his journey; tonight, Chu An's house would probably be even more lively.

But some things, even if they pass tonight, will inevitably come back to haunt you the next day.

The following morning, after Chu An's family returned from worshipping their ancestors on the mountain, they found that there were many more leaders in their home.

People from the county also came.

The power of a first-class hero is too great.

In the past, when Chu An was not home, these leaders would often organize visits to Chu An's home to offer their condolences.

Now that they know Chu An has returned, they came over immediately.

Moreover, not only leaders, but also reporters accompanied them today.

Chu An felt helpless.

Actually, he came back wanting some peace and quiet.

Returning to the home he remembered for the first time, he wanted to integrate himself well.

But that's obviously not realistic right now.

In the following days, his family didn't stop working at all.

Reporters and leaders at all levels took turns speaking.

The villagers, who had already finished their autumn plowing, came to my house every day to watch the excitement.

Chu An's smile almost froze.

Fortunately, after the fifth day, Chu An's family finally quieted down.

This was Chu An's request.

He proactively requested that leaders at all levels refrain from visiting him in the future.

After all, he only has a few days of vacation.

Five days have now passed.

According to the plan, he can only stay at home for two more days.

no way.

We need to report for duty on the 25th and 26th.

According to calculations, the journey would take at least three days and three nights.

This is the most optimistic scenario; to be on the safe side, we'll leave a day earlier.

I need to depart and board the train no later than the 22nd.

Because of this, the Chu family finally had a lot of peace and quiet.

But this is only relative.

In the last two days, we still had quite a few guests at home.

Previously, when leaders from various levels came to visit, some of my relatives didn't dare to speak loudly, let alone eat together.

After all, they were all honest, simple farmers.

Now that leaders at all levels aren't coming, relatives are coming to our house for dinner at the invitation of Chu Guiyun and Xu Sanmei.

In the last two days, Chu An could only have quiet conversations with his family in the evenings.

"Xiao An, is what you're saying really feasible?"

On the evening of the 21st, after finally getting his family to rest, Chu Gui sat in Chu An's room again and had a late-night talk with Chu An by candlelight.

"Brother, there's nothing that can't be done. I told you long ago that the production team system wouldn't last long. You can trust me!"

This wasn't the first time the two brothers had chatted.

On the second night after Chu An returned home, he took the opportunity to have a chat with his older brother.

This is the third time today.

However, even now, his older brother is still somewhat undecided.

However, Chu An didn't blame him.

My older brother has never traveled far from home in his entire life, and he is already married and living separately from his family.

With a family to support, it's understandable that he has concerns.

But Chu An really couldn't find anyone else he could trust.

Besides, he really wasn't lying to him.

The production team system is still in place at home, but some places actually abolished the production team system last year and started implementing the household responsibility system.

News travels very slowly these days. By the time the news arrives, it might mean that the production team will have become history.

As a result, he, the production team's accountant, naturally faced being laid off.

After all, this isn't a guaranteed job.

However, whether to be laid off involuntarily or to leave early voluntarily remains a difficult choice for the eldest brother.

However, Chu An still believed he would make the right decision.

After all, the allure of being a "ten-thousand-yuan household" is quite strong!

(End of this chapter)