Rebirth in 1972: Redemption in Changbai Mountain

Zhou Rui and Gu Dayong didn't have much to talk about, focusing mainly on being the workhorses. Several hundred pounds of wild boar meat were easily pulled by the two of them, requiring almost no effort.

"Dad." Gu Jiacheng put down his chopsticks and quickly came over to take the rope from Gu Dayong.

"So you've started eating?"

From afar, Gu Dayong could see that only his mistress was eating by the fire, while everyone else was laughing and joking as they grilled meat skewers.

The cannonball had been gutted and split in two; the pork belly in everyone's hands was cut off from the cannonball.

"Uncle Dayong." "Uncle Gu."

Everyone greeted Gu Dayong one by one, and Gu Dayong nodded in response.

Now that everyone had finished eating, there were no empty bowls or chopsticks. Zhou Rui grabbed two bowls, scooped up some snow, and rubbed them a couple of times, calling it washing the dishes.

"Here you go, Uncle Dayong." Zhou Rui handed over two bowls. One bowl contained baijiu (Chinese liquor), and the other contained forest frogs.

Gu Dayong picked up the liquor and took a big gulp: "Ha...this liquor is good, it's strong enough."

Gu Dayong put down his liquor, picked up a bowl of frog stew, and started eating. He had been starving for a long time in the mountains, and Zhou Rui's stewed frog was so fragrant that Gu Dayong could hardly resist.

Zhou Rui made himself another bowl. He hadn't even finished eating when Da Pao Luanzi interrupted him, and there was still so much left in the pot. Wouldn't it be a waste if he didn't finish it quickly?

"An'an, raise your meat skewers a bit higher, the skewers are burning. Lin Qiuyue, flip them over quickly, the meat on the bottom is burning."

Zhou Rui was eating when he saw these people's barbecue skills, which were almost unbearable to watch. Perhaps only Zhou Ping and the Liu brothers were good enough to avoid making a mess of it.

However, An'an and the others laughed and joked, completely ignoring Zhou Rui's instructions, believing that what they grilled was the most delicious food in the world. Even though their mouths were black from eating, they were still happy.

"Ruiwa, take that half of the pork back with you when you go back later." Gu Dayong pointed to the cannonball that had been cut in half.

"Uncle Dayong, no need. He was your prey to begin with, and his injuries were too severe for him to escape. I only fired because there were so many people around."

Zhou Rui quickly explained that he had no intention of stealing the prey.

"I know. After the cannonball was damaged, it ran towards the village. If you let it pass, you'll be in trouble."

But since you fired the shot and killed the cannonball, let's follow the rules of the mountains. You deserve a share of the prey.

Gu Dayong insisted on his opinion. He was a soldier, and while he adhered to military standards on the battlefield, he naturally followed hunter's rules when he returned home to hunt.

"Ruiwa, just keep it. There's no need to do this with my dad. He's very principled and spends all his time teaching me how to be a good person," Gu Jiacheng chimed in.

Zhou Rui thought for a moment and decided there was no need to drag things out. They were both men, and they should be decisive in their actions.

"Okay. But Uncle Dayong, I don't need that much, just give me a little blond hair." Zhou Rui paused for a moment.

"Little Rice Cake will be one year old next month. Uncle Dayong and his family are coming over for the celebration."

"Oh? You're storing meat for your banquet next month. Don't worry, my whole family will definitely be there. I heard you learned cooking from Kang Ri, I'll definitely have to try it."

"Hehe... Ruiwa's cooking is really delicious." Gu Jiacheng stuffed a few forest frogs into his mouth, then spat out a bunch of bones after a few chin movements.

Happy times pass quickly, and everyone soon had eaten and drunk their fill. Adults and children alike had a great time.

Back in the village, Lin Qiuyue and the others looked at the quiet educated youth compound and couldn't help but feel uneasy, wondering what the final outcome would be.

It seemed that the male educated youth in the dormitory heard the commotion outside. The door opened and a figure walked out.

"Yang Ping, Lin Qiuyue, He Wei, Yu Sitian, you're back? Perfect timing, we've been waiting for you. Come in, let's discuss Ma Jun's future."

"Why is it Chen Zhejiang?" He Wei was a little surprised. Usually, it was Meng Huaiyuan, the leader of the educated youth team, who notified them.

The group exchanged bewildered glances. Lin Qiuyue looked hesitantly at Zhou Rui, hoping to get some advice from him.

Zhou Rui didn't speak, but calmly nodded to Lin Qiuyue. Zhou Rui's behavior gave Lin Qiuyue a lot of confidence. Since Zhou Rui didn't offer any other suggestions, it meant everything was normal and wouldn't have a negative impact on her.

Zhou Rui watched as Lin Qiuyue and the others walked into the educated youth compound, and he and Gu Dayong also began to say goodbye.

Zhou Rui didn't mention the sales of this pile of wild boar meat. Gu Dayong had connections with the deputy minister of the armed forces department, and his network of influence was far superior to Zhou Rui's.

Liu Ping'an and Liu Shunli didn't go into Zhou Rui's house again. Instead, they happily carried the remaining frogs home and helped Gu Dayong transport the wild boar meat back with them.

However, Gu Dayong did not treat Ping An's brothers unfairly, giving him a thick piece of fatty meat as a thank you gift.

In the boys' dormitory of the educated youth compound, a dim oil lamp sat on the kang table, and eight educated youths, both men and women, sat quietly around it. Only Lu Yan was telling Lin Qiuyue and the others what happened next.

Chen Zhejiang took a sip of his tea. He had brought it from home; you couldn't buy it anywhere else. After Lu Yan finished speaking, Chen Zhejiang slowly put the teacup down.

"Things are just as Lu Yan said. The production brigade headquarters decided not to get involved anymore, and let us, the educated youth, make our own decisions."

"You haven't made a decision after all this afternoon?" Yang Ping looked at Chen Zhejiang, a question in her eyes.

"Because Captain Meng and I have opposing opinions, I'm waiting for you to come back. We'll hold a collective meeting about Ma Jun's theft and vote democratically to decide whether he stays or leaves."

Chen Zhejiang's words excluded Wei Dazhi and Lu Yan, instead placing himself in opposition to Meng Huaiyuan, which meant he wanted to compete with Meng Huaiyuan.

"Opposites. What are your respective opinions?" Seeing that Lin Qiuyue and the others didn't want to speak, He Wei had no choice but to step forward herself.

This time, Chen Zhejiang didn't rush to speak; instead, he raised his hand to signal Meng Huaiyuan to speak first.

"That's right, Ma Jun is, after all, a revolutionary comrade-in-arms who went to the countryside with us." Meng Huaiyuan rubbed his hands together somewhat embarrassedly.

"He's young and didn't think things through, which is why he made a mistake. You see... how about we give him a chance, let him apologize to everyone, and then let's just let it go."

"How can that be? Mistakes must be punished, how can we just let it go like that? Did I starve for months for nothing?"

When Wei Dazhi heard Meng Huaiyuan still trying to exonerate Ma Jun, he immediately became furious and slammed his fist on the kang table.

"Exactly. When it comes to youth, who here isn't young? Youth shouldn't be used as an excuse for making mistakes."

He Wei frowned. When she was sent to the countryside, the male and female educated youth had already started cooking separately, and to be honest, she wasn't influenced by Ma Jun. It was just the thought of forgiving Ma Jun and having this thief continue living in the educated youth compound made her feel disgusted.