It was almost 2 p.m. when they finished the meal. Director Yan had taken the day off and wasn't worried about the pharmaceutical factory anymore. The group sat on the kang (a heated brick bed) and chatted idly.

Liu Donglai was about to take office in Huichuan County and wanted to learn more about the county's situation, so he pulled Li Xiangdong aside for a chat.

He always felt that there was something indescribable about this child. Despite his young age, his eyes sometimes held a shrewdness that was beyond his years. But this shrewdness was not annoying. Overall, he gave people a clever and reliable feeling.

He actually managed to make money by selling cicada shells, which are common in rural areas. Most importantly, he earned the trust and affection of Brother Yan and his wife. He is definitely not an ordinary rural kid!

"Xiangdong, which village are you from?" Liu Donglai wanted to probe Li Xiangdong's background, so he steered the conversation towards this topic.

"Uncle Liu, my family is from Lijiapo Brigade, Wudahe Commune."

How many people are in your family?

“My parents, my fourth sister and fifth sister, my younger brother, my younger sister stays at home, my eldest brother is a soldier in Huangdao, my eldest sister and third sister are married.”

"Where's my second sister?" Liu Donglai asked curiously.

"My second sister died when she was young."

Li Xiangdong had never met his second sister in either of his two lives. He only heard his mother talk about how beautiful she was in his previous life, and how she would have been prettier than a movie star if she had grown up safely.

"I'm so sorry!" Liu Donglai hadn't expected this reason.

“Back then, conditions were tough, and healthy children could just die without warning.”

Huang Guimei's tone was somewhat low, perhaps because she had been thinking about her son who died young all day.

Liu Donglai quickly changed the subject, "Conditions are much better now than they were back then. Now every family can have enough to eat, right?"

"Hey, Uncle Liu, you're from the city, you don't know what life is like in the countryside. In good years, you can eat about 80% of your fill of coarse grains, and every day you eat pickled vegetables and sorghum flour flatbread, those flatbreads are so coarse they irritate your throat. In bad years, you can only eat sweet potato flour dumplings with wild vegetables, one or two a day, how can that be enough to fill you up!"

"Why is the situation so difficult? I see that Huichuan County's total grain output is among the top, and it receives commendation from the city every year."

"Well, we don't know anything about the county, but we do know a bit about the commune."

Li Xiangdong sighed again.

"you say!"

Liu Donglai wanted to hear why the major grain-producing counties that the city always commended were experiencing situations where people were not getting enough to eat.

“Our Wudahe Commune is located in the central part of Huichuan County. The commune has a total of 64 production brigades and about 70,000 mu of arable land. What to plant on these 70,000 mu of land is all determined by the commune. Most of the land is used to grow sorghum, corn, sweet potatoes and wheat. A very small portion of the land is used to grow cotton, cabbage and carrots. Most of the grain produced each year is handed over to the state and sold as state grain. Only a small portion is distributed to the commune members.”

"Do the commune members have enough food?"

“Uncle Liu, it’s not enough to eat! Look at me, I only get half a pound of grain a day. As the saying goes, a half-grown boy can eat his father to death. My mother, who is only in her early forties, is already thin and frail, like an old lady, all to save us kids a few bites of food.”

What if there isn't enough food?

"What to do? If we don't have enough to eat, we'll buy grain at negotiated prices. The price of negotiated grain is more than double the price of the grain we sell under the unified distribution system. If we can't afford the negotiated grain, we'll have to swallow our pride and go begging for food outside."

Li Xiangdong recalled the tragic scene of many people in his village begging for food in his previous life, and the more he talked about it, the sadder he became.

"Don't you keep any chickens at home to lay eggs? Or a pig to eat?"

“Our commune stipulates that no more than two chickens can be raised, and ten families can jointly raise one pig, which can only be a boar, not a sow.”

"Then why?"

"Sows can give birth! We're afraid the villagers will secretly keep sows to have piglets!"

No one spoke, and a somber atmosphere enveloped the room.

"During special times for the country, there are always people who have to pay more. Farmers really have it tough."

Director Yan smoothed things over, saying that Donglai was about to become the top official in Huichuan County, and that Xiangdong should be careful not to speak recklessly.

As she spoke, she gave Li Xiangdong a wink, signaling him to stop talking.

"Hey, Uncle Liu, I'm just talking like a child, please don't take it seriously. I don't mean to express any dissatisfaction with the country! I just feel that the country has been misled by some petty people," Li Xiangdong explained.

Sitting opposite Factory Director Yan, Liu Donglai naturally noticed the tension between the two and said angrily, "Brother, are you really going to distance yourself from me now! Not only do you not tell me the truth, but you even stop Xiang Dong from saying a few honest words! You, you really are my good brother!"

"Donglai, don't be angry. How could your elder brother be estranged from you?" Huang Guimei comforted him, then said to her husband, "Look at you, what's wrong with you? There's no outsider in this house. What can't you say?"

After being scolded by his wife, Factory Director Yan frowned and said in a low voice after a long while, "Donglai, it's not that your brother is being distant with you, but even if you found out, what could you do? With your fiery temper, if you make another mistake because of it, your life will be over!"

"Brother, I have this selfish wish: that you can live a peaceful and safe life, whether you're a mediocre official or whatever."

“Brother, do you think that being tormented for these ten years has really worn away my heart for serving the people? If I really wanted to be a corrupt and incompetent official, I would rather continue to stay at the foot of Yibai Mountain and farm!” Liu Donglai’s words were resounding.

Li Xiangdong looked into Liu Donglai's eyes, which shone with a bright light, like a burning, blazing flame.

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