Shen Zishan took a deep breath and slowly said, "I dreamed that this year's harvest will be terrible, and there will be a large-scale drought across the country. What's worse, due to the new national policy, every household will have to hand over farm tools and other things."

He paused, then continued, "After the implementation of the communal dining system, people completely lost their restraint when it came to food, eating as much as they could. And this disaster won't be over in a short time; it will last for a full three years! During these three long years, I don't know how many people will starve to death."

After hearing these words, the captain and the village chief's expressions immediately turned serious.

They exchanged a glance, and both saw deep worry in each other's eyes.

"Shanzi, this is no laughing matter. Are you really sure? That it will last for three whole years?"

The village chief's voice trembled slightly, after all, as the older generation, they had personally experienced the horrors of the famine years.

"I swear to you, every word I've said is absolutely true! Uncles, the situation is so urgent, what should we do?"

Shen Zishan looked anxiously at the two people in front of him, his eyes full of expectation.

At this moment, the village chief paced back and forth in the room, seemingly racking his brains for a solution. After a moment, he stopped and said with a firm look in his eyes, "Our village isn't exactly remote, but it's not exactly convenient in terms of transportation either."

“If the whole village can work together, there might still be a glimmer of hope. In my opinion, the most urgent task is to distribute the village’s grain reasonably, and then remind everyone to stock up on as much grain as possible, just in case.”

“We can’t control what others do, nor do we have that much power. If what you’re saying is true, then we can only guarantee that no one in the village will starve to death.”

The captain nodded in agreement.

"We'll discuss this properly when we get back. Don't tell anyone. Just focus on taking care of your leg." After saying this with a solemn expression, the brigade leader and the village chief stood up and walked towards the door.

Just then, Ma Aning returned home. She saw the brigade leader and the village chief and hurriedly tried to greet them, but before she could say anything, the two simply nodded hastily as a greeting and then walked away quickly.

Seeing their hurried manner, Ma Aning knew they must have believed her brother Shan's words. She then turned and went into the room, asking with concern, "Brother Shan, have you finished talking?"

Sitting on the edge of the bed, Shen Zishan nodded gently upon hearing his wife's voice, his expression noticeably more relaxed than before.

Seeing this, Ma Aning breathed a slight sigh of relief.

Immediately afterward, Shen Zishan looked at Ma Aning with a serious expression and said firmly, "Wife, from now on we just need to take care of ourselves. In two months, I'll start stockpiling food. No matter what, I will make sure you and the children don't go hungry!"

Hearing her husband's words, Ma Aning felt a warmth in her heart, and a happy smile involuntarily bloomed on her face. She gently replied, "Yes, I believe you." At that moment, the couple was filled with trust and affection.

In stark contrast, the brigade leader and village chief, who had just left the Shen family, looked worried.

They walked and talked in hushed tones.

The village chief frowned, looking worried, and asked the brigade leader, "What do you think we should do now?"

He knew that he was impulsive and easily angered, and often lacked thoughtfulness in handling problems, so at this moment he could only hope that the captain could come up with a proper solution.

The captain was silent for a moment, then slowly said, "Don't rush, let's go back and discuss this further..."

Back in his office, the brigade leader thought for a while, "Tonight, gather one able-bodied man from each household for a meeting and hear their opinions." The brigade leader gently tapped the table.

What exactly happened during the evening meeting? The Ma couple were not involved.

However, the very next morning, a surprising scene unfolded—people began to quietly move from house to house, carefully carrying the grain home.

What's left for the collective is only a negligible small portion, nothing more than superficial formalities.

Fortunately, most of the grain belonging to Ma Aning's family was returned, although a tiny bit was still deducted.

Whenever someone from higher up comes to inspect, the whole village quickly shows a united posture, with everyone sitting together to eat from a communal pot; but once there is no one to supervise, the villagers revert to eating at home on their own.

Time flies, and a whole month has passed in the blink of an eye.

At this time, the village ushered in the harvest season, but what was worrying was that this year's grain output had indeed decreased significantly.

Faced with this situation, the brigade leader and the village chief made a decision after careful consideration: to directly report the actual harvest at a lower level.

Therefore, while other villages were exaggerating their grain production in an attempt to claim credit, Majia Village and Shenjia Village not only did not follow suit by overreporting their production, but even reduced their output.

Although the two men were severely reprimanded, the villagers' food supplies were saved.

After some time, with the approval of the leaders, the communal cooking system was abolished, and the villagers could cook for themselves. However, buying pots and pans became another big problem.

After paying the grain tax and abolishing the communal dining system, the village chief and brigade leader distributed all the grain to the villagers.

"Everyone must keep the grain safe! Under no circumstances should you lend it to or sell it to relatives! This is a matter of life and death for the next three years!"

The captain stood at the front of the crowd, giving instructions in a hoarse and earnest voice, his weathered face full of anxiety and worry.

However, many people didn't take it seriously, thinking to themselves, "How could the brigade leader know that there would be three years of disaster in the future? Maybe he just said it casually."

After all, for most people, such a severe famine seems unattainable and unimaginable.

Despite the captain's repeated emphasis and repeated warnings, whether or not to heed these suggestions ultimately depends on each individual's own decision.

After all, people's hearts are unpredictable. Some people may feel that it is okay to keep more food; while others may think that even if a disaster really comes, it may not be so serious.

Ma Aning got up early in the morning. After quickly washing up, she and Shen Zishan headed towards the threshing ground.

After more than a month of rest, the cast on Chen Zishan's leg was finally removed at the hospital a few days ago.

Now, he can simply pretend to still have a slight limp when he walks.

The two walked in silence, each lost in their own thoughts.

After the grain was distributed, Shen Yiyan helped carry the heavy bags back home.

Just then, Shen Zishan noticed that Ma Aning's face looked a little off, appearing unusually pale.

His heart tightened, and he quickly reached out to support her, carefully helping her to sit down and rest beside a large rock.

"Wife, how are you feeling? Where do you feel uncomfortable? Could it be that you're about to give birth?" Shen Zishan's face was full of anxiety, and his tone became hurried without his words. He held Ma Aning's hands tightly, his concern overflowing.