Alas! Whenever Professor Dong thinks of the innocent and pitiful people implicated during that peculiar era, his heart aches. They were all intellectuals with profound cultural heritage! They had dedicated their lives as cadres or teachers, diligently working at their jobs. Yet, who could have foreseen such injustice in their old age—being sent to the countryside for forced labor? Almost all of these veterans developed various health problems after arriving in the countryside, and some even passed away before they could be rehabilitated and return home. How could this not be heartbreaking? In response to these circumstances, Jiang Huashu had made advance arrangements the moment he saw the campaign begin. He had the old village chief lead the construction of three rows of ten shabby thatched huts on the wasteland north of the village. He also rounded up the cattle and mules from the village transport team and herded them into the front row.
Guanjia Village wasn't big, but this year, due to frequent trips to the commune and county town to transport and deliver goods, they had six cows and four mules, and even that wasn't enough! Compared to nearby villages, their village was truly wealthy in terms of livestock. Jiang Huashu wanted to keep a low profile, but his financial resources wouldn't allow it! Not having enough was just a waste of time.
The wasteland at the foot of the mountain north of the village is called Lalagang. The medical environment was poor in the past, and many children were born dead. There was a deep ditch here, and the babies who died at birth were thrown into it. There used to be wild dogs nearby, and people rarely came here unless necessary.
Because people rarely come this way, Jiang Huashu built his thatched hut nearby. Old intellectuals are generally materialistic. Besides, it happened so many years ago, and the children have long since entered the reincarnation cycle and been reborn into better families.
Although they look like a few shabby thatched houses, they are actually not simple at all. It can be seen that the designer put a lot of thought into building the houses.
The old village chief and his fellow villagers built the house from adobe bricks, and the walls were covered with thick mud. Furthermore, it's located at the foot of the mountain, shielded from the wind, warm in winter and cool in summer, and is both sturdy and warm. You can move in and live there, and you won't say a word.
Each room has a small kang (kang) that can accommodate at most two people, and three people can't sleep on it. The room is not big, and there is nothing else except the kang.
The village carpenter has already made a floor-standing cabinet that matches the house, but it cannot be delivered now. It is placed in an empty room in the carpenter's house and needs to wait for the team leader to give the order before it can be delivered.
Uncle Qi was the first to move in to look after the animals. He was deaf, so even if the animals were stolen in the middle of the night, he wouldn't have heard anything. To ensure there were at least three people on duty every day, the village chief arranged for several unmarried militiamen to stay with Uncle Qi at night. These men slept wherever he wanted, and they received a two-yuan security allowance at the end of the month. They stayed home all day and slept with him.
Now these animals are the main property of the production team. I don’t know where Jiang Huashu bought such good cows and mules. Anyway, they are now the key protected objects of the production team.
The cowshed, caretakers, and dilapidated thatched huts were already in place. Everything was ready except for the old intellectuals who were sent down. And today, they arrived.
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