Chapter 126: Some Thoughts on the Educated Youth Issue
Xie Yun pretended to think for a while and then expressed some ideas that he had thought of a long time ago.
"I think we can do this. Let's first clarify the purpose of the country sending educated youth to the countryside. I think there are two points: one is to allow young people to gain experience, and the other is to allow educated youth to help rural development. We both need to reach a consensus on this issue first.
The educated youth must understand that they went to the countryside not to idle away their time, not to enjoy themselves, and certainly not to show off their sense of superiority as city dwellers. They came to train!
Now that you're here, you should truly integrate with the farmers. Work in the fields, carry manure, and don't say you can't do it. No one is born knowing how to work; farmers are trained. As long as the educated youth are willing to practice, they will quickly adapt.
Several educated youth in our brigade did a fantastic job! They worked alongside farmers during the day and studied with everyone at night. Their outstanding performance earned them great respect from fellow members. It was a mutual relationship.
If they find all kinds of excuses to be lazy and slack off, it means that their ideological understanding is not in place. We will not accept such people here. We will contact their place of origin and send them back, and send them back when they have been educated.
If you can't help, why go to the countryside? Are you going to cause trouble for the poor and lower-middle peasants? We poor and lower-middle peasants have suffered enough in the old society. Now that we're finally living a better life in the new society, do we still want the educated youth to look down on us and harm us?
That is definitely not possible!
So, when the educated youth arrive, they must first correct their attitude and clarify their own position. Don't look down on rural people after you arrive, saying things like, "If you don't want to come, you don't have to come. Find a way to stay in the city. We didn't ask you to come, right?" Don't be a coward in the city and then show off in the countryside!
The educated youth have corrected their attitude, and we, the members of the commune, must also correct our attitude. They are here to help us, so we shouldn't treat them as a burden. We should find ways to make them feel a sense of belonging here, to make them feel like their second home. We should let them create value, and we should make sure that the value they create is greater than the grain they take from the team.
Isn't this easy? The value each of us creates far exceeds our share of the economy. Otherwise, how would we pay our taxes?
We can sit down and discuss what our development goals are for the new year and the next five years. The country has a five-year plan, and our brigade can also make its own five-year plan.
To give a simple example, our Liushu Village aims to increase grain production by 10% this year. Then I can think about what I should do to achieve this goal. First, scientific planting should be used to increase per-mu yields. Second, reclaim wasteland and expand the planting area.
If I set another goal, to increase total income by 20%, or even per capita income by 20%, how would I do it? Besides increasing grain production, I'd also need to plant other cash crops and perhaps even find a way to build a factory. How to achieve this goal requires everyone to work together and come up with solutions. When educated youth arrived in the countryside, they not only had to work, but they also had to use their brains.
When they come to our commune, we need to understand clearly what they can do and what their specialties are. We cannot simply say "I am an educated youth". Your knowledge must be useful and contribute to this society. It is not just a simple junior high school diploma or high school diploma. Having a certificate does not mean anything.
Our brigade can now run a middle school. Let me say something inappropriate, but if we issue a junior high school diploma to every member, does that prove that we are all intellectuals?
No way!
Who knows how city kids get their certificates? I didn't attend classes much in junior high and high school in the past few years, so the knowledge content of these diplomas is questionable!
It could just be a piece of waste paper!
So, if you put yourself in a positive position and think carefully about how you can contribute to rural development, your journey to the countryside will be worthwhile, and you'll have spent the best years of your life there. If you can return to the city, you'll be able to proudly say your youth wasn't wasted. If you lack the ability, can you seek help from others? Does your father have the skills? Does your mother have the skills? What about your brothers and sisters, your neighbors, your neighborhood? Can they offer some assistance?
Let's all focus on development. Don't dwell on the differences between rural and urban residents, and don't create confrontation. The Premier said, "We should seek common ground while reserving differences." This principle applies not only to diplomacy but also to our situation. Rural residents and educated youth share the same goals and work together.
The educated youth went to the countryside to work together with the members of the commune to build a better countryside. The educated youth were trained, and our rural community also benefited.
Director Zhong said, "Sending educated youth to the countryside is a national policy. Can they go back?"
"Why not? It's national policy, and we're not rejecting them. But the people you send here have to be at least qualified, right? You can't send hooligans, scoundrels, or street urchins here, right? What do you think of our countryside then? You should educate them before they come, and then send them here after they've been educated. We can't accept just anyone. We have to have principles and a bottom line. Even if we really send someone back, it's unlikely, unless the person is truly unfit. But we can speak out to scare the educated youth and make them behave themselves."
Secretary Li said, "Simply put, we need to set a development goal that will keep them busy from morning till night, even when they are asleep, thinking about development issues. They should focus all their attention on building the countryside and the country, so that they won't have the energy to do other things."
Xie Yun smiled and said, "Yes! That's what I mean! We also need to let them know that if they mess around, we can punish them. Don't think that rural people have to flatter and respect them and not dare to do anything to them. That's not the case. We are all human beings and are equal. Speaking of which, we poor and lower-middle peasants are even more powerful. After all, the Chairman said that they should come and learn from us.
However, since they have come from afar, we still need to give them the respect, care, and protection they deserve. They are all young children, immature in every aspect, so we should be tolerant and teach them what we should, and give them some time to adapt.
Furthermore, we must educate our members, so they don't think that just because the educated youth are alone and powerless in our territory, they can be easily manipulated and bullied. Of course, I believe that most of our members are good, but they still need to be educated."
Director Zhong smiled and said, "Young men and women from the city are indeed easily noticed by young men. We really need to be careful about this. We don't care about normal dating, but we can't maliciously harass or frame them."
Xie Yun smiled and gave him a thumbs-up, saying, "The emotional issues of educated youth, especially marriage, must be strictly managed.
I suggest we issue "Regulations for the Management of Educated Youth in Taoyuan Commune," which all who come here must abide by. We can set several evaluation criteria, including participation in labor, ideological and learning progress, the evaluation of them by the poor and lower-middle peasants, and internal evaluation by the educated youth community. We can then generate a comprehensive score each year. This scoring process should be open, fair, and impartial. When there are good development opportunities in the future, those with high scores and good performance should be given priority.
Those who perform particularly poorly or have ideological problems should be criticized and reported not only to the brigade but also to their hometowns. They should be made aware that poor performance will affect their personal future.
We also need to make it clear to them that if they feel they've been treated unfairly, they can seek help from the commune. They shouldn't just swallow their anger because they're unfamiliar with the area, or think our commune will protect its own people. We're definitely not the kind of commune that doesn't distinguish right from wrong. Our brigade cadres must also be educated so they don't think they can bully others.
The marriages of educated youth were even more strictly scrutinized. I've heard that in some places, some people married out of necessity. There were even cases where someone fell into the water and someone bravely jumped in to save them. But after they were rescued, rumors began to spread, alleging they had intimate contact, and the couple ultimately married under pressure from the rumors. What a bad habit! These people's minds are still stuck in the old society!
I'm afraid some people will exploit this feudal custom to manipulate and force others into marriage, bringing shame to our Taoyuan Commune. I'm planning to discuss this with my colleagues over the next couple of days and go to the brigade to spread awareness and tell everyone about this. Don't let a single rumor ruin your life. Anyone who dares to spread rumors will be arrested by the People's Armed Forces!
Secretary Li smiled and said, "You've thought it through quite comprehensively. Let's call a meeting of all the brigade cadres and discuss the issue of the educated youth. Originally, Old Zhong and I treated this purely as a political task. We were a bit helpless, and just wanted to avoid causing trouble for the members. Now it seems that we need to be more proactive. While avoiding any trouble, we should also maximize the role of the educated youth. Now that we're here, how can we not make a difference?"
Xie Yun smiled and said, "That's the truth. After all, they are city kids. They've been to school, are well-informed, and have quick minds. If we let them work hard after they come here, I believe there will definitely be some who can play a leading role. Besides, if they can accomplish something, they will also be proud. Even if they return to the city in the future, these will be their achievements."
☆
When Zhang Guangzong arrived, the three people had just finished discussing this issue.
"Secretary Li, Director Zhong, Binbin."
"Captain."
"Lao Zhang, sit down."
Xie Yun stood up and poured him a glass of water.
Zhang Guangzong asked Secretary Li, "You called me here to talk about increasing wheat production, right?"
Secretary Li laughed and said, "Old Zhang, you are very patient. You didn't even report such a big thing right away."
Zhang Guangzong laughed and said, "I'm just worried I'm being too proud. I want to calm down first. This is true. Production has indeed increased, at least 15%."
Director Zhong laughed and said, "It seems Binbin is still conservative. She just said 10%."
Zhang Guangzong laughed heartily. "This is also an unexpected gain for us. We originally invited Comrade Yan to teach us how to keep bees, but we didn't expect that his expertise lies in farming. Not only does he know how to farm, he can also teach all the members how to do it."
He talked in detail about what Yan Dongsheng had done in Liushutun and basically sorted out the reasons for the increase in grain production.
Secretary Li asked him, "So is there hope for an increase in corn yield this year?"
"right!"
Director Zhong smiled and said, "Other brigades didn't catch up with the wheat crop before, but they should be able to catch up this time with corn. Let Comrade Yan visit each brigade and give them some suggestions and advice. If our entire commune can achieve a simultaneous increase in corn yields, it will be a big deal. When we report to the county at the end of the year, we can ask Secretary He for something. I heard they already have a combine harvester, I wonder if we can get one back."
Zhang Guangzong: "!!! No problem, I'll follow the leader's instructions."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
