Extra 2
Extra 2: Meng Yanchun
"Hey, Dachun, you're done!"
Liu Aimin watched Meng Yanchun carrying a hoe and walking forward with his head down, and shouted loudly from a distance.
Meng Yanchun looked up, put down his hoe, and said with a smile: "The autumn harvest is almost done. Why are you running to the river instead of staying at home?"
Liu Aimin pursed his lips and pointed to the mud in front of him, "Look, catching loaches."
Speaking of loaches, Meng Yanchun couldn't help but slow down his pace and look towards Liu Aimin. "How are they? Are there a lot?"
Liu Aimin chuckled, "What do you think?"
Meng Yanchun came over and looked into Liu Aimin's bucket.
"Damn, there are so many. When will you find a place?"
Liu Aimin said proudly, "Hey, I'm not good at studying, but when it comes to finding these wild goods, few people can compare to me."
As the saying goes, "When the autumn wind blows, loaches grow fat, and loaches in early winter are as delicious as ginseng." In late autumn and early winter, loaches are delicious and nutritious. Another saying goes, "Doves in the sky, loaches on the ground." This shows that loaches have been a popular and precious food since ancient times.
Meng Yanchun no longer hesitated, took off his shoes and socks, and put his feet into the mud.
In late autumn, loaches are very fat. As the weather gets colder, they hide in the mud and sleep soundly. Suddenly, they are disturbed by the outside world and begin to stir.
Every child who grew up in the countryside is good at catching birds and loaches. Meng Yanchun just lowered his head and worked for a while, and caught more than ten.
Meng Yanchun and Liu Aimin stopped only when the sun went down. They washed their feet by the river, put on their shoes, and walked towards the village.
"Did the branch secretary and aunt accompany Grandma Meng to visit relatives?" Liu Aimin asked.
Meng Yanchun nodded: "Yes, let's go to the capital to see Xiaowan and the two children first, and then take the train to Shen City."
"Oh, time flies. Xiaowan was just a little kid back then, but now she's the mother of several children. We're getting old too," Liu Aimin said with emotion.
Meng Yanchun raised his foot and kicked Liu Aimin. "Go to hell! A man is in his prime at 31, and I'm still in full bloom. My wife doesn't know how much she loves me."
"It's still a flower, a morning glory, haha." As he said that, I don't know what hit Liu Aimin's funny spot, but he burst out laughing.
"Then it won't be long before you, Hanyun, and Zhuangzhuang are the only ones left at home."
Meng Yanchun: "Yes, after we finish the work in the village, our family will go to the capital during the New Year."
"I'm going, to the capital. The farthest place I've been to since I was a child is the city. I wonder what the capital is like?" When Liu Aimin heard that Meng Yanchun's family was going to the capital, his tone was full of envy that could not be concealed.
Meng Yanchun was silent. He didn't say anything like "go if you want to go."
He knew that although he, Liu Aimin, and many of his peers in the village grew up together, there were still differences between them.
He could take his family to the capital just by mentioning it, but Liu Aimin couldn't.
The Meng family, when Grandpa Meng Changhe was young, he went out to make a living. In that turbulent era, as long as you are willing to take risks, it is not difficult to make money.
Furthermore, Grandma Meng's background was not simple. Although she had fled to the countryside with Grandpa Meng, her family was still very wealthy. For many years, living in the countryside, due to the political situation at the time, they had no place to spend their money. Furthermore, the Meng family did not dare to show their wealth, but now that policies have been liberalized, the gaps that were once ignored have been exposed.
This time, Grandma Meng took Meng Aiguo and Li Lanxiang to the capital to visit Meng Wanqiu and several grandchildren. With a wave of her hand, she directly bought a yard in the capital for each of the four siblings.
Watching Liu Aimin constantly musing about his longing for the capital, Meng Yanchun felt a pang of distress. He didn't know how to bridge the gap. His childhood friends had been taught how to farm, that farming was a contribution to the nation. Back then, being poor was considered glorious. But now society has changed. City dwellers and businesspeople have become wealthy, yet why do honest farmers still face poverty? They've cared for the land their entire lives, yet they can't even afford a train ticket to the capital.
Meng Yanchun felt that this was wrong, but he couldn't tell what was wrong.
Listening to Liu Aimin's ramblings, they separated and returned home. He kept the loaches in a basin of water, dripped two drops of oil into them, and let them spit out the sand, and would kill them and eat them tomorrow.
Dong Hanyun finished cooking. Meng Yanchun went into the room and called Zhuangzhuang, who was doing his homework, "Son, it's time to eat."
"Okay, I'll be right there." The homework that Zhuangzhuang was doing was still the extracurricular homework assigned to him by his uncle Pei Xingzhi. The content was very interesting and Zhuangzhuang enjoyed doing it very much.
Meng Yanchun looked at his son and thought about the children in the village. How could he bridge this gap? His son had been taught by people like Xingzhi since he was young, but the children in the village still had to help with housework after school, going up the mountain to chop wood, herd cattle and feed pigs. His son, by staying at home, could absorb new things from the outside world, but the children in the village...
Meng Yanchun didn't want to think about it anymore. He knew that his family lived a good life because of the efforts of the older generation. If it weren't for them, he himself might be like Liu Aimin, a farmer who didn't even dare to think about going to the capital.
Meng Yanchun was unusually silent throughout the dinner. Dong Hanyun and Zhuangzhuang both obviously noticed that something was wrong with him. Zhuangzhuang wanted to ask something, but Dong Hanyun gave him a look and Zhuangzhuang shut up.
Leave it to mom, she definitely knows what dad is thinking.
At night, Dong Hanyun looked at Meng Yanchun who was distracted and asked, "What's going on? You've been distracted since you came back today."
Meng Yanchun turned his head to look at Dong Hanyun and said something completely unrelated, "Wife, when grandma and parents asked to take you out to play, why didn't you agree?"
Dong Hanyun glanced at him and said, "Why should I go if you don't go? Aren't we going to the capital for the New Year? It's the same thing if we wait until then."
"But don't you think doing farm work every day is too hard? Look at Xiao Wan, Feng Dong, and Ming Xia. They are all college students. They don't need to do farm work all day long. So... follow me and let you suffer——"
Before Meng Yanchun could finish his words, Dong Hanyun slapped him hard in the face. "What's wrong with you today? Are you possessed by a ghost? What nonsense are you talking about?"
Meng Yanchun paused, hugged Dong Hanyun tightly in his arms, and said in a muffled voice: "I'm sorry, my wife, I just feel a little uncomfortable."
Dong Hanyun sighed, hugged Meng Yanchun's furry head, and gently massaged his scalp: "Since marrying you, I have never regretted it. Everyone has their own way of living. Become a wife to an official, or turn over the intestines of a butcher. Whatever you are, that's who I am."
Meng Yanchun rubbed his wife's neck for a while before telling Dong Hanyun about his confusion today.
Dong Hanyun listened silently.
Of the four Meng siblings, the eldest, Meng Yanchun, possesses the purest and most compassionate nature, and he holds the deepest affection for Qinghe Village. This personality evokes a sense of responsibility for everyone in the village, and when he sees his family doing well while those he grew up with continue to live through the same hardships, he feels a sense of guilt.
As Meng Yanchun's bedmate, Dong Hanyun knew why he felt guilty.
"So, what are you going to do? Or rather, what can you do?"
Meng Yanchun choked suddenly.
He lay in Dong Hanyun's arms for a long time without saying a word. Dong Hanyun didn't urge him. After a long while, Meng Yanchun raised his head, looked at her seriously and said, "I want to do something for everyone. I know this gap can't be changed, but I want to make it smaller and smaller."
"You plan to make money with the villagers." Dong Hanyun hit the nail on the head.
Meng Yanchun hesitated for a moment and nodded.
He found that there seemed to be no other way except to help everyone get rich. He couldn't just give everyone money. Although the Meng family had some wealth, as long as there were sensible people in the Meng family, they would not let Meng Yanchun do this.
Of course, Meng Yanchun never thought about it this way. The money in the family was left to him by his parents and Grandma Meng, but it was not earned by him. Meng Yanchun would not use the money of his elders to do such "good" things.
Dong Hanyun patted the man on the back and said, "Alright, go to sleep first. This matter needs to be carefully considered. When we return to the capital, you and Xiao Wan should think it over carefully."
Meng Yanchun nodded.
This matter is very important and must be discussed with the second brother and the others. Otherwise, it would be very difficult for him to actually accomplish anything on his own.
However, Meng Yanchun still couldn't fall asleep that night, his mind was full of various ideas.
By daybreak, he had finally come up with something. During the period before the Lunar New Year, Meng Yanchun had been running back and forth between the mountains and the city. Dong Hanyun had a rough idea of what he was doing, but she didn't ask any questions. She quietly took care of the household affairs, not letting Meng Yanchun get distracted.
At the end of the year, when Meng Yanchun and his family rushed to the capital, Meng Wanqiu and others finally knew what Meng Yanchun was going to do.
"I've done some research in the city about selling things from our mountains. Things like loaches, eels, mountain mushrooms, bracken, and other mountain products aren't available in the city. If there are any, they're all very expensive. Aren't these things everywhere in our mountains?"
When talking about the information he had recently found, Meng Yanchun's face turned red with excitement, and he told everyone about his plan with his hands and feet gesticulating.
Everyone listened to Meng Yanchun very carefully.
After Meng Yanchun finished speaking, he saw everyone's serious faces and his heart skipped a beat. "Why, do you think this won't work?"
Meng Wanqiu quickly shook his head, "No, big brother, there is no problem, big brother, the plan is very good."
Meng Mingxia patted Meng Yanchun on the shoulder and praised him, "Great, big brother. I didn't expect you to be so aware. As your younger brother, I'm ashamed."
Meng Fengdong was also full of praise. "Brother, how did you come up with these questions? The content is very comprehensive and the ideas are very good. Brother, don't worry and go for it. We will take care of everything behind you."
Pei Xingzhi smiled and said to Meng Yanchun, "Brother, how did you come up with this idea? It's really great. With the current open policies, cities are accepting new information earlier than rural areas, and those with capital are more open-minded. If this continues, the gap between the rich and the poor will continue to widen. This is an inevitable contradiction. Brother, you have the idea of helping your fellow villagers get rich together. You are really bold."
Everyone was praising Meng Yanchun so much that his face flushed red. "It's not as great as you say. It's just an ordinary idea of mine. You can easily come up with it. Stop flattering me. Help me think of other things to pay attention to."
The young people were gathered together, while the elders were talking on the other side. Meng Yanchun's voice was loud, so it naturally reached their ears.
Hearing his eldest son's words, Meng Aiguo was first surprised, then proud. He had never thought Meng Yanchun would have such an idea. As the village party secretary, Meng Aiguo thought about these things every day. Now that society has changed, if the villagers do not make changes, they are destined to become a burden left behind by the times.
He didn't expect that the first person to make a change would be his son.
When Pei Zhongyuan heard Meng Yanchun's words, he showed undisguised praise in his eyes and gave Meng Aiguo a thumbs-up, "Brother Meng, your children are truly outstanding."
Any one of them could be worth several of them, and the Meng family has four of them, which is really enviable.
Meng Aiguo laughed heartily. "You're welcome, it's just a small fight. When they really achieve something, you can praise them. Otherwise, this kid will be so angry that he'll make a big fuss."
Hearing Meng Aiguo's words, Li Lanxiang pinched him hard from behind.
Meng Aiguo's expression remained unchanged.
Everyone supported Meng Yanchun's decision. Meng Wanqiu even secretly used the money from selling antiques to support Meng Yanchun, allowing him to go ahead with it with confidence.
Knowing that his younger sister was not short of money, Meng Yanchun did not hesitate to be polite with her. With the support of his family, Meng Yanchun returned to Qinghe Village and started working hard.
At first, he worked alone, traveling both in the city and in the countryside. In addition to Qinghe Village, he also went to all the villages around Hongshan County to collect these mountain products and wild goods.
At first, Meng Yanchun sold his products to the county purchasing station. Later, he found that the price at the purchasing station was 20% to 30% lower than the price he would have paid if he had sold them individually, and Meng Yanchun was not happy about it.
But door-to-door sales every day was not worth the effort, so Meng Yanchun opened a shop in the county that specialized in selling mountain products. He was too busy to handle both the purchase and sales, so he recruited Liu Aimin and his childhood friends to help him.
Gradually, Meng Yanchun's shop gradually attracted the attention of city people. When they saw the name of the shop, they knew that it was a store specializing in selling pure mountain flavors.
As Meng Yanchun's business gradually improved, many people followed suit and went to the countryside to collect goods. This time dealt a heavy blow to Meng Yanchun, and his shop almost went out of business.
However, the villagers gradually discovered that the buyers initially offered the same price as Meng Yanchun, but over time, they would always use various excuses to lower the price. The villagers were simple, but not stupid. They stopped selling mountain products to these buyers and instead found Meng Yanchun's shop and sold them exclusively to him.
Other people who followed the trend were suppressed, and Meng Yanchun's family was the only one left selling mountain products in the Gucheng area.
Gradually, Meng Yanchun's business expanded step by step, from one store to the second...
From Gucheng County to the city, and then to the province, until several years later, Meng Wanqiu, far away in the capital, could still hear the name of Meng Yanchun's company's products from his colleagues.
Meng Yanchun achieved his goal and brought prosperity to the villagers. Under Meng Yanchun's leadership, the villagers of Qinghe Village built houses early, and the road from the village to the county was well-maintained, benefiting other villages along the way. The entire Gucheng County became famous throughout the country because of Meng Yanchun.
Dong Hanyun was a key figure behind Meng Yanchun's success. As his business grew, he needed to deal not only with rural customers but also with cunning merchants, which became a challenge for Meng Yanchun. So, it was Dong Hanyun's turn to step in.
Because of her childhood experiences, Dong Hanyun's personality is white on the outside but dark on the inside. There is no room for her to display her talents in a place like the countryside. But in the business world, Dong Hanyun is doing very well.
Whether it's a small business or a large group, Meng Yanchun has always been committed to developing rural construction, building Hope Primary Schools, supporting children from poor families to continue their studies, and investing in other distinctive villages to develop their economies...
When he was old, Meng Yanchun's deeds were adapted into a TV series.
At that time, Meng Wanqiu and Pei Xingzhi brought their grandchildren to watch the show, allowing them to feel the persistence of the older generation.
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