Chapter 139 Return to the Village

Sun Xiuli sneered, "You really have a sharp tongue. I know you won't admit it, and we didn't come here to argue with you. Anyway, the report is here. Until your innocence is proven, you will have to be detained in solitary confinement for a while."

The two of them were arguing back and forth just now, and Liu Xiuqin couldn't get a word in. When she heard that Sun Xiuli was about to make a decision, she hurriedly stopped them and said, "What are you doing? We are just here to understand the situation first. The matter has not been investigated clearly yet, so don't hurt the relationship first."

"It's easy to find evidence. I grew up in Donglinjia Village, which is known to everyone in the village. If I am really the eldest daughter of a capitalist family, then who are my parents? You can't know better than me, the person involved, right?" Lin Yue paused, and suddenly realized, "Oh, I see. You want to say that my father is Principal Xu, right? Principal Xu is a red capitalist who has made contributions to the country. Even the county leaders have to give him some face. If I have such a powerful father, why didn't I recognize him for so many years, and still have to live a hard life under the hands of my adoptive parents?"

Liu Xiuqin said awkwardly: "I didn't say it was definitely true. It's not that Xu Enyuan's identity is too special. If he really escaped to the other side of the strait, it would be a serious crime!"

Lin Yue sneered, "When encountering something like this, it's right for you to come to me first to understand the situation, but I can't let you convict me right away. I don't know why there was news that Principal Xu fled to the other side of the strait, but he was transferred to another job normally, and there must be files in the Donglinjia Village Brigade. You just need to call and ask, and everything will be clear, right?"

When Mr. Xu left, he did not tell Lin Yue much about his work. Even she did not know where Mr. Xu had gone, and did not know how the person who wrote the report knew where Mr. Xu was. In Lin Yue's opinion, that person might have just made up a story, but it happened to match her guess.

Sun Xiuli was about to say something, but was stopped by Liu Xiuqin. She was actually feeling bitter. Originally, there was someone in the army who was specifically responsible for this kind of thing. She just followed her husband Yang's words and came to understand the situation. But she didn't expect to be pestered by Sun Xiuli before she even left the house. She didn't want to pay attention to it, but who made Commander Zhou the most likely person to take over as commander? She didn't dare to offend him.

But Sun Xiuli was really annoying. She exchanged a few pleasantries with Lin Yue and then took Sun Xiuli out. Sun Xiuli felt that she had rejected her face and did not show any good face to her. Liu Xiuqin sighed in her heart. If Commander Zhou really became the commander, she didn't know what Sun Xiuli would do.

Fortunately, Commander Zhou did not become the commander in the end, but a new commander was transferred from the Beijing area. No one knows what the new commander is like, but what is certain is that he does not have any trouble-making relatives in his family.

Sun Xiuli had always regarded herself as the future commander's wife and wanted to get involved in everything in the family compound. Now that she has been slapped in the face, she has been silent for a long time.

Because there was no evidence, and Xu's father did have written proof of his job transfer, the matter of Lin Yue being reported was left unresolved. However, some people kept harping on Zhang Yuandong's breakup with his parents, and although they could not do anything to him, he was often forced to write self-criticisms and was criticized.

They had never been outside, and didn't know that it was not new for outsiders to break off relations with their families to protect themselves. However, Zhang Yuandong was different. In the eyes of many people, Sun Hongmei and Zhang Zhiwei were just not good parents, and it was Zhang Yuandong who was heartless.

Facing the difficulties of some people, Zhang Yuandong did not resist or explain anything. He knew the general trend of this period, and as an ordinary person, he could not change anything. If he could forbearance for a while in exchange for the safety of his wife and children, he was willing to do so.

The days passed slowly, and before the New Year, things seemed to have taken a turn for the better. In response to the chaos during the Great Movement, the leaders began to fight back.

Zhang Yuandong could finally breathe a sigh of relief. He had heard some rumors and knew that he was facing two options: transfer or career change.

Since this matter concerned the whole family, Zhang Yuandong did not choose to handle it alone, but carefully analyzed the current situation with Lin Yue.

With his military merits and current rank, if he changes his job, his job will definitely not be too bad. However, the outside world is too chaotic now, and the military camp is a pure land. Lin Yue supports him to continue to serve in the army. Zhang Yuandong secretly breathed a sigh of relief. He joined the army at the age of 16, and almost all the good memories in his life were in the military camp. He has a very deep feeling for this profession, so he is really confused about changing his job now.

Soon, the transfer order came. Zhang Yuandong asked Lin Yue: "If I have to be transferred to another very remote place, where life is very hard, are you still willing to go with me?"

Lin Yue was well prepared. She smiled and said, "That's great. I'm tired of staying here. It's a good opportunity for me to go and enjoy the beautiful scenery."

Zhang Yuandong held her hand and smiled too.

In February, the troops began to break camp and, in response to orders from their superiors, were transferred to neighboring provinces, beginning the process of "the troops taking over everything."

At the same time, Zhang Yuandong, his wife and children, boarded a train in the opposite direction.

After two days and one night of bumpy journey, the family of six finally arrived at their hometown.

Xiaotian Village still looks the same, except that there are many more slogans on the walls, and even traces of big-character posters.

Lin Yue had only been away for a year and a half, and when he came back here again, he felt that everything was unfamiliar.

It was not yet the end of the first month of the lunar year, and the weather was still very cold. There were few people on the street. Occasionally someone saw this family and was startled for a moment. After they reacted, they immediately shouted loudly: "Grey Gouzi is back! Grey Gouzi and his family are back!"

The other party's voice was very loud, and soon every household opened the door and came out to see the excitement.

When the people of Xiaotian Village saw that the family had really returned, they all greeted them warmly. Lin Yue followed Zhang Yuandong and responded with a polite smile. She had lived here for five years and had never received such treatment. She didn't know why everyone was so enthusiastic in just a year and a half.

In fact, the villagers' change did not start at this time. Shortly after Lin Yue decided to join the army, many people in the village had a 180-degree change in their attitude towards her.

In the past, when Zhang Yuandong was in the army, no matter what position he held, he was far away from ordinary people like them. The villagers looked at Lin Yue no differently from others, and some even felt jealous because Lin Yue lived a good life.

But now it was different. After Lin Yue joined the army, everyone finally made the abstract question of "Zhang Yuandong became an official" concrete. They heard from the young people in the village who had retired that only those with a rank of battalion commander or above could have their families accompany the army. And the subsequent gossip deepened this impression. So in the eyes of the villagers, their return this time was a return home in glory.

Lin Yue didn't think so much. Unlike the large and small bags she carried when she joined the army, this time she went into the battlefield lightly. She and Zhang Yuandong each carried a large travel bag, and the rest of the things that needed to be taken were all stuffed into the space. The statement to the outside world was that they had all been dealt with.

In the days before she left, she did get rid of a lot of things, even selling the beds to the new military wives. During those days, people were often coming in and out moving things, and no one knew how much she actually sold.

Lin Yue and his friends came back this time without informing anyone. Zhang Shouren and Zhang Shouyi were both at home. They were very surprised to see them back, and tears welled up in their eyes. They lived in the west room, not the room where Lin Yue usually slept. The two brothers were busy adding fire to the stove, and soon the room became very warm.

The two brothers are already 16 years old this year, and they are of high school age, but they dropped out of school last year and stayed at home. Zhang Yuandong got angry and was about to scold them, but was stopped by Lin Yue. She knew the brothers' character. They insisted on going to school when they just broke up with their family. Now they suddenly couldn't say anything. There must be a reason.

She patted Zhang Yuandong's hand and told him to talk to his two younger brothers. Zhang Yuandong took a deep breath and said with a straight face, "Tell me, what's going on?"

The two brothers looked at each other, hesitant. Zhang Yuandong sneered: "Why, do we need to give you some time to coordinate your statements?"

Zhang Shouren pursed his lips and said, "Schools have not been teaching properly in recent years. Usually, they are more focused on class education and re-education of poor and lower-middle peasants. Students don't have much energy to attend classes. They are fighting every day. We..." Zhang Shouren raised his eyes and secretly glanced at his brother and sister-in-law, and whispered, "We two are the targets of their struggle."

Zhang Yuandong's eyes widened: "We are a poor peasant family. Why have you become the target of struggle?"

Zhang Shouyi couldn't help it. With red eyes, he said, "Zhang Xiaoxi's story has spread around the school. Some people say that my sister was sent to the farm for labor reform at such a young age. It must be because our family tradition is not right and there are problems with our thinking..."

Zhang Yuandong understood. His chest rose and fell twice, and his lips moved, "You guys..."

"It's not your fault. There is nothing wrong with you. What happened to Zhang Xiaoxi was her personal choice. You can't be blamed for it." Lin Yue took over the conversation and said decisively.

The two brothers couldn't hold back their tears any longer. After all, they were just 16 years old and had experienced so many changes in the past few years. The pressure in their hearts was enormous.

Zhang Yuandong sighed, stepped forward and patted his two younger brothers on the shoulders, and asked with concern: "Now that you are back in the village, is there anyone who still makes things difficult for you?"

The two brothers shook their heads. "There are relatively few such incidents in the village. It was only after the arrival of the educated youth that some fighting occurred, but most of them were suppressed by the team leader." In fact, because they lived in the eldest brother's house, the villagers were wary of them and were very polite to them.

Along the way, Lin Yue also saw many unfamiliar faces in the village. Judging from their dress, they were quite different from the native rural people. Lin Yue guessed that these people should be educated youth. However, these educated youth were not the same as Lin Yue imagined. Some of them were timid and hid from the villagers, while others were eager to fight at any time.