If we were to say which year was the most memorable in Fu Baoer's life, it would probably be 1976.
This year, she cried four times when she saw the strong-willed people of Qingshan Village.
A farewell along a long street of ten miles, a sleepless night of sorrow shared by heaven and earth;
A marshal passed away, a man of great courage and loyalty;
A natural disaster shakes the world, and the whole country works together to overcome the difficulties;
An independent cold autumn passed away, but his great achievements will be immortal.
Everyone spontaneously formed a team, holding flowers, supporting each other, and sent them off along the way. All schools were closed, and students stood under the national flag to commemorate the deceased.
Shen then called and said that the square in the capital was full of people, and their cries resounded through the sky and earth.
The villagers of Qingshan Village all took out money and donated it to the donation box in the village office. Fu Baoer folded them one by one, wrote each person's name on them, recorded them one by one, and sent them to the commune to donate to the city that collapsed in the natural disaster.
From January to September, Hua Xia fell into deep sorrow, and Fu Baoer saw more than once that grandpa and grandma held hands, they looked at the dark night sky and shed tears silently.
Fu Manshan said, you young people don’t understand. You don’t understand how hard it is to have the good life we have now.
Fu Baoer lay on her grandfather's lap and suddenly wanted to know stories of the past. If she had been born a few years earlier, could she have left her own mark in that turbulent history?
"Back then, life was hard, but no matter how hard it was, as long as you had a goal to strive for, you could survive. The difficulty was that you never knew when your life would end..."
Jiang Fengxia thought back to those years, those people, holding bayonets to pry open their courtyard doors, pointing guns at the heads of their neighbors, shouting words that no one could understand. They saw Chinese people bowing and scraping like their lackeys, saw people spit at them, and then hacked to death with their swords.
She saw those running dogs again, some of whom were beaten to death by the common people, while others took advantage of the enemy's inattention and advised them to escape quickly. Jiang Fengxia later vaguely understood that people have many choices in their lives. To die in the face of danger is loyalty, and to bow down in front of the invaders is surrender. Everyone has many choices to survive.
But she wants to live with dignity.
"A bunch of bandits, a bunch of beasts," Fu Manshan never smoked in front of children, but he couldn't help it at this moment. "They are all so short, not even as tall as our Baoer, and the bayonets in their hands are above their heads. How could Ke Xin be so cruel, killing so many people..."
Jiang Fengxia recalled a time when she saw these beasts driving a car. Standing there, she was only slightly taller than the wheel. She couldn't help laughing, but after she finished laughing, the expression on her face was uglier than crying: "They can't tell the difference between a virgin and a married woman. They use their hair to tell them apart. Those with braids are mature girls, and those with their hair tied up are women who have given birth. They are beasts, and they only pick out those with braids and drag them away. The girls in the village have all learned from them and tie their hair up every day, but your aunt was unlucky and couldn't escape..."
Fu Baoer wiped Jiang Fengxia's tears. She had never heard her grandparents talk about their parents and brothers and sisters. She guessed that they were all left in that era.
"These beasts have taken over our land and are building houses and buildings on it. When your uncle was a child, he was caught and used to play with them. They like children very much. When your uncle came back, he said that the place where people defecate is a white, slippery bucket. When you pull the rope, the feces will be flushed away by the water." Fumanshan didn't know that thing was called a toilet. He just remembered that his son was very excited when he talked about it.
Fu Manshan thought of his eldest son who died before him and sighed, "Your uncle was beaten a lot when he was a child. Those people gave him some candy and kept him away from home all day. Later, I beat him up so hard that he didn't dare to go anymore."
Later, wars broke out non-stop, with continuous artillery fire and smoke rising everywhere. The people were displaced and had to flee everywhere. It was at that time that Fu Manshan lost his parents, brother and little sister. "It was tragic. People were bombed like that and their arms and legs were gone. Baoer, I am an unfilial grandpa. I couldn't even collect the bodies of your great-grandfather and great-grandmother, but... It's not that I don't want to go back, it's that I can't go back. If I go back, what will happen to your grandmother and the children at home..."
A few years after Jiang Fengxia married Fu Manshan, things started to go wrong. People in her family left or died, leaving only her younger sister. However, Jiang Fengxia failed to protect her, and she was raped by those beasts.
"When your aunt died, there was not a single spot on her body that was bad. I hated her so much that I really wanted to risk my life and fight them..."
Fu Baoer's eyes were sore, and she hugged Jiang Fengxia tightly: "Grandma, don't cry, it's all in the past. They are all doing well in heaven. They will be reincarnated into a good time in the next life and enjoy happiness."
Fu Manshan and Jiang Fengxia wiped their tears. It was a rural night, the sky was extremely clear, and the stars were twinkling one by one in the sky. Among these stars, which one was their loved one?
"Fortunately, our people fought back quickly. How many years was that? Almost fourteen years. Your grandmother and I took the children and ran around. The best time was to stay in our own base. Even if those beasts attacked, the worst that could happen to us was death, and we didn't have to endure that humiliation." Fu Manshan felt that life was promising at that time. The war could be won, and we would definitely win. "Later, we really won. There was nothing special that day. Someone just suddenly came and told us to go home. It's safe."
Fu Manshan and Jiang Fengxia followed a group of people back to their hometown. They really didn't encounter those beasts along the way. Although chaos started to occur again later, it was ultimately just one's own people fighting against one's own people. This went on for another three or four years before it was completely stable. Then they followed everyone and merged into Qingshan Village.
"Bao'er, all of this is what they brought us: good days and a good life," Fu Manshan pointed to the brightest stars. "You must remember them, and make your future children remember them, too. Do you understand? We Chinese people cannot forget these people!"
Fu Baoer nodded seriously, "We won't forget them. Their achievements are recorded in history books and textbooks. They will be passed down from generation to generation, leaving their mark in the hearts of every Chinese person."
The three generations of grandparents and grandchildren leaned against each other and sat quietly all night until the moon and stars set and the rising sun leaped out from the horizon.
A new day has begun.
P.S. The next chapter is about the college entrance examination, my dears. A new chapter is about to begin. To be honest, I was so tired from writing the previous one. I am so dizzy. Can you give me a love~ or give me a good comment?
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