After the summer harvest, the villagers took a break. After lunch that day, everyone stayed in the courtyard to rest. This year, besides the Liu family, several other families in the village had asked Liu's father for seeds, including those in the old house, Liu Xiu's family, and Aunt Wang's family. But none of them had grown as well as Liu's father and mother.
Liu's parents planted 23 watermelon seedlings in their backyard, all of which have survived. After the first batch of watermelons ripened, they gradually sent ten of them to the supply and marketing cooperative, earning them over 16 yuan. There are still about 20 watermelons from the first batch in the backyard, and Liu's father plans to pick a few more and send them to the supply and marketing cooperative tomorrow.
Ruirui came out of the room, fished out the watermelon that had been chilled in the well before lunch, took it to the kitchen, cut it into slices, put it on a tray, and took it to the yard for everyone to eat.
Xuemei and Han Chen ate the watermelon by themselves first. After Ruirui had warmed up the two thin slices of watermelon that she had cut specially for the sisters An An and Le Le, a little girl ran out from the bamboo bed with her mouth watering. This was the first time for An An and Le Le to eat watermelon. Han Chen and Xuemei held the watermelon slices in one hand, and the two sisters in Han Chen and Xuemei's arms stretched out their hands as soon as they saw it, and stretched out their hands to grab their arms to get the watermelon slices.
Han Chen and Xuemei slowly fed An An and Le Le a thin piece of watermelon rind. Rui Rui had picked out the watermelon seeds on it in advance. The two sisters wanted to eat more after they finished eating, so Han Chen and Xuemei wiped their mouths and put them on the bamboo bed in the middle of the yard.
After Xuemei finished feeding Lele, she noticed Feng Ru still holding the piece of watermelon, lost in thought. She asked, "Sister-in-law, what are you thinking about? Aren't you getting a sore throat? Eat two more pieces of ice watermelon to cool you down!"
Feng Ru has been feeling increasingly uneasy lately. She has been unable to sleep at night for the past few days and has a large blister in her mouth.
Feng Ru sighed and said, "I've been feeling uneasy these past few days. I haven't heard from your eldest brother in almost six months. I'm very worried!"
"Sister-in-law, why don't you write a few letters to my second sister and the others tomorrow to ask them. My brother only asked us not to contact Beijing, but he didn't forbid us from communicating with my second sister and brother-in-law!" Han Chen suggested.
Feng Ru thought for a moment and said, "Okay, I'll send a letter to your sister-in-law tomorrow. If this continues, I really can't stand it!"
Feng Ru stood up and went back to her room to write a letter. But not even ten minutes after she went in, there was a knock on the door. Qing Ya hurried to open it. Within a minute, Qing Ya came over with three people and shouted to Lin Jin, "Xiao Jin, they're here to look for your mother. Go to the room and call your mother!"
Han Chen saw the two elderly people behind Qingya and immediately stood up and called out, "Uncle Wu, Aunt Yang, why are you here?"
Qingya was followed by three people: a man and a woman in their fifties, and a young man in his twenties. All three wore military uniforms, each carrying a wicker basket and a sack. The two elderly men in uniform were Wu Jiaan's father, Wu Zhong, and mother, Yang Lian, both veteran revolutionaries.
"Xiaochen, we are here to talk to your sister-in-law about something." Wu Zhong said seriously.
Han Chen looked at the serious expressions of the three people and felt that the situation was not simple. Father Liu patted Han Chen on the shoulder and said, "Xiaochen, let them sit down first!"
Han Chen finally reacted and he and his brother Ruirui moved the chairs next to Wu Zhong and the other two and asked them to sit down first. Liu's mother went back to the kitchen to cut the remaining half of the watermelon and brought it out on a tray.
After Wu Zhong and his friends finished their watermelon, Feng Ru couldn't wait to take Wu Zhong and his wife to the main hall. Wu Zhong also called Han Chen along, and Feng Ru was overwhelmed by what he was about to say. The others sat in the courtyard, waiting. Even the Lin Jin brothers, sensing the change in atmosphere, sat obediently on the bamboo bed.
In the main hall, Feng Ru waited until Han Chen closed the door. Then, feeling anxious, she asked, "Uncle Wu, Aunt Yang, is there something Hongwen wants you to tell me about?"
Wu Zhong looked at Yang Lian and said, "Xiao Feng, be prepared for what I'm about to tell you! It's bad news!"
Feng Ru was so frightened when she heard this that she took a few steps back. Holding onto the table, she forced herself to stand up and asked, "Did something happen to Hongwen, his parents, and his grandfather?"
Wu Zhong nodded. Watching Yang Lian rush to support Feng Ru, who was about to fall to the ground, and Han Chen panicking nearby, he slowly spoke, "Last month, the results of that political struggle came out. Hongwen and his team lost, but after an investigation by higher-ups, they found no problems with your family's ideological awareness; they just made a minor mistake this time. They originally wanted to send Jianye and Hongwen to a remote area to work on construction. Unexpectedly, a few days later, someone brought the Revolutionary Committee to your house to ransack it."
"Why did this happen suddenly?" Feng Ru asked crying.
"Huan reported it and fabricated evidence, saying that your parents abused their power for personal gain. Your parents and the other four were taken to the Revolutionary Committee that same day?" Wu Zhong said with sorrow.
"Uncle Hu, why did he do this? My parents, grandpa, Hongwen, our family have been so good to him, how could Hu An do this?" Feng Ru asked sadly.
Han Chen couldn't believe it either. In his mind, Juan had always been a kind, honest, and sincere elder. He repeatedly asked, "Why?"
Wu Zhong sighed deeply and replied, "Huan's son has been found. They should have contacted him in early March of this year. His son is on the side of Hongwen and his political enemies. Hongwen and his team lost the previous battle, and it is possible that Huan tipped them off.
But that group of people were so vicious that they had no intention of giving your parents and Hongwen a chance to recover. Later, they teamed up with Juan to fabricate evidence and report your parents."
Feng Ru wiped her tears and asked in a sobbing voice, "Where are Hongwen and the others now?"
"Your aunt and I have joined forces with several good friends, but we can't protect them. We can only ensure that they will not be harmed by the people from the Revolutionary Committee. They left for the Northwest a few days ago. Are they afraid of being sent down there?" Wu Zhong said, unable to bear it, closing his eyes.
After hearing this, Feng Ru burst into tears and her body began to shake. Zhang Lian quickly supported Feng Ru, and Han Chen moved a chair over and helped Feng Ru sit on it together with Zhang Lian.
The others in the yard were all nervous when they heard Feng Ru crying. Lin Jin ran to the main room and knocked on the door, asking, "Mom, what's wrong?"
Lin Ren heard Feng Ru crying and started crying too. An An Le Le also cried out of fear when she heard the crying. Liu's mother and Xue Mei quickly picked up one of them from the bamboo bed and comforted them, while Fei Fei hurried to comfort Lin Ren. Liu's father quickly ran to the main hall door and asked, "Xiao Chen, what happened?"
"Dad, take Xiaojin and his brother back to their room first. I'll talk to you later!" Han Chen answered in the main room.
When Father Liu heard this, he squatted down and tried to persuade Lin Jin, then picked her up and asked Feifei to pick up Lin Ren and go back to their room. Qingya and Ruirui looked at the main room worriedly.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
