Chapter 482 True Hero
What Lu Guohua said next finally made Zhou Yi understand the real reason why he decided to stay here to teach.
Some of the information contained therein is even more touching.
She said that when Lu Xiaoshuang was two and a half years old, it was also summer and the whole city was hit by heavy rain. The continuous heavy rain not only brought difficulties to life, but the more serious problem was that it caused floods and a large amount of soil erosion.
The house they lived in at that time was not on this high ground here, but on the other side of the village.
It was built by several educated youth from the village when the two got married.
At that time, there were elderly people in the village who reminded them not to build here, but due to certain language barriers, they did not understand the elderly’s good intentions.
The subsequent flood proved how serious the consequences of their disobedience were.
At that time, continuous heavy rains caused severe flooding, and all the lower-lying areas in the village were flooded.
More than half of Lu Guohua's house was also flooded.
Su Xiuying could only climb onto the roof to hide while holding Lu Xiaoshuang, who was less than three years old.
Because the floods were so severe at the time, the village had no electricity, let alone telephones, and could not even ask the county for help.
Therefore, the village party secretary could only organize the young and middle-aged people in the village to carry sandbags to build river embankments to divert the water.
Lu Guohua was among them.
Then, something happened.
The structure of the adobe house itself is not strong, and it has been raining heavily for several days.
Shortly after Su Xiuying climbed to the roof carrying Lu Xiaoshuang, the house collapsed.
Su Xiuying and Lu Xiaoshuang both fell into the flood. Since the house did not collapse completely, Su Xiuying was an adult, so she was stuck in the rubble and was not washed away.
But she failed to catch Lu Xiaoshuang, who was less than three years old, and Lu Xiaoshuang was directly washed away by the flood.
Just when Su Xiuying was in despair, a figure suddenly jumped into the rushing flood and swam towards the child desperately.
In the end, Lu Xiaoshuang was rescued.
The person who rescued her was a disabled old bachelor in his forties from the village.
This old bachelor had only one hand, but he was like a god descending from heaven. He rescued Lu Xiaoshuang from the flood and climbed ashore.
Before this, Lu Guohua had no contact with this old bachelor.
All I know is that he is a lonely man, without parents and without a family.
Although this man was a native of Yangjiatun, he left after his parents passed away in his early years, and the villagers didn't know where he went.
All I know is that he suddenly came back from outside more than ten years ago, and when he came back, his right hand was gone.
There are many stories about him in the village, but most of them sound a bit scary. Some people even swear that he was in prison outside and had one of his hands chopped off.
In short, this old bachelor usually has no sense of existence at all, and no one expected that he would stand up at that moment and save Lu Xiaoshuang.
After Su Xiuying took Lu Xiaoshuang from the old bachelor, she knelt on the ground and kowtowed.
But the old bachelor turned around and left without saying a word.
Later, the rain stopped and the flood receded. Only then did the exhausted Lu Guohua come back and find out what had happened.
He immediately ran to the old bachelor's house, kowtowed to him, and thanked him for saving his daughter.
Lu Xiaoshuang was frightened when she fell into the flood and became seriously ill. She was so ill that Lu Guohua and his wife almost thought their child was beyond saving.
The couple stayed with their child all night long, and finally, with God's help, the child recovered.
Lu Guohua said that since that serious illness, Lu Xiaoshuang rarely got sick, even rarely had colds and fevers, and her health was much better than when she was a child.
Zhou Yi knew that from a scientific point of view, it was actually that serious illness that honed Lu Xiaoshuang's resistance.
But Lu Guohua felt that whether it was that time or this time, his daughter had a noble person to help her.
Zhou Yi thought about the grand cases in his previous life and felt that sometimes he might have to believe in some metaphysical things.
"Later... after Xiao Shuang recovered, I borrowed some money from some of the educated youth who had been sent to the countryside with me, and went to thank the big brother who had saved Xiao Shuang."
"In the end, the eldest brother didn't take a penny, and said that all he needed to do was treat him to a bowl of braised pork and a drink."
"So without a second thought, I walked over ten kilometers back and forth to the town to buy meat and wine." Lu Guohua's tone was somewhat bitter. "It was difficult to buy meat and wine at that time because you needed tickets, and I didn't have any. I asked around in town, and it took a lot of effort to finally buy meat and wine."
Lu Guohua said that he left in the morning and returned to the village in the evening. He had several blisters on his feet. In the evening, Su Xiuying burned a needle on a candle and pricked them for him.
The next day, he went to the old bachelor's house with wine and meat.
Because his home had been washed away by the flood, he was temporarily staying at the village party secretary's home.
When the old bachelor saw the meat, he asked him to sit down first, and then started to cook the braised pork without saying a word, and also fried two vegetarian dishes.
Lu Guohua saw that although he only had one hand, his movements were very flexible and no worse than those of a normal person.
Plus, it was a bit awkward to just sit there and wait, so I tried to find a topic to chat about.
As they chatted, he discovered that this big brother was not what the villagers said he was. On the contrary, he was a truly admirable person.
The eldest brother told Lu Guohua that he joined the army at the age of 18. Since both his parents had passed away, the army was his home.
In the army, he was noticed by his superiors and became an engineer. Later, he participated in the construction of many special projects.
He followed the troops and traveled all over the country.
It wasn't until 1963 that their troops received a special order to secretly go deep into the desert to participate in a plan.
The eldest brother did not tell Lu Guohua what the plan was.
But he said it was an endless Gobi Desert with nothing there.
In addition to these soldiers, there were also many intellectuals there.
He didn't stay there for long, but he said it was the most miserable place he had ever been in his life, and it was also hit by a natural disaster. Not to mention food, even wild grass and tree bark were rare.
But that couldn't dampen their enthusiasm and determination. Everyone worked day and night, risking their lives.
During an engineering operation, an accident occurred due to a corroded and loose screw.
In order to save the precious experimental equipment, he risked being crushed to death while repairing it. In the end, the equipment was saved, but the price was one of his hands.
While trying to repair the damage, his right hand got stuck in the deformed steel bar and was eventually torn off.
He fainted from heavy bleeding on the spot.
He said that the first question he asked after being rescued was, "Is the equipment saved?"
Because one of his hands was broken, he took the initiative to apply to his superiors before he recovered because he did not want to become a burden.
He knew how important what they were doing in the depths of the desert was.
His superiors approved his application and told him that due to the confidentiality and special nature of the project, the army could not commend him for his contribution.
But he can be arranged a civilian job in the army.
He refused because the country was also in a difficult situation and he didn't want to cause trouble for the country.
So he retired from the army as a disabled soldier due to duty.
The next year, he heard the news that shocked the whole world.
He was extremely excited and told everyone he met: We have stood up, and from now on no one in the world will dare to bully us.
Later, after wandering outside for many years, he wanted to return to his roots.
So, we returned to Yangjiatun.
Just hearing this, Zhou Yi was so shocked that he couldn't close his mouth.
That’s right, Lu Guohua didn’t say it, and neither did the disabled soldier who saved Lu Xiaoshuang.
But the answer is already obvious.
In 1964, in Lop Nur, my country's first atomic bomb was successfully detonated!
Zhou Yi watched the video recordings from that year that were later released to the public. In the very low-resolution footage, a ball of blazing white light tore through the sky, a mushroom cloud rose into the sky, and the sound of the explosion resounded through the clouds.
At this moment, what appeared out of nowhere was not just an atomic bomb, but a sky-shattering cry from an ancient nation with its wisdom, blood, tears and soul after a century of humiliation.
Zhou Yi has never been to Lop Nur, and this place name is still a mysterious existence in his impression.
But he believed that after so many years, the wind and sand would still sweep across the desolate desert year after year.
But those were the figures who used abacus to knock on the nuclear door back then.
The backbone of the country who gnaw on leaves in saline water.
Those noble souls who ignited the thunder in the night in the darkest moments of history.
It has long become the eternally burning flag in the long history of our nation, supporting the backbone of every Chinese citizen!
The big brother that Lu Guohua mentioned must be the engineer who participated in the atomic bomb research program back then, and he was one of the greatest people!
Zhou Yi could not have imagined that in this inconspicuous northwestern village, there existed such a remarkable person!
"Uncle Lu...is this hero still alive?"
Faced with Zhou Yi's question, Lu Guohua remained silent in the darkness. After a long time, he let out a long sigh.
"He died of illness when Xiaoshuang was five years old. With the help of the village party secretary, Xiuying and I arranged his funeral. I asked Xiaoshuang to wear mourning clothes for him and send him on his final journey." Lu Guohua's voice was full of sadness.
Zhou Yi sighed softly, but when he thought about it carefully, the hero could return to his hometown and there were people wearing mourning for him. A selfless and great person like him would not want others to feel sad for him.
"That dinner was the only one that Brother Yang and I had. Later, whenever I wanted to thank him, he always refused. He said that since he had eaten my meat and drunk my wine, I didn't owe him anything," Lu Guohua continued.
"It was during that drink that he told me he particularly admired scholars. He said that for a country to prosper and become strong, and for a nation to stand tall, children must be educated and cultured. Only when our descendants become stronger than the previous one will we avoid being bullied."
"It was his few words that made me decide to open a primary school in the village and teach the children. His kindness in saving Xiaoshuang is as high as the sky and as deep as the sea. I have no way to repay him. Staying here and teaching is the only way I can repay him."
Lu Guohua's words shook Zhou Yi's soul to the depths.
The hero's emotion was heartfelt, because he witnessed with his own eyes how scholars changed the destiny of a country through knowledge, so this was an understanding that was engraved in his bones.
Lu Guohua spent half his life repaying his kindness.
A true hero, a true gentleman, composed an unknown hymn on this land.
"Uncle Lu, where is this hero's tomb? I want to go and pay my respects tomorrow."
"Alas, in the summer of 1989, the village cemetery was washed away by floods, and Brother Yang's remains were washed away with it," Lu Guohua said sadly. "God is so unfair! He couldn't even rest in peace after his death."
Zhou Yi immediately said, "No, Uncle Lu, I don't think so. God must have buried him in a wider world. After all, this is the land he loved so much. God wanted him to see the times getting better and better."
Lu Guohua couldn't help but be stunned, then nodded repeatedly and said: "Yes, yes, you are absolutely right, you said it very well."
Outside the narrow window, the starry sky twinkles, illuminating the land.
The next day, Zhou Yi asked Lu Xiaoshuang about what he had learned yesterday, but Lu Xiaoshuang's face was full of shock.
"I...I don't know. My dad never told me." Lu Xiaoshuang said with surprise, "I just remember that when I was a child, my parents took me to visit Uncle Yang's grave every Qingming and Winter Solstice, although I didn't have much impression of him. Later, Uncle Yang's tomb was washed away by floods, and then my parents changed it to burning paper for Uncle Yang at home every Qingming and Winter Solstice."
"I really didn't know there was such a legendary and tortuous story behind this."
Zhou Yi expressed his understanding. After all, not every parent will open their hearts completely to their children. It’s not that they don’t love their children, but rather their pride and stubbornness as parents. Especially the love of the older generation is deeper and not good at expressing in words.
"Brother Yi, I didn't expect that my dad would tell you such a secret."
"Maybe he's been hiding this secret in his heart for so many years, and he's been lacking someone to talk to, so I just happened to be here."
Zhou Yi whispered in Lu Xiaoshuang's ear: "Don't ask him about this proactively, lest he feel embarrassed."
Lu Xiaoshuang was a little confused, but nodded.
At around nine o'clock in the morning, Zhao Liang from the Shacao Town Police Station arrived.
But this time he didn't come in a police car, but in a small truck. In addition to several workers, there was also a pile of construction materials on the truck.
When the truck stopped next to the school and workers with local accents moved all the construction materials over, Lu Guohua was dumbfounded.
I kept asking them if they had delivered it to the wrong place.
Zhao Liang smiled and said, "Teacher Lu, yes, it's for you." He pointed at Zhou Yi who was busy moving things and said, "This was all arranged by your son-in-law."
When Lu Guohua heard this, he quickly ran over and pulled Zhou Yi to ask what was going on.
Zhou Yi smiled and said, "Uncle Lu, I'll help the workers move everything over first. Xiaoshuang, explain the situation to your dad."
"Oh, okay." Lu Xiaoshuang nodded, pulled Lu Guohua aside and said, "Dad, this is what happened. Zhou Yi knew that our classroom was always leaking, so he asked Officer Zhao for help in advance. He bought the materials for replacing the roof and hired workers."
"That's not going to work. How much money would that cost? No, no, no."
"Dad, look, the stuff has been shipped in, and the workers are here too. If we tell them we don't want to repair it now, we'll still have to pay for it."
When Lu Guohua heard this, he was immediately in a dilemma.
"How...how did Zhou Yi know that the classroom roof was leaking?"
Lu Xiaoshuang stuck out her tongue and said, "I just let it slip by accident, and Brother Yi remembered it."
"Oh, this kid is really thoughtful."
"Dad, don't feel any psychological burden. You'll understand later. This is Brother Yi's personality."
Lu Guohua's eyes moistened, and he nodded repeatedly: "Okay, okay, I'll leave you to such a good person. Your mother and I won't have to worry about you anymore."
"Xiuying, Xiuying, go to the market at the entrance of the village to buy some vegetables and cook for everyone at noon." Lu Guohua ran into the house in a hurry.
Lu Xiaoshuang looked at Zhou Yi who was busy running around and said, "Brother Yi, let me help you."
Renovating the roof is a rare thing in the village, especially when it is a classroom where children go to school.
So many people from the village came to see the fun after hearing the news. Many aunts and young wives came to watch the fun, and many men came to help with the work.
For a while, it was very lively outside the Lu family.
On the roof, a group of rough men were busy dismantling the old and building the new. The seats below were full of spectators. Lu Guohua moved out all the stools in his house, and Su Xiuying also bought a few pounds of melon seeds.
A large group of rural women were eating melon seeds, chatting, and watching the men working on the roof.
A group of children were playing on the playground.
Fortunately, it is cloudy today, not sunny, and not windy.
Zhou Yi looked at this lively scene unique to the countryside and felt very familiar, just like when he went to his grandma's house before and all the villagers came to visit.
Zhou Yi originally wanted to climb up and help, but firstly, there were quite a few people there, and secondly, he had never done such work as carpentry or masonry.
Thirdly, just as he was about to climb, he was grabbed by Lu Guohua.
Lu Guohua was very nervous, afraid that he would get bumped or hurt.
The villagers laughed loudly and spoke in a dialect that Zhou Yi could not understand.
Zhou Yi secretly asked Lu Xiaoshuang what they talked about. Lu Xiaoshuang smiled and said she wouldn't tell him, then ran to help her mother cook.
Seeing Zhou Yi standing by with his hands on his hips watching the workers work, Zhao Liang walked over.
He was wearing casual clothes today, and Zhou Yi guessed that he was on vacation today.
"Officer Zhao, I'm really sorry to trouble you. Without your help, I really don't know what to do with this matter." Zhou Yi said, taking out a cigarette box and handing over a cigarette.
Zhao Liang waved his hand and said, "I don't smoke. I'm not used to it."
Hearing this, Zhou Yi put away his cigarette and didn't smoke it himself. He smiled and said, "I rarely smoke either."
At this time, Zhao Liang took out a small notebook, opened it, pointed at the densely packed words on it and said, "Zhou Yi, look, this is my account. I wrote down the money for buying materials and the wages of the workers. The money you sent me before is not only not spent, but there is still some left. I guess the labor here is not as expensive as yours. Come, check the accounts, and when you are done, pay the workers and I will return the remaining money to you."
Zhou Yi pushed the notebook back and said, "Brother Zhao, I won't look at the account. If it weren't for your help, I would be in the dark. If there is any extra money, you don't have to pay me back."
Zhao Liang waved his hands when he heard this: "No, no, you're doing a good deed, how can I take your bribe?"
Zhou Yi quickly explained: "Brother Zhao, you misunderstood. We are all police officers. How could I use such a clichéd thing to annoy people?"
"So what do you mean?"
"I was thinking that Xiaoshuang and I live far away, and I can't usually take care of her. If there's any extra money, I'd like to ask Brother Zhao to pay more attention to the school and give us some if we need anything. If it's not enough, just let me know and I'll transfer it to you." Zhou Yi looked at the small, run-down classroom, thinking about the spiritual heritage of this land, and said with emotion, "I can't be as great as Teacher Lu and the others. I can only do my best."
Zhao Liang gave a thumbs-up and said, "Brother Zhou Yi, you're a real man. Don't worry about this matter. I'll pay more attention to it."
"Thank you, Brother Zhao."
"Hey, it's nothing, just a piece of cake. To be honest, when you first came to me to tell me about this, I thought you were just trying to please your father-in-law, thinking that city people are just more cunning than us. Now it seems that I was narrow-minded, and I have to apologize to you."
Zhou Yi smiled and said a few polite words.
It would be a bit of a lie to say that I had no intention of pleasing my future father-in-law and mother-in-law.
But in essence, this is the same as donating money to children in poor mountainous areas, which is about showing love.
The biggest difference is that this love reaches the target directly without any interference from other organizations, and it effectively brings this love to the ground.
Zhou Yi felt it was worth it to be able to achieve this level.
As Zhao Liang put away his notebook, he said, "By the way, Zhou Yi, I want to ask you something about work."
"About work?" Zhou Yi was stunned. "Brother Zhao, tell me."
"How do you usually handle missing persons cases in your big cities?"
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