Jiang Dahai and his wife came back from working in the fields. Their plastic boots were covered in mud. They stomped their feet outside the main room before walking in.
"Dad, Mom." Dani, who was busy in the kitchen, heard the noise and came out with two bowls of steaming tea with some fine tea leaves floating in them.
The Jiang family likes to drink tea. Most of the tea they drink is picked from old tea trees on the mountain. They stir-fry the tea themselves and put it in a large iron can. They go up the mountain to pick tea twice a year, which is enough for the whole family to drink for a year. In cold weather, they put the tea leaves directly into a thermos, fill a bucket of hot water, and pour it whenever they want to drink. Jiang Dahai also installed a filter on the bottle mouth of the thermos under the guidance of his son, so that the tea leaves will not leak out when pouring. After finishing a pot of tea, the tea leaves inside can be used for a second brew.
The Northeast is not suitable for growing tea, which is related to the soil and water quality of the Northeast. I don’t know which ancestor planted the tea forest on Daqing Mountain. It seems that it existed long before the people of Qingshan Village moved here. Those tea trees on the mountain are all old tea trees. The tea produced actually tastes average, bitter and astringent, but there are not so many beverages to choose from these days. Although Qingshan tea is bitter, it has a tea fragrance and is considered a good drink.
When the tea picking season comes, women and children from almost every household will go up the mountain to pick tea. People in the nearby villages have almost all grown up drinking green mountain tea and have long been accustomed to the taste. Even Jiang Yilu, who has been away from his hometown for so long and has drunk so many different kinds of beverages, still misses that taste in his heart.
In recent years, the management has been strict. Generally, people are not allowed to go up the mountain to pick tea or hunt. Now everything on Daqing Mountain is the common wealth of the brigade. If a private person goes up the mountain to pick tea or hunt, it means he is encroaching on the collective wealth. If he is caught, he will be criticized. Fortunately, Qingshan Village is backed by Daqing Mountain. The village is separated from the outside world by a mountain road. Most people don't come to Qingshan Village easily. If the villagers really want to drink tea, they can go up the mountain to pick some. Everyone turns a blind eye. After all, tea is something that every household needs.
"Xiaobao, why did you come out wearing so little? Dani, get your brother a hot water bottle so he can warm his hands."
Jiang Dahai drank the tea in his hand in two or three gulps and exhaled a breath of hot air. Seeing his baby son sitting obediently on the chair and looking at him, he felt happy. Just when he wanted to hug his son, he looked at his dirty coat and muddy hands, and put his hands down in dismay.
Dani responded and took out two small glass bottles from the kitchen. She covered them with cloth covers, which felt warm but not hot when she held them in her hands.
There were two glass bottles, one in the younger brother's hand and the other in the younger sister's hand.
Old Mrs. Miao was pulling a radish from her private plot in the backyard and happened to bump into the old man who had just returned from chatting outside. Old Man Jiang didn't look very well, with a stern face and a gloomy look.
"Master"
"dad"
Several people shouted in unison.
Old man Jiang looked at his little grandson and finally felt better. There was a hint of smile on his face. But after a while, he seemed to have thought of something bothering him. The corners of his mouth drooped, and he sighed. His brows were furrowed, and the wrinkles on his forehead could almost pinch a fly to death.
"Old man, what's wrong with you? Who did you quarrel with again?"
Old Mrs. Miao took the white radish to the kitchen and asked a question. In her opinion, maybe her hot-tempered old man was arguing with someone and was angry again.
Gu Dongmei was not idle either. After washing her hands, she poured a basin of hot water for Jiang Dahai to wash his hands and wipe his face. Then she went to the kitchen to help her eldest daughter cook.
"How come the world has become like this?" Old man Jiang sighed heavily again and patted the table. It was obvious that this was not just a simple argument.
Jiang Yilu, who was sitting next to him, had a flash of eyes and looked at his grandfather. Did something happen in the village?
"Dad, what happened? Please tell us." Jiang Dahai washed his hands, wiped them casually with a towel, picked up his eldest son, and touched the head of his youngest daughter beside him.
Jiang Yilu moved awkwardly. Although he had been reborn five years ago and had become accustomed to his body structure which was completely different from his previous life, he was still psychologically not used to such intimate actions with his father.
However, Jiang Yilu's attention was on his grandfather at the moment, and he did not resist much.
Jiang Dahai was holding his rare well-behaved old son in his arms, and his heart was filled with joy. His son was good in every way: smart, sensible, and handsome. However, he was not close to his parents and always liked to stick with his sisters. It was extremely difficult for him as a father to even hug his child.
Jiang Dahai thought this was a very good phenomenon. He used to think that the child didn't like him as a father, but now it seems that the child might be too shy and embarrassed to be intimate with him as a father. In the future, he has to be more proactive and strive to be the first in his son's heart.
Jiang Yilu had no idea that his rare indulgence had caused his father to imagine so many things, but even if he knew, he probably wouldn't care, because his grandfather's words shocked him deeply.
"The old leader sent a telegram." Jiang Cheng sighed.
When Old Lady Miao in the kitchen heard this, she immediately ran out excitedly, not even wiping the cornmeal off her hands: "What did the old commander say in the telegram? Is he going to give you a raise?"
The old chief that Old Man Jiang mentioned was the old leader he saved on the battlefield. That person is now in the capital and is considered a big shot. He has always remembered the life-saving grace of this old subordinate. In addition to having his retirement treatment for injury raised to the regimental level, he also sends some good things to him every year.
That’s why Old Lady Miao was so happy when she heard the name of the old leader.
During this time since his rebirth, Jiang Yilu has heard his family mention the old leader countless times. However, in his previous life, it seemed that the old leader had never appeared in his memory since he was old enough to understand. Could it be that something happened to the old leader during these ten years of turmoil? Judging from his grandfather's expression, there seemed to be some bad omens.
"Oh, don't mention it. The old leader is having a hard time now." Old man Jiang sighed again, turned to his son and said, "I have discussed it with Captain Mo. You go to the Revolutionary Committee this afternoon and bring back the counter-revolutionaries assigned to our village."
"Counter-revolutionaries?" Jiang Dahai and Jiang Yilu shouted in surprise at the same time.
Jiang Dahai thought his son didn't know what a counter-revolutionary was, so he didn't care. He asked Jiang Dahai in confusion, "Didn't the people from the Revolutionary Committee not want to send people to us, saying that it was too troublesome to criticize and struggle against them every time? Why did they think of sending them to us for reform this time?"
It is now 1968. The storm that has swept China for ten years has already begun. Even the remote mountain village of Qingshan has begun to feel a hint of revolutionary atmosphere. Now in the village, a portrait of the Vice Chairman is hung in the main hall of every household. The Little Red Book is a must-have for every household. Even illiterate old farmers have memorized most of the book under the guidance of the educated youth. Now, if you go to the county town to buy something, you can't buy anything if you don't know a few words of the Chairman's quotations.
What surprised Jiang Yilu was that in his previous life, no counter-revolutionaries had been sent to their village at this time. It was not until 1974 that several university professors from Haicheng were sent here for reform, and they were rehabilitated within a few years.
The villagers were honest and kind, and they respected the educated elders, so they never asked them to do any heavy work. The people from the Revolutionary Committee and the Red Guards were too lazy to walk so far to monitor those stinking old nines, so they just asked the villagers to bring the confessions of those counter-revolutionaries every month. In this way, they kept the matter secret for two or three years.
Jiang Yilu was a little confused. Why was this life different from the previous one? Was it the butterfly effect brought about by his rebirth? In that case, would the future he knew still be the same?
"Those people are my old comrades-in-arms. We are friends who have risked our lives for each other. They are also your uncles. You have to be polite to them when the time comes. Don't look down on them just because they are in a quagmire now. If you dare to be like those people outside now, I will not let you go." Old man Jiang said angrily. The people outside are all crazy now. They can't live a good life. They are fighting against their own people. What is wrong with this world?
"Comrade? Could it be that the old commander sent this telegram for this matter?" Old Mrs. Miao suddenly realized, but she was a little worried: "This matter will not involve us, right?"
Old Mrs. Miao had some understanding of what was happening outside. She didn't mind taking care of a few old comrades, but if it involved the future of her son and grandson, she would not be willing to do that.
"What's involved? The chief has arranged everything. It's just that my brother is so unlucky. When he was young, his family had some assets, but now he has been labeled a capitalist without any evidence. The ungrateful people in his family have cut off all ties with him and stabbed him in the back, fabricating all those unfounded charges and thoroughly convicting him of capitalism and counter-revolution. It's a joke. When I was fighting the devils with him, I don't even know where those little brats were born."
When he was angry, Old Man Jiang slammed the table hard, which scared Si Ni who was sitting next to him.
When Old Mrs. Miao heard this, she sighed and immediately thought of her second son's heartless family. They were obviously worse off than she was, and her resistance to them suddenly eased a lot.
"Grandpa, what should I call that grandpa?" Jiang Yilu asked tentatively. There had never been any of grandpa's comrades-in-arms in their family in their previous life. What happened to those people in their previous life?
"Grandpa's brother is amazing. He studied in Russia when he was young and speaks foreign languages fluently. Who wouldn't admire him back then? But now, those who studied abroad are considered guilty." Old man Jiang showed pride, then a little depressed: "His last name is Ruan, you can call him Grandpa Ruan."
His last name was Ruan, and he had studied in Russia. Jiang Yiliu's eyelids twitched, and he immediately asked, "Where is Grandpa Ruan from?"
Old Man Jiang touched his grandson's head and said, "Your Grandpa Ruan is from Haicheng, his ancestral home is Sucheng, and he is the most amiable person. If you have any questions in the future, you can always ask your Grandpa Ruan for advice."
Old man Jiang also had some selfish motives. He felt that China could not continue to be in chaos, and the great Chairman would not allow such chaos to happen forever. Now people are criticizing those knowledgeable and capable people, but those people will definitely not remain silent. The future of China still depends on those truly knowledgeable people.
Jiang Yilu was excited after hearing what his grandfather said.
The Ruan surname was not a big surname to begin with, and his age, ancestral home, and educational background all matched one by one. Unexpectedly, the economic giant Ruan Jingguo of later generations was actually his grandfather's comrade-in-arms, and was about to appear in front of him. For a moment, he didn't know how to calm himself down.
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