As the 1980s arrived, the whole of China seemed to enter a new era.
Across the country, a vibrant and energetic atmosphere prevails, with everything striving to grow upwards and desperately absorbing nutrients, sunshine, and rain.
Shortly after the Spring Festival, Luo Yonggang called Li Xiangdong.
"Heading east, we've also started implementing the household contract responsibility system here. Secretary Kong has divided up the livestock and farm tools by drawing lots, and now all that's left is the hilltop."
Luo Yonggang's voice sounded somewhat excited on the other end of the phone:
"Secretary Kong said that Liangpo Village has many hills but few villagers. If the hills are divided equally, the elderly, women and children will not be able to earn money and will have to pay some money to the brigade instead, which is not good."
He took a breath and continued, "He's letting us take ownership of the hills ourselves now. If we want to lease more hills, as long as the village is wealthy, we can lease them out."
Upon hearing this, Li Xiangdong was overjoyed and quickly said, "That's great! Uncle, hurry up and tell Secretary Kong that we'll take over the entire Phoenix Ridge area!"
"Okay! Got it!"
Phoenix Ridge is a mountain range stretching for more than 20 miles. Its main peak is tall and beautiful, while the two side peaks are slightly lower, resembling the two wings of a phoenix, ready to take flight.
The mountains are covered with dense forests, and various vegetation grows lushly.
This place is quite a distance from Liangpo Village. If you were to walk, it would take about half a day to reach the foot of Phoenix Ridge.
Therefore, nobody wanted to contract the Phoenix Ridge.
Everyone's ideas are very simple. The mountains near us are rich in resources, with all kinds of mushrooms, wild vegetables, and bamboo shoots. It's also convenient to cut bamboo down from the mountains and bring it home. Why do we need that distant Phoenix Ridge?
Therefore, when Luo Yonggang proposed to take over Phoenix Ridge, Secretary Kong grasped his hand tightly as if he had seen a savior.
"Great! Phoenix Ridge and the surrounding area are all yours!"
As if afraid he would run away, she pulled him straight to the accountant's house and told the accountant to write the contract quickly.
"Yonggang, I'm not just praising you to your face, but you're the only knowledgeable person in our whole village. No wonder you're always going to the capital!"
“Phoenix Ridge is so beautiful! My father’s grandfather used to say that Phoenix Ridge has the best feng shui! They have no taste at all, they just complain about how much money they had to pay to lease Phoenix Ridge…”
"Oh, well, is it finished? Come on, come here and sign and put your fingerprint on it!"
As he spoke, Secretary Kong handed the bright red inkpad to Luo Yonggang, took his right index finger, and pressed it heavily into the inkpad.
Sign and press your fingerprint.
Everything happened so fast that Luo Yonggang was a little stunned. "Hey, I haven't even looked at the contract yet..."
Party Secretary Kong and the accountant exchanged a glance and smiled with satisfaction. "Take it home and read it carefully. Haha, Yonggang, don't forget to pay the contract fee tomorrow!"
Luo Yonggang went home and told his parents and wife about it.
Liu Jiangsu said with a smile, "No one in the village is willing to contract Phoenix Ridge, which has made Secretary Kong very anxious. Now that he has met a sucker like you, how can he not hurry up and take action!"
Bai Yufeng smiled, holding the child, "That little bit of contracting fee is nothing. Phoenix Ridge is such a wonderful place, with roe deer, golden monkeys, wild grapes, termite mushrooms, you name it!"
Anyway, Bai Yufeng was a loyal fan of Luo Yonggang, and she would applaud whatever Luo Yonggang did.
Luo Hongkai asked Luo Yonggang, "Did Xiang Dong ask you to book this place?"
"Yes."
"It didn't say what it was for?"
"Uh... I didn't ask."
"I reckon it might be related to the mountain spring that Uncle An took him to see that year."
Liu Jiangsu and Bai Yufeng were unaware of the mountain spring incident. Luo Hongkai gave them a brief explanation and then instructed them, "Don't tell anyone about this. We don't know what Xiang Dong is thinking yet."
Liu Jiangsu laughed and said, "Do you need to specifically tell me? Look at us, neither of us is a talkative myna bird."
Luo Hongkai laughed, "I was just giving you a casual remark."
————
Forty-Eight Bays Village, Qianjiang County, Zhejiang Province.
Chen Zaohua appeared at the village entrance with six people: Xiao Leizi, Guo Haiguang, Li Xiangdong, Zhou Hongsong, and Li Guoqing.
This is indeed a mountain village built against the mountainside. Behind the village is a towering mountain peak that reaches into the clouds, and on both sides of the village are cliffs that look like they were cut by a knife. There is only one road connecting the mountain village to the outside world.
This is truly a good place to stay during times of war.
Moreover, from Li Xiangdong's perspective in his later years, this place has a humid climate, abundant vegetation, beautiful scenery, with mountains and water, making it an excellent tourist destination.
If a guesthouse were set up in the village, it would surely attract many urban white-collar workers to relax and unwind.
However, that happened decades later.
At this moment, the village of Sishibawan remains impoverished.
Surrounded by mountains, Forty-Eight Bays Village is destined to have little arable land.
Although almost every household in the region possessed the skill of making Japanese white pine bonsai, the demand for bonsai in China at that time was not strong.
What Chinese people need now is abundant food, beautiful clothes, and spacious housing; they are still at the first level of Maslow's hierarchy of needs—physiological needs.
Therefore, the villagers of Sishibawan Village had no choice but to leave their homes and go to big cities to find odd jobs to earn money.
The elderly, women, and children who are unable to leave their homes can only stay at home and tend to their small plots of land.
They spend all year round in the fields planting grass seeds (alfalfa), mustard greens, bok choy, broad beans, picking tender shepherd's purse, gathering purslane, and breaking off toon leaves.
Then they cleaned it thoroughly, making it neat and tidy, washed it with stream water until it was glistening, tied it in small bunches with dry, yellow straw, put it in a basket, carried it on a carrying pole that their ancestors had used for over a hundred years, and walked dozens of miles to the county town to sell it.
In spring, shepherd's purse costs only one cent a bunch. On the third day of the third lunar month, it is cooked with eggs and eaten to cleanse the liver and improve eyesight.
A bunch of bright red toon leaves costs only three cents; they're delicious stir-fried with eggs.
...
This is the only source of spare change that the villagers who stayed in Sishibawan Village could use to supplement their household expenses.
As Chen Zaohua recalled the difficult yet sweet days of the past, a thin layer of mist welled up in her eyes again. She wiped it away with her hand, but more tears welled up.
Little Lei didn't notice her situation; he was just excitedly looking at the village ahead and asked happily, "Mom, is this our hometown? Are Grandpa and Grandma here? Do they know we're back?"
Chen Zaohua felt apprehensive as she approached her hometown. Thinking of her family's situation, she didn't know how to tell her son.
"Sister Zaohua, let's go to the village first! We need to find a place to settle down."
Li Xiangdong looked at Guo Haiguang's pale face, which was sallow from motion sickness, and realized that he was getting worse after walking such a long mountain road.
Chen Zaohua led them straight to the old home she remembered, but before they even got there, a woman walked towards them and screamed as if she had seen a ghost!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com