Not long after, a middle-aged man who looked about the same age as the second senior brother came jogging over. Shen An Ning noticed that he first glared at the several big men who had just come out to stop them, and then looked at the second senior brother Xu Wenzhou with a smile.
"Hey, comrade, hello. The young man who delivered the message didn't speak clearly. I heard you are leaders from Beijing, right? Welcome, welcome. It's really an honor for you to come to our village. You haven't eaten yet, right? I'll ask them to prepare something so we can all have a meal together..."
Xu Wenzhou quickly raised his hand to stop them, saying: "You are the village chief, right? It's not a big deal to have a meal here. We arrived in the county early and have already had our meal." The farmers were having a hard time at that time, and if so many of them really ate, it would probably consume a month's worth of food for them.
After hearing what Xu Wenzhou said, the man's eyes flickered, but he still smiled, "Hey, what's the trouble? You're just too polite and don't want to cause us any trouble. My name is Li Dazhu, and I'm the village chief..."
Before he could finish his words, Old Cheng interrupted, "Where is your former village chief, Old Man Zhao? I wonder if he's doing well."
Li Dazhu looked towards the source of the voice. "Who are you? Uncle Zhao passed away during the famine. He was truly pitiful. His children left to seek a living elsewhere and never returned. We don't know how he's doing now. Uncle Zhao must have starved alone in the house..."
Old Cheng felt very sorry when he heard this. Tens of millions of people died across the country during the three-year famine. Old Man Zhao must have been over 70 years old at that time. He only knew Old Man Zhao and the village party secretary at that time in the village. He guessed they were both gone now.
On the way to the village committee, Li Dazhu told them about the situation of the village. More than 80% of the people in their village settled here after the famine. After years of recuperation, there are only more than 40 households in the village. There is no other way. This place is too remote, close to the mountains, and too poor. Children have to walk for more than two hours to go to school. Those who have connections went out to make a living in the early years. Later, they needed a letter of introduction to travel. Only then did the young people in the village settle down, farm well, go up the mountain in their spare time, and support their families.
Shen An Ning walked along and found that the houses in this village were built quite well. Although they were all adobe houses, most families had built five or six rooms, which was not an easy task. He met some villagers on the way. They seemed to have enough food and drink. They were not fat but definitely healthy. Having experienced two lives, Shen An Ning had a strong sense of danger. This village looked inconspicuous, but all these things showed that it was not that simple.
After putting down his things at the village committee, Xu Wenzhou looked at Li Dazhu and handed him a pound of egg cake. "Village chief, there are 20 or 30 of us. We'd like to ask you to find a few empty houses for us, or even rent a house in a villager's home for a week. You can give us food coupons and money. We have to go up the mountain most of the time, so having a place to sleep is enough."
Li Dazhu disagreed, "How can this be possible? You are going up the mountain again. How can you say that the food is not good?"
"How about this, the end of the village is closer to Yaocong Mountain. Zhao Dayou's family is there. They're actually related to Village Chief Zhao. There aren't many people in the family, just a couple with a daughter and a son. They're all young. There are a few empty houses nearby, so it's perfect for you to live there."
Xu Wenzhou also thought this arrangement was a good one. "Then let's go over there now, Village Chief. Let's take a break and have lunch before we explore the way up the mountain."
"Okay, let's go there now."
The village is arranged in two rows, so it is quite far from the beginning to the end of the village.
"Zhao Dayou, is Zhao Dayou at home?"
The gate opened, and two children, about ten years old, walked out. "Village chief, my father and mother have gone to the fields."
"Oh, sure. You have a few vacant rooms, right? And there are two vacant rooms at your uncle's house. These are experts from Beijing and the provincial capital. They'll be staying at your house for a few days. I'll go talk to your parents in the fields. Xiaofeng, you and your brother take the guests inside first."
Shen Anning took out two candies from her pocket and gave one to each of the two children. "Don't be afraid, little sister. We are both doctors. We are going to the mountains to collect herbs. We are just staying at your house temporarily for the next few days."
The little boy looked at the candy in his hand and whispered to his sister, "Sister, I think this sister is a good person. The village chief said that they can live in our house anyway, so let's let them in."
Zhao Jinfeng looked at her disappointing younger brother and knew what he said was true. "Come in, you can stay in the rooms over there and the two next door. But there are some things in there that need to be cleaned up. I'll go get you some dry straw first."
There is strength in numbers. The boys moved the heavy objects and the girls cleaned the place, so they worked quickly. When Zhao Dayou and his wife came back, they felt a little restrained when they saw so many people.
"Don't be afraid, fellow villager. I came to your village 20 years ago and drank with Old Man Zhao back then." Old Cheng sat on a bench and recalled the past. "Back then, the houses in the village were not so good. There were still thatched huts, and there were more people than there are now."
"You know little A'zu, it's been a long time since so many people came to this village. Big girl, quickly pour a bowl of water for this grandfather."
Shen Anning and Fang Yuan cleaned the room and prepared to buy some food in the village. "Uncle Dayou, do you know which family in the village has more food? We want to go out and buy some food and vegetables. We may need to borrow your pot later."
Zhao Dayou felt a little embarrassed. Their family did have little food. He and his wife were the only ones working, and the family of four had to eat. "Little comrade, go out the door and keep walking east. The largest house with a courtyard wall is the village chief's uncle's house. You can go there and ask. You don't have to buy vegetables. We have a lot of crops in our private plots, and if there are more than we can eat, you can just pick them."
Shen Anning, Fang Yuan, and several classmates from the Medical University followed the path Zhao Dayou mentioned and headed east. When they passed a house, they saw several people washing clothes at the door, both men and women gathered together.
Shen Anning looked over and found an acquaintance, Xie Yue - her junior high school classmate. Xie Yue had also been staring at her. Shen Anning was about to say hello, but saw Xie Yue shaking her head at her.
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