Yu Yuneng sighed, and seeing that there were no outsiders present, he spoke directly.
"You know the situation is not good right now. Many people have been sent down for reform, and quite a few of them have been wronged and are innocent. In a couple of days, a family will be sent down to your brigade for reform. They are from Beijing and had some connections with our family before. I hope you can help us out and take care of them in the future."
So that's how it is. Now that he's in the brigade, it's quite easy for him to take care of several people.
"Uncle Yu, don't worry. As long as that family is truly innocent and doesn't do anything reckless after they arrive, I guarantee they won't be bullied."
Yu Yuneng nodded, "I know their family's character very well. That Wei Boss was my classmate. He just had bad luck in marrying a vicious woman. This time, he was harmed by that woman. She colluded with outsiders to report his overseas connections, and a mayor was demoted just like that."
Lu Yuan sighed. Such things are not uncommon at this time of year; often, it is one's own people who stab you in the back.
“I know your brigade has a good atmosphere, and with you here, I did everything I could to arrange for their family to come over.”
As he spoke, he pulled an envelope out of his pocket.
Lu Yuan took it, puzzled. "What's this?"
Upon opening it, he found a stack of banknotes inside and quickly pushed it back.
"Uncle Yu, what are you doing?"
Yu Yuneng held the envelope in place with his hand. “A Yuan, listen to me. They’re coming as a family. They have elderly parents and several young children. They’ll definitely run out of food and supplies. They need your help and your attention, but I can’t expect you to contribute both your time and money.”
Lu Yuan said, "Uncle, you can keep these money notes with me or Aheng for now. We can give you the money notes later when we actually get the grain."
Seeing his insistence, Yu Yuneng did not press the matter further.
"Alright, I'll do as you say."
After the matter was settled, the three members of the Yu family left, while the couple took the triplets back to their house for a midday rest.
"Brother Yuan, Uncle Yu just said that his classmate is the mayor, so what is his own position?"
Wen Moxue suddenly became curious about Yu Yuneng's position.
Lu Yuan smiled and said, "Have you forgotten? He used to be a frequent figure in the 7 o'clock news, the second-in-command."
Wen Moxue's eyes widened. "So amazing!"
"You knew Uncle Yu's name before, but didn't remember?" Lu Yuan asked.
"Oh, you know, I didn't like watching the news before. Even if I did, I would only remember the top leader, and I would never pay attention to the second-in-command."
Lu Yuan chuckled, "Alright, anyway, Uncle Yu will be very powerful in the future. Even if he doesn't have such a high position now, it should still be quite high."
Wen Moxue nodded, "Yes, yes, this is a powerful ally, we must stick close to him."
"Haha, wife, you've cured their hidden illness and given them another child. We don't need to do anything more for such a great favor."
He paused for a moment and then added, "Besides, in other people's eyes, we might be considered powerful figures. We should just treat each other with normal attitudes."
"Okay, whatever you say."
Wen Moxue nodded repeatedly, not taking it seriously. She wasn't good at flattery, and the idea of sucking up to someone was just something she said casually.
Yu Yuneng came and went in a hurry, staying for only one day before having to rush back to Kyoto.
The name of the child was decided on this day.
Grandpa Yu came up with several names, and the family hesitated. In the end, Yu Yuneng, the father, chose one.
Yu Shaokun symbolizes the qualities of inclusiveness, steadiness, and virtue.
It's also clear that the Yu family doesn't have high expectations for their children; they only hope they will have good character.
Three days after Yu Yuneng left, news came from the commune that the brigade should go to the commune to pick him up in two days.
Lu Yuan knew that it was probably because Yu Yineng had mentioned that his classmate, the Wei family, was coming.
He had already told Lu Guoan and Zhang Yongan about Yu Yuneng's request for their help, and the two of them asked him about it.
"Does the cowshed need to be renovated? There seem to be seven or eight people in their family, and those two small straw sheds are probably not enough for them to live in."
Lu Yuan thought about the condition of the cowshed. If it wasn't repaired, it probably wouldn't be able to accommodate seven or eight people unless they shared a room with the cows, which was obviously unrealistic.
"Let's make some repairs and build a bigger house next to it."
“Okay, I’ll have someone fix it right away,” Lu Guoan said.
A simple thatched shed can be set up in a day with enough manpower.
There wasn't a single bed in the house; everyone slept on a kang (heated brick bed), and Lu Yuan couldn't find an old bed. He had no choice but to find a few slightly worn straw mats.
"Uncle, I'm going to the county town tomorrow, so Maodou won't have to make a special trip. I'll bring everyone back from the commune on my way back."
Lu Yuan was going to the county's black market to deliver supplies to Hou San and Da Bing Ge. He had delivered a truckload of goods to each of them before the Lunar New Year, and after two or three months, he figured the two of them must be getting impatient.
“Okay, then you can help bring the person back, which will save you the cost of fuel for the tractor trip.” Lu Guoan was quite happy.
"By the way, the supply and marketing cooperative needs to replenish some goods, and we've also collected a lot of eggs recently. Should we give them to the commune's supply and marketing cooperative, or should you take them to the county town?" Zhang Yong'an asked.
Supply and marketing cooperatives not only allowed customers to exchange cash coupons for goods, but also for eggs or other agricultural products.
Each household was allocated two chickens, and every family would raise two old hens to lay eggs. Salt, matches, and even soy sauce and kerosene were all obtained by trading eggs.
The supply and marketing cooperative has now accumulated over a thousand eggs.
Lu Yuan thought for a moment, then winked at Lu Guoan and Zhang Yongan.
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