Chapter 152 is about to end.
As the weather gets colder, more and more people are catching colds while digging ditches.
When the women felt unwell, they would hide inside the house to warm themselves by the fire. No matter how much the company commander and political instructor tried to persuade them, they refused to go to the fields again.
There wasn't enough coal, so they squeezed into one suite and shared a single stove.
The will to persevere began to crumble.
Whether they were young women from Shanghai or Henan Province, they all felt that they couldn't live like this anymore.
Lately, the chilblains on my hands have been itchy every night. In the middle of the night, the residual heat from the stove dissipates, and the temperature in the room gets lower and lower. When I wake up in the morning, my hands and feet are ice cold.
The women, who were awakened by the cold, couldn't help but sob softly in their blankets, feeling sorry for themselves having to suffer like this.
Life is unbearable right now.
More and more people are catching colds and getting sick, and besides women, many men are also finding it hard to bear.
There were instances in the camp where sick men stayed in bed during the day, unwilling to go out and work.
The veteran settlers knew that November was not yet time to rest and were willing to continue working, but these city kids who had never suffered hardship were slacking off, and the company commander was helpless against them, which made the veteran settlers' minds waver.
Before they could even hold on until November 10th, with the mission still some distance from completion, the workforce of the 25th Company was largely paralyzed.
The company commander and political instructor were worried.
The temperature hasn't dropped below minus ten degrees Celsius yet, so we can work for at least another half month. How can we just stop now?
But it was no use saying anything to them.
When those below are united, it makes them seem less than human if they speak.
The next morning, everyone was quite surprised not to hear the company commander's whistle.
Although it's a little unusual, it doesn't stop everyone from staying in bed a little longer.
For several days in a row, the company commander didn't blow the whistle to urge everyone to go to the fields, and everyone started to feel uneasy.
"Company commander, can we rest now? Why didn't you wake us up this morning?"
The company commander, puffing on his cigarette, sneered, "Me, call you? What right do I have to order you guys around? Do I deserve it? You can all rest now, why are you even asking me?"
These words made everyone who heard them feel embarrassed.
Everyone protested:
"Who can stand this cold weather?"
"We also want to finish the task, but our bodies can't take it."
The company commander gave a forced smile: "You think I've never done this before? I've even laid gravel roads in temperatures below minus ten degrees Celsius."
The instructor, riding his bicycle back to the company, said, "Production in each company is almost finished. Road construction will begin soon, and each company needs to send someone to be responsible for their own section."
Suddenly, everything went black.
Even the company commander felt like he was a jinx.
He said with a dark face, "What's the point of repairing the road? Our company hasn't even finished its tasks in the fields, and these guys have all quit. Who dares to order them around? I don't think our company needs a good road. What's the point of repairing it? Nobody listens to orders. When the farm headquarters comes down to guide the work, these guys just stand there doing nothing. They're making our 25th Company look bad."
These words made the group of people blush with shame.
Most people have a sense of collective honor. After resting for a few days, they felt much better and full of energy again, as if they could get out of bed.
An old veteran of the reclamation project said, "Let's get to work. There's not much work left, so the sooner we finish, the easier it will be."
Easy my foot! After the canal is dug, we still have to build the road, and after that, who knows what other work awaits us? There's no time to relax.
Many people were wondering about it.
The voices echoing the old military reclamation workers were sparse, with only a few expressing their opinions, while most remained indifferent and unmoved.
The company commander shook his head. "Forget it. Just stay in the room, eat and sleep all you want. It's so comfortable being a pig."
The instructor sighed, "I heard that the farm headquarters received a batch of female comrades to be repatriated. I was originally thinking of working with the company commander to try to get some more female comrades for everyone, but everyone is not enthusiastic about work. When the higher-ups heard that our task has not been completed, how could they possibly give us more female comrades?"
The single men got excited when they heard this and all said they would take the initiative and work hard.
As for the lesbians…
The women acted as if they hadn't heard anything.
They don't need to get married, so sending a few celestial beauties over is none of their business.
The instructor pulled out his notebook and started an impromptu meeting:
"Today's meeting mainly emphasized the issue of conduct among cadres and subordinates. The company commander of our Sixth Branch Farm's mechanized farming company has been arrested for engaging in inappropriate relationships with women. The investigation has concluded, and he has many problems..."
Upon hearing this, the crowd began to whisper among themselves.
Because of the canal dredging at Guhekou, many people in the 25th Company knew Zhang Jian. Among all the cadres in the 6th Division, he was the one everyone was most familiar with.
The instructor paused, then sighed as he spoke again, "And Lu Shuangshuang from our company has also been arrested."
These words were like a drop of water splashed into a pan of oil, causing the oil to sizzle and crackle.
"Wasn't she pregnant and went to the hospital? How come she got arrested too?"
Lu Shuangshuang hadn't returned for several days, and the company commander and political instructor only found out a few days ago.
Although the two knew, they didn't say anything.
There's nothing to say about such a disgraceful thing.
The instructor felt very embarrassed after being singled out during the meeting today.
People will definitely talk about Lu Shuangshuang behind her back. They may not know her name, but they will definitely say she is the woman from the 25th Company.
The instructor read the minutes from the meeting with a stern face, while everyone's attention was focused on the huge gossip about Lu Shuangshuang and Zhang Jian.
Knowing that Zhang Jian had been dismissed from his post and would have to undergo labor reform, Song Lubai was relieved.
After the meeting, the instructor said to everyone, "You've all had so many days of rest, it's time to get back to the fields and get to work. If we don't work now, it'll delay irrigation next year, and we, the 25th Company, will suffer the most..."
After a lot of persuasion, everyone finally picked up their farm tools again.
Except for those who were seriously ill, everyone else carried their farm tools and went to the fields.
After the main force left, the political instructor and company commander went into the room to talk by the stove.
While Song Lubai was sewing a sweater in bed, she heard the instructor calling her from outside. She quickly put down her needle and thread and ran out.
The instructor asked, "The higher-ups are taking Zhang Jian's case very seriously. Write an article based on my notes, and also revise the content on the bulletin board. The theme should be 'the masses supervising the conduct of cadres.'"
Song Lubai responded and then asked, "Did Zhang Jian implicate her father?"
The instructor glanced at her. "Why are you asking that?"
Song Lubai said, "I just want to know if there will be any collective punishment?"
She didn't believe that Zhang Jian's father knew nothing about what Zhang Jian had done in the past.
Even if he was implicated, Director Zhang was not innocent.
The instructor said, "The field manager's work has been suspended; nothing has been decided yet."
He added, “Your labor is almost over, and the company needs to write an evaluation for you. Go to the communal room and get me the paper that’s tucked in the yellow notebook.”
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