"Grandpa, how do you know I was doing something bad?" Chu Jingqiu asked guiltily.
"I have raised you since you were a child. How can you escape my eyesight if you do something bad?" said Mr. He confidently.
Chu Jingqiu told his grandfather about beating up Du Erlang tonight. His grandfather thought it was okay to deal with bad guys, but he should be careful about his own safety.
"Xiao Qiu, I asked your grandmother to find you because I wanted us to go to the cowshed late at night when everyone is asleep to find out what's going on so we can have a clear idea of the situation." Grandpa He said solemnly.
"Grandpa, if you don't come to find me, I plan to go there by myself later!" Chu Jingqiu said with a pout.
Grandpa rolled his eyes at her and said, "You're getting more and more courageous. A little girl, running out in the middle of the night, what if something dangerous happens? It really makes me worry."
"Grandpa, don't worry, I know what's going on." Chu Jingqiu comforted his grandfather.
She thought for a moment, then took out two packages of pastries, a can of malted milk, and a few large pears from the cupboard and put them into her bag.
The two of them opened the door gently and walked out quietly.
When we arrived at the cowshed, it was pitch black and the people inside must have been asleep.
The cowshed has three or four rows of houses, and the wall is not even as high as a person.
Chu Jingqiu pointed to the row of houses in the middle of the cowshed and whispered, "That small courtyard over there is where Uncle Du, one of the village's five-guarantee households, lives. He usually lives in that house and is responsible for feeding the cows and looking after the livestock."
Grandpa Wu and Uncle Ning live in the last row of courtyards. Someone used to live here, but later the roof broke and it leaked everywhere, so it was abandoned.
To make sure there was no one else inside, she used her consciousness to ask Jiang Jiang: "Jiang Jiang, check the surveillance footage and make sure there are no other people in the bullpen besides the people who were sent down."
Jiang Jiang replied quickly: "Qiuqiu, I've been watching for you. Around nine o'clock, the last group of villagers who came here to watch the excitement left.
After that, no one came to the cowshed anymore, and the old man who looked after the animals in the cowshed went to bed early."
"Let's take a look at the surveillance footage. Which room do Grandpa Wu and the others sleep in?"
"He and Ning Wenyuan slept in the same room, the middle room."
Chu Jingqiu told Jiang Jiang to keep an eye on the surveillance to prevent any sudden arrivals.
Chu Jingqiu pointed at the top of the wall and whispered, "Old He, are your legs still feeling good? Can you climb over the wall? If not, wait for me outside."
Old Master He pretended to be angry and said, "You silly girl, you are so disrespectful. Who are you looking down on? Back then, your grandfather could not only fly over eaves and walk on walls, but he could also climb walls and houses with ease. I taught you all those skills."
Chu Jingqiu first grabbed the top of the wall and easily climbed over, and Grandpa He followed closely behind and also climbed over easily.
He pulled Chu Jingqiu to the door of the middle room and knocked gently.
Ning Wenyuan opened the door and saw that it was the two of them. He quickly let them in, then closed the door and said in a low voice, "What are you doing here? If someone finds out, it will get you into trouble."
"It's okay. Most people are asleep at this time. We were worried, so we came to see you." He Qixian said in a low voice.
With the help of the faint moonlight, Chu Jingqiu saw that the room was extremely simple. The two of them didn't even have a quilt. There was only a table with two legs on the ground, and the other side was placed on a stone.
Chu Jingqiu took out cakes and other snacks from her bag and placed them on the small table.
Wu Feihong also climbed up from the kang and said weakly, "Old He, we are really grateful that you and Xiaoqiu can come here to see us under such circumstances. We can't let you get in trouble. Let's go!"
"Grandpa Wu, we already observed everything when we came here. There's no one here now. We won't light the lights and will just talk quietly. It's okay."
The two of them no longer insisted and invited Mr. He and Chu Jingqiu to sit on the edge of the kang.
"Why were you two demoted?" Mr. He asked straight to the point.
Wu Feihong spoke first. He said, "I came here because of a painting. I have a student whose family is very poor. I not only teach him attentively, but also provide him with some money. Whenever I cook something delicious at home, I always invite him to come and eat.
That day he broke in with a group of people wearing red armbands and exposed me in public, saying that I was a capitalist-roader.
They even brought people into my studio and took out a painting I had created in my early years as evidence. That's how my home was ransacked, I was criticized, and then sent here.
I've really taught a fool a lesson, a true Zhongshan wolf." Wu Feihong was so angry that he pounded his legs.
"My situation is similar to Mr. Wu's. I'm even more pitiful than him. Mr. Wu's lover insisted on coming with us. Mr. Wu didn't want his family to suffer, so he forced them to sever ties with him.
As for me, it was my wife Lin Yan who directly exposed me, saying that I was doing capitalist academic research and painting capitalist works.
He held one of my works in his hand and said it was evidence.
So she took her child and published an advertisement in the newspaper to sever ties with me, and I was sent here for labor reform.
I was betrayed and abandoned by my loved ones and family, and I was completely despairing." Then, a five-foot-tall man clutched his hair and burst into tears.
"Grandpa Wu, Uncle Ning, what works were reported and exposed about you?" Chu Jingqiu asked nervously.
Old Master He also stared at the two of them, eager to know the answers they would give.
Seeing Ning Wenyuan trapped in pain, Mr. Wu said, "It's a coincidence that Wenyuan and I both painted our works in the same year.
That spring, the literary and art circles held a painting exchange event with the theme of "Spring in the Capital".
Many painters in Beijing participated in this event. Xiaoqiu, your father also participated. We all won first prizes, and Wenyuan's work won second prize.
Those works became evidence to overthrow us. If I had known this would happen, I would have burned them long ago.
I protected each of my works as if they were my own children, but in the end, all of them were confiscated, not a single one was left.”
"Old Wu, don't think like that. If it's not this work, it could be another work. Your student just has ulterior motives and wants to defeat you!" He Qixian comforted him.
Ning Wenyuan calmed down at this time. He choked up and said, "I think what Lao He said is right. My lover must have wanted to leave me a long time ago, so she just found an excuse like this to frame me.
I have nothing now and have been deserted by everyone.”
"Grandpa Wu, Uncle Ning, don't be too pessimistic. Look forward. The dark clouds will never cover the sun.
You must be strong and save yourself. If you give up on yourself, no one can save you.
You must firmly believe that one day you will return to the capital and continue to do the work you love."
Ning Wenyuan seemed to be suddenly enlightened, and his eyes lit up. He said excitedly, "Thank you, Xiaoqiu. I never thought I'm not as clear-headed as a child."
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