I wrote home before the mountain was closed, and sent a package a couple of days ago. Before we left, they repeatedly told us not to contact them too frequently!
"You haven't contacted your two elder brothers either?"
“Our parents said that, given the current situation, our two older brothers are the only pillars of the family. As long as they are in the military, no one else will dare to harm us, so they don’t want us to talk to them about family matters.”
"Foolish, utterly foolish."
"Brother Shen," Chen Junjie asked, puzzled.
"If you don't tell them, can't they find out from others? Wouldn't they be even more worried if they didn't know the full situation?"
"What about Brother Shen?" At this point, Chen Enpeng didn't know what to do either, so he asked.
“Write down everything that happens at home in a letter, and I’ll send it to you later. Tell them that at least they’ll know what’s going on at home, instead of worrying all the time and not being able to train properly. Do you know that’s the most dangerous thing to do?”
"knew"
"I'll go write it now."
"I'll write one too."
"No rush, just give it to me before you leave on the morning of the third day of the Lunar New Year, it's for the train."
"Okay, Brother Shen, thank you. Otherwise, we might not know what would have happened."
"Is there anyone else in your family?"
"We have two older brothers and two older sisters in our family, and they are all married."
"We have an older brother and an older sister, and they are both married."
Did those things affect them?
"No, my sister-in-law and brother-in-law's families are both working class."
"That's good."
"If you two ever have any unresolved issues in the future, discuss them with Mianmian. After all, three heads are better than one."
"Okay, Brother Shen, don't worry."
"If it's inconvenient for you to send letters to your older brother in the future, just send them to me, and I'll pass them on to them or you can send them to them directly."
"Wouldn't that be too much trouble for you, brother?"
"No trouble at all, we're all on the same side."
"All right"
"As for the address, Mianmian has it here. You can tell them about it later."
"Okay, big brother, don't worry."
I know that kind of camaraderie; it transcends family, love, friendship, regions, and time. Whenever they mention each other, they feel a deep sense of affection.
Although I haven't experienced it myself, I've witnessed it since I was a child, so I can empathize with it.
Everyone chatted and ate together. As 1964 turned into 1965, they cooked dumplings, ate some, and then went back to their rooms to sleep.
We can't really wait until early morning to come and pay our respects, because we also have to visit several elders in the village to offer our New Year's greetings.
When we went to pay New Year's visits, my older brother didn't go. The reason was that he wasn't a member of the production team, and also because of his status. If he went to their house, they would feel uncomfortable. However, when we went to the brigade leader's house, Secretary Gu asked a couple of questions: "Li Zhiqing, your older brother, Deputy Battalion Commander Shen, didn't come?"
"Grandpa Gu, my eldest brother is packing his luggage at home. He has to rush to the county town early on the third day of the Lunar New Year, so he has to pack his luggage."
"Oh, I see!"
"I wonder what Grandpa Gu wants to see my brother about? You can tell me, and I'll tell my brother later."
"It's alright, it's alright, no need to tell Deputy Battalion Commander Shen."
"oh"
After leaving the brigade leader's house, Chen Junjie asked, "Mianmian, what do you think Secretary Gu meant?"
"I don't know either"
"There must be something you want from me," Chen Enpeng said.
"Pengzi, what could Secretary Gu possibly need from my brother?"
"I don't know then. Mianmian, just mention it to your older brother when you get back."
"Let it go, I know that."
"That's good. Pengzi and I will go back and write a letter to our elder brother. Don't go out alone before he leaves."
"Peng Zi, surely he wouldn't go that far?"
"I don't know, it's best to be cautious."
"That's true, Mianmian, just listen to Pengzi."
"Sure, I've got nothing to do lately anyway, and besides, it's so cold, I don't want to go out and freeze."
"Alright, Pengzi, looks like we worried for nothing."
"Alright, we're home. Let's go back."
"Um"
After arriving home, I told my older brother about the matter concerning Secretary Gu and the analysis of when I returned, and asked, "Brother, what do you think?"
"It must be a family matter."
"What's going on with their family? I haven't heard anything about it lately."
"Have you heard? The eldest grandson and youngest son are the old lady's lifeblood."
"I've heard of it, what's wrong?"
"How come someone who's usually so smart suddenly becomes so slow at times like this?"
"Big Brother"
"Alright, alright, brother, let's stop talking about you. Let's get back to Secretary Gu. This same phrase applies to him as well."
"You mean he wants to get Gu Yunpeng into the army through you?"
That's probably what it means.
"So, what do you think of Secretary Gu, brother?"
"No one gets up early without a reason."
"What about Gu Yunpeng joining the army?"
"No rush. Gu Yunpeng is in high school right now, isn't he? We'll talk about it after he graduates. I've already spoken with Uncle Zhou and Uncle Ma, and they've asked them to keep an eye on Gu Yunpeng's performance at school. As for the village, you and Chen Enpeng should also learn more about it. We don't want to raise a tiger that will eventually become a threat."
"Brother, Gu Yunpeng wouldn't go that far, would he?"
"It's hard to say! The situation in Beijing is getting more and more serious, and we don't know how long it will take before it affects the countryside. So we must observe carefully before making any decisions."
Furthermore, even if he observed him, his brother had no intention of assigning him to his own unit.
"Then who is the eldest brother?"
"There are many troops stationed across the country, and besides, his enlistment is very simple; all he needs is a letter of recommendation, provided he passes the review."
"So that's how it is."
"And the most crucial thing is that this battalion commander already has Gu Zhengyu, who's in the same unit as my older brother. We don't need many more. Even if Gu Yunpeng isn't in the army, I can rest assured with you here. Gu Zhengyu's father is much stronger than Secretary Gu. With him around, no one will dare to bully you."
"But he's just an ordinary farmer, how could he possibly be a match for Secretary Gu?"
"You wouldn't know this, would you!"
"Know what?"
"Gu Zhengyu's father used to be the company commander of the militia."
"Big Brother Nene knows that Seventh Grandfather's second uncle is currently the militia company commander."
"But his father was someone who actually went to the battlefield."
"How did you know, brother?"
"That's what Uncle Zhou said."
"All right"
"He has all the information about the militia in the brigade. Uncle Zhou said that if anything happens in the village, and the brigade leader is in a difficult position or doesn't want to solve a problem, you can go to Uncle Gu."
"I understand, but I think the captain is a pretty good person."
"I'm just worried he has a muddle-headed father."
"Too"
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