Chapter 37 A bunch of notes

I have been away from my hometown for almost eight years, and I am concerned about my Sanzu account all the time. My home is in Donglou Village, Xiaoxian County, Anhui Province. The village is on a beach on the old road of the Yellow River. The land here is thin and the income is very little.Therefore, the life of the peasants here was very hard before liberation.When I was young and just remembering things, I remember that my third grandmother collected firewood and grass all day long, never idle for a moment.The hard times made the third grandmother's temper violent and eccentric, and she often quarreled with the neighbor over trivial matters such as a handful of firewood and a piece of rag.I remember that in September 1949, two days before I left my hometown, I heard that for a handful of firewood, she scolded Grandma Wang San next door for three days and two nights.Here's the thing:

It rained for several days in a row: Grandma didn't even have any firewood to start the fire, so she secretly grabbed my third grandmother with a handful of firewood, and happened to be seen by the third grandmother, and she said aggressively: "Sister Xin! You are killing me!" It's okay for this wife to die slowly, but I don't want my old life either... "Just like this for three days and two nights, no one in our village dared to persuade her, and people called her "Grandma Runwang." "Whoever's child cried, the adults said: "Cry! Grandma Runwang is here!" The child stopped crying after hearing this.

Eight years later, I am still worried: Is the third grandmother still arguing with the neighbors like before? This year's Spring Festival, I stayed home for three days, and my impression of the third grandmother has completely changed.In this old lady's house, no matter it is day or night, there are always people. Everyone says that the third grandmother has become another person.On New Year's Eve last year, my mother told me a story about my third grandmother: The third grandmother liked to feed chickens all her life. One night last winter, a yellow hen suddenly appeared in the cage.The third grandmother asked around here and there, asking who had lost the chicken.More than 50 households in small villages have been asked all over, but no one has lost the chicken.She had no choice but to feed the chicken with her own.I don't know why the third grandmother is so careful. She thought: "When the chicken finds the owner, will people not ask about the eggs laid?" So she found a small basket and stored the eggs laid by the chicken separately. .

This went on for more than 20 days. Later, Dong Zhengliang, an accountant in the production team, came back from a meeting in the company and said that Peng Nianci's family in Zhangkou Village had lost a chicken. The next morning, the third grandmother ran to Zhang 13 Village in the cold wind, holding the chicken and carrying a basket of eggs. When she entered the village, she asked Peng Nianci where he lived.Arriving in front of Nian Ci's house, a middle-aged woman came out. The third grandmother asked with a smile and said, "Well, I have finally found the Lord." The woman saw that she had lost her house in her arms. The one-month-old chicken quickly said, "This chicken belongs to our family!"

The third grandmother said: "Yes! I brought it just for you." As she spoke, she handed the basket to the woman and said, "These dozen or so eggs were laid by this chicken, so I will give them to you too!" The woman was very happy when she saw her chicken. She looked left and right, and forgot to greet the third grandmother. It was not until the third grandmother gave her eggs that she thought of calling the third grandmother and asked the third grandmother to come to the house. sit. When the third grandmother was going home, the woman did not leave any eggs.The third grandmother insisted that he accept it.The woman said: "I took the chicken. Your old man has fed it for more than 20 days. Shouldn't you eat these eggs?" At this time, the third grandmother seemed a little angry and said: "Don't talk stupidly , your sister-in-law! What about you and me? Although we are not in the same village, we are all members of an agricultural cooperative. If the family says something different, accept it!" This middle-aged woman has nothing to say. up.After the third grandmother returned the chicken to the owner, she didn't even drink a bowl of hot water, but she came back in the cold wind full of happiness.

After listening to my mother tell this story, I couldn't help recalling what my younger brother told me in his letter: Cooperativeization has brought prosperity to the countryside, and the appearance of my hometown has changed....However, it is not yet known that co-operative transformation has also changed people's old thinking. September 1957 "Central People's Broadcasting Station"