Everyone felt relieved when they heard it was brown sugar tea. The accompanying doctor said: "Brown sugar replenishes qi and blood, strengthens the spleen and warms the stomach. Appropriate supplementation of brown sugar is very beneficial for the elderly."
Sang Jingxian also said: "Back then, the people in the old revolutionary base areas used brown sugar and eggs to supplement the nutrition of the wounded in the Eighth Route Army despite the difficult material conditions."
Uncle Liang rubbed his hands and smiled, Mr. Ye nodded frequently. Hearing this, Ye Qing also picked up a bowl of water and took a sip. He felt a strange taste in his mouth, a mixture of bitter and sweet, and the taste was very bad. He subconsciously thought
He spit it out, but how could he do such a rude thing in front of everyone, so Ye Qing had to swallow it hard and said with a smile: "This brown sugar seems to be more unique."
Everyone laughed, from Mr. Ye to Mr. Liang and Sang Jingxian, as well as the folks at the gate of the courtyard, and even a few dogs barked excitedly. Today's scene reminded them of eating a big meal.
During the feast day, I thought I would be able to pick up a few meat bones to eat later.
Ye Qing was stunned for a moment, and then he understood that Kushuijing Township, as the name suggests, it would be strange if the water was sweet. However, he had hardly seen any rivers or ponds along the way, and the villagers' feet were covered in black mud.
The adults were fine, but the children's faces were dirty, their hair was in a ball, and it looked like they hadn't taken a bath in at least two months.
There is no doubt that this is a village that is extremely short of water. Ye Qing is not that kind of pretentious urban girl. From some subtle details, she can think of the extent of water shortage and poverty in this village. She can even imagine that there
There will be a water tank in a low pot house, which contains half a tank of precious bitter water. This half tank of bitter water is carried over from a water source ten miles away, and is used for cooking, feeding animals, watering the ground and washing faces every day.
We all rely on this tank of water. It’s great to have water to drink. Who cares about bitterness and sweetness?
Thinking of this, Ye Qing picked up the bowl and drank the brown sugar tea. After drinking it, he couldn't help grinning and frowning: "It tastes almost like Chinese medicine."
The villagers laughed kindly again. Seeing that the time was almost up, the township leader Liang Dazhong winked at his brothers. Liang Xiaojun had already prepared. He walked into the yard with a basket and stood in front of the table while putting the basket away.
He took out the purified water and Coca-Cola in the bag and explained: "The water shortage problem in our village has always been serious. A basin of water is used from morning to night. After washing your face and washing clothes, you can't bear to throw it away after washing the clothes. It can also feed the animals."
, water the fields, come here, come here, drink this, people who are not from my bitter well are not used to drinking the water from our village, it is too bitter.”
Ye Qing took a bottle of pure water and asked, "Why not dig more wells?"
"Dozens of machine-operated wells have been drilled in the county, and a few of them can produce water, but they are too deep and have to be pumped out. To use the pump, you have to burn diesel oil. The water is more expensive to pump out than oil. Who can bear it.
"
Sang Jingxian said: "Kushuijing Township is mostly covered with saline-alkali land. The water produced has a high alkali content, so it is naturally bitter. Only by drilling deep wells, deep motorized wells can solve some of the problems. However, the county's economy is in dire straits, alas."
At this time, Mr. Ye spoke. Although he was old, his spirit was still the same as that of the all-powerful Commander Ye, "Dig a well! How many years has passed since the revolution was successful, but I still don't believe that the water problem cannot be solved. Qing'er, use my salary to support the suffering."
No matter how difficult the conditions are to build motorized wells in Shuijing Township, we still have to meet them. The Japanese devils and the Kuomintang reactionaries have all been beaten away, and they are still afraid that this small difficulty will not work."
This was what Liang Xiaojun was waiting for. He immediately bowed and said: "Old man, on behalf of the whole village, I would like to thank you!"
The crowd around the door also applauded, with joy in their eyes. Zhao Hui and Liu Ziguang in the crowd looked at each other, shook their heads and laughed, but Zhou Wen laughed awkwardly. As the parent official of Nantai County,
Even the water problem couldn't be solved, and he felt a little hot in the face. Fortunately, the person here today was a veteran military cadre who had retired long ago. If officials from the province and city came to inspect, he would really have no place to put his face.
However, as the county magistrate, he still had to stand up and say a few words, so Zhou Wen also walked into the yard and announced in public that the county would send a well drilling team to help Xiamapo Village completely solve the problem of water shortage. Whatever was needed, they would be allocated.
If that doesn't work, send fire trucks from the county fire brigade to deliver water to the villagers.
There was another burst of applause. The people in Kushuijing Township still had a good impression of him as the county magistrate. Some of the younger ones even made fun of the county magistrate: "County Magistrate Zhou, if there is no water to eat, your family will just work."
ah."
Zhou Wen said with a smile: "Okay, if you can't complete the task, everyone will come to my house for dinner." There was another burst of laughter, and the atmosphere gradually became lively. Zhou Wen wanted to talk about the Xuanwu Group's land acquisition, but he thought
The occasion today was not appropriate. He opened his mouth and then stopped. However, Ye Qing did not open any pot and asked him directly: "County Chief Zhou, when we came here, the villagers were filled with rocks and traps.
Which song is this from?"
"It's like this. In order to develop the economy and get rid of poverty as soon as possible, our county has signed an agreement with Xuanwu Group to expropriate more than 2,000 acres of land in three administrative villages in Kushuijing Township, most of which is saline-alkali land. Some villagers do not understand
, there were some conflicts with the employees of Xuanwu Group. Kushuijing is an old revolutionary area with fierce folk customs. The methods used to fight the Japanese were also used. The county government is responsible and the work cannot be done well. However, we will further coordinate the two parties.
relationship, and strive to satisfy both parties.”
Mr. Ye nodded and said: "Land is the lifeblood of farmers. Without the land, are we still called farmers? This problem must be solved properly, and we must pay attention to the methods. We cannot chill the hearts of the people for the sake of immediate interests.
The truth that water can carry a boat but also capsize it should be kept in mind by those in power."
After saying this, Mr. Ye was a little out of breath. The doctor quickly took the oxygen bag and gave the old man oxygen. At the same time, he measured the blood pressure and pulse. After working for a long time, he nodded to Ye Qing to indicate that everything was fine.
Mr. Ye regained some energy and asked Old Man Liang: "I think you look familiar. Who are you, Liang Changgui?"
Old Liang said: "Commander Ye has a really good memory. That was my uncle, the head of our Xiamapo Village. In order to protect the wounded of the Eighth Route Army, he let the Japanese pick him to death on the threshing floor."
Mr. Ye took out his handkerchief to wipe the corners of his eyes and continued to ask: "I remember that Village Chief Liang has a son and a daughter. How are they doing?"
Old Man Liang said: "My uncle's eldest daughter contracted edema and died in 1959. My son went out to beg for food and never came back. Maybe he died outside. In those years, the whole village was dead, and the village even sent
The militiamen guarded the intersection and did not allow anyone to go out to beg for food..."
Suddenly, Old Man Liang realized that he had said something wrong, and quickly changed the subject: "It's all in the past. Now, although I am poor in Xia Mapo, roads and wires have been connected, and some of them have built small Western-style buildings.
, the lights and telephones upstairs and downstairs have also been realized.”
Zhou Wen looked at his watch. It was already one o'clock at noon. The team hadn't stopped to eat since they came from the city. They were supposed to be hungry. He winked at Liang Dazhong, and Liang Dazhong winked at Liang Xiaojun. Liang Xiaojun coughed dryly.
, Old Man Liang understood and said: "Old Commander, let's have lunch at my house. There's nothing delicious. Kill a chicken, grow your own vegetables, and stew a pot of rice."
Mr. Ye waved his hand: "I don't want to eat anymore. There is still somewhere to go."
"That's not a success. How can we let the guests leave at noon?" Old Man Liang refused to agree to anything. The villagers also followed suit and insisted on keeping the guests for dinner. In the end, Sang Jingxian pulled Old Man Liang aside and whispered.
It took a few words to persuade him to stop.
Old man Liang said: "Since Commander Ye still wants to pay homage to his old comrades, we won't keep you here. You will definitely come and sit at home when you come back."
"Okay, let's go, goodbye folks." Ye Qing pushed Grandpa's wheelchair, but Ye Lao stretched out his hand to shake hands and say goodbye to everyone. Old Liang was the first to step forward and hold the old man's hand.
My heart felt sour, and I couldn't find the muscles and blood vessels in my wrist. On a hot day, Commander Ye's hands were actually cold, which showed how weak he was.
At this time, the big hole on the road had been filled, and the car drove to the entrance of the village. The whole village, young and old, plus a group of dogs wagging their tails, put Mr. Ye into the car. They watched the smoke and dust of the motorcade go away before the villagers went home.
, Old Man Liang sighed and said, "Good man."
…
The main reason why I didn’t eat in Xiamapo Village at noon was because I didn’t want to add to the burden on the village. The people in the old district were simple. If I really wanted to stay for dinner, these dozen strong young men would not be able to eat all the chickens in the village. There was another reason.
It's because Mr. Ye can no longer eat normally, all his teeth have fallen out, and he can only rely on liquids to maintain nutrition.
Everyone had lunch in the car. They didn’t eat much in the hot summer season, so they just ate some military quick-heat food and canned food, fruits and other things. The convoy drove towards Tianjie Township, and Ye Lao was going to Yezhuyu.
Pay homage to old comrades.
After driving along the winding mountain road for an hour, we finally arrived at Tianjie Township. Unlike at noon, we had already received notice of the impending inspection from the leaders. Everything was clean and there were welcome banners on the streets. However,
The convoy did not stop here at all and drove directly to Yezhuyu. This road was much more difficult to walk. Except for off-road vehicles, other low-floor vehicles were difficult to drive through. However, the military division had already considered this and sent
A high-end imported Land Cruiser transferred Mr. Ye to the off-road vehicle and continued moving forward.
After an arduous trek, we finally arrived at the canyon deep in Daqing Mountain. The old iron cable bridge finally turned into a solid cage-type iron bridge. After seeing it, Mr. Ye sighed again and continued to move forward. Even the off-road vehicle could not reach the mountain road.
After leaving, everyone had to carry Mr. Ye forward. Fortunately, the scenery deep in the mountains was beautiful, the climate was pleasant, and the heat was not felt at all. A dozen young men took turns carrying the sliding pole, and they were not tired at all.
After climbing two more mountains, we finally arrived at Yezhu Valley.
Looking at the small village that had hardly changed from seventy years ago, Mr. Ye became a little excited and even wanted to stand up from the sliding pole. Ye Qing quickly stopped him: "Grandpa, be careful."
Mr. Ye pushed his granddaughter away and turned around to greet Zhao Hui: "Xiao Ming, come here."