Su Xiaotian's words were believed by Grandma Su.
Her granddaughter was no ordinary person, so what she said must be true.
Tian Tian said this person named Shen Zizhen was not simple, so he was indeed not simple.
Grandma Su liked people like that too.
She now understood that truly capable people could ensure that everyone had enough to eat.
That's right, Grandma Su's current thought was to be able to eat enough.
She had been afraid of starving for so many years!
In Grandma Su's heart, nothing was more precious than grain. Even gold and silver were not as useful as grain in her heart.
"My dear, tell me, can this person make sure we all have enough to eat?"
Su Xiaotian nodded firmly, "Of course he can!"
Even if Shen Zizhen couldn't make everyone in the Hongxin Brigade have enough to eat now, after a few years, when Shen Zizhen's new variety of grain seeds were cultivated, many people would have enough to eat.
"Grandma, the Dragon King said this person has great abilities. Not only can he make us eat enough, but he can also make us eat white flour and white rice every meal."
Grandma Su was so excited when she heard this.
Wasn't such a capable person even more powerful than Du Tonghe?
Du Tonghe had already distributed more grain to every household last year. If this person named Shen Zizhen was even more powerful, wouldn't the grain distributed this year be even more?
"Why don't we tell the brigade leader?"
Su Xiaotian said solemnly, "Okay, Grandma, I'll have Grandpa go and say it later."
She was young, and the brigade leader might not listen to her. But if Grandpa went to say it, the brigade leader should listen.
Su Xiaotian didn't know that the brigade leader had already noticed her uniqueness and even helped to cover it up at many times.
Even if Grandpa Su went to talk about it, the brigade leader would be able to guess the reason.
Grandma Su tidied up a few clothes she had changed out of, preparing to wash them by the river, still muttering.
"A few years ago, they said, 'As bold as a person is, so is the land's yield.' I always thought this was wrong, but now I know it's true."
"Grandma, even the most capable person can only increase the grain yield a little. They definitely can't achieve 'as bold as a person is, so is the land's yield'," Su Xiaotian couldn't help but chuckle.
Let alone this era, even the grain yield decades later couldn't achieve infinite growth.
Grandma Su was happy and didn't care what her granddaughter said. Her requirements weren't high, as long as she could eat enough.
Let all these capable people come. If one person came, their land could increase by tens of catties in yield, and that would be fine.
Every little bit adds up!
Shen Zizhen was a middle-aged man in his forties, emaciated, looking like he wasn't in good health, and with several injuries. He couldn't even straighten his back when he walked.
He was a university professor in the capital. Although his situation had not been good in recent years, he had managed to get by.
Unexpectedly, when he faced another wave of blows, his wife and children did not choose to stand with him. Instead, they severed ties with him and revealed some of his affairs to his opponents.
He suffered brutal suppression, was even seriously injured, and was sent from the capital to the northwest border.
After suffering such a blow, his heart turned to ashes. The reason he didn't choose to commit suicide was that he still had a research project that was about to yield results.
But being suddenly sent to the northwest, Shen Zizhen felt that perhaps in this life, he would never be able to return to his laboratory or see his experimental fields again.
He moved into the small house next to Du Tonghe with a blank expression. The house had nothing, and he brought nothing with him.
Chi Yiyuan brought some dry grass to spread on the kang for him.
Shen Zizhen felt that perhaps there was no need to spread even this dry grass. What else could a person living in a cowshed be particular about?
Perhaps, in the future, he would face endless torment and suffering.
After all, even his own relatives could push him off a cliff for various reasons, let alone strangers.
However, to his surprise, when night fell, someone quietly placed several coarse grain steamed buns and a quilt with many patches at his door.
Although the steamed buns were made of coarse grains, and the quilt was full of patches, it still melted the ice in Shen Zizhen's heart a little.
He looked at the quilt and steamed buns with mixed emotions.
He didn't expect there to be such kind people among the members of the Hongxin Brigade, who could treat a sinner like him with kindness.
At this moment, the brigade leader Su Changjiu, who had sent him to the cowshed and left in a hurry, returned.
He didn't come empty-handed, but with a lot of things.
"Comrade Shen, please eat this grain first. Our Hongxin Brigade's conditions are not good, and we don't have much fine grain. We have truly wronged you."
The Su family said that this Shen Zizhen was a talent and that he must be treated well.
The torment and humiliation that Shen Zizhen had imagined did not appear. For a moment, he felt that life in the cowshed might be different from what he had expected.
The brigade leader opened the two bags he had brought and showed them to Shen Zizhen.
"This is a bag of mixed flour. Most of our Hongxin Brigade members eat this whole. We can make a paste or dough balls, but we can't make noodles."
Su Changjiu was a little embarrassed when he said this.
He was from a big city, so how could he get used to such coarse rice and coarse flour?
But this was all the grain the brigade could offer.
"This is a bag of millet. It's good for making porridge. Comrade Shen, our millet here is nourishing and good for the stomach," Su Changjiu said sincerely.
Shen Zizhen looked at the two small bags in front of him, and at the rough rice and flour inside, his nose felt sour, and tears almost fell.
"Comrade Shen, I know you are from a big city, but our conditions here are just like this!"
Shen Zizhen looked at the honest and kind Su Changjiu, and his tears finally couldn't be held back.
"Brigade leader, thank you so much!" After a long time, Shen Zizhen expressed his heartfelt gratitude.
There were always many people who added flowers to the brocade, but few who sent charcoal in the snow.
Not only did this brigade leader of the Hongxin Brigade not torment him, but he also brought him rice and flour.
"You don't need to thank me. Once you are in our Hongxin Brigade, you are a member of our Hongxin Brigade."
Shen Zizhen smiled bitterly. Could it be the same? Obviously not.
"Brigade leader, I am a useless person, a sinner. I am content just to be alive!"
Shen Zizhen said this very humbly, not daring to think of being treated the same as others.
He was new here, and no matter how polite the brigade leader's words were, he had to be on guard.
His children and wife could betray him, so who could say he wouldn't fall into eternal damnation by trusting a stranger?
Looking at Shen Zizhen's expression, Su Changjiu knew that he didn't believe him at all, but some things had to be said.
"I know you are a capable person. It's a waste of your talent to be here with us."
Shen Zizhen was startled when he heard this.
He quickly waved his hands, "I dare not, I dare not. I am not a capable person. It is already a great kindness that the Hongxin Brigade can accommodate me!"
It's better not to be capable, lest he doesn't even know how he will die.
He only sought to survive now.
Su Changjiu sighed. This person named Shen Zizhen had a worse mindset than the two elderly people next door.
Well, some things would just have to be observed slowly. Everything would get better eventually.
"Don't worry, as long as you work honestly in our Hongxin Brigade, you will receive the same treatment as other members. You might not eat well, but you won't starve."
After saying this, Su Changjiu left directly.
Shen Zizhen watched Su Changjiu leave, and for a long time, he didn't react.
At this time, the sky was getting dark, and those who had gone to the fields were returning one after another.
Chi Ge and Du Tonghe, husband and wife, returned to the cowshed covered in dirt and saw Shen Zizhen in the golden sunset.
Du Tonghe had already heard that another person had arrived at the brigade today, named Shen Zizhen. Therefore, without waiting for anyone to introduce him, he spoke first.
"You must be Comrade Shen Zizhen. I've heard a lot about you!" Du Tonghe's tone was filled with excitement, and his eyes were even shining.
If one didn't know, one would think he had met a relative.
"May I ask who you are?"
Shen Zizhen saw Du Tonghe, an old man who seemed to have good spirit, but he didn't recognize him.
Why was he looking at him with such an eager gaze?
"We will be neighbors from now on. We all live in cowsheds. My name is Du Tonghe, and this is Chi Ge!"
Shen Zizhen looked at Du Tonghe and Chi Ge, who both had good spirits, and for a moment, he found it hard to believe.
Were these people living in a cowshed? It was different from what he had imagined.
They were much older than him, but their spirits were excellent, not much different from the members he had seen today.
If they hadn't said they lived in a cowshed, he would never have believed it.
"Do you really live in a cowshed?" he asked incredulously.
"Yes, I've lived in the cowshed for several years. Old Du and his wife have been here a year longer than you," Chi Ge said with a smile. "From now on, we will live together and take care of each other."
Chi Ge wasn't very clear about what kind of person Shen Zizhen was, but Xiaotian said he was a good person, so he believed it. That person was good.
After all, that child Xiaotian had never been wrong.
"Are you Professor Chi Ge from Peking University?"
Only then did Shen Zizhen remember why the name of this old man named Chi Ge sounded so familiar.
When he was in the capital, he had heard that Professor Chi Ge of Peking University had also been sent down to the northwest, but he hadn't expected them to live together.
A few years ago, he had attended Chi Ge's lectures. He didn't expect two people from the capital to meet under such circumstances in this small village in the northwest.
"Let's not mention the past. Little Shen, the Hongxin Brigade is good. Just live here with peace of mind," Chi Ge said in a low voice after looking around. "The members of this brigade have no ill intentions!"
No ill intentions? Were the people in this place truly pure-hearted?
Shen Zizhen didn't quite believe it.
That evening, Shen Zizhen had dinner with the other two families. In Du Tonghe's words, it was a welcome dinner for him.
Dinner was coarse grain dough ball soup. Shen Zizhen found that there were egg flowers in the dough ball soup, which was truly rare.
He had been traveling and living in the open air all this way. Not to mention eating enough, sometimes he didn't even get a sip of water all day.
Dragging his injured body, he was almost unable to support himself. He didn't expect that on his first day at the Hongxin Brigade, he would be eating egg dough ball soup.
The starving man devoured the rare dough ball soup.
Du Tonghe and Chi Ge watched him silently.
"Eat slowly. The old woman made a big pot, enough for you to eat," Du Tonghe said, recalling his own experience when he first arrived, with a hint of sadness.
"Eat slowly. If it's not enough, we'll make more," Yu Ruiyuan also comforted him softly.
"It's enough, it's enough. I'm already very content to have a hot meal."
Shen Zizhen said in a low voice, and no one noticed that his tears fell into the bowl and merged with it.
After dinner, Yu Ruiyuan went to wash the pots, and Chi Yiyuan went somewhere. The remaining three sat together and talked.
"I really didn't expect to eat such a meal even in a cowshed!" After eating his fill, Shen Zizhen's spirits improved considerably, and his voice seemed to have become more resonant when he spoke.
"You'll know later. Our living conditions are a bit poor, but as for food, it's about the same as other members," Du Tonghe said with a smile. "In the future, it will probably get even better."
Shen Zizhen didn't understand the meaning behind Du Tonghe's words at this time. He would only understand it more than half a year later.
Shen Zizhen sat down and unconsciously moved his waist.
He had been injured in the capital and hadn't used any medicine or taken good care of it. The journey had worsened it, and it seemed to be getting serious.
When his heart was filled with despair, he hadn't felt it, but now that he had the courage to live, he found that his waist hurt even more!
With such a broken body, he really didn't know if he could still do any work. If he couldn't participate in labor, he probably wouldn't even get food.
"Little Shen, your health doesn't seem very good. You seem to be injured."
Chi Ge was a meticulous observer and quickly noticed that Shen Zizhen's physical condition was not good.
"Professor Chi, you can just call me Little Shen. I was injured a little in the capital. It's probably chafing. One day, the pain will pass, and everything will be fine!"
Shen Zizhen didn't know if he was talking about his body or something else with these words.
"I'll have Xiaotian make you some ointment to apply later. It will heal quickly!" Du Tonghe's eyes were full of smiles when he mentioned Su Xiaotian.
This child was truly miraculous.
"Xiaotian?"
"She's my god-granddaughter and also Professor Chi's student!"
Shen Zizhen was so surprised that his jaw almost dropped. These two people living in the cowshed actually had relatives and students in the Hongxin Brigade?
Moreover, what surprised him the most was that such things should be kept secret, but they just said it.
It was either that they trusted him, or that everyone knew about it, so keeping it from him alone was meaningless.
Shen Zizhen felt that he had just arrived, and trust was obviously out of the question, so there was only one possibility left: everyone knew about their relationships.
"Everyone who needs to know in the Hongxin Brigade knows," Chi Ge answered his question.
Shen Zizhen couldn't help but be curious. What kind of magical place had he come to?
Could this be the legendary paradise?
In the following days, Shen Zizhen indeed saw that the Hongxin Brigade was different from what he had imagined.
He even felt that this was the most relaxed he had felt in years.
Apart from the restless young people from the county who came every few days, life here was truly comfortable.
Although they ate simple meals every day, they were all full, and their moods were very pleasant.
The past events in the capital seemed to have drifted away with the wind.
He had almost completely forgotten those who had once belittled him to the dust.
It was only then that he truly realized that it was his good fortune to be able to live in the Hongxin Brigade.
If he hadn't luckily come to the Hongxin Brigade, and had gone to any other place, his life might not even have been guaranteed.
But what excited Shen Zizhen the most was that he met a rare child.
Su Xiaotian was indeed a rare child. She was only nine years old, but her knowledge of agriculture already surpassed many people.
His former students were far inferior to this nine-year-old child, Su Xiaotian.
His injuries were also healed after using the ointment provided by Su Xiaotian.
He had originally thought Su Xiaotian was at least fourteen or fifteen years old, but she turned out to be a nine-year-old girl.
This was simply a genius child, with a much broader knowledge base than an adult.
However, she was not studying in school.
It was understandable, as in this era, studying in school would only be a waste of time.
With the guidance of people like Chi Ge and Du Tonghe, Su Xiaotian naturally didn't need to go to school.
But he soon discovered that not only Su Xiaotian from the Su family was not studying in school, but none of the children in their family were going to school.
However, these children were studying diligently every day, and their knowledge base was far wider than that of other children of the same age.
If such a group of children were not in such a remote rural area, they might achieve great things in the future.
Moreover, he was shocked to find that in a place like the Hongxin Brigade, there was a small experimental field, and it was said that this experimental field belonged to Du Tonghe and Su Xiaotian.
Because of his arrival, the brigade leader expanded the area of the experimental field by another two fen, and also expressed hope that they could cultivate higher-yielding grain seeds with these experimental fields.
At this time, Shen Zizhen felt that the pressure on him had increased, but his desire to live also grew stronger.
He even felt that he had more sufficient drive.
Half a year later, Shen Zizhen, who felt like a fish in water, thought that living in this place for a lifetime would also be good.
Interacting with these simple and kind members was much more straightforward than in the capital.
Moreover, as Su Changjiu had said, as long as he worked, he would receive grain and other supplies like other members.
Even more, the people of Hongxin Brigade knew that he could cultivate seeds. Instead of the humiliation he had expected, they respected him.
It could be said that in the Hongxin Brigade, except for living in a cowshed, there was nothing bad.
However, the cowshed was cleaned regularly, so the smell was not too strong, and it was surrounded by wilderness, so it was not unbearable.
Since arriving at the Hongxin Brigade, he had been trying to inquire about his colleagues and friends, but the news was not optimistic.