Chen Lishu’s grip tightened on the bag. The downside of living in a rural village was that every move was under everyone's watchful eyes. To put it bluntly, if someone in the east end farted, by the west end, everyone would likely know about it within hours.
However, unless her brain had been kicked by a donkey, she would never tell this woman anything.
"Yes, someone in town was handing out money, and I thought I'd pick some up. Aunt Liu, you should go quickly too, or it'll be gone if you're late."
Without waiting for Liu Widow to reply, she quickened her steps and went inside.
"This darn girl definitely has something to hide from me," Liu Widow narrowed her eyes, watching her retreating back. "There's nothing I want to know that I can't find out."
Chen Lishu let out a helpless sigh only after the door behind her closed.
She had been careless. It seemed her trip to town would indeed have to be postponed.
In the evening, after dinner, Chen Lishu distributed money to everyone again.
This time, it was more evenly distributed, with each person receiving around three yuan.
In less than a month, everyone in the family had earned nearly ten yuan, and they were all very happy.
Not long after that, the production team’s sow gave birth, quickly diverting many people's attention.
"Husband, are we raising a pig this year?" Li Xiulan asked Gu Shoufu over breakfast one day.
The production team's pigs were raised collectively, with dedicated personnel tending to them. Other families who wanted to raise pigs had to wait for the team's sows to give birth. Then, based on the number of piglets and the number of families wanting to raise pigs, lots would be drawn, and the cost would be deducted from work points and settled at the end of the year. This ensured absolute fairness and impartiality.
"The harvest wasn't very good last year, and raising a pig requires a lot of grain," Gu Shoufu hesitated.
Although there were no strict regulations for privately raised pigs, everyone sold them to the procurement station.
"Dad, Mom, the policies are becoming more open year by year. During my trips to town, I heard them say that if you sell pork privately in town, you can get at least one to one yuan and twenty cents per jin."
"What? That high? We only get fifty cents at the procurement station." It wasn't just Li Xiulan; everyone else was shocked.
However, they remembered that this third daughter-in-law always had good ideas. Having gone to town so many times and interacted with many people, her experience was naturally broader than theirs.
Although their privately raised pigs wouldn't grow very heavy, they could still yield one hundred and forty to fifty jin of meat.
That would mean almost two hundred yuan.
"Dad, Mom, my nephews and I can gather pig feed after school when we have free time," Gu Xingping now admired her third sister-in-law immensely. She supported whatever she said.
The Gu family had plenty of labor, so compared to families with many children, this was not much. There were only five young ones in total. Squeezing their grain could sustain one pig, which was not a problem. Moreover, their fourth son was still unmarried, and all this required money.
Gu Shoufu thought for a moment, then got up and went to the brigade office to draw lots.
Once the Lantern Festival was over, everyone in the village, young and old, began to go out for work.
They went to the commune to fetch seeds and fertilizers, and the women would husk corn and grind it into coarse and fine cornmeal, preparing the food rations for the commune members for the coming year.
The members of Qingshan Village were busy with spring plowing, while on a training ground elsewhere, a group of soldiers were also training vigorously.
This was a newly stationed independent regiment in the provincial capital. It consisted of five battalions, all transferred from various regions.
In the second lunar month, the spring chill lingered. On a recently constructed training ground, the intensive training soldiers were sweating profusely.
They gritted their teeth and persevered, all the while secretly cursing the training officers in their hearts, especially the chief instructor.
Out of twenty-four hours in a day, training alone accounted for sixteen hours. It felt as if, apart from eating, sleeping, and using the restroom, they were pinned to the training ground all day. This was not to mention the surprise drills that were held frequently.
For soldiers who had developed a routine in their original units, it was simply unbearable.
"Old Gu, look at the way those brats are looking at you. They've probably cursed you to death in their hearts already, haven't they?"
The man called Old Gu by the man was not old at all. On the contrary, he was quite young, around twenty-four or twenty-five years old. He was tall with a neat black buzz cut, sharp eyebrows, piercing eyes, and a high-bridged nose. His military uniform further accentuated his refined and upright posture.
The man habitually raised his hand to pat his shoulder. Gu Xingdong glanced at him indifferently.
Wu Zheng's fingers paused. "Forgot, you're their special training chief instructor now. You need to maintain your image, your image."
Gu Xingdong remained unfazed. "Something wrong? Speak."
"Heh heh," Wu Zheng immediately put on a fawning smile. "My family found me a wife who wants to join me in the army. This old woman, after meeting me once, insisted on coming along. I'm really troubled."
As he spoke, he looked up and met Gu Xingdong's dark, probing eyes. Wu Zheng stopped showing off and got straight to the point. "I want to stay in your apartment. I'll give it back to you when mine is ready."
Because it was a new base, the infrastructure was not yet complete. The three-story family building behind the training ground was built in a hurry.
Housing distribution was based on military rank and seniority. He was a deputy battalion commander, and Gu Xingdong was a full battalion commander, so it wasn't his turn this time.
Gu Xingdong replied, "Approved."
He wasn't married anyway, and a bed in his office could suffice.
Wu Zheng was extremely grateful. "Old Gu, you're the best!"
"By the way, have you had time to write a letter home?"
After all, he had managed to take time off to go home for a blind date. Gu Xingdong, as the chief instructor specifically transferred from the special forces by the higher authorities to be in charge of the intensive training, often participated in actual combat exercises and could not spare any time.
Gu Xingdong's dark eyes dimmed slightly. "I have."
Not long after joining the army, due to his excellent physical condition, he was selected for closed training in the special forces for a year. Immediately after, he was dispatched for a special mission, unable to contact his family. Now, six or seven years had passed in a flash, and he wondered what the situation at home was like.
Back in Qingshan Village, Chen Lishu was helping everyone plow the fields. Suddenly, a half-grown child, Gu Zhao, ran from a distance, shouting towards them loudly, "Third Aunt, my mom wants you to hurry back! Something has happened at home!"
Chen Lishu's hand, holding the plow, trembled, and she almost fell onto it. Fortunately, a sister-in-law nearby quickly supported her. Otherwise, she would have surely drawn blood.
After quickly informing the captain of her team, Chen Lishu hurried to Gu Zhao's side, anxiously asking, "What happened at home?"
Gu Zhao wiped the sweat from his forehead, which had appeared from running so fast, and shook his head. "Third Aunt, I don't know. I only know that someone came to the house, and then Grandpa and Grandma started crying. Grandma cried the hardest. Then Mom told me to come and find you."
Li Xiulan was crying? This must be a very serious matter!
Hurrying home, filled with anxiety, she pushed open the door and heard Li Xiulan's crying. She quickly walked over and asked, "Mom, what's wrong?"
Seeing her return, Li Xiulan hugged her tightly and cried even harder.
The eyes of everyone else in the family were also wet.