5th May, 1975
As the weather warmed up, the frozen river melted, and the flowers started to bloom as the new sprouts broke the soil, marking the end of winter and the beginning of the short period of spring.
Early in the morning, before the first light of the sun broke through the clouds, the villagers who lived in Xie Village already carried their bamboo baskets and waterskins as they walked toward the farmland.
Today was the first day of the spring harvest. Everyone was full of expectation toward the winter wheat they planted in the autumn season. If the yield of the winter wheat on this harvest could reach a new high, they would no longer have to worry about having no food to eat.
In the midst of the excited villagers, Li Chenmo and his son were seen carrying their bamboo baskets as they walked toward the northern area of the village.
When the villagers saw them, one of them asked, "Dong Li, ah, your mother just gave birth to your younger siblings. Why are you coming here instead of taking care of her at home?"
Hearing this, Dong Li smiled and replied, "My grandma and aunts are taking care of my mother at home. With three more family members, I have to work harder to earn work points."
After he said this, another villager added gleefully, "You indeed have to work harder to earn more food. Otherwise, your foster parents might regret taking you in."
"Isn't that so? After all, you are not their own children. How can you compare with their biological children?" a middle-aged woman added with a laugh.
Just after she finished her words, someone threw a handful of dirt at her face. The dirt went into her mouth as she was laughing.
"Pei! Pei! Pei! Who is it? Who dares to throw dirt into my face?!" she asked angrily while spitting the dirt.
"Aiyah, I wondered where this stink was coming from. Turns out, it's your mouth, ah!"
The moment everyone heard the familiar voice, they quickly dispersed and went to the area they were assigned to.
The middle-aged woman was angered and pointed her fingers at the newcomer while saying, "Wang Muxiao, you shrew! I didn't do anything to you. What right do you have to throw dirt at me?!"
Hearing this, Wang Muxiao pulled her sleeves up and said, "Your words make me unhappy, so I want to see if feeding you dirt could shut you up. What? You feel wronged? If you feel wrong, then come and hit me back, ah!"
As soon as she got ready for a fight, the middle-aged woman's face turned pale. She took several steps back and said, "Wang Muxiao, don't push your luck, ah! Do you think I'm scared of you? I just don't want to waste my time on you!"
"If you dare, come and hit me! Why are you running away?" Wang Muxiao asked when she saw the woman run away.
Seeing that everyone had dispersed, she spat on the ground and said, "Pei! Only dared to bully a child, what a coward!"
"Second Aunt, why are you here?" Dong Li asked with a smile.
Wang Muxiao handed a bamboo basket to him and said, "Your mother is still in the postpartum period, so she can't prepare food for you and your father. Your grandma made this for you two."
"Second Sister-in-law, please thank Mother for us," Li Chenmo said.
"Brother-in-law, it's a small matter; you don't have to be polite with us," Wang Muxiao replied with a smile.
After she handed over the bamboo basket, she returned to the area where the Lu Family was assigned.
As the sun rose on the eastern horizon, the sound of a siren echoed in the entire village, marking the beginning of the work.
While everyone was busy harvesting the winter wheat in Xie Village, the situation in the nearby village was not much different.
In Yun Village, Feng Chen was busy harvesting the winter wheat with his family when Dong Huang arrived, carrying a bamboo basket on her back.
She looked around for a moment before she spotted her friend. Waving her hand, she ran to his place, while shouting, "Ah Lin!"
Hearing his friend's voice, Feng Lin stopped working and turned around. Seeing her running so fast, he quickly walked toward her while saying, "Xiao Huang, don't run so fast. Be careful of falling."
Just after he finished his words, Dong Huang already reached his place. She patted her chest while taking several deep breaths.
Noticing beads of sweat on her forehead, Feng Lin pulled the towel wrapped around his neck and used it to wipe her sweat. After her breath stabilized, he asked, "Xiao Huang, why are you coming?"
Dong Huang wiped her sweat before she said, "Ah Lin, I came to send food and water for you. My grandma made a lot of pancakes and steamed buns this morning. So, I brought some for you and your family."
Hearing this, Feng Lin said, "Xiao Huang, you should keep the food for yourself and your family. My family already prepared lunch, and we ate breakfast at home."
When she heard this, Dong Huang was unhappy and said with a pout, "Ah Lin, I helped my grandma make these foods. Didn't you say that you want to taste my cooking? Why are you refusing now?"
Fearing that she would ignore him if she was angry, Feng Lin could only accept the bamboo basket and said, "Xiao Huang, I will accept them, don't be angry."
The moment he accepted the food and water, Dong Huang smiled and said like a little adult, "Ah Lin, since we are brothers, you shouldn't treat me so politely. It will only harm our relationship."
Although Feng Lin felt that her words sounded weird, he still nodded and said, "Okay, I will listen to you."
Since they didn't lower their voice, their conversation was heard by the Feng Family. Feng Chen smiled as he watched his son interacting with his friend.
At first, he felt anxious after he resigned from his job and returned to Yun Village. But now, he no longer feels anxious. Instead, he found peace, happiness, and felt relaxed, as if he was back to his younger days.
After Dong Huang left, Feng Lin placed the bamboo basket under a tree, together with the water and food they brought from home. Afterward, he continued working in the farmland.
Besides Xie Village and Yun Village, the rest of the villages under other production teams could only harvest their winter wheat at the end of May.
The harvest period lasted for twenty days, and took ten more days to dry the wheat and process them. While the production team staff were weighing the yield, the villagers were already cleaning up the field and getting ready for the spring planting.
This time, the seeds they used were those found in the mountains. The seeds were of high quality and needed a shorter time to mature. Since the seeds were limited, the paddy was planted as seeds and not for consumption.
Therefore, the winter wheat held an important role for the villagers. Whether they would starve or have food for the rest of the year would depend on the spring harvest.
At the beginning of June, the production team finally finished weighing the wheat. Sitting inside his office, An Xuyuan was reading the report with a smile.
A moment later, he quickly made a phone call to the brigade. Not long after, the call was connected, and Jiang Zemin's voice was heard, "Hello."
"Comrade Jiang, it's me, An Xuyuan. The 12th Production Team has finished the spring harvest and we have weighed the yield. Thanks to the seeds provided by the Zhang Family and the Li Family, we managed to get a good harvest this year," An Xuyuan said.
"Comrade An, the yield reached 5 tons per hectare?" Jiang Zemin asked with expectation.
"It's almost double that. We managed to reach 9.3 tons per hectare," An Xuyuan replied.
When he heard this, Jiang Zemin was so shocked that he forgot to close his mouth.
After a moment, he finally regained his composure and said, "Comrade An, with such a high yield, even if we use half of it to divide with the villagers, it won't be a problem to store the rest as seeds for next year."
"Comrade Jiang, please inform the Brigade Secretary. I will send the report to the brigade as soon as possible," An Xuyuan said.
"Okay."
The news of the 12th Production Team's good harvest spread to the entire brigade in two days. Even the Capital also received the news, and everyone was full of expectation for the results of the other production teams.
Thanks to the successful winter wheat, they managed to improve the food shortage situation and stabilize the situation in several cities.
After the spring harvest, the villagers received their shares of the winter wheat and filled their warehouse to the brim. While everyone was still full of energy, the spring planting started in the second week of June.
The months passed one after another as the paddy turned from green seedlings to yellow, mature paddy.
Sitting at the boulder near the riverbank, Dong Huang looked at the vast yellow paddy and said, "Ah Lin, have you sent a letter to your mother?"
Feng Lin nodded and replied, "I sent a letter to her yesterday."
"I wonder what your newborn brother looks like," Dong Huang said while munching at the pork jerky her mother prepared for her.
Feng Lin thought for a moment and said, "I heard that sons look like their mother and daughters look like their father. So, he should look similar to my mother."
Turning to her friend, Dong Huang said, "Is that so?"
She observed her friend for a while before she added, "But I feel that you look more like your father, Ah Lin. Maybe your brother looks like his father, too."
When he heard this, Feng Lin felt that it made sense and nodded, "I will ask for his photo when I send a letter to my mother next time."
Hearing this, Dong Huang said, "Ah Lin, we should take a photo of us too and send it to your mother."
"I saved some money, let's go to town and take a photo next week. We can ask your brother and Brother Jianmin to send us over," Feng Lin said.
"Okay!" Dong Huang agreed readily.
After they made a decision, the two of them returned to Dong Huang's house as they held hands together. Their laughter and chatter mixed with the sound of crickets and breeze echoed in the area.