Lu Dewen reflected on his actions,
He said while trembling with fear,
"Mom, you should share the food in the future." He ate as much as he could and felt at ease.
Xue Huahua glared at him,
She was too lazy to say anything.
During this meal, the three brothers ate until their mouths were full of oil. They were extremely excited when they thought about how they would be able to have a sumptuous meal every month if they performed well in the future and studied hard.
After the meal,
They took the initiative to fight for the dishes to perform. You grabbed the bowl, I held the chopsticks, you pushed me, I fought for it,
There was another stalemate. Xue Huahua frowned, "Since you love to wash dishes, in the future, wash enough.
From today onwards, you guys take turns washing,
One person for a day,
The eldest is the oldest,
You go first. "
Lu Dewen did not complain,
He answered very happily, "Okay, Mom."
Lu Mingwen and Lu Jianxun were unhappy that they did not snatch the job. Lu Dewen used to be very lazy and never did things like cooking and washing dishes. When he suddenly became diligent, it made the two of them seem lazy and slow. It was really infuriating to compare themselves to others. They were the diligent ones, okay? Fortunately, they took turns and had many opportunities to perform. Lu Mingwen and Lu Jianxun reluctantly scooped up water to wash their feet and obediently went to bed.
The two brothers lay on the bed, reminiscing the taste of rice and steamed eggs. They tossed and turned, but they did not feel sleepy.
Lu Jianxun thought that among the siblings, Lu Dewen was the one who had studied before. He learned quickly and could easily crush them. Lu Dewen would definitely occupy one of the two places to eat rice and steamed eggs. The rest of the people had a similar starting line. In terms of intelligence and wit, his mother often praised his third sister. If he wanted to beat Lu Hongying, he had to spend more time to learn. Didn't his mother often say that effort would be rewarded? Lu Hongying had to dig wild vegetables and take care of the children to wash clothes and cook. In comparison, he had more time. If he worked hard, it would not be a problem for him to eat rice next month.
As he thought about it, he wiped the saliva from the corner of his mouth and revealed a confident smile. Hearing the suppressed crying sound next to him, he nudged Lu Mingwen's back. "Second Brother, why are you crying? If you work hard, you will be able to eat rice one day. Mom said that the harder you work, the luckier you will be. Look at the corn in our private field this year, don't you think it's growing better than last year? "
In the past, Xue Huahua and Zhao Caizhi had taken care of their crops. They had never put in any effort, so the crops were overgrown with weeds. The corn cobs were short and small, and the kernels were not plump. This year was different. In addition to Xue Huahua often weeding, the three brothers also participated in the work. Lu Dewen carried the manure, and they fertilized the crops. Working together, the corn they grew was better than the ones in the neighboring fields, which made many people envious.
The corn harvested this year must be bigger than last year.
Lu Mingwen wiped his tears and said in a hoarse voice, "I'm fine." He was touched. He was touched that Xue Huahua did not hesitate to help the whole family in order to encourage him to walk out of the trauma. Not only did she give him face, but she also did not let others know that it was because of him. His mom was really worried about him. He had thought it through. In order to live up to his mom's efforts, he must study hard. So what if Sun Baoqin has a lover who is educated? In a few years, his biological mother, brother, sister-in-law, sister-in-law, and younger siblings will all be literate, and they will be better than Sun Baoqin when it comes to numbers.
"Fourth Brother, let's study hard so that the villagers will not dare to look down on us." Lu Mingwen turned around and faced Lu Jianxun. He thought to himself, 'Fourth Brother, you must work hard for the sake of your brother's reputation.'
"Do I need you to tell me? I've already thought about it. " Lu Jianxun felt that Lu Mingwen's words were strange. Studying is for the sake of eating white rice. What has it got to do with the villagers? If you study well, the villagers will not reward you, and if you don't study well, they have no right to criticize you. Is Lu Mingwen thinking of the problem too complicated? Thinking of this, he patted Lu Mingwen's shoulder lightly. "Second Brother, go to sleep. Don't think too much. We can talk about it later."
Xue Huahua did not know what the brothers were talking about in the room. Since she had a plan, she did not delay and went to the pig farm early in the morning to clean the pigsty. After feeding the pigs, she sat on the stool and waited.
As the sun rose slowly, Li Xuemei came slowly. Seeing that Xue Huahua had finished her work, she looked up at the sky. It was about the same time as yesterday. It was not that she was late.
The morning dew was heavy, and it would wet her pants and sleeves. The two agreed to go out later. They went to the fields to cut the pigweed first. When the sun was too hot, they would go to the back mountain. The trees were shaded, so they were not afraid of heat stroke. She waited for Lu Ming and the others to wash their clothes and go out. She did not expect Xue Huahua to come so early.
When Xue Huahua saw her, she quickly stood up and told her about teaching Lu Dewen and the others to read. Li Xuemei was surprised. "Aunt wants Dewen and the others to study?" Everyone in the production team was talking about sending their children to primary school. Xue Huahua's grandson was still young, and he could not even speak a simple sentence. Li Xuemei wondered if Xue Huahua had been pushed too far by the production team's culture. Lu Dewen and the rest had long passed the age for schooling.
Xue Huahua's eyes were full of confidence. "That's right. Literacy for them. They are only in their teens and twenties. We can't have no goals in life. Once they are educated and know how to read, they will be able to grasp the opportunity when it comes."
The country would get better and better. Jian She needed talented people, regardless of age or gender, as long as they had the ability. Lu Dewen and the others were still young and had the opportunity to change the current situation. She hoped that they would continue to improve themselves and become useful people to the society.
Li Xuemei was surprised by Xue Huahua's awareness. Even she thought that sending children to school was the only hope. She was surprised that Xue Huahua did not abandon or give up. She started with her sons who were married and had children. Xue Huahua was right. There might be a chance if they were educated, but there was no chance if they did not study.
When she was in the countryside, she burned all the books at home. She only kept two of her parents' favorite books. When she first came here, she was not used to the life in the production team, so she would read them. Gradually, she was so busy that she fell asleep the moment she went to bed. She had not read a book for a long time. Xue Huahua's words made her feel guilty. Even illiterate people knew how to work hard. She had no right to feel sorry for herself.
She agreed readily that Xue Huahua was willing to help. However, Lu Dewen and the others did not have the foundation. They had to start learning from Pinyin. She did not have any books about Pinyin.
"I don't need a book. You can teach me how to write on the ground. I will teach them after I learn it." Books were too expensive. It was a waste of money. Xue Huahua knew Pinyin. She dipped it in water and wrote it on the table. If it did not work, she asked Lu Jianxun to dig some mud home and make it into the shape of a letter and stick it on the wall of the central room.
Then, they had a new topic to talk about when cutting the pigweed. Li Xuemei taught them very carefully. She wrote a letter on the ground after cutting the pigweed. When Xue Huahua could read and write, she took the sickle and changed the ground. Xue Huahua was not perfunctory at all. She memorized Pinyin while cutting the pigweed. She wrote it crookedly for Li Xuemei to see. When Li Xuemei said she passed, she continued to the next one.
The club members who passed by them were very curious. They asked them what they were talking about and kept talking. Xue Huahua answered generously, "I asked Lu Ming's wife to teach me how to read and write. I am eliminating illiteracy step by step."
Xue Huahua's voice was so loud that everyone in the field could hear it. They laughed at her half-kindly and half-teasingly, "You are so old. Why do you still need to eliminate illiteracy? Even if you do, it will not be useful. " People of Xue Huahua's age were almost illiterate and did not know how to count. They had never thought of learning how to read. There were many jobs in the field. If they really had the time, they might as well earn a few more days of work.
Xue Huahua retorted at the top of her voice, "How is it not useful? My whole family is eliminating illiteracy. When I learn it, I will go home and teach Dewen and the rest. Everyone will improve and learn together, so that we can better contribute to socialism in Jian She in the future. "
Many people in the field muttered that Xue Huahua was silly. Did she think that she was a seven or eight-year-old child? At their age, they should focus on work and raising their sons and grandchildren. Filling their stomachs was the most important thing. Jian She's country should be handed over to the young people and children.
Seeing that they did not understand, Xue Huahua did not say much. She said to Li Xuemei, "Let's continue." Whether it was good or bad, they would slowly come to feel it.
Xue Huahua did not care about what others said. She focused on learning from Li Xuemei. Wherever the two of them stood, there would be scythe marks left on the ground. Lu Jianguo was very curious and specially ran over to take a look. There was an 'e' written on the ground, with an 'A' and an 'O' in front of it. From this, it could be seen that Xue Huahua was determined to lead the whole family in eliminating illiteracy.
Lu Jianguo could not help but give her a thumbs up for her confidence. Reminiscing about the days when he was studying, it was more difficult than living in hot water. He would rather work in the field every day than study. Work required strength, but study required brains. Whenever he touched a book, he would have a headache and want to sleep. He did not know how he got through those years. Xue Huahua had to raise pigs and study at the same time.
Because Xue Huahua's performance was something that brought glory to the production team, Lu Jianguo cleared his throat and loudly praised Xue Huahua for having a high level of awareness. It was to give face to the production team leader and encourage more people to participate in the literacy campaign. He talked until his mouth was dry, but the members were busy with their own things and did not even look at him. Lu Jianguo felt bored and quietly went back to work in the field.
Lu Mingwen was originally absent-minded, but after listening to Lu Jianguo's words, he was moved again. His mother studied with great fanfare for him. She wanted the members to shift their attention to her so that they would not poke fun at him about Sun Baoqin's pregnancy. As expected, when Xue Huahua walked around the field, the members were talking about his mother. Even the member who laughed at him for being magnanimous and forgiving about Sun Baoqin's affair also changed the topic. "Comrade Mingwen, your mother is really courageous. She did what she said without hesitation. Did your whole family learn from her?"
The most educated people in the production team were the members of the educated youth group. They had all come to the countryside to farm. What future could Xue Huahua have?
Lu Mingwen lowered his head and said in a choked voice, "Of course, everything my mother does is for our good. We will do whatever she says." His mother was not afraid of being embarrassed and had a good attitude. As her son, he could not be a burden.
The sun was scorching. Lu Jianguo was afraid that everyone would get heatstroke, so he announced that from today onwards, they would take a break after lunch. After lunch, Xue Huahua cleared the table and taught Lu Dewen and the rest to memorize the alphabet. Then she went to the kitchen and stood in front of the table with bowls and water. She taught them how to recognize Pinyin one by one. The whole family gathered around the table and followed Xue Huahua. "A, a, a, open your mouth, a, a; o, o, o, the rooster rises, o, o."
The words were added by Xue Huahua herself. She remembered that the radio in the supermarket that sold the alphabet said it like this. She taught them more than ten times and asked them to read it carefully. She wrote it three times on the table and then asked them to write it themselves. She corrected the parts that they did not write well. Lu Dewen had a good foundation. After he finished writing, he was waiting for praise. Xue Huahua slapped his head. "You are very proud, aren't you? Do you want to teach us?"
Lu Dewen shook his head and shrunk his neck. He looked at the table embarrassedly and did not dare to show his proud expression again.
Lu Mingwen and Lu Jianxun did not write well. Xue Huahua held their fingers and taught them one stroke at a time. After teaching them twice, she asked them to write it themselves. When they could write it well, she taught them the other letters. Li Xuemei taught her eight letters, but she only taught them five. After teaching the five letters, she asked them to write a backward. Other than Lu Dewen and Lu Hongying, the other three had completely forgotten about it. Xue Huahua looked at Lu Mingwen, who was slumping his shoulders and looked like a coward. She clapped her hands and slapped him. "You don't have a good memory when you learn. You forget everything you learn, right?"
Lu Mingwen cried bitterly. He sneaked a peek at the letters on Lu Dewen's table. Before he could see them, Lu Dewen blocked him with his hand. He put on a bitter face and forced himself to write a letter that he could still remember. The moment he finished writing, he was slapped on his back again. "How do you pronounce this letter? Read it for me. When did I teach you how to write this letter?"
Lu Mingwen thought that he was creating the letter E!
Lu Mingwen hurriedly wiped the table with his hand. He did not know that Xue Huahua would ask them to write an A as she taught them. He read it silently and drew a circle. His mouth was wide open. Did he read it correctly?
Xue Huahua did not hit him again. Lu Mingwen thought that he guessed correctly and heaved a huge sigh of relief. He saw his brother coming over and adding a pen at the bottom right corner. "Mingwen, this is an A. You wrote an O just now."
Lu Mingwen felt like crying. He shrugged his shoulders and pulled himself together. He concentrated and started writing again. After writing it for the second time, he finally got it right.
After revising it for another four to five times, other than Chao Caizhi, everyone else could write it accurately. Chao Caizhi was embarrassed. "Mom, why don't I just give up? I don't know why, but I can't remember it."
Xue Huahua did not lose her temper at her. Instead, she explained gently, "After giving birth, your memory will be much worse. Don't be anxious. Take it slow. Learn as much as you can." Thinking about the situation of Chao Caizhi giving birth, she could not be too strict with her.
At this moment, Dong Dong, who was sleeping in the room, started crying. Xue Huahua asked Chao Caizhi to enter the room to take a look. Seeing that the rest of them were staring at her, Xue Huahua sighed. "Let's stop here. We still have work in the afternoon. Go back to your room and take a nap. I'll call you when I'm leaving." The days were long and the nights were short. They did not rest well and did not have the energy to work. Learning was a long process. Xue Huahua did not want them to drag their bodies down. However, she reminded them, "Think about what you're thinking before you sleep. Don't forget everything when you wake up."
The news of Xue Huahua's literacy had caused a stir in the production team. They were afraid of Xue Huahua's scythe and did not dare to ask too much. However, they could not suppress their curiosity, so they asked Lu Dewen and Lu Mingwen. The two of them were tight-lipped and only said that they were literate. As for what they learned, they refused to reveal. When they were forced, they said, "My mom taught me. Ask my mom."
The members were instantly discouraged. Xue Huahua had become famous in Fenggu Township. When they heard that Liang Lanfen's quota for university had been cancelled, the cadres of the commune held a meeting to praise Xue Huahua. They praised her as a good comrade who dared to criticize and correct comrade who had a bad style of work. She protected the honor of the commune. Otherwise, it would be an insult to the country and the cadres of Fenggu Township if people like Liang Lanfen were recommended to go to university.
How would they dare to provoke a comrade that even the cadres of the commune praised?
Even if they wanted to know more about the literacy program, no one had the guts to ask Xue Huahua. Although they could ask Li Xuemei about the situation, they still did not dare to ask. Li Xuemei was fine, but they were afraid of Liu Yunfang's incessant scolding. What kind of person was Liu Yunfang? She could scold her for three days and three nights without taking a breath. She scolded from her ancestors to her descendants. Who would have nothing better to do than to provoke Liu Yunfang?
The commune members did not have the guts, and they did not dare to ask. Xue Huahua could not tell at all. Li Xuemei was very responsible. When the two of them got off work early, Li Xuemei would go to the pig farm to teach her how to spell Pinyin. She would read along with Li Xuemei as she swept the pigsty. After sweeping the pigsty, she would write on the ground with water. When the commune members in the field came to the storage room to return the tools, they would be dismissed.
Xue Huahua liked this kind of atmosphere, and so did Li Xuemei. Influenced by Xue Huahua, Li Xuemei wanted to help Lu Ming and the rest with literacy. However, Liu Yunfang refused, saying that literacy was a waste of time. If one spent time studying, one would not have the mood to work. Her father-in-law also disagreed, not to mention the rest. Fortunately, Lu Ming gave her face and was willing to study for a while before going to bed. However, Lu Ming would fall asleep the moment he touched the bed. Often, after Li Xuemei finished reading the alphabet, there would be no response. When she turned around, she would see that Lu Ming had already fallen asleep.
Since her family was not supportive, Li Xuemei became more and more concerned about Xue Huahua. The whole production team, Xue Huahua, was the one who took the initiative to propose literacy. Her enthusiasm and foresight were not something others could compare to.
The weather was getting hotter and hotter, and the sweet potato vines were planted in the ground. Lu Jianguo began to assign people to carry manure and fertilize it. Lu Dewen's performance in carrying manure last time was not bad, and he was given the job of weeding in the fields. Lu Mingwen was given the job of weeding in the fields. Lu Jianxun begged Lu Jianguo to follow Lu Mingwen to the fields. The two brothers walked side by side and quietly studied each other's alphabet. It was a habit in their family to study during lunch and dinner. Xue Huahua's progress was fast, and she finished teaching the alphabet in five days. Even the confident Lu Dewen could not guarantee that she would get everything right. This greatly inspired Lu Mingwen and Lu Jianxun's confidence. There were two places, and if they worked harder, there was hope for them to squeeze Lu Dewen out.
The surrounding people who were weeding looked on. The two brothers raised their right hands and gestured in the air from time to time, and quarreled from time to time. Their behavior was puzzling. There were educated youths in the fields, and the club members could not help but ask, "Look at what's going on with the two brothers." If they were to say that their relationship was not good, the two would lower their heads and laugh. If they were to say that their relationship was good, they would push each other and quarrel. Did they become idiots after literacy?
The educated youth pulled the clothes that were stuck to his back, and stared at the two for a while. He explained loudly, "They are writing Pinyin."
"Writing Pinyin …" The club members suddenly understood. They did not expect Xue Huahua to do what he said. He led the whole family to literacy, and he really did it without any exaggeration. They asked again, "According to their behavior, when will they succeed?"
The educated youth curled his lips. With their speed and intelligence, it was still too early for them to succeed. No matter how much he despised them in his heart, he did not dare to say it out loud. He was afraid that Xue Huahua would find trouble with him. Thanks to Liang Lanfen's sins, the educated youth's expression almost changed at the mention of Xue Huahua. For example, weeding and fertilizing were voluntary work points, and the production team would not force them to do so. It did not matter if they did not work or not, but they were afraid that Xue Huahua would not let them go, and bring out the party and the country. They had no choice but to work actively. In the entire educated youth's room, except for Liang Lanfen, who was in poor health, everyone asked to work.
The newly arrived educated youth worshiped their self-reliance and determination, not losing to the frontline soldiers. Only they knew that in their hearts, they cursed their parents and went to work.
Speaking of Liang Lanfen, the old educated youth's resentment came again. She caused the entire educated youth's room to not dare to slack off. She was good, hiding in her room and playing idle. Didn't she just starve for three days? From time to time, she pretended to faint to scare people, making the team leader unhappy with them. He thought that they had secretly done something, and they did not even mention Liang Lanfen when assigning tasks. The old educated youth was about to vomit. Who did they offend?
Just as he was feeling depressed, he saw Lu Mingwen carrying the grass to the ridge of the field and walking towards him. The old educated youth's heart trembled, and he stammered, "You … What are you doing? I did not say anything bad about you. "
Like mother, like son. He thought that Lu Mingwen was going to beat him, so he wanted to run, but his legs were stuck in the mud, and he could not pull them out. He hugged his head and exclaimed, "Go away, or I'll call for help."
Lu Mingwen's face flashed with embarrassment. He lifted his feet and walked towards the educated youth on the main road. He asked with a red face, "Li Zhiqing, I wanted to ask how to write h for drinking water. Fourth Brother and I forgot."
The old educated youth was speechless. He stiffly lowered his hand and turned to look. Lu Mingwen's expression was gentle, and his attitude was humble. How did he look like he was going to beat someone up? A member beside him laughed, and the old educated youth could not keep his face. He pulled a long face and reminded, "Comrade Lu Mingwen, you're working. Why didn't you stay in your position? What are you doing here?"
"Fourth Brother and I are writing the alphabet from memory. There are two letters that we forgot, so I wanted to ask someone who knows how to write." Lu Mingwen's attitude was that of seeking knowledge, and he made the old educated youth speechless with three sentences. Why couldn't he say anything? Because he saw Xue Huahua coming from the bamboo forest with a basket on her back. He quickly lowered his head and pretended that he did not say anything.
Li Zhiqing gestured in the air twice, and Lu Mingwen was suddenly enlightened. "I remember now. It's written like this. Fourth Brother, did you see it?"
Lu Jianxun nodded. Lu Mingwen thanked him and quickly returned to his position. He continued to mutter with Lu Jianxun. He looked up and saw Xue Huahua coming over with the pigweed. He quickly pointed to the place with more pigweed for Xue Huahua.
Xue Huahua glanced at the people working in the field. Everyone bent down and pulled the weeds with all their might as they walked along the rice field, pretending to be busy. Xue Huahua was puzzled, but she did not think too much about it. "Second Brother, dig some mud when you go to the construction site. I need it."
"Okay." Lu Mingwen grunted in response. Not far away, the educated youth jumped up with a thud. "Leeches, leeches."
The other educated youth froze. Thinking of the people standing on the ridge of the field, they continued to pull weeds indifferently. Leeches were not scary, but writing a confession was scary!
The more they thought about it, the more scared and angry they became. It was all Liang Lanfen's fault. Even the children in the village would say, "If you don't work, you're letting down the country and the Party. You should write a confession." It made them think that even taking a sip of water was cheating and discrediting socialism.
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