The sky is clear, the weather is hot, and the cicadas are chirping. Under the guidance of Accountant Zhang, it didn't take much effort to complete the eight houses.

The last student to be investigated in this village was Zhang Zhiguo, and he was also the most heart-wrenching and poignant of the trip. His house is located on a hillside outside the village, surrounded by a small courtyard surrounded by a fence, which looks particularly desolate. There is a small hut built of thatch in the courtyard, under which is a rather simple stove, the three caves are already full of devastation, and the windows are covered with old and broken fertilizer bags, phosphate fertilizer bags, etc., I don't know how many years.

When he entered the hospital, Accountant Zhang shouted loudly, "I'm Accountant Zhang from the school, am I stunned at home?" ”

"Accountant Zhang, he's not here, is there something wrong?" As he spoke, a woman of thirty-five or sixteen years old, dressed in tatters, with red and swollen eyes, came out of the cave, and looked at several people standing in the courtyard, and did not know where the two uninvited young men came from.

Accountant Zhang said with a smile, "Xiulan is at home, these are two college students from Pingxi, you want to know about the situation of governing the country and accepting the assistance of the Hope Project, don't be nervous, you can answer truthfully whatever they ask." ”

Xiulan was frightened, and said timidly, "That's the case, there are no trees outside, it's quite hot, come to the kiln." As he spoke, he hurriedly pulled out three small stools from under the bed, rubbed the dust with the corner of his jacket, placed them in front of the three of them, and then stood aside with his hands down.

The room was dark, clean and tidy, except for a few broken hardboard beds, there was hardly any decent furniture, and if it was valued, all the belongings were not worth two hundred dollars. Looking at Xiulan's nervous expression, Wu Xiaojun was worried that it would hurt her self-esteem, so he reached out and pulled the stool to sit down regardless of whether it was dirty or not, Bai Lingyan saw his intentions, and he didn't pay any attention to it, so he sat down directly, and Accountant Zhang kept shaking the pu fan and stood at the door.

Bai Lingyan looked at Xiulan with a smile on her face, and said softly, "Sister-in-law, don't be nervous, we didn't have any other meaning to come, just to learn about your family's situation on the spot according to the requirements of the county, and see if we can give more help and care." ”

Xiulan looked at the two young people with a smile on their faces, their attitude was very easy-going, and they spoke more politely, not like the family planning team in the township, the collection of retention funds, and the menacing and domineering bandit-like working group, the vigilance and fear eased a lot, her eyes stared at the ground, and she tried to ask in a low voice, "What do you want to ask?" ”

Wu Xiaojun said with a smile on his face, "Sister-in-law, don't be afraid, just tell me about your family's situation." ”

Xiulan suddenly squatted at the base of the wall, cried, and said sadly, "There are three brothers in the country, the two elder brothers are in the second and first years of junior high school in the town middle school, and the country is in the fourth grade of the village novel. ”

Bai Lingyan asked, "Do the three brothers study hard, and how are their grades?" ”

Xiulan said, "This brother can work hard in school, his grades are very good, and he has always been excellent in school." The teachers at the school are very fond of them, and their relatives and neighbors see their poor family and often give them help and care. Not only that, but the village school also applied for assistance from the Hope Project for Zhiguo, so that the three children could not drop out of school early and study with peace of mind. ”

Wu Xiaojun said, "It is very sad to see the situation in your family, why are other people's families in a much better situation than yours?" ”

Xiulan sighed and said, "My child and his father are honest farmers, most of the acres of farmland at home are distributed in places where it is difficult to grow good crops, and the years are better when the wind and rain are good. ”

Bai Lingyan said, "There are more mines here, so you can go to work when you are free to earn some money to supplement your family, and it won't be like this now." ”

Xiulan looked at the two of them in a trance, and said helplessly, "In the past, our family could get by, and the life was okay, that is, when I was born in Zhiguo, it was the wheat harvest season, and I went to the field to cut wheat in less than two days, but I fell into a gynecological disease. The child's father works day and night to earn money, and he can't withstand my bottomless pit. ”

Wu Xiaojun said, "Do you have any other expenses besides taking medicine and going to school for your children?" ”

Xiulan said, "In recent years, there have been many family planning fines, retention funds, road repair fees, stove renovation fees, five insurance premiums, school construction fees, broadcasting fees, and so on. Two years ago, my family also raised a big heifer, and every year gave birth to a calf, which could also be sold for a thousand children and eight hundred, but later was taken away by the township and sold, and only gave us one hundred and fifty yuan. You can't even buy a goat, let alone a cow. ”

Listening to what Xiulan said, Wu Xiaojun was in a very solemn mood, and immediately remembered an incident that happened in his hometown last year.

The village cadres went to the house of an old man and lady in his 70s in a neighboring village to collect family planning fees and retention money, and the old couple were puzzled, they were already damned people, why should they still pay family planning fees, who were they planning with this money, so they went to the working group with a cane and a wad of dark coins, and the working group members were all dumbfounded, and a township cadre said fiercely, "You are fooling the ghosts, what kind of heart are you having?" ”

The old lady said disappreciatively, "My old couple is the money for the little ghost, only the little ghost will ask us coffin coffins for money, who do you say you don't send the little ghost?" ”

It can be seen from this that the situation in various localities is much the same, and the three big mountains of the village committee, the township committee, and the family planning committee that are pressing on the peasants' heads have made the peasants breathless, and the buildings of many village cadres are majestic, and this is in sharp contrast to the poor living environment and difficult life of the villagers.

Wu Xiaojun said, "We have also seen in the past few days that many children have dropped out of school early because of poor family conditions, your family is so difficult, do you plan not to let your children go to school, do some odd jobs for others, earn a little to take care of themselves, and reduce some of the burden on the family." ”

Xiulan's eyes widened and she said excitedly, "Our family is indeed poor, but what can be done, the days have to go on day by day." My father and I have always made up our minds that no matter how poor and hard we are, no matter how tired and difficult we are, we will try our best to let our children go to school and not delay our children's studies. Even if there is a glimmer of hope, even if you put your life on the line, you must let your children have a chance to get ahead one day and change the status quo of poverty and backwardness in their families. ”

Bai Lingyan said in a deep voice, "It's rare that you have this idea, your three children are the greatest hope and sustenance, there will definitely be a future in the future, the difficulties will definitely pass, and the days will always get better day by day." ”

Xiulan said helplessly, "As long as the child is out in the future, he will not be bullied, and he will have a good life. ”

Wu Xiaojun said eloquently, "Please don't be too pessimistic, there is no hurdle that cannot be passed, we have a comprehensive understanding of your family's situation, and we will definitely report to the county truthfully, I believe that your family will soon have a big improvement." ”