“…… Don't play drums, don't play gongs, listen to me sing a peasant song; When it comes to the real hardship of the peasants, they shed blood and sweat to support the landlords. It's pitiful to mention the peasants, who don't have half an acre of land at home...... The local tyrants and inferior gentry are really bad, forcing the children of the poor to sell; Sell your children to mourn, and sieve down with tears in your eyes. The peasants are really bitter, the landlord eats fine and I eat coarse, carrying steel knives and fast guns, killing his mother and killing his mother......"

In Wujiazhai Village, Deguang Township, Hulin County, where the Longjiang Reading Regiment of the Chinese Workers' and Peasants' Red Army was located, General Qiao Tieshan sat on a low bamboo chair, held a rough porcelain bowl in his hand, drank a sip of fragrant local tea, and sincerely sang this popular song in the Soviet area that year. Beautiful tunes, simple lyrics, and long charm. The listener hummed along, and the singer burst into tears.

The memory of music is deep and permanent. When the general stepped into the land of the old district, this melody suddenly rose from his heart. Pairs of straw sandals and lanterns floated in front of me. The general's heart was filled with passionate memories and deep sorrow.

Wu Hongjun, the newly appointed secretary of the Hulin County Party Committee, and Chen Hongjun, chairman of the Jiangdong Group, stood respectfully beside the old general. At this time, their emotions swirled in the hoarse singing of the general.

Two days ago, after Secretary Wu received a notice that General Qiao was going to visit the old area, he immediately put down his work and personally accompanied him to take care of the old man's food, clothing, housing and transportation. According to the custom, he washed the dust for the old general, who had fought here 53 years ago, and carefully prepared a table of wine and food for the old man.

At noon that day, the ambitious secretary of the county party committee accompanied General Qiao into the dining room, looking at the bright and shiny tall wine glasses and all kinds of hot and cold dishes, the general stopped, he was silent for a moment, and asked with an unusually cold face: "Is this for me?" ”

"Yes! Old chief. This is a piece of the heart of the old area, they are all local specialties, you haven't come back for 53 years......" Secretary Wu said to Qiao Tieshan with a smile.

Who knew that the old man didn't appreciate it, so he waved his hand and said, "I don't have a good appetite!" Eating this table of dishes will be bad for your stomach! With that, he turned around with Chen Hongjun and left.

The reception banquet was settled in the big canteen, and his former guard Chen Hongjun paid for it. The old general was preoccupied and munched on the rice in silence.

Secretary Wu was full of grievances and accompanied him, he felt that this elder was too unreasonable, wasn't it just a meal? He failed to know that the general could not swallow the pain of the banquet, nor did he realize the original intention, determination and responsibility of a generation of founding generals who fought bloodily.

No one knows this old man better than Chen Hongjun, and he still clearly remembers that the old general often said that he should not see three things: first, he must not see the common people suffering, second, he must not see the revolutionaries enjoying it, and third, he must not see the bullying masses as officials.

It is with this belief that the veteran general has set the coordinates of his life on the scale of being worthy of the people for the rest of his life. In fact, he had long wanted to come back to have a look, to visit the fathers and villagers in the Soviet area, and to return to the starting point of the revolution, so as to accept the people's test of his original intention and the torture of his soul.

He knew that there was not much to come, and he didn't want to leave with regrets. After receiving the invitation of Chen Hongjun, a former local guard, he hurried his steps, and the next day he arrived in Jiangcheng from the capital, he drove to Hulin County, had lunch in the canteen of the county party committee, and rushed to Wujiazhai Village, a well-known poverty point in the county.

Seeing that the old general's interest was very high, Chen Hongjun, who had been prepared for a long time, also sang along: "...... Brothers, soldiers, are all poor. There were no fields and no land, no money and no silver. The landlords and old riches were forced to be regimentals. The ruler is like a tiger and a wolf, and his salary is deducted. Brothers, soldiers, listen to me sing about the Red Army, officers and soldiers are like brothers, equal and close to each other. Hurry up and join the Red Army......"

The old general nodded with satisfaction, waved his hand to him to sit down, and sighed lightly: "You have become a big boss, remember the song I taught you, not bad...... Yes, I haven't forgotten my roots. ”

"Chief, you have obtained my name, how dare the Red Army forget the song of the Red Army?"

This is how the name of the CEO, a representative of the National People's Congress, and a model of supporting the army, came from in front of him! Secretary Wu, who had always been very puzzled about Chen Hongjun's entourage, realized that he had a good relationship with the old general, and strengthened his determination to make friends with him.

The old general stood up, leaned on crutches, pointed to the dilapidated house in the distance, and asked lightly, "Let's go, let's go over and have a look." ”

"Yes, Chief."

With Chen Hongjun's support, he walked into the home of Huang Zhangsheng, a 54-year-old farmer, and in the dark house, he kept touching and looking everywhere. A broken quilt was pulled over the empty bed, and the quilt was mended and mended, and the cotton was black and rotten. Mr. Huang explained that he and his 22-year-old son spent the cold winter on this broken quilt. The general groaned for a long time when he touched this broken quilt, and his feelings were like a lump of black and hard cotton clogged in his heart.

His face was pale, he didn't say a word, and after leaving two hundred yuan for Huang Laohan, he came to the dilapidated house of the martyr Song Yousheng.

The old general stared at the faded "Glorious Martyrs" plaque on the door for a long time, and let out a sigh from time to time. There are 3 bamboo beds in the house, 3 patients are lying respectively, almost all the male laborers have fallen, only two daughters-in-law are working in the field, and a pig in the pen that has been raised for two years weighs less than 100 catties.

I walked to the stove and lifted the black lid of the pot, only to see that the gruel was still mixed with potatoes. In an instant, tears rolled down the weathered face of the old soldier.

53 years have passed, why is their life still so miserable? His heart felt like it had been sprinkled with a handful of salt, and it felt like it had been hit with a hammer.

As a veteran general who has experienced a hundred battles, a revolutionary who has suffered from hardships, he has been smelted and tempered with feelings, and analysis and decision have become normal forms of thinking.

But he has always adhered to a kind of innocence in his heart, and maintained the conscience of a [***] person, he is a son of the people, and the sorrows and joys of the people are closely related to him.

He often sent his salary to poor areas, and in 1985 alone, when he was on leave, he sent it three times: 600 yuan once, 200 yuan once, and 500 yuan once. You must know that the general's monthly salary was only 360 yuan at that time, and whenever the general received a letter of thanks, he shook his head like a child and said embarrassedly: "Don't mention this!" ”

China is huge, there are so many disasters and needs, and the general's money is undoubtedly a drop in the bucket. If you retreat, you will retreat, and even if you join the Central Advisory Committee, you are only an adviser, and you can still say a few words about the affairs of the army, and you cannot interfere too much in local affairs.

The old general pondered for a while, then suddenly turned around, stared at Chen Hongjun, and asked, "Do you want to bring money?" ”

Chen Hongjun glanced at the embarrassed Secretary Wu, leaned into his ear, and whispered: "500,000, all in cash, put it at Secretary Chen's place." ”

"He doesn't understand these things, you can do it later." The old general pointed to the dilapidated house of Song Yousheng's house and said solemnly.

"Okay."

For the next five days, the general's heart was filled with shame and guilt. The tears of affection did not take away the weight of his heart, and he took a pill from time to time to relieve the depression and the angina that secretly hit him.

With a pilgrimage and a reverent heart, he knocked on the door of the thatched hut in the village, listened to the cries of his masters, and took up the questions of the land where he had shed his blood half a century later.

The 500,000 yuan in cash brought by Chen Hongjun has already been distributed to the east family of 200 and the west family of 300. There were so many people in need of help that the old general had to end the trip in tears.

This member of the Central Advisory Committee, a veteran general who once served as deputy director of the Central Office for the Rectification of the Party, sat on his desk at the guest house of the county party committee and read letters from the masses received by the county letters and visits bureau overnight.

Outside the window, there is a moonlight, and the towering mountain peaks are like generals watching under the lamp, looking, listening, calling, waiting. It's not that this land has bad feng shui, it's not that the masses are lazy, it's also why this land was so vibrant, vigorous and full of vitality back then.

Looking back on the past and the present, the general understood a truth more and more, lightly put down the letter in his hand, and said to the leaders of the county party committee who accompanied him: "Comrades, our power is given by the people. Just like this land, life is born and multiplied, and once life leaves the land, it will not be safe, no matter how much sweat and blood you have shed on this land......"

The old general recalled the past and said earnestly: "In 33 years, Mr. Chen ordered us to expand our popularity here. At that time, I was the director of the political department of the Reading Power Group, and I was in charge of the work of expanding the popularity. At that time, the people of Hulin County had just made tremendous sacrifices to oppose the "encirclement and suppression" campaign, and the bloodstains had not yet been wiped off, and the leading comrades of the county party committee took the lead in sending their relatives to the troops.

Under the leadership of the leadership, in only 3 months, the people of Hulin sent 1,000 of their outstanding children to join the army. And how many of these 1,000 people have returned? How many people are alive? How many people became senior cadres? After nearly 20 years of hard waiting, Hulin County's mother and wife only received a martyr's certificate, but they did not complain, because they saw that the leaders of the county party committee had made the same sacrifice as them......"

The past rushed from the secluded place of the vast history half a century ago to the grim realm of reality, and everyone's mood was extremely heavy.

After the general finished telling his story, without waiting for everyone to speak, he stood up solemnly and bowed deeply to the comrades beside him and to the newly appointed secretary of the county party committee.

"Chief, it's our work that hasn't been done well, let's review ......" Secretary Wu was dumbfounded, and hurriedly said cautiously.

"Tomorrow, I'm leaving the Tiger Forest, maybe I can come again, maybe ......" The general waved his hand weakly, choked for a while, and didn't continue.

The people present lowered their heads, and Chen Hongjun's eyes were even more soaked with tears...... It was already late at night to send off the leaders of the county party committee, and he was going to leave Hulin tomorrow. Sometimes he walked outside, staring contemplatively in a starry sky, sometimes strolling back and forth under the lamp, his eyes behind the lenses of deep myopia like a deep pool, with a silent wave.

"Chief, when I came back in the afternoon, the fellows stuffed a box into the car, what do you think about it?" The weather was a little cold at night, and Chen Hongjun didn't dare to let him stay outside longer, so he hurriedly and cautiously found a topic.

"Oh, bring it to me." The old general was stunned for a moment, and then said lightly.

What Chen Hongjun was holding was not a gift box, but a shoebox with yellowed paper. The old general returned to the living room, gently opened the shoebox, and found that it was full of rice cakes that he was very familiar with.

"Come on, everyone will destroy it for me."

The hard rice cakes were cut evenly one by one, Secretary Chen grabbed a piece, put it to his mouth and put it down, and couldn't help asking, "Chief, is this ......?"

"Eat quickly, don't talk nonsense!" The general took the lead and ate the next piece.

It's not salty or light, it's really hard to eat, but the old general eats it with relish. Everyone had to bite the bullet and accompany the old general to solve this special box of gifts.

Chen Hongjun took the medicine handed by Secretary Chen, poured a glass of boiling water for the old general, put it in front of him, and said in a low voice: "Chief, you have to cross the river by plane from Jiangcheng, hundreds of kilometers of road is not safe and delays, Longjiang Airport is not far from here, there will be a United Airlines passenger plane at noon tomorrow, do you think we don't have to go far?" ”

Chen Hongjun knows the old general too well, and he has a stern attitude in front of public and private, and he is not reluctant at all.

This time, when he came out of the capital, there were many famous mountains and rivers, scenic and historic sites along the way, and the provincial military district provided him with transportation, but he looked at the tourist attractions speeding by.

Just last night, the secretary and the security guard beside him couldn't resist the temptation of the southern scenery, and in the evening asked the driver to take them on a tour of an ancient Tang Dynasty temple 15 miles away.

When the lights were in hand, the two returned to the guest house in high spirits. When he walked into the room, the general, who was watching the news broadcast, looked at the two young people who came back and asked, "What did you do?" ”

They honestly replied that they had gone to the mountain to see the monk's temple, and the general stood up abruptly, turned off the TV, and said in a loud voice: "Little comrade, what are we doing here from Yanjing?" Is it to see the fellow or the monk? Under the pretext of sightseeing, driving military vehicles to enjoy the mountains and rivers, the masses are deeply dissatisfied, how can you do this? ”

The young man who had been trained did not dare to slack off, and sent a review to the general overnight.

Getting on the plane from Longjiang Airport means that the trouble of the provincial party committee and the provincial military district is saved, and fuel money is also saved. As Chen Hongjun expected, the old general pondered for a moment and agreed without hesitation: "It's okay, just go from Longjiang." ”

Without waiting for Chen Hongjun to speak, the old general said again: "Red Army, you have been with me for so many days, you have spent money and time, you don't have to send me back to the capital tomorrow." ”

"Chief, why do you have to send me to the airport?" Chen Hongjun sat down, smiled uncharacteristically, and said: "As for that money, you don't have to worry about it, where are the profits of Jiangdong Group spent?" You always know. ”

The old general nodded slightly, and after thinking for a while, he suddenly turned straight and asked seriously: "Red Army, you tell me the truth, does Qiao Wei have any shares in your group?" How many shares are there? ”

"Nope! Not really! ”

Seeing that the old man still didn't believe it, Chen Hongjun immediately stood up, with a frank expression, and said sincerely: "Chief, Xiaowei has helped me a little, you know how difficult it is to do things now, and I can't help it." ”

"Alas......! It's not easy for you to survive to this day. The old general sighed, motioned for him to sit down, and said with a sigh: "Before the war, others retreated their children and subordinates, but I sent you to the battlefield. Red army...... Tell me what is in your heart, have you ever complained about me? ”

Chen Hongjun did not answer this question, but said in a low voice: "Chief, Xiaowei and his father have gone up, what else do I have to say." ”

In the war more than ten years ago, the old man not only sent Chen Hongjun, who was his guard at the time, to the battlefield, but also sent his own son, and he did not come back.

Thinking that his grandson is not home now, Old General Qiao shed bitter tears, took Chen Hongjun's hand, and choked up: "Red Army, I have never treated you as an outsider, and it is precisely because I didn't treat you as an outsider that I sent you to the battlefield." When you came back, you chose to change jobs, which made me very sad. But I am very pleased to hear that you went to the sea to start a business entirely for the sake of those comrades who have sacrificed. ”

The reason why the old general, who usually speaks little, said so much is because he knows that he has nothing to do, otherwise he would not have made this trip to the Tiger Forest.

In fact, he ran out of the 310 Hospital located in Wukesong, and before he came, he went to Yuquan Mountain to report to Bo Lao, deputy director of the Central Advisory Committee, the purpose of his visit to the old Hualin area. When parting, Bo Lao clasped his hand and instructed: "Pay attention to your body, I will wait to see your report." ”

In the past five days, he has visited six townships and towns, talked with more than 100 cadres and masses, and what he saw and heard can be said to be shocking. The old general did not have his last wish, but a great deal of guilt and regret, and at the same time felt so much more than enough but not enough.

“…… These people, who have sent the revolution on its journey, should also become rich in the course of the development of the revolution. If we can't even do this, then we won't be able to comfort the martyrs under Jiuquan. The old general stared at Chen Hongjun's eyes and continued helplessly: "It is better to teach people to fish than to teach them to fish." The Red Army, if you can...... Just build a branch factory in Wujiazhai to give the villagers a chance to work and make money, please. ”

Chen Hongjun sighed lightly and said solemnly: "Chief, I also want to do something for the villagers, but I am powerless." If this road is not repaired, how will the raw materials be transported in? How can the finished product be shipped? Besides, you have seen it when you are old, how can there be young people in Wujiazhai? It's all old, weak, sick and disabled, and even if you build a factory, you can't find workers. ”

(To be continued)