The big water can't drown the swimming fish, and the mountain can't stop the birds from flying.

- Kino

In the late autumn of this year, when frost flowers fell all over the mountains, Althea gave birth to a baby girl.

Niu Yushan asked Ah Hong to give her the name of Haiche. Hatcher is the name of Muhammad's wife. Whoever owns this name symbolizes the beauty and nobility of a lifetime.

Han Sophie was very unhappy when she knew that Althea gave birth to a girl, rolled her pale yellow eyes, and said disdainfully: "If you give birth to a girl, you will still be a member of someone else's family in the future." ”

Niu Yushan was still full of joy when he got a daughter, but when he heard Han Sophie say this, he didn't feel that the joy in his heart had decreased by more than half.

There is an old tradition in Linxia that men do not work as women. Now that Althea has given birth to a child and is in confinement, there is no one to cook. Niu Yushan's family has become a problem to eat.

Fortunately, several concubines such as Mahim and Mailiha came to visit Asiya, and when they saw that she had neither her mother's family to take care of her, nor the help of her mother-in-law's family, they discussed that everyone should come and take care of Asya for a day. However, they also have a lot of things to do in their respective families, plus they have to complete the manual work assigned by their mother-in-law, so they can only find time to cook a meal.

Feeling that she could not rely on others, Althea went to the field to cook on the fifth day after giving birth. She had no way to abide by the taboo of not sticking cold water during the confinement, and secretly shed tears while steaming the buns with noodles. Tears dripped into the basin and into the dough.

As soon as the full moon was over, Han Sophie sent a handicraft job for Althea to make clothes and shoes for her eldest sister Zai Nabai's children.

The officials of the public came to Gayindai and informed all the villagers to go to the temple that served as a meeting room.

Han Sophie only allowed the men of the Niu family to attend the meeting, and not a single woman was allowed to participate. She said sternly: "Women are just cookers, and they are not allowed to go anywhere!" ”

The five sons returned home after the meeting and reported the contents of the meeting to their grandmother: First, the Salta people were classified as the Dongxiang people, the Salur people were classified as the Salar people, and the security people were classified as the security people. Second, because most of Jinggou are Dongxiang people, Jinggou was changed from Fu's hometown to Dongxiang Autonomous Region. The third is to set up a production team in Gayindai Village. Fourth, all the villagers have become team members and must participate in collective labor.

After listening to this, Han Sophie clapped her hands and laughed: "The public family is really full and has nothing to do!" According to their division, the Nau family became several nationalities. You see, Nao has become a Salar, your sons are all Dongxiang, Meriha has become a Baoan, and the other three daughters-in-law are Hui again. Ha ha. The Naumen's house has become a hodgepodge. ”

Niu Wanshan said: "Grandma, the public cadres said that now is a new society, and women must break the feudal tradition and go out of the house to participate in revolutionary work. Whoever doesn't go to the meeting doesn't give food to anyone's family. He also said that he would come to his door to do ideological mobilization work. ”

Han Sophie snorted in her nose and said disapprehantly: "Nao doesn't believe that the new society can still make the croaking chicken become a golden phoenix!" ”

Due to the shackles of historical traditions and feudal ideology, none of the ethnic minority women in Gayindai dared to attend meetings in the worship temple, let alone participate in collective labor.

Within a few days, the women cadres of the public government really came, going door to door to do the mobilization work.

A female cadre dressed as a Muslim woman introduced herself as Lin Guizhen, called the four daughters-in-law of the Niu family together, inquired in detail about their family and personal situation, and enthusiastically encouraged them to break away from feudal thinking, participate in the work of the production team, and become female members of the new era.

Lin Guizhen deliberately said to Althea: "You are a farmer, and you are the main force we rely on. You're going to have to take the lead! ”

Seeing that neither her mother-in-law nor her husband let go, Althea had no bottom in her heart, so she had to shirk and said: "Nao's girl is less than two months old, and when she is one year old, I will go to participate in the labor of the production team." ”

Lin Guizhen smiled and agreed.

In the blink of an eye, a year has passed.

Lin Guizhen came to the Gayindai production team for a meeting, and came to Niu's house to understand the situation by the way.

Lin Guizhen saw Althea and asked kindly, "You can participate in the labor of the production team now, right?" ”

Althea smiled embarrassedly and said, "Gava...... Still no one is looking after it. ”

Lin Guizhen asked curiously, "Don't you have a mother-in-law?" ”

Althea replied wryly, "Mother-in-law...... The mother-in-law couldn't see it. ”

Lin Guizhen asked, "What about your parents?" ”

Althea replied, "Nao's parents are in Qinghai. ”

Lin Guizhen said: "I see that your materials say that they came from Zhangye?" ”

Althea replied, "Nao came from Qinghai to Zhangye, and later from Zhangye. ”

Lin Guizhen said with a smile: "What a coincidence! I'm also from Zhangye. ”

Han Sophie interjected: "No wonder. Listening to you, it's a Wadala (twitter, wow, meaning incomprehensible), and it turns out that he is not a native of Linxia. ”

Lin Guizhen said: "I was originally from Fuyang Township, Tongjiang County, Sichuan. In 1931, my parents were killed by the Kuomintang army because their three sons had joined the Red Army. I was only 11 years old at the time, and I had to flee to find my brother, and later joined the Red Army and was assigned to the 1st Battalion of the Women's Independent Regiment of the 9th Red Division. In 1935, I was incorporated into the Red 5th Army, advanced from Sichuan to Hadapu, and won the Battle of Lazikou. At the end of September, our Red Fifth Army was ordered to cross the Yellow River to the west, and encountered a resistance from the Kuomintang horse army on a mountain in Jingtai County. ”

Han Sophie and her children looked at each other nervously. Their hearts immediately thought of Niu Zhanhai, who was fighting in the Hexi Corridor at that time.

Lin Guizhen continued: "The main force of the Red Army and the Women's Independent Regiment fought bravely, while fighting, they crossed the Wusheling Ridge and entered the county town of Gulang, and fought fiercely with the enemy, with heavy casualties. At the end of October of the 36th year, we entered the county town of Wuwei and fought against the enemy again, and the Red Army suffered heavy casualties and was captured by the enemy. At the end of December, we continued to advance westward through Yongchang, Zhangye, Shandan and other places, and experienced many tragic battles. My second brother, Lin Huanqing, who was also the deputy commander of the 24th Division, and most of the officers and soldiers died in Beiwan in Shandan County. Soon, we followed the main force of the Western Route Army to occupy Gaotai County, and later because we were outnumbered, almost all the troops were wiped out.

In 1937, we were besieged by the superior forces of the Ma Army in the vicinity of Nijiaying and Liyuankou, and we were forced to disperse our operations after falling into a difficult situation. After these battles, only 14 of the more than 100 members of our Women's Independent Regiment remained. Our detachment moved from Guacheng to Huangcheng, and more than 150 people were all captured by the Ma army. I suffered a gunshot wound to my left leg, and I was slashed and picked on my head and stomach by a saber. At the end of September, the enemy secretly transported us by car to Zhangye and buried us alive outside the north gate that night. I was the last to be pushed into the pit, and the soil on my body was not very thick. I crept quietly for a while, and when the enemy was gone, I crawled out of the pit and escaped death. Soon I was caught by the enemy again. I escaped again while they weren't looking. I walked all the way to Zhangye's Shawo by asking for food, and met a Linxia Hui man who was trading there, so I married him, and with him he converted to your sect. In August 39, Lao Han and I returned to his hometown Jinggou. After liberation, the organization learned about my situation and arranged for me to be the director of the women's federation of the commune. ”

After listening to Lin Guizhen's legendary story, the people of the Niu family cast their eyes of admiration and reverence at her. Everyone didn't expect that this ordinary-looking little woman would be so strong and brave.

Lin Guizhen said to Althea: "Ga Linzi's aunt is idle at home now. I'll go and tell her about it, and leave your Gava in her care. You give her 10 pounds of food every month as compensation. ”

Althea glanced at her mother-in-law and her husband and did not speak.

Lin Guizhen knew that Althea had a word of suffering, so she asked Han Sophie, "Sister, can you give me a word?" ”

Han Sophie saw that she couldn't openly oppose it, so she had to say, "Don't say much." Gava's affairs are Gava's own decisions. ”

Lin Guizhen asked again: "What kind of word does Athea's man also give?" ”

Niu Yushan was not easy to object, and said in a low voice: "I won't stop it." ”

Lin Guizhen said happily: "That's good." Althea, you'll report to the squad headquarters tomorrow. ”

The next morning, Althea handed over Haiche to Galinzi's grandmother, carried a hoe, came to the team headquarters in the worship temple, reported to the team leader He Xitang, and then went to work in the field with the members.

When the sun rose in the middle of the head, He Xitang loudly told everyone to call it a day and go home, and come back to work after lunch.

When Althea returned home, several of the Niu family's sons had also returned from work. They sat with Han Sophie on the clay kang and chatted. The daughters-in-law whipped the dust off their clothes and hurried to the kitchen to cook.

Althea walked out of the house, came into contact with the cadres of the government, heard the words of the new society, saw new things that had never been heard of before, learned a lot of national and world events, and learned to sing flowers with local women.

Hua'er, also known as youth, was born in Hezhou, Gansu, popular in Gansu, Qinghai, Ning, Xin and other provinces and regions, is a Han, Hui, Tibetan, Dongxiang, Baoan, Sala, Tu, Yugu, Mongolian and other ethnic groups jointly created and enjoyed the folk songs sung in Chinese. Among them, the flowers of the Hui and Salar ethnic groups are particularly famous. Because the lyrics of the flowers compare the young woman to the flowers, this form of singing is called the flowers.

Flowers reflect life, love, current affairs, labor and other contents, improvised with the artistic techniques of comparison, xing, and endowment, the music is high-pitched, long, hearty, the lyrics are voluminous, the literary and artistic value is very high, and it is known as the soul of the northwest.

Don't look at Asya's usual soft and small voice, but when she is full of flowers, her tone is high and beautiful:

"The thunder rang three times, and the heavens and the earth moved,

A thousand miles away,

came the army of liberation;

drove away the horse bandits and saved the people,

The one who suffers,

It's like a flat stone turned over. ”

The aftermath of Althea's singing still echoed in the valley, and the production team members of Benkang on the opposite hillside had already sung to the flowers:

"The flax flowers bloom and hit the blue umbrella,

Saifei (yah) emerald,

The peony of Hezhou is not handsome;

The leaders of the revolutionary party live for a day,

The heart spreads,

Drink a bowl of cold water. ”

He Xitang happily said to Althea: "Althea, Althea is your name at home. In the future, you will have to call the official name outside. You will be Gong Lamei, a member of the production team from now on. You are the flower queen of our Gayin. ”

The rest of the team shouted in unison, "Yes." Queen of Flowers! ”

In addition to participating in the collective work of the production team during the day, Gong Lamei and her concubines also regularly participated in literacy classes at night to learn cultural knowledge and current affairs and politics, which inevitably affected the housework.

As housewives and old-fashioned mother-in-law Han Sophie and eldest sister Zai Naibai, they don't understand their behavior. The mother and daughter often complained about their daughter-in-law in front of the son of the Niu family.

The old ideas such as the machismo of the Niu brothers have not been completely eradicated, and they are very angry because they often can't eat on time or their daughter-in-law comes home late for a meeting. After they returned home, they deliberately made trouble for their daughter-in-law and took the opportunity to beat their daughter-in-law to make them angry.

Therefore, whenever Sister Zai Nai Bai returned to her mother's house, the cries of women and children could be heard in the house of the Niu brothers.

The daughters-in-law dared not speak out against Han Sophie's mother and daughter.

In 1956, Han Sophie bought a daughter-in-law for her youngest son Yinshan, who had reached the age of 22.

When she gave her new daughter-in-law a lecture in front of her old daughter-in-law, Han Sofei couldn't help but proudly recount her and her husband's affluent life in Xining: "At that time, the Nau people lived in a large courtyard with dozens of houses, eating white noodles, carp and lamb meat every day, and sitting in a sedan chair when they went out. Your Ada and the old chairman have a friendship, and they are very diligent in their dealings with each other......"

Speaking of this, Han Sophie suddenly realized something, and no longer continued, but stared vigilantly at the faces of each daughter-in-law with pale yellow eyes, guessing which of them might be a spy of the public family.

The new daughter-in-law had just entered the door, but the old daughter-in-law had fled.

Niu Wanshan's daughter-in-law Mai Liha has an upright personality and a sharp mouth and a quick mouth, she really can't stand Han Sophie's strict discipline, and because she has never given birth to a child, she found an excuse to return to her parents' house and never come back.

Niu Wanshan became a bachelor.

In March 1956, Linxia County started the construction of the province's first medium-sized artesian irrigation project on the water plateau - the Beiyuan Canal, planning to divert the water of the Daxia River to the vast Beiyuan to irrigate the 10,000 acres of farmland there.

The north plateau is a large piece of flat land on the top of the loess mountain in the north of Linxia City, 36 kilometers long from north to south, 10 kilometers wide from east to west, the terrain is flat, the soil is fertile, but there is drought and little rain, and it is very difficult for people and animals to drink water.

The county dispatched young and middle-aged laborers from various communes to participate in the battle for the construction of water conservancy.

Some of Niu Wanshan and some of the young men from Gayindai were transferred to repair the aqueduct. They started to build the canal in the village of Maji Town, where the Bactria River flows. This trunk canal passes through 5 townships including Hanji, Xinji and Hongtai, crosses 51 ditches and streams, passes through 9 mountains, and passes through 8 tunnels, with a total length of about 284 kilometers. The project was huge and complex, and it was the second large-scale project in Gansu Province after the Liujiaxia Reservoir at that time.

Niu Wanshan is young and strong, works hard, and ranks first in the amount of earthwork completed every day, and was appointed by the county as the captain of the Jinggou Youth Commando, and he was rewarded with a bicycle.

In those days when transportation was backward and travel was all on foot and mules and horses, bicycles were a very rare thing.

Niu Wanshan looked at the shiny bicycle, and was really reluctant to ride, so he climbed high and pushed it back to Gayindai.

The bicycle is indeed fresh and stylish, but it is really useless in the high mountains and deep ravines, not the people who ride it, but the people who ride it. It didn't take long for Niu Wanshan to raise money for the treatment of his eldest brother Niu Yushan, so Niu Wanshan pushed it to Linxia City and sold it to others.

In the spring of 1957, the North Plateau Trunk Canal was officially opened to water.

The people of Jinggou looked at the water that passed in front of their eyes but could not be used to drink and water the ground, and they were really angry in their hearts, and they complained: "The county magistrate is from Beiyuan. He only cares about his hometown! ”

One day at the end of summer of this year, Gong Lamei suffered a miscarriage of her second child due to malnutrition.

Wealth is not double, and disaster is not a single line.

In the autumn of this year, just after harvesting the potatoes and buds in the field, Niu Yushan began to feel very uncomfortable. Gradually, he couldn't eat, he lost weight day by day, his whole body was weak, his chest continued to hurt, and he searched for nearby Chinese medicine and Western medicine treatment, but there was no effect, and finally he couldn't even drink a sip of water, and he kept lying on the earthen kang, and he was impermanent (passed away) before the end of the year.

Gong Lamei cried sadly, but she couldn't cry her husband's life anymore. At a young age, she could only rely on her daughter Heicher for her life, cheer up, grit her teeth and continue to live.