stjorthotic Chapter 1 Rebirth is Not a Good Thing
Chapter 1 Rebirth is Not a Good Thing
Inner Mongolia, December 1980.
Ignoring the stinging pain on his face, Li Xiangyang braved the cold wind and stepped into the nearly half-meter-deep snow.
They made their way home with great difficulty.
Temperatures below minus thirty degrees Celsius can freeze a person to the bone in no time. Howling winds, carrying snowflakes, shroud the outdoors in darkness.
It resembled an apocalyptic scene.
at first,
People thought it was just a normal snowfall.
Only Li Xiangyang knew,
This heavy snow will, over the next month, unleash its fury like a lion breaking free from its cage.
It eventually turned into a once-in-a-century snow disaster.
How did I know? Because he was reborn!
However, in his previous life, he was abandoned by everyone because of his laziness and gambling addiction, and he did not live a good life.
He lived a lonely and destitute life, barely surviving until the age of 70, when he died from straining too much while defecating.
He died of a cerebral hemorrhage.
did not expect,
When I woke up, I was reborn here.
but,
The most important thing right now is to get home and stop my father from transferring the ranch to my second uncle.
Then we need to find ways to earn money to buy supplies to combat the snow disaster and get through this major snowstorm.
Okay,
The Inner Mongolian grasslands are rich in wild flora and fauna, such as wild boar, gazelle, red deer, crucian carp, loach, and Cistanche deserticola, which is known as "desert ginseng".
As long as Li Xiangyang is a little more flexible and hardworking
Raising the money to purchase snow disaster relief supplies within a month shouldn't be a big problem.
This year is the first year of the unified purchase and sales system and the household contract responsibility system pilot program in Inner Mongolia. At the beginning of the year, my family contracted 500 mu of pasture with the commune.
The contract is for 10 years, with a contract fee of 50 yuan per year, payable annually.
On average, it costs only 10 yuan per 100 mu.
It's important to know that in later generations, contracting such a hundred-acre pasture would cost at least 10,000 yuan a year.
At the beginning of the year, my family raised 30 sheep. At the end of the year, we sold 20 sheep to the supply and marketing cooperative at 6 cents per pound.
I earned 1800 yuan.
This amount, which wouldn't even be worth a bottle of Maotai in later generations, was a huge sum of money back then!
Just how "huge" is it?
Let me put it this way...
当时大米约0.15元/斤， 1800块钱可以直接购买12000斤大米，够一家6口人整整吃6年。
and,
Before the household responsibility system was implemented, people earned work points.
The northern border region is vast, so people won't starve to death, but it's not easy to earn some cash.
Even with six able-bodied men in their family working tirelessly in the production team from the beginning to the end of the year, they couldn't earn more than twenty yuan.
They even sometimes have to pay out of their own pocket.
Therefore,
Ever since their family won the contract for 500 mu of pasture in the commune, they have become the envy of the entire village.
Unfortunately,
The 1800 yuan hadn't even warmed my hands yet.
My father injured his back when he went to clear snow from the sheep pen half a month ago.
They've emptied their pockets again to pay for their father's medical treatment.
The remaining 10 sheep were all ewes and breeding sheep that we kept ourselves, and they were registered with the commune.
It cannot be sold.
First, the policy of unified purchase and sale prevents the sale of sheep. Pastoral areas are small, and the loss of a few sheep cannot be concealed. If the accounts are checked, the truth will be clear.
When,
Not only will the sheep and pasture contracting rights be taken back, but they will also be labeled as speculators and fined.
Secondly, if they sell the lambs, there will be no more lambs the following year, and the family's livelihood will be cut off.
There's really not a single one that can be moved.
"well…"
Li Xiangyang sighed and pushed open the courtyard gate.
Then they heard their father, Li Zhenshan, and second uncle, Li Zhenhai, talking inside the house.
"Second brother, could you talk to your sister-in-law and ask her to lend me 50 yuan first? I'll use that money to pay next year's ranch lease fee, and I'll pay you back when the lambs are ready for market in August next year."
Li Zhenshan leaned against the earthen wall, speaking weakly.
Li Zhenhai is a calculating man.
Only in, no out.
Li Zhenshan really wouldn't have wanted to ask him this if he hadn't been completely desperate.
really,
Upon hearing that he wanted to borrow money, Li Zhenhai fell silent.
He slowly pressed the lit tobacco into the copper pipe, then took a deep drag, letting wisps of white smoke escape from his nostrils.
Li Zhenshan felt extremely embarrassed by the indifferent attitude that seemed to have nothing to do with him.
After a moment's hesitation, Li Zhenshan swallowed hard and said again:
"I know 50 yuan isn't a small amount, but I'll give you two more... no, four fat sheep later, how about that?"
Hearing this, Li Zhenhai frowned and slowly spoke:
"Brother, it's not that I don't want to help you, it's just that 50 yuan is no small amount."
and,
Even if I give you money to pay next year's lease fee, what good will it do? You've injured your back and won't be able to get out of bed for at least four or five months. Xiangyang is lazy and good-for-nothing; he can't be of much help.
As he spoke, he turned to look at Li Xiangyang, who was lying on the ground silently, and said to Li Xiangdong:
"Such a large ranch can't be run by Xiang Dong alone. Your ranch will still lose money next year."
"Sigh...this...!"
Li Zhenshan sighed after hearing this.
A deep sense of helplessness washed over her face, and she closed her eyes in exhaustion.
This year,
Building greenhouses, constructing sheep pens, and purchasing lamb feed drained the family's savings.
They only managed to make some money by selling that batch of sheep at the end of the year.
Who knew that I would fall and get injured half a month ago, and the money I had just earned would be spent on medical treatment.
The commune will definitely come to collect the ranch's lease fee for next year before the new year.
If they can't come up with the money, the ranch will be taken back.
The family fortune is gone, the ranch is gone, all these years of hard work have been for nothing.
I feel so guilty towards my family!
"Second Uncle...don't worry, even if Xiangyang doesn't help, I can manage the ranch well on my own. I will definitely be able to pay you back the money I borrowed next year."
Li Xiangdong suddenly stood up and said.
However, he was immediately silenced by his second uncle, Li Zhenhai.
"Xiangdong, you're usually so honest, what are you spouting nonsense about! This ranch is so big, don't you know whether you can manage it all by yourself...?"
How will you pay me back next year?
Li Xiangdong was an honest man, and he had thought long and hard before saying those words. Now that Li Zhenhai had embarrassed him, he blushed and remained silent.
After a moment of silence,
Li Zhenhai then tapped his pipe against the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed) to shake out the ash from his pipe, and continued:
"Brother, head east, heed my advice."
These days, contracting a ranch to raise sheep may seem like a way to make money, but not everyone can do it!
You guys aren't cut out for ranching. You should just give up now and stick to farming a few acres of land.
As for me...
"I won't just stand by and watch my family suffer. So, you transfer the management rights of the ranch to me, and I'll give you an extra 20 yuan privately as compensation."
At first glance, Li Zhenhai's words all seemed to be for the good of Li Xiangyang's family, but in reality, they were all calculated.
The objective is very clear.
They wanted to take advantage of the situation and sublet Li Xiangyang's ranch at a low price.
However, Li Xiangdong was displeased upon hearing this:
"20 yuan...? Second Uncle, you...you, aren't you taking advantage of my misfortune?"
"This year, we spent 80 yuan just on building sheep pens and greenhouses. You think you can just take over the pasture from us for 20 yuan?"
What does it mean to take advantage of someone's misfortune...?
Xiangdong, what nonsense are you spouting to your second uncle? Are you taking your second uncle's good intentions for granted?
"You still dare to complain that 20 yuan is too little? I won't take over your ranch. Once the ranch is taken back by the commune, you won't have a single penny left."
"If you don't have it, you don't have it. Anyway, I don't agree!"
"They want to sublet our ranch for 20 yuan? I'd rather the commune take it back."
When Li Xiangdong's stubborn temper flared up, Li Zhenhai slammed his fist on the table, making a loud banging sound.
"What...? They'd rather the commune take back the ranch than give it to Uncle?"
Brother, listen to this… listen to this! What utter nonsense is Xiang Dong spouting!
Cough...cough...cough cough...
Li Zhenhai and Li Xiangdong argued so fiercely that Li Zhenshan coughed violently in anger.
"Alright...alright...stop arguing. Each of you should say one less thing. Let me think about it, really think about it..."
Seeing that the two of them had shut up, Li Zhenshan felt a little better.
He knew it in his heart.
The son, Li Xiangdong, was right. The younger brother's offer to take over the family ranch was just an attempt to take advantage of the situation.
But he also understood,
The youngest son, Li Xiangyang, is unreliable, and the eldest son, Li Xiangdong, alone cannot support such a large ranch.
If they really keep going, the ranch will most likely still lose money next year.
last life,
After careful consideration, the father reluctantly sublet the ranch to his second uncle.
The following year, due to snow disasters and policy changes, the price of mutton increased several times over.
All the herders in Inner Mongolia who persisted in raising sheep made a fortune.
My second uncle took advantage of this opportunity to gradually expand and strengthen his ranch, eventually becoming a major sheep farmer in the surrounding area.
Achieve upward social mobility.
Because they missed this opportunity, their family never had another chance to turn their lives around.
The father felt deeply guilty and never recovered. The brother was utterly disappointed in the family and eventually, at the instigation of his sister-in-law, they separated the family.
In a few years,
His wife was utterly disappointed in him because Li Xiangyang remained lazy and addicted to gambling even after separating from his brother and sister-in-law.
She left him forever, taking her daughter with her.
The root of this series of tragedies has not yet occurred, and it is not too late to change things.
With a creak.
The low wooden door was pushed open, and a cold wind rushed in, while the flickering lamplight cast indistinct shadows.
Then Li Xiangyang, covered in ice, walked in.
When they saw who it was, their expressions varied, but Li Zhenhai was the happiest.
In his eyes,
Li Xiangyang is a lazy, short-sighted, and greedy spendthrift.
"Oh, it's Xiangyang! You're back just in time. Help your second uncle persuade your stubborn brother."
So he repeated to Li Xiangyang the same hypocritical rhetoric he had just used to persuade his father and brother.
They make it sound like they're entitled to take advantage of others, as if it's their family's right to benefit from this.
After saying that, he deliberately stuffed two 10-yuan bills that he had prepared in advance into Li Xiangyang's hand.
"Xiangyang, persuade your father and brother that it's good for them to keep this money and have a prosperous New Year."
Upon receiving the money, Li Xiangyang's face did not show the joy that Li Zhenhai had expected; instead, it grew even colder.
last life.
Li Xiangyang respected Li Zhenhai as a relative and always maintained a degree of respect for him. Even after he later learned that Li Zhenhai was a relative who profited from others' misfortunes, he did not break off relations with him.
But not anymore.
What is a relative? A relative is someone who offers help when you are in your most difficult time.
Instead of taking advantage of your weakness to stab you in the back and make things worse for you.
P.S.: If you're a fan of Yanzu (a popular Chinese writer/another writer), remember to add this to your bookshelf!