Zhenghua - I rely on my own hands (ii)

Time reached 1965, and the government implemented a policy to mobilize rural children of school age to attend school. The tuition fee for one semester was only 2 yuan. That year, ZhengHua was 13 years old. He was at home pounding rice (using a heavy stone hammer to smash rice grains until the husk was removed, turning it into rice) when he suddenly heard someone shouting outside, "Children who want to go to school can come and register with me!"

Hearing this from inside the house, ZhengHua threw down the iron hammer and dashed outside like the wind, telling the person that he wanted to register and go to school. His mother agreed on the condition that he must complete daily tasks before going to school. The tasks were to collect two baskets of pig, chicken, goose, and duck droppings every day, which could be exchanged with the team leader for "work points" (a system similar to piece-rate pay). ZhengHua agreed and, no matter how far he had to walk, he made sure to complete his mother’s tasks every day.

Academically, Zheng Hua only attended a few days of first-grade classes before mastering nearly all the content for the year. The teacher immediately promoted him to second grade, and shortly after, he was promoted to fourth grade. Not long after that, he was promoted to sixth grade. At that time, elementary school followed a six-year system known as "high elementary school." Zheng Hua absorbed the knowledge from books with astonishing speed and a hunger for learning. Since he had no money to buy pens, ink, or notebooks, he earned them by doing assignments for slower classmates in exchange for school supplies.

He completed all six grades of elementary school in just two and a half years and then advanced to middle school. Since his family couldn’t afford the tuition, Zheng Hua attended school on credit. To pay off his 5-yuan debt, he worked at the school’s 'cafeteria', planting vegetables and moving coal. He also did homework for classmates in exchange for free pens, ink, and paper. Skipping the first year of middle school, ZhengHua started from the second year, and he graduated successfully.

After finishing middle school, he wanted to continue to high school. However, his mother, with tears in her eyes, told him that his younger brother also needed to go to school, and there simply wasn’t enough money to support them both. Seeing his mother cry, ZhengHua couldn’t bear it and reluctantly agreed.

By the time Zheng Hua was 17, his mother, believing their family was too poor, began planning to marry him off as a "live-in son-in-law" (a man who marries into a wealthier family and lives with his wife's family) to a rich family with an only daughter. This would save the family the large expense of a bride price. ZhengHua firmly refused. Since the great famine of 1960, when he spilled the porridge and cried uncontrollably, he had never shed a tear -- no matter how hard life got or how much he suffered. But this time, he surprised everyone. He threw himself on the broken bed, crying hysterically, pounding the mattress, and yelling, "I won’t go! Poor or not, I’m not afraid of being poor! Why is it only me who has to be sent to live in someone else's house as a son-in-law?! I won’t go! I won’t go!" Seeing this, his mother realized that once ZhengHua made up his mind, it would be nearly impossible to change it. So, she gave up on the plan.

ZhengHua was holding the dog - 小短腿

In 1970, 18-year-old ZhengHua enlisted in the army as a communications soldier. His intelligence and competence quickly caught the attention of his superiors. He was promptly promoted to deputy squad leader of the communications team and, the following year, he was promoted to squad leader. At this pace, if the political situation had remained stable, ZhengHua might have embarked on a brilliant political career.

However, fate had other plans. The Cultural Revolution soon swept through the military. The ongoing campaigns to combat rightist deviation and criticize leftist extremism caused turmoil within the ranks. The military became less pure in its purpose, internal factional struggles intensified, and the training and promotion of new talent were no longer a priority for the leadership. Even the officers in the military started to live idly without ambition. As a result, ZhengHua's promotion was put on hold. In his fourth year of service, following military policy, ZhengHua was honorably discharged, ending his four-year military career.

After returning to the countryside, ZhengHua joined the local cultural propaganda troupe. The troupe's mission was to perform in villages and towns, promoting the policies of the Socialist Party. While in the troupe, ZhengHua met a beautiful girl who was also part of the troupe. The two developed feelings for each other, but people in those days were not as open as they are now. Neither dared to confess their love, so they resorted to exchanging subtle glances. Zheng Hua asked his mother to send a matchmaker to the girl's family to propose marriage. However, the girl's parents rejected the proposal, considering ZhengHua’s family too poor. Before long, the girl caught the attention of a wealthier family, who sent a bride price, and she was married off.

On the day of her wedding, ZhengHua hid in a wheat field along the road that the bride would pass. He watched helplessly as his beloved followed the bridal procession, growing further and further away until she became someone else’s bride. Silently, he turned around, shoulders slumped, and returned home. For several days, he remained silent, speaking to no one. Even to this day, his nearly 80-year-old sister-in-law still recalls this moment and mentions it with laughter, bringing joy to those who hear it.

Not long after, ZhengHua met a beautiful woman named Long Ying. Her parents did not mind that ZhengHua's family was poor, and the two got married. Before long, they had their first child. Zheng Hua, being knowledgeable and educated, excelled in both farming and understanding and implementing government policies issued by village and town authorities. Because of his abilities, he was assigned by higher-level village and town leaders to serve as a guide in a less developed township, helping to accelerate the village's productivity.

It was at this time that a golden opportunity arose! From 1966 to 1977, China had suspended the national college entrance examination (Gaokao), causing a talent gap in higher education. The government recognized that this four-year gap in talent selection posed a threat to the country's development. With no students to recruit for universities, the government introduced the "Worker-Peasant-Soldier University Recommendation System" to fill the void.

By 1974, the wave of university enrollment reached ZhengHua's village. The town leader in charge of recommendations immediately nominated ZhengHua. He passed all the fundamental knowledge tests and was eligible to go to university -- he only needed the approval of the production team leader in his village. Knowing that university had always been a dream for him, ZhengHua was so excited that he couldn't sleep for several nights. It was almost unbelievable to him that he could finally attend the university he had long dreamed of. His future seemed to shine brightly before him. Long Ying packed his luggage for him, and he prepared to leave at any moment.

But fate dealt him another cruel blow. The production team leader refused to release him, claiming that talents like ZhengHua were too scarce in the production team. The leader gave various excuses, stating that ZhengHua's older brother was sickly and was already training to be a barefoot doctor, his younger brother was still in school, and his sister-in-law and wife each had a one-year-old child to care for. Their elderly mother was also no longer able to work. Altogether, ZhengHua was the only real source of labor in the family. If he went to university, the production team would, in essence, have to support his entire family. Therefore, the production team leader refused to let him leave.

Although the production team leader seemed like a small figure, at the time, such leaders wielded enormous power, and they could effectively decide the fates of villagers.

Faced with no other choice, ZhengHua put down the luggage he had already packed, bowed his head in submission to the whims of fate, and buried his dream of attending university deep in his heart.

If the previous part of ZhengHua's life was difficult, then the path he had to walk at this point was even harder. At this time, ZhengHua no longer held any illusions about escaping the life of a farmer. He began to fully submit to the harsh reality of a farmer's fate -- facing the yellow earth with his back to the sky.

Time rolled forward, and on January 1, 1982, the central government issued its No. 1 Document, bringing an end to collective agricultural production nationwide. A new system called the Household Responsibility System was implemented, where land was distributed to each household based on family size. Each family would now have its own farmland. This reform swept through China's weathered rural landscape like a spring breeze, filling it with new life!

ZhengHua made a secret resolution in his heart -- he would rely on his own two hands to create a better future on this barren land. From dawn to dusk, he worked tirelessly, fertilizing the fields. He lived frugally and sold the grain he harvested for money. He toiled under the scorching sun, and the snow-white cotton he picked was sold for cash. He cultivated the golden-black sesame with great care and precision, selling it for more money. The pigs, chickens, ducks, and geese he raised at home were all sold for profit. It was all hard work, but it was also happiness.

Time flies like an arrow, and the days and months pass swiftly. When ZhengHua talks about his past hardships, he sometimes takes out an old photo from his time in the army. He gazes at the face of his younger self, once so youthful, and then looks at the wage card in his drawer. His heart fills with both emotion and pride.

It’s time to sweep the road. "I'm heading out!" ZhengHua calls out to Long Ying in the house. The old men who play Mahjong with him have already called to arrange their meeting. The tricycle engine is already running, and the family’s little black dog is ready, eagerly poised behind the tricycle, preparing to dash onto the road.

On the golden fields, an old man rides an electric tricycle, followed by a joyful little dog running alongside him.

This is the song of life of our protagonist, ZhengHua!

ZhengHua plays with his dog 'colleague' - 花花