Teacher Zhang Cuizhi has an IOU that has been kept for forty years. Although it only has 200 yuan, for Zhang Cuizhi, this IOU has changed her destiny. Over the years, Zhang Cuizhi has been looking for Wang Dongwei, an educated youth who lent her family money. She wanted to thank Wang Dongwei in person. However, to this day, Zhang Cuizhi has no news about Wang Dongwei.
In August 1974, thirty young men and women came to the Wanggou Brigade of Nanli Commune in Dongyuan County, where Zhang Cuizhi was located. They were all full of energy, clean clothes, and wearing a big red flower on their chests. Captain Wang Mancang informed the members to gather at the entrance of the village, saying that there were educated youths from the city who wanted to join the team to live for a period of time.
As soon as the educated youth got off the bus, fellow villagers enthusiastically surrounded them and helped the educated youth carry their luggage. Seeing the enthusiasm of the fellow villagers, the educated youth felt a little overwhelmed. The educated youth were surrounded by fellow villagers and arrived at the educated youth point. The educated youth point is a five-room adobe house with a wooden structure. It was just built, and the mud on the walls has not yet completely dried.
Each room has a brand new table and bench, as well as new doors and windows, all made by the carpenters in the team. Each room can accommodate just six people. Although it is a bit crowded, such conditions are quite good for educated youths. The houses of the six female educated youths are not together with the male educated youths, but in a separate small yard. The yard is not small, and a wall is built around it with scrap wooden boards left over from building houses.
Female educated youths are treated better than male educated youths. This makes many male educated youths feel very unbalanced. Because they have just arrived and are not familiar with the place, they are embarrassed to say anything. Next to the educated youth point is the commune canteen. Educated youths usually eat in the canteen, and there are dedicated commune members responsible for cooking for the educated youths.
Wang Dongwei is the tallest among the educated youth and is good at sociability. He has become close to the fellow villagers not long after he arrived. The fellow villagers all think that Wang Dongwei is a good young man. The captain decided to make Wang Dongwei the captain of the educated youth team, who is usually responsible for the daily life and work of the educated youth. The other educated youths admire Wang Dongwei, and everyone unanimously agrees that Wang Dongwei will be the captain.
In addition to being the captain of the educated youth team, Wang Dongwei also usually helped the team with some publicity work. When the educated youth first arrived, the team leader was not in a hurry to arrange farm work for the educated youth. Instead, he specially arranged for a commune member to teach the educated youth how to use farm tools and some agricultural knowledge. After the educated youth studied for a month, they went to work in the fields with the fellow villagers.
The life of queue-jumping is very boring. The usual work of educated youth is weeding, fertilizing, clearing land, building bridges and building roads. There are few recreational activities. In their free time, a few people get together to play cards and chat, and their life goes on like this day by day.
During the Spring Festival in the first year after joining the queue, the team slaughtered the New Year pig, and the educated youth got a hind leg. On New Year's Eve , the educated youth were busy from morning to evening, posting Spring Festival couplets and cleaning the house. On the New Year's Eve, the educated youth made dumplings, steamed steamed buns and steamed buns, and fried pancakes. On New Year's Eve, they made braised pork and pork stewed vermicelli. The captain also asked the educated youth to bring a pot of home-brewed shochu to the educated youth. Only wine and meat can have the flavor of the New Year.
In fact, the most lively part of the New Year is the setting off of firecrackers and fireworks. Firecrackers and fireworks are all bought by the educated youth themselves. After the New Year's Eve dinner, everyone sang songs, and the cheerful laughter and the sound of firecrackers intertwined and could not be dispersed for a long time.
From the first day of the Lunar New Year to the fifteenth day of the first lunar month, the team leader arranged for the educated youth to live in turns in the homes of fellow villagers. Wang Dongwei was arranged to live in the home of fellow villager Zhang Weiming. Zhang Weiming had three daughters. The eldest daughter and the second daughter were both married. The third daughter, Zhang Cuizhi, was only ten years old and was still young. When Wang Dongwei went to Zhang Weiming's home, he brought a box of tea and a box of snacks to Zhang Weiming.
Zhang Weiming's family conditions are not good. Neither his eldest daughter nor his second daughter have gone to school. His third daughter, Zhang Cuizhi, has been smart and studious since she was a child. Zhang Weiming pinned all his hopes on his third daughter. Wang Dongwei and Zhang Weiming During these few days of living at home, I was not idle. I helped Zhang Cuizhi review her homework every day and taught Zhang Cuizhi how to read and write. Wang Dongwei told Zhang Cuizhi that if she wanted to change her destiny, she must study hard. Only by getting admitted to college would she be successful in the future. Zhang Cuizhi always kept Wang Dongwei's words in her heart.
Wang Dongwei also gave Zhang Cuizhi a pen to encourage Zhang Cuizhi to study hard. In 1976, Zhang Weiming suffered a sudden cerebral hemorrhage and was admitted to the hospital. After Wang Dongwei found out, he went to the hospital to visit Zhang Weiming Wang Dongwei used the only two hundred yuan he had to advance Zhang Weiming's medical expenses. Wang Dongwei also called on other educated youths to donate money to Zhang Weiming. Fortunately, Zhang Weiming was sent to the hospital in time, and the operation was successful and saved his life.
Zhang Cuizhi was very grateful to Wang Dongwei and insisted on writing an IOU to Wang Dongwei. In the end, Wang Dongwei had no choice but to write the IOU according to Zhang Cuizhi's wishes. Wang Dongwei asked Zhang Cuizhi to keep the IOU until Zhang Cuizhi was admitted to university and would pay him back when he was successful.
In 1977, Wang Dongwei was admitted to Changsha Railway College and returned to the city. Before leaving, Wang Dongwei went to visit Zhang Weiming. Knowing that Wang Dongwei was leaving, Zhang Cuizhi felt very sad. In Zhang Cuizhi's heart, Wang Dongwei had long been regarded as a relative. After Wang Dongwei graduated from college, he was assigned to work in the Railway Bureau. In 1983, Wang Dongwei married his colleague Li Chunlan.
In 1980, Zhang Cuizhi was admitted to the County No. 1 Middle School with excellent results. Zhang Cuizhi has never forgotten what Wang Dongwei said to her. Zhang Cuizhi has always worked hard in her studies. She believed that studying can change her destiny. In 1983, Zhang Cuizhi was admitted to Peking University with the best results in the county. The moment she received the admission notice, Zhang Cuizhi was so excited that she cried.
Zhang Cuizhi was able to get into college, half of it was due to Wang Dongwei. Zhang Cuizhi has never forgotten her benefactor Wang Dongwei. Because information was not developed at that time, Zhang Cuizhi has been asking people to inquire about Wang Dongwei, but there has been no news. Zhang Cuizhi has kept the two hundred yuan IOU written by Zhang Wang Dongwei to Zhang Cuizhi to this day, so that she could thank Wang Dongwei in person.
Forty years have passed in the blink of an eye. If Wang Dongwei was still alive, he would have been over 70 years old. Now Zhang Cuizhi is old and her children have started a family. However, Zhang Cuizhi still misses her benefactor Wang Dongwei. Zhang Cuizhi’s biggest wish is to find her benefactor Wang Dongwei in her lifetime and thank him in person.
