Author: Yao Qilong
3. Rescue people on the roadside and join the revolution
When my mother was three years old, east of the Han River and in the hilly area southwest of Dahong Mountain, there was a long drought without rain from winter to the next summer, and the weirs and ponds dried up. . There was a bad harvest in the fields and there was famine in every household. There is a small river next to Yangjiagang called Maji River. There are a lot of fish and shrimps in the river. The villagers usually like to go down to the river to catch fish and touch the shrimps to get some meat.
Grandpa was very handy. He cut a bunch of mangosteens on the mountain in front of Yangjiagang, which were about the same thickness as eating chopsticks. He cut them into bamboo sticks one foot and eight inches long, and then cut an old thorn vine and put it on the fire. Burn it, take off the skin, bend it into a circle, and tie the junction with kudzu vines. Then weave the bamboo sticks around the rattan circle and tighten them to make a round fish cover.
At noon that day, grandpa went to Maji River with a fish mask in his hand and a fish basket slung over his shoulder. He went down into the river. The water was no more than a foot deep. He walked from downstream to upstream. The water was clear and he could see clearly. Fish usually hide in aquatic plants. As long as there are aquatic plants, they will cover them with fish covers. Soon, grandpa caught four or five kilograms of fish. There was no electricity at that time, let alone a refrigerator. If you catch it and eat it now, it will be too much waste.
On the way home, my grandpa passed by a sandy ravine. There was basil grass beside the ravine, and he saw a pair of feet exposed in the distance. Grandpa took a closer look and saw a thin, middle-aged man lying in the grass. There was a bag next to him, which contained tattered quilts and tattered clothes. He looked like a beggar. Grandpa touched the beggar's nostrils with his hand. He was still breathing. Then he touched the beggar's wrist. His pulse was weak and he was in a coma.
Grandpa thought about it and realized that Master said that saving one life is better than building a seven-story pagoda. He put down the fish mask and carried the beggar home for treatment. Only when he got home did he find that the beggar had a gunshot wound in his stomach. Fortunately, the bullet only scratched his belly. The wound was six or seven inches long. He bled excessively. Coupled with hunger and exhaustion, he fell into coma. Grandpa's body was stained with blood. He didn't bother to change it. He first took out his master's ancestral golden sore medicine and helped the beggar apply medicine and bandage the wound on his stomach.
After taking care of the injured, grandpa was busy planing fish. He cleaned up the largest carp, which weighed more than two kilograms, cut it into several pieces, put it into the pot, and stewed half a pot of fish soup. About half an hour later, the injured man woke up. Grandpa filled a large bowl of fish soup and fed him to drink slowly. After drinking, the man calmed down. He said thank you to my benefactor for saving me! You wanted to stand up and salute, but grandpa stopped you. You are injured, so lie down and don't move. Our place is called Yangjiagang, and the people living here are poor.
The injured person added feebly, "My surname is Jiao, from Henan. There was a flood in my hometown and I fled here. Can my benefactor see my luggage bag?" Grandpa lifted the bag from under the bed to the bed. After seven or eight days, Lao Jiao's injuries were basically healed. He took out a shell gun from the tattered quilt in the bag, wiped it clean and inserted it into his waist. Before leaving, he told his grandfather that he was a Communist and an investigator of the Jianghan Military Region. On the day he met his grandfather, he was chased by the landlord militia and was shot and injured and fell into a coma. Fortunately, he was treated by his grandfather and recovered.
From then on, my grandfather became an underground traffic officer for the Jianghan Military Region, responsible for collecting the number, firearms and ammunition, and distribution of landlords, Kuomintang army stragglers, militia and other armed forces in the area around Jinlong Mountain. Grandpa handed the collected intelligence to Lao Jiao. Later, the Independent Brigade of the Jianghan Military Region passed by and liberated Benggang, Liushuigou, Zhangji, Changshou, Fengle and other places around Jinlong Mountain.
Yangjiagang, where my grandfather lived, was placed under the jurisdiction of the Hongshan County People's Government, and the Benggang District Committee and District People's Government were established. Ge Han served as district committee secretary for three times, and Lao Jiao served as district chief. Lao Jiao's real name was Jiao Juemin. After the establishment of the Benggang District Government, it immediately launched the work of clearing out bandits, fighting against hegemony, and carrying out land reform. Because my grandfather was good at boxing and kicking, and his marksmanship was accurate, he made many meritorious deeds in the Qing bandits’ struggle against hegemony, and was promoted to deputy captain of the district team. In view of my grandfather's work achievements and actual performance, District Mayor Jiao personally acted as his introduction to the Party. Before the Mid-Autumn Festival that year, my grandfather gloriously joined the Communist Party of China.
About the author
Yao Qilong lives in Maji Village, Liushui Town, Yicheng City, Hubei Province, and is a farmer. Member of the Communist Party of China, college degree, served as a village official for thirty-one years. He loves literature, and his poems, essays, short stories and documentary works have been published in newspapers, magazines, microblogs and other media. He is currently a member of the Xiangyang Folk Writers Association.
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