Siheyuan: I am protecting Shazhu, who dares to object?

In the passionate 1960s, every inch of land in Cui Gu Village carried the villagers' yearning for a better life.

In the past few days, the atmosphere in the village has been a little strange, and a vague sense of uneasiness has quietly spread among the villagers.

Wang Dashan came back from a meeting at the brigade headquarters with a frown on his face and his steps seemed particularly heavy.

Xiulan was hanging out the freshly washed clothes in the yard. When she saw her husband's face, her heart tightened and she hurried forward to meet him.

"Dashan, what's wrong? Looking at your face, what happened?"

Xiulan asked with concern.

Wang Dashan sighed, sat down on the stone bench in the yard, took out his pipe from his pocket, lit a pot of dry tobacco, took a deep puff, and said slowly: "The policy from above has changed again. I heard that the county is going to make some big plans. I'm afraid there will be major adjustments to the development direction of our village."

Xiulan sat down next to him and patted his shoulder gently: "Don't worry too much, we'll slowly figure it out. What exactly is the plan? Please tell me more clearly."

Wang Dashan frowned, took the pipe out of his mouth, and knocked off the ash: "It is said that our village will be merged with several surrounding villages to form a large production cooperative to concentrate on the development of agriculture. In the future, the land will be allocated in a unified manner, and the production plan will also be arranged by the higher-ups."

Xiulan was surprised when she heard this: "What about the side businesses we started before? And the new technologies brought by the educated youth, won't they be wasted?"

Wang Dashan shook his head helplessly: "I am also worried about this. I think this merger is definitely a good thing, it can integrate resources, but our village has finally started a sideline business that is starting to take off, it's a pity to give it up like this."

As the two were talking, Li Zhiqing and Zhao Zhiqing hurried into the yard.

Li Zhiqing was anxious and asked, "Secretary Wang, I heard that the village is going to merge and form a large cooperative. Is that true? Then what should we do with the new technologies we have learned?"

Wang Dashan stood up and patted Li Zhiqing on the shoulder: "Xiao Li, this is true. Don't worry, I won't let your efforts go to waste. I'm discussing this with Xiulan to see if we can find a solution that satisfies both parties."

Zhao Zhiqing also said, "Secretary Wang, our new technology has just been promoted. If we suddenly change the production method, the villagers will definitely not be able to adapt, and the grain production may be affected."

Wang Dashan nodded: "I know, I understand your concerns. I will go to the county again in the next two days to report the situation of our village to the leaders and strive to retain some of our own development characteristics."

As he was speaking, the village radio suddenly sounded: "Attention all villagers, a meeting will be held in the village square tomorrow morning to convey the important instructions from the superiors on the merger of cooperatives. All villagers must attend on time!"

Wang Dashan listened to the broadcast and said to Li Zhiqing and Zhao Zhiqing, "It seems that this matter is set in stone. Let's go and prepare first and listen to what the leaders say at the meeting tomorrow."

Early the next morning, a dense crowd gathered in the village square.

The villagers were whispering and talking to each other, with confusion and worry on their faces.

Wang Dashan stood in front of the crowd, looking at the folks below the stage, feeling mixed emotions.

After a while, the leaders sent by the county arrived and the meeting officially began.

The leader stood on the makeshift podium, cleared his throat, and said loudly: "Fellow villagers, I have called you here today to announce an important decision. In order to respond to the country's call and concentrate our efforts on developing agriculture, the higher-ups have decided to merge our villages into a large-scale production cooperative. In the future, we must unify land planning, unify production arrangements, and work together to develop agriculture..." Before the leader had finished his words, the audience exploded.

"What about our own land?"

a villager asked loudly.

"Can we still do our side business?"

Another villager asked anxiously.

The leader quickly explained: "Fellow villagers, don't worry. The purpose of merging cooperatives is to make everyone live a better life. Although the land has been allocated uniformly, everyone still works on their own land, and with improved production efficiency, income will definitely increase. As for sideline businesses, in principle, agricultural production should be the main focus, but some sideline businesses that do not affect agricultural production can also be appropriately retained."

Wang Dashan stepped forward and said, "Leader, with the help of the educated youth, our village has introduced some new planting techniques, and the results are quite good. In addition, our village's side businesses such as handicraft production, wine making, and tofu making are also developing quite well. Can we continue to do so without delaying agricultural production?"

The leader thought for a moment and said, "Secretary Wang, I also know something about your village's situation. How about this? You should follow the unified plan of the cooperative first. As for those side businesses and new technologies, you can make a detailed report and submit it to the cooperative management committee for study. As long as it does not affect the overall situation, we will consider supporting it."

After the conference, Wang Dashan still felt heavy in his heart.

He knew that there was still a long way to go if he wanted to maintain the village's distinctive development under the new policies.

After returning home, Wang Dashan locked himself in the room and began to draft the report seriously.

Xiulan looked into the house from time to time from outside, her heart full of worry.

In the evening, Wang Dashan finally came out of the house with several pieces of paper covered with words in his hands.

Xiulan went to meet him and saw her husband's tired face. She said distressedly, "Dashan, eat first. You look tired."

Wang Dashan handed the report to Xiulan: "Xiulan, please help me check if there are any problems. This report is related to the future of our village, so we can't be careless at all."

Xiulan took the report and read it carefully.

The two of them discussed the contents of the report while eating, and were busy until late at night.

The next day, Wang Dashan went to the county again with the report.

He knew that this struggle was crucial for Cui Gu Village.

In that era of change, the fate of Cuigu Village, like every word in this report, was full of uncertainty.

But Wang Dashan firmly believes that as long as he and the villagers work together, they will be able to find a development path for Cuigu Village in this ever-changing situation.