Reborn in 1966

Chapter Twenty-Two: Resumption of Classes

After this incident, Grandma called on the children to help carry the wicker baskets home. When they got home, Grandma asked what had happened. Peitian said, "Xiaohui said he was a great swimmer, and the other children said he was bragging, so he went into the reservoir. Uncle Shengmin and the others happened to be fetching water to irrigate their vegetable garden, so they went into the reservoir and pulled him out."

Grandma said, "Oh, thank goodness you're all alright. Don't go playing in the reservoir again. What if you fall in and no one saves you? Today, Xiaohui was lucky to run into someone from the team watering the vegetables in the garden."

Several children nodded.

A child falling into the reservoir and nearly drowning was a serious matter. The village held a special meeting of village leaders to discuss it, and then the production team organized a meeting to study quotations and discuss the safety of children in their families.

Two days later, the village clerk came to the Shen family early in the morning to call Shen's father to a meeting at the village brigade headquarters.

After Shen's father left, his grandmother held Pei Yin and became somewhat restless.

Grandma said, "Oh dear, why did you call Shengsi over? Are you preparing for a denunciation meeting? Oh dear, Shengsi has only recovered for a few days. What if he runs into those Red Guards?"

After a morning of meetings, Shen's father returned home at noon when the production team finished work and went home for lunch.

Grandma asked, "Peihua's father, what do you want to do?"

Shen's father said, "Secretary Tian called me over because of the village children. There are so many children in the village, and they are like sheep being herded every day. The adults at home are busy, and if one of them is not looking after them, it is easy for them to be in danger. Today, Secretary Tian called my fourth uncle and my third grandfather over for a meeting to discuss what to do."

Grandma asked, "So what are you all thinking about how to do?"

Mr. Shen said, "Grandpa Tian's idea was to organize literacy classes in the village to keep the children together. One reason was for the children's safety, and the other was to let the children learn more words. No matter what, people need to learn knowledge."

Shen's mother said, "But now that schools are closed, won't it cause problems if the authorities don't say anything about schools reopening and just let the children go back to school like this?"

Shen's father said, "Secretary Tian also had this concern. Tian's third grandfather said that we would not let the children attend school, but instead send them to the dilapidated temple in the village. If anyone from above came to investigate, we would say that we were keeping the children in a safe place and not letting them run around on the hillside."

Shen's mother said, "What about the teachers? The teachers in the village primary school were all sent down by the commune. Should we go and invite them back?"

Shen's father said, "Secretary Tian said that in order not to attract the attention of the commune, the teachers will not be invited back for the time being. Instead, I will work with a few veteran teachers to teach the children something, even if it's just to learn all the words in the quotations first."

Grandma said, "Oh dear, this is great! You have no idea how anxious I am when Peitian and Peizhi are out of my sight. If they were both in school, I would have so much less to worry about."

Shen's mother also said, "Yes, I can't rest easy while I'm working in the fields. I'm afraid the two children will get hurt. Just the other day, look at Tian Cungen's Xiao Hui. If Shengmin hadn't been there, he would have drowned. I still feel scared when I think about it now."

Father Shen said, "Although we've sent all the children to the dilapidated temple for lessons, we still have to do it secretly. Don't tell anyone when you go out. If the people from the commune find out, who knows what might happen."

So the children of Shenjia Village were secretly sent by their families to the dilapidated temple to learn. Later, it was heard that children from several surrounding villages were also sent by their parents to literacy classes that were secretly organized in the village. Since they were all from the same village, it would be unsightly for the village if any of their children got into trouble.

Pei-Tian and Pei-Zhi studied with the class for a few days. When they returned home, they would tell their grandmother what they had learned in the literacy class. The learning atmosphere at home became much stronger because of this. At their father's request, Pei-Hua and Pei-Jun also found their old textbooks and studied them again.

These past few days, Peihua has been going to the primary school whenever he has free time, helping several old professors carry water and sweep the yard. If there are any parts of the textbook that he doesn't understand, he goes to the primary school with Peijun to ask the professors for help. Mr. and Mrs. Shen feel quite gratified. One night, Mrs. Shen said to Mr. Shen, "No matter how difficult the environment is, as long as you don't forget to study, that is hope."

The work in the fields now consists of weeding or spraying pesticides. Because Secretary Tian sent him to teach the children to read, Shen's father can earn ten cents a day.

These past few days, the Shen family has been busy cleaning out the room where Uncle Shen lives. They bought whitewash and carefully painted it several times. In case it gets cold in winter, Grandma even had someone install a chimney in the room. As long as they burn firewood in their own big pot, it will be quite warm there.

Aunt Shengquan embroidered a pair of pillowcases for Uncle Shen and helped Grandma make several quilts. The work was so beautiful that everyone who saw it praised it, and Grandma felt proud.

After Uncle Shen and Tian Lingling's marriage was arranged, Tian Lingling visited the Shen family several times. Tian Lingling was now a worker and received government-subsidized grain rations, which allowed her to buy things that were unavailable in the village. Pei Yin had already drunk rice porridge several times because of this soon-to-be-married aunt. Rice is a scarce commodity in the northern plains, and Tian Lingling had bought a month's worth and delivered it to her. Pei Yin had a very good impression of this tall and cheerful new aunt.

I have already written to several aunts who live far away. The Shen family received several packages along with the replies. My eldest aunt was sent to a cadre school in the province. After hearing about my second uncle's situation, she decided to ask for leave to come back.

As time slowly moved forward, Pei Yin could now occasionally call out "Daddy," "Sister," and "Brother." The summer heat gradually faded, and autumn arrived.

The crops in the fields are ready for harvest again. The ears of millet hang heavy with grain, and the red sorghum bends the sorghum stalks under the weight, not to mention the corn, soybeans, sweet potatoes, and peanuts.

Harvest season is always a happy time. The children in the literacy class also had a holiday and followed the adults to help in the fields. After finishing the work in the fields, the children would go to the fields with the older children to pick up the leftover peanuts or dried sweet potatoes. Every little bit of harvest was something for the children to cheer and celebrate.

My aunt came back when the villagers were harvesting sorghum.

With her short, ear-length hair, bright eyes, and gentle smile, the vicissitudes of life were hidden in the crow's feet at the corners of her eyes. When her aunt stood in front of her grandmother, her grandmother's hands trembled, and tears welled up in her eyes.

Holding Pei Yin in her arms, the mother and daughter sat under the sycamore tree, occasionally a fallen leaf drifting down and landing at their feet. The sunlight was warm but not scorching, shining brightly on everything on the harvested land.

The eldest aunt spoke gently to her worried mother about her experiences over the past year, without sorrow or resentment, only calm and acceptance of whatever came her way.

Grandma patted her eldest aunt's hand and said, "Yu, you've had a hard time."

The eldest aunt smiled and said, "Mom, it's not difficult at all. Look at us now, my brother and his family are all doing well, and Lao Zhao and I are doing well too. It was tough at the cadre school, and the work was a bit tiring, but we are both doing well. Compared to those colleagues and friends who are no longer here, we are doing very well."

Grandma said, "Yu, no matter what injustices you suffer, you must live well. Only by living can you have hope."

At lunchtime, the children were very happy to see their aunt who had returned, especially Peihua and Peijun. They had lived with their aunt when they were little, but were separated for so many years and missed her dearly.

The eldest aunt looked at her two nephews standing in front of her, her eyes sparkling, and said to her grandmother with a smile, "When you left, you were so short, but now you're so tall. Look, you're even taller than me."

In the evening, the children were sent outside to cool off. The eldest aunt and Mr. and Mrs. Shen were talking under the sycamore tree in the yard. They spoke very softly. If Peiyin hadn't been held in Mrs. Shen's arms and coaxed to sleep, no one could have heard what the three of them were saying.

My aunt said, "Back then, when Lao Zhao and I saw that things weren't going well, we thought things would be better at home than outside, so we asked one of Lao Zhao's old comrades to help us bring your family back. Zhao Ge was also sent to the army by Lao Zhao, and I haven't seen him for five or six years."

Mr. Shen asked, "How is my brother-in-law's health now?"

My aunt said, "We're still in good health. We're at the cadre school and we get up early every day to work in the fields. There are some other old comrades in similar situations to us. You don't need to worry about us. We've both been through underground life and we're very adaptable. But you two, with so many children to take care of, you must take good care of yourselves."

Mr. Shen nodded and said, “Big sister, I know. We feel good about living with our parents and children now. Several senior professors from our school have also come by themselves. Their families have been assigned to different places. Compared to them, we are much better off.”

The eldest aunt said, "The situation will become increasingly complicated in the future. Remember to speak less and do less that will attract attention." After saying this, the eldest aunt leaned closer to Shen's father and whispered, "Also, there's the matter of provincial revision. We must insist that he was killed in a bombing when Beijing was liberated. His clothes are proof. Don't say anything else. Now, in order to investigate Lao Zhao, someone has brought this up again. I heard from our father that the third grandfather of the Tian family said the same thing to him. Moreover, the third grandfather of the Tian family even found a witness for him. We should listen to the third grandfather in everything."

Father Shen nodded, and the siblings talked about other things. Pei Yin closed her eyes and listened to her aunt tell Father Shen about Uncle Shengxiu from her third grandmother's family. She felt uneasy. If someone found out, her relatively peaceful family would be plunged into chaos again.

Because this year has been relatively favorable, the crops in Shenjia Village have yielded a bumper harvest. The village has distributed some peanuts, sweet potatoes, soybeans, and other crops. Grandma strung the sweet potatoes together with rope and hung them under the eaves. After a while, when the sweet potatoes were a bit soft, she took them out and put them in the stove to roast and eat.

My aunt stayed at home for two days, during which she visited the home of Party Secretary Tian and the home of Tian's third grandfather. She also visited several respected elders of the Shen family.

Aunt Shen was a meticulous person who had experienced the harshest years of war. After liberation, she worked in the province and later went to Beijing.