Time Travel: Volume 1! Starting from a Small Mountain Village

He still vividly remembers that scene from a few years ago. His father died of illness after suffering both physical and mental torment while trying to protect his mother. He was too young to do anything then, but it's hard to say now.

Qi Shishen's sudden departure was like a boulder thrown into a calm lake, casting a shadow over the hearts of the people in the room. For a moment, only silence echoed in the office.

Party Secretary Miao suddenly raised his head, his brows furrowed, his face full of displeasure and confusion like a volcano about to erupt: "Tell me, the people in our village are already struggling to make ends meet, and now they're doing all this stuff, isn't this just making a mess of things! I really don't know what those leaders up there are thinking, it's just playing nonsense!"

Upon hearing this, Lin Guodong's expression instantly turned serious. These kinds of topics were sensitive and dangerous, not something that village cadres like them could discuss casually. So, he lowered his voice, his tone carrying a hint of warning: "Old Miao, you can't say things like that carelessly. If it gets back to the higher-ups, we'll be in deep trouble. Politics is complicated. Let's just focus on our own business and not worry about things unnecessarily."

After saying that, he gently patted Secretary Miao on the shoulder, his eyes full of helplessness and worry, as if reminding him and also reminding himself.

In fact, he felt the same way. The villagers couldn't even get enough to eat, so what was the point of all this struggle? Just when things were starting to look a little better thanks to the advice and guidance of the educated youth Long, people from higher up started coming down again.

They had always avoided such people, so they had never accepted them. But this time, the other party was clearly targeting the Qi family, and they couldn't avoid it no matter what.

Later, someone spread the word, and it instantly became the hottest topic of conversation in the village. Even the construction of the pig farm was affected, with progress noticeably slowed down. The villagers reacted in different ways, but most of them took a detached attitude, treating it as nothing more than a spectacle.

Time slipped away quietly amidst the villagers' chatter, and before they knew it, it was the morning of the third day. Lin Weihong hurried into the small courtyard and told everyone an important message she had just received from her father—the people from above had arrived at the neighboring Qingmiao brigade and would be coming to their village that afternoon.

Upon hearing this, Jiang Nian'an felt an indescribable tension well up inside her. Her face turned pale instantly, and her eyes flickered with unease. The worry for her grandparents weighed on her heart like a huge boulder.

"Nian'an, what's wrong with you? You look so pale. Why don't you let Yang Zhiqing take a look at you?" Hu Lili said hastily, assuming that Nian'an was sick.

"No need, I probably didn't sleep well last night," Jiang Nian'an said, feigning ignorance so that others wouldn't notice.

"Really? Why don't you go back to your room and lie down for a bit? I'll call you when it's time to eat."

Jiang Nian'an nodded reluctantly and turned to go into her room. Lying on the bed, the scenes Lin Weihong had described recently kept replaying in her mind. A wave of worry for her grandparents washed over her, making her feel dizzy and causing her to actually fall ill.

In the afternoon, Long Lifan, the village's women's director, also received a notification. She was summoned to the village committee to prepare to receive the people coming down from above.

However, Lin Guodong and his group had been waiting at the brigade headquarters since 2 p.m., and it was almost 4 p.m., but no one had come. Just when they all thought the other party wasn't coming today, several figures slowly appeared at the village entrance.

Upon receiving the news from the villagers, Lin Guodong, Long Lifan, and several others hurried towards the village entrance. Long Lifan followed closely behind Lin Guodong, her keen eyes observing the situation ahead: there were four men, two of whom were around forty years old and walking in front, while the other two, who appeared slightly younger, followed behind them. However, all four men looked unwell, their faces downcast, as if they had encountered some trouble.

Upon seeing this, Lin Guodong had an idea. He quickened his pace and stepped forward, asking with concern, "Secretary Ma, what's going on here...?" He recognized one of the older men as Ma Jianshe, the head of their Red Star Commune.

Upon hearing Lin Guodong's voice, Ma Jianshe stopped and sighed, "Oh, don't even mention it. We originally came by car, but the car broke down in Qingmiao Brigade, which delayed us for so long. We had no choice but to abandon the car and walk, which is how we got here." As he spoke, he kept shaking his head, looking quite helpless.

Upon hearing this, Lin Guodong pondered to himself. He knew that Secretary Ma was only there to make an appearance, so he turned his gaze to the other three. They looked exhausted, perhaps because they hadn't walked such a long distance in a long time. Lin Guodong quickly comforted them, saying, "Since you're here, come with me into the village and rest for a bit before we talk."

“Okay!” Ma Jianshe’s gaze involuntarily turned to another older man. Seeing him nod slightly, he agreed. Then the group returned to the village committee, where Zhou Huiji warmly poured them a cup of hot water.

Several people sat in chairs, silently drinking a glass of water, as if the warm water could wash away their fatigue. Ma Jianshe slowly spoke, breaking the silence: "Captain Lin, let me introduce you." He pointed to the person next to him, "This is Director Huang of the Municipal Revolutionary Committee," then turned to the other two, "The other two are Comrade Zhong and Comrade Du." His tone carried a hint of respect, clearly showing his high regard for the identities of those present.

Upon hearing this, Lin Guodong nodded slightly, his gaze sweeping over the group of people one by one. In fact, he did remember the so-called Director Huang. He recalled that Director Huang had visited their village a few years ago when he was just a staff member of the Revolutionary Committee. He never expected that Director Huang would rise to such a high position in just a few years.

Lin Guodong stood up, smiled, and politely extended his hand to greet the several comrades who had come down from the city, saying, "Hello, Director Huang." His attitude was sincere and humble.

Huang Shi, as the director of the Municipal Revolutionary Committee, adopted a superior demeanor, yet spoke seemingly politely: "Hey, Captain Lin, don't be so polite. This isn't my first time here; we need your cooperation, grassroots cadres, to get things done." He gently shook Lin Guodong's hand, his eyes revealing a sense of authority and scrutiny.

Long Lifan stood quietly to the side, her gaze inadvertently falling on Director Huang. Perhaps because she came from a later era, she always harbored an inexplicable aversion to this type of person.

Director Huang was dressed in a sharp suit, every button meticulously fastened to the collar, as if every detail of his attire reflected his meticulousness and unquestionable authority. His hair was also carefully styled, neatly combed against his scalp, and he wore gold-rimmed glasses, which added to his scholarly air.

However, beneath the gold-rimmed glasses, Long Lifan keenly caught a calculating glint in the depths of his eyes. That glint was fleeting, yet enough to raise her guard. She had a feeling that this Director Huang was not as simple as he appeared; every action, every word he uttered seemed to conceal hidden meanings and calculations.