Chapter 153: Eight hundred miles of Yimeng (2)

Everyone says (ah) Yimeng Mountain is good, and the scenery on Yimeng Mountain is so beautiful.

The green mountains (that) are so beautiful, and the wind blows (that) grass is low (that) and cows and sheep are seen.

Sora (that) red (ah) millet is yellow, and jujube (that) pineapple (ah) sweet and fragrant.

Our Chairman Mao is a good leader, and the people of Yimeng Mountain are happy.

...

Li Siming has heard "Yimeng Mountain Minor" more than once. The first time he listened to this song was in the North Wilderness. At that time, he was singing by an educated youth from Rizhao, Shandong. There were different lyric versions. When he heard it again, he was walking with Xiaodao in the mountains of Mengshan. Although the leaves of the tall trees had withered, the mixed pine trees could still cover the sunshine in the winter morning, but the two were sweating profusely. When they stopped, the mountain wind blew and shivered.

"Xiaodao, you can't remember it wrong, right? Why haven't you arrived yet after walking for a long time?" Li Siming said with a sweat. He was very anxious when he heard Sun Chang's mother rejecting Xiaodao's visit and explained the company's affairs. Within two days, he followed Xiaodao thousands of miles to Shandong, changing planes, trains, and cars, and now he is walking in the mountains with his legs.

"How could it be? The mountain road is hard to walk, otherwise how could I disappear for a year?" Xiaodao said.

"Don't justify it. I admit that your work has been great over the past year, okay?" Li Siming said.

"The main thing is that you have used a BMW car in recent years. Although you have exercised every day, you have to admit that your physical fitness has deteriorated!" Xiaodao said.

"This... I admit that my physical fitness is not at its best, but when you took me around in this mountain, I always feel like we are going around in circles!" Li Siming looked at the towering Mengshan and sighed.

"Climb another mountain, wad a river, then climb another mountain, and climb another ridge, and you will see a bridge. Once you cross the bridge, you will arrive!" Xiaodao said, "Not far!"

"It's not far?" Li Siming glared at him fiercely, "Let's go early, otherwise, you can only spend the night in this deep mountain!"

"It's not that far away, you can arrive at noon. If you want to say, first of all, your attitude is not good. We are doing a noble cause. First of all, we need a pious heart and a firm and determined..." Xiaodao walked in front and led Li Siming forward on the mountain path.

"You'd better shut your mouth and save some effort!" Li Siming cursed behind him, "It would be good if you could repair a road. You can hire a car, which would save a lot of time!"

"Hey, it's a good idea, but are you willing to pay?" Xiaodao muttered in front.

"You say this, just look at people in the crack of the door!" Li Siming said loudly from behind.

"Don't be angry, I just want to confirm whether you are sincere!" Xiaodao retorted.

"Okay, I'll just say this to you. I must build a road!" Li Siming sweared.

"Okay, God knows the earth and the earth, you know me, and you know these 800 miles of Yimeng Mountain. You must keep your word!" Xiaodao said.

"Boy, don't use provocation. This thing is not good for me." Li Siming smiled, "I will do it when I say it. Please rest assured! We have more money!"

"That's right, it's not in vain that the country and the army have educated you!" Xiaodao still sang high-profile in front, but he was not careful that Li Siming caught up from behind and threw him into the sky.

The two continued to go on the road, crossed a mountain, waded through a river, then climbed over a mountain, and then climbed over a ridge to see a small bridge. The scenery in Mengshan area is beautiful and the scenery is charming. Opposite to the bridge is a big mountain village. The weak flowing water under the bridge made Li Siming unable to help but "recite the poem": The small bridge flows through water and people's houses.

Li Siming has become accustomed to the forests made of steel and concrete in the city. The nature here makes him feel relaxed. Li Siming is determined to take time to get closer to nature every year - this is always what a group of people who look very busy in the urban forests often talk. When they say this, they actually stand and speak without a back pain, with a certain "superiority". Those who are truly born and raised in the mountains dream about life in the city.

People in the mountain village were very curious about these two "city people" dressed in human form, and someone came up to greet him. In fact, after Xiaodao came, he could easily find the Sun Chang family. Sun Chang's family has a large population, and he has three younger brothers and their own wives, plus children, and a whole family gathered together. Li Siming and Xiaodao came very coincidentally today, just as Sun Chang's son celebrated his 14th birthday. As soon as they appeared in front of the door, the family immediately paid attention.

Sun Chang's wife Li Qin had met Li Siming several times, and she was surprised when she saw her deceased comrade-in-arms whom she respected the most.

"Mom, this is the leader of the kid's father's army, Comrade Li!" Li Qin enthusiastically gave in to Li Siming and Xiaodao.

Li Siming is too young, but he is not a leader.

"Auntie, I'm not a leader. Just call me Xiao Li!" Li Siming said modestly.

Maybe it was someone from his son's army, or maybe it was because of his grandson that Li Siming did not enjoy the treatment of being expelled from the house. However, Sun Chang's mother did not look very enthusiastic.

"Second son, pour a cup of tea for the two comrades. The wives and I prepare a lunch with them. Everyone comes here is a guest! We are old people in Yimeng, so don't embarrass us Yimeng people." The old mother ordered and got up and went to the kitchen.

Li Siming looked at Sun Chang's son Sun Dajun. Sun Chang wanted to command a large army one day, so he named his son this name. From this 14-year-old Sun Dajun, Li Siming could see his father Sun Chang's appearance.

"The last time I saw you was 7 years ago. You were still a little carrot head. Now you have become a little adult in the blink of an eye!" Li Siming sighed, "Uncle, I don't know that today is your 14th birthday. I didn't prepare, so I will give you a watch."

Li Siming suddenly remembered his son. Comrade Li Xiaoming really lives in a honey jar. It is hard to say whether it is a good or a bad thing. Li Siming only has this watch on him as a gift. This is a famous watch given to him by Yang Yue. Unexpectedly, he would die again. He took a look at him "nostalgic" and put the watch on Sun Dajun's wrist. The child knew that he should not accept it, so he quickly refused.

Sun Chang's three younger brothers were all simple people. Although they didn't know how much Li Siming's watch was worth, they looked shiny and must be high-end products. They hurriedly wanted to stop him.

"A few big brothers, Dajun's father and I are brothers. What's the point of giving him a watch for his son? I thought we were both fighting together on the battlefield back then. If we didn't have this watch, where would I put my face?" Li Siming told a small lie, "Besides, I send this watch, I hope that the army cherishes time, grows up quickly, and become a man like his father as soon as possible!"

Li Siming spoke very earnestly. Sun Chang's three younger brothers remained silent after hearing this. They remembered their elder brother. For them, their dear elder brother was a mountain that was standing in front of them. Li Siming put his watch on Sun Dajun's right wrist, but it was too big, so Li Siming had to stuff it into his pocket.

"Uncle Li, have you been to the Martyrs' Cemetery before coming here?" Sun Dajun looked at Li Siming, his eyes full of expectation. When he went to the Martyrs' Cemetery, he was still very young and his impression was a little blurred.

Li Siming and Xiaodao looked at each other. They felt that they were both hypocritical. Since leaving the army, they had never been to the distant Mali Po in Yunnan. Other comrades who were closer to each other took the time to see it.

"I have seen it, your father's comrades have all gone to see it. Every year during Qingming Festival or August 1st, it's OK!" Li Siming said, and was also blaming himself. Li Siming has always been very busy - people always look for reasons for their behavior.

"People say that my father is a combat hero, but I have never heard my father's comrades tell me about my father's glorious deeds. Uncle Li, please tell me, okay?" Sun Dajun grabbed Li Siming's elbow and begged.

"Okay, I'll tell you, you must remember that your father is a great hero, and he will always be!" Li Siming said in a deep voice.

Li Siming is undoubtedly a storyteller. In Xiaodao's opinion, he is full of making up for it, but Xiaodao cannot stand up and deny it, nor can he say to a child who is proud of his father: Your father has never been to a real battlefield! If he can, he hopes that what Li Siming said is true, but the facts are always based on people's subjective hopes, which is cruel.

"My father is really a great hero!" Sun Dajun was very proud of Li Siming's kind lie.

"Then you should study hard and be a useful person to the country in the future!" Li Siming encouraged.

"Comrade Li." said the second brother of the Sun family. "Dajun is very obedient and has always had good academic performance. But middle school is too far away. Every day, you have to walk twenty miles of mountain road just after dawn. The weather is good. If it blows strong wind or rains, you will suffer. In our mountains, everything is not as good as outside the mountain, and there is not even a decent road. It is not easy for those who come out of the mountain to get some money from the jujubes, wild mountain mushrooms, etc. from the mountains to get some money."

"Yes, it's been decades. Since the older generation, I have been planning to open mountains and build roads, but I can't do it!" said the third brother of the Sun family.

Li Siming's heart moved: "Are you short of money?"

"There is no shortage of manpower. The people in our old district are very enlightened. Although there is no longer any promotion to carry out movements, road construction is our dream. It is just that in this mountain, we can't afford it by buying explosives." said the fourth brother of the Sun family.

"This is easy to deal with. We will pay and you will work hard. As long as we work together, we will definitely succeed!" Li Siming said.

"Comrade Li, this is not a small number!" Several brothers from the Sun family said in unison.

"Of course there is no problem." Li Siming said, "If we are in the army, we keep our word. It is also our honor to be able to do a good thing for the people of the old district!"

"Okay, I'll inform our village chief and let him know too!" The fourth son of the Sun family was impatient and got up and went out.

Li Siming thought for a while: "Two brothers, I have something to ask."

"Comrade Li, you and my elder brother are comrades-in-arms. Just say whatever you have!"

"This Xiaoxia has been here last time, too." Li Siming pointed at Xiaodao and said, "But the aunt didn't let him in. I wonder why?"

The two brothers of the Sun family were silent for a while and asked Sun Dajun to leave before they started talking.

"Actually, my mother has a good intention. My elder brother was a soldier and became a martyr on the battlefield. On the surface, he was glorious, but it was always a sad thing for our family." The Sun brothers took a sip of cigarettes, "Especially, my sister-in-law, who has been busy since she got married and has not enjoyed a day of happiness. Even my three brothers have made their homes based on my sister-in-law. Now my elder brother is gone, and our family doesn't want my sister-in-law to stay widowed for the rest of her life."

"But, then, shouldn't you not let Xiao Xia enter?" Li Siming still didn't understand.

"That's the reason. But every August 1st or the Chinese New Year, the commune (town government) and the county's military department will send people to visit their families. A few years ago, my sister-in-law was often invited to report on heroic deeds. Our Yimeng is an old revolutionary base, and we are all enlightened. My brother is a martyr. My sister-in-law even wants to remarry and has to take care of others' opinions. Don't you be pointed at by others behind your back!"

Li Siming understood the archway of chastity. According to legend, in ancient times, those young widowed women vowed not to marry for life, and were usually called "chastity and savage women". The once prominent Hui merchants also grew in the simultaneous growth of the number of "martyrs". On the one hand, the salt merchants in Huizhou advocated elegance in the Yangzhou area, and gathered with cultural and wine, and "adapted to merchants" and used Confucian ethics to gold themselves; on the other hand, in their hometown Huizhou, they worked hard to shape their hometown and hometown into "the world's unparalleled filial piety and the world's most beautiful village in Jiangnan, and created a "Chengzhuqueli" important ancestral center. Therefore, the chastity of Hui merchants' women became a bargaining chip for men to gain fame. The chastity archway is the capital for Hui merchants to show off, and the fate that Hui merchants cannot escape.

Sun Chang's old mother was a widow and finally raised her sons. So she was kind-hearted and did not want to see her eldest daughter-in-law repeat her mistakes. However, whether it is the township government or other organizations, she came to express condolences and commendations repeatedly. The original intention was good, but objectively it was also an invisible shackle. With the "fame" of neighbors in all villages, this old mother did not want to see someone from the "organization" come to her home. Good intentions can do bad things. This is undoubtedly an embarrassing thing.

Thinking of this, Li Siming and Xiaodao looked at each other and felt ashamed. This happened that they had never expected.

"Auntie, our coming this time is not for any organization or the army, we are for individuals." Li Siming found his busy mother, "Sun Chang is a good comrade and soldier. He once told me that he hopes that one day he can build a road for his hometown, open a car, and let people from his hometown go outside to see it. It's a pity that he failed to fulfill this wish. Comrade Xiaoxia and I came here to fulfill Comrade Sun Chang's wish, and we have no other ideas. We have heard from the three elder brothers about your old ideas. We respect your old opinions and agree very much."

Li Siming didn't know how many times he lied today. Sun Chang had never told him that he had this wish. If he could do something for his hometown, Sun Chang should be relieved, right?

"Hey, my eldest son is a solid person. He only thinks about others. He always sends the allowances in the army to his home." The white-haired old mother sighed, "It is rare that you are so dedicated to being a comrade, which makes you worry. If everyone in the neighborhoods know about it, everyone will be very happy."

"It is also our honor to be able to contribute to the people of the old area!" Li Siming said hurriedly, "No trouble!"

"It's better for the soldiers!" The old mother wiped the tears from the corners of her eyes with the corners of her clothes, "I'm sorry to Comrade Xia, I'll apologize to you!"

"It's not hindering, it's not hindering!" Xiaodao waved his hand quickly.

The village chief was invited soon. The village chief was also old and trembled, holding Li Siming's arm and said, "Thank you, soldiers!"

Li Siming quickly helped the old village chief sit down and promised to do it. Xiaodao took out five thousand yuan from his bag, ten yuan per piece, and put several stacks. They didn't expect this before they came, and they didn't bring too much money.

"Uncle, you always take the five thousand dollars first, and gather the staff to make up for it. This time I came in too haste. I will definitely bring another money when I go back in a few days. I promise to build a spacious road so that it is more convenient for the villagers to come out. The specialties in our village can be easily transported out for some money to supplement the household expenses, right?" Li Siming pushed the money to the old village chief.

"Thank you, although Sun Chang died, he has such a good comrade-in-arms!" The old village chief stroked Li Siming's arm and sighed.

"Uncle, I heard that there is no school in the village. I have an idea. Do you think it is good? I plan to build a primary school and a middle school in Sunjia Village, and build the most spacious brick and tile houses so that the children in the village don't have to get up early and go into the dark. Children in the outside village can also study in a strong and beautiful new school building. Is this good? No matter how poor you are, you can't be poor to educate!" Li Siming had an idea.

"Comrade Li, you think so well, but this costs a lot of money. Our village doesn't want you to spend too much money. It's not easy to make money!" said the old village chief sincerely.

"Uncle, village chief, don't worry, he has money!" Xiaodao interrupted.

"Yes, the village chief, it doesn't matter. Building a school is very important. Children can have a good school and go to the city to study in the future and become a pillar of the country. If they do well outside, they can help the people of their hometown in the future!" Li Siming glared at Xiaodao in a hidden way, and had to follow his words.

Li Siming and Xiaodao made such a kind act in the deep mountains of Mengshan, which caused a sensation in this small mountain village called Sunjia Village. These two "good charity" are spontaneously invited by the villagers to have dinner and drink every day. It would be impossible not to go.

There are no big fish and meat in the mountain village, only wild vegetables dried after picking in autumn, but they eat very comfortably;

There are no famous wines in the mountains, only home-made white wine, which is not very pure and strong, but also enjoyable;

The simplest one is the people in the mountains. If you give them a care, you will get ten times the reward. After living in this small mountain village for three days, Li Siming and Xiaodao were educated and moved, and they ended up getting drunk every day.

Li Siming calculated the time and had to let Xiaodao stay and help build the road, but he was about to leave. He couldn't do without his work, and he had to get some money and some supplies to come. Li Qintou wore a headscarf and sent Li Siming far away.

The two of them were speechless all the way, and Li Siming walked up a mountain and stopped.

"Sister-in-law, I've been here for three days and I haven't had the chance to talk to you. I originally thought that when we came here, we could express the care of Sun Chang's comrades during his lifetime, but I didn't expect that it would cause you unnecessary trouble." Li Siming said carefully.

"Comrade Li, don't be too careful, I have no idea! I just want to pull the army and make a name for themselves in the future." Li Qin said sadly.

"Sister-in-law, I actually think the aunt is very reasonable, you might as well think about it." Li Siming said, "Everyone has the right to find their own happiness."

Li Siming felt that her words were really inconvincing. People who were enjoying a happy life were not qualified to convince people who were trapped in a marriage tragedy. Li Siming's arrival only reminded her of the past and people related to the past.

"Don't worry, I will consider it." Li Qin said with a forced smile.

"Okay. Don't worry, you don't have to worry about the future of Dajun, this child. I won't let his father down in the dark." Li Siming promised.

"That's going to bother you!" Li Qin said.

"Sister-in-law, you go back." Li Siming waved his hand.

"Then you go slowly!"

Li Siming hesitated for a moment, trying to comfort him for a few more words, but couldn't find any better words. He turned around and went down the mountain and looked back in the valley. Li Qin was still standing alone on the high mountain, with a corner of the turban swaying in the wind.

Li Siming waved his hand from afar, sighed deeply, turned around and walked out of the mountain along the way he came, and finally disappeared into the dense woods.
Chapter completed!