RBI1960 Chapter 25

Mo Dashuan looked at the three men before him—two calm and wise older gentlemen, and one who looked like a fierce and battle-hardened soldier. Figuring out how to assign them work was turning out to be quite the headache.

He pulled out the tobacco pipe tied to his belt, thinking he’d take a puff before deciding. That was a common habit among the old and young men of Qingshan Village—whether something was going on or not, they’d take a few puffs of dry tobacco. It was more satisfying than living like an immortal.

“There’s a kid here. That smoke is strong—don’t choke the child with it,” Old Jiang quickly stopped him. His precious grandson was still nearby. Ever since his grandson was born, he hadn’t dared smoke at home. Only when the craving got too strong would he sneak outside for a puff.

After speaking, Old Jiang shot a glare at his unreliable eldest son. Why did he bring the kid here anyway? It was cold, and the boy was probably hungry. They should’ve gone home first and left the little ones there.

Jiang Dahai had no idea why he got glared at—just assumed his old man was acting up again and didn’t think much of it.

“Uncle Jiang’s just being overly cautious. It’s just a bit of smoke—what’s the big deal? Wait until the kid grows up a little, he might end up smoking better than I do!” Mo Dashuan joked, though he still carefully put his pipe away.

“This gentleman is right. Smoking dry tobacco isn’t a good habit,” Bai Fangqiu chimed in support of Jiang’s warning. As a responsible old doctor, he didn’t believe adults should smoke around children either.

“There’s nicotine in tobacco—that’s no harmless substance. Too much of it can damage blood vessels and cause respiratory issues. Worse, it can lead to lung tumors, which are incurable once developed.”

Once Bai Fangqiu got going on his area of expertise, his earlier silence faded, and he began speaking animatedly: “Don’t think that just because the child isn’t smoking directly, he’s safe. Secondhand smoke is just as harmful. Kids are more vulnerable than adults—their bodies are weaker. It’s best not to smoke around children at all.”

The nicotine he mentioned is what modern people refer to, and the “lung tumors” he spoke of are what we now know as lung cancer. Back then, tumors were thought to be clumps of stagnant energy and blood in the body, hence the term. Since the character for “tumor” had a negative connotation, people often used “willow” as a euphemism.

Although the villagers didn’t fully understand what nicotine was, Bai Fangqiu’s explanation left a strong impression. After all, this was a doctor who had treated important people—he couldn’t be wrong. Mo Dashuan looked at the tobacco pipe on his belt—he wanted to smoke, but now he hesitated. Giving it up wasn’t easy either.

“I think Doctor Bai’s got a point. No wonder my daughter keeps coughing—bet it’s her father’s dry tobacco smoke causing it. When I get home, I’m going to give him a good talking-to!” A woman nearby slapped her thigh, feeling like she’d finally figured out why her daughter’s cough wouldn’t go away. She was itching to rush home and yank her man’s ear for a scolding.

Bai Fangqiu nodded. “There can be many causes for a child’s cough—it might not all be due to tobacco. But if you’re willing, bring the child to me for a look. I don’t have any medicine on hand right now, but I can gather some herbs from the mountain and make something up.”

He had already taken a look during the walk up the mountain. Even though it was dark, he’d gotten a good idea of the terrain. Qingshan was a big place—he was confident he could gather enough basic medicinal herbs.

Yang Xiu was overjoyed—how could she not be? These days, if someone weren’t seriously ill, they wouldn’t dare go to the hospital. The paperwork alone was enough to wear you down, and the cost was sky-high. Medicine was scarce too. The local health station in their village only had one barefoot doctor who handed out whatever he had on hand. If there were no medicine, people were out of luck. Most villagers just gritted their teeth and pushed through illnesses, which led to chronic issues over time.

Yang Xiu had a flash of inspiration and suggested, “Captain, why don’t we have this old gentleman go work at the health station? He can treat villagers during the day and gather herbs from the mountain when there’s no one to see. The county herb depot buys herbs too, so even the higher-ups can’t find fault with that. And the villagers benefit.”

Bai Fangqiu was more than willing. At his age, doing fieldwork was too hard on the body, but gathering herbs, though tiring, was something he enjoyed. Plus, he could research while he was at it—a win-win.

Everyone agreed it was a good idea. They would be more than happy to have a doctor like him in the village.

As for Ruan Yuanjiang and Huo Wu, Mo Dashuan gave it more thought.

Huo Wu was straightforward—just looking at his build, you could tell he was pure muscle. He’d be a great help in the fields. But Ruan Yuanjiang was older, a refined and scholarly man. He didn’t look like he could handle farm labor—probably couldn’t do much at all.

“I noticed the livestock shed is empty. Why don’t we just stay there? I may be old, but I’ve still got enough strength to take care of a few animals,” Ruan Yuanjiang offered.

Jiang Yiliu was a bit surprised. He hadn’t expected the old man to volunteer to live in the livestock shed. With his grandfather’s influence, he could’ve easily secured a better job and lodging.

But it was precisely this choice that made Jiang Yiliu respect the man even more.

Ruan Yuanjiang gave a small shake of his head, stopping Old Jiang from speaking. They had their reasons. Even though most villagers were kind-hearted, there would always be a few who didn’t like outsiders.

Living in the livestock shed would accomplish two things: it would give the village leaders a way to justify things to the authorities, and more importantly, he knew the Jiang girls brought feed there every morning. That would give them an excuse to interact with the Jiang family without drawing attention, preventing anyone from using it against them.

Bai Fangqiu and Huo Wu had no objections to Ruan Yuanjiang’s decision. Bai was old and saw the wisdom in it. Huo Wu didn’t fully understand, but he trusted Old Ruan and wouldn’t question him. Though he felt bad that the old man had to live with animals, he didn’t object. He just made up his mind to wake up early each day to clean and maintain the place—he had the strength to spare, after all.

Mo Dashuan thought for a moment and nodded. “Alright. The folks in our village are honest and don’t play those outside games. As long as you keep your head down and don’t cause trouble, we won’t give you any grief. We’re so remote that no one bothers with us anyway. You can settle in here in peace.”

He glanced meaningfully at the three men. “But I can’t just hand out work points freely. We have to follow the rules from above. You’ll only be given the minimum—barely enough to keep from starving.”

Technically, working in the livestock shed earned the highest number of work points because of how dirty and tiring it was. Most families with decent means wouldn’t take it. A young man working in the fields could earn ten to twelve points per day; livestock shed work started at twelve.

But for people like Ruan Yuanjiang, who were being re-educated through labor, only the minimum points could be given, regardless of how hard they worked. That was the whole point of the reform.

They all understood what Mo Dashuan meant, but the three men didn’t care. They still had resources and weren’t worried about going hungry.

Mo Dashuan could tell from their expressions that they weren’t desperate yet, which reassured him.

“The roof on the livestock shed is half gone. We’ll need to fix that tomorrow. But tonight…” He looked at their bags—none looked like they had thick bedding. Originally, he’d planned to let them sleep at the brigade office, but now that didn’t seem feasible.

“Besides, there’s no stove at the livestock shed. The last guy cooked at his brother’s place. Even if we started building one right now, it wouldn’t be finished in time.”

He was worried about their food and lodging. Fixing a roof took a day or two, but building a kitchen would take at least ten days to two weeks. Where would they eat in the meantime?

“They can stay with me,” Old Jiang said decisively. “They can eat with my family for now. The village can front them some rations and deduct it from their work points at year’s end.”

The Jiang family had just expanded their home last year, adding two rooms—one for the four girls, one for Yiliu. The boy was still young and usually slept with his parents or sisters. Even though he protested, they didn’t dare let a five-year-old sleep alone—what if he fell off the bed?

The spare room had a clay-heated bed ready. It was warm and spacious enough for the three adults and one child.

Everyone knew the Jiang family’s situation and agreed this arrangement made sense. Mo Dashuan was especially grateful. “Cheng Ming, tomorrow, prepare a month’s worth of rations for them. We’ll deduct it from their year-end points.”

Accountant Cheng Ming nodded and made a note of it.

With just a month left before the year-end grain distribution, Old Jiang had no objections.

Once food, lodging, and work were all settled, night had completely fallen.

“Dahai, Yiliu—it’s late, and you haven’t eaten yet, have you? Hurry home. Aunt Miao’s probably got dinner warmed up,” Yang Xiu said, ruffling Yiliu’s head fondly.

“Uncle Bai, I’ll bring my daughter by tomorrow for a checkup. Don’t worry—Uncle Jiang’s family is kind and trustworthy. You’ll be in good hands staying with them.”

Yang Xiu smiled. The Jiang family was admirable. If only the old couple could shake their favoritism toward sons, they’d be perfect.

Bai Fangqiu smiled and nodded. He fully trusted the old commander’s judgment.

Since the Jiang home and the newcomers were headed in different directions, everyone said their goodbyes and went their separate ways.

On the way back, they remained silent, cautious. Only once they stepped into the Jiang family courtyard did Jiang Cheng finally breathe a sigh of relief. He ushered the men inside, locked the door tight, and then, overcome with emotion, threw his arms around Ruan Yuanjiang. The two men embraced tightly, tears streaming down their faces.