Red Flame Floating
After Meibin got married, others called him Mr. Rain and no longer called him by his sect name. He was nineteen years old now, and Lady Yan had already given birth to a girl for him.
Mr. Rain was teaching disciples at Gaoshan Temple. He had twenty disciples, all boys.
The first lesson of the day was a face-to-face lesson. Mr. Yu Zhong called Sheng 'er to his side. He said "Heaven", Sheng' er said "Earth"; He said 'rain', Sheng' er said 'wind'; He said "mainland", Sheng 'er said "Changkong"; He said "mountain flower", Sheng 'er said "sea tree"; He said "red sun", Sheng 'er said "sky"; He said "Lei Yin Yin", Sheng 'er said "Misty".
Mister Rain had another child. This child was Kong Shi's eldest grandson, Prince De. He said "spring", Prince De said "tree"; He said "dry", and Prince De said "wet"; He said "blowing bamboo", Prince De said "playing the zither"; He said 'mountain pavilion', while Prince De said' water island'; He said "parrot", and Prince De said "mandarin duck"; He said "Five Color Pen", and Prince De said "Ten Mile Pavilion".
Mister Rain said,"It's all wrong, it's all wrong. Give me your hand."”
Prince De stretched out his hand, and Mister Rain gently knocked on his hand a few times. Prince De smiled. Mister Rain said,""You're still laughing? Do you still have any shame? Not a single sentence fits."
Prince De said," Mister Rain, don't be angry. My master said that it's right as long as the meaning is not bad. It doesn't have to be based on the book. Books are dead, but people are alive."”
Mister Rain said,"You're still being reasonable. This is studying, not studying people."”
The next one was Zhu Ren. Zhu Ren was one year older than the two above. His task was to memorize the fourth section of the Zhu Family precepts. Zhu Ren recited, It is most shameful to be slandered by wealth. There is nothing more contemptible than a poor man who is arrogant. At home, avoid disputes and lawsuits, and lawsuits will eventually lead to disaster. Be careful not to talk too much in life, because too much talk is bound to make mistakes. Don't rely on power to bully orphans and widows, don't covet food and drink to kill animals and birds. It is natural to be perverse, and there will be many regrets. It is difficult for a family to succeed in its decadence and laziness. If you're close to someone, you'll get into trouble over time. If you bend your mind, you will be old and mature. If you are in danger, you can rely on each other. How can you know that it is not a man's calumny to listen to words lightly? You should be patient and think twice. Because of the dispute between things, how can I know that it is not my fault, must be calm and calm to think about it.
Mister Rain said,"Not bad, not bad. Little Brother Zhu Ren is very hardworking."”
Zhu Ren was of the same generation as Mister Rain, but he still said,""I'm your disciple, you can't call me little brother.”
Mister Rain said,"Good, good, good. Zhu Ren understands etiquette and is everyone's role model."”
At this moment, Xing Ren walked in. Mister Rain arranged for the children to practice calligraphy and welcomed Big Brother into the study.
"Little brother, do you know about Ye Kaixin?"”
Mister Rain said," I know. The Northern Expedition Army attacked Yuezhou. Ye Kaixin led his troops to surrender. The Northern Army was defeated without a fight.”
Xingren said," These Northern soldiers deserve to be cut into pieces. Fourth brother has been dead for six years. This revenge has finally been avenged. What others have avenged is also avenged. Fourth brother can rest in peace."”
Mister Rain said," The Northern soldiers surrendering isn't the most important thing. Big Brother, do you know what the most important thing is?”
"I don't know, tell me."”
Mister Rain said,"The most important thing is that Shiqi has returned."”
"Who's Shiqi?" What kind of business does he do?"
Mister Rain said,"Big brother, do you still remember the doctor who treated this old lady?" Shiqi was his younger brother. This wasn't a simple character.”
"Ah, I remember, I remember. Their family has been practicing medicine for generations."”
Mister Rain said," This Shiqi is a few years older than me. He has read a lot of books and attended a private school. He graduated from Dongting Temple High School and studied at Changsha Commercial College for a few years. Then, he joined the radical party and rebelled.”
Xingren said,"This is not bad. Look at the tens of thousands of people who go up and down the Lotus Pond. Let alone studying in Changsha, how many people go to Dongting Temple to study?" He had read so many books and should have served society well. Why did he rebel? What was this radical party doing?”
Mr. Rain said," I don't know what this radical party does, but just by looking at its real name, I can get a rough idea. It's nothing more than a community. The people with property and those without property are all in a community."”
Xingren said," Isn't this a mess? Look at our houses. Those who work hard to farm and do some business have a better life. Only those lazy people and loafers eat one meal and worry about the next. If these two kinds of people want to coexist, isn't it unacceptable?”
Mister Rain said,"I'm just guessing. It might not be true."”
Xingren said," I just don't understand. Look at this Shiqi. He has read so many books, which must mean that his family background is better than others. Yet, he still wants to rebel and wants others to share his family's property. Isn't this an unfilial child? Is this caused by books?”
Mister Rain said,"Big brother, do you know why Shiqi came back?" He came back to do the peasant movement."
"What is the peasant movement?"”
Mister Rain said," I can't explain it clearly. I only heard that there was a lot of trouble in Hunan and the middle of Hunan. The poor people rushed to the big families to kill pigs to eat, open the granaries, and rob the grain. Some of the rascals even went to the Miss 'embroidery bed to roll around. You can't say anything. If anyone was dissatisfied, they would be tied up and led around the village.”
Mister Rain said as he made tea for his big brother. Xingren fell into deep thought. Since ancient times, there had been no such law. The Book of Songs even said, The fields are full of crops. After planting seeds, we should take precautions, and we should be prepared to do things. With my deep harvest, I will sow a hundred grains in the southern fields. He is both tall and strong, and his great-grandson is like this. If a farmer wanted to reap a harvest, he had to repair his farm tools, prepare for ploughing, sow seeds, and manage. If they were all loafers, how could there be a large family to feed them?
"Tell me, are families like ours considered big? Will the Farmers 'Games come to us?"”
Mister Rain said," What kind of big family are we? At most, we're just a family that has solved the problem of food and clothing, or a well-off family as the old saying goes. As for whether or not the Farmers 'Games will come to us, it's hard to say. There are two ideas here. One is whether Shiqi will come to our house to cause a stir, and the other is whether the loafers in our house will cater to it.”
Xing Ren left with an uneasy heart, and Mister Rain continued to teach.
Shiqi had indeed returned. He had been ordered by the party to sneak back to the doctor's house during the Mid-Autumn Festival. His mission was to come back and light the fire of the peasant movement. The current situation could only be described as " chaotic." Be it the Southern soldiers or the Northern soldiers, they could no longer stand in Hunan. The Northern Expedition Army was advancing north step by step. The previous government had collapsed, and society was like a pile of loose sand. He wanted to sweep up this loose sand like a whirlwind and form a huge force to change the color of the world.
Mei Di and her younger brother Mei Hua were selling water in Yuezhou City. When they heard that Shiqi had returned to encourage the peasants to rebel, they returned to Maple Ridge.
Along the way, Mei Hua was always reluctant and nagged, which made Mei Di a little unhappy.
Mei Di said," You're always nagging. Are you done?”
Mei Hua said," I just don't feel safe about this. You see, it's so good for us to fetch water and sell it in Yuezhou City. Every ounce of our strength is worth a penny. I feel safe too."”
Mei Di said," What's so good about it? I'm twenty-four this year, and you're eighteen this year. Do we still have to work hard for decades? Do you know how difficult it is to support your family?”
Plum Blossom said," No matter how difficult it is, you still have to do things. If you follow Shiqi to rebel, you won't have to do anything, and you will also be relaxed. Do you have money? Can you get money for rebelling?"”
Mei Di said," You're right. Rebellion is money. Didn't you hear what the people from Changsha said? The peasants in the middle of Hunan rebelled. They ate the rich families, killed their pigs, led their cattle, divided their grain, shared their young ladies, and robbed their money.”
"If the government catches this kind of nonsense, they'll be beheaded," said Mei Hua.”
"The government? Is there still a government?" Mei Di asked. It's chaotic everywhere. Chaos is good. We have to take chestnuts from the fire and fill our wallets.”
"No justice, no justice, this is no different from mountain bandits."”
Mei Di said," You're the younger brother, and I'm the older brother. You have to listen to me. I'm doing this for your own good, for the good of our family." Look at our family. There are only a few liters of land and two rooms in the house.”
The plum blossom didn't speak, only following her brother. Finally, they entered the boundary of the lower lotus pond, and finally entered the doctor's room. They met Shiqi here.
Shiqi said," You must be the Mei Di brothers from Maple Ridge. I know Mei Di, and I'm even more familiar with your father, Ai Tinggong. You are honest poor people!"
Mei Di said,"I heard that Brother Shiqi came back, so us brothers followed." We also heard that Brother Shiqi has joined the party and is back to rebel. We are here to rebel with you.”
Shiqi said,"The problem is not that you followed me to rebel, but that you know why we rebelled." The people in this world were divided into the poor and the rich. Why were the poor, and why were the rich? Because the rich exploit the poor, they are rich and we are poor.”
"What is exploitation? We don't know anything about it."”
Shi Qi said," What is exploitation? Let me tell you. For example, if you work for the boss for a year and get thirty catties of grain, the boss will only give you ten catties of grain. This boss is exploiting your labor force. Another example would be if you were selling water in Yuezhou City. A load of water should have been sold for two copper coins, but the owner only gave you one copper coin. This was exploiting your labor.”
Plum Blossom said," It's so simple to say, and the reason is so simple. But the truth is more complicated." There was a market price for a year's worth of long-term labor. If the labor price was low, no one would do it. Moreover, he had to worry about the land, fertilizer, and seeds that the owner wanted to provide. This was the cost of the rice, and it was the same principle to carry water and sell it.”
Shi Qi said," In short, the reason why the poor are poor is the result of the rich exploiting them. This is a big truth. The rest of the facts are all small truths. Small truths belong to big truths."”
Mei Di said," Brother Shiqi, don't listen to my brother. He kept nagging at me along the way. Just tell me how we are going to rebel and who we are going to rebel against.”
Shiqi said," If we poor people want to rebel successfully, we must unite as one. Therefore, we must first organize the poor people. Only when the poor people are organized will we be powerful and the rich people will be afraid." This was what was done in Upper Hunan and Central Hunan. They organized poor farmers into peasant associations.”
"The organization is in the peasant association, not the party," said Mei Hua.”
Shiqi said," The party is a higher organization. Not every poor farmer can join it. The Farmers 'Association was an ordinary organization. All the poor people could enter as long as they wanted to.”
" Alright, alright," Mei Di said." Let's go to Maple Ridge and organize the Farmers 'Association."”
Shiqi said," Not only do you have to go back to Maple Ridge to organize the Farmers 'Association, but you also have to go to Sun Village, Yan Village, and other nearby houses to organize. This way, you will have the same voice and strength."”
Mei Di and Mei Hua returned to Maple Ridge. Before they settled down, they went to Fuqing's house.
Mei Di said," Uncle Fuqing, your family is the poorest family in our farm. We want to organize a farmer's association. You guys should join us!"”
Fuqing said," Mei Diya, you're just afraid that your feet will smell like cow poop. You've seen a lot after selling a few buckets of water in Yuezhou City. You're going to come back and start the Farmers 'Association. Aren't you afraid of being ugly?!"”
Mei Di said," With the peasant association, we can organize a rebellion. Look at why we are poor. We are all exploited by the rich. That's why we are in this state today.”
Fuqing said," What is exploitation? Why don't you show me your ugly face?”
Mei Di said," Exploiting is when I give you thirty catties of rice, and you only give me ten catties of rice. That means you've robbed me of the fruits of my labor.”
Fu Qing said," I think this is no different from farting. Did you work for Madam Huang's family? Did you work for Tong Shan's family? None of them. Their family is richer than yours. How did they get it?”
There were five sons in Fuqing. They were called Mei Mo, Mei Mao, Mei Ji, Mei Tuo, and Mei Xun. Mei Mo was twenty-eight, Mei Mao was twenty-three, Mei Ji was eighteen, Mei Tuo was fourteen, and Mei Xun was seven.
Mei Mo said,"Brother Mei Di, count me in for the Farmers Association."”
Mei Mao also said,"I'm one of them. Brother Mei Di, don't forget me."”
Mei Ji clapped his hands and said," I'm Lu Zhishen. I fight and kill. Do you need me?"”
Mei Di said," Alright, alright. You three brothers can join us. We'll be the first batch of members."”
Mei Tuo said,"I don't count?" I'm almost five feet tall, and my balls are already so big.”
Mei Xun said," My brothers are all here. What should I do? Brother Mei Di, please bring me along."”
Fuqing stomped her foot and said," Let's see who dares to move. I'll break the legs of whoever dares to move. I'll drive him out of the house and make him build a nest under the forbidden garden tree."”
The next day, the Mei Di brothers went to the doctor's room to look for Shiqi.
Shiqi asked them how things were going, and Mei Di told them about the situation.
Mei Di asked," We organize the poor into the peasant association and then lead them to do something. If we don't do anything, the association is just an empty shell.”
Shiqi said," There are many things to do. You must know that the first thing to do is to choose the vanguard of the revolution. Who is the vanguard of the revolution? The local ruffians and hooligans were the bravest, the most determined, and the most decisive. They were the vanguard of the revolution. The second was to organize the peasants to overthrow the local tyrants and evil gentry. Who were the local tyrants and evil gentry? All the land was rich, and all the gentry was not bad. A family with a stone field was a local tyrant, and a person wearing a long robe was an evil gentry. "Thirdly, our peasant association wants to be the king. In the past, the countryside was ruled by clan power. The ancestral hall was the symbol of clan power. If you want to smash it, you should burn the genealogy and the Bodhisattva. Fourthly, it was necessary to create a terrifying phenomenon in the countryside. It was necessary to catch the rich and mobilize the poor to eat the rich.”
On the way home, Mei Hua said," I don't understand. The local ruffians are the vanguard of the revolution. The local ruffians are obviously some crooked melons and broken dates. Are the vanguard of the revolution also crooked melons and broken dates? Look at our houses. Haruna who goes up the mountain and the Winged Ones who go down the mountain are famous local ruffians. Can they be the vanguard of the revolution?”
" Don't talk nonsense," Mei Di said." The Winged One is almost sixty years old. He has no children. It's quite pitiful."”
The plum blossom said,"So what if you're almost seventy years old? A local ruffian is a local ruffian. Even if you're buried in the mud, you're still a local ruffian."”
Mei Di said," You have to be clear. We can only speak ill of the people on the mountain. We can't speak ill of the people on the mountain. The people on the mountain are a big family.”
Plum Blossom said," A family with a stone field is a local tyrant. There are many families with a stone field in our house. Most of them are farming and eating at home. How can they be local tycoons? Isn't this nonsense? I don't understand why people who wear long robes are evil gentry. That Li Dad in our house wears long robes all day long. He doesn't even know how to draw a match and can't read. What kind of evil gentry is he? Mr. Rain wears a long robe. He is only nineteen years old, and he is conscientious and conscientious. Can you say that he is an evil gentry?”
"Why are you talking about the specifics?" Mei Di asked. We will do whatever Shiqi says. Anyway, we don't have a stone field at home, and no one wears a long robe. The revolution can't change our heads.”
"Why didn't you ask to clear the field?" asked Plum Blossom. He told us to smash the ancestral hall, burn the Bodhisattva, and burn the genealogy. The clansmen will beat us to death. Aren't you afraid?”
Mei Di said," Shiqi is right. The ancestral hall and genealogy are a kind of restriction on people. If we want to rebel, we can't have this kind of restriction. Can we still rebel with restrictions?”
After Mei Di and Mei Hua came back, they still worked in the poor family in Maple Ridge.
Li Dad agreed to join the Farmer Association and asked the association to give his family some money. Pei Die agreed to join the Farmers Association and asked the association to give her family some land. Father Fa had agreed to join the Farmer Association and asked the association to give him a child. He owed the child. Yu Xing had agreed to join the Farmers 'Association because he wanted the association to give his family some money. The Shi Xian brothers agreed to join the Farmers 'Association and asked the Farmers' Association to give them some land. The Yong and Tang brothers had agreed to join the Farmer Association and requested that the association give them two children, but they didn't have any children. Xi Gui requested to join the Farmers Association, Mei Di said,""You might not be allowed to participate. Only the poor can participate. You don't seem to be poor anymore.”Xigui said,"I was still a long-term worker the year before last. How can I not be poor?"”"You bought a lot of land," Mei Di said."You're almost a local tyrant now.”
The chief assistant had agreed to join the Farmer Association and requested that the Farmer Association give him a child. He owed a child. Wei Yun agreed to join the Farmers Association and requested to give him some houses, the best would be a house like the Refinement Hall. Zi Yun agreed to join the Farmers 'Association and requested that they allow him to leave Maple Ridge to make a living elsewhere. Songting agreed to join the Farmers 'Association and asked the association to send his son to learn a craft. Ren Qin agreed to join the Farmer Association, and it was the Farmer Association that gave him a child.
There was also a list of farmers who requested to join the Farmers 'Association. They also made various requests.
Mei Di had never been able to sleep well no matter what. He thought about how realistic and urgent the requests of these farmers were, but he was powerless to do anything about it. They asked for a bit of land, a bit of house, and a bit of money. Was this request too much? It was because they did not have it, because they had needs. It was easy to understand that some people wanted to have a child or even a wife. These were their practical difficulties and should be resolved.
The problem was that Mei Di herself did not have these things. The Farmers Association was just an empty shell and did not have these things either! If there was, at least he would be the first to get the moon. He had to satisfy himself first before he could satisfy others. Otherwise, others would not say that he was a fool.
With these questions, Mei Di and Mei Hua went to find Shiqi.
When they met Shiqi, Mei Di told her the situation, and Shiqi said,""It's almost the same. These days, the farmers 'associations from all over the country have reported the same situation. It's almost the same. This was because the farmers were short-sighted. They only saw a little bit of profit and only saw the benefits of their own families. You have to enlighten the farmers and let them raise their standards.”
Shiqi said," Why do we want to rebel? It's because this world is unreasonable. We want to destroy this old world and build a brand new world. The poor want to turn over a new leaf and become the masters of the family."”
This smashing was very terrifying. How terrifying was it? What kind of process was this? Mei Di still couldn't figure it out. Destroy the old world and build a new world.
Mei Di asked Shiqi for advice on how to carry out this peasant movement and what they were going to do when they went back.
Shiqi thought for a moment and said,"Choose the local tyrants and evil gentry. Whoever has more land will be chosen as the local tyrants. Whoever wore the robe would be chosen as the evil gentry, and then they would be led on a parade to kill their pigs and share their food. Then, he would smash the ancestral halls and local temples, burn the genealogy, and burn the Bodhisattvas. He wanted to take over the power of village management and let the peasant association control it.”
After the Mei Di brothers returned, they gathered those who were willing to join the peasant association in the main hall for a meeting.
Mei Di said," I know that everyone has many requests. Some want land, some want houses, some want money, some want children, and some want wives. Why did everyone have such requests? This was because most people did not have many or none of these things at home. Some people did not have any children at home, while others only had one wife at home. I can't say that everyone's request is too much. The problem is, where did these things come from? No, it wouldn't. Could it grow out of the ground? I won't."
Someone in the crowd said," Mei Di, why are you keeping me in suspense? You're already amazing after running around with Shiqi for a few days. You've learned to beat around the bush!" Tell me, where did these things come from!”
Mei Di said," That's a good question. Of course, it's from someone's house. We're discussing this tonight." Tonight, we're going to select the local tycoons in our house. After we've selected the local tycoons, we'll ask them for it. They have to give it to us no matter what. If they don't give it to us, we'll just travel to their hometown.”
People laughed. Everyone said," Mei Di, are you crazy? Why did you choose a rich man?”
Someone said,"Touch your head and see if you're confused from the fever."”
Mei Di said," Everyone, stop fooling around. I'm not crazy, and I'm not having a fever. We are indeed going to choose a nouveau riche. If you don't choose a nouveau riche, how are you going to fulfill your request?”
Everyone thought about it and agreed. If they didn't choose a tycoon, they wouldn't be able to fulfill their requests.
Hence, everyone quieted down. They were all thinking about choosing the nouveau riche. How many nouveau riche should we choose to satisfy our needs? It was definitely not good to choose too little. Would it be better to choose more?
Li Dad said,"I think we'll choose two. One will go up the mountain and one will go down the mountain."”
Pei Die said,"We should choose two people to go up the mountain. Go down the hill and choose one.”
The chief assistant said,"Why should we divide this kind of thing up and down? If we want to divide it, then we'll choose two each."”
Wei Yun said," Yes, yes, yes. Our ancestors were separated by two brothers, so we should split it evenly."”
Li Dad said," How about this? Everyone take a step back. How about we choose two from the mountain and three from the mountain?”
Some people laughed at Li Da and said,"Should we choose our Li Da as an evil gentry? He wears a long robe."”
Li Dad said,"That's a joke. I've never been to school. How can I be a gentry, let alone an evil gentry?"”
The person who laughed at him said,"Then don't wear a long robe.”
"There are many people in this world who wear long robes," Li Dad said."There are at least dozens of people in our house who wear long robes. Are they all evil gentry?”
Mei Di said," Alright, alright. Don't joke around. Even if you select the evil gentry, there's nothing to gain. Look at Father Li. His family is so poor that they only have a few bricks.”
In the end, everyone agreed to choose two tycoons from the bottom of the mountain and three tycoons from the top.
Who should he choose to be a tycoon? Shi Xian mentioned a name, Tong Shan.
Shi Xian's nomination was immediately opposed. Yong Tang said," It's true that we brothers don't have any descendants. We're just children who owe money. If we choose Tong Shan to be a local tyrant, we'll be heartless if we ask him for it." The youngest among us here is already eighteen years old, and the oldest is in their sixties. Which one of you is more worried about labor than Tong Shan? That's right, their family had many fields, many houses, and many children. That was the result of his hard work day and night. He deserved it. If we take their property and children, it will be an unjust act. Then I will withdraw from the Farmers Association.”
Zi Yun said,"If only Madam Huang was still alive, then we would have chosen her to be a local tyrant."”
Song Ting said," That's bullsh * t. Madam Huang is a woman. How can there be a female tycoon?" Besides, Madam Huang's mother was like a lotus pond, virtuous and virtuous. The children she raised were all well-behaved. Even if her family was rich, it was the result of labor. It was the result of heaven rewarding hard work.”
Zi Yun said," Isn't this a meeting? Since it's a meeting, I have the right to speak. Tong Shan couldn't be a local tyrant, and Madam Huang's family wasn't either. Then who else in our house was a local tyrant? They were the wealthiest, had the most land, the best houses, and the most descendants.”
Plum Blossom said,"Since it's an election, let's vote beans." First, Tong Shan and Xingren were chosen as local tycoons. Those who agreed would throw the beans into a porcelain bowl, and those who disagreed would throw the beans into a sand jar.”
Mei Di said," Good, good, good. This is a good idea. Let's choose two to try first. If we succeed, we'll choose three more."”
Plum Blossom began to prepare. The result of throwing beans was: Forty people voted for beans. Those who agreed with Tong Shan and Xingren being tycoons each had seven beans, while those who disagreed with them had thirty-three beans each.
"Are we still going to choose the other three?" Mei Di asked.”Everyone said that there was no need to choose.
Mei Di said," That's good. We won't be able to meet everyone's requirements. I'm sorry."”
When they returned home, Mei Hua said to Mei Di,""Big brother, tell me, are we messing around? "Look at our house. There are no local tycoons. A few wealthy families didn't rely on trickery and plunder. They all earned it through proper farming and business. Why should we divide their property and houses? Whether or not you have a child is also destined. Can you be tough?”
Mei Di said," Brother, you're too kind. This is a peasant movement. How can we be reasonable? If we want to be reasonable, we can't smash it. The nouveau riche was determined by people, and their standards were controlled by people. Whoever you said was a nouveau riche was a nouveau riche.”
"Big brother, aren't you being too radical? If this continues, society will be in chaos."”
Mei Di said," It has to be chaotic. If it's not chaotic, will those rich people hand over their assets?”
When they did not choose the local tycoons in Maple Ridge, the Mei Di brothers went to Sun Village and Yan Village to carry out their activities. There were also poor people like them in those two houses. They went there five or six times in a row and came back with a rebuff. They asked Mei Di if the local tycoons in their own houses had been chosen and if they had divided their land and property. Mei Di could only tell the truth. They laughed at Mei Di, saying that he rolled up his pants to plow other people's cattle. Mei Di defended herself, saying that it wasn't like that. It was just that there really weren't any rich people in her house. They said,'It's still the same. You're still rolling up your pants to plow other people's cows.'
Mei Di could be said to have failed. After running around for more than a month without any gains, his wife in the house scolded him,""You unlucky bastard. You're always out there acting crazy. You don't even want your wife or your child. Instead of working to earn money, you only think of good things all day long. The pie in the sky might not fall on your head.”
Mei Di said," Alright, alright. I'll go to Yuezhou City tonight to fetch water and sell it. I'll earn money to buy the southeast wind for you to drink."”
That night, Mei Di left with her younger brother, Mei Hua. In fact, Mei Di had no intention of selling water. He was going to find Shiqi. Shiqi was no longer in the doctor's room. He had set up his base camp in Yuezhou City to guide the peasant movement in the northern part of Hunan.
Mei Di and the others traveled north along the railway. Sometimes they walked on the embankment, and sometimes they walked in the middle of the road. The ice had been frozen for more than a month. Both the embankment and the middle of the road were slippery. They would fall if they were not careful. From time to time, they could hear the howls of wild wolves on the mountain. They were also extremely hungry, and their stomachs were empty. Mei Di and the others stumbled through the night. They had covered more than 70 miles and finally arrived at Yuezhou the next morning.
They found Shiqi. At this time, Shiqi was still sleeping and unwillingly opened the door for Mei Di and the others. Shiqi said," I really slept late last night. I'm still sleeping. I'm sitting under the blanket and leaning against the wall with my eyes closed. You guys talk about your things. I'm listening in a daze."”
Mei Di recounted what she had done in the past two months, emphasizing the difficulties and failures. Shiqi narrowed her eyes and said," Don't always say that you've failed. At least, the peasants have been mobilized. They know about the peasant movement, the peasant association, and the need to overthrow the local tyrants and evil gentry. It doesn't matter if we don't succeed today. Our party will succeed sooner or later.”
Shiqi said,"Your next move is to smash the ancestral hall, burn the genealogy, burn the Bodhisattva, and destroy the clan power." However, it's almost the new year and the weather is freezing. The water business in Yuezhou City is very good. You guys can do some business to earn some money and go back for the new year. In February next year, there will be a big operation in northern Hunan. At that time, you won't feel lonely and won't be opposed to doing this again.”
The water business in Yuezhou City was indeed very good. In the Frozen Sky, people without experience could not fetch water to sell. The stone roads were so slippery that they could not win. Not only would you not earn money, but you would also get a bruise on your face and break the bucket. It was not worth it.
The Mei Di brothers were already old salesmen. They wore straw sandals and were not afraid of slippery roads. In such weather, a bucket of water sold for three times the usual price. The two brothers had been doing business here for half a month and earned enough money for the New Year. As they did business, they listened to the people in the city talking about the peasant movement in northern Hunan. Many stories stirred up waves in their hearts. They were eager to try and still wanted to go back and make a scene.
Before returning home, the Mei Di brothers went to see Shiqi again.
This time, Shiqi talked eloquently about the Northern Expedition, the National Revolutionary Army, the Chinese People's Party, and the peasant movements in southern and central Hunan. Shiqi said," The peasant movement is a part of the national revolution. On December 1st, the first peasant representative conference of Hunan was held in Changsha. Chairman Mao also came and made an important speech. He believed that the central problem of the national revolution was the peasant problem. The conference also made forty proposals, the core of which was to overthrow corrupt officials and local tyrants and evil gentry. You brothers are all poor people and should become the backbone of the national revolution. When you go back, you have to carry out the peasant movement well. It doesn't matter if you fail. If you fail, come again. The poor are the majority. They will follow you. As long as you have a glib tongue, saying black is white, saying white is black, and convincing them is victory. I wish you all victory.”
In April 1916, the peasant movement in Hunan reached its peak.
Mei Di then summoned the members of the Agricultural Association to the main hall for a meeting. Mei Di said,""The last time we didn't choose the local tyrants, it means that our campaign failed. This doesn't mean that there are no local tyrants in the countryside. Let's not talk about other places, just our ancestral hall alone. There are local tyrants in other houses, and they even fled to the city to hide. What should we do next? Shiqi said that our next step was to smash the ancestral hall, burn the genealogy, and burn the Bodhisattva. There are many shrines and temples in our house. There are many Bodhisattvas there. We have to burn them one by one. Then we will go to Maotian Mountain to smash the ancestral hall and burn the genealogy.”
Li Dad said," Mei Di, you must be crazy. Bodhisattva has blessed us for thousands of years. How can you burn them? If you don't believe in Bodhisattva, disaster will come to you."”
Ren Qin said," A person has to believe in something. If you don't believe in something, you're no different from a mad dog. If you smash and burn Bodhisattva, our hearts will be empty. Then, is there any difference between us and a mad dog?"”
"Mei Di, do you know what these Bodhisattvas are?" Songting asked. On each altar is our ancestor, Duke Dezhou. On the top of the mountain is Duke Shi 'an, and on the bottom is Duke Xingfu. Then there is the Earth Bodhisattva and General Yang Si. If you smash them and burn them, wouldn't you be abandoning your ancestors?”
Yong Tang said," Logically speaking, Bodhisattva is supposed to bless us. Why does Bodhisattva only bless your family with five or six children while we don't have a single child in our family? In my opinion, it's fine if Bodhisattva doesn't want this."”
For a moment, the forty people in the main hall were arguing.
Plum Blossom said,"Let's vote with beans. It's fairer this way."”
The result of the bean toss was that 23 people agreed to burn the Bodhisattva, and 22 people objected to burning the Bodhisattva. Therefore, it was decided that from tomorrow onwards, two shrines of Bodhisattva would be burned every day.
Mei Di returned home. As soon as he came back, his wife began to scold him, saying that he was a mad dog and that he was going to burn Bodhisattva. He was probably courting death.
The woman said," I believe in Bodhisattva. Without Bodhisattva's blessing, how could there be our Xiner? If you burn Bodhisattva, I'll fight with your dog life, or beat you to death and feed you to the dogs."”
As they were talking, a large group of women surrounded Mei Di's house. They were shouting and shouting. They were all against burning the Bodhisattva. They said that whoever burned the Bodhisattva would have their head smashed.
Mei Di's wife grabbed Mei Di's hair and told him to kneel down. She said,""Hurry up and promise these women not to burn Bodhisattva. If you don't agree, I'll kill you with them tonight.”
The women entered the house. Some of them grabbed Mei Di's ears, some of them turned Mei Di's hands around, and some of them patted Mei Di's face, asking him to promise not to burn it.
Mei Di said," Alright, alright, my little ones. I promise you all. I won't burn them anymore."”
Everyone let go of Mei Di and went home.
The next day, there were two women standing in front of the local temple and each shrine doing needlework. They wanted to see which shameless man would dare to burn the Bodhisattva.
Naturally, Mei Di did not dare to do so. After he had breakfast, Mei Di's wife ordered him to dig the fields and even followed him to the fields, afraid that he would come back and do evil.
A few days later, Mei Di secretly colluded with a dozen people to go to Maotian Mountain.
The ancestral hall of the Liu family in Maple Ridge was built at the foot of Maotian Mountain. This ancestral hall governed the thousands of descendants of the Liu family in the five passes and thirteen gates. The ancestral hall had been built for more than 200 years. It was magnificent and dazzling to this day.
While Mei Di was still secretly making connections, someone from Maple Ridge went to the ancestral hall to report. The person in charge of the ancestral hall went to inform the elder of Po Pass. The elder said,"This bunch of unfilial descendants. If they come, I guarantee that they won't be able to return.”
Mei Di and the others found the person in charge of the ancestral hall and opened the door. The person in charge of the ancestral hall smiled as he watched them all enter. He blew a whistle. Suddenly, more than thirty young men holding sticks rushed out from the back hall and surrounded Mei Di and the others.
Elder Po Guan stood in front and said,"Mei Di, what are you doing? Why are you so aggressive with so many people? Are you trying to rebel?"
" We're here to pay our respects to our ancestor, Duke Man." Mei Di said with a flash of inspiration." We're here because we're having a hard time at home. We're here to pray for the blessings of Duke Man."”
The elder said," Hehe, Mei Diya has become so polite. I heard that he's messing around with some damn Farmer Association. I'm afraid he's here to cause trouble!"”
Mei Di said," No, no. We are indeed here to pray for blessings. Please investigate, Elder."”
The elder said,"We're here to pray for blessings. Why don't we bring incense with us?"”
Mei Di said," We brought our weapons to guard against the wild wolves 'sneak attacks. Last year, it was freezing cold, so many wild wolves came. They haven't left yet." We thought that there was incense in the ancestral hall, so we didn't bring any.”
The elder said,"Good, good, then kneel down and pray to the Lord." If you are up to no good, we will beat you to death and throw your corpses into the Maotian Port to feed the fish.”
In May, an incident occurred in Changsha. The Northern Expedition Army turned around to clean up the radical party that rebelled in the rear. The vigorous peasant movement also gradually died down. Mei Di and the others were free after running around like headless flies for nine months. The two brothers went to Yuezhou City to fetch water and sell it.
"Big brother, we still have to be decent people, or others will look down on us."”
This book comes from：m.funovel.com。