Ordinary World: Starting with a divorce from Tian Runye

One week later, in Yuanxi County.

The entire county revolutionary committee, from top to bottom, was extremely busy.

The old man at the gatehouse swept the yard three times early in the morning, mopped up the dust on the steps with a wet mop, and repainted the slogans at the entrance with a fresh layer of white paint. A new green velvet cloth was laid on the table in the meeting room.

Feng Shikuan was standing at the building entrance at 7:30. His shirt was buttoned up to the top, his hair was neatly combed, and his leather shoes were polished twice. Ma Guoxiong arrived at 8:00, Li Dengyun at 8:15, and Zhang Youzhi at 8:30. The directors of various communes also arrived one after another, including Bai Mingchuan from Shigejie, Zhou Wenlong from Liucha, and several other commune leaders.

Everyone had arrived, except for Tian Fujun.

Feng Shih-kuan glanced at the crowd, a slight twitch at the corner of his mouth.

Li Dengyun stood in the line, staring blankly at his leather shoes.

That Tian Fujun is a real stubborn mule.

Miao Kai is personally coming to inspect. Even if you have grievances, showing your face won't hurt you, will it? Absent from this occasion is clearly a sign of disrespect to Miao Kai. It's one thing to stand up to Feng Shikuan in the county, but now you're not even giving face to local officials?

That idiot Li Xiangqian said that Tian Fujun would eventually surpass Feng Shikuan and make Miao Kai stand aside.

Is that all the political wisdom you have?

How could I not believe it!

……

At 9:00 AM sharp, a gray jeep turned into the county revolutionary committee compound.

The passenger door opened first, and a tall, thin young man in his early thirties stepped out, carrying a faux leather briefcase. He was Bai Yuan, Miao Kai's secretary, who had previously worked as a teacher in the Huangyuan area before being transferred to the prefectural committee office.

After Bai Yuan got out of the car, he opened the back door, and Miao Kai stepped out.

She was in her fifties, with fair skin, a slightly plump figure, and neatly combed hair. When she smiled, her eyes narrowed into slits, giving her a friendly appearance.

Feng Shih-kuan went forward first and grasped Miao Kai's hands with both of his.

"Secretary Miao, you must have had a long and bumpy journey!"

"Haha, what's a little bump? Back when we were building the Yuanxi Irrigation Canal, I was the head of the work group, and I was so busy I didn't sleep for three days and three nights straight!"

"Secretary Miao was a real hero in our Yuanxi County back in the day. I heard about his heroic deeds when I was still working as a clerk in the commune!"

Feng Shih-kuan quickly agreed, giving a thumbs-up.

Miao Kai nodded, "Yes, that was a vast expanse for forging a red heart. I really miss the old days." He then smiled and patted Feng Shikuan's hand, glancing around at everyone present.

"Comrade Shikuan, our comrades from Yuanxi County are in great spirits, each one full of energy and vigor."

"That's all thanks to Secretary Miao's effective leadership."

Miao Kai waved his hand and shook hands with everyone with a smile.

Miao Kai paused for a moment when he reached Bai Mingchuan.

"From Shigejie Commune?"

"Yes, Secretary Miao. Bai Mingchuan, Shigejie Commune."

"Good, good. Shigejie is one of our veteran role models. Give me a good report today."

Bai Mingchuan nodded quickly.

Miao Kai smiled and nodded as he walked up to Li Dengyun.

"Comrade Dengyun, you've worked hard."

"Secretary Miao, you've worked hard."

Miao Kai walked up to Zhang Youzhi, glanced at him, and shook his hand.

He then turned to ask Feng Shih-kuan.

"Comrade Shih-kuan, where are Comrade Fu-jun? Why didn't they come?"

Feng Shikuan quickly replied, "Comrade Fujun is not feeling well and has taken the day off."

Miao Kai hummed in agreement, his smile unchanged.

Secretary Bai Yuan chimed in with a smile, "Director Feng's work is one thing, but we also need to take care of the health of the other comrades. Director Tian is in charge of agriculture, and we're missing an important figure today."

After listening, Miao Kai turned his head to the side, seemingly lost in thought, and continued to shake hands with the other leaders in the county one by one without saying a word.

The main activity in the morning was listening to reports from the advanced communes.

In the county revolutionary committee's main conference room, a long table was covered with a green velvet cloth, and an enamel teapot sat in the center. Miao Kai sat in the main seat, with Feng Shikuan and Bai Yuan on either side. The rest of the people took their seats in order.

The first to report was Bai Mingchuan from Shigejie Commune.

Bai Mingchuan stood up, holding a draft report in his hand. His voice was not loud, but his points were clear and organized.

"Secretary Miao, Director Feng, and other leaders, in the 'Learn from Dazhai in Agriculture' campaign this year, the twelve production teams of Shigejie Commune have reclaimed 320 mu of wasteland and built four new irrigation canals, totaling six and a half li in length. It is estimated that this year's autumn grain yield per mu will increase by 20% compared to last year..."

Bai Mingchuan reported the data one by one, and when talking about the canal construction, he gave a specific example: the members of a certain production team dug a canal for a month in the winter when the temperature was below minus ten degrees Celsius, and several people suffered frostbite.

Miao Kai listened, nodding from time to time.

"Well, the comrades in Shigejie are full of energy."

The second person to report was Zhou Wenlong from Liucha Commune.

Zhou Wenlong's report was shorter than Bai Mingchuan's, but his voice was loud and his tone was impassioned, frequently adding phrases like "under the wise leadership of Secretary Miao" or "under the kind care of Director Feng." The data he presented was also impressive, with phrases like "estimated grain production has doubled" and "the lives of commune members have significantly improved."

Miao Kai listened with a smile and said, "Not bad, not bad."

The reports from the following communes were largely similar, revolving around the keywords "achievements," "data," and "advanced."

After the report, Miao Kai stood up and gave a brief concluding speech.

"I am very pleased to have heard the reports from each commune. Yuanxi County is a model of learning from Dazhai in agriculture in our Huangyuan region, and this model must not fall. Comrade Shikuan and all the comrades present here have done a great deal of work, and their achievements are obvious to all."

He paused, then looked around the room.

"Of course, achievements are one thing, but we must also face the problems squarely. The foundation of some communes is still relatively weak, and some unhealthy tendencies have emerged outside. We cannot be complacent. We cannot just look at the numbers; we must also fully mobilize the enthusiasm of the commune members and consolidate the advanced achievements of learning from Dazhai in agriculture. Comrades, we must continue to work hard in this regard."

After listening, Feng Shih-kuan stood up and clapped vigorously, and the others followed suit.

After Miao Kai finished his summary, Feng Shih-kuan began to speak.

"Comrades of Yuanxi County, learning from Dazhai in agriculture is a banner of our Yuanxi County, and we must hold it high and carry it forward. Secretary Miao's earnest teachings are still ringing in our ears. There are indeed some unhealthy trends outside, and we must be vigilant. Some commune members, and even some comrades present here and those who are not present, may be affected by these unhealthy trends."

Feng Shih-kuan paused here and glanced at Chang Yu-chih.

Zhang Youzhi kept his head down, his fingertips rubbing the pen.

The comrade present is none other than myself, Zhang Youzhi, and the comrade who is not present must be Tian Fujun.

Throughout the county revolutionary committee, only Zhang Youzhi and Tian Fujun firmly emphasized facing the problems squarely. Although they did not openly deny the "Learn from Dazhai in Agriculture" movement, they at least chose to ignore it.

Tian Fujun deliberately claimed to be sick and didn't come today. On this point, Li Dengyun felt that Tian Fujun lacked political wisdom, while Zhang Youzhi only felt that Tian Fujun had guts.

"On behalf of the Yuanxi County Revolutionary Committee, I hereby pledge to Secretary Miao that no matter how the winds blow outside, the banner of learning from Dazhai in agriculture in Yuanxi County will never fall."

"good!"

After Feng Shih-kuan finished speaking, Miao Kai immediately led the applause, which was loud and continuous.

After the applause subsided, Feng Shih-kuan leaned closer to Miao Kai and said something.

"Secretary Miao, our county cultural center has prepared a performance showcasing the spirit of learning from Dazhai in agriculture. Would you like to come to the auditorium and take a look?"

Miao Kai nodded.

"See? Community cultural work is also very important."

Miao Kai took the lead, and the others naturally followed. The group left the county revolutionary committee's conference room.