After being reborn, I have seven older sisters.

On the way home, Song Guangliang and Chunsheng chatted enthusiastically about training-related topics all the way, while Hongqin listened quietly without interrupting.

As she approached Chunsheng's house, she finally said, "I'm going home!"

Then he left without looking back, walking westward along the village lanes.

After glancing thoughtfully at Hongqin's retreating figure, Chunsheng led Song Guangliang into the house.

Chunsheng's two older sisters were cooking in the kitchen, and he searched the whole house but couldn't find his parents.

So she immediately ran to the kitchen and asked her sister, "Where did Mom and Dad go?"

Seventh Sister Chunmiao, who was working the bellows with her head down, immediately replied, "As soon as I got back from the fields, the village secretary called everyone to a meeting at the brigade headquarters. Every household has to send a representative, so Mom and Dad are at the brigade headquarters right now!"

Song Chunsheng asked with a puzzled look, "Then why did they both go?"

In the past, for similar meetings, only one representative was needed to attend; even if two people went, only one could enter.

Usually, it was the father, Song Mantun, who went by himself, unless the father was not at home, in which case the mother would take his place at the brigade headquarters meeting.

It was almost unheard of for both parents to attend a meeting, which is why Chunsheng was curious.

At this moment, Sixth Sister Chunzao, who was chopping vegetables on the cutting board, immediately explained, "It was Uncle who came here specifically to ask our parents to go, saying it was the village secretary's idea."

"I heard that today's meeting was somehow related to Grandpa, which is why they both went together!"

Upon hearing this, Chunsheng was immediately startled. "What is Grandpa going to do? He's so old, why would he go and join in that kind of fun?"

Chunmiao smiled. "Don't worry, with Uncle and Aunt and Dad there, even if Grandpa goes, he should be fine!"

"I heard that today's meeting is related to yesterday's looting of the livestock shed. Our grandfather was there taking care of the animals, and he happened to be there when those people were looting. Maybe that's why!"

After listening, Chunsheng nodded as if he understood, and then fell silent.

He was about to take Song Guangliang to the backyard for some exercise when Song Guangliang said, "Why don't we go to the brigade headquarters and join in the fun, and see how Song Yonghong's dad deals with those troublemakers in the village (dialect, often used to criticize someone for being stupid or annoying)!"

Chunsheng originally didn't want to go, but after hearing what Song Guangliang said, he was a little tempted.

Those people, whose minds are full of feudal superstitions, even cut Grandpa's hand with glass yesterday while they were fighting over things in the animal shed.

He really wanted to see it for himself, to witness the embarrassing and shameful state of those people being criticized in public.

When Chunzao and Chunmiao saw that their younger brother was also going to the brigade headquarters, they immediately reminded him, "Go early and come back early. Dinner will be ready soon. If there's nothing important, you can also call Mom and Dad back for dinner!"

Chunsheng agreed and then ran with Song Guangming towards the village's brigade headquarters.

The brigade headquarters was located in the fourth team in the north of the city, facing south, with its back right next to the city wall of Songjiazhuang Village.

It occupies a very large area; the entire yard, when added together, covers at least several acres.

This place used to be the residence of a large landowner in the village.

Decades ago, after the old landlord's only son was kidnapped and murdered by a gang of bandits entrenched in the Qinling Mountains, the once grand mansion fell into complete ruin in less than a decade.

After the old landlord died, the original servants and long-term laborers all left or went their separate ways.

Even more tragically, on a summer thunderstorm, this already dilapidated old house was burned to the ground overnight, leaving nothing but broken tiles and ruins.

According to some elderly people in the fourth team, whenever it rains, faint crying sounds can be heard coming from that abandoned house.

From then on, the house was sealed off by the village officials.

Until recently, when the village's production brigade needed to find a place to set up its headquarters, and since they couldn't find a suitable place, someone immediately thought of that abandoned house that had been sealed off for a long time.

So, with the joint efforts of all the villagers, in just over ten days, all the old things in the abandoned house were cleared out and filled into a ditch in the north of the village.

Of course, that was more than a decade ago!

The old house is now completely unrecognizable. Apart from a row of tiled houses where village leaders used to conduct official business, the rest of the area has been completely demolished and transformed into a large square that can accommodate nearly a thousand people at the same time.

When Chunsheng and Song Guangliang entered through the two half-open gates of the brigade headquarters, the square in the courtyard was already full of people.

Almost everyone was sitting on a small stool they had brought from home, and as far as the eye could see, there was a sea of ​​heads.

This was the first time Chunsheng had seen so many people at the brigade headquarters. He had almost never participated in this kind of activity before.

So he immediately whispered to Song Guangliang, "Didn't you say each family would only send one representative? But with this many people, even if each family sent three or four, it would still be more than that!"

"Judging from your question, I can tell you haven't attended many of these village meetings!"

After finishing his explanation, Song Guangliang continued, "Starting the year before last, there were no longer any restrictions on the number of attendees at these brigade meetings. The rule was that each household could send one representative, but if several people from one household came, they could all attend. It's not as strict as it used to be!"

Just as the two were talking, one of the village cadres sitting in a row with their backs to the brigade office gently patted the microphone wrapped in red cloth and said with a serious expression.

"Now...everyone whose name I call, hand over the production team's public property that you took home from the animal shed yesterday!"

"Song Youwang, Song Erchong, Wang Caie, Zhang Juxian, Song Luxi..."

As the village official read out each name, the previously quiet square instantly erupted into a commotion.

Soon, a male commune member in his early forties, with sallow skin and a slightly hunched back, stepped out from the crowd. He was carrying a hoe, and a red cloth strip was wrapped around the back of the hoe.

The man walked to the center of the square, intending to put down his hoe and immediately return to the crowd.

But he was immediately stopped by another village leader, who told him to stand there first, as there were other things to say later, and he could only leave after he finished speaking.

The person was stuck in the middle of the crowd and couldn't move, so he had to lower his head and wait.

Soon, one after another, twenty or thirty people emerged from the crowd, each carrying something in their hands.

Half of the people brought tools such as hoes and iron picks.

To everyone's amusement, the half-door panel and two straw curtains that had been used to house Chunsheng that day were also brought up.

Finally, when a middle-aged woman walked up with half a piece of straw rope in her hand and stood in the center of the square, everyone present could no longer hold back and burst into loud laughter.

The woman was so ashamed that she immediately covered her face, squatted down on the ground, and began to sob.