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墨書 Inktalez
In his contemporary work "Ninety-Three Reflections," the author Liang Xiaosheng wrote: "... at that time, grassroots officials were lined up in long queues, each one called out for processing. Perhaps a few were wronged, but if one was processed after another, many problematic officials would escape unscathed..."
While this statement may seem absolute, the actual situation was indeed not to be underestimated.
On the fourth day of the sixth month of the Lunar Calendar in 1976, which corresponds to the day of Gui Chou in the year of Bing Chen, Hu Ruoyun was born in Hujiazhuang Village, Laogu Township, Annan County, Jinan City, Jiangbei Province. From the moment he began to remember, all he saw was poverty written in capital letters.
The village was poor, the production team was poor, and his own family was poor; every household was struggling.
Even at the township market, there were only a few storefronts belonging to the supply and marketing cooperative and a state-run restaurant. The entire street appeared gray and lifeless, with a few elderly men giving haircuts and shaves under an old poplar tree at the entrance of the Town Government compound providing a different kind of scenery.
Due to malnutrition, everyone’s face had a dull gray hue.
His parents worked daily under the sound of the team leader's bell to earn work points, but in that collective environment, even with everyone working hard, little value could be generated.
The team leader decided on the work points and distribution of farm tasks for the members. During vegetable and grain distribution, he weighed everything. For the members, no matter how capable one was, it was unwise to challenge the team leader. At the village head level, they were regarded as almost god-like figures.
At six years old, Hu Ruoyun finally carried a small bag made from patched cloth on his back to attend primary school. The classrooms were built from mud bricks and were so low that it seemed one could touch the ceiling with an outstretched hand. There were no desks; instead, there were long benches made from cement and bricks where children squeezed together sitting on small stools they brought from home.
The blackboard was simply a patch of cement smeared on the wall and dyed black with ink—a "handcrafted" creation.
At that time, neither parents nor children had a clear concept or expectation of studying hard because nothing was more important than filling their stomachs.
During the collective farming period in summer, the entire production team could harvest less than twenty thousand pounds of wheat—averaging less than two hundred pounds per person. The autumn corn yield was slightly better, but each person would only receive about three hundred pounds.
While no one starved to death, food was certainly insufficient.
Most farming families typically ate cornbread mixed with a bit of white flour; whenever someone steamed white bread or made noodles, it signified that important guests had arrived at their home.
According to Hu Ruoyun's Second Uncle, if you trace back through the generations, his ancestors were illiterate. One year during the Spring Festival, the family asked an acquaintance to write couplets, but the person took advantage of their illiteracy and wrote, "Buy one pound, get one pound free, debts old and new are never clear."
This was followed by a long sigh.
Later on, with the implementation of land contracting to households, the lives of farmers underwent significant changes.
After five years of elementary school (at that time, most rural elementary schools had a five-year program), Hu Ruoyun continued to middle school. However, due to a weak foundation in elementary education, his performance in middle school was dismal.
As population policies became stricter, it gradually became one of the most important tasks at the county, township, and village levels. When Hu Ruoyun's sister Xiao Feng was born, there were few repercussions; however, by the time his younger brother Xiao Hu was born, fines had to be paid.
Farmers generally believed that "more children mean more blessings."
According to regulations, each couple could only have one child. Yet, a casual glance revealed that unless one was a public servant or a teacher in a public school, most farmers had at least two children.
As long as they "greased the wheels" for the officials in charge of population control in their village or township, those officials would turn a blind eye and even help devise strategies for dealing with regular inspections.
The saying "you eat what you rely on" became the norm among certain specialized personnel and grassroots officials.
Another point worth mentioning was the work style of that time.
Back then, the most common slogans plastered on rural street walls were related to population control. The messages were simple and straightforward but also quite harsh.
During his time at the newspaper office, the author came across an internal report (over thirty years have passed since then; although related content is classified, it has now surpassed its confidentiality period): a county in central China organized multiple departments to conduct a thorough investigation. They gathered all married individuals of childbearing age in a village at the local primary school for identification purposes. This included widows as well. The staff's language and methods were simple and brutal; they herded people like chickens and ducks.
An elderly man who once proudly crossed the Yalu River could not bear to watch this unfold. He stepped forward to voice his discontent but was met with violence from those involved in the joint operation. The man collapsed from anger and shock and never got back up.
A colleague from the newspaper interviewed there for three days, publishing an article in an internal report that caught the attention of the then Vice Governor. Ultimately, several key officials from various departments in that county faced disciplinary action, with over ten individuals losing their positions due to this incident.
In the 1980s, the government sold voucher-style Treasury Bonds to farmers, which was initially a beneficial initiative for both the country and its citizens. With the funds acquired, the government could better develop the economy and undertake significant projects to improve people's livelihoods. Farmers, in turn, could earn higher returns than traditional savings, making it a win-win situation.
However, the reality was that some local management departments and officials failed to explain what Treasury Bonds were to the farmers. Regardless of whether they agreed or not, the relevant fees were directly deducted from the Agricultural Tax.
Moreover, most of the vouchers that should have been distributed equally to farmers ended up lining the pockets of certain individuals who misappropriated them for personal gain.
Due to information asymmetry, the farmers were left in the dark; they didn’t even understand what the few Treasury Bonds they received were for and merely viewed them as an additional burden imposed by arbitrary charges.
It is important to note that China has eight hundred million farmers, and under such a large base, the amount involved is staggering.
Am I digressing again? Back to the main point.
Hu Ruoyun began to take action.
He made copies of the detailed written account of his encounters with Dog Young Master during the Entrance Examination period and packaged them with newly developed photographs. He placed everything into a large envelope addressed to Wang Hongbin as indicated on his business card and sent it off as a registered letter.
He was confident that the secretary would ensure this letter reached Wang Hongbin.
Do not underestimate Wang Hongbin just because he is merely a deputy director of a county bureau; in his eyes, such a position is hardly significant.
Hu Ruoyun's mail was sent from Annan County's Laogu Township Post Office and would take about a week to reach the Provincial Capital. Hu Ruoyun firmly believed that Wang Hongbin would pay attention to this matter.
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