Chapter Thirty-One: Wicked People Will Be Ground by Other Wicked People

  Xue Xiang led Xiaowan and the other two into the visiting group's gate. Xue Xiang had two large boxes in his arms, while Xiaowan was carrying clothes for Xue An Yuan. As soon as they entered, they saw a spacious office hall with seven or eight desks lined up against the wall, each piled high with files. Seven or eight staff members were busy writing materials, and all that could be heard was the scratching of pens on paper and the humming of the ceiling fan above. On the snow-white wall in front of them, sixteen large characters read: "Persuade relatives to confess their problems and help them correct their mistakes", obviously for the visiting family members to see.

  "Come, you four come over!" The speaker was a thin middle-aged man sitting in the northwest corner, with a clean face and wearing a gray PLA cap, with a serious look of class struggle. Those who didn't know him would think he was so upright and selfless, but actually he was something else that Xue Xiang had already found out.

  Xue Xiang led Xiao Wan to his desk and said, "Comrade, we have come to visit our uncle Xue An Yuan."

  "I know you're here to see Comrade Xue Anyuan. The staff member who brought you in just spoke with me about it. I've called you over for two reasons: first, to inspect the items you've brought with you and see if there's anything prohibited; second, to hope that you can persuade Comrade Xue Anyuan to confess his problems in a timely manner and not engage in confrontation with the organization, as this will only lead to a bad outcome." The thin middle-aged man said sternly.

  Where had Xiao Shi ever seen anyone talk to themselves like that? He was so scared that his face turned pale, and he quickly moved closer to Big Brother, hugging his leg tightly. Xue Xiang was annoyed by the commotion and put two cardboard boxes on the desk of the thin middle-aged man. He picked up Xiao Shi and held him in his arms. Xue Xiang had already felt eight-tenths unhappy with this deadpan face, and now seeing him scare Xiao Shi, he immediately became angry: "Comrade, if you want to inspect our things, then inspect them, don't give us a big lecture, we can't understand your grand theories. The organization didn't ask you to interrogate family members, did it?"

  "You little comrade, what's your attitude? How can you talk to me like this? The organization has always considered you trainees' family members and children as educable and salvageable. But look at your attitude now, where is the slightest sign of accepting education?..." The thin middle-aged man said with a pained expression, actually he was most annoyed that Xue Xiang had added an "old" prefix when addressing him in front of his comrades.

  "Ah, I've heard that Director Luo Zili loves to lecture people. At first, I didn't believe it, but now I do. You really are knowledgeable." Xue said with feigned flattery. Before he came, he had already inquired about the habits of Luo Zili, the leader of the inspection team, who was notorious for using the excuse "cadres here are undergoing ideological remolding, not indulging in bourgeois corruption" to confiscate the good things brought by family members. If they didn't think of a way to deal with him, all these fine cigarettes and wine would end up benefiting this old man.

  "How did you know my surname is Luo? Who told you? Little comrade, you still have a bit of discernment. I'm a university graduate, after all."

  "Who told me that you don't care, your great name has already spread throughout the four corners of the city."

  "Is that so? My reputation is actually this big, how did I not know? It's true, I've been busy with revolutionary work, rescuing these fallen comrades, and haven't gone out in a long time. This heart of mine has long been dedicated to the Party, there's no longer a me."

  Xue Xiang felt nauseous, and the others in the office weren't much better, each covering their stomach with their hands. Xue Xiang said: "Everyone says you're a big intellectual, but you're actually very reactionary."

  "You, what do you mean, you..." Luo Zili was somewhat at a loss, wasn't he just boasting about himself? How could this turn into accusing me of being reactionary, this is unbearable."

  "Don't be in a hurry, this is not what I said."

  "Who spoke first? You quickly tell me, and I'll consider it a meritorious revelation."

  "You still want to settle scores with him? This person is not someone you can afford to offend."

  "Don't mind this, just tell me who he is and I won't believe in evil spirits anymore. Is there still someone daring to slander a revolutionary warrior?"

  "Alright, I'll tell you. You just need to look down at your clothes, it's right in front of your chest. Do you have the guts to go find that old man and settle the account?"

  "You, you actually dare to make fun of our great leader, you're really reactionary to the core, this time..."

  "You'd better stop right there. The great leader taught us that 'the more knowledge, the more reactionary', isn't that correct? First, you're proud of your own knowledge, this is the stench of intellectuals thinking they're superior, you're alienating yourself from the masses. Secondly, you actually dared to say you want to settle accounts with the great leader, not just me who heard it, all the comrades present heard it, do you think you can kill people and silence them?" Xue then lured him into a trap, and captured him in one move. In this era, anyone who dares to mock the great leader is unheard of, even listening to such talk is rare, if the portrait of the leader on the wall is damaged, it's a crime.

  Lu Zili has fallen into the trap, and for a moment he is flustered. He can't say that the great leader is wrong, can he? That little brat, using words to lure me in, now I'm really trapped, what should I do, I have to think of a way out quickly. Among the eight people in the office, four are my confidants and shouldn't leak anything, the other four will be taken care of with some measures. But this smiling little brat in front of me is hard to deal with, can't really kill him to silence him, I'm not that crazy yet. Looking at his sly manner, intimidation won't work, so there's only one option left: bribery.

  Luo Zili made up his mind, put on a smiling face, and said: "Comrade Xiao is here to visit An Yuan, right? Then please go in quickly, no need to check anything. What's there to check anyway? I've always thought this system is very inappropriate. Who doesn't have parents or children? Sending something over and checking it back and forth, first of all, this is disrespecting the students. Comrade Xiao, An Yuan has made great progress here, his spirit and appearance are much better than before. I think for comrades who make such progress, the organization should give more care in their daily life. Let me take a stand here, from now on, An Yuan's food standard will be the same as ours, no, it'll be the same as mine. What do you think, Comrade Xiao?"

  Xue Xiangye didn't want to be ruthless, after all, someone was helping take care of his uncle, which wasn't bad. He smiled and said, "Then thank you, Uncle Luo, we can go in now."

  Luo Zili saw Xue Xiang change his tone, no longer mentioning the previous topic, and let out a sigh of relief. When he saw Xue Xiang was about to leave, he hastily said: "Little Wang, send Little Comrade to room number four, yes, the one with the sofa, and also withdraw the guard at the door. What's the point of having someone eavesdrop on family members meeting?" Luo Zili sent off Xiao Mo Tou, wiped the sweat from his forehead, and secretly thought, "That was close!" He had no idea that danger was only just beginning. It was his four most trusted people who reported his remarks to their superiors at different times and places. Luo Zili was taken away and never came out again, while his throne was taken over by one of the four.

  ………..

  "Ah!" With a push, Xue opened the door to room 4 and immediately saw an elderly man with a tall stature and white hair standing up from the sofa. The old man's appearance was exactly as he remembered his uncle - thick eyebrows, big eyes, dense hair, a square nose and wide mouth. Compared to his memories, there was hardly any change, except that his originally black hair had turned quite white, but his back remained straight as ever.

  Xue Xiang's father, Xue Dingyuan, had an older brother and a younger brother. His older brother was Xue Anyuan, and his third younger brother was Xue Pingyuan. Xue Anyuan was born in 1919 and joined the Red Army at the age of 16. After the outbreak of the Anti-Japanese War, he was assigned to the 229th Division. In 1939, at the age of 20, Xue Anyuan became the commander of the guard company of the division headquarters. He was awarded the rank of Major General in 1955 and became one of the youngest generals in the Republic at the age of 36. Xue Pingyuan was born in 1936 and graduated from the South China Advanced Artillery Military Command College at the age of 21. He is currently the commander of the C Team of the 77th Base of the Artillery. During the Cultural Revolution, Xue Pingyuan was less affected because he worked in a secret unit and was allowed to stay on duty for inspection.

  Xue Xiang and Xiao Wan called out "Uncle", but Xiao Di and Xiao Yi didn't say a word. Xue Xiang urged the two to call out, and Xiao Yi finally shouted "Uncle". The little guy hugged Xue Xiang's leg and refused to make a sound.

  The little guy thought to himself, doesn't this grandfather know us? Why should we call him uncle? When Xue An Yuan was sent down to the countryside, Xiao Yi was only two years old. In his memory, there was an uncle who had hugged him before, so he hesitated for a moment and then called out.

  As for Xiao Di, when she was born, Xue An Yuan had already been transferred back from Jianghuai Farm to Beiguan Farm, but the uncle and niece had never even seen each other. Because Xue Xiang's parents were also transferred away from their jobs not long after Xue An Yuan was sent down, they didn't have a chance to bring their children to visit Xue An Yuan. They only asked Xue Xiang to bring some things and visit Xue An Yuan a few times.

  As soon as the door was pushed open, Xue An-yuan never thought that those who came to see him would be his own nephews and nieces. In the five or six years since Xue An-yuan arrived here, except for Xue Xiang's two visits to deliver clothes, no other relatives had come to visit. Instead, it was his former subordinates and old comrades-in-arms who came more often. At this moment, seeing the big and small children in front of him, before he could respond, Xue An-yuan's eyes were already filled with hot tears. What Xue An-yuan worried about most during his time at the cadre school was Xue Xiang and his siblings. He had always felt guilty towards them. His second brother and sister-in-law had been implicated by him and lost their jobs at the factory, resulting in a miserable death, leaving the children without parents. He didn't know how they had survived all these years. His third brother had also been implicated and was unable to take care of the children, so the children had really suffered because of him.

  "Grandpa, why are you crying? You're so big and still learning from others to cry like a little kid. I'm only five years old and I haven't cried in a long time." The little guy saw the tall old grandpa suddenly tear up and felt sad, so he opened his mouth to comfort him.

  "Good girl, it's not Grandpa, it's Big Uncle. Big Uncle wouldn't cry, would he? Just now when you came in, I was reading the newspaper, and suddenly I saw, oh my, where did this little fairy come from? She's so pretty! I got a bit anxious, and the corner of the newspaper scratched my eye socket, so of course my eyes are tearing up." Xue An-Yuan wiped away his tears, coaxing Xiao Shi.

  The little one didn't understand whether the other person was crying or not, anyway they're not crying now, and that's all that matters. The little one smiled and said: "You're so big, I'm so small, why do I still have to call you 'big uncle'? Teacher says people who are twenty years older than us should be called 'uncle' or 'auntie', and those who are forty years older should be called 'grandfather' or 'grandmother'. Are you not more than forty years older than me?" The little one was confused, but what the teacher taught was correct. I usually follow the teacher's instructions and everyone praises me for being polite.

  Xue Anyuan was left speechless by the little guy's question, rubbed his short hair, and stood there awkwardly. He couldn't explain to the little guy that your grandfather is my father, your father is my brother, and I am one with him, so you should call me Big Brother, or else he would surely confuse the little guy.

  Xue Xiang quickly put the box on the coffee table in front of the sofa and hugged the little guy, saying: "Little treasure, what the teacher taught you to call are all outsiders, not relatives, right? Da Bo is our relative, so you have to follow your brother's lead and call him Da Bo. Your brother calls him Da Bo, and you should too. Look at your third brother, he also calls him Da Bo, and he's only three years older than you. Does Little Treasure want to be lower in rank than Third Brother?"

  "I don't want to, I also want to call Big Uncle, Big Uncle, Big Uncle, Big Uncle..." The little guy heard that he was going to be younger than Old He and his own Third Brother, who was willing to eat things with him. Although he didn't know what the generation order was, being lower than Stinky Third Brother was not good, so he immediately shouted out in a loud voice.

  Xue Anyuan was overjoyed and hastily responded, taking the little guy from Xue's arms.