One day in April 1974, a terrible scream broke through the quiet night, a charred corpse fell in the dormitory of the Yan'an Song and Dance Troupe, and the next day, Yang Zefang, a high-ranking cadre, was taken away by the police, and his life has changed dramatically since then.
First, a happy and prosperous juvenile era
Yang Zefang is a short man who looks very old, and once he was a spirited teenager. Born in Beijing in 1952, Yang Zefang grew up in Beijing, went to school in Beijing, and is an authentic Beijinger.
Yang Zefang's father was a lieutenant general in the Air Force, and his mother was a composer in the General Political Song and Dance Troupe.
He was the only seedling in the family, his parents were very fond of him, he grew up in the army compound since he was a child, the family conditions were quite favorable at that time, there were nannies and nurses to serve, and he never suffered anything in life.
When he was in elementary school, Yang Zefang attended the famous Bayi Primary School, and after graduating from primary school, he entered the ninety-sixth middle school to attend junior high school, and his subsequent path, whether it was going to school or becoming a soldier, had multiple choices and a bright future.
But who would have thought that a decision by his parents would change his life and make his fate trajectory take a sharp turn.
In 1968, the large slogan "Intellectual Youth Go to the Countryside" was posted in various cities across the country.
The day before graduation, his parents found Yang Zefang and said to him: "Son, we thought about going and made a decision, you go to the queue!" ”
Yang Zefang listened to the confusion, she herself is the only child who is "exempted" in the regulations on intervening in the queue, why should she take the initiative to cut in the queue, it is simply self-pleading.
His father explained to him the reason, and it turned out that his parents insisted on letting him join the queue for a girl named Xiaohong.
Xiaohong grew up with Yang Zefang, still classmates, the two are green plum bamboo horses, Xiaohong's father was beaten into the black five category, she must go to the countryside to receive re-education.
Xiaohong's father was also a high-ranking officer and Yang Zefang's father was a very good old comrade-in-arms, they fought together as soldiers, Yang Zefang's mother and Xiaohong's mother were comrades in arms before liberation, and the relationship was like sisters.
Xiaohong is going to join the queue, her parents do not know where they are being detained, Xiaohong has gone so far in the queue this time, Yang Zefang's parents are really relieved, they want him to accompany him to Yan'an, so that they can have a care.
Yang Zefang's heart was resistant at that time, many of his classmates were waiting to go to college or become soldiers, for their identity, it was very convenient to want to be a soldier.
But seeing that his parents insisted on letting him go, he had to accompany Xiaohong to Yan'an according to his parents' wishes.
Second, the unknown future brings a sense of freshness
In the train station where the send-off, the old two took Yang Zefang's hand and kept telling him to take care of himself, Yang Zefang comforted: "Parents I go to see first, if not, I will come back", but at that time, he was only a teenager who knew that he had since gone to a turning point in his life, and this time it was his farewell to his parents.
From Beijing to Yan'an, more than 30 hours of journey, although very bumpy and rugged, but a large group of energetic young people gathered together, they with curiosity about the distance, unknown yearning, all the way to share the snacks brought from home, there are raps and singing, as if it is just to travel.
It was January 1969, when Yang Zefang and Xiaohong came to Yan'an together, and it was only then that the two of them realized that they were not separated, and that the village where they were separated was nearly 300 miles apart.
Yang Zefang was assigned to the Lujiatun Er Brigade of Guantun Commune in Yan'an County, while Xiaohong was assigned to a village in Zhiluo Commune, Fu County. Yang Zefang remembered her parents' advice in her heart, and it didn't take long before she took the initiative to request to be transferred to the village where Xiaohong was in the team.
When they first arrived in the countryside, the two felt very fresh when they saw anything, the fields, cattle and sheep, and the earth kang here were all things they had never seen before, and even the rice they ate was very sweet.
But as time went on, their hands became rough because of the labor, the monotonous meals were no longer tasteless, and there was no longer the excitement of the past, only boring and monotonous, and they worked day after day.
Xiaohong, who is sensitive in her heart, feels that she has dragged Yang Zefang down, all because of herself, Yang Zefang will follow to such a place to suffer, she feels very sorry, while taking him as her only life-saving straw, she has placed the focus of her life and future on Yang Zefang's body, and only Yang Zefang is in her heart.
Xiaohong has been learning dance since childhood, she looks beautiful and white, and she is graceful and has a moving dance posture, and she can enter the song and dance troupe on her terms, and under the encouragement of Yang Zefang, Xiaohong is also very attentive, even if the environment is hard, she insists on practicing every day.
Once there were literary and artistic activities in the team, Xiaohong would actively participate in it, and gradually, the cadres of the brigade noticed her and thought that she danced really well.
Xiaohong was drawn to the Zhiqing Debriefing Group to return to Beijing to give a performance to Premier Zhou and the Central Committee, and in 1970, Xiaohong entered the Yan'an Song and Dance Troupe as she wished, becoming a dancer, Xiaohong was very happy, the only deficiency was that she and Yang Zefang were separated by two places, and the two could only meet once a month.
After she left the village, Yang Zefang felt very lonely, very lonely, and her heart was very lost, in order to be closer to Xiaohong, Yang Zefang arranged for him to work at the Yan'an Civil Aviation Station in October 1971 through his father's secretary. At that time, the civil aviation station was under the control of the Air Force, and his father's secretary could still speak.
After Yang Zefang was transferred to the Yan'an Civil Aviation Station, the life of the two was much better than in the countryside, and both of them had relatively stable jobs and increasingly strong feelings.
In the second year of working at the civil aviation station, Yang Zefang was sent to the Northwest Military Electric Power College, studied for two years, and after graduation, for Xiaohong, Yang Zefang returned to yan'an civil aviation station to work, when the civil aviation station was very close to the song and dance troupe, the two of them met almost every day, often ate together, Xiaohong often went to the civil aviation station to find him.
They are full of beautiful yearning for life, and plan to get married immediately after returning to Beijing. But life was always not as people wanted, and he never thought that his fate had begun to take a turn.
Third, the change of life brings about a reversal of fate
In 1974, a female Zhiqing from Beijing went to work at the Yan'an Civil Aviation Station, and when she learned that Yang Zefang was also from Beijing, she felt a sense of intimacy in her heart, and then learned about Yang Zefang's family background from the mouth of her colleagues, and her good feelings for him doubled.
One day, the female Zhiqing knocked on Yang Zefang's dormitory door with a violin on her back, asking him for violin skills.
Yang Zefang had not learned violin, and the female Zhiqing smiled and said, "Even if you can't play, but you still can't listen?" Your mother is a composer, and you must have been born with a musical cell, and you must know how to appreciate it. ”
In this way, Yang Zefang was not good enough to drive her away, so he listened to her play a song, and then the female Zhiqing often came to him to appreciate, saying that she wanted to improve her piano skills.
At this time, Yang Zefang did not feel inappropriate, but felt that it was also a good thing to be able to help his fellow countrymen, in order to improve his grades, he often went to look at the knowledge of music theory and felt that he could guide her.
The two often played the piano in the dormitory, and the rumors spread out. After Xiaohong knew, she ran to question Yang Zefang in a hurry, but Yang Zefang felt that qing was self-purifying, and nothing happened between him and the female Zhiqing, and asked Xiaohong not to be suspicious.
Hearing this, Xiaohong was even more upset and cried a lot, wanting to let Yang Zefang and the female Zhiqing draw a clear line, but Yang Zefang stubbornly believed that he and the female Zhiqing were frank and frank, and there was no reason to refuse to help the fellow.
Xiaohong cried bitterly all night after hearing this, and she felt that she regarded Yang Zefang as the only one in her life, but now he had changed his mind and was in a very low mood.
But at this time she was still thinking about saving the relationship between the two, one day in April 1974, Xiaohong suddenly went to find Yang Zefang, she seemed very excited, gave Yang Zefang a ticket for the party, said: "At 7 pm, Yan'an Auditorium performed the party, there is my new program, you must come to see ah" Xiaohong turned her head and ran.
That night, Yang Zefang was preparing to go out with a ticket, but who knew that the female Zhiqing came again, ChuChu pitifully let him guide him to play the violin, Yang Zefang was embarrassed to resign, for the sake of affection, he did not go to see Xiaohong's performance at night, but has been teaching the piano to the female Zhiqing.
During the performance, Xiaohong saw that the seat he left for Yang Zefang was empty, and her heart became empty, and after the performance, full of doubts and grievances, Xiaohong ran to the dormitory to find Yang Zefang.
But seeing a scene that made her extremely sad, Yang Zefang did not go to see her performance, but the lonely man and widow and the female Zhiqing played the violin in the dormitory, no matter who it was, seeing such a scene, could not be calm.
XiaoHong turned her head and left, Yang Zefang saw her angrily snatch the door and came out, originally thinking of explaining to Xiaohong, the female Zhiqing was next to him again, he was embarrassed to chase, and he thought that it was not too late to explain it in two days.
Unexpectedly, his momentary hesitation led to a big mistake.
Xiaohong did not appear for two consecutive days, and early in the morning of the third day, two police officers from the Public Security Bureau found him and asked, "Are you Yang Zefang?" Yang Zefang knew that Xiaohong had actually committed suicide.
The yin and yang in life have never stopped, and sometimes the choices between a thought are actually a huge change in fate, but at that time, standing at the fork in the road, seeing the storm clouds, when making a choice, it is quite dull and ordinary, and I think it is just an ordinary day in life.
When the police arrived at the scene, Xiaohong had already died of exhaustion, the cause of death was electric shock, the wires were artificially cut, and she had an empty bottle of pesticide next to her. The results of the autopsy report showed that Xiaohong had a large number of pesticide residues in her body, and the forensic doctor speculated that she drank the pesticide first, and did not die immediately, and she was in extreme pain when the drug attack occurred, so she cut the wire and electrocuted.
The police found three suicide notes in her room, one to her parents, one to Yang Zefang, and the other to the female Zhiqing, which were full of resentment, Xiaohong died a tragic death, Yang Zefang fell to the ground, shocked, indescribable regret surged into her heart.
Yang Zefang said: "When I learned the news of Hong's suicide, I also wanted to commit suicide, I really didn't want to live, many people advised me to say that you didn't do anything wrong, don't think about it, and I also think that Xiaohong is too pity, thinking that she is too rash." ”
After this incident, Yang Zefang felt that Yan'an made him miserable, and he could not stay in Yan'an, and a month later, his father's secretary transferred Yang Zefang to work at the Tianjin Civil Aviation Station.
Although it is far from Yan'an, he still thinks of what happened in Yan'an every day, and when he thinks of Xiaohong, he can't help but shed tears, can't sleep all night, can't eat, and loses a lot.
What he did not expect was that less than two months after going to Tianjin to work, in the place where Yang Zefang worked, two public security cadres suddenly appeared, including the public security of Yan'an, and the cooperation of the public security of Tianjin, they took out the arrest warrant at that time, put handcuffs on Yang Zefang, took him away, and escorted him back to Yan'an the next day.
In those years, there were many incidents of vicious QJ female zhiqing in the farm in Yunnan, which shocked the high-level, so the relevant departments began to crack down hard, in this context, although Yang Zefang's parents knew about their son's affairs, they tried their best to maneuver and could not do anything, and could only watch as their precious son was sentenced to 4 years in prison for injury and sent to Yao Jiapo, the largest labor reform farm in Yan'an.
Even if he was imprisoned for trumped-up charges, Yang Zefang did not complain a word, he felt that Xiaohong died because of him, and the imprisonment was to atone for his sins. However, the heavy blow still made his temperament change greatly, he became taciturn, did not argue with anyone, did not want to say a word every day, and gradually became a strange person in the eyes of others.
Fourth, life has fallen to the bottom of the trough
In 1978, Yang Zefang finally ended his imprisonment, and after his release, he was arranged to work in the brick factory, and the next day when he arrived at the brick factory, he was eager to go home to see, so he took the train back to his home in Beijing.
Coming to the familiar doorway, the door inside the house was open, but he did not see the familiar guards and family, he felt a little sick in his heart, felt very surprised, quickly walked in to take a look, only to see the nanny Tian Aunt Who took care of him since childhood.
"Aunt Tian, I'm back, my parents!" Aunt Tian heard his voice and threw herself at him excitedly, and the two of them hugged and cried.
"You can be considered to be back, you and Xiaohong's things your parents are anxious to die after they know, very worried, very sad, they have passed away!"
It turned out that after Yang Zefang's accident, the old couple tried their best to excuse their son, but in the end, there was no result, his mother suddenly caused a cerebral thrombosis to cause half a body failure, less than a year later, he left, and his father also died two years later.
Yang Zefang was numb, as if struck by lightning, unable to accept this fact, Xiaohong left, her parents also died, did not expect that because of the queue, she actually changed the fate of herself and the whole family.
A few days later, Yang Zefang understood what is called the world's hot and cold, the former high-ranking friends are full of seats, today no one cares, his father's old comrades-in-arms and old friends have no friendship with him, more is better than less, everyone avoids it, Beijing has no place for him, in order to survive he had to return to the brick and tile factory in Yan'an.
In the second year after completing his sentence, through the introduction of the secretary of the brigade who joined the team that year, Yang Zefang met a rural girl, Yu Xiufang, and then the two got married and lived an ordinary life.
The brick and tile factory is a unit under the Labor Reform Bureau, Yang Zefang has always been carrying the shadow of a labor reform prisoner, he is not willing to do so, determined to take off this hat, he began to embark on the road of petitioning.
At the beginning of 1980, the brick and tile factory stopped production, and Yang Zefang was transferred to the Xinchuan Cement Factory of the Shaanxi Labor Reform Bureau, which was also composed of people released from labor reform, and the work was also very hard.
One day in July 1982, the discipline of the Xinchuan Cement Factory suddenly called Yang Zefang to the office, announced that he was innocent, and changed him from a former criminal to a regular employee.
After getting this news, Yang Zefang was so relieved that he finally got his wish, and he didn't want to do it there, after being rehabilitated, he left the cement factory and returned to the commune where he had joined the team, wanting to prove his innocence.
The people in the village knew that he had not committed a crime, understood him very well, and sympathized with him, and he stayed in the village as a farmer, eating and drinking for the family, and going up the mountain to work every day.
At the end of 1986, Yang Zefang came to the Yanchang Oil Mine Administration bureau with the idea of trying it out and found the director, and after telling him about his unfortunate experience, the director very happily agreed to help him.
Soon after, he was assigned to an underground operation team in the Qinghua Oilfield, where he went from farmer to oil worker and has been working on wells in the field.
Yang Zefang said: "Everything that happened to me, I don't complain about anyone, I can only complain about that era." "It's been more than 20 years since Xiaohong passed away, he still can't forget her, he can't forget the time they spent together, and now all he can do is go to her grave every year in the morning."
If Xiaohong hadn't been so impulsive at the time and Yang Zefang had caught up with her, the two of them would have definitely returned to Beijing, which was a different life.