What was the life of peasants like in the first 30 years of reform and opening up? This is a hotly debated issue. The two parties on the Internet have argued about this endlessly, with mixed reviews. In order to increase the persuasiveness, this article will present the real situation based on the articles of experts and scholars and the facts in the film and television dramas broadcast by CCTV. Through three stories, we can gain insight into the real situation of peasant life before the reform and opening up. The first story takes place in 1973, when Premier Zhou returns to Yan'an. He had been away from Yan'an for 26 years and was full of expectations for this former revolutionary base, but he found that the appearance of Yan'an had hardly changed from more than 20 years ago, and the lives of ordinary people were still poor. Frustrated, Premier Zhou told local leaders, "What's going on? The people of the war years were not so bitter! Now that the revolution has won, the agricultural problem in Yan'an has not been solved, and if we can't change this situation, we are sorry for the people of Yan'an! "Yan'an had 14 counties and a population of 1.3 million, and the per capita grain of farmers was less than 250 kilograms, and the annual per capita income was less than 50 yuan. This story reveals the poverty and hardship of peasant life before the reform and opening up.
The second story takes place in 1979, when Wanli visited poverty and was shocked. Wan Li heard that Fengyang County in Anhui Province was famous for begging for food, and he decided to make this county the focus of his research. He witnessed farmers dragging their children and risking their lives to beg for food, and became angry with the local leaders and scolded them: "People are forbidden to go out and ask for food, and you must always find a way to feed everyone!" Another important place on his trip to poverty was Jinzhai County, where he saw poor old people and young girls without pants. This deeply shocked and saddened Wanli, and he delivered an impassioned speech at the meeting, calling on everyone not to forget the contributions and hardships of farmers, which also became the prelude to China's rural reform. The third story took place in the early days of reform and opening up, when Zhou Zhenxing, then secretary of the Heze Prefectural Party Committee, visited Hongsan Village, Hanji Township, Cao County. He visited General Yang Dezhi's old landlord, Yi Qiaoyun, and when he heard that she only wanted to eat half a bowl of fat and lean pork, Zhou Zhenxing felt guilty and sad, and he blamed himself and other leaders for not doing their best to improve the lives of the peasants. He even slapped himself to express his guilt for the peasants.
This story shows the difficulties and inequities of peasant life in the early days of reform and opening up. These three stories reveal the real situation of peasant life before the reform and opening up, and poverty and hardship were their main faces. Reform and opening up initially began in the countryside, precisely because the peasants were too miserable, and their living standards did not improve significantly. Some old cadres from the base areas returned to the countryside to inspect and found that the peasants' lives were not even as good as before liberation. Therefore, rural reform has become a top priority, and in order to feed farmers and wear warm clothes, rural reform has kicked off in the successful practice of Xiaogang Village. To sum up, the living conditions of peasants before the reform and opening up were indeed very difficult. They live in poverty, without clothing, hunger and even the most basic needs. This is not only an unfairness to the peasants, but also a dereliction of duty after the victory of the revolution. The promotion of rural reform is necessary, and we must improve the living conditions of farmers through reform so that they can enjoy the dividends brought by reform and opening up. At the same time, we should also pay attention to the development of rural areas, create more opportunities and benefits for farmers, and enable them to live a happier and better life.
Finally, I would like to ask readers a question: How did your understanding of peasant life change before the reform and opening up? What problems do you think we still need to solve in terms of rural development? Welcome to leave your comments and opinions.