Chapter 35: The Resident Policeman

Not only was there no commerce in the village, but education and sanitation were also blank slates—though this was limited by objective conditions and couldn’t be rushed. However, various commercial side businesses should be developed. Old Meng’s tofu workshop could be established, and the cooperative could also set up a consignment point here to sell daily necessities like oil, salt, soap, and matches, while also purchasing some sideline products to stimulate the market, which would benefit both the state and the people.

As for village administration, he felt that the current level of detail was clearly beyond the actual capabilities of the grassroots cadres. Even if they managed to produce the data, it was likely highly inaccurate. Too much data was also beyond the current computational and statistical capabilities of the Senate. It should be reduced, focusing on a few key data points.

He felt that the practice of giving so-called “office land” was very bad. Firstly, the output of the land was unstable. Secondly, the cadres’ abuse of villagers’ labor could easily cause dissatisfaction. They should be given corresponding office fees and subsidies directly. The issue of food and drink for cadres visiting the countryside was not fully resolved even in the 21st century. Basically, after a period of strict enforcement, it would immediately rebound once relaxed. For now, he could only think of controlling the number of inspection teams and visiting groups…

Yun Suji wrote as he thought, not noticing the passage of time. After a long while, he felt a chill, got up, and draped a piece of clothing over his shoulders. He saw the first light of dawn at the window and knew that the night had passed, yet he felt no sleepiness. The air in the room felt a bit stale, so he pushed open the door and went into the courtyard.

As soon as he opened the door, a gust of cool, refreshing air hit his face, invigorating him. He saw a two-story watchtower in the corner of the courtyard—another standard feature of the standard village. A bell hung from it, which could be rung to summon the villagers in an emergency. His interest was piqued, and he climbed the steps to the watchtower.

On the platform, one of his guards was on duty. Seeing him come up, he quickly saluted. “Chief…”

“At ease. I’m just taking a look around,” Yun Suji waved his hand. He did a few chest expansions and deep breaths, pulled up his slipping jacket, and looked out from the platform. The houses and courtyards of the standard village were laid out neatly below him. Beyond the village were vast fields crisscrossed with paths, dotted with groves of trees. In the distance, the Nandu River flowed like a ribbon through the fertile plains, a thin morning mist drifting over its surface.

Suddenly, the sunlight burst through the thin mist, casting thousands of rays. A half-red sun rose slowly from the river, instantly dyeing the sky red. The clouds and mist glowed, a magnificent sight. Yun Suji couldn’t contain his excitement and began to hum softly, “The sun rises and shines in all directions, the revolutionary people have a purpose…”

After having breakfast at the village office, cooked by Liu Yuanhu’s wife, the resident policeman from Boli Village arrived. This policeman had been assigned here the year before last and was also a refugee from Shandong. Hearing that the Chief was here, he hurried over to report.

Yun Suji saw that the policeman was at least fifty years old, with a face full of stubble and a wrinkled black uniform. He must have come in a hurry, as he hadn’t even fastened his belt. He thought to himself, How does Ran Yao select policemen! What’s the use of having old, weak, sick, and disabled men as resident police?

Yun Suji spoke with him for a few moments and saw that he spoke clearly and handled matters in an orderly fashion. His impression of him improved. When he mentioned Old Mrs. Cao’s suicide attempt at the village office, the policeman gave a wry smile. “That old woman. I’ve had enough of her!”

“Why?”

“She’s famous in our area. I’ve brought her back from the county twice, and from the township probably three or four times. She complains everywhere. If Liu Yuanhu hadn’t stopped her here, she would have probably run off to Lingao to file an imperial complaint,” the policeman said. “Actually, she’s just been holding a grudge for so long she can’t see straight. Her mind is probably confused.”

“She said that the son of Old Meng, the tofu maker in this village, was beaten to death by Liu Yuanhu. Is that true?”

“How is that possible?” the policeman shook his head. “Would Liu Yuanhu be so bold? We police would be useless then. Besides, I know about Old Meng’s son very well: last week, the brick and tile factory just processed his formal employment papers. He came to me to transfer his household registration. Can the brick and tile factory transfer the registration and process employment for a dead person?”

Yun Suji hadn’t really believed it in the first place, and after hearing the policeman’s words, he was completely relieved.

“This time, she brought it on herself. We have to handle her properly for the crime of disrupting government and public institutions!” The resident policeman seemed to have a grudge against Old Mrs. Cao and was rubbing his hands together.

“She’s been to the township and county so many times, and they haven’t done anything to her?”

“If they had been serious, she would have been arrested long ago. At first, everyone pitied the old and the poor. She’s a widow in her fifties, lost her son, and her daughter-in-law ran away. She’s indeed pitiful!” the resident policeman sighed. “The first time I brought her back from the township, my superior at the station even told me: Old Mrs. Cao is very pitiful, be polite to her on the way. Later, when I went to the county to pick her up, Chief Liu even used the county’s official carriage to send us back.”

“So that’s how it was.”

“But it didn’t last. After she went a few more times, everyone got annoyed. Besides, the things she said were either fabricated or not illegal. And she insisted that the leaders deal with it. Who would like that? But this old woman is also very cunning: she doesn’t rush into the yamen to beat the drum and cry out her grievances. She just ‘complains to the ground’ outside the gate. At most, the police can deal with her for ‘illegal street vending.’ Even if she’s arrested, she can’t be sentenced. For a whipping sentence, she’s in her fifties and might not be able to take it—in the end, they still have me go and bring her back.”

This had become a constant headache for the resident policeman. A round trip took at least half a day, and he couldn’t get any other work done.

He chatted with the policeman about the local public security situation. The policeman said that there were basically no criminal cases locally. Because the Senate dealt severely with all minor crimes—not only would you be sent to a labor camp if caught, but a third offense would result in lifelong exile to a penal colony—the common village riffraff who were used to petty theft were quickly cleaned out. A few years ago, there were many cases of theft of telegraph wires and poles, but after a special crackdown, it became rare.

“Are there many gamblers here?”

“Many!” the resident policeman nodded. “Especially now during the slack season. The men have nothing to do and gather to gamble. Fights and quarrels are also common.”

This was the result of a severe lack of cultural and recreational activities. Yun Suji thought, The village has no cultural facilities, and most people are still illiterate. At night, besides making love to their wives or beating them, there’s really no entertainment—and the problem is, not many men even have wives.

“Besides gambling, there are also many cases of adultery,” the resident policeman said. “We have more men than women here, and many bachelors are as desperate as red-eyed roosters. As long as a woman loosens her belt, she can always get some benefits. Widows are one thing, but many of them have husbands! Because of this, there are endless fights and quarrels at home, and it has almost led to murder! Some widows, because of the benefits of adultery, simply refuse to remarry. In my village, there’s a Widow Yang. Many people have tried to arrange a match for her, but she refuses to marry, no matter how large the bride price. Besides the land given by the Senate, she has also cleared seventy or eighty mu of wasteland. Five or six of her lovers help her farm it, and she has built up a large property…” he said, shaking his head.

Yun Suji didn’t know whether to laugh or cry. He read the “Two Publications and One Newspaper” every day, and they always reported that the situation in the countryside was “excellent.” He never expected such bizarre things to be happening!

The resident policeman was still rambling on: “In the past, the village had the clan to manage things. At the very least, there were the elders of the clan and the family. People still had a sense of shame and wouldn’t act so recklessly. Now, the village is full of unrelated outsiders. Many people, without the restraint of their parents and in-laws, have become wild, saying things like: ‘My body is my own to control, I can use it however I want.’ Listen to that, Chief! Is there any sense of propriety, righteousness, integrity, and shame left! Some people have asked me to intervene, but the handbook from the Senate doesn’t have a rule for arresting adulterers. I don’t know what to do…”

“Adultery is better than ‘red-eyed roosters’ going out and raping young women and girls, don’t you think?” Yun Suji said. This was far from a problem that could be solved with a few laws. Without addressing the root cause, just “cracking down” would not reduce such phenomena; it would only drive them underground. Besides, “adultery” could also be seen as a way for the lower classes to relieve social pressure.

Yun Suji chatted with the resident policeman for a long time and gained more insight into the grassroots situation. Because the resident policeman was under a vertical leadership structure, his relationship with the village was detached, and he spoke more openly about the problems. His work also meant he was exposed to many dark sides, and he was able to learn about many situations that he couldn’t get from chatting with the villagers and cadres.

The resident policeman also mentioned that the village’s household registration was not accurate. Many young and able-bodied men had gone to work in enterprises—they had left, but neither the enterprises nor the individuals came to the local authorities to transfer their household registration and complete the procedures. The situation of “empty household registration” was very common.

“Now, if you ask me for the resident population statistics, I’m in a difficult position. The number of people in the household register and the number of people in the village don’t match up at all!” the resident policeman complained. “If there’s an inspection and they say I’ve falsified my report, I can’t afford to take the blame!”

“Why don’t they transfer it? Is it too much trouble?”

“The factories probably find it too troublesome. As for the individuals, they don’t want to lose the land under their name!”

Yun Suji remembered that each full-time laborer was allocated thirty standard mu of arable land upon settlement! A half-laborer got fifteen standard mu. This land only had “surface rights,” not “bone rights,” meaning the farmers only had the right to use it but could not buy or sell it. Once a farmer stopped cultivating the land, it was to be reclaimed and redistributed.

“According to the rules, as soon as his household registration is transferred, the land has to be reclaimed. Now, his registration doesn’t move, so he rents the land to someone in the village, and the public grain tax and labor duties are all borne by someone else. Although the rent he gets isn’t much, it’s still an extra source of income!”

“No wonder. There are so many twists and turns in this!”

The more he heard, the more he felt that the work in the countryside was a long and arduous road. He couldn’t help but have the idea of writing about what he had seen and heard as a news report for the “Two Publications and One Newspaper” to make more people aware of the importance of rural work.