Country Living: Farming and Raising Children

In the 1990s, an ordinary rural couple work hard and diligently, eventually raising their three children to adulthood.

They start with three tiled-roof rooms and eight mu of land. Tian Qifu and his wife grow vegetables, build a pigsty, raise cattle and sheep, feed chickens and ducks, and take on odd jobs. They put down roots in the soil, toil away, and taste every flavor of life, both bitter and sweet.

Through their day-in, day-out hard work, their three damp, tiled-roof rooms become a bright farmhouse courtyard, and their eight mu of land grow to thirty.

In that era of economic recovery and vigorous growth, everyone is like a stalk of wheat, drawing nourishment from the soil and reaching for the sky.

There’s no golden finger and no wish-fulfillment fantasy. Only a spirit that never bows to natural disasters, and the warmth of family life in the countryside.

Hybrid rice was introduced in 1973, just 53 years ago.

Nationwide ration coupons for grain and cooking oil were abolished in 1993, just 33 years ago.

The agricultural tax was officially abolished in 2006, just 20 years ago.

With every bowl of rice and every meal, remember how hard it is to come by. With every thread and every strand, remember how scarce resources are.

I dedicate this story to everyone who works hard and strives to live well.