After lunch at his eldest brother's home and another chat with Mom, Li Long drove to Old Ma's Place.
Zhao Shijie was sitting on a little stool in the shade, chatting with Uncle Lao Luo and the others.
The sun was blazing and the weather was hot, so Yang Laoliu wasn't ready to take the sheep out yet. He planned to wait a while longer. Even if he drove them out in this heat, they wouldn't graze. They could chew their cud in the pen and cool off while they rested.
Only the three of them were outside. Li Long guessed the other elderly men had gone inside to rest. At their age, some still wanted a midday nap. After all, they were getting old and lacked energy; they couldn't compare with young people.
Seeing Li Long's vehicle arrive, Zhao Shijie stood up, said goodbye to Uncle Lao Luo and Yang Laoliu, and walked over.
Li Long stayed in the vehicle. Once Zhao Shijie got in, he shifted into gear and drove toward the township.
Sitting in the passenger seat, Zhao Shijie said with feeling, "I really didn't expect this village to have so many hidden talents-old soldiers, retired officials, even people who came over from the Kuomintang side in uprisings."
Li Long smiled without answering. He had heard that even twenty or thirty years later, stories like this would still keep emerging.
Many veterans and veteran Party members who had fought in the War of Liberation, the War to Resist US Aggression and Aid Korea, and the self-defense counterattacks against India and Vietnam had retired after their service and returned home, never mentioning their past heroism. To them, so many comrades had died that simply being alive was already the greatest blessing.
When they reached the township, Li Long