原文抄录
口述人：郭厚桂（男 1941年生 江西省吉安市富滩镇富滩村）
采访人：郭志华（女 1993年生 西安美术学院20212级影视摄影班）
时间：2014年2月24日
地点：郭志华家
采访笔记
他是我二伯。今天抱着相机在家这边晃悠，遇见我二伯，他平时老爱出去走，我总也找不到他，结果今天遇见了，我就把他拉到我家里让他给我讲讲以前的事。他是村里为数不多的上完了初中的人，以前的事他记得都很清楚。在去我家的路上他就在给我讲那几十年间的大大小小的事情。他说“我要回想一下”。然后，他连着将打地主土豪的事也跟我说了。
口述抄录
道义呀，他家就是地主呀，招发老师读书读的呀，打他家的地主呀。本来他家不是地主，他家是评的。以前打地主，有田、有田有土的人就要打地主，没田土的人家就没打地主。那他呢……地主是蛮多个地主哦。呃…..不在的人家不在嘞。土豪是那些有钱的人家，志高就算是……呃，志高是不算地主的，他是算土豪。这类的人就是有钱有势，共产党就要打光他。人家他们家有两兄弟，老大做共产党工作，老二做国名党，我听你爷爷和我家爹说：有一个晚上，他们两兄弟都在家里，有个勤务兵就去这个老大做地下工作的家里搜动一下，就说看一下就说他是共产党，以前没有查到他。前时间（以前）来了信，秘密的信看了就要烧光，但你这几年他就不记得捂（拿）得烧了，那就，那就那个勤务兵在这看一下，就“哎呀！”就去报告他哥哥，他哥哥就去报告给国民党，就马上抓得去枪毙呀，一个晚上就，空了（隔了）一个晚上就枪毙。
招凤家呀、德宏家呀、还有…呃…..那头，群根，群根家也是（地主）呀。咕嘟（那里）普发家呀 ，还有咕嘟没半家人家了，那志高呀、家润呀，蛮多家数，有的人家已经不在了，{全都会抓的去枪毙么？} 不能（没有），枪毙就是恶的人，有血债的人枪毙耶，没血债的人没枪毙耶。共产党也就是有血债的人枪毙，没血债的人没枪毙，欠了血债的就枪毙。枪毙了….这头顶多三个，还有一个在安徽教书的，人家就没有枪毙。他那个老仔（老爷子）做事，开药店，人也没人在家，在安徽教书。那就是枪毙了德宏家爹，那咕嘟普发，咕嘟一个家利家仔，他当县长、赣州县县长，蛮大哎！赣州县县长枪毙了。{怎么当县长的也要枪毙？}国民党的县长，团级干部还不要枪毙？前你家爷爷跟我们讲：人家当县长也没欠什么血孽，就是一个共产党、一个这样的工会会长像你们而今（今天）学校里的主席样的，就枪毙了。枪毙时人家在南昌开会，也不晓得。那以前当文书的、当书记的就有人家的章，就拿去盖，盖下了那个公章，于是枪毙了那人。还是拐头（那边），家里人害死的他（县长）。于是就这样杀光了这个共产党的工会主席。人家县长自己本身又不晓得，没能（没有）签字。
59、60年最苦
前没而今这样发展的这么好啊！集体种田。一解放，57年就开始。49……55年就开始转互助社，就跟而今样的，家家人家要互助。57年就开始转高级社。那毛泽东的思想就是共同富裕，不是一家人家（富裕）。当而今样（跟现在一样）共同富裕呀。那个时间最苦啊！一直捂到（搞到）后头，都是蛮苦。弄到六几年那个时间，分田到户就开始就政策来了。邓小平三起三落然后邓小平就 开始就搞分田到户，那时才更好哇！不这样阎王地有这好。那时候我们还要去担矿石，58年，读书那时，大炼钢铁耶。那时候就是大炼钢铁呀，毛泽东就是要自力更生呀，就跟而今样的，要艰苦奋斗呀，不要向外国人拿太多啊，进不起（进口）呀，穷啊那时间。炼钢铁呀、修水库呀，不修水库没用呀！我们就老是担呀！那时间就开始大量修水库了。
吃的是相当蓑呀！还有跟而今样的过的好哇？南瓜、番薯呀，芋头呀，是菜就要煮，那时间没粮食呀。就是到集体种田为止，就是统购统销了一年，那把那些粮食都交给了国家去了，那就开始搞集体就是那时想的按口粮、做工分，分田….没分田哦，按口粮分粮食你。按工分，也总是（就是）五分钱一分，你不去算一下，做10分才五角钱，哪去搞得吃到？！你要捉{砍}茅也要请假，你要当街（上街）也要请假，毛泽东管了这几十年。相当苦哇！不准的乱捂（搞）一下，你怎么会有吃？我还记得我二十多岁时间，要交钱到队里，要交钱队里记分呀，要买谷买米呀，不这样，你一个人，你爸爸一个人做的这多米到？要养四五个人呀。然后出的牛栏粪也要抵工资，我们也要撒禾（给稻子撒粪）。你也要抵工资，你要抵是五角钱一百斤就是五角钱一百斤。 一直要搞到分田到户的时间才不要交毛猪，前时间每家人家都要交一头毛猪，还要交鸡，交这样交这样！没也要交哇！恁是要交啊！嗬！五几年的时间内，57到60年那时间杀牛要经过批准，杀猪也要经过批准，要在屠宰所（杀）。杀牛越加要（更加）经过乡政府。就是那几年内最苦。
诶！吃是吃不饱啊。不得不是啊！59年跟60年相当苦啊！我们有饭吃啊？？要那头……蒸饭…集体时，装一碗饭要捂（拿）得回来，人多的要给细人（小孩）煮粥呀，就要跟（混）菜呀，跟这样跟那样菜去煮呀。我们总是（只是）按劳动力得得一碗饭到，两个劳动力装两碗饭。那些细伢仔就吃一碗粥，那时间，60年最苦哇！就是分粥啊分饭呀那时间苦。一起分光（分了）一两年哦！那就是这样啊。以前煮饭要拿饭包，那样煮，煮了再煮一次，一斤米要煮几多饭，就要煮成这么多饭。这时间是最苦哇！没办法呀！我那里读书，59年…60年在那边读书也总是吃粥啊！要命过啊！我在白沙中学读书，（搞）集体呀。60、61、62年，哎呀！又反右派斗争，又三反五反那时候苦，这几多年数（这么多年）不敢乱动一下，共产党那时间弄的最苛。就看他家，那个巴眼家爹，人家……是个当兵的诶，人家是军官诶！那时间还到出国，是个军官，还不是反右派反下得回来种田了。不这样他有回来种田？本来人家是军官，军官学校毕业的。后来查下来、反右派反下来的。就话错了一句事，写错了一句话，就被反下来了，回来种田。这就是巴眼家的一个例子呀！那时间我们都几大了，还记得。
吃野芋头、番薯干呀，我们家里就都是这样呀。野菜叶子，那些…诶…江下（我们那条河叫泷江）泫上（岸上）的马兰菜呀、食菜呀，难道我们不是捂（煮）得吃过来呀！这时间没吃你就要捂（煮）些菜来代饥（充饥）呀。 没饿死的。粉米果（糠皮粉）也吃呀。我没吃过粉米果来，还有麦子皮磨的麸皮我就吃过来。
English Transcript
Interview Notes
He is my uncle. I was walking around with my camera, when I met him. He always likes to go out. I couldn’t never find him. But today I met him. Then I invited him to my home and asked him to tell me the stories of the past. He is one of the few people who finished middle school in the village. He remembers clearly the things that happened in the past. He already began to tell me things on the way to my home. He said, “I need to think a little bit.” And then he told me everything including fighting the landlords.
Oral Account Transcript
Daoyi’s family was a landlord family. That’s because Teacher Zhaofa was knowledgeable. People fought his family. They were (originally) not landlords. They were chosen as landlords. Usually, those who have lands are landlords and those who have no land are not landlords. What about him……There were indeed many landlords. Uh……those who were not at home were not(?). “Tuhao” are those rich people. Zhigao was one of them……uh…. Zhigao was not considered as a landlord. He was a tuhao. Such people were the rich and powerful. The Communists wanted to eliminate them because of this. There were two brothers in his family. The older brother was a communist. The younger son was a KMT member. I heard from your grandfather and my own father. One night, both of the two brothers were at home. An orderly came to the older brother’s home and search for underground work traces, because they wanted to see whether he was communist, and they did not check this out before. In the past, he always burnt letters coming from the communist party. But he forgot to do this these years. Then the orderly found this out. They reported the brother to the KMT. He was then taken away for execution by shooting. They only waited one night for the execution.
The families of Zhaofeng, Dehong, and … and … on the other side, the family of Qungen, they were all landlords. Pufa’s family over there. Half of the families, Zhigao, Jiarun and many others, were gone. [They were all taken away for execution?] No. Those who were shot were all bad people and those who have blood debts. Those who didn’t have such debts were not executed. The communist only executed those who have debts. They didn’t do this to those who had no debt. Those who have blood debts were executed. Executed…Three here. The one who was teaching in Anhui was not executed. His father opened a pharmacy. He was not here and was teaching in Anhui. So Dehong’s father was executed. Pufa over there, Jiali and Jiazai over there. He was the county head of Zhang County. He was rather old.
The County head of Zhang County was executed. (How could a country head be executed?) He was a KMT county head. How could the communist cadres not execute him? Your grandfather told me once that the county head didn’t really have blood debt. He was just a person like a communist, a workers union, or a school chair in today’s school. But he was executed nevertheless. He was on a meeting in Nanchang and didn’t know the decision. Back then, secretaries had their own seals. They took his seal from his home, used the seal, and executed him. And it was his families who put him into this deadly trouble. Then he was killed by the chairman of workers union. The county head didn’t know anything about this. He was able to sign.
1959 and 1960 were the bitterest
The economy was not so good in the past. We worked in the filed as a collective. After the liberation, we began to do this from 1957. 1949…1955 began the mutual aid society. It was like today. Families needed to help each other. 1957 began the transformation into advanced co-operative society. Mao Zedong’s thoughts were about common prosperity. It is not one family getting rich. It was like today’s common prosperity. That time was the bitterest. It was rather bitter throughout the process to the end. The distribution of lands to families became the policy in the 1960s. The three rises and falls of Deng Xiaoping began the distribution of lands to families. That was the time when things became better! Without this, it would be no better than the land of the King of Hell. Back then we had to carry minerals. 1958. Learning in school. Great Steelmaking. It was Great Steelmaking back then. Mao Zedong wanted us to be independent. It was like today’s hard working. They didn’t want to borrow too much from foreigners. Had no money for import. Was really poor. Steelmaking. Reservoir constructions. Without reservoirs, nothing could work! We carried without stopping. It was back then that many reservoirs were constructed.
What we ate was terrible! How could it be compared to today’s food? Squash, sweet potatoes, and taros cooked in water. We didn’t have grains. State controlled purchases and sales were implemented for one year before it ended at the time when we began to work collectively in the fields…No private land. You got food by quota. It was based on working points. You got one cent with every five points. Calculate it. You needed to have 10 points for 50 cents. Where could you get food? You needed to ask for a leave, even when you needed to use the bathroom. You needed to ask too, when you want to go shopping. Mao Zedong was in charging of such things for decades. It was hard! Without the permission to do your own business, how could you have food to eat? I remember that when I was in my 20s, I turned money in to the production team and the production team returned me with work points. We used it to buy grains and rice. Otherwise, how could you alone, your father alone, get so much rice? We had to feed five people. Beef excrement could also be changed into work points. We also needed to fertilize the fields. You need to change for wage. You got 50 cents for every100 jin. We didn’t have to turn in piglets until land were distributes to families. In the past, every family had to turn in a piglet, chicken, and this, and that. You had to turn in something, even if you didn’t have it! You had to turn in! Alas! You had to get permission when you wanted to kill a cow in the last three years of 50s. It had to be killed in a butchery. It had to be permitted by the government. Those years were the bitterest.
Alas! You couldn’t be full by eating. It couldn’t be otherwise. 1959 and 1960 were really hard! How could we have food to eat?? Those years…steamed rice…collective. You got one bowl of rice and had to bring it back home. If you had more family members, you had to eat thin porridge mixed with vegetables. You had to mix it with various vegetables. For us, one work force got one bowl of rice, and two for two. Those children only got one bowl of porridge. Those years. 1960 was the hardest. It was the time when we had to share rice and porridge. We shared such food for two years! It was like this. We had to put rice inside a bag, when we cooked it. Then we could cook it for more times. You had to get this amount of rice with one jin of rice. This year was the hardest! No ways out! I was studying. In 1959 and 1960, you ate porridge, even if you were student! It’s taking our lives! I was studying at Baisha Middle School. We were collectives. 1960, 1961, 1962! Alas! Then came the anti-rightist struggle. Three antis and five antis. That time was hard. You dare not to violate the rules for so many years. The communist party was strict. Look at the family, the father of Bayan. He was in the army. He was an officer! He went abroad in the past. He was an officer. But didn’t he have to come back and work in the fields during the anti-rightist campaign? He only gave a wrong comment on a matter and wrote a wrong sentence. And he was brought down into the fields because of this. This is the example of Bayan’s family. We were old enough and we remember this.
In our home, we ate wild taros and dried sweet potatoes. Wild vegetables. Those…alas…on the bank of the river. Indian asters and Shi vegetables. Didn’t we eat them? There’s no food at that time. You had to live on them. Nobody died of hunger. We even ate bran powder. I never ate bran powder. I ate wheat husk.
