2.Our story began ten years before China launched the economic reform in the late 1970s.In those days，the nation suffered a chaos and economic disarray due to the Cultural Revolution.Huangjiawan，where the story happened，was stuck in stark poverty.Living on the scarce amount of grain allocated by the commune，each family led a hand-to-mouth life，with no proper houses，nor decent food or clothing.Embarrassing to say，they could not afford to pour enough oil into the pan when they cook their dishes.Rather，they dip a brush in the oil and then applied it to the pan.As a matter of fact，the dishes did not cook well in this way，but much oil was saved.With half bottle of oil allocated from the commune to each person，the villagers had but to economize on their daily provisions.What's more，they had to leave their hometown in bad years to beg along the streets in town.What a miserable existence！
3.Things went on this way for a long time until Cai Danian returned home from the army.He was elected lieutenant in the village militia.A strongly-built man in his twenties who had seen the world in the army，Cai was determined to help his fellow men to shake off poverty.
4.Cai took action immediately in the winter.Without gaining the approval of the CPC village secretary Huang Manfu，he led scores of young men into the deep mountains where they worked hard for one month，hunting local specialties and wild animals.Shortly before the spring festival，they came back home with dozens of sacks of wild foods.Each family was given some boar meat，two hares and two pheasants.It was the first time the villagers had meat on their festival dinner.Later，Cai sold the rest of the foods for two hundred yuan which he deposited in the militia office.In the spring，Cai invested the money into a larger project，purchasing 30 pigs and secretly breeding them separately in some militia soldiers' houses.With the permission of Huang，he had a heap of cornstalks grinded for fodder.As the cornstalks belonged to the commune，the fodders should be counted on their agreement as a collective investment.
5.Fortunately，there were plenty of edible wild herbs on the hills due to the favorable weather.The villagers picked the herbs，boiled them and fed them together with the stalk fodder to the pigs.To Cai's delight，the animals were so fond of the food that they grew very fat three month later.On the Labor Day，Cai and Huang decided to slaughter three of them and divide the meat among the 152 households of the village.It turned out that each family got a considerable share of meat while the entrails went to those who had looked after the animals.Cai gave his share of entrails as a present to Huang，whose parent was ill.With the pork he took back home，he made a good meal in person for his wife and children.The family enjoyed the meal so much that they almost stuffed themselves.Recalling that day，Cai would say in high spirit： "How delicious the meal was，how refreshing！And how gluttonously we ate with content！It was an unforgettable dinner.I will remember it until my death！"
6.The next day，when Cai Danian met Secretary Huang Manfu，he said to the latter： "We can't kill the pigs and eat them all.Isn't it a good idea that we sell them for some money to cover the expenses of the village？""Good.But you must do that secretly.The insurrectionists will reprimand us if they find it out."
7.During the following two months，Cai had other 31 pigs killed in succession.With the help of several clever villagers，he carried the pork by motor tricycles and vended it in the neighboring villages and in town.Thanks to his resourcefulness，Cai eventually sold out the meat and earned over 5，000 Yuan for the village.
8.Inspired by Cai's success，secretary Huang was eager to do something for the community.He mobilized the young wives and girls in the village to raise a farm of hundreds of chickens.Six months later，the female birds produced more than 400 eggs.Huang had the eggs sold in town and earned much money for the village.
9.So Cai and Huang tried all means to earn money for the collective.With money streaming in，they bought and bred more pigs and chickens，which produced a lot of dung for the crops.Under their leadership，the villagers had ample food and clothing.
