Abstract: During the 1960s and 1970s, the Democratic Fourth Brigade in She County, Anhui organized its members to engage in collective sideline businesses, primarily in forestry. The brigade effectively leveraged both internal and external advantages in sideline production, enhancing the organizational and financial management of its sideline workforce. This led to the establishment of a comprehensive management system, which ensured the continuous and stable growth of sideline activities. These activities became a significant aspect of the brigade's operations beyond traditional agriculture. In the collectivized rural economy, which was predominantly agricultural, sideline production broadened the brigade's operational scope, absorbed surplus labor, and created new income sources for both the brigade and its members' families. This initiative represents a proactive approach to alleviating the "over-intensification" of agricultural labor in mountainous brigades and reflects broader socio-economic transformations in rural China during the era of collectivization.

Key words: "seeking sideline work outside", collective sideline business, era of collectivization, agricultural "overintensification", production brigade