“Background?” Fang Chengguang raised an eyebrow.

He didn’t quite believe it.

With Cheng Rushan’s talent, how could the higher-ups let him go?

But then again, the issue of background involved many complexities.

There were those ten years when no one cared about productivity, business skills, or ability—only background mattered.

Cheng Rushan didn’t want to elaborate.

He spoke briefly to Jiang Lin and then left with Fang Chengguang.

Jiang Lin grabbed a shovel, planning to continue digging the field.

He Liang interjected, “Sister-in-law, you shouldn’t be doing such hard labor. Women aren’t supposed to do such rough work.” He silently added to himself that someone as delicate and beautiful as her shouldn’t be doing any labor at all. He then wandered around, finding most people out of their dorms, but managed to call over three who were off that day.

“Come on, everyone, Fang Chengguang wants to plant some vegetables. Let’s help him out with digging the field.”

With He Liang’s call to action, a few young men joined in to dig the field, with Da Bao and Xiao Bao helping as well.

Jiang Lin stayed home to prepare some snacks for the upcoming festival.

Last fall, she had harvested the best red-fleshed sweet potatoes.

During the winter, she cooked them, let them cool, then sliced and dried them.

Once dried, they were coated with a layer of frost, turning hard and sweet, perfect for snacking.

Whatever was left now, she took out to fry with fine sand, making a crunchy and fragrant treat called “sweet potato beans” for the festival.

Additionally, she had soybeans soaked in sugar water, which could also be fried for snacks.

After half an hour, a batch of sweet potato beans was ready, filling the air with a sweet, fragrant aroma.

“What smells so sweet and delicious?” He Changjiang and Bie Dongshan approached, peeking inside.

Jiang Lin recognized them. “Sweet potato beans. Would you like to try some?”

She offered them a basket, filled with cooled sweet potato beans.

He Changjiang looked down at Jiang Lin, unabashedly sizing her up.

Her skin was as white as snow, her eyes clear and charming, and every look and gesture carried a touch of allure.

She was indeed quite captivating to men.

She offered them a basket with some cooled chips.

He Changjiang looked at Jiang Lin boldly, scrutinizing her. Her skin was fair, her eyes clear and charming, and her every feature exuded allure.

She indeed captivated men.

He sneered internally. “So what if she’s pretty? Is that why Cheng Rushan is so infatuated with her?”

“Hey, I heard you don’t let your husband join the army?” he asked.

Jiang Lin’s expression turned cold at He Changjiang’s comment. “Who told you that?”

He Changjiang replied disdainfully, “That’s not your concern. As a woman, you should understand your role. You shouldn’t hinder a man’s future.” He reached for the sweet potato beans.

Jiang Lin took back the basket, her tone sharp, “Stop eating my food. Eat too much, and it might just ruin your future!”

Bie Dongshan, quick to act, grabbed a few beans and chewed loudly, “Wow, this is really delicious!”

He Changjiang felt embarrassed and slapped Bie Dongshan’s hand away.

He was fuming as he walked away but turned back to scold Jiang Lin, “You should look around and see, women are meant to stay at home and support their men. What kind of woman can tie her man down?”

Jiang Lin was bewildered by his attitude. “Are you serious? Haven’t you heard that women can hold up half the sky? Or do you expect your mother and wife to just be maids, cooking and cleaning?”

He Changjiang retorted, “Isn’t that their job?”

“Get lost!” Jiang Lin shouted at him, turning her back and resuming her work, ignoring his presence.

He Changjiang’s face darkened.

He wanted to teach her a lesson, but Bie Dongshan stopped him.

Bie Dongshan asked, “Changjiang, what are you doing? It’s one thing to grumble behind someone’s back, but to confront them directly like this?”

He Changjiang insisted, “I just can’t stand it. I feel sorry for Cheng Rushan! He must have been in the army.

What, he should be a regiment leader by now, but he’s stuck in a logistics team?

It’s all because of this woman!

If only women were bound by old traditions, they’d stay at home, have kids, do housework, and not meddle in things they shouldn’t.”

Bie Dongshan shook his head, perplexed by He Changjiang’s narrow-mindedness and lack of manners.

As He Changjiang and Bie Dongshan walked away, Jiang Lin could clearly hear their conversation.

She reached the doorway and shouted, “The Qing Dynasty has long fallen. Why are you still trying to bind women’s feet? How can you be so wicked? Don’t act like you’re some manly man; I see you as nothing but a sand pig!”

He Changjiang happened to push the door open and heard Jiang Lin call him a pig.

Infuriated, he turned to point at her, “Say that again?”

Jiang Lin replied, “If you want, I can say it a thousand times. Dare to hit me and see what happens!”

He Changjiang retorted, “You woman, how can you be so unreasonable? Don’t think that just because you look good, you can charm men. You’re just a…”

“Changjiang!” Bie Dongshan, frustrated, shoved He Changjiang back into the room. “Have you gone mad? She hasn’t even provoked you. Why are you acting like this? It’s so rude!”

He Changjiang sneered and mocked, “Oh, so you’re also charmed and want to defend her? It’s just because she’s pretty. What’s the big deal? I’ll tell you, it doesn’t matter how beautiful a woman is. Once the lights are out, it’s the same old story. Women are just for having children and serving men. Do you expect them to fight wars or something? Beauty is a curse. Haven’t you heard that many heroes and great men have been ruined by their romantic entanglements? You may not know much, but have you heard of Bao Si or Daji…”

Bie Dongshan looked at him, stunned.

He remembered that He Changjiang used to enjoy telling crude stories and encouraging others to eavesdrop, but he had never been this extreme.

Jiang Lin was ready to continue arguing, but when he didn’t come out, she quickly cooled off.

Arguing with someone who thrives on controversy is pointless, as they see their views as the absolute truth and consider all opposition as heretical and deserving of contempt.

She carried the basket of sweet potato beans over to the field where He Liang and the others were working.

The young men worked hard, and a large area of the field was turned over.

Da Bao and Xiao Bao used a big stick to simulate raking the field, breaking up the clumps of soil.

Jiang Lin called out to them, “Alright, we’ll take care of the rest tomorrow. I’ve made some sweet potato beans; come and have some.”

The young men, not used to being so close to such a beautiful woman, were very shy and didn’t dare to approach.

He Liang carried the basket over and served them.

The young men each took a few beans, not wanting to take too many, afraid of appearing rude.

Even though they might joke around and cause a ruckus among themselves, they were nervous in front of a woman, afraid of offending her.

He Liang teased them, “Look at you guys, suddenly acting so shy!”

The young men laughed awkwardly.

Seeing their honest smiles and pure eyes, Jiang Lin felt the anger she had from He Changjiang had disappeared.

These young men seemed full of youthful energy and vitality, quite the opposite of He Changjiang, who she felt was like a big pig, treating women as mere tools.

She thought to herself that anyone who married He Changjiang must be blind.

After they had finished the beans, the young men helped to do some work in the field until it was nearly mealtime, then stopped.

Jiang Lin wanted to invite them to have some fried sauce noodles, but they refused, quickly making their way out.

Watching their youthful and energetic backs, Jiang Lin commented, “They’re really good young men.”

He Liang wiped his sweat and asked, “Sister-in-law, isn’t it true that I’m the best?”

Xiao Bao chimed in, “Uncle He, of course, I’m the best!”

Jiang Lin laughed and said, “You’re all great, but He Changjiang is the most unpleasant of all.”

He Liang said, “Sister-in-law, what’s wrong with Changjiang? He’s not a bad person, really. If he said something inappropriate, don’t take it to heart.”

He thought Jiang Lin was upset because He Changjiang made some crude remarks about her and Cheng Rushan as a couple.

Since none of them were married, they often gossiped about others. He Liang felt a bit embarrassed, as he had started it.

Jiang Lin replied, “It’s not just about that. His disrespect for women is what makes him truly bad.”

He Liang, not knowing the full story, said with a laugh, “Don’t listen to his words. He probably doesn’t even realize how precious it is to find a wife. Once he’s married, he won’t talk like that.”

Jiang Lin didn’t say much more. She was only angry for a couple of minutes, and it wouldn’t affect anything else.

As the sun began to set, Jiang Lin and the others packed up and went back to the dormitory.

Cheng Rushan and Fang Chengguang hadn’t returned yet, so Jiang Lin started preparing dinner.

He Liang handed Jiang Lin some food tickets, saying, “Please take these. The food rations are fixed. If you give us yours and go hungry, I can’t just eat without caring.”

Jiang Lin smiled and accepted them.

She tried to make dinner a bit more substantial. During the New Year, Cheng Rushan had stocked up on preserved meats, including bacon, preserved chicken and duck, and dried fish, which were perfect to use now.

The preserved chicken was cut and steamed.

For everyone, having fine noodles was considered a good meal. If there were also some oil and eggs, it was considered a feast.

At this time of year, the fresh local vegetables were limited to spinach and chives, which were scarce and expensive in the city.

Jiang Lin used the radishes she bought yesterday, slicing them thinly and mixing them with fine noodles, sesame oil, soy sauce, and a bit of orange peel to make a cold salad.

The radish strips were crisp, and the noodles absorbed the aroma of the sesame oil and the flavor of the soy sauce. Da Bao and Xiao Bao couldn’t get enough.

After dinner, He Liang took Da Bao and Xiao Bao for a walk, sharing some local news, such as which kids had good temperaments and which did not.

Meanwhile, Jiang Lin cleaned up and washed clothes. After a while, Cheng Rushan and Fang Chengguang returned, carrying two bundles of fresh spinach.

Jiang Lin quickly got up and said, “You haven’t eaten yet, have you? I saved some dinner for you.”

She brought out the food: steamed preserved chicken, cold radish and noodle salad, and decided to make an egg drop spinach soup with the fresh spinach they had just brought back.

Cheng Rushan invited Fang Chengguang to sit in his room and, after asking about Da Bao and Xiao Bao, started washing the clothes for Jiang Lin.

Fang Chengguang sat on a stool by the door, watching Cheng Rushan wash clothes outside.

He paused for a moment, reflecting that back home, his clothes were always washed by someone else. Even after moving out, he hadn’t done his own washing; it was always He Liang who did it.

He noted that in their household, this kind of work was typically done by women. If He Changjiang and his people saw this, they would probably laugh and say it was ridiculous for men to be doing women’s work.

But Cheng Rushan didn’t care.

He washed the clothes with complete ease, thinking that caring for his wife had nothing to do with being a man.

Not caring for his wife would mean being abnormal!

When Jiang Lin finished cooking, she urged Cheng Rushan to come and eat.

Cheng Rushan replied, “Just a little more rinsing and it’ll be done.”

He Liang returned with Da Bao and Xiao Bao.

Seeing Cheng Rushan washing clothes, He Liang immediately ran over, saying, “Brother Cheng, let me do it!”

Cheng Rushan replied, “…You’re my neighbor, not my servant.”

He Liang wasn’t bothered and said, “Washing clothes isn’t a big deal. I can do it.”

Cheng Rushan insisted on finishing the task himself. After rinsing the clothes, he wrung them out and hung them on the wire between the trees.

Just then, He Changjiang, Zhao Quanyou, and Du Qiang came back. Seeing Cheng Rushan washing clothes, He Changjiang immediately shot a disapproving look at Jiang Lin.

He thought it was odd that Jiang Lin, who should be doing housework, was talking inside with Fang Chengguang while her husband was washing clothes.

He Liang was chatting with Big Bao and Little Bao at the door. As they went out for a walk, He Liang brought back toys for the kids.

Da Bao got a slingshot, and Xiao Bao got a wooden gun.

Da Bao was practicing aiming with the slingshot, squinting as he scanned around.

He noticed that He Changjiang was staring intently at something.

Following He Changjiang’s gaze, Da Bao saw that he was looking at Jiang Lin, who was bathed in warm light and looked gentle and beautiful.

Da Bao was furious. How dare he have such thoughts about his mother!

In his anger, Da Bao let go of the slingshot, and a small stone shot towards He Changjiang’s face.