When she turned around, it turned out to be Liu Xiaohong, who had been staying at home cooking.

“Xiaohong, you’re here too! Quickly come to the front. Your little uncle is arm wrestling with someone, come see!”

“Aunt, can you come back to my place with me?” Liu Xiaohong looked quite upset.

“What’s wrong?” Chen Lina asked.

Liu Xiaohong thought for a moment and said, “Sigh, Gao Xiaobing has been crying non-stop. I’ve already bullied her, and I accept my punishment. You go and see her.”

“Big sister Xiaohong, is it because Gao sister scolded you again?” San Dan’er said.

Er Dan and Nie Weimin were still cheering for Nie Bozhao and hadn’t turned around.

San Dan quickly said to Chen Lina, “Mom, Gao Xiaobing bullied Xiaohong sister several times.”

It turned out that when Gao Xiaobing first arrived at the farm, she was happy because Nie Weimin accompanied her to catch bugs and feed woodpeckers.

Being a year older, she knew more and had more to talk about, so they got along very well.

But after a few days, Nie Weimin said his younger sister had diarrhea and needed to stay home to take care of her, so he wouldn’t be coming to the farm anymore, leaving Gao Xiaobing by herself.

And because they were trying to collect cotton, Factory Director He was staying in the cultural hall at the farm every night and not even coming home.

So, Gao Xiaobing had to squeeze into the earth hut with Liu Xiaohong, her aunt and uncle.

The earth hut now was just one large open bed for the whole family.

There was a curtain separating the children from the elderly, and the conditions were of course very tough.

After staying in the farm for two nights, Gao Xiaobing became very upset.

On top of that, Liu Xiaohong had to cook for everyone every day and also take care of San Dan and Gao Xiaobing.

San Dan’er was easy to deal with.

He would just be fed some food, catch sparrows or snails to feed his little woodpecker, and when his mom came back in the evening, he would eat dinner.

If the adults were busy and didn’t return, he would eat by himself.

He was a very easy child to manage.

But Gao Xiaobing was different.

She was a city child and had never lived in such harsh conditions.

One morning, her head itched terribly, and she insisted that Liu Xiaohong had lice and had passed them to her.

She wanted to wash her hair.

At first, the farm used water from Baiyang River, but now they were getting it from the Kanner well, which drew underground water from near Baiyang River through vertical wells.

The water was very deep.

Liu Xiaohong would repeatedly fetch water for Gao Xiaobing, not only washing her hair but also giving her two baths and washing her clothes.

After Gao Xiaobing took a nap at noon, she kept talking about lice, claiming that Liu Xiaohong had given them to her.

She complained that Liu Xiaohong was dirty and that the earth hut was filthy.

Despite all of this, Liu Xiaohong endured it.

She made pumpkin porridge for everyone, took care of San Dan and Er Dan, and after they finished eating, she swept the earth hut from the ceiling to the floor.

In places where many people lived, life was tough.

But Liu Xiaohong thought that her earth hut was the cleanest in the entire farm.

However, when she brought food to Gao Xiaobing and tried to get her to eat a bowl of pumpkin porridge, Gao Xiaobing, sitting on the bed, directly smashed the bowl. “I won’t eat food made by someone with lice.”

You should know that a bowl in the farm could only be exchanged for work points, and one bowl cost five full work points.

It was a precious item and wasn’t easy to obtain.

Liu Xiaohong was angry and slapped Gao Xiaobing across the face. “If you’re angry, take it out on me, but why smash my bowl?”

Gao Xiaobing was stunned. “No one has ever hit me, not even my parents.”

Then, she rushed at Liu Xiaohong, and the two of them wrestled.

Gao Xiaobing was a year older than Liu Xiaohong, but as a city child, she was frail and didn’t have much strength, so Liu Xiaohong managed to push her onto the bed.

When Liu Xiaohong got up, she was still crying and hadn’t gotten up.

Oh no, when the labor model (Factory Director He) saw his own daughter being bullied, with his fiery temper, Liu Xiaohong was probably going to be in real trouble.

Liu Xiaohong’s impulsive temperament was similar to Chen Lina’s.

Occasionally, when she couldn’t hold back, she would react impulsively, but she was still young and didn’t have the ability to handle the situation like Chen Lina.

Afterward, feeling regretful, she hurriedly went to Chen Lina to put out the fire.

“Factory Director He is probably going to find Gao Xiaobing. Let’s hurry and go check.”

After a full day’s work, everyone was tired, and now hearing that their daughter had been bullied, Chen Lina probably wanted to explode with anger.

Sure enough, by the time Chen Lina arrived, Factory Director He was already in the earth hut.

“Chen Lina, I’ll just ask you, is bullying children the tradition of your farm? Look at the slap mark on my daughter’s face.” Factory Director He was furious.

He grabbed Gao Xiaobing and said, “Let’s go. We won’t attend any more evening parties. I’ve seen enough of this farm. Not only do you not welcome He Min, but you also don’t welcome the mining district officials like us who took time out of our busy schedules to help pick cotton.”

“You can’t say that, Factory Director He.” Chen Lina quickly stopped him. “Tonight, you’re the model worker of our farm. Everyone’s waiting to dance with you. How can you leave now?”

“This girl is too unruly. I just want to ask you, how can she hit someone, not apologize after hitting, and then go and ask for help? Don’t talk to me about model workers. We’re leaving now. And this matter is not over.”

“Xiaohong, although Gao Xiaobing was wrong to smash the bowl, she wasted food, and her mom will definitely scold her for it. Go and apologize to her now,” Chen Lina said as she gave Liu Xiaohong a push.

“Gao Jie, I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have hit you.”

“Forget it, I forgive you.”

“My cousin is at the cultural hall. Let’s go find him and play together, okay?” Liu Xiaohong understood why Gao Xiaobing was upset.

“Really? Let’s go then, we can go together!”

Gao Xiaobing’s personality was actually quite good, but the reason she was so upset today was simply because Nie Weimin hadn’t come.

There was no one to play with her, and she was bored.

When she heard that Nie Weimin was at the cultural hall, she was happy to go there with Liu Xiaohong.

Playing with him would be fun, and she cheerfully ran off with Liu Xiaohong.

“Alright, Factory Director He, we look all dirty and disheveled. It wouldn’t be nice to go dance like this. You didn’t bring any clothes, right? I have a dress. How about you wear it?” Chen Lina said as she pulled out her black long dress from a big cupboard near the bed, offering it to Factory Director He.

Women always liked to look beautiful. Factory Director He touched his head and said, “Ah, wearing a skirt, I’d have to curl my hair first, right? My hair doesn’t look good.”

“I’m great at using the iron to curl hair, don’t worry. Hurry up, wash your hair with hot water, and I’ll show you my skills,” Chen Lina said as she turned around and grabbed her iron from the car.

After washing his hair, Factory Director He lay on the bed, using two pieces of clothing as a pillow, waiting for Chen Lina to curl his hair.

After a while, Factory Director He stood up, and Chen Lina quickly handed him a small mirror, asking, “How is it, Factory Director? Do I look good?”

Factory Director He had short hair, and after Chen Lina curled it, all his hair framed his face, instantly making his face appear much smaller.

“Wow, I didn’t realize, Chen Lina, you’re quite good at curling hair.”

“Alright, go and dance now,” Chen Lina said.

By then, Factory Director He had completely forgotten about his younger brother He Min being kicked out of the farm.

A dress and a nice hairstyle, along with the joy of receiving compliments after hard work, replaced all his worries.

He happily went to join the evening event.

At the cultural hall, instruments like the accordion and harmonica were already playing.

Chen Lina stood outside waiting for a long time when she saw the shy Nie Weimin come out first.

Looking at the expression on Nie Weimin’s face, she knew that, unsurprisingly, he had lost the arm-wrestling competition.

The young Nie Weimin cared about winning and losing the most, and when his dad lost, he was the most upset.

“Alright, Mom’s tired. Let’s go home early tonight. I’ll give you each a bottle of soda. How about that?”

“Uncle Yu was supposed to win, but he told a joke while arm-wrestling, and when my dad laughed, it ruined the whole thing,” Nie Weimin said, explaining the situation.

“Ruined it? You think your dad’s a martial arts master?” Chen Lina thought to herself.

Nie Weimin wasn’t happy about it, but couldn’t help laughing. “Little Yu went too far, he really went too far.”

“Weimin, tell me, what kind of joke would make your dad, who is usually so serious, laugh?”

Nie Weimin didn’t answer but thought about it and smiled again.

Er Dan said, “Mom, let me tell you.” After thinking for a long time, he said, “Mom, I forgot.”

The joke was too long for the child to remember.

As Chen Lina was packing up things in the car, Nie Bozhao was surprised, saying, “Chen Lina, didn’t you say you don’t keep anything for yourself and never take anything from the farm? Why are you taking soda home?”

“This is your and Weimin’s, Wei Guo’s, and the other workers’ labor bonus. Every family gets it, so of course, we get ours too.”

“Tonight, they’ll probably drink soda and chat and sing until dawn. You’re really not going inside? Going home?”

“I’m the factory director, I manage production. When the production task is done, my job is done. The rest is up to the deputy factory director. I’m just too tired,” Chen Lina explained.

“Well, in that case, let’s sneak away. I really don’t want to sing in front of everyone,” Nie Weimin said with relief.

Er Dan, noticing that today’s soda was a different color from last time, quickly opened the bottle cap with his teeth, eagerly took a sip, and said, “Sandan, you try a sip.”

San Dan also took a drink, and the two of them looked at each other in disbelief. “It’s so sweet,” they said, amazed.

It was completely different from the awful soda last time.

It was really sweet.

So, before they even got in the car, the two finished the bottle of soda.

Meanwhile, Chen Lina took He Lan’er to the movies.

Wang Hongbing, the deputy factory director in charge of production, went on a patrol with the team leaders from the twelve production teams.

Liu Xiaohong dropped Gao Xiaobing off at the cultural hall and then returned alone.

Since there was no electricity in the earth hut, she could only light an oil lamp.

After lighting the lamp, she sat on the bed, staring blankly at the bowl on the table.

There was a bowl on the table.

It was such a pity—it had been smashed.

The family only had five bowls, and now starting tomorrow, her dad would have to eat from the pot.

“Gao Jie, Gao Jie!” someone suddenly called from outside the door.

She ran out of the earth hut and saw Nie Weimin standing by the road.

When they saw each other, Nie Weimin looked surprised. “Gao Xiaobing isn’t here? Why are you by yourself?”

“She’s not here. She went to the cultural hall to find you. Did you miss each other?” Liu Xiaohong replied.

Nie Weimin sighed in disappointment and handed Liu Xiaohong his bottle of soda. “Here, this is my soda, I’m giving it to you.”

“Don’t you want to bring it back for Tiantian?” Liu Xiaohong asked curiously.

“I brought two pieces of snacks for Tiantian; she will be happy.”

He handed the soda to Liu Xiaohong and said, “Ah, forget it, you should go back quickly. Remember to close the door tightly. There are a lot of outsiders around the farm today, it’s not safe.”

Originally, the soda was meant for Gao Xiaobing, as she had a copy of Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea.

He had promised to give it to her, planning to trade the soda for the book.

Since Gao Xiaobing wasn’t there, he decided to give the soda to Liu Xiaohong instead.

With that, he turned and ran off.

Before long, Chen Lina’s car started, and in the dark farm, two beams of light passed over the white poplar trees, growing fainter in the distance.

“I just can’t believe you, old Nie, can sing.” When they got home, after a shower, and the children were sent to bed, Chen Lina lay lazily on the big kang (a traditional heated bed), watching Nie Bozhao as he tuned the accordion on the floor, and she couldn’t help but find it amusing.

He made tuning the accordion seem so serious, like conducting an experiment, with utmost sincerity.

But once he started singing, Chen Lina sat up straight.

In a faraway fairyland, there’s a fairy girl…

Well, his voice was thick, smooth, and full of breath; she didn’t realize her old Nie was actually a singer.

“This tune sounds familiar, but I’ve never heard this song before. What are you singing?” Chen Lina asked.

Nie Bozhao cleared his throat and then sang again in Chinese:

In that distant place, there is a good girl.
When people walk past her felt house, they always look back longingly.
Her rosy smile is like the red sun.
Her beautiful, captivating eyes are like the bright moon in the sky…

Well, it turned out this song even had an English version.

Chen Lina lay back down, closed her eyes, and listened, sighing, “Old Nie, so romantic, truly romantic. Listening to your singing, my ears are about to get pregnant.”

She quickly corrected herself—she shouldn’t be looking.

His deep eyes were already gazing at her, and Chen Lina felt a pang of regret.

She hadn’t put on any makeup, wasn’t wearing a skirt, and didn’t have a pair of beautiful high heels—she didn’t deserve those loving eyes staring at her while he sang such a touching love song.

“Today there was a social gathering on the farm with music and dance that you like. It should have been your most glamorous day, the day you shine the brightest. Why didn’t you dance and just came back?” Nie Bozhao threw the accordion aside and lay down next to her, asking.

Chen Lina smiled and said, “All that glory, I’ve already had enough in my past life. Now, for me, labor is the most honorable.”

There was a saying: Labor is the most honorable.

When Chen Lina first arrived in the frontier, she saw monuments everywhere bearing that saying, but she never really understood it.

Only after experiencing a second life, standing in the Gobi Desert, in the cotton fields, watching the sweat-drenched members and educated youth working, did Chen Lina truly understand the meaning of the words.

No matter the situation or how society eventually develops, truly, those who exchange sweat for food are the most honorable.

Chen Lina wasn’t an especially hardworking person, nor was she extremely competitive.

Even she hadn’t thought she could persist for a week of such high-intensity labor before picking cotton.

It was He Lanshan’s relentless drive that motivated her.

So, all the glory should go to the strong and capable He Lanshan.

As for her, having this man, though clueless about romance, but occasionally capable of being so romantic that it made her ears feel pregnant, was more than enough.

The two of them lay together, and Chen Lina said, “We’re so happy tonight. How about we do it again?”

The man turned to her, looking at her in disbelief: “Xiao Chen, you’re a woman. You wouldn’t be thinking about such things, would you? Didn’t we just do it a couple of days ago? Let’s skip it today, we need to protect our bodies and fight for the cause of revolution.”

The woman leaned in: “You’ve had three sons already, are you stupid? How can you be so clueless about romance?

Look at how clean and fragrant I am. Don’t you fantasize more than once about kissing your lover from head to toe?

Your lover is willing, too. She’s willing to kiss you gently from head to toe, even your little Nie.

Let me ask you—how does that feel, when the tip of the tongue slides over, the mouth wraps around, that warmth, that moisture—how does it feel?”

Her voice was soft and enticing, her skin like silk as she whispered in his ear.

In an instant, Nie Bozhao’s hairs stood on end, from his head to his toes.

With a snap, he turned off the light.

His eyes were filled with stars and the sea.

In his mind, there was a battle between heaven and earth, thinking, “This woman is taking the initiative. Should I break my vow to international communism and do it again?” Just then, there was a loud knock on the door.

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