Chapter 51

Su Ye borrowed a thermos from Li Xianjin on her way. “I’ll have Xiulian return it to you another day.”

Li Xianjin, all smiles, saw Su Ye out. After returning to his office, he took out some dried pork and ate a few pieces.

The pork was fragrant, delicious, and delightfully chewy. It was made from high-quality pork belly, evenly marbled with fat and lean meat, and its thumb-sized pieces glistened faintly with oil. His wife’s craftsmanship was excellent—better even than the chefs at state-owned restaurants.

—

On the drive back, Gu Xiangqian was steering the wheel when Su Ye suddenly called out, “Wait, stop at the cardboard box factory up ahead.”

He knew Su Ye had been frequenting the cardboard box factory lately. She and Feng An had teamed up to create a tea box packaging design that looked fantastic. Although it was trendy at the time to use imported foreign goods, with English on the packaging to seem fashionable, in Gu Xiangqian’s eyes, the tea gift boxes were no less impressive than the high-end imported products.

Gu Xiangqian stopped the car, assuming Su Ye was there to pick up boxes. To his surprise, she took the thermos from the vehicle and carried it into the factory.

Su Ye had been to the cardboard box factory several times recently, so the gatekeeper was familiar with her face. However, this time, he noticed she stepped out of a luxury car.

He was stunned, and his previously casual demeanor instantly sharpened. Wow, what kind of official can afford to drive a car like that?

You couldn’t blame him for being a bit of a country bumpkin. In those days, even owning a 28-inch bicycle was enough to make others envious, let alone a car. In the entire county, you could probably count the number of cars on one hand!

“Director Chen, Su Ye, the one who ordered 500 boxes, is here.”

Director Chen immediately sat upright.

He had been dreading Su Ye recently. She had only ordered a few hundred boxes but kept coming back to the factory multiple times, nitpicking every little detail again and again. Anyone who didn’t know better might have thought she placed an order for tens of thousands of boxes. She just had this maddening knack for wearing people down!

Normally, Director Chen would avoid her at all costs, not wanting to communicate. But today was different—he saw Su Ye stepping out of a car. In those days, people who could afford to ride in cars were few and far between, even their factory manager didn’t have one!

What was Su Ye’s background, anyway? She had shown up with a government approval slip for making tea boxes a while back, and now here she was arriving in a car!

Su Ye walked over with a cheerful smile, found Director Chen, and personally poured him a cup of tea from the thermos.

“Don’t worry, Director Chen. I’m not here to discuss the cardboard boxes today. I was just passing by and thought I’d stop in to offer you a cup of tea.”

The cardboard boxes Su Ye had ordered earlier were not standard. Just negotiating the raw materials had taken a long time. Originally, the factory didn’t want to take her order, but it happened to coincide with their quarterly performance evaluation, and they still needed to meet a production target set by the state.

What were labor targets? They were non-negotiable tasks that had to be completed, even at the expense of one’s life, to fulfill the nation’s requirements! Director Chen had no choice but to endure a few days of back-and-forth with Su Ye and rush-produced 300 boxes overnight.

Hearing the words “drink tea,” Director Chen quickly said, “I wouldn’t dare. Teacher Su, you must already be very busy.”

Su Ye handed the tea to Director Chen and said, “Try it. The boxes I ordered from your factory are for packaging this tea.”

Director Chen’s attention immediately shifted to the tea. He took a sip, and sure enough, it was excellent. The taste refreshed his mouth and throat, far better than the bitter and sour tea bricks typically distributed to the factory workers.

He took a closer look at Su Ye. A few days ago, he hadn’t noticed, but now it was clear how striking and well-maintained she looked, with a rosy complexion that signaled wealth and comfort. She had arrived today in a car, no less—a stark reminder of life’s unfair comparisons.

Su Ye began explaining, “This tea is called Golden Jade. It’s a specialty of City C and was once an exclusive government supply. Known as the ^[1]“silver needle among silver needles” (银针中的银针) is a metaphor used to describe something that is the best or most exceptional among a group of similar things.’silver needle among silver needles,’ it’s sold loose on the market for 9 yuan a pound, and at guesthouses for 3 yuan. If you place a large order, I can wholesale it to you for just 2 yuan per pound.”

Factories consumed a lot of tea because of their large workforce. With high wages and excellent benefits, factory jobs were among the most desirable at the time. Workers often needed drinks to quench their thirst after hard labor, and the daily consumption added up quickly. Ordering a few hundred pounds of tea at a time wasn’t unusual.

With a smile, Su Ye pulled out a pack of Great Production cigarettes from her bag and placed it in Director Chen’s hand.

A whole pack of Great Production! Director Chen’s heart skipped a beat. This brand cost only 32 cents a box—not expensive—but it required ration coupons to purchase due to scarce resources. These coupons were usually reserved for government officials, who only got one box per month. Ordinary people could barely hope to get a whiff of it. Even Chairman Mao smoked this brand.

On the black market, finding this cigarette was a matter of pure luck. Gu Xiangqian didn’t smoke, so he always passed his monthly cigarette ration to others. Su Ye managed to get it for just 3.20 yuan.

Director Chen quickly weighed his options. The factory was entering the peak of summer, and the heat was unbearable. Workers were still drinking leftover tea from last year, or just plain water. The purchasing department was planning to buy fresh tea anyway, and this tea was clearly high-quality. Although Chen didn’t have much real power, he could at least make the decision to buy tea.

The image of Su Ye stepping out of a car flashed through his mind. He had no idea what kind of influential figure she was, but with her government-issued approval slips in hand, it was better to stay on her good side.

“Alright,” he said cheerfully. “I’ll order 500 pounds from you. Let me know when you deliver the tea, and I’ll have the finance department pay you.”

Su Ye smiled brightly as Director Chen personally escorted her out of the factory. Landing such a big deal left her feeling confident and accomplished.

^[2]“borrowing the tiger’s power” (狐假虎威) is a Chinese idiom that means using someone else’s influence or power to intimidate or gain an advantage. Riding the wave of “borrowing the tiger’s power” by using the bigwig’s car today, Su Ye sat in the vehicle, resting her chin in her hand with a smile. She thought, If only all business deals could be this easy.

Her radiant smile caught Gu Xiangqian’s attention, and he couldn’t help but glance at her a few more times.

—

The Dragon Boat Festival was approaching, and Su Ye was so busy that ^[3] “her feet barely touched the ground” means that she was extremely busy or constantly on the move, with little time to rest or relax.her feet barely touched the ground.

She needed to buy bamboo leaves for wrapping rice dumplings, and a few pounds of pork were essential for making them. The best pork, of course, was the kind sourced from live streaming sales, its quality and taste were noticeably superior to ordinary pork.

As one of the three major traditional festivals, the Dragon Boat Festival brought more visits among relatives in the military compound. Su Ye’s tea sales were booming, especially her traditional tea gift boxes, which sold out quickly in the compound. Although people complained about the price, the more they grumbled, the more they bought.

After all, tea wasn’t a consumable item. Drinking one cup of tea daily required only a small amount—an ounce could last a month, and two pounds could supply a family until the end of the year.

Fang Xiulian, envious of other military wives carrying tea gift boxes as presents, eventually learned they had bought them from Su Ye. She marched to Su Ye’s door, glaring angrily—

—and bought five boxes of tea.

When Yao Chunyu heard that Su Ye was selling tea in the compound, she was stunned. She couldn’t believe Su Ye would take such a bold risk. Selling tea privately, especially sourced from local farmers, was already toeing the line of danger, let alone conducting such high-profile transactions in public.

Yao Chunyu, having survived the trials of political campaigns, was particularly sensitive to such matters. Even though the tumultuous decade hadn’t yet begun, it wasn’t far off. Such behavior could easily result in someone being dragged into public struggle sessions with brutal consequences.

While others in the compound didn’t share Yao Chunyu’s extreme concerns, they still thought Su Ye was overly ^[4]“Money-driven” refers to someone who is primarily motivated by the desire to make money or accumulate wealth. money-driven. Many city-born military wives around Fang Xiulian privately gossip, claiming only rural folks would be so eager to chase after money like this.

However, Mrs. Fang’s eyes lit up at the mention of the tea gift boxes. She brushed aside the criticisms and quickly asked her cousin to buy one for her. “I don’t care what anyone says. Making such a beautiful box must take real skill! I’ll bring a box for your grandpa to enjoy.”

Criticisms from others only proved they didn’t appreciate good products.

Carrying these tea boxes as gifts during the Dragon Boat Festival made one look respectable and refined. Moreover, they were more practical than buying expensive candies from department stores, which required ration coupons. Tea didn’t need coupons and was affordable compared to luxury items like candy. Besides, for elderly people, nothing was more satisfying than a good cup of tea.

Su Ye ignored the gossip about her. As long as the tea gift boxes kept selling, she felt relieved. Every day, she urged Feng An to speed up production. Although she considered finding someone to assist Feng An, the designs they created lacked a certain charm. In the end, she decided to continue relying on him.

Feng An spent his days drawing tea box designs, his hands aching from overuse. At his most exhausted, even lifting heavy objects made him tremble. Yet, the thought of earning fifty cents per box kept him going.

Before the Dragon Boat Festival, Feng An completed the task ahead of schedule. Su Ye settled his payment promptly, giving him 250 yuan.

She counted out 25 crisp ten yuan bills and handed them to the university student, patting his shoulder. “Study hard and aim for greater achievements. If more work like this comes up, I’ll reach out to you again.”

Feng An was so overwhelmed that he couldn’t speak. Holding the neatly rolled ten yuan bills, he felt their stiffness in his sweaty palms, which slightly dampened the money.

However, opportunities like this would never come so cheaply again.

—

The day before the Dragon Boat Festival, Su Ye happily stocked up on ingredients for making rice dumplings. She bought several bundles of large bamboo leaves, ten pounds of glutinous rice, three pounds of pork belly, and a variety of ingredients like chestnuts, red beans, mung beans, red dates, and peanuts.

The glutinous rice and beans needed to be soaked overnight to soften them and make them stickier. The chestnuts were peeled and briefly boiled to prevent them from being undercooked inside the dumplings. While Su Ye was busy making dumplings, Fang Xiulian happened to stop by the Gu house to buy tea.

Making rice dumplings was a traditional custom during the Dragon Boat Festival, and in rural areas, large bamboo leaves were often stripped clean at this time of year. However, times had changed. In recent years, food shortages made glutinous rice a rarity, and it was nearly impossible for most families to make dumplings. Only well-off households managed to scrape together enough glutinous rice, making those who could afford dumplings seem like the wealthy elite. Even simple rice dumplings without fillings were enough to make others green with envy.

Yet Su Ye, working in private, gathered a large variety of ingredients—and even added a few pounds of pork for good measure.

When Fang Xiulian saw Su Ye’s three pounds of pork sitting in a basin, even though her own family wasn’t short on money, she felt a deep pang of envy. Her gaze lingered on the pork, revealing an involuntary sense of longing and desire.

Su Ye had a basin of pork on her left, a basin of glutinous rice on her right, and various red beans, mung beans, and candied dates arranged on the table. It was a display of abundance fit for a landlord’s feast. Anyone who knew it was for the Dragon Boat Festival might understand, but someone who didn’t might mistake it for preparations for the New Year!

Su Ye planned to make 15 pounds of dumplings. She borrowed a large pot from Grandma Zhou, set up a wood-fired stove at home with firewood borrowed from neighbors, and got to work steaming the dumplings.

After half an hour of steaming, the fragrance of dumplings filled the air. Fang Xiulian, seemingly swallowing her saliva, said, “Sister-in-law, can I stay and lend you a hand?”

Su Ye glanced at the delicate Fang Xiulian and doubted she could be of any help. It would be a miracle if she didn’t cause trouble.

Still, Su Ye didn’t chase her away. Thanks to Fang Xiulian, a little rich lady, spreading the word, Su Ye had sold a lot of tea to her and her relatives, earning a considerable profit.

Su Ye wasn’t particularly focused as she made the dumplings. She would occasionally snack on chestnuts and candied dates, check the fire, or keep an eye on Fang Xiulian to ensure she didn’t waste any ingredients.

The only person seriously working was Gu Xiangqian. His learning ability was exceptional. He followed Su Ye’s instructions to wrap dumplings step by step and soon took over as the main dumpling-maker.

After Su Ye taught him once, he made one misshapen dumpling, but every one he made afterward was perfectly neat and round, as if molded. His hands moved quickly—while Su Ye wrapped one dumpling, he finished three or four. Before long, he had a small mountain of dumplings piled beside him.

Fang Xiulian, on the other hand, ruined almost every dumpling she tried to make, wasting many bamboo leaves. Even Li Maogang felt embarrassed staying any longer and wanted to drag his wife out of the house.

When the first batch of dumplings was cooked, Su Ye unwrapped one to taste it—it was quite delicious.

Fang Xiulian unwrapped a bright green dumpling and eagerly took a bite, immediately tasting the pork filling.

The stuffing was abundant!

The glutinous rice had steamed soft and sticky, blending with the bamboo leaves’ unique aroma. The chestnuts were sweet and tender, the pork belly balanced with just the right amount of fat and lean, and the fat melted into the rice, leaving it flavorful but not greasy. Despite the heat, Fang Xiulian couldn’t stop herself from taking bite after bite—the more she ate, the better it tasted. Dumplings made with such generous fillings were truly delicious!

She couldn’t help but feel a twinge of envy for Gu Xiangqian. Staying at home recovering from his injury for a month, he’d been pampered with good food, his skin glowing and smooth. Even his cold, expressionless demeanor became increasingly striking, making it hard for others to meet his gaze directly.

Su Ye wrapped a few large dumplings in oiled paper: two pounds for the Li couple, two pounds for Gu Xiangqian’s uncle, two pounds for the Ning family, and one pound for Feng An as a reward. Since Grandma Zhou was elderly and prone to indigestion, Su Ye gave her only one large, rich dumpling to taste.