Chapter 4

She felt relieved, her mind clear and refreshed.

But the matter wasn’t finished. The divorce was definitely happening—living with a man like him was worse than death. Still, there were things that needed careful planning.

The 150,000 was no small amount. Yang Ligang wouldn’t just obey without a fight.

As for the house, there was no chance of that.

She didn’t even want the house. The pollution in the industrial area was terrible, and there was still a chemical factory nearby that hadn’t been moved out of Yanjing. Ye Xiaoyu could smell formaldehyde, benzene, chlorine, and hydrogen chloride in the air every time she breathed.

Here’s a cold joke: She would never suffer from iron deficiency anemia, because the air was full of iron.

The most important thing was that if she took this house, she would still have to work at the factory for three years. What money couldn’t be made in the ‘90s with those three years? Ye Xiaoyu just wanted to leave right away and wasn’t about to work in the production workshop.

Of course, taking the money was the best option.

If it weren’t for that, she wouldn’t have settled for just 150,000. Yang Ligang walking out of his house without his underwear would count as her victory!

Ye Xiaoyu thought about it for a while, then opened the door. Not only Mrs. Wang but also many of the neighbors from upstairs and downstairs were peeking out, eavesdropping on their conversation.

Fortunately, this was a newly built building with much better sound insulation than before, so their conversation wasn’t as easily overheard. Most of what they discussed remained private.

Living in the workers’ family dormitory has its advantages. One of them is that it’s very convenient to take leave; no need to go to the factory.

Ye Xiaoyu climbed two more floors and turned left.

“Leave?” the Deputy Director of the Personnel Department replied with difficulty. “Xiaoyu, you know that our factory has taken on several big orders to earn more profits today. If one worker takes leave today and another takes leave tomorrow, how can the factory keep running?”

“Director Ma, I’m only asking for leave because I have something important,” Ye Xiaoyu responded with a wry smile, noting the knowing look from the personnel officer. She pressed on, “Since I joined the factory, when have I taken leave? I even returned to work before the month was up after giving birth, and during the Spring Festival, when you assigned me overtime, I agreed without hesitation. I really have no choice now and would like to take a few extra days off as compensation for the time off during the Spring Festival.”

Deputy Director Ma agreed.

“Alright, I’ll approve one more day for you.”

“Can I have a few more days?” Ye Xiaoyu looked around and leaned closer to Deputy Director Ma, whispering, “Director Ma, to be honest, I’m really struggling with Yang Ligang, and if things really go south… I might not be able to stay in the motor factory much longer. I heard your nephew works as a temporary worker in the workshop?”

Deputy Director Ma’s eyes lit up at the mention of her nephew. She glanced around and leaned closer: “Is it still a good time to sell jobs?”

Selling jobs was a distinctive practice, where one could sell their position to someone else, a trend mainly popular in the 1960s and 70s.

After the first state-owned factory went bankrupt in the 1980s, the “iron rice bowl” (a secure job) no longer seemed so secure, and the practice of selling jobs gradually cooled down. People feared that selling their job could lead to the factory closing down.

Additionally, now factories no longer allowed family members to inherit positions, and the era of “golden rice bowls” and “silver rice bowls” was over.

However, Deputy Director Ma wasn’t concerned about that. She worked at the motor factory and was also the deputy director of the personnel department. As long as there was an official vacancy, it was easy to transfer a temporary worker to a permanent position, and Ye Xiaoyu’s job didn’t require highly specialized skills.

Moreover, the motor factory wasn’t something like a flour or clothing factory that could be easily replaced. After the reform and opening up, the factory’s profits hadn’t decreased; on the contrary, they had increased year after year. As long as one worked until retirement, there was no problem.

Otherwise, they wouldn’t have been able to raise wages and build dormitories for employees at the end of the 1980s, just to stabilize people’s hearts.

Although people often say the 1990s were a golden era where even a pig could get rich, those living in the present didn’t share that optimism. With constant news of factory closures and workers being laid off, many were uneasy. Having a stable job was a dream for many Chinese.

After hearing Deputy Director Ma’s question, Ye Xiaoyu nodded firmly.

Deputy Director Ma then said, “Fine, as long as you resign, we’ll pay you an 800 yuan referral fee.”

Ye Xiaoyu’s monthly salary was 400 yuan, so the 800 yuan wasn’t much—just two months’ salary. However, in the current environment where selling jobs wasn’t common, she couldn’t sell her position anywhere else, so an extra 100 yuan would be a small bonus. 800 yuan was an unexpected windfall.

Even if Deputy Director Ma hadn’t mentioned it, Ye Xiaoyu would have made the offer herself, hoping to build a relationship. So she decisively agreed.

“Alright, it’s a deal.”

Because of this future transaction, Ye Xiaoyu’s leave was approved smoothly—five days, the longest she could get. Any longer, and Deputy Director Ma would have trouble justifying it. She’d need a medical certificate for a serious injury.

At the end, Deputy Director Ma even warmly invited Ye Xiaoyu to dinner. After she declined, Ma personally saw her out, leaving the onlookers puzzled.

Ye Xiaoyu returned home but didn’t plan to pick up her son from her in-laws’ house that night.

First, the original owner had already arranged for her son to stay with the grandparents before sending him there, including telling him that she was busy with work and needed him to stay over. She had also reminded him to be good and listen to his grandparents. Second, she wasn’t mentally prepared to be a mother to a young child. She had once wanted to raise cats and dogs but was dissuaded by the responsibilities. Now, suddenly facing the role of a mother to a child, who was far more complex than pets, it felt like a forced fate, and she wasn’t someone driven by overflowing maternal love. She still needed to mentally prepare for this.

“What a terrible adult.”

Ye Xiaoyu didn’t feel like tidying up the living room. She let the mess stay. She didn’t even want to return to the master bedroom, where the bed made her feel disgusted.

She took scissors and a kitchen knife to her son’s room, lying on the small wooden bed, quietly saying goodbye to the past.

Yes, goodbye.

In the 21st century, Ye Xiaoyu, although having weak family ties, still had her own friends. She had just bought and emotionally invested in a small apartment of her own, a place for her dreams. Now, she would never have the chance to meet them again, or at least not for decades. Late at night, she would think about it.

Fortunately, since childhood, she had been good at processing emotions and could usually hold it together, shedding only one tear.

Not enough?

Two tears. No more than that.

Tears can flood, but sometimes the collapse of an adult is simple yet overwhelming.

She didn’t know when she fell asleep, but the next morning, when she looked in the mirror, her eyes were red and swollen, with deep dark circles under them.

“…”

She reminded herself, “People who don’t often stay up late are like this.”

At least there were still some benefits. Ye Xiaoyu pinched her chubby cheeks, instantly looking ten years younger. Her skin had more collagen, and it was in good condition.

In her previous life, Ye Xiaoyu worked in sales. Though her company didn’t specifically require women to wear makeup, her colleagues all did, and she couldn’t be the only one behind. To avoid damaging her skin with too much makeup, she had to buy some serums and moisturizers and occasionally visit a beauty salon, usually when there was a big client.

But even with all the skincare spending, Ye Xiaoyu’s skin still had some damage. However, the woman in the mirror had flawless skin, possibly due to youth and strong recovery ability. Her skin was smooth and fair, with no allergies, redness, or acne, and her eyes were clear and bright.

“Her eyes are really big, and even though she’s this fat, she still looks good. Her features are really impressive!”

The original person was introverted and shy, and due to family circumstances, she was often depressed and unhappy. But now, with a new personality, everything feels different. Ye Xiaoyu, being chubby, had a lively and charming aura.

She straightened her back, puffed out her chest, and said:

“Not bad, not bad, full marks for potential.”

Ye Xiaoyu reheated the small steamed buns she had brought back yesterday, along with a small bowl of white rice porridge. A nutritious and rich breakfast.

Then she went out.

Today, Ye Xiaoyu didn’t take the bus. Her destination wasn’t too far, and taking the bus would involve a long detour. There was a section of the road that wasn’t smooth, so walking for 40 or 50 minutes was actually less tiring than a shaky hour-long bus ride.

Of course, walking wasn’t exactly easy either.

On the way, she stopped by the local market and bought three pounds of apples and two pounds of walnuts.

Ye Xiaoyu’s destination today was also the State Cotton Factory No. 1. Though it was also a state-owned enterprise, this factory had been more severely impacted by the reforms and opening up, and its production efficiency was no longer as glorious as it once was.

Her second sister and brother-in-law both worked in this factory. They lived in a narrow, poorly soundproofed “tube building” built in the 1970s. When a family argued, the whole building could hear, and there were no secrets.

This wasn’t Ye Xiaoyu’s first time visiting. The sisters had a good relationship, and they often saw each other.

She walked directly to the family apartment building.

As expected, her second sister was home today, either not going to work or just not yet having had the chance to leave.

At that time, many state-owned factories didn’t have strict work rules.

Some were so busy they even worked through the New Year, while others barely worked one or two hours a day. As long as there were no inspections, they would often sneak home. Official working hours were usually until 3 or 4 in the afternoon, and employees could switch shifts or use temporary workers to cover.

Some people worked themselves to death, while others had it easy.

Her second sister, Ye Ermei, clearly belonged to the latter group. Her working hours were short, and she had many holidays.

Ye Ermei worked as an office clerk in the factory. Besides being busy at the end of the month and year, she really had little to do. State-run factories had too many idle workers with iron rice bowls, which made it hard not to go bankrupt.

“Xiaoyu, why are you here?” She saw Ye Xiaoyu with her bags and started nagging. “We can’t even finish the fruit at home, and you buy even more. It’s just a waste of money.”

Ye Ermei and Ye Xiaoyu were about the same height, which showed that their genetic height was pretty good, taller than many men of the time. They also shared some physical resemblance, but because Ye Xiaoyu was so overweight, her features were hidden, and they had different personalities. Ye Xiaoyu was introverted, while Ye Ermei was bold and outspoken. Very few people could immediately tell they were sisters.

But their relationship was always good.

Ye Xiaoyu placed the fruit on the coffee table and said, “Sweet girl has a tough time at school, walnuts help with the brain.”

“Help with what? If you take more, it won’t make a difference.” Ye Ermei looked Ye Xiaoyu up and down and nodded in satisfaction. “Your complexion has improved a lot recently. Is there some good news?”

Ye Xiaoyu nodded:

“Yes.”

“I’m getting a divorce.”

“…”