Chapter 24: Reported

As the saying goes, having money means no worries. Jiang Shulan had already thought it through: “If I save and use this money wisely, it can last me ten or eight years. In my spare time, I can help the villagers make some clothes and quilts in exchange for goods. If that doesn’t work, I still have the strength to work in the fields and earn work points. No matter what, I can support Duobao and the child in my belly.”

Jiang An’an furrowed her brow slightly.

For a moment, she really wanted to advise her elder sister to terminate the pregnancy. After all, this child would be born without a father, and with the family’s difficult circumstances, it would only add to her sister’s burden and become a liability.

But Jiang Shulan had her head slightly lowered, a gentle smile playing on her lips, her hand lightly brushing her still-flat belly, filled with warmth and infinite hopes for the future.

In that instant, she found herself unable to say anything.

In this era, hospitals were not well-equipped, and a miscarriage could easily lead to infections. If something went wrong, Jiang An’an would hate herself for the rest of her life.

Since her elder sister wanted to have the baby and their family had the means, then let her have it!

However, it was not feasible for Jiang Shulan to work in the fields to earn work points; she was pregnant and had never done heavy labor since giving birth. Her body definitely wouldn’t be able to handle it.

Jiang An’an’s gaze quickly fell to the basket filled with embroidery work, deep in thought.

There was no need for her to stay in the fields all the time.

The Nanxi Brigade was mostly made up of honest and hardworking farmers, and there was no shortage of people to work in the fields.

Moreover, by 1980, the commune system would be abolished, and with two money-consuming children in school, they had less than eight years to prepare for the future.

As for the other option of becoming a seamstress…

In 1972, they were in the eye of the storm; in principle, any income beyond wages was not allowed. The old Jiang family had a terrible reputation, and Jiang Shulan had just received a large sum of money from her divorce, which made her a target for envy and potential reporting for speculation.

They needed to carefully plan how to allow her elder sister to legally and reasonably work as a seamstress. With her sister’s skills and her 21st-century knowledge, she would definitely make a lot of money in the 80s and 90s.

“Elder sister, besides making shoes, what else can you do?”

Jiang Shulan was puzzled: “I can make clothes for all four seasons, silk scarves, and folding screens, but unfortunately, I only know 20 types of embroidery stitches.”

“Wow! Knowing 20 types of embroidery stitches is amazing!” Jiang An’an had always been clumsy with her hands; she couldn’t even mend a sock without making it look crooked, and she envied Jiang Shulan for being such a skilled inheritor of traditional crafts.

Jiang Shulan’s cheeks flushed, her voice filled with admiration and longing: “I learned this embroidery technique from my grandmother. They say she could sell a single folding screen for twenty or thirty silver coins back in the day, and I’ve only learned the basics. An’an, do you want to make new clothes? What style do you prefer?”

She happened to be planning to make two winter outfits for her younger sister recently, designed and tailored to her preferences, which would surely make her happier.

Jiang An’an shook her head: “I don’t want to make clothes; I just want to do something. I’ll tell you when I figure it out.”

“Alright.” Jiang Shulan had complete trust in her younger sister. Although she didn’t know what it was, she firmly believed it could be accomplished.

–

The heat of the divorce lasted for two days, and the focus of discussion among the members soon shifted to the group of new educated youth.

As newcomers, the educated youth were assigned the simplest tasks, clearing weeds.

After the autumn harvest, deep autumn set in, and the sown rapeseed and winter wheat had just sprouted, creating a lush green landscape.

To prevent the educated youth from wasting food, Brigade Leader Luo specifically paired them with older members, forming teams of two. However, despite the simplicity of the task, the educated youth still managed to pull up quite a few seedlings incorrectly, infuriating the brigade leader, whose mouth began to blister from the frustration as he squatted in the fields supervising them every day.

Jiang Degui and his wife complained endlessly. Each time they tried to find an excuse to take a day off, the brigade leader would frown and threaten to deduct work points, which scared the elderly couple into behaving for a while.

However, they continued to slack off, which caused trouble for the educated youth paired with them.

As a result, the couple was reported!

Luo Jiawang slammed his hand on the table, angrily berating the two: “It’s one thing to be lazy, but to embarrass me in front of the commune is unacceptable! This has blown up, and the commune is paying close attention to this matter. You two need to discuss how to handle it!”

Jiang Degui’s eyes darted around, clearly without a good plan: “Whoever reported it should take responsibility. It must have been those educated youth. I’ll go call them all over.”

“Do you want to make the situation even worse?” Luo Jiawang was almost driven to madness by Jiang Degui, “What’s the point of calling them over? Who would dare to admit it?”

To avoid retaliation within the brigade, the commune wouldn’t dare to hand over the report to him. But if he found out who the coward was, he would definitely make them clean the public toilets!

But right now…

“Given your atrocious behavior, the brigade has decided to punish you by having you clean the public toilets for a month.”

The couple’s expressions changed in unison.

Cleaning toilets was both exhausting and smelly, and the key point was that it was humiliating.

They would rather die than do it!

Jiang Degui held his waist: “Ouch, I think I twisted my leg, and my back hurts so much. I’ll probably need to rest for ten days or half a month to recover.”

Lin Meiru clutched her chest: “Ah! My chest hurts so much; it feels like I can’t breathe. Hurry and take me to the hospital.”

The couple’s performance was perfectly coordinated, with their wails echoing back and forth.

Luo Jiawang’s forehead throbbed with pain, and he couldn’t help but rub it: “Enough! If you keep wailing, I’ll add another month to your punishment.”

The cries abruptly stopped.

“Brigade leader, you’re being biased and actually helping the educated youth persecute the members.” Lin Meiru, seeing that soft tactics weren’t working, became aggressive, hands on her hips and glaring: “Who saw us slacking off? I’ll go to the commune right now and report the educated youth for ruining crops and wasting food. Even if I have to clean toilets, I’ll make sure they take the blame!”

Luo Jiawang shot back: “If you dare go, I’ll deduct your work points!”

Lin Meiru’s momentum instantly deflated; feeling dissatisfied and wanting to stir things up, she hesitated at the thought of losing those work points.

Reporting could be a big deal or a small one; Luo Jiawang seized the opportunity to discipline the lazy couple and prevent them from continuing their deceitful ways, which would negatively influence the brigade’s atmosphere.

“Knock, knock, knock!”

While everyone was at a standstill, someone knocked on the office door.

Luo Jiawang said irritably, “Come in.”

The door opened to reveal someone from the old Jiang family, specifically the recently popular daughter of Jiang Degui’s family.

Her brows tightened immediately, and Luo Jiawang prepared himself, reminding himself to stay true to his principles. He wasn’t like Zhou Kang, an inexperienced young man easily swayed by Jiang An’an’s words.

“Brigade leader, I have an idea I’d like to report to you.” Jiang An’an walked in as if she didn’t see Jiang Degui and his wife, her gaze steady, a slight smile on her lips, and her two small dimples subtly appearing.

As the saying goes, you don’t hit someone who’s smiling at you. Despite his anger, Luo Jiawang’s tone softened a bit: “Are you here to plead for your parents? I’ll tell you, they’ve committed serious…”

“I support the brigade leader in handling this fairly.”

“Hmm?” Luo Jiawang was taken aback: “…You support?”

Even Jiang Degui and his wife looked completely bewildered.