Chapter 50: Was My Uncle Released?

Secretary Jin was a quick-witted person, he clapped his hands and praised, “No wonder the county magistrate always praises Director Chen for being down-to-earth and truly putting the commune members at heart.”

“I was elected from the masses, of course I have to work for the benefit of the masses.” Chen Xingtong was pleased with the praise, he subtly turned his head and gave Secretary Yang a smug look.

Secretary Yang smiled, not angry at all, and he didn’t try to grab the work as he used to.

Because Jiang An’an had given him a heads-up beforehand, she had said this: “In the eyes of the leaders above, the Red Flag Commune is a whole. You are responsible for managing upwards, publicizing and reporting to build the commune’s reputation, and letting the leaders know more about the commune. While Director Chen knows more about the grassroots level and has rich experience in doing practical work.

You two complement each other, one focuses on external affairs and the other on internal affairs, the future of our Red Flag Commune will surely be bright and prosperous.”

It was a wake-up call, the better Director Chen worked, the more prosperous the Red Flag Commune developed, the more he would benefit, his desire for power and influence immediately faded.

At this moment, he even spoke up for Chen Xingtong in front of Secretary Jin, “For the sake of the commune members below being able to live a good life, Director Chen has worked tirelessly, he is a good cadre of the people.”

Chen Xingtong: ?

My goodness, has the sun risen from the west?

He subconsciously looked at Jiang An’an, who was a few steps behind, and his heart was filled with mixed emotions. Did Old Yang really think he was a cold-hearted person, all these years, had he misunderstood him?

After seeing off Secretary Jin and Director Gao, Chen Xingtong specially called Secretary Zhang over for a stern criticism and education.

In front of everyone, Secretary Zhang lost face, and he hated Jiang An’an even more.

“Write a 500-word self-criticism and submit it to my desk tomorrow morning, and you also need to apologize to Comrade Jiang.”

That’s right, Chen Xingtong’s address for Jiang An’an had changed from the disdainful “Jiang An’an” to the affectionate “Comrade Jiang,” a 180-degree change in attitude after showing his face in front of the leaders.

Secretary Zhang looked at Jiang An’an with a gloomy face, “I’ve already been punished, be magnanimous and forgive me.”

This apology was not sincere at all.

Instead, he was morally blackmailing her.

Jiang An’an had no sympathy for Secretary Zhang, she turned and left.

“You…” Secretary Zhang was stunned, it was as if a slap had been slapped across his face, he clenched his fists tightly, his bones cracking.

“Damn it!”

—

The news that the Jiang sisters, one had her article published in the Capital Newspaper and the other was praised and received a ceramic jar, quickly spread throughout the Nanxi Brigade.

The commune members all exclaimed: A good sprout grows from a bad bamboo, the Jiang family’s second branch is in the limelight this time.

Lin Meiru lovingly stroked the ceramic jar, her upturned lips never came down, “It must be enshrined, no one is allowed to use it.”

“I want to touch it too.” Jiang Degui reached out his hand but was slapped back by his wife.

Lin Meiru glared at him, “What are you touching for? Your hands are rough and dirty, what if you scratch the glaze?”

Jiang Degui chuckled, not angry, “Tomorrow I’ll find a way to buy a newspaper, I’ll stick it on the wall and burn it… for our ancestors to see.” He originally wanted to say “benefactor” but changed his mind in time.

“An’an, when you’re free after you’re done with all this, take a day off and go to the grave with your father.” Lin Meiru’s smile faded slightly, “They’re breaking the Four Olds outside, don’t tell anyone about going to the grave, just find an excuse to take a day off.”

They hadn’t gone to the grave in so many years, Jiang An’an keenly sensed something was different about her parents’ expressions, and thinking about her own background, she had a vague guess.

…They were going to take her to visit her biological parents’ grave!

“Okay.” She agreed readily, feeling a little curious.

Jiang Degui couldn’t bear to see his wife’s sadness, so he quickly changed the subject, “By the way, how much did you get for the manuscript fee?”

Jiang An’an opened the envelope, inside was a total of sixteen yuan!

That was a huge sum of money.

“Writing articles is almost as good as working as a worker, the manuscript fee is so lucrative.” Lin Meiru was amazed. They earned this much money just by writing an article? The fools in the village were still spreading rumors that her younger daughter would be destined to be unmarried, but they couldn’t even earn this much in three months!

With money, they had confidence, and in the future, they could still find a son-in-law for An’an to carry on the family line!

Jiang An’an kept two yuan, the rest she gave ten yuan to Lin Meiru, two yuan to Jiang Degui, and two yuan to Jiang Shulan.

“This is my first paycheck, everyone in the family gets a share. Mother gets the most, keep some for household expenses and buy some fabric to make new clothes. Father can buy some high-quality wine, Big Sister has always taken care of me, now I’m giving her some pocket money too.”

At this point, everyone couldn’t refuse, but they all thought about using this money to buy good things for Jiang An’an.

“Sigh!”

Jiang An’an sighed, looking apologetic, “Now that Big Sister and I have been praised by the leaders, our Jiang family is an advanced family. It’s just that we’re sorry to Father and Mother, we might not be able to slack off or take advantage of the villagers anymore.”

For a daughter-loving parent, what could be more important than the honor of their two daughters?

Lin Meiru’s heart was so inflated that it was about to burst, she immediately declared, “Although Mother can’t guarantee that she will become a diligent person, she will definitely not take advantage of the brigade or the villagers anymore.”

Jiang An’an looked at her father.

Jiang Degui said, “I’ll reduce the number of times I visit my in-laws, and I’ll try not to take advantage of my sons-in-law.”

Although it was a face-saving matter to be an advanced family, it was too uncomfortable not to be able to take advantage of others!

Their changes were significant.

They didn’t sneakily grab a handful of peanuts while working, and they didn’t reach out to pick a few winter jujubes when they saw them hanging on the branches of other people’s trees.

The Jiang family’s second branch has truly changed!

But every day, as soon as the couple entered their home, their shoulders slumped, and they wore a mournful expression, filled with regret.

Meanwhile.

In a house at the end of the village in the Nanxi Brigade, a woman who was being beaten and scolded as usual, her dull eyes slowly ignited with anger.

–

The next day, the legal education lecture led by the Public Security Bureau was held as scheduled.

With the experience of the previous day, this lecture went off without a hitch.

However, what surprised Jiang An’an was that Wu Jian Guo’s speech content had changed.

Originally, he planned to use the hospital incident to publicly criticize Jiang Dezhu and the others, and then talk about some common scams at the end of the year, guiding the commune members not to fall victim to them. Suddenly, he removed the first part of the content.

Overall, Jiang An’an’s proposed “Top Ten Classic Scams” was a hot topic among the commune members, they couldn’t wait to go back to the village and hold a meeting to spread the word.

After the lecture, Wu Jian Guo said apologetically, “Sorry, your uncle has done a good deed, he will probably be released soon.”

“Done a good deed?” Jiang An’an was surprised.

Wu Jian Guo’s expression was strange, “A few days ago, we caught a group of thieves who were destroying state property, Jiang Dezhu learned some important information from those thieves. After evaluation by the higher authorities, they decided to let him return home for his good deeds.”

Jiang An’an didn’t think it was anything special, she comforted him, “That’s his luck.”

Wu Jian Guo snorted, his expression full of sarcasm, he couldn’t reveal too much information, he could only hint, “Anyway, since you’ve already separated, don’t get too close to him.”

Jiang An’an’s eyes widened: !!

Oh, wow!

Could it be that the Public Security Bureau is planning to use entrapment?