Chapter 19: Discussion

After Li Lin and Hu Yingying left, Liu Lan couldn’t hide her jealousy and shouted angrily, “We’re exhausted from working all day, and why do they get to stroll around looking all glamorous?”

“You could also work a full day and earn three work points. Then you could stroll around freely too,” Zhao Li said, though she too was jealous, she didn’t show it. Seeing Liu Lan’s face twisted with jealousy, she decided to fan the flames:

“Besides, we’re here to support education, while people like Li Zhinqing and Hu Zhinqing get to live so carefree… tsk tsk…”

Upon hearing this, Liu Lan’s eyes lit up. Without even finishing her meal, she rushed off to find the brigade leader.

“Some people’s good days are numbered. Let’s just wait and watch the drama unfold,” Zhao Li said, stretching lazily once no one was around, then leisurely entered the youth compound.

The others who were left at the door exchanged glances and then followed her in, all with smiles on their faces.

Meanwhile, Li Lin and Hu Yingying, unaware that someone was going to the brigade leader to stir trouble, were trudging under the hot sun, drenched in sweat, as they made their way to the commune. They headed straight for the post office.

“Hello, do you have a letter or package for Li Lin from Majiadui?” Li Lin asked the postal worker after entering.

“Yes, yes! It arrived yesterday. I was planning to notify you this afternoon, but you came just in time!” The worker quickly led her to the warehouse.

“These are all yours. Just sign for them on the form, and you can take them,” the worker said.

Li Lin looked at the pile of packages before her—there were even more than when she first left. She couldn’t help but twitch her lips.

“Excuse me, do you have a package for Hu Yingying as well? She’s from Majiadui too,” Li Lin asked, noticing that her stack of packages was quite tall.

Hu Yingying, looking at the five packages stacked as high as half her body, looked at the worker with envy and asked, “Do you have any for me?”

“Yes, these are yours. Since you’re together, you can take them all at once,” the worker replied, pointing to a few packages nearby.

Hu Yingying turned to look and saw that her stack of packages was similar to Li Lin’s. She couldn’t help but twitch her lips as well.

“Excuse me, can we leave the packages here for now? We’ll go mail some letters and come back to pick them up,” Li Lin asked the worker, feeling a bit embarrassed.

“No problem. Go ahead and mail your letters, then come back to collect them. I’ll take care of it for you,” the worker said understandingly and led them out before going back to her work.

After mailing their letters, Li Lin and Hu Yingying went to the supply and marketing cooperative to buy some necessary items. They then rented an ox cart to bring the packages back to the brigade.

By the time they arrived, it was the usual time when the villagers were heading off to work. Seeing the two of them on the ox cart with a pile of goods on top, the villagers began to gossip:

“Hey, look, those two are the new intellectuals who arrived a couple of days ago, right? Wow, they sure know how to spend big.”

“You’re right. That’s a lot of stuff. Must have cost a fair bit.”

“I bet they spent at least 180 yuan on all that.”

“Ha, spent that much? 180 yuan could last us several years!”

Hearing the gossip, Li Lin quickly called out, “Hey, uncles and aunts, these things are winter clothes and quilts sent by my family. Don’t be fooled by all the bags—there’s not that much inside.”

“Oh, no wonder! I was wondering what kind of family could afford to send so much stuff.”

Li Lin knew that if she didn’t speak up, the entire brigade would find out that they had bought so many things and assume that they were rich and didn’t need to worry about money.

Li Lin had the old man with the ox cart stop. She opened one of the bags and showed the villagers the bedding inside.

“Li Zhinqing, your quilts are really thick and well-made. They must have cost quite a bit of money,” one of the older women said. It was the first time she had seen such high-quality bedding, and she couldn’t help but reach out to touch it, then asked enviously.

“I’m not sure about the cost, but my parents knew I was going to the countryside, so they swapped quite a few ration coupons with others. Otherwise, no one could afford so many cotton coupons,” Li Lin explained. Then, looking around at the curious aunts and uncles, she added, “But, I can ask my family if they can buy some defective cloth. If they can, I’ll have them send it over, though I don’t know if you all would mind.”

“We don’t mind, we don’t mind at all! Don’t even mention defective cloth; even scraps of fabric would be welcome,” one of the older women eagerly responded.

She was speaking the truth. In the countryside, apart from the rough homespun cloth they wove themselves, it was very difficult to buy fabric. Not only did they have a limited number of fabric ration coupons per year, but the supply stores also had a set quota for selling fabric. Sometimes, if they went late, there wouldn’t be any left to buy.

Now, someone was willing to help them get defective cloth? They had no reason to refuse. They were thrilled at the prospect.

However, there was always someone who would try to spoil the mood. This time, someone shouted, “Li Lin, just because your father is the director of a textile factory, and your mother works as an accountant there, you think you can secretly take cloth from the factory.”

“Well, my eyes are sharp. If I see it once, I’ll report it immediately.”

The people around her hadn’t expected that Li Lin’s family was so well-off, but they didn’t want to get her family in trouble over something as trivial as cloth. They quickly spoke up: “Li Lin, don’t worry about us. We don’t want any cloth. Just don’t let your parents get into trouble over something small like this.”

Li Lin understood that if she didn’t intervene, the entire brigade would soon hear about the large purchases they made and assume that they were wealthy and didn’t care about money. So she quickly reassured everyone, “Don’t worry, aunts and uncles. I’m just asking my parents. If they can get some, we’ll buy it. If not, it’s no big deal. We’ll follow the proper procedures and won’t let anyone take advantage of us.”

“Alright, Li Zhinqing, you ask them, and if it’s really not possible, we won’t buy it. We’re fine without it,” the older woman replied.

“Okay, I’ll ask. But you all get back to work. I’ll take these things home now,” Li Lin said, noticing that time was getting late. She called for the old man to drive the ox cart back to the youth compound.

Liu Lan watched them leave, and the rage in her eyes nearly boiled over. She hadn’t expected Li Lin to be so bold today, nor had she expected her attempt to report to the brigade leader to end in failure. 

She couldn’t let this go. She decided to write a letter to her parents, asking them to keep an eye on the Li family. If they ever took cloth from the factory secretly, she would report them. Then, she would see if Li Lin dared to act so arrogantly.

“If you can’t beat someone, don’t try to act tough. Don’t make a fool of yourself in the end,” Zhao Li said quietly when the others had left.

Liu Lan clenched her fists, shot a look at Zhao Li, and turned to head to the fields.

“With such little ability, looks like I overestimated her. Let’s wait a couple of days. If nothing happens, we’ll think of another way,” Zhao Li said as she watched Liu Lan walk away, then turned to Li Di and Zheng Guoqiang to give them an update.

“Got it,” the two of them nodded, indicating they understood.

They didn’t want to do anything malicious, but since they had been abandoned by their families and had no economic support in the countryside, they had no choice but to resort to underhanded methods. If they had known how to act in a timely manner, they might have gotten by with less, but now it was clear that some people were oblivious to the situation. They had no choice but to use tactics to get what they needed.