Chapter 27: Signing Up for the Countryside at the Street Office

The morning breeze was most pleasant. Iron Orchid hummed a tune as she walked towards the street office.

On the side of the road, a group of aunties were chatting, their expressions excited. Iron Orchid stopped and quietly listened.

“Hey, did you hear? Deputy Director Zhang’s house was robbed last night, everything was stolen!”

“I heard about it a long time ago, my sister-in-law came to my house before dawn to tell me, she even ate a few big steamed buns at my house, I didn’t even get enough to eat.”

“That’s nothing, my niece’s family stayed at my house last night, if it wasn’t for this explosive news, I really wanted to kick these poor relatives out!”

Iron Orchid: …

No wonder people say gossip doesn’t last overnight, it spreads everywhere in one night.

The speed is really top-notch!

“I heard that Deputy Director Zhang and his wife were so scared that they ran out without any clothes on?”

“That’s right, my sister-in-law couldn’t stop laughing when she told me, it’s a pity I wasn’t there, otherwise, I would have died laughing.”

“You only know about last night’s news, do you know about this morning’s news?”

A fat auntie said mysteriously.

Everyone asked in unison: “What news?”

The auntie said: “I heard that the whole Zhang family was arrested, because his son hid foreign things, it seems like those books.”

Others were surprised: “My God, they’re so bold, they dare to commit such a crime.”

“It’s probably like father, like son, the whole Zhang family is going to be in big trouble.”

“He’s still called a deputy director, once this happens, the textile factory will definitely deal with it seriously, the Zhang family won’t have a good life anymore.”

An auntie said: “Hey, you’re all discussing the Zhang family, why doesn’t anyone talk about the thief? I remember there were two other families who were robbed overnight, could it be the same person?”

Hearing this, the fat auntie quickly hushed her:

“Don’t say it! It’s spooky if you do!”

Everyone looked at her curiously.

The fat auntie continued: “My nephew’s friend is a public security officer, I heard that the thief came and went without a trace, no one has seen their true face. The key is that the thief moved so many things without waking anyone up, no one in the neighborhood noticed, it’s so amazing!”

“Good heavens, could it be that the thief isn’t human, it’s…”

— a ghost.

The person didn’t say the last word, these days, feudal superstition was strictly prohibited, you couldn’t be caught with your pants down.

The other aunties also looked wary.

The fat auntie: “Anyway, everyone, talk about this less, if something bad happens to your house, it won’t be good.”

“Okay, we won’t talk about it anymore, what if he hears us and steals from our house in the middle of the night, we’ll cry.”

Iron Orchid: …

If they knew that I was right there, would they be scared to death?

I’d better not bother them, let them chat.

Iron Orchid smiled and left.

She went to the street office, took out her household registration booklet, and said to the staff at the window:

“Comrade, I want to sign up for the countryside.”

It’s better to go to the countryside, otherwise, there will be a lot of trouble staying here.

The staff member was very enthusiastic when she saw someone actively signing up for the countryside:

“Okay, what’s your name, where do you live, and who are in your family?”

Iron Orchid explained the situation one by one.

When she heard that she was an orphan and her parents had already passed away.

The staff member looked reluctant: “You don’t need to go to the countryside with this situation, you’re the only one in your family, why don’t you find a job in the city?”

Iron Orchid: “This is my ideal, I want to go to a wider world, contribute to the construction of our country.”

Before going out, she had specifically read the Little Red Book, and it came in handy immediately, hehe.

The staff member was both happy and moved when she heard this:

“Young comrade, you are truly an admirable person. Don’t worry, I’ll arrange a good place for you to go to the countryside, I guarantee you’ll be satisfied.”

Iron Orchid beamed: “Thank you, sister, you’re so kind.”

The staff member also smiled: “You’re so sweet, come on, sister will help you with the paperwork.”

The sister was very efficient, and she quickly finished all the paperwork.

“This is your subsidy for going to the countryside, 45 yuan. If you want to go to the countryside quickly, there’s a train tomorrow at noon, remember to prepare everything, we’ll have staff send you the ticket in advance.”

Iron Orchid: “Okay, thank you.”

Leaving the street office, Iron Orchid planned to go to the black market. She had looted several families’ belongings and food in the past few days, enough to last her for a while. She wasn’t going to the black market to buy anything, but to find someone.

The Iron family’s small courtyard couldn’t be left empty forever, she wanted to rent it out, and she needed to find someone she knew.

Iron Orchid thought of Niu Da-pang. That guy was a good person, he was very enthusiastic and had a wide circle of friends, maybe he could help.

The last time they parted ways, they didn’t leave each other their addresses, so she could only go to the black market and try her luck.

It was a coincidence.

Iron Orchid hadn’t even reached the black market when she bumped into Niu Da-pang on the way.

The usually cheerful young man was now squatting on the street, looking dejected.

Iron Orchid walked over and greeted him: “Brother Da-pang!”

Niu Da-pang saw her and immediately stood up, smiling:

“Oh, it’s the big sister, I haven’t thanked you for the last time, what a coincidence!”

Iron Orchid: “It’s okay, did San Hengzi cause you any trouble later?”

Niu Da-pang: “He dared to cause me trouble? I had my friend take care of him, I have a friend in the Public Security Bureau, hehe.”

Iron Orchid raised her eyebrows, she didn’t expect him to be so decisive despite his carefree appearance.

“Brother Da-pang, I want to ask you a favor…”

Iron Orchid told him about her plan to go to the countryside tomorrow and rent out her house.

Niu Da-pang’s eyes lit up:

“Big sister! You’re my lucky star, I’m worried about finding a place to rent!”

Niu Da-pang was the second child in his family, he had an older sister and a younger brother. As the middle child, he was naturally the least favored by his family.

Niu Da-pang, with his optimistic personality, learned to adjust himself from a young age. Since his family didn’t welcome him, he made more friends and earned more money. As a result, he was the most successful in the Niu family.

His mother always nagged him to help his sister and brother. As the saying goes, the more love a child lacks, the more filial they are.

Niu Da-pang wanted to get his mother’s praise, so he went all out to show his filial piety.

His strong-willed sister was very picky, and her blind dates never went smoothly. He helped her find a gentle young man without parents to marry into the Niu family.

His lazy younger brother only knew how to eat, drink, and play, he didn’t even have a job.

Seeing that he was about to be sent to the countryside, Niu Da-pang quickly used most of his savings to buy him a job at a steel mill.

Although his brother was not a good person, his peach blossom luck was strong, he got a girlfriend from a good family not long after starting work.

Young people are easily impulsive, and they were like fire and tinder, within a few months, the girl became pregnant.

Niu Da-pang’s mother was overjoyed to have a fat grandson. But their family’s conditions were average, they didn’t have much savings, where would the dowry and wedding money come from?

Niu Da-pang’s mother cried poor, and Niu Da-pang immediately took out all his remaining savings.

Not long after his brother got married, Niu Da-pang’s peach blossom luck also came.

They had been dating for half a year, and it was time to discuss marriage.

Niu Da-pang talked to his mother about it, but they said that the family had no money and asked him to take care of the wedding himself. They also said that the house was too small and there was no place to live, so they asked Niu Da-pang to rent a house outside when he got married.

To be honest, it was impossible not to feel heartbroken.

But there was no way, the family really only had three rooms. His parents had one, his older sister and her husband had one, and his brother and his wife had one.

Niu Da-pang had nowhere to sleep, so he made a makeshift wooden bed in the living room.

Now that he was getting married, he couldn’t let his wife suffer.

These days, Niu Da-pang had been running back and forth between the black market and his home, looking for a house.

But these days, empty houses were hard to find, and if you wanted to make it a new house, you couldn’t be careless.

He had been looking and looking, but he hadn’t found anything satisfactory.

Now Iron Orchid told him that she had a house to rent, it was simply a blessing from heaven.

Based on the big sister’s straightforwardness, the house must be good.

Niu Da-pang no longer had to worry.