Chapter 194: Theft

As time passed, the movement began to unfold vigorously. Any non-conforming books found in rural households were confiscated. Wang Qian was surprised to discover that some seemingly inconspicuous members of the community had hidden treasures in their homes. Items such as incense burners, books, and various odds and ends all looked like treasures to her. The sight of them made her itch to take a closer look.

After confiscation, these items were stored in the village’s warehouse, awaiting unified destruction.

Old Chen and Old Zhou couldn’t help but shake their heads at the thought of these valuable items being destroyed. It was truly a pity.

Wang Zhenhe was called to help transport these items to the village’s warehouse. Wang Qian seized the opportunity to follow her father and assist. Meanwhile, Mingyuan and the other children went to play by the river with their friends from the village. Since Wang Zhenhe thought his daughter was alone, he allowed her to tag along.

The helpers were all from the same village and knew each other. They sorted the confiscated items and separated those to be burned or smashed. Wang Qian discreetly stashed away anything that caught her eye into the space. She deemed the remaining items, although somewhat old, to have little value.

The head of the public security department muttered to himself, “It’s such a waste to burn them. It would be better to sell them as scrap and at least recover some money. It’s a form of recycling.”

The helpers were delighted at the suggestion. Selling the scrap would benefit them. “Director, why don’t we sell the scrap? It’s a contribution to the country’s paper and iron industries. With this scrap iron, we could even make a few cars,” they suggested.

Li Detian waved his hand and said, “I agree. Some of you go and push the carts to sell the items. We’ll consider the task completed. The money from the sales will be handed over, and each person present today will receive fifty cents.”

The helpers were generally honest individuals, and Li Detian trusted them not to embezzle. He was confident in letting them tidy up the items and take them to the supply and marketing cooperative to sell. Wang Qian went along with them, happily skipping around each cart on the way. Unbeknownst to those around her, she took the opportunity to stash away more items. They thought the child was simply overjoyed, but little did they know about her real intentions as she focused on pushing the carts and watching the road.

At the supply and marketing cooperative, the waste paper and scrap metal were accepted, but the items that couldn’t be picked up with a magnet were rejected. Several individuals, including Liu Bing, found it difficult to accept the dark, unidentifiable materials. They had no choice but to discard the items that were not accepted. The remaining items were sold for a total of about forty yuan, and one person collected the money, giving fifty cents to Wang Zhenhe.

With a cheerful smile, he said, “Zhenhe, those items were a hassle, and they weren’t accepted. You can bury them somewhere or throw them into the reservoir. We’ll go back and report our completion.”

Wang Zhenhe didn’t mind doing more or less work. “Alright, you guys go back first. I’ll take care of the rest and dispose of the items. I won’t be going back with you.”

Wang Zhenhe was left to handle the remaining items on the flatbed truck, but he was unsure of where to dispose of them. However, Wang Qian saw this as an opportunity.

“Dad, why don’t we dig a hole and bury them? No one will see them, and you’ll have fulfilled your obligation. It wouldn’t be good if they were caught by someone fishing in the reservoir,” Wang Qian suggested.

Wang Zhenhe considered her suggestion and was unsure of where to bury the items. Wang Qian then proposed, “Dad, what about the old steel smelting site? There’s a pit there. You can take a shovel and cover them with soil. Few people go there.”

Wang Zhenhe thought it was a good idea. “Qianqian, I’ll drive the truck there, while you go home and get a shovel for me.”

Wang Qian happily went home to fetch the tools. She saw this as an opportunity, thinking that these seemingly inconspicuous items might have a future use. Even if they didn’t, they could be used as flower pots or for burning incense.

Father and daughter buried the items in the ditch, and Wang Zhenhe considered his task completed.

When they returned home, neither of them mentioned the burial of the items. This matter became a secret between father and daughter. However, Wang Qian seized an opportunity to move the buried items into the space, where she felt more at ease.

Later that evening, when Zhang Lan went to the space to tend to the vegetables, she discovered that her daughter had indeed been busy. She wondered how Wang Qian had managed to bring all these items into the space.

“Qianqian, what’s the use of these things? They take up space and serve no purpose. It’s better to get rid of them. We have no use for these things at home,” Zhang Lan remarked.

However, Wang Qian cherished the items and held them close. “Mom, please don’t. I went to great lengths to acquire these. Even if they’re not useful, I find comfort in having them. They are my treasures. Please don’t consider getting rid of them. I might find a use for them in the future.”

Zhang Lan was speechless at her daughter’s attachment to these seemingly worthless items. She couldn’t understand why her daughter valued these items so much, as they were things that no one would even pick up if they were left on the street. Even if someone did pick them up, it would likely be to use them as firewood.

Zhang Lan, left  her daughter’s activities and began harvesting a new crop of grain, finding joy in the work despite the effort. Meanwhile, Wang Qian carefully stored the items she had brought into the space and then joined her mother to help with the work. After a year of practice, she had become quite adept at the tasks.

“Mom, we don’t have a place nearby for threshing. Doing it manually is really hard,” Wang Qian remarked.

Zhang Lan knew that a threshing machine would make the job easier, but at present, they couldn’t bring out their produce for fear of being accused of theft.

Bending down, she gently touched her daughter’s face and said, “Qianqian, it’s not the right time yet. Let’s endure for now and figure it out later. Otherwise, how will we explain if someone asks?”

Wang Qian felt disheartened upon hearing this. Indeed, at this point, the produce belonged to the production team, and they had no valid reason to claim it. Otherwise, they would be inviting trouble.

“Mom, won’t this be too tiring for you? I’m not strong enough to be of much help. You’re doing all the work by yourself, and I hate to see you like this,” Wang Qian expressed her concern.

Zhang Lan patted her daughter and said, “Silly girl, you’re feeling good, aren’t you? Haven’t you noticed that I haven’t been feeling unwell lately? It’s probably because we’ve been here for a while. Maybe my heart will recover in the future. Don’t worry, I won’t force myself when I can’t do it.”

Working in the space, Zhang Lan didn’t feel tired even when working alone. The harvest belonged to her family, and working more meant earning more. She was full of energy.

After harvesting the soybeans in the space, they sowed seeds again. Wang Qian helped stack the soybean stalks. Looking at the large pile of beans, it meant that their family wouldn’t have to worry about oil in the future.

Zhang Lan plowed, and Wang Qian followed, helping to sow seeds. “Mom, I’ll go to the ravine to dry the beans tomorrow. It takes up space here, and they won’t dry as quickly. I’ll spread them out in the ravine, and it will be faster.”

At that moment, Zhang Lan remembered a better place. There was a reservoir on the mountaintop of their home, originally used for irrigation. However, due to favorable weather in the past two years, the reservoir hadn’t been opened, and it was mostly dry. Moreover, it had a cement floor, and due to its height, few people went there.

“Qianqian, tomorrow I’ll take you to a better place. It’s much better than the ravine.”

After finishing this round of soybean planting, they could only wait until the next evening to harvest the corn and wheat.

The next day, Zhang Lan and her daughter rested. Early in the morning, she took a basket and said she was going to cut grass for the pigs, leading her daughter to the reservoir. Wang Qian had seen this reservoir before. They had passed by the lower part of the reservoir on their way from their home to Zhu Jian’s house.

Zhang Lan led her to the deep, square reservoir at the end of the watercourse. However, due to the scorching sun, it was completely dry, without a drop of water.

Zhang Lan led her daughter down the steps to the bottom, where she spread out the beans to dry, while Wang Qian kept watch from above. With this good place, after two days of intense sun exposure, they quickly threshed the beans.

During the continuous labor in the space, both the mother and daughter were feeling a bit exhausted. After harvesting and replanting everything, Wang Qian was almost worn out. Although she was small, she genuinely helped her mother with the work.

However, seeing the piles of grain in front of her, she felt a sense of relief. With these items, their family’s livelihood was assured, and it didn’t matter if they were a bit tired.

Hao Lianchun and Wang Zhenhe found it strange to see the mother and daughter looking so listless. “Lan, what’s wrong with you two? Why do you look so tired?” they asked.

Wang Qian complained while holding the old lady, “Grandma Zuo, do you think it’s easy for me? I cut grass during the day and dream of farming at night. I’m almost exhausted these past few days. I think I’ll sleep during the day and cut grass at night in the future. Let’s see if I can still dream.”

Zhang Lan and Hao Lianchun were amused by her playful demeanor, and Wang Zhenhe lifted his little daughter, saying, “Qianqian, in the future, you should dream of something good. Just farming won’t do. You need to grow some money and grain coupons. Otherwise, you’re working for nothing, right?”

Wang Qian played with her father’s big ears and said, “Dad, do you think I don’t want to grow money? But I can’t control my dreams. I need to rest. If I keep working, I’ll be exhausted. I’m petite, you know.”

In the evening, there was a movie showing in the village. Mingyuan and the others went to reserve seats after hearing the news. However, Wang Qian had no intention of moving. After dinner, Zhang Lan also didn’t feel like going to the movies. The mother and daughter stayed at home to watch over the house, while the elderly couple and Wang Zhenhe took the children to the movies.

The mother and daughter rested in the space for a while, not feeling like sleeping but simply unwilling to move. They ate grapes and lay comfortably on the sack-covered ground. The fruit tree seedlings planted by Wang Qian had grown into half-sized trees.