Chapter 41: Wiggle Room at Work

Early the next morning, just after Nan Qiao had gotten up and washed, she saw Auntie Gai Xian peering in at the courtyard gate. She quickly went over and opened it.

“Auntie Gai Xian, why are you here so early? Come in and have a seat. I’ll go get it for you,” Nan Qiao said, ushering her in.

“No, no, it’s fine. I’ll just wait here,” Auntie Gai Xian replied. Truth be told, she had considered following Nan Qiao home last night to get the malted milk powder, but it was too late, and she didn’t want to be too pushy. So she had waited all night, restless and anxious, thinking only about the can of malted milk powder. She had barely slept and came over as soon as dawn broke.

Nan Qiao went back inside, retrieved the can, and handed it to Auntie Gai Xian.

“Here you go, Auntie.”

“Ah, thank you, thank you! Zhiqing Nan, you really are a lifesaver. If you ever need anything, just come find me—I’ll do my best to help however I can,” Auntie Gai Xian said gratefully, handing Nan Qiao the money.

“Alright then, I’ll be sure to come to you if I need help. Go ahead and take it home now—you can make some for Junjun while it’s still early.”

Hearing movement in the yard, Nan Zhou came out of the house, having changed his sweat-soaked clothes after his morning workout.

Auntie Gai Xian, upon seeing him, suddenly felt a bit awkward. This was, after all, the young man’s sister, and she was here essentially “snatching food” from her hands…

“This… this must be your older brother? Take some time off to spend with him while he’s here,” Auntie Gai Xian said, trying to ease the tension.

“Mm, this is my brother. Big brother, this is Auntie Gai Xian.”

“Hello, Auntie,” Nan Zhou greeted politely.

“Hello, hello. I’ll leave you two to your business, then. I won’t bother you any longer,” Auntie Gai Xian said as she turned to leave.

“Take care, Auntie,” Nan Qiao walked her to the gate.

“Thanks… Zhiqing Nan, just keep that malted milk matter in mind, okay?” Auntie Gai Xian said, a bit awkwardly.

“Don’t worry,” Nan Qiao promised.

After sending her off, Nan Qiao returned inside.

“Why didn’t you keep it for yourself?” Nan Zhou asked. He had clearly seen what Auntie Gai Xian was holding.

“I don’t like it, and I got paid too,” Nan Qiao replied playfully, waving the four yuan in her hand.

Nan Zhou didn’t say anything, just looked at her. Nan Qiao walked closer and, standing not far from him, said in a lower voice:

“There’s a baby in their family, and it’s pitiful that he doesn’t have enough to eat. Besides… Auntie Gai Xian’s husband is the village chief.”

Hearing that, Nan Zhou’s lips curled slightly. “Then it makes sense. We’ll buy a few more cans in town later to keep as backup. I’ve got plenty of ration tickets. It takes too long for Mom and Dad to send things from home. But don’t give her everything at once.”

“I know,” Nan Qiao nodded.

Once they were ready, the siblings headed out. Since a women’s bicycle wasn’t easy for Nan Zhou to ride, Nan Qiao had borrowed a bike from Sheng Yanchuan the night before.

So once again, Nan Qiao slacked off a bit—she had Nan Zhou ride and carry her on the back seat into town.

“Ge, don’t you think it’d be wonderful if you weren’t in the army and I wasn’t sent down here, and the whole family could just live together in Shanghai?” Nan Qiao said from the back seat, her voice full of longing.

“Someday we will,” Nan Zhou replied firmly. Although he didn’t know how much longer he’d stay in the military, he was determined that once he reached a certain rank, he would try to get transferred back to Shanghai.

He loved his job, but he couldn’t spend his whole life floating from mission to mission. Their parents were getting older, his younger brother would eventually marry and start a family, and Nan Qiao, being sent down here, had no clear end in sight. He couldn’t let their younger brother bear the full burden of caring for their parents.

So yes, one day, the whole family would live together in Shanghai.

“Ge, if the college entrance exams ever come back, where should I go to university?” Nan Qiao asked, grabbing the hem of Nan Zhou’s shirt as she leaned forward.

“Sit properly,” Nan Zhou said quickly, worried she might fall off the back seat.

Nan Qiao stuck out her tongue and obediently sat still, not fidgeting anymore.

“If the exams are reinstated, consider universities in either Beijing or Shanghai. One’s the capital, the other’s a fast-developing coastal city. Both are good options.”

“That’s what I was thinking too. Honestly, I want to go to Beijing… but I also want to be closer to home,” Nan Qiao said, frowning in hesitation.

“Four years of university will pass in a flash. Worst case, you can study in Beijing and return home afterward. My base is near Beijing too—I could visit you.”

“If that’s the case, I’ll be in Beijing with you for four years, and afterward we’ll go back to Shanghai to be with Mom, Dad, and our younger brother. That’d be perfect.”

“Yeah,” Nan Zhou echoed, his voice also full of hope.

Nan Qiao sat on the back seat, her mind filled with dreams of the future.

But for now, her most important task was to get through life in the countryside safely and wait for the college entrance exams to return.

Only then would those dreams mean something. Trapped in this small village, all talk of the future was just fantasy.

When they arrived in town, they headed for the Civil Air Defense Department where one of Nan Zhou’s former comrades now worked. Nan Zhou had found out about this after learning Nan Qiao’s exact location and doing some digging.

The former comrade had once been under Nan Zhou’s command when he was a newly promoted squad leader. He had later been transferred here from the Beijing special forces.

Because it was a transfer from a prestigious unit, and he was a local with a good education, he had quickly risen to the position of department head in a few years. While the position itself was in a relatively quiet, low-profile department in a small town, it still wasn’t something just anyone could achieve by 27.

After showing their IDs and registering at the gate, they followed the gatekeeper’s directions and entered the office building.

They found the right door by the office number, and Nan Zhou knocked.

“Come in,” a voice called from inside.

Nan Zhou pushed the door open and entered. The man seated at the desk looked up and, upon seeing Nan Zhou, immediately stood up with delight and greeted him enthusiastically, “Squad Leader! You’re here! Ever since you called, I’ve been hoping you’d come. Come, sit!”

As he spoke, he personally went to make tea for the two of them.

“I stopped by to see my sister first,” Nan Zhou said casually, glancing around. “Not bad—you’ve got a pretty decent setup here.”

Placing the tea on the table, the man smiled wryly. “Squad Leader, you’re teasing me. We’re used to holding guns—writing reports and shuffling papers all day? That’s hard for us. If not for this injury, I wouldn’t have left our base no matter what.”

Nan Zhou nodded in agreement. Sometimes, the battlefield really was simpler than the workplace. Back in the army, they were brothers who’d fought through bullets and fire together—people you could trust with your back. Being stuck in an office handling petty disputes and office politics day after day? That was way more draining.

That said, Wu Wei’s injury had been a real pity. Just like his name—”Fearless”—he truly had no fear. During a mission, he’d been injured while saving a teammate. Although it wasn’t a fatal injury, for special forces that demanded peak physical condition, it was a career-ending one.

Thankfully, Wu Wei had accumulated an impressive track record over the years and held a high school diploma. Plus, Qing City was a small place and not a strategic location, so his request for a transfer went relatively smoothly.

“Never thought, back when I was your squad leader, that we’d end up doing missions together,” Nan Zhou said with a trace of nostalgia.

Wu Wei chuckled, also lost in the memories. “Yeah, I remember when you first led us—you had just been promoted, right? I remember thinking, ‘This guy’s about my age, how is he already a squad leader?’ I wasn’t convinced at all. But after we did some missions together, I was totally won over. Your physical ability and skills… not something most people could match.”

“Hahaha, I remember how stubborn you were back then. Real tough to deal with. Everyone in the unit said you were a troublemaker. I was like, ‘Troublemaker or not, I’ll straighten this one out,’” Nan Zhou said with a loud, hearty laugh.

Nan Qiao sat quietly to the side, listening to their memories with interest. Seeing her brother’s nostalgic expression, she couldn’t help but think: Big Brother really must love this job.

“This must be your sister, Nan Qiao?” Wu Wei eventually turned to her, perhaps realizing she might be feeling left out of the conversation.

“Yes, my sister Nan Qiao. She’s currently serving in the Hongqi Commune here,” Nan Zhou replied.

“Hello, Brother Wu Wei! I’m Nan Qiao, but you can just call me Qiao Qiao,” she said cheerfully. Since Wu Wei was around her brother’s age, it wasn’t inappropriate for him to call her that.

“Hello, hello! Back in the army, we’d all heard about you. After every mission, your brother would always buy little gifts for girls. We all thought he had a sweetheart back home. Only later did we find out it was for his little sister.”

Nan Qiao smiled shyly.

Wu Wei continued, “A lot of the guys in our unit wanted to meet this famous little sister of Captain Nan. Who would’ve thought I’d be the first one to meet you after leaving the army?”

“Oh, you’re teasing me! I’m really happy to meet one of my brother’s comrades.”

“But still, I’m curious,” Wu Wei asked, his tone lowering with concern. “Why would your family let your little sister be sent down to the countryside?”

That question had puzzled him ever since Nan Zhou called him.

Nan Zhou looked at Nan Qiao and saw the embarrassment on her face. He quickly stepped in to defuse the moment. “Little girl threw a tantrum, what else?”

Wu Wei took one look at their expressions and understood. He let out a hearty laugh. “Don’t worry, with me around, Qiao Qiao won’t have any trouble. Your sister is like my own.”

“Actually, there’s something I want to ask,” Nan Zhou said after a moment’s hesitation.

“Go ahead, what is it?”

“I know her position as a sent-down youth is… awkward. But I was wondering if the town has any jobs that allow outside hires. You know how it is with the farm work in the village…” Nan Zhou’s voice was laced with reluctance.

“Well…” Wu Wei frowned. “There are very strict regulations about zhiqing assignments right now. Arbitrary transfers are not easy. Plus, I’m with the Civil Air Defense Bureau. The zhiqing fall under Civil Affairs, and it would be improper for me to directly interfere in their assignments. But… if she can wait a bit, I can try to pull some strings and get her in.”

“I think you misunderstood,” Nan Zhou clarified. “I’m not asking you to directly transfer her to your department. I just wanted to see if you could help look after her. And actually… it turns out this girl has been learning foreign languages from my uncle these past few years. She can hold regular conversations just fine.”

“Oh?” Wu Wei perked up.

“With the country now opening up more and more, especially in Shanghai where foreign currency income is highly valued, people who know foreign languages are getting more opportunities. So if there’s any opening here, I was hoping you could recommend her. Whether she can get in or not, that’ll depend on her own abilities.”

“Of course! That’s a great thing!” Wu Wei agreed readily.

“Thank you,” Nan Zhou said, visibly relieved.

“No need to thank me. Actually, our town really does need people like that.”

The zhiqing situation was sensitive. If Nan Qiao were just an average high school graduate and got transferred to a government post for no reason, rumors would surely follow. Maybe even formal complaints.

But if she had real skills—like speaking foreign languages—that changed everything.

“Qiao Qiao, what languages can you speak?” Wu Wei asked. Their town was a small place, mainly focused on heavy industry. Few had even left the province, let alone learned a foreign language.

“Um… English, mostly. Russian is self-taught, and I can manage basic communication as long as it’s not too technical,” Nan Qiao replied after a moment’s thought, choosing the two most relevant languages for the era.

Nan Zhou was surprised—he had thought she only knew English.

“That’s more than enough! That saves a lot of trouble. Come on, I’ll take you both to meet someone,” Wu Wei said, waving for them to follow.

“Where to?” Nan Zhou asked as he got up.

“You’ll see when we get there,” Wu Wei replied mysteriously.

They arrived at another office labeled Publicity Department. Both Nan Zhou and Nan Qiao were a bit confused but followed Wu Wei in.

“Old Zheng! I’ve brought you the solution to your biggest headache!” Wu Wei announced boisterously as he pushed the door open.

“Oh, don’t joke with me—I’m at my wit’s end,” Old Zheng replied without looking up from his dense, scribbled notes.

“What are you working on?” Wu Wei peered over and saw pages filled with dense writing. He grinned.

“Cut it out—you can barely recognize your ABCs. Now you think you’re gonna translate documents? Secretary Qian from Qing City was just desperate. You took it seriously?” Wu Wei teased as he closed the notebook.

“Hey, it’s an assignment from the higher-ups. Like it or not, I’ve got to deal with it,” Old Zheng said, removing his glasses and finally looking up.