Chapter 24

On the weekend, Yang Xue’s father came to the military compound to see Su Ye. He brought with him a large order.

Since Yang Xue’s father didn’t have access to the military compound, he had to wait outside the gates for Su Ye.

The soldier on duty at the gate said to him, “Are you looking for Captain Gu’s wife, Su Ye? Wait a moment, I’ll call and have a soldier notify her.”

If it weren’t for this visit, Yang Xue’s father wouldn’t have known that Su Ye was a proud military spouse.

No wonder Su Ye’s worldview is so broad, he thought.

After a while, Su Ye arrived, carrying a bag, and walked slowly toward him.

Yang Xue’s father greeted her with a smile, saying, “Su Ye, many workers at the Changyou Oil Factory say they want watches. Your watches are very popular with our workers. Here’s the money from the last batch of sales.”

As he spoke, Yang Xue’s father carefully pulled out a thick bundle of money and a notebook, which was filled with names written densely on its pages.

From his worn, faded clothes, it was hard to tell that he was carrying so much money.

Yang Xue’s father said enthusiastically, “Whatever you have this time, I can take it all.”

Last time, Yang Xue’s father took twenty watches. It had been nearly half a month since the last batch, and after this time, everyone discovered that the watches were still working perfectly. The timekeeping was accurate, and there were no hidden defects. Everyone was extremely satisfied.

Su Ye was very happy as she counted the money. It seemed that their “brand effect” had finally paid off.

When they bought watches last time, everyone was still skeptical. But this time, all doubts were gone, and they were eager to take as many as they could. In the 1960s, factory workers were highly valued, their basic needs were provided by the government, and welfare was good. Buying a small refurbished watch was nothing.

After counting the money, Su Ye referred to the names in her notebook and quickly began issuing receipts. She handed a receipt to Yang Xue’s father for each of the 53 watches.

Yang Xue’s father took the small receipts one by one, squinting and asking, “Why are you doing this so formally?”

Su Ye smiled and nodded. “It’s necessary. Now we issue one receipt for each watch. You need to keep them because, in the future, people will need the receipts for repairs or returns. I’ve already made up the receipts for the previous batch according to the names, so it’s a bit of a hassle for you to run this errand for me.”

If this business were Su Ye’s own, seeing how diligent and tireless Yang Xue’s father was, she might have even considered giving him a salary.

Unfortunately, it wasn’t her own business.

Yang Xue’s father carefully examined each receipt. The amounts were written in large characters, and the receipts bore the name and stamp of “Yi Zhong Green Factory,” making everything official. He couldn’t help but feel a sense of admiration.

Su Ye looked young, but she handled everything with such care and maturity. When Yang Xue’s father was Su Ye’s age, he was still an apprentice in the workshop. He never had such abilities—not only was she sharp and resourceful, but she could also make money when she needed it.

If this business could continue to grow steadily, how much more could be earned… Yang Xue’s father thought about the speed at which money was being made, and suddenly, the term “millionaire” flashed in his mind. He quickly shook his head and pushed that frightening thought out of his head.

Su Ye reminded Yang Xue’s father, “If any of the workers at your factory have broken watches they don’t need, they can bring them to us.”

Yang Xue’s father quickly nodded, “Got it, they all know.”

After all, each worker had a copy of the note with the information.

—

After Liu Qiu left the military compound, Li Hongli and Gao Anna exchanged glances.

A sense of doubt arose in both of their minds. Could it be that Liu Qiu was just boasting?

What kind of work could possibly earn so much money? If there is, it must require specialized skills to earn that much. Su Ye, who only graduated from elementary school and has no education, how could she have the skills?

Li Hongli said, “I’ll inquire and see what’s really going on.”

Li Hongli asked a teacher from No. 1 Middle School for information, and surprisingly, what the teacher told her was exactly what Liu Qiu had said. The No. 1 Middle School teacher fully explained how Su Ye made money and how she taught the kids the skills.

The more Gao Anna listened, the more her frown deepened. Su Ye had the opportunity to teach at No. 1 Middle School but didn’t appreciate it, and now she was trying to delay the students’ education.

A teacher’s sense of justice drove her to report the matter to the Municipal Education Committee.

Gao Anna went to the Municipal Education Committee and said, “I discovered that one teacher is using her position to encourage students to engage in illegal economic activities. The students no longer want to attend class and are just following her to make money.”

“She buys other people’s watches for one or two yuan, decorates them, and then resells them for ten yuan each. She’s already earned over a thousand yuan. You say that students should focus on their studies, not chase after money, and let themselves be exploited by others!”

More than a thousand yuan—that was a huge amount of money. Even the members of the Education Committee were shocked.

Comrade Yuan, the official from the Education Committee, became serious after hearing this. “If this is true, this is a very serious violation of discipline. I will send someone to investigate this matter.”

On Friday, Comrade Yuan and the other officials went to No. 1 Middle School for an investigation.

Comrade Yuan and the team gathered the students together and gave them a serious lecture.

“You are still students. How can you do things that adults should be doing? You’ve been used by your teacher and don’t even realize it. Fixing watches is a good deed, but selling them is a bad one. Strictly speaking, what you’ve done could be considered profiteering.”

The students listened, their faces filled with worry, as if they had finally understood what had happened.

Yang Xue shook her head and interrupted, “No, that’s not true! I won’t let you say that about Teacher Su.”

Qian Xiaohe nodded, tugging at comrade Yuan’s sleeve, “You don’t understand. We’re able to continue our studies, all thanks to Su Ye.”

These kids didn’t look very old, but when they stood up, they were probably taller than comrade Yuan. At this age, in the countryside, they could probably already bear the responsibilities of running a household. Comrade Yuan glanced at the students, who had somehow gathered around her, and felt both frustrated and amused.

Ma Jianguo said, “I don’t know what rumors you’ve heard, but to say something like that… Teacher Su has been more dedicated to us than anyone else. Why don’t you come see what we’re doing on the weekends, then you can judge Teacher Su for yourself.”

The principal of No. 1 Middle School appeared at some point. After observing the scene, she said with a smile to the investigation team, “Why don’t you go and see what these kids are really doing?”

The investigation team members were furious, and Comrade Yuan responded with interest, “Alright, I’ll go take a look.”

On the weekend, Yang Xue took the Education Committee members for a home visit.

Ma Jianguo’s small, less than ten square meter home was bare, with only the elderly parents hunched over, sewing and mending by the dim light at the doorway. At the end of the narrow alley, Qian Xiaohe’s parents were discussing how to arrange a marriage for their daughter. In a dilapidated tile-roofed house, a pair of sickly parents lay covered in dirty cotton bedding, unable to take care of themselves…

Yang Xue pointed to the other side. There, a group of students, holding boxes, went door to door, knocking on people’s doors. From a distance, it looked like they were apologizing to the people they disturbed.

Without feeling embarrassed, Yang Xue ran up to them, bowed to the people who were disturbed, and continued to ask passersby about old watches while holding the box.

One of the students couldn’t help but explain, “Only by collecting discarded old watches can we make refurbished second-hand watches. The watches we sell are all made from these processed ones.”

Yang Xue’s father and his colleagues watched this scene, patting her on the shoulder before joining the group of children, chatting and laughing. Adults and children alike, unashamed, ran about in the chilly wind.

They smiled broadly, showing no shame, pointing at the small slips of paper covered in writing. More and more people joined them. It seemed like no one thought anything was wrong, nor did anyone criticize them for engaging in “profiteering.”

Soon, an elderly woman walked shakily over, took a watch wrapped in cloth from her arms, and placed it in their box.

After finishing the work, Yang Xue’s father carefully took out a new watch from his pocket and distributed it to his colleagues.

The colleagues handed him money, and the pile of cash in his hands grew thicker. He kept counting the money back and forth, making onlookers envious and jealous.

When Ma Jianguo’s grandmother heard about these “bad people” trying to disrupt the school’s sale of refurbished watches, she hurriedly caught up with them, scolding,

“You young people are just causing trouble. You’re standing there, and you don’t even feel embarrassed! My grandson, Jianguo, dropped out of school before finishing middle school. Now, not only is the school providing him free education and books, but they also give our family five yuan every month. Do you think this money just falls from the sky?”

“I know Teacher Su is doing this refurbishing of watches. I was the first to encourage him to learn and help out. There’s so much bad going on in the world, but you won’t care about that. You only interfere with these good things. If you ruin it, are you going to make my grandson’s education free and give us the monthly subsidy?”

Her words left the Education Committee members feeling somewhat embarrassed. It seemed they had understood that Su Ye, the teacher, was leading a group of children to make money to help pay for their tuition.

Wiping the sweat from her brow, Yang Xue said, “We collect used watches every week. We’re not afraid of hard work, not afraid of being embarrassed. But do you know what we are afraid of?”

“We’re afraid we won’t be able to afford our education. If there were other ways out, who wouldn’t want to be a carefree child? Teacher Su came up with a way for us, and that’s why so many of us can continue going to school. Teacher Su didn’t take a single penny. She taught us how to repair watches for free, with all her heart. As for us, we’re all doing this voluntarily, so how could it be profiteering?”

Yang Xue’s father wiped the sweat from his forehead, clicked his tongue, and said to Yang Xue, “You talk too much.”

He gave a simple, honest smile, then turned to the others and said, “The kids are working hard. We adults have also helped a lot. Whenever we have the time, we come to collect the watches, repair them, and so on. As parents, we support them in this.”

Yang Xue and the others took the group back to the school. They stood in front of the small blackboard where the financial details of last month’s “Green Factory” were posted.

It clearly listed how many watches were sold, how much money was earned, and where the expenses went. This small activity had helped so many students who had dropped out of school. It was nothing like the speculation that the teacher was exploiting students for huge profits.

These “profits” were entirely spent on practical matters, on the students themselves. This made the Education Committee members feel embarrassed.

The students picked up old, broken watches from the box. One student confidently said, “This is money we earned with our own hands. We don’t feel ashamed or like we’ve done something illegal. These watches are discarded items, not precious goods. The teacher said we are creating resources for the country.”

Gao Anna was also among them. She felt so embarrassed that she quietly slipped away from the crowd.