Chapter 124: Loyalty Dance

With winter setting in, there was hardly any work left in the production team. Even if there was some temporary work, a few people could be called in to do it. With the members having nothing to do, the commune began organizing the various production teams to perform the Loyalty Dance.

When the loudspeaker on the mountain sounded, the members of each production team had to gather in the courtyard of the production team to perform the Loyalty Dance together.

When Zhang Lan received this notice, Wang Qian was by her side. She had recently sold the items in the city and had nothing else to sell for the time being. She had to stay at home, and besides, it was too cold outside, so she didn’t want to leave the house.

Hearing about the Loyalty Dance, she was genuinely interested. She didn’t know how to perform this dance, but  the term sounded unfamiliar to her.

After lunch, Zhang Lan, accompanied by her very curious young daughter, headed to the production team. Wang Qian was fully bundled up. The adults could dance outside, but it was different for the children. Standing outside could easily make them freeze.

Groups of people were coming together on the main road, and from a distance, they heard the voice of Wang Juan. When they turned around, it was indeed her. Wang Juan and her husband, Wang Zhenhai, caught up from behind.

Seeing Zhang Lan’s young niece, Wang Juan was somewhat surprised and asked, “Sister-in-law, why did you bring the child out on such a cold day? What if she catches a cold?”

Zhang Lan knew her sister-in-law was right, but she couldn’t resist her daughter’s persistence. She said somewhat helplessly, “Sister-in-law, you should ask Qianqian. The little girl insisted on coming along. She wanted to see what was happening. She’s not afraid of the cold, even in this freezing weather.”

“Aunt, I just wanted to see how you all dance. After watching, I’ll go back. I won’t get cold,” Wang Qian said.

Wang Juan looked at her niece’s little red nose, not understanding why the child loved watching the dance so much. Since the child enjoyed watching, she decided to accompany her.

When they arrived at the production team, many people had already gathered in the courtyard. The loudspeaker on the mountaintop had started playing music, and everyone began lining up voluntarily. They took out their little red books from their pockets and started dancing, waving them continuously.

The broadcast played “The Greatness of the Party Surpasses Heaven and Earth.” A group of men and women danced to the music. However, Wang Qian was taken aback by their dance moves. It didn’t look like a dance at all; it resembled gymnastics. The movements were powerful, but too stiff. Even her mother danced in the same manner. With such stiff movements, it all looked awkward.

Although the young people dancing exuded vitality, the way the elderly men and women danced left Wang Qian feeling indescribable.

While there was a sense of solemnity and pilgrimage, there was a lack of aesthetic appeal. The movements looked awkward and comical.

After the broadcast played another song, “The Helmsman Sails the Great Sea,” the movements changed. However, Wang Qian lost interest after observing the non-dance-like movements. She signaled to her mother that she was leaving and went home alone.

As she hurried back, she quickened her pace upon seeing the ditch on the road. When she arrived home, she saw Hao Lianchun sweeping the yard. Seeing the girl’s anxious appearance, she thought something had happened.

“Qianqian, weren’t you going to watch the dance? Why are you back in such a hurry? Is something wrong?” Hao Lianchun asked.

Wang Qian realized that her actions had caused unease in the old lady. “Grandma, nothing’s wrong. I just felt that the dance wasn’t worth watching, so I came back quickly. I’m planning to collect recyclables and sell them. I’ll buy you something delicious with the money,” she explained.

Before the old lady could say anything, Wang Qian had already run out of the yard with a basket.

Hao Lianchun shook her head at the girl’s back and muttered, “This child, why is she in such a hurry?”

Wang Qian began searching along the ditches on both sides of the road. Not only did she find many glass shards, but it seemed that only very few people came to collect items from these ditches. As a result, Wang Qian found more and more items. While people only knew how to sew rags and sell iron and glass bottles for money, they didn’t have the awareness to collect and sell glass shards. Today was a lucky day for her; she was making money right from the main road.

She continued picking up items along a ditch until she reached the entrance of the supply and marketing cooperative. Her basket was now full, and it was quite a struggle for her to carry it. However, the cooperative was right in front of her, so she managed to bring the basket inside, taking three steps to cover one.

Inside, Liu Bing was tidying up when she saw the young girl dragging a heavy basket. She quickly went over to help.

“Uncle Liu Bing, can you weigh this for me? How much can I get for this?” Wang Qian asked.

Liu Bing placed the heavy basket on the scale and said, “Qianqian, why did you come alone? Where’s your mother? How did you carry this heavy thing?”

Even Liu Bing found it unbelievable that such a young child knew how to come and sell recyclables. She wondered how Third Wang taught his children.

Wang Qian wiped the sweat from her forehead and said, “Uncle Liu, I collected these slowly. It’s not too heavy, and I’m motivated to make money.”

Liu Bing was amused by the witty young girl. “Qianqian, this basket weighs a total of fifteen catties. After deducting the tare weight, it’s thirteen and a half catties. One catty is worth two and a half fen—” Liu Bing was in the middle of calculating with an abacus when Wang Qian already had the answer in her mind. “Uncle Liu, it’s thirty-four fen, right? Rounded off, isn’t it?”

Wang Qian stated the price that Liu Bing had just calculated. He was surprised to see the little girl before him. “Qianqian, you’re really amazing. You calculated it correctly.”

Wang Qian had no reason to hide her math skills and said with a smile, “It’s all thanks to my brother’s good teaching. Otherwise, I wouldn’t be able to do it.”

Liu Bing handed the calculated amount to the child before him, feeling a sense of admiration. They lived in the same village, and he was familiar with the affairs of the Wang family. He hadn’t expected that Wang Zhenhe and his wife had raised such a good child. It was truly unexpected.

Wang Qian took the money and said to Liu Bing, “Uncle Liu, I’m leaving now. Maybe I’ll bring you another basket later. Don’t find me annoying, okay?”

Liu Bing quickly waved his hand. “It’s okay. I’m happy for you to earn money. Besides, this is what I do. How could I find you annoying? I’m happy to see you coming over.”

Liu Bing’s father was a teacher, and his parents had a good relationship with Zhang Lan. He was also happy for Wang Zhenhe and his wife that their children were already starting to think about making money. It seemed that the Wang family’s life was indeed as rumored, and he couldn’t help but feel a sense of admiration for the children.

Earning over three fen for the first time, Wang Qian felt excited. It was different from selling things in the city. Finding money right in front of her own home made her feel a little excited. In the future, when she had nothing to do at home, she could collect items to sell.

Carrying the basket, she continued to pick up items along the ditch. As she went on, she realized she had gone quite far from home. Looking ahead, there was still a long stretch to pick from. In this section of the ditch, she found several pieces of iron. Although they were small, it was still a good start.

The items in the basket became increasingly heavy, and she was too tired to carry it. She decided to store them in her space and continued walking. As she moved forward, she noticed a growing number of scrap metals. Looking around, she saw a sign that provided her with an answer.

“Red Flag Commune Steel Pipe Factory.” Her doubts were resolved, and she began to calculate in her mind. She decided to ask her mother about this when she returned.

The ditch in front of the steel pipe factory was filled with scrap metals. Trash and scrap metals were mixed together. To her, these were not junk but money.

A small figure began to scavenge in the ditch. She stored almost every iron item she found in her space. She decided it was best not to let anyone see these items. She planned to come back and earn some money here in the future.

As the day was drawing to a close, she had only managed to collect less than a third of the items. She sighed as she looked at the treasure trove in front of her. She decided to come back the next day.

When Zhang Lan returned home, she learned that her daughter had gone to collect scrap. At first, she didn’t pay much attention, as she had seen her daughter inquiring about the types and prices of recyclables last time. However, as it was getting dark and her daughter hadn’t returned, she began to worry. After discussing with Hao Lianchun, she put on her padded coat and went out to look for her.

Recalling her daughter’s interest in the ditch last time, Zhang Lan had a feeling that her daughter might have gone there. She knew her daughter’s mindset and was certain that she wouldn’t be on the mountain at this time. She suspected that her daughter had gone further and hadn’t returned.

She walked along the main road to the east and saw a small figure carrying a large basket. It was indeed her daughter.

“Wang Qian!” Wang Qian was walking with her head down when she heard her mother’s voice in the distance. She quickly replied, “Mom, I’m back.”

Zhang Lan felt her daughter’s exhaustion in her voice, which was unusual for her. She hurried over and embraced her daughter, but the basket was empty.

“Qianqian, are you tired? Mom will carry you back,” Zhang Lan could feel the chill emanating from her daughter. It was very cold outside, and her daughter had been out for a long time, despite wearing thick clothes.

At this moment, Wang Qian was truly tired. She had stored a large pile of scrap iron and glass shards in her space. After spending the whole afternoon outside, she was both tired and hungry. “Mom, I earned some money today. I’ll give it to you later when we get home. I’m a bit sleepy.”

Zhang Lan couldn’t let her daughter sleep at this time. If she fell asleep in this cold weather, she might get sick. She quickly patted her daughter in her arms. “Qianqian, let’s not sleep now. We’ll eat dinner at home and then sleep. Tell Mom what you collected today.”

As they walked, Zhang Lan coaxed her daughter to talk to her, preventing her from falling asleep. Wang Qian became more spirited when she talked about earning money.

“Mom, I earned thirty-four fen by selling glass shards today. There’s still a lot of iron and glass shards in my space that I haven’t sold yet. I’ll go back to collect more tomorrow. There’s so much scrap iron there. I never knew that place could make money.”