“Secretary He, the milk powder for Old Tian was given by me. What, is there a problem?” Chen Lina happened to walk over and picked up the conversation.

“Director Chen, you should know Old Tian’s background, and you should understand that people like him, intellectuals, now need re-education, they need transformation,” He said.

“Yes, he needs education, which is why he has been working hard to research and improve the genetics of our farm, changing the seeds to make a contribution, trying to redeem himself. So let me ask you, Secretary He, without a healthy body, how can he make any contribution?” Chen Lina retorted.

“The border soldiers fighting on the front lines don’t even get milk powder, yet a ‘black five’ like him gets it—that’s wrong! Even if it’s Chen Lina’s milk powder, it’s still not acceptable.”

“Secretary He, I don’t see anything wrong with an elderly person drinking some milk powder,” Anna suddenly raised her voice from the crowd.

Immediately, others chimed in, saying, “Yeah, we’ve never even seen a huge pumpkin like the ones Old Tian grafted. He grafted them, and now they’re growing. If his health gets worse and he dies, where will we find such big pumpkins?”

“And the grapes, they’re big, sweet, and good. Don’t look at me; I didn’t sneak any. I just smelled them, and they’re sweet. Even if the director doesn’t give him milk powder, I’ll buy it for him. When you drink milk, think of your mother; when you eat, think of your father; and when you drink water, don’t forget the person who dug the well—that’s how it is.”

Well, He Min originally wanted to stir up the atmosphere, to hold a big ideological campaign on the farm, but unexpectedly, the people here seemed not so “progressive” in their thinking?

Frustrated, he threw down a large poster and said, “Director Chen, the awareness on your farm is seriously problematic.”

“Secretary He, you take care of the ideology, I’ll take care of the labor. I know that it’s time to start picking cotton. Comrades, since the meeting is over, let’s head to the fields and start picking cotton.”

In an instant, everyone—both the members and the intellectual youth—put on their sleeve protectors and hats, grabbed cloth bags, and quickly dispersed, leaving He Min standing there, dumbfounded.

“Director, I really don’t like what Secretary He is doing. He’s fine, why does he have to hold these criticism and struggle sessions? Didn’t he say he respects knowledge?” Anna jogged over to catch up with Chen Lina and asked.

Chen Lina sneered, “What he respects are the beautiful, young, and energetic intellectual youths like you. To him, these experts and professors are just stepping stones for his rise, so of course he wants to criticize them.”

“So, what should we do? Just let him boss everyone around the farm?”

“If he wants to climb high, he should be careful not to break his legs. Don’t worry, let him jump around first. We need to get money from the mining area to buy equipment, and we can use him to pressure the mining area. When the time comes, if he dares to mess with us experts…”

Chen Lina didn’t finish her sentence.

After all, as long as He Min hadn’t left, she couldn’t boast in front of the intellectual youths.

The cotton fields, now covered in a blanket of white, were approaching harvest season.

Picking cotton was much harder work than harvesting wheat.

First, by the time the cotton was ready to be picked, the plants’ branches and leaves were all dried, so the thorns were sharp and hurt your hands.

Plus, the cotton fibers would get into your clothes, itching like crazy.

When Liu Jiefang and Sun Zhuannian were in charge of the farm, they didn’t provide gloves or sleeve protectors to the intellectual youths or members to prevent their hands from getting scratched.

When it came to Chen Lina’s turn, she had the 360 feet of cloth that Sun Zhuannian had embezzled, which he had planned to take home.

She smoothly reported it as missing and used the fabric to make gloves and sleeve protectors for everyone.

Now, with gloves and sleeve protectors, they were well-protected.

Picking cotton required quick hands.

The bag hung around their necks, and as they walked through the cotton field, they had to pick with both hands, stuffing the cotton into the bags.

The fields stretched as far as the eye could see, and this would be one of the most important tasks for the next few months.

After all, the workers in the mining area were waiting for the new cotton to make quilts and clothes for their children.

He Min probably ran off to the mining area to develop some photos, only to hear that the film was overexposed and ruined.

He was so angry he was jumping up and down by Baiyang River.

As the social gathering was about to start, He Min wanted to choreograph a dance to please the higher-ups, but unfortunately, all the intellectual youths were in the cotton fields and refused to listen to him.

“Lina, Lina.” It was her sister Chen Lili, riding a bicycle and waving from outside the cotton field.

“Sis, it’s not even time to get off work yet. Why are you here?”

“Lina, don’t be anxious, but your three little brats… they’ve been fighting!”

On the way back to the 12th production team, at Chen Lili’s house, Chen Lina found her three kids—no, should be three little troublemakers—except for San Dan who was perfectly fine, Nie Weimin and Er Dan both had injuries.

One had a swollen nose, the other had a black eye.

Er Dan was also covered in grass.

As for Nie Weimin, there was still blood dripping from his nose.

“Look up,” Liu Xiaohong said, holding cotton soaked in water, ready to wipe Nie Weimin’s nose.

Nie Weimin was stubborn. “It doesn’t hurt, no need to wipe it.”

“It doesn’t hurt, but your clothes are dirty. If you don’t clean them, my aunt will have to do it.” Liu Xiaohong tiptoed and pressed his nose.

Alright, the young man was tall, so to accommodate the little girl, he spread his legs into a wide stance and tilted his head, letting Liu Xiaohong wipe his nose.

“Director, don’t just look at your own kids, you should look at our kids too.” A woman sitting in the corner lifted her son’s head and showed it to Chen Lina.

Well, that didn’t look like a human head anymore—it looked more like a pig’s brain.

The kid was already chubby, but with the swollen head, his eyes were squeezed into slits, and he couldn’t even open them.

And that wasn’t the only one.

There were several others, though their injuries were lighter.

They were all waiting at Chen Lili’s house for an explanation.

“Who are you?” Chen Lina asked the one who was hurt the most.

“Director, I’m Li Daye’s mother. My child is usually very well-behaved, he doesn’t steal, doesn’t fight, and doesn’t trouble anyone. Since you’re the director, I have to say, my child is so wronged,” the woman replied.

“Yes, my child doesn’t usually fight either, I don’t know what happened with the kids from Nie Gong’s family,” another mother chimed in.

Nie Weimin was about to say something in anger, but as Liu Xiaohong’s cotton-wrapped handkerchief came over, he bit his tongue and stayed quiet.

Er Dan, with his usual brashness, said, “Bullshit! He hit my little brother, so I hit him back!”

“Alright, parents, here’s what we’re going to do. I’ll send someone to take you to the hospital in the mining district.

Your kids are hurt, and I’ll cover all medical expenses. I’ll also go to visit them soon. As for my kids, they’re badly hurt too.

Once I take care of them and figure out the whole story, we can talk about other things, okay?”

“Why should you pay for their treatment?” Er Dan jumped up, looking like he still wanted to fight.

Chen Lina shot him a fierce look, and he finally backed down.

When Chen Lina first heard about the fight between the kids, she was really anxious, worried about them getting hurt or even causing brain damage.

But when she entered the pit and saw the injured kids scattered all over the ground, she couldn’t help but want to laugh.

She finally understood the mindset of the parents of troublemaking kids. To them, it didn’t matter about the compensation, as long as their kids won—they saw it as a victory.

After bringing the three injured kids back to the base, they coincidentally ran into the military truck that had just returned from training.

At the front door, Nie Bozhao, still in his military uniform and carrying two fat rabbits, saw one kid get out of the car with a bruised face and another limping.

His face, which had been full of smiles just moments ago, instantly turned to one of murderous intent. “What happened? Did you fight?”

San Dan rubbed his head and began counting on his fingers. “Dad, today we beat five people.”

“Comrade Chen, what do you mean they beat five people today?” Nie Bozhao asked.

Chen Lina rolled her eyes at Nie Bozhao. “Ask your son.”

So, as Chen Lina sat outside peeling rabbit skins in the garden, Nie Bozhao, using alcohol and cotton, tended to the wounds of the two troublemakers.

“There was a kid named Li Daye. He threw a stone by the White Poplar River and hit San Dan’s head, making it swell up.”

San Dan ran over to his father and turned his head to show the swelling at the back of his skull. “It’s smaller now, it was much bigger around noon.”

“Alright, so your brother hit someone, and you went to avenge him. Good job. But why did you end up fighting five people?”

“Because he said his name was Li Daye, and me and Er Dan thought we should only hit Li Daye and leave the others alone. So I charged at Li Daye.”

“Then what happened?”

“I made Li Daye apologize to San Dan, but he refused. He even said his master, Sun Dabao, would come back and wipe out the entire Mulan Farm.

I told him that Sun Dabao was my uncle, and he was executed for being a traitor when he tried to escape to the Republic. That made Li Daye mad, and we started fighting.”

“What about the other kids?”

“Li Daye first caught San Dan when he was picking bugs in Aunt’s garden. He said we had to call him ‘grandpa’ before he would let San Dan go.”

“Good grief, typical of Sun Dabao’s apprentice—he can bend and stretch. But how did you protect your brother from getting hurt?”

Er Dan quickly jumped in, “Liu Xiaohong came out with a kitchen knife and said fighting was for the big kids. If anyone dared to hurt San Dan, she’d make them bleed.”

So, Liu Xiaohong pushed Nie Weimin and Er Dan out of the door, and the two battled five, eventually knocking Li Daye and his four lackeys down.

“Two against five? Tell me, how did you win, Nie Weimin?” Nie Bozhao asked, knowing that while Er Dan was tough, it was likely his own skills that had tipped the scale.

Nie Weimin gritted his teeth and shook his head. “I can’t say.”

“Not even a little bit of remorse?” Nie Bozhao asked as he applied alcohol to their wounds and then more iodine to disinfect them.

The boys’ faces were bruised and swollen, making them look like little monsters.

Nie Weimin’s expression was firm, as if he were a resistance fighter caught by the enemy, refusing to yield. “I’ll never apologize.”

“Good, you have spirit. Tonight, you won’t get any food. You two will stand under the grapevine until you realize your mistake.”

Outside, a big wild rabbit, tender and cooked to perfection, was simmering in the pot.

The aroma of wild mushrooms wafted through the air, and as it reached Er Dan’s nose, his eyes watered. “Brother, I’m so hungry.”

“Hold it in. I won’t apologize to Li Daye,” Nie Weimin replied.

“Alright, I can hold on,” Er Dan agreed.

Inside, Nie Bozhao was reading a book in his study.

When he finished and saw that his sons were still not willing to surrender, he took out the old rifle from under the desk and disassembled it repeatedly.

A big pot of hot, tender rabbit meat was served on the table, along with soft, pan-fried buckwheat pancakes.

They had to be eaten hot, or else they’d lose their flavor.

“Alright, tell them to come in for dinner,” Nie Bozhao said.

Chen Lina was a bit puzzled. “Didn’t you say if they didn’t apologize to the farm kids, they wouldn’t get to eat?”

“I said if they don’t realize their mistake, they won’t get food. But those kids also made mistakes, so they’ll get their punishment. My sons didn’t do anything wrong in protecting their brother. They don’t need to apologize to anyone.”

Well, Chen Lina thought she was the protective one, but it turned out her husband was even more so.