In her life, today was the happiest day Sun Duoyu had ever had.

The fine white flour was rolled into thin pancakes, steamed with large squash, served together with a dipping sauce made from vinegar and garlic, topped with a generous bowl of shredded squash.

It was incredibly delicious.

The farm also gave each household a bottle of Baiwang Temple soda, something Sun Duoyu had never tasted before.

There were red, yellow, and black varieties, and after much deliberation, she chose the red one because of its bright color.

At first, it was a bit spicy, so much so that it made her eyes water, but after a few more sips, she found the taste to be absolutely wonderful.

So, sitting in front of her house, she enjoyed the soda and squash, listening to the distant sound of songs.

From Why Are Flowers So Red to The Girl from Daban City, one song after another played.

She thought to herself, with soda and fine white flour, all of it now belonged to her, instead of her brother, Sun Dabao.

She wasn’t even that sad about her brother’s death anymore.

“How could you, Duoyu? Your brother was shot, and you can still eat like this?” With a loud slap, her mother knocked the bowl from Sun Duoyu’s hands.

“Mom, why are you back? And what’s with the clothes you’re wearing?”

Looking up, Sun Duoyu saw her mother, Huang Huacai, in a military green outfit, complete with a military cap.

She had been to Beijing for more than half a year to petition, carrying a military-green backpack around her neck.

Now she was back.

“Don’t even mention it! There are no good people in Beijing. They say the leader will rule for the working people, but outside, the people are all bad. Damn it, they even stole my passbook, and my money is gone. If I hadn’t stolen this military uniform, I wouldn’t have made it back!”

It seemed that Huang Huacai had been ill-suited to the environment in Beijing and had returned defeated.

“Mom, don’t say that. Chen Chang, the farm manager, is really nice. You don’t know, this year we had a great harvest, and now every household has fine white flour to eat. Starting tomorrow, you should work in the fields. This farm is really thriving now.”

“Don’t talk nonsense. If your big sister were still alive, this white flour, this big squash, they would belong to our Sun family! Why should anyone else have it? Huh? Tell me!”

The old woman wiped her tears and continued, “I heard they shot Dabao too, and I’m angry. I hate it. I don’t even want to live anymore. I wish I could spill Chen Lina’s blood.”

“But Chen Lina is really good to me. Look at this liberation outfit I’m wearing; she gave it to me.

She treats me better than my big sister ever did. Just a few days ago, the farm falsely accused me of being a thief, but Chen Lina went to the mine area, brought me back from the police station, and gave me two sets of clothes.

She cleared my name in front of everyone and said I wasn’t a thief. Mom, my big sister is dead, but Chen Lina is good to me, so I treat her like my sister.”

Oh my, it seemed she had been won over.

Huang Huacai jumped up and slapped Sun Duoyu several times: “Your second and third sisters have backed down, but I thought you were a soldier.

I didn’t expect you to be won over like this.

They say capitalist sugar-coated bullets are effective, and I didn’t believe it. Now I’ve seen it for myself. I’m going to tear Chen Lina apart.”

After returning home, Huang Huacai went to find Sun Ainan but couldn’t get in.

She went to find Sun Xiangnan, but he had already moved away.

So, she could only return to the farm.

After walking around the farm, she was so furious that her head started spinning.

She saw Chen Lina riding a bicycle, whistling as she went from the front to the back, giving orders to the workers to watch the cotton fields and clean the forest.

It seemed like everyone on the farm was following her instructions.

Seeing her in her small liberation outfit and long black skirt, looking neat and efficient, Huang Huacai got even angrier.

If Sun Zhuangnan were alive, wouldn’t everything belong to Sun Zhuangnan?

Today, with so much going on, and with the mine area leaders present, Huang Huacai was ready for a big argument to shame Chen Lina.

After making sure the workers were handling fire and theft precautions, Chen Lina turned and took a cloth bag from the car.

“Anna, how’s the distribution of supplies going? Are you all able to keep up with the work?”

“Yes, dear Manager, we have more than twenty people here. We’re registering, distributing things, and managing just fine.”

Each household was getting a pound of candy, a bottle of Baiwang Temple soda, and some fruit.

In fact, the workers had already received their supplies.

Outside, the young women were eagerly listening to the sounds of old experts playing accordions, harmonicas, and singing songs.

They were all fidgeting impatiently.

“Alright, leave Anna to be on duty, the rest of you go play. But before you leave, make sure to take one package of condoms for the young people in our farm. And remember to blow on them before use. If they make a hissing sound, that means they’re leaking, and those shouldn’t be used.”

“What? You’re giving us condoms?” Anna opened the cloth bag and immediately covered her mouth. “Manager, do you think we’re like that?”

Outside in the wheat threshing area, there were armed soldiers sitting neatly, several hundred of them, all with crew cuts and wearing green military uniforms and large leather boots, the exact look the young women adored.

“I know you all value your self-respect, but I also know that sometimes a girl’s self-respect can’t withstand a boy’s passion. I’ve been there, and I’ll just tell you one thing: if you can’t control yourselves, remember to use a condom. That way, you won’t harm your body. Of course, if you return the condoms afterward, I’ll be even happier.”

Some of the educated youth wanted to refuse, but Anna said, “Alright, everyone take one, quietly distribute them, and we need them all back tonight. Only then will we fulfill the farm director’s request. Do you all agree?”

The girls thought for a moment, and it made sense—protecting themselves and other sisters, and returning the items tonight would reassure the director.

So, each grabbed a box and left.

Meanwhile, the factory leaders, including Secretary A, District Chief Gao, the Armed Forces Minister Gao, Advisor Yu, as well as the leaders of the plastic and oil factories—about thirty people—were led by He Min as they toured the Kanjing wells down by Baiyang River, then headed to the endless cotton fields.

After the cotton fields, they entered a large greenhouse made from earthen membranes.

The sight was truly eye-opening for the leaders.

It turned out that while the outside temperature was only around 10 degrees Celsius, the greenhouse temperature could reach up to 30 degrees.

With proper insulation, winter crops could still grow under these conditions.

“Our farm’s production method and scale, Director Chen has made great contributions,” Secretary A said, turning to Nie Bozhao. “But why isn’t Xiao Chen here today? I was hoping to dance with her.”

The Armed Forces Minister, Gao Dayong, was rubbing his hands together. “No, Secretary, the first dance today should be between Director Chen and me. This was decided after a little arm-wrestling with the Armed Forces Department’s comrades. If you disagree, we can arm-wrestle over it!”

Secretary A was a cultured man, and he knew he couldn’t beat the big, burly Gao Dayong in an arm-wrestling contest, so he yielded gracefully.

“Dancing is just a little entertainment after our revolutionary work,” Secretary A joked. “But she is an important figure at the farm. Nie Gong, you’re not going to pull that old trick and keep Xiao Chen locked away, are you?”

His comment hit the mark, and all the leaders immediately burst into laughter.

Nie Bozhao quickly said, “She’s the production director. With so many people suddenly coming to the farm, her safety is the top priority. She’s busy overseeing the security of the place.”

“In fact, the idea of using greenhouses for vegetable cultivation was mine, Secretary A,” He Min said, seizing the opportunity to take some credit.

He Lan Mountain also quickly chimed in, “Secretary He is the one who really set the big direction for the farm’s development. He should be credited for a lot of it.”

Secretary A smiled but didn’t comment further.

After all, Chen Lina had worked tirelessly for a year, while He Min had only been around for a few days.

The leaders could certainly keep that in mind.

Leaving the greenhouse, they entered another building made with earthen membranes for grafting experiments.

The walls were made of compacted earth, and the structure was larger and more expansive.

Inside, there were grapevines and various grafted agricultural products laid out for inspection by the leaders.

“If I remember correctly, Professor Tian, Old Qiu, and the others were all brought in by Director Nie, right? I think the tender cucumbers on our table this year were thanks to your work,” Secretary A remarked.

He walked over to the old leaders and said, “You’ve worked hard, and I’m sure you’ve endured many hardships.”

Everything was left unsaid, but the message was clear: under policies and guidelines, doing your job well was what mattered most.

He Min quickly stepped in and said, “Secretary, to ensure the old experts get proper nutrition, I personally bought milk powder for them.”

“Well done, Secretary He, you’re doing a great job!” Secretary A praised, giving He Min a thumbs up.

The cultured old professors, while uncomfortable with the flattery, didn’t have the same thick skin as He Min.

They listened but didn’t call him out on his exaggerations.

He Lan Mountain, eager to add some praise and claim credit, was stopped by District Chief Gao Feng, who tugged at his wife’s sleeve and said, “He Lan Mountain, your brother is being shameless! If you keep speaking falsely like that, I’ll send him back to Daqing!”

He Lan Mountain wisely fell silent.

“The farm’s scale was built by Director Chen. Now, I’m going to give an order. He Min, go find her for us. Tonight at the Cultural Center, we’re celebrating the harvest, and if she doesn’t come, I’ll mark it down as a major demerit,” District Chief Gao said sternly.

He Min, frustrated at being sidelined and ignored by the leaders, was seething.

After wandering around for a while, He Min refused to go find Chen Lina, instead continuing to look for another way to impress the leaders and take more control of the farm’s authority.

However, just as the leaders were returning from the fields and nearing the entrance of the Cultural Center, Advisor Yu suddenly called out loudly, “Director Chen, we’ve been looking for you! What’s going on? Everyone’s here to celebrate the farm’s harvest, and yet you’re hiding from us. What does this mean?”

Before Chen Lina could even recognize who it was, she was suddenly swept into the Cultural Center by the male youth from the Cultural Troupe, who were holding instruments.

As they danced, Advisor Yu introduced himself with great flair: “Let me introduce myself. My name is Yu Lianhai, Chief of Staff for the Armed Forces in the mining district. Though I didn’t fight in the Liberation War or go to the Korean battlefield, I’ve helped the herders under Tianshan Mountain kill over forty wolves, saved countless sheep, and stood guard on the Tanggula Pass for two years. And I’m always ready to answer the country’s call—just give the signal, and I’ll be on the front lines!”

“Wow, impressive!” The beautiful Director Chen laughed. “So all the Armed Forces soldiers should report to Advisor Yu, right?”

“Exactly,” Advisor Yu said happily, shooting a proud glance at Minister Gao Dayong. It was clear that he felt victorious.