Chapter 118 2/2

As she said this, the room fell silent because there were few people who could respond.

Yan Lei’s mother, who had originally wanted to ask a question, was stunned by this string of words. She seemed to understand it all, but it was beyond her comprehension. To her, even going to the county was considered a long journey.

Go to the provincial capital? She didn’t even dare to think about it.

Someone spoke up, “Lei… “

The village party secretary interrupted, “Qiao Wei.”

“Oh, oh, Qiao Wei.” The person asked, “Qiao Wei seems to be quite clear about these matters?”

Without waiting for Qiao Wei to answer, the village party secretary said, “Qiao Wei works in the County Committee Office over there. She’s a pen pusher, and her articles have been published and won awards, even People’s Daily has reprinted them! Right, Qiao Wei?”

The room was filled with the sound of sucking in air as everyone looked at this woman in the snow-white shirt. You know, looking at her like this, she really seemed like a cadre.

Actually, Qiao Wei couldn’t really be considered a cadre. Her rank was only that of a clerk. But at this moment, in the minds of ordinary people, anyone working in the government was considered a cadre.

Qiao Wei looked at the person and then at the village party secretary, asking, “And this… how should I address you?”

The village party secretary replied, “This is Director Li from our village committee.”

Director Li asked, “Qiao Wei, do you really work in the County Committee Office?”

“Director,” Qiao Wei said, “Our County Committee Office doesn’t exist anymore. The new Revolutionary Committee has been established. My former leaders… as the ruling faction, have been overthrown. The leadership structure in the county has completed the transformation from the separation of party and government to unified leadership. The new leader, the Director of the Revolutionary Committee, used to be a member of the Standing Committee. But the new Deputy Director used to work in the same office as me, a colleague I know well.”

“The structural transformation has been completed, with cadre representatives, mass representatives, and military representatives each in their respective positions. Because of my connection to Bocheng County, Yan Lei directly secured the position of military representative for Bocheng, so we can take care of each other.”

“And because a new military representative has taken office, the county is still constantly uncovering class enemies hiding among the people, and the struggle is very intense. So Yan Lei can’t get away right now. After discussing with him, fortunately, I am familiar with the Deputy Director of the Revolutionary Committee, and he approved my leave. That’s why I came back to see my father’s situation.”

The men in the room no longer appeared idle, unconsciously straightening their backs and ears, their faces becoming serious.

The village party secretary said, “Our county is also in chaos. We don’t understand it either, and there’s no one above who can explain it clearly. You know who we should listen to.”

Qiao Wei said, “The brigade listens to the commune, the commune listens to the higher-ups. Whoever has the final say up there will compete among themselves. Whoever wins the revolutionary victory will give instructions to the lower levels. Before that, under no circumstances should we listen to commands from higher levels. We won’t make mistakes.”

The village party secretary agreed wholeheartedly, “Right.”

After some thought, he tentatively asked, “Qiao Wei, this matter, we’re all confused now, the winds are chaotic. There’s no one above who can explain it clearly. Can you tell us about it?”

Qiao Wei nodded, “Sure, but Secretary, my father’s situation is important. Can you tell me first how to get to the provincial capital? How long will it take?”

The village party secretary felt a little embarrassed. The person had come back to treat her father’s illness, and he had forgotten about it.

He said, “If you want to go to the provincial capital, our donkey carts and horse carts won’t do. You have to go to the county town and take a long-distance bus.”

Qiao Wei looked at the sky, recalling the time it took to return from the county town just now, and asked, “Can we leave today?”

The village party secretary was taken aback, “Leave today?”

Qiao Wei asked, “Is it possible?”

The village party secretary calculated the time, “It’s possible to come, but… you haven’t stayed at home for a couple of days…”

Qiao Wei said, “Whether I stay or not isn’t important. What’s important is the treatment. My father’s situation is very serious now. If there’s already pus in his urine, it means there’s a serious internal infection, and his life is in danger at any time.”

Yan Lei’s father’s condition had worsened this year, and he could no longer work in the fields. Rural people were ignorant, and the barefoot doctors in the village couldn’t cure him. He felt that his days were numbered and that he was about to die, inherently pessimistic.

As Qiao Wei said this, the old man’s lips trembled.

No matter how pessimistic, people didn’t want to die. The strongest instinct of human beings is the instinct for survival.

Yan Lei’s mother, upon hearing that her husband might die, started to cry, “His Second Uncle, his Second Uncle!”

A matter as important as going to the provincial capital seemed to have exceeded the family’s ability to decide, so they could only seek help from the village party secretary and ask him to make the decision.

The village party secretary calculated the time and said, “In any case, you can’t leave without eating a meal first. After eating, I’ll arrange a cart to take you to the county town to catch a long-distance bus. The bus runs fast, and you can reach the provincial capital by nightfall.”

“However, after arriving in the provincial capital, everything will depend on you,” the village party secretary said.

Qiao Wei replied, “Then please prepare an introduction letter for us. We’ll need it for buying tickets and staying in guesthouses. It’s best if you give me a couple of extra copies to keep in case we lose one. Losing the introduction letter would be really troublesome.”

At that time, the first-generation ID card had not yet been issued, so the introduction letter served as identification. It was necessary for buying tickets and accommodation, and without it, it was nearly impossible to move around.

The village party secretary said, “I’ll give you a couple of extra blank ones to keep.”

“Okay,” Qiao Wei said.

She looked around and said, “Then I’ll take my father, my mother, my elder brother, and Xiao Xiang. The few of us will leave after lunch.”

Yan Lei’s father was ill.

Yan Zhu was a laborer. Going to the provincial capital required some manpower to run errands and ensure safety on the road.

Yan Lei’s mother served as a communicator. Qiao Wei was the daughter-in-law of the family, and with Yan Zhu as her elder brother-in-law and her husband’s younger brother, some communication might not be very convenient. Having a woman as a bridge in between would make things much easier.

Yan Lei’s urban wife had only been here for less than an hour, and she had already arranged the itinerary and personnel. They were leaving in the afternoon.

With a swift and decisive action, she cut through the confusion.

Whether it was the qualified individuals sitting in the house or the people crowding around the door frame to watch the excitement, they were all dumbfounded.

They had never seen a daughter-in-law return home and leave without staying for a night.

Normally, someone might jump up and curse her for not giving her face. But what she said couldn’t be refuted. Her father-in-law’s life was at stake, and no one could say she was wrong.

Qiao Wei smiled faintly.

Since they didn’t bother to welcome me, there was no need to stay.

I came, and now I’m leaving.

I’ll do what I need to do.