Chapter 67

Yan Xiang came back from the library holding a book, very happy.

There were so many books in the library, much more than at home.

He was about to happily shout, but fortunately, he felt the quiet atmosphere as soon as he entered the office and closed his mouth in time—Mom had said not to disturb the other people in the office.

But Chief Lu still noticed the book he was holding. “Oh, so Yan Xiang reads this kind of book too.”

Naturally, he was teasing the child.

Yan Xiang was about to reply when Qiao Wei clapped her hand on his head, interrupting him. She quickly flipped through the book he brought and said, “There are so many illustrations in it.”

A child so young probably just flipped through books to look at the pictures. Chief Lu didn’t pay much attention.

He reminded him, “You can read it, but don’t tear it. These belong to the public.”

Yan Xiang never tore books, so he immediately agreed, “Okay!”

He was truly likable.

Lu Manman had already finished her broadcast and left work.

Chief Lu kindly said, “Qiao can leave too.”

Hu Sui continued to let her mind wander.

Obviously, she was accustomed to the different working hours of real broadcasters.

She had nothing to complain about. Even though she had broken the machine twice, she hadn’t been asked to compensate. But her husband was annoyed by her mishaps. He told her honestly, “Do what you’re told to do and don’t do anything you’re not told to do.”

Chief Lu asked her to clean the office.

With such a small space, it could be cleaned up in no time. With the whole day left, she was earning money for nothing. It was effortless and didn’t require much thought. What was there to complain about?

Qiao Wei asked Chief Lu for permission. “Can I take these old drafts home to study?”

Chief Lu smiled. “No rush.”

Based on past experience, the plan was to let Lu Manman train the newcomer for two weeks before gradually allowing the newcomer to take on more responsibilities.

Qiao Wei said, “Manman hasn’t had a break for two weeks straight, it’s too tough on her. I’ll start earlier and let her have some freedom.”

Chief Lu chuckled, “Sure, sure.”

Qiao Wei then asked, “Can I take the newspapers home to read together?”

“You can, but this one needs to be brought back. The new newspapers need to be kept for a while. If you need paper at home, go to the warehouse and ask the custodian for some old newspapers.”

“No, I’m just taking them home to study.”

“Then take them, take them.”

In the afternoon, Yan Lei returned home and his first question was, “How was your day?”

Qiao Wei countered, “Are you nervous?”

Yan Lei denied, “Why would I be nervous?”

Qiao Wei said, “I’m different from before, you can rest assured.”

“Of course I know,” Yan Lei took the basin of vegetables she was selecting, “As long as you’re willing, you can do it well.”

Oh, where did this touch of resentment come from?

Qiao Wei smiled teasingly, mocking him, “Do I have to say ‘Yan Lei, I want to live happily with you’ every day for you to be happy?”

Yan Lei followed her into the kitchen while holding the basin, “I’m listening.”

She couldn’t help but say it.

Qiao Wei was speechless.

Yan Lei persisted, “See, you never say it.”

Unable to tolerate him anymore, Qiao Wei placed her hand on his shoulder and leaned out to look around. Yan Xiang was in the room.

She tiptoed and pecked his lips, “I want to live happily with you.”

The basin was placed on the stove.

Yan Lei held Qiao Wei’s slender waist and leaned down to kiss her.

Her lips were sweet and beautiful.

After kissing and kissing again, Qiao Wei said, “If you don’t let go, there won’t be any food.”

Only then did Yan Lei release her.

He went to wash his hands, took off his uniform, and came over to take the knife from Qiao Wei.

The knives in this era were not as small and delicate as those in later generations; they were large and heavy. Since Qiao Wei came here and started cooking, both her wrist and arm strength had improved.

Yan Lei took the knife and skillfully chopped the vegetables effortlessly.

The couple worked together, and soon the meal was ready.

He picked up a piece of meat, let her taste it first, and then called their son, “Xiang Xiang—dinner is ready!”

The topic at the dinner table naturally turned to the radio station.

Qiao Wei told Yan Lei about the specific family relationships of the “Sanlu and Yixie” group.

Yan Lei watched her expression and asked, “Is it annoying?”

Although the residents in the town had urban household registrations, because the area was small, many things were more similar to rural areas compared to big cities.

Qiao Wei disliked these complicated family relationships.

“What’s there to be annoyed about,” Qiao Wei said, “It’s actually quite interesting.”

“Oh?”

“I and another broadcaster only need to strictly manage our time during the morning broadcasts. The rest of the time, including afternoon shifts, we have a lot of freedom,” Qiao Wei said, “But the other sister who manages hygiene, she’s also a military dependent, and there’s also the line worker, they are relatives. The station manager is very strict with their attendance. Late arrivals result in deductions from their salaries.”

Yan Lei raised an eyebrow.

Although he was young, he was a regimental-level cadre, a leader, and not even a small leader, he was already a mid-level cadre.

How could a cadre leader not understand this?

He looked at Qiao Wei, and Qiao Wei raised her eyebrows in response.

Both of them understood Chief Lu very well.

Control and authority.

Correspondingly, obedience.

Lu Manman and Qiao Wei achieved obedience through their practical work.

But Hu Sui, who hardly did anything, still had a military background. Although Lu Tianming was a young relative, he held technical skills.

In fact, with just two people—Qiao Wei, Lu Manman, or Lu Tianming, any combination of three out of two, could support the radio station.

So what was the significance of Chief Lu’s existence? Therefore, it must have meaning.

Hu Sui and Lu Tianming had to be strictly managed, even if they had nothing to do all day, they still had to adhere to strict attendance policies.

In this way, they achieved obedience.

Chief Lu achieved control and established authority.

He had a sense of existence and meaning.

Yan Lei asked, “Do you think it’s interesting?”

He felt a strange feeling in his heart. Based on his understanding of her in the past, her thoughts were actually quite simple; she didn’t listen to any nuances in people’s words, attitudes, or intentions.

“It’s interesting,” Qiao Wei smiled, pursing her lips, “The human heart lies in these small details, it’s especially interesting.”

In the hospital, if you stayed there for a long time, you would witness the joys and sorrows, separations and reunions, and the changes in the world.

The intricacies of human nature often condensed into dark shadows, drifting through the corridors thick with the smell of disinfectant in the dead of night.

Having seen so much of this, looking at ordinary people under the sunlight, like Sister Yang, despite various minor flaws, seemed exceptionally bright and radiant.

Even these small manipulations by Chief Lu didn’t bother her; she found them interesting.

It’s interesting when you see through it.

Qiao Wei’s eyes were deep.

After dinner, Yan Lei played with Yan Xiang in the sandbox.

With his strong and dexterous hands, he quickly figured out how to play with the sand. He could sculpt the shape of a house with semi-wet sand.

It amazed Yan Xiang.

After playing enough, he washed his hands with Yan Xiang and went back inside. He saw Qiao Wei busily writing at the desk.

“What are you writing?” he asked as he walked over.

Qiao Wei handed it to him. “Can you read it?”

It was a short article. Yan Lei quickly read it and commented, “It’s not much different from what we usually study.”

“No errors, but also nothing outstanding, right?” Qiao Wei asked.

He nodded. “Yes.”

He asked, “Is this what you have to write for work?”

Qiao Wei not only brought back old drafts but also deliberately brought back several newspapers, basically for copying and pasting.

For this kind of thing, first, she didn’t have that theoretical level, so she couldn’t come up with anything new. Unless she copied what the higher-ups said.

Then, even if she could come up with something new, Qiao Wei wouldn’t write it.

“They are all ideological things, carrying the responsibility of informing the masses,” Qiao Wei said, “Carelessness can easily lead to problems. If something goes wrong, it’s a serious problem.”

“I don’t want to start a big fire when I’m new to the job. It’s easy to burn yourself.”

“Stability. I want what I write to be stable and reliable.”

Following the most authoritative newspapers.

The editorials of authoritative newspapers represent the central government’s opinions. Each sentence needs to be carefully interpreted. No one can be more stable than them.

Copying, connecting, piecing together, Ctrl+C, Ctrl+V, what she produces is completely sufficient for a small-town radio station.

Yan Lei paused for a moment.

“What’s wrong?” Qiao Wei asked, “Did I say something wrong?”

“What you said is, of course, correct,” Yan Lei paused and said, “Just these past two days, Captain Pan just conveyed the same message to us.”

Of course, it wasn’t public, it was conveyed privately, to the small group of “ourselves.”

“Seek stability,” Captain Pan said, “Don’t try to be outstanding.”

Yan Lei didn’t expect to hear the exact same sentiment from Qiao Wei at home.

Qiao Wei’s eyes changed slightly, and she asked, “Does Captain Pan have any central government news?”

Yan Lei said, “He didn’t say. But the sentiment he expressed is exactly the same as what you just said.”

Qiao Wei told him, “Then you should listen to the captain.”

“Of course,” Yan Lei’s eyes also deepened slightly, “I was thinking of finding time to communicate with you these past two days. The radio station is not good in this aspect. If one expression is not good, there will be trouble. I didn’t expect you to have already thought about it.”

It is so reassuring for the couple to reach a consensus on major matters. There is no need to worry about each other making trouble.

Qiao Wei knew that the military or Captain Pan himself must have received some information or sensed the direction of the wind.

She was a bit troubled.

It’s really hard to remember the years of major events.

How do those time-traveling protagonists in historical novels remember the years of major events so clearly? It’s like they’ve memorized history books and immediately traveled back in time.

As someone who only vaguely knows about major events but doesn’t know the exact dates, Qiao Wei would probably be looked down upon by many time-traveling predecessors.

But if you grab someone on the street and ask, most of them would be like, “Yes, I know about this. Ah? The specific year and date? Um, uh… I’m not quite sure.”

Qiao Wei tidied up the things on the table and took down a collection of the thoughts of great men from the half-empty bookshelf.

“Every Tuesday and Friday afternoon, we have study sessions in the propaganda department, twice a week. I’ll review first.”

“Do you want to join me?”

Qiao Wei extended an invitation for mutual progress, and Yan Lei naturally agreed.

Qiao Wei thought for a moment and called out, “Xiang Xiang, Xiang Xiang—come here, darling, come listen to Mommy and Daddy read.”

Yan Xiang ran over eagerly. “Which book are you reading?”

Qiao Wei lifted up the collection in her hand. “This one.”

“I haven’t read this one. What’s it about?” Books placed high on the bookshelf were said by Mommy to be for adults, so he shouldn’t touch them.

“Just listen. Listen to as much as you can understand, it’s okay if you can’t understand.”

Yan Lei smiled and lifted Yan Xiang onto his lap. “Come, let’s educate my son. The whole family is learning and progressing together.”

In the army, he led others in learning, but at home, he became the one who accompanied his wife and son in learning.

Yan Lei and Qiao Wei took turns reading aloud.

Qiao Wei also took notes.

Yan Lei lifted his gaze and saw Qiao Wei’s eyes, and couldn’t help but pause.

She was very serious.

Yan Lei stopped and asked, “Qiao Wei, are you firm in your beliefs?”

Qiao Wei countered, “What do you think?”

Yan Lei carefully observed her eyes. A firm gaze couldn’t be faked, and there was no need to fake it in front of her husband.

Qiao Wei fiddled with the book cover. “I can tell you, I firmly believe in everything he said.”

In the future, she hadn’t actually read his collection seriously. She had only read bits and pieces online.

Now, the more she read, the more she felt moved.

He had long seen through the essence of all contradictions—class contradictions, gender contradictions, the opposition between bureaucrats and the masses.

He had also long seen through the true face of the Western paper tiger, with farsightedness, sharp vision, and firm beliefs.

He stood too high, and his steps were too fast for anyone to keep up.

Many people of this era only believed in him out of blind admiration, afraid to question, rather than truly understanding.

But Qiao Wei was different. Qiao Wei had witnessed time and history.

Time had validated his correctness, beyond doubt.

Great men are forever immortal.