Fu Xiumei’s face turned bright red, and she couldn’t say anything in response.

Someone suggested, “Why not call Qian’s father and ask him to come and take care of her?”

Fu Xiumei muttered, “We’ve called Old Mr. Qian. He said his legs are also not in good shape and that Lin Xia should take care of it.”

Old Lady Jiang: Damn him.

I’ve seen shameless people before, but never someone so brazen.

Old Lady Jiang quickly pulled Lin Xia back home to cook.

Before long, Qian’s father arrived on a human-powered tricycle, leaning on a cane and looking like he was struggling with old age.

He demanded it with an air of righteousness, because previously when Qian’s mother had a broken leg, Lin Xia had taken care of her, and now she should do it again.

The factory leaders were stunned.

Had they ever seen such… shameless behavior?

Qian’s father, however, felt it was completely reasonable because this was a family issue, not a social or factory problem.

Lin Xia owed her current situation to the Qian family, so she should repay them.

Old Lady Jiang: Oh really?

How old are you to be this way? Not even fifty-five.

Weren’t you still full of energy when fishing?

What are you pretending for?

The Qian family wanted Lin Xia to take care of Qian’s mother, but Lin Xia thought it was a joke and couldn’t even be bothered to curse them out.

Why don’t you find someone on the street to take care of her?

Let’s see if anyone will give you a good smack!

Qian’s father, however, was being stubborn.

He didn’t cause a scene at the workshop but just sat in the residential compound crying, crying out Lin Xia’s name.

Some people couldn’t stand it.

If you’re going to sit here and be unreasonable to pressure your ex-daughter-in-law, why don’t you take care of her yourself?

This sly old man!

But his stubbornness was hard to deal with.

Since he wasn’t causing a scene in the workshop and didn’t affect production, and wasn’t physically assaulting or cursing anyone in the residential area, the leaders couldn’t do much about it.

His behavior wasn’t illegal, and no amount of persuasion would work.

He shamelessly cried there, and you couldn’t even call the police to arrest him.

It was indeed unpleasant and annoying.

Old Lady Jiang had no way to handle him.

Someone suggested calling Lin Shu to see how to deal with him.

They were curious to see how Lin Shu would scold Qian’s father, or if she could directly give him a piece of her mind.

Old Lady Jiang said irritably, “Those who are afraid of being scolded still have some shame. There’s no use in scolding someone who’s shameless.”

Old Lady Jiang asked Jiang Weidong to find a solution.

Jiang Weidong was also in a difficult position.

Qian’s father hadn’t affected production or done anything out of line; he just came to work, clocked in, and complained about Lin Xia.

It wasn’t like they could take any action against him, especially since he was a retired worker and a respected old employee.

They couldn’t handle him with violence.

So the situation was quite tricky…

Eventually, Jiang Weidong came up with a solution.

He decided to have Lin Xia temporarily avoid the situation.

If she wasn’t around, Qian’s father’s crying and fussing wouldn’t have any effect.

In the fall, the Provincial Revolutionary Committee, leading the power supply bureaus of various provinces, planned a “rural electrification” event.

Since the staff at the power supply bureau were insufficient, they needed support from various factories.

They required technicians, workers for laying lines and erecting poles, and experienced electricians.

The benefit was that the power supply bureau would pay the seconded personnel’s salaries and provide an additional 40% rural allowance.

Originally, Factory Director Jiang didn’t want to take on this task.

He had thought about using the heavy production workload at the rolling mill as an excuse to decline.

But now, it seemed like a good opportunity for Lin Xia.

After all, the rolling mill’s workload wasn’t heavy at the end of the year and the beginning of the year.

Supporting the rural electrification effort would be fine, though the downside was that going to the countryside would certainly be hard work.

He proactively asked Lin Xia for her opinion. Upon hearing about it, Lin Xia agreed immediately.

After agreeing, she remembered that her younger sister had told her to discuss such matters with Grandma Jiang.

She hesitated for a moment and said, “Factory Director Jiang, I need to discuss it with Old Lady Jiang.”

Jiang Weidong chuckled, “What does an old lady know?”

Lin Xia replied, “It’s not right to say that. Old Lady Jiang is older and has more experience; she’s well-informed.”

Besides, she had developed a good relationship with Old Lady Jiang and felt a bit reluctant to leave her.

Indeed, upon hearing the news, Old Lady Jiang’s first reaction was to feel sorry for Lin Xia.

Rural work was hard labor; skilled technicians were always reluctant to go.

Typically, only young men who could endure hardship were sent for such tasks.

For a woman like Lin Xia to go do this work, it would be inconvenient in many ways.

But… it might also be an opportunity?

The two of them decided to call Lin Shu.

They made an appointment call in the evening and received Lin Shu’s callback the next morning.

Lin Shu was supportive of the idea of going to help at the power supply bureau.

She said it was a good opportunity and that Lin Xia could certainly go.

While the rural work was undoubtedly tiring, being an electrician was lighter work compared to laying lines.

The main advantage was that the power supply bureau was a prestigious unit even forty years later.

If Lin Xia could stay at such an institution, her future career would be secured.

A female electrician at the power grid had more prospects compared to one at the rolling mill.

Lin Shu didn’t mention these potential benefits, given that Lin Xia was currently a rolling mill employee.

It’s not easy to become an electrical grid worker; it depends on the opportunity.

Seeing that the third sister supported her, Lin Xia had no more concerns and immediately submitted her application.

Jiang Weidong approved it right away and personally took it to the factory director and office for stamping and signing.

Lin Xia then reported to the power supply bureau.

When Lin Xia left, her ex-husband was still downstairs in the residential compound, crying and making a scene.

Qian’s mother, on the other hand, lay in bed without moving, hoping desperately to see Lin Xia’s tall figure appear at the door.

The last time she broke her leg, Lin Xia had taken excellent care of her.

Lin Xia had helped her turn over, cleaned her, massaged her legs, and did everything for her, so she didn’t get any bedsores.

This time, just after four or five days, she… had wet herself several times, and her body was always damp, even though she hadn’t drunk much water at all.

Breaking a leg usually means lying in bed for three months, and she… didn’t know how she was going to endure it.

When Qian Lisheng arrived at the Huang County branch workshop, although no one directly accused him of fraud or impotence, he felt guilty.

Whenever people whispered, he suspected they were talking about him, and whenever people looked at him with a slightly ambiguous gaze, he suspected they were mocking him.

He no longer had his former confidence and was instead full of complaints, feeling that he was extremely unlucky to be sent to a small county branch.

He looked down on the workers in the county, treated his apprentices unwillingly, and often cursed at them.

At this low point, his father called him. “Lisheng, your mother fell and broke her thigh at work, and there’s no one to take care of her.”

Qian Lisheng instinctively asked, “What about Lin Xia?”

His first reaction was that if something happened to his mother, Lin Xia should be the first to take care of her.

That’s how it had been for years.

When he was ill, Lin Xia was the first to care for him.

When his mother was ill, Lin Xia was also the first to care for her.

Even though his mother usually helped at his younger brother’s house, when she was sick, she had to come to his house for Lin Xia to care for her.

He even had a twisted, dark hope that Lin Xia, being so kind-hearted, would surely be soft-hearted and come back if his mother broke her leg.

Qian’s father complained, “She won’t. She said that since they’re divorced, it has nothing to do with her.”

Qian Lisheng became agitated, “That’s not acceptable. Even if they’re divorced, she should still take care of my mother.”

Qian’s father, irritated, said, “She’s heartless and ungrateful. She’s on a business trip to the provincial power supply bureau.”

He urged Qian Lisheng to go back quickly to take care of her.

Qian Lisheng replied, “Dad, I still have to work. You don’t have a job, so you should take care of her.”

Qian’s father said, “I…”

“My legs aren’t good, and you know it. How can I take care of her?”

Qian Lisheng replied, “So should I stop working and take care of her? What will we eat at home?”

Qian’s father started to feel distressed again.

With his younger daughter-in-law pregnant and the elder daughter-in-law divorced, he didn’t know what to do.

He sighed, “Why did you have to get divorced? Is there nothing that could be tolerated?”

Qian Lisheng responded, “Do you think I wanted the divorce?”

Qian’s father fell silent, just sighing.

Qian Lisheng suggested that Qian’s father should take over Qian’s mother’s job and look after her, or alternatively, hire an unemployed woman to take care of Qian’s mother at home.

It seemed there was no other option.

After all, Lin Xia was avoiding them like a plague.

Qian Lisheng felt so unlucky!

He resented Lin Xia for being heartless and Lin Shu for ruining his marriage, but Lin Shu, whom he hated, was completely unfazed and happily busy at home.

Zhang Sigu acted as a matchmaker and had excellent results as a living advertisement, introducing Lin Shu to several clothing clients.

Now that it was winter, the New Year was approaching.

Who wouldn’t want to reward themselves with new clothes after a busy year?

Lin Shu was both making money and collecting fabric scraps, staying very busy and fulfilled.

One day, Brother Lu Dage came home excitedly.

As soon as he entered the door, he shouted, “Mom, big news! The commune is holding a commendation meeting, and our family is definitely an advanced family. I’ll be leading the team. We’re all going!”