Work Begins 

“Let me do it. Go wash your hands,” Lin Miaoyin said as she reached out to take the axe. 

Meng Yuanzheng refused to give it to her and chopped the bamboo pole with a loud snapping sound. “I’ll finish chopping this.” 

“Fine, just be careful.” She gave up and went back to washing clothes.  

Meng Yuanzheng cut the bamboo poles into uniform lengths, tied three at the two-eighths mark to make three-legged frame, and set them up in the yard. He arranged the bamboo poles on top and wiped them clean with a cloth. 

He then went to wash his hands, found a small chair, and placed it next to her. 

With her hands covered in soap, Lin Miaoyin smiled at him, “My hands are dirty—put it under me.” 

She lifted herself slightly, and Meng Yuanzheng set the stool in place, then squatted beside her to help with the washing. 

“You hold that end with both hands, and I’ll hold this end, and we’ll twist it in opposite directions.” Lin Miaoyin lifted one end of the quilt and instructed him to lift the other end. The two of them twisted it in opposite directions, and the water inside was squeezed out, then they shook it and spread it over the bamboo poles. 

After repeating this several times, all the sheets and quilt covers were washed. Exhausted, Lin Miaoyin sat on the stool under the eaves, leaning against the wall and watching Meng Yuanzheng put away the wash basin and soap. 

“I have digested all the meat I ate,” she sighed. 

“We’ll make more tonight,” Meng Yuanzheng said while carrying the basin. 

“Eating meat every meal—are we sitting on a gold mine here?” 

Meng Yuanzheng suddenly stopped and turned back to stare at her. “What did you say?” 

Startled by his look, Lin Miaoyin forced a smile. “I was saying only someone sitting on a gold mine could eat meat every meal—just like the landowners in the old days…” 

Meng Yuanzheng continued to stare at her with an unreadable expression. 

“Why are you looking at me like that?” she asked in confusion. 

“Nothing.” He lowered his gaze and walked away with the basin. 

“Let’s wipe down all the cabinets in the house later. I just saw my brother, and he gave me some realgar powder. I plan to sprinkle it around the house.” 

As she spoke, she closed her eyes and lazily basked in the sun. Before she knew it, she had fallen fast asleep. 

She was woken up by someone. When she opened her eyes, she saw Meng Yuanzheng holding her knees, trying to pick her up. 

“No, no, no!” She grabbed his arm. “I’m awake, I’m awake.” 

If he really tried to pick her up, she feared they would both fall flat on their faces. 

The two of them worked for a while, cleaning the house inside and out, and then carefully sprinkled the realgar powder around. 

In the evening, they just cooked some porridge and ate it with pickled vegetables. Then they each took a bath and fell asleep on their newly changed clean sheets. 

The next day, they would have to get back to work. 

Early in the morning, the sound of bells rang throughout the village. This was the signal for everyone to gather. Near the large square in the village stood an old willow tree, and hanging from it was a piece of an old steel rail. The villagers used it as a bell, and only the team leader and vice leader were authorized to strike it. Anyone who rang it without permission would be criticized. 

As soon as the bell rang, everyone, even if they were squatting in the toilet, would have had to pull up their pants and rush to the gathering. 

The team held frequent meetings to study the leaders’ opinions, share commune orders, and assign farm work. Some were held during the day, others in the evening, and all laborers had to attend. 

Hearing the faint clanging sound, Lin Miaoyin dropped her face towel and called out to Meng Yuanzheng while picking up her shoes. “Hurry, hurry, it’s time to gather.” 

Meng Yuanzheng had packed his things long ago. He wore a green long-sleeved jacket, a white vest underneath, black cloth shoes, two straw hats on his head, and two water bottles and two towels hanging around his neck. He also took his hoe and sickle and locked the door. “Let’s go.” 

“Look at you,” Lin Miaoyin couldn’t help but give him a thumbs-up. Impressive. 

The two of them walked quickly and arrived under the willow tree, where many people had already gathered. 

The villagers stood on one side; the educated youth stood on the other. Lin Miaoyin looked around and whispered to Meng Yuanzheng, “Why don’t you go stand with them?” 

“No need.” 

At that moment, Zhu Wanqin glanced over and gave them a friendly smile. Lin Miaoyin returned the smile and couldn’t help but wonder to herself—yesterday, the male and female protagonists met for the first time. She wondered if any sparks flew between them. 

“Here,” Meng Yuanzheng put a straw hat on her head, hung a water bottle and a towel around her neck, and handed her a sickle.  

“Miaoyin, your husband is so good to you,” the young wife next to her said and teased her with a smile. 

“Haha… really? Your man isn’t bad either,” Lin Miaoyin replied, glancing at the man holding a hoe not far away.  

“Him? He wouldn’t even bother bringing a water bottle for me; he only thinks of himself.” The young wife curled her lips while sneaking a glance at Meng Yuanzheng and silently added, Besides, my man isn’t handsome like yours. 

Soon everyone arrived, and as usual, Father Lin said a few words of encouragement and began to assign farm work. 

A full-time male laborer earned ten work points a day, a full-time female laborer earned nine work points a day, but the newly arrived educated youth only earned eight work points a day. 

The men were responsible for carrying manure, making compost, and digging the ground, while the women were responsible for weeding. After the distribution was completed, the team leader would lead everyone to the fields. 

As the sun slowly rose and the temperature began to rise as well. The men took off their jackets, leaving only their vests. They also kicked off their shoes and worked barefoot. The women had it a bit easier, only needing to squat among the cornfields to pull weeds. Those with skills could use hoes to weed faster, though it was more tiring. 

Although the cornfield blocked the sun, its leaves were scratchy, and there were caterpillars and other insects around. Soon, she heard the scream of the new female educated youths nearby, likely frightened by the insects. 

She slapped away an insect that had fallen on her shoe. She opened her palm and saw that it was slightly red and stained with a lot of green sap. Looking at the endless cornfield ahead, she silently repeated, Labor is honorable, and continued weeding. 

Lin Miaoyin wanted to use hoes, but that wouldn’t work because they had to remove the roots, or the weeds would reappear soon after. 

After clearing a patch, she was so tired that it felt like her waist might break. She decided to kneel on the ground to pull out the weeds. When she grew tired of kneeling, she sat down and continued weeding. As she pulled out more weeds, she moved forward slowly to cover more ground. 

Finally finishing a small area, she sat on the weeded field, wiped her face with a towel, and took a drink. As she sipped from her water bottle, she noticed a group of new female educated youths gathered together and talking about something. 

Unable to contain her curiosity, she sneaked over, squatted behind some corn, and saw Zhu Wanqin handing out gloves to them. 

“I thought working would hurt our hands, so I came prepared. Here, put these on, everyone.” 

“Wow, Wanqin, you’re the best! I needed these.” 

“What kind of work is this? It’s a complete waste of time. Overseas countries have all achieved mechanization, yet we’re still doing it by hand.” 

“Shh, keep your voice down and don’t say that out loud.” Someone quickly stopped the person who was complaining. 

“All right, let’s get back to work. If the leader sees us, we’ll be in trouble,” Zhu Wanqin said. 

The educated youth who got the gloves left happily. 

The female protagonist really knows how to behave, Lin Miaoyin sighed and started to pull weeds silently. After a while, she heard someone calling her name. 

She went out and saw Meng Yuanzheng standing in the field with a pair of gloves in his hands, which were exactly the same as the ones Zhu Wanqin had just distributed. 

Author’s Note: 

I researched background information using Baidu and consulted the elders in my family. If you notice any inaccuracies, please let me know, and I’ll correct them. 

Thank you for your support! 😇