Chapter 9

She was planning to get married. This was something Wei Ming was unwilling to see happen. After guarding her for so many years without ever tasting the sweetness, was he really going to let another man get ahead of him?

After returning home, Wei Ming reflected on his actions. He figured Jiang Ling wouldn’t have pushed him away for no reason—it must be that somewhere along the way, he hadn’t done enough.

Today, he decided to change his approach and take the route of a confidant. “Did something happen at home that upset you? If you’re feeling wronged, you can tell your superior. Section Chief Tang and I will stand up for you. We’ve known each other for over two years now. If anyone knows what kind of person you are, it’s us.”

He put on a show of wanting to back her up. “I’ll go talk to your parents’ supervisors. The Accounting Section holds a very important position in the factory. If they’re making trouble at home and disturbing your rest, and that ends up affecting your work, that would be a serious issue.”

Jiang Ling smiled. “Please rest assured, Chief. I will make sure to balance my career and family well. Even if I get married and have children, it will never affect our section’s work.”

The other older women in the Accounting Section all felt that Jiang Ling was quite good. What she said sounded very nice, women comrades could hold up half the sky.

But Wei Ming’s eyebrows kept twitching as he listened. What was with this girl today, saying nothing but things he didn’t want to hear?

His smile on the surface remained unchanged. “Are you comfortable living in the dormitory? I remember you used to live there before, but didn’t get along with your roommates and moved back home. If you ask me, you should stay at home for now. I heard from my brother-in-law that our factory is planning to apply to the municipal government to build a family housing block on the land behind our factory. It won’t take long before you’ll be able to live in a big apartment.”

The staff dormitory meant communal living, where every move lacked privacy—it couldn’t compare to the freedom of living at home.

And it would be quite inconvenient if he wanted to do anything.

Housing was a top priority these days. Every household had the same worry of not having enough space to live in. Even Section Chief Tang, who didn’t like Wei Ming, couldn’t help but ask, “Did the factory director say that?”

When the factory director was mentioned, Wei Ming grew proud. “Of course. Just yesterday at noon, I had lunch with the city leaders along with my brother-in-law, and this very matter was brought up at the table.”

This was good news, and everyone was quite pleased—finally, the days of three generations crammed into a tiny room might be coming to an end.

Along with their joy, however, came a trace of schadenfreude. The plan hadn’t even been finalized, and yet Wei Ming was already going around announcing it everywhere. Now the factory director would absolutely have to make it happen. Otherwise, if it all fell through, public opinion would erupt, and the workers would curse him behind his back until he was covered in shame. Everyone might have tolerated the current housing shortage, but once you start publicizing the construction of family housing and give people hope that their living conditions will improve, if in the end it all amounts to nothing, that hope will turn into disappointment.

Yu Jiafeng, the cashier, lived with her mother-in-law. Her mother-in-law was from the countryside, and after her father-in-law passed away, her husband had brought his mother to live with them to fulfill his filial duty.

She and her mother-in-law were incompatible in every way and constantly argued over all sorts of things.

She had many children at home, and the sons and daughters couldn’t share a room. Her mother-in-law was especially hard to please—despite living in a new society, she still acted like a feudal matriarch, demanding to be waited on day and night.

That old hag was a light sleeper, frequently got up at night to pee, and snored loudly. Yu Jiafeng couldn’t bear to let her daughter serve as some kind of household maid.

She and her husband had to share a room with the old woman, which was especially inconvenient.

The mother-in-law was also extremely gossipy. Whatever happened at home, she would come to the office and complain about it all over again—just for another chance to scold her mother-in-law.

Workers at the Daily Chemical Factory in situations like Yu Jiafeng’s were far from rare. Because of housing shortages and poverty, every household had its own set of conflicts.

The other people in the Accounting Section started getting excited—this was about housing allocation.

But Jiang Ling remained calm. It wasn’t that she had no interest in housing. It was because, in the original novel, she had not seen any plotlines related to housing allocation.

Xie Lang’s mother was an employee of the Daily Chemical Factory. If housing was being allocated, there was no way such an event wouldn’t have appeared in the plot.

Most likely, this plan would end in stillbirth.

Wei Ming thoroughly enjoyed the admiring gazes from those around him. It was only because he was the factory director’s brother-in-law that he got to hear this kind of insider information, the kind that only leadership would know.

Amid all the flattery and praise, Wei Ming gradually lost himself.

He seriously suggested, “Last time the factory allocated family housing, it was based on length of service and the number of people in the household. If the next batch of family housing is built, it will take at least two or three years. For the sake of your family getting a larger unit, Xiao Jiang, it would be better to wait a couple of years before considering marriage.”

He spoke in a tone that suggested he was doing it all for her own good.

For a male superior to talk to a female subordinate about such matters was highly inappropriate.

The two senior cashiers exchanged meaningful glances. In the Accounting Section, rumors had already been spreading in private that Jiang Ling and Wei Ming were having an affair. Society always held a certain maliciousness toward young and attractive women.

Why would a pretty girl receive special attention from a male leader? In the eyes of others, there was only one path—by trading on her looks.

It was precisely because people suspected there was something unspeakable going on between Jiang Ling and Wei Ming that, when the two of them had a falling-out, no one stepped forward to speak up for Jiang Ling.

Part of it was the fear that Wei Ming would retaliate, but the main reason was this: if they helped Jiang Ling now and the two of them reconciled shortly after, it would make the helpers look like fools on both sides.

Jiang Ling simply acted as if she didn’t understand his intentions and asked curiously, “If I take up space at my parents’ home, won’t that affect the housing size allocated to my own future family?”

“This…” Wei Ming was momentarily at a loss for words.

What a girl, siding with her future in-laws before she was even married. Fathers didn’t like daughters like this, but men liked women like her—it meant there were benefits to be gained.

Wei Ming felt a tinge of regret. Jiang Ling came from an ordinary family. If she had been the daughter of a leader and had such looks, he would have been willing to marry her as his wife.

But unfortunately, there were still many things for which he had to rely on his brother-in-law.

The others who heard what Jiang Ling said assumed it was just a pair of shameless lovers flirting with each other.

In an attempt to salvage his image in Jiang Ling’s eyes, Wei Ming finally said, “I’ll take you to talk to the logistics side. You’re part of the Accounting Section, and that means you’re one of my people.”

“In the new society, the people are the masters of their own country. There are no slaves. Everyone is an independent individual. No one belongs to anyone else. If you really want to say something, then I’m the successor to socialism!”

What was meant to be a bold and imposing declaration was completely derailed by Jiang Ling, turning into something politically incorrect instead.

Wei Ming didn’t dare continue the conversation.

It was only because the political environment had loosened in recent years that he could get away with saying something like that. If it had been ten years earlier, those words would’ve been enough to get him paraded through the streets and publicly denounced.

Wei Ming was starting to think about giving up on Jiang Ling. Every time he got emotionally stirred and fired up, she always managed to throw a bucket of cold water on him, leaving him completely deflated.

He couldn’t understand, was Jiang Ling’s heart made of iron? Why was she so utterly impervious to his advances?

But when he looked at that beautiful face again, he couldn’t quite bring himself to let go.

In all his life, he had never seen a female comrade more beautiful than Jiang Ling. Tall and slender, with fair skin and those big, watery eyes that seemed like they could speak.

To give her up just like that, it was simply too hard to accept.

Jiang Ling was also considering whether or not to let Wei Ming make the trip. He was the factory director’s brother-in-law, and having him step in would certainly be more effective.

She was already living in the dormitory, so even if the logistics approval came a little late, it wouldn’t matter—as long as it went through in the end.

Following the principle of “a fool passes up a free gain,” she figured since Wei Ming disgusted her every day anyway, having him make an extra trip was only fair.

She thanked him sincerely. “Thank you, Deputy Section Chief. Sorry to trouble you to make the trip.”

Wei Ming, who had just been about to back off, immediately curled his lips into a smile. “It’s no trouble.”

“But after all, this isn’t really my matter, so I’m afraid you’ll have to go with me.”

Jiang Ling pointed at the pile of ration coupons and tickets on the table and said, “I’d like to go with the Deputy Section Chief too, but I’m too busy right now and can’t spare the time.”

Lu Jianjun was a loyal lackey of Wei Ming. “Checking the accounts isn’t urgent. That’s the kind of work you handle steadily over time. You just go ahead.”

With her excuse shut down, Jiang Ling tried to withdraw. “Actually, it’s not that urgent. I’ll just wait for the Logistics Section to notify me.”

Lu Jianjun said, “You young people are really so fickle. Deputy Section Chief Wei is a busy and important man, and he’s willing to go with you. You should be secretly pleased. Don’t keep making excuses and dodging it. You can’t expect Deputy Section Chief Wei to run around handling things for you on his own.”

That was clearly a way of saying she didn’t know her place. Jiang Ling indeed didn’t have the upper hand, so her face lit up again with a big smile. “Yes! You’re absolutely right!”

Anyway, the Accounting Section wasn’t far from the Logistics Section, just a ten-minute round trip. She could bear it.

Just as they walked out of the Accounting Section, a sudden idea struck Jiang Ling.

“Deputy Section Chief Wei, let’s go upstairs from this way.”

Naturally, Wei Ming had no reason to refuse her.

Wei Ming was in his thirties, with a square-shaped face. By the beauty standards of the time, he had fairly proper features. Otherwise, the factory director’s younger sister wouldn’t have taken a liking to him and made him a well-connected insider.

He was quite confident in his appearance, believing that young girls had no way to resist a mature and handsome man like him.

In the Accounting Section, aside from Jiang Ling—young, pretty, unmarried, and without any background—the rest were all older women who were already married.

As a thorough opportunist, Wei Ming knew exactly what kind of person he could afford to provoke.

What’s more, his sense of aesthetics was normal. He liked young and pretty girls.

His wife at home was ugly, so of course he had to find someone good-looking outside.

Wei Ming wanted to take advantage of the time alone with her to say a few heartfelt words and let Jiang Ling feel his personal charm.

But before he could even open his mouth, he saw a bright, radiant smile spread across her face.

“Comrade Song Guanshu.”

Song Guanshu had been gazing out the window, lost in thought. Suddenly hearing his name, he looked up—just in time to see that brilliant smile.

After dragging Wei Ming through several twists and turns, she finally arrived at the Technical Section.

Wei Ming’s intentions were anything but pure, so letting him know that she already had a partner was the quickest way to resolve the situation.

If it weren’t inconvenient to publicly announce that she was already married, she would have preferred to settle the matter all at once.

Facing the curious and teasing gazes of the staff in the Technical Section, Song Guanshu walked out of the office.

“You came to find me all of a sudden, what’s the matter?”

Song Guanshu’s smile was gentle, and his demeanor gave off the feeling of a warm spring breeze. His blue work uniform had been washed clean and neat, and it looked especially proper on him. Clearly, it was the kind of uniform everyone wore, yet on him, it made his waist look slender and his legs long.

What puzzled him wasn’t just why Jiang Ling had come to the Technical Section to find him, but also why she had brought along the Deputy Section Chief of the Accounting Section.

Song Guanshu had an excellent memory. He could recall which department every person in the factory belonged to—from the director down to the ordinary production workers.

Jiang Ling hooked her arm around his. “This is Deputy Section Chief Wei, whom I’ve mentioned to you many times. He takes good care of me. He’s especially warm-hearted. When he heard that my application for a spot in the factory’s collective dormitory hadn’t gone through, he offered to help negotiate with the Logistics Section on my behalf.”

When Wei Ming saw Jiang Ling linking arms so naturally with the young man, an uneasy feeling crept over him.

Sure enough, the next second, he heard Jiang Ling say, “This is my partner. I hadn’t seen him for just a day, and I was already missing him so badly. I felt restless and fidgety, so I took it upon myself to drop by the Technical Section for a quick look. Deputy Section Chief Wei, you won’t blame me, will you?”

Song Guanshu quickly pieced together what was going on.

He understood that Jiang Ling had done this to cut off an unwanted suitor, but the way she phrased things was far too cloying.

Restless and fidgety from missing him?

Absolutely impossible.

“Deputy Section Chief Wei, thank you for all the help you’ve given Comrade Jiang Ling during this time.” Song Guanshu’s eyelashes were thick and long. When he looked down at her, his eyes were full of tenderness.

“In the future, no matter what kind of trouble Jiang Ling encounters in the Accounting Section, she can come to me. I will do everything I can to resolve it.”

Jiang Ling hadn’t expected that Song Guanshu would actually step in to smooth things over for her.

From what she knew of him in the original novel, Song Guanshu was neither kind nor gentle. His true personality was completely opposite from what he displayed. He was obsessive and malicious, someone who enjoyed watching others suffer and struggle.

She had already prepared for him to be uncooperative, which now made all her advance planning seem a bit silly.

Wei Ming, meanwhile, not only got a mouthful of dog food but also caught a strong whiff of the sour stink of romance.

What infuriated him even more was that the dish he had his eyes on hadn’t even been tasted yet, and someone else had already taken it away.

Wei Ming immediately lost all interest in going to the Logistics Section. He said, “Xiao Jiang, I just remembered I have a meeting to attend, so I won’t be able to go with you to logistics. Why don’t you have Xiao Song go with you instead?”

Now that there was no benefit to be gained, Wei Ming was unwilling to put in any more effort.

Of course, he also wanted Jiang Ling to see for herself that a man had to have power and money. A pretty boy with only good looks couldn’t bring her any real advantage in daily life.

Jiang Ling raised her hand and waved twice. “Take care, Deputy Section Chief!”

Once the hallway was down to just the two of them, silence fell immediately.

With no audience around, Song Guanshu couldn’t be bothered to keep up the act of a good husband.

And Jiang Ling didn’t know what she should say to him either.

It wasn’t the first time a young girl had come looking for Song Guanshu at the Technical Section, but this one had made him stay outside the office the longest.

A staff member from the Technical Section peered at the two of them through a window near the hallway.

Jiang Ling felt she had to say something, she couldn’t let him think she was afraid of him.

She needed to act natural, even a bit affectionate. Then, on a sudden impulse, she blurted out, “Do you have any snacks in your office?”

Song Guanshu blinked, momentarily stunned, and slowly nodded.

“Give me some.”

Right after saying it, Jiang Ling regretted it. As Song Guanshu returned to his office, she stared at the coarse, white wall with an expression that said life had lost all meaning.

Song Guanshu came back holding a tin of malted milk, his voice carrying a hint of apology. “There’s only half a can left. I still have a full unopened one at home, I’ll bring it for you tomorrow.”

That malted milk had been specially bought a few days earlier when he went to visit the Jiang family. But later, after Jiang Ling was driven out by her father, she had angrily taken back all the gifts he had brought.

The canned goods purchased along with the malted milk had been given to her eldest sister, Jiang Lian, for her to take home to her daughter.

Song Guanshu wasn’t picky about food. He had a high salary and few expenses. If not for the sake of giving gifts, he would never have bought something like malted milk, which wasn’t a daily necessity.

He didn’t like the artificial taste of malted milk, so he brought it to the office to share with his colleagues. The staff in the Technical Section quite enjoyed the free malted milk.

Although they were all veteran workers with decent salaries, they had elderly parents to support and children to raise. Their wages were always tight, and no one would buy malted milk for no reason just to eat at home.

Even if they bought a can to improve their meals during the New Year, the majority of it would end up in the stomachs of the elderly and the kids.

As for them, the middle-aged ones who earned the most money, they had the worst food and clothing in the household.

Jiang Ling had already acted on a whim just now; there was no way she could ask him for another can of malted milk.

She quickly said, “No need. One can is enough to last a long time. You should keep it for yourself. You’re so thin. You need to eat more nutritious things to build up your strength.”

Jiang Ling was afraid that if she stayed any longer, she might do something she couldn’t take back. So she made the excuse that there was still work to do in her section and hurried off.

Clutching the tin of malted milk, Jiang Ling dashed through the office building and finally returned to the Accounting Section.

The radio had just been turned on in the office—there was a storytelling program in the afternoon—and a few of the older women had taken out their yarn. Seeing that only Jiang Ling had returned from running errands, they were a bit surprised.

And not only had she gone out to ask someone for help, but she had also come back carrying a tin of… malted milk?

Surely the Logistics Section hadn’t felt guilty about their poor performance and decided to give her a tin of malted milk as an apology gift?

Lu Jianjun, thinking he had a good relationship with Jiang Ling, was the first to speak up. “Xiao Jiang, you went to the Logistics Section with Deputy Section Chief Wei, how come only you came back? And where did that malted milk come from?” If going to logistics meant getting free malted milk, he definitely wanted to make a trip himself.

Jiang Ling placed the tin on the desk and opened it to check how much was left.

“This is from my partner.”