Chapter 245: The painful memories of childhood returned

"Xiao Xia, you're here?" Tao Daqiang's wife, Ma Chunhong, was the first to react, greeting her with a smile:

"Are you looking for Shufen? She's inside. Your bicycle is really nice... did you just buy it?"

"Yes." Gu Xiaoxia nodded, propped up her bike, and prepared to go inside to find Wu Shufen.

At this moment, the women also noticed that this bike wasn't propped up by lifting it, but by a small kickstand on the side of the rear wheel!

How convenient!

One sister-in-law couldn't help but ask:

"Xiao Xia, what kind of bike is this? It's so pretty. Did you buy it yourself?"

"Phoenix, a 26-inch women's bicycle," Gu Xiaoxia said with a smile. "It has a large chain guard. I've only been working for a few months, so I couldn't afford it. Li Long bought it for me."

Upon hearing that Li Long had bought the bicycle for Gu Xiaoxia, those who had previously spoken with jealousy about the Gu family not asking for a bride price all gaped in astonishment.

Ma Chunhong looked on with envy and asked again:

"This bike... it wasn't cheap, right?"

"Yes, it's a bit more expensive than the 28-inch bikes, 188 yuan." Gu Xiaoxia said nonchalantly, then walked into the house.

She didn't want to talk much with these people.

Wu Shufen was sitting in the room, watching Gu Xiaoxia enter, her gaze somewhat complex.

She had heard what the women outside said just now, and she had also heard Gu Xiaoxia's reply.

"Congratulations, you're getting married." Gu Xiaoxia placed a package on the table in front of Wu Shufen. "This is a gift I bought for you."

As she spoke, she opened the package and laid the items out on the table one by one.

Two bottles of hair oil, two exquisite combs, two bottles of face cream, a headscarf, a small women's wallet, and a red envelope.

There were five yuan in the red envelope, which was considered a large amount in this era.

Gu Xiaoxia wasn't married, so when she came to attend the wedding banquet tomorrow, the Gu family only needed to send one person—that is, Gu Bo Yuan—to give the gift money. Gu Xiaoxia couldn't give it herself, because doing so would imply they had separated households.

These odds and ends added up to about ten yuan.

Therefore, even though Wu Shufen's mood was complex, she was also somewhat surprised. She hadn't expected Gu Xiaoxia to buy so many things for her.

"You're getting married, and I didn't know what would be appropriate, so I just picked out a few things when I went to the department store yesterday," Gu Xiaoxia said. "I wish you an early son and a harmonious marriage for a hundred years."

She was offering sincere blessings.

"Um... thank you." Originally, Wu Shufen still held a grudge against Gu Xiaoxia, but now, looking at the other's sincere blessings, those things faded away.

"After you marry over there, will you be living in the township permanently?" Gu Xiaoxia saw Wu Shufen's expression was complex, so she changed the subject. On a joyous day, it wasn't appropriate to be overly sentimental.

"Yes." Wu Shufen remembered Gu Xiaoxia telling the women outside that Li Long had bought the bike, so she smiled and said:

"It might be troublesome for me to get to work later. It's five kilometers from the township to here, and walking takes an hour every day... Fortunately, the holiday is coming soon, so there's a buffer period. When school starts, I'll ask my man to buy me a bicycle too, even if it's second-hand, it'll be convenient for riding to work."

Gu Xiaoxia wanted to say something but stopped.

Wu Shufen didn't notice, but instead said excitedly:

"You have a dormitory at the middle school, right? When the holiday comes, I can just come find you to hang out. My man's family is over by the commune, not far from your school, just a few steps away. If you have anything come up, you can come find me. My father-in-law knows many people in the commune, so anything can definitely be resolved!"

Gu Xiaoxia hesitated, not knowing whether she should tell Wu Shufen about the document she had seen at the Education Bureau these past two days.

She had already moved to the large courtyard. After that day, Gu Xiaoxia was no longer afraid of living alone in the large courtyard. The next day, when she rode her bike to report to the Education Bureau, Deputy Director Wang was quite surprised to learn she had a place to stay in the county.

Overall, however, she was quite happy. The person she had borrowed was able to start working quickly without needing her help to resolve troubles, which was also a relief for her.

Therefore, Deputy Director Wang asked Gu Xiaoxia to enter her work state as soon as possible and found some documents for her to familiarize herself with recent work, one of which was a notice regarding the downsizing of village primary schools.

The notice required all village primary schools for grades one and two to be merged into the brigade primary school. Village primary school teachers needed to undergo an assessment to determine whether they would enter the brigade primary school—the inclusion ratio was three to one, meaning only one-third of the village primary school teachers would become official teachers at the brigade primary school.

This document had already been sent to all brigade schools yesterday; Wu Shufen should not know yet.

Based on Gu Xiaoxia's understanding, it would be very difficult for Wu Shufen to have the confidence to compete for a spot at the brigade primary school while at the village primary school.

Gu Xiaoxia had thought about telling Wu Shufen about this matter earlier, but for Wu Shufen, this was a major event, and knowing earlier would allow her to prepare sooner.

But Wu Shufen was getting married tomorrow, and Gu Xiaoxia didn't want to affect Wu Shufen's mood at this time.

Wu Shufen didn't know about Gu Xiaoxia's change of heart and was excitedly talking about this and that. Gu Xiaoxia quickly realized that she was indirectly or implicitly talking about her current partner, or rather, that her fiancé's conditions were much better than Li Long's.

Gu Xiaoxia felt that the tone was wrong as she listened.

Wu Shufen might have been doing it subconsciously, and she continued:

"My partner's work pay isn't much a month, less than 50 yuan, but their unit's benefits are quite good. They issue things during festivals and holidays. The gloves, socks, and laundry detergent at home have never been bought by us... My future father-in-law staying at the retail department is also not bad. Although it costs money to take things, it's much cheaper than buying them; he uses the cost price...

As for this, I'm not saying who is bad, but having a unit and not having a unit is different. Some people, although they earn more money, have no security. They might earn a lot today, but tomorrow they might be arrested. Just from what I've heard, quite a few have been arrested for speculation. It's still more secure to eat the public's rice..."

Gu Xiaoxia felt a bit irritated as she listened. She had originally wanted Wu Shufen to have a happy wedding, but hearing her become more and more explicit, Gu Xiaoxia interrupted her:

"Shufen, I have another important matter to tell you. This matter is very important to you: the county has issued a notice that village primary schools will no longer recruit for grades one and two next semester; they are being directly abolished. One-third of you village primary school teachers will be recruited into the brigade primary school, and the remaining two-thirds will be laid off. The selection method is an examination, so you'd better prepare first!"

"What?" Wu Shufen was somewhat displeased at being interrupted by Gu Xiaoxia, but upon hearing this, she stood up abruptly, her voice very loud:

"That's impossible!"

Her shout brought her mother in.

Wang Yuzhen saw Wu Shufen standing and Gu Xiaoxia sitting. Her daughter's expression was very strange, and thinking Gu Xiaoxia had annoyed her, she was just about to get angry when she saw the pile of things in front of the two.

These things hadn't been there before. She knew these things must have been brought by Gu Xiaoxia, and her expression changed, smiling as she said:

"What's wrong, what's wrong? Talk nicely, talk nicely. You are good friends, and you both have jobs now. It's not easy to meet once, so talk nicely. Later you'll both be in the township, and there will be plenty of time to get together..."

"Mom, you go out first." Wu Shufen said decisively at this moment, "Xiaoxia and I have important things to talk about."

"Fine, fine, you talk." Wang Yuzhen glanced at those things again and turned to walk out. She had estimated the value of that pile of things at a glance—this Gu Xiaoxia, she's quite wealthy.

"Is what you said true?" Wang Yuzhen left, and Wu Shufen asked in a low voice.

"It's true."

"How do you know?"

"I saw the document."

"You're in middle school, how did you see this document?"

"I was borrowed by the Education Bureau yesterday and saw it." Gu Xiaoxia simply said it out; she would know sooner or later anyway.

"Then can you..." Wu Shufen's eyes lit up, and she immediately asked.

"No." Gu Xiaoxia knew what the other wanted to say and replied decisively, "I just arrived at the Education Bureau, I can't intervene in this matter. I can't bury my own future. Besides, the selection method is by school examination. If you still want to stay, you'd better inquire about the situation at the brigade primary school as soon as possible; they should be the ones setting the questions."

Wu Shufen lowered her head and didn't speak.

She had originally thought that if she worked hard and found a suitable partner to go to the township, she would be "on equal footing" with Gu Xiaoxia.

And since her fiancé was eating the emperor's grain, wouldn't she be a head taller?

She just hadn't expected that not only were Gu Xiaoxia's living conditions better than hers, but now her work position had also moved to the city.

Just as she felt she had leveled out a bit and had a little superiority, the huge gap shattered that superiority once again!

In fact, she had said so much earlier because she was stimulated by Gu Xiaoxia's bicycle.

Wu Shufen had seen women's bicycles in the township too. She had actually tentatively hoped her fiancé would buy her one, but she was refused.

After all, no one's money comes from a strong wind. Having paid a 100-yuan bride price and needing to decorate the new house and hold the wedding, the Zhang family had no spare money. So, Wu Shufen's little competitive thought came out, which is why she said those things.

She just hadn't expected those words to directly bring out the things Gu Xiaoxia didn't want to say.

"Alright, I know your mood might be very complex right now, but this matter concerns your future. Didn't you say your father-in-law knows many people? Maybe he knows people at the brigade primary school, so you can look into it."

Gu Xiaoxia now somewhat regretted poking this matter out, but thinking of Wu Shufen's disparagement of Li Long in her words earlier, she still felt it was better to say it:

"By the way, Li Long has actually already started his job. He is a purchaser for the supply and marketing cooperative... he's not bad."

This was said very softly, and only the two of them could hear it. After speaking, Gu Xiaoxia stood up and turned to go out.

Li Long was her fiancé, and she wouldn't allow others to criticize Li Long groundlessly.

Even if it was Wu Shufen.

Li Long didn't know that Gu Xiaoxia had stood up for him in the village; at this moment, he was picking black tiger palm mushrooms in the mountains—only at this moment, he felt a kind of invincible loneliness.

Here, there were patches of moss, and from time to time, he could discover traces of mushrooms.

He could pick half a sack very quickly.

!.

There was no one to share it with!

Think about his previous life; whenever a place with mushrooms was discovered, within three days, there would be a large crowd of people here, walking, riding electric scooters, or driving cars.

The final result was digging three feet deep, with more people than mushrooms.

What about now? There are mushrooms all over the mountains, but no one to share them with!

Why is invincibility so lonely?

But that was just a joke; truthfully, he actually quite liked it this way. After all, there was no competition, and no one was grabbing them.

At this rate, in these half a month, he could dry a sack of dried goods.

He wouldn't lack dried mushrooms to eat in winter—none of the families would lack them.

Of course, he could also sell some.

Today, Li Long planned to take the fresh ones he had picked, ride his bike to the county town, and sell a portion to Zhong Guo Qiang.

One must be true to one's word.

He also had to cut some wild celery, wild onions, and the like, which would be given as a gift.

After picking this patch of mushrooms, Li Long shouldered the sack, reached out to stroke a stalk of wild strawberries, grabbed four or five wild strawberries, stuffed them into his mouth, and continued walking forward while chewing.

He must have grabbed an unripe one, so he suddenly felt a sour and astringent taste in his mouth. He hurriedly spat out the residue in his mouth, bent down to pick a red one, stuffed it into his mouth, chewed it to wash away the previous sourness, and then continued walking forward with satisfaction.

When the sack was full, Li Long tied the mouth and carried it back.

These mushrooms were relatively tough, not as brittle as morels or straw mushrooms, so carrying them like this didn't risk the mushrooms inside breaking.

After arriving at the wooden house, Li Long first sliced a portion of them and spread them on the wooden board at the door, then put the remaining large half-sack on the back seat of his bicycle and rode towards the county.

Arriving at the large meat canteen, Li Long parked his bike and went to find Zhong Guo Qiang.

The waiter also recognized Li Long and hurriedly went inside to call Zhong Guo Qiang out.

"Come, come, come, take a look at the good goods I brought." Li Long said with a smile, "Look, they were all just picked, especially fresh; I didn't even take the slightly older ones."

Picking mushrooms now is just that arrogant; he only picks the tender and good ones.

Zhong Guo Qiang smiled and casually took out a mushroom half the size of a palm from the sack, broke it to take a look, and praised:

"Yes, very fresh, not bad!"

"There are also some wild celery, wild onions, and other things underneath, I'll give them to you as a side dish." Li Long said, "Do you want them all, or just a portion? Should we weigh them in the back hall?"

"Of course I want them all." Zhong Guo Qiang said with a smile, "These mushrooms can last for two days; I'll definitely need to coordinate them for other units. They've also coordinated things for us, it's mutual."

"I understand, I understand, then the price..."

"Let's say 1.5 yuan." Zhong Guo Qiang said, "Actually, if they were to go to a big city, the price of these mushrooms could be even higher; these are rarer than meat. But in our small place, 1.5 yuan is already at the price of meat—it's not low."

"It's really not low, I'm satisfied." Li Long was truly satisfied; he had thought it would be 1 yuan, after all, in the minds of ordinary people in this era, mushrooms definitely couldn't compare to meat.

"Haha, as long as you're satisfied." Zhong Guo Qiang was also quite happy, and then went over to weigh them.

The net weight was 31 kilograms, totaling 46.5 yuan. Li Long collected the money, had dinner here, and then returned to the large courtyard.

Wu Shufen was getting married tomorrow, and Gu Xiaoxia had to go home to live to facilitate attending the wedding, so Li Long was alone.

But he was very satisfied. He had a large courtyard, a fiancée, money, and grain. Listening to the radio, he slowly drifted into a dream.

The next day, Li Long climbed up in the morning, had breakfast, and rode his bike into the mountains.

He was very leisurely because his tasks weren't many.

Wu Shufen was already dressed at home, waiting for her husband to come and pick her up.

Gu Xiaoxia was making breakfast for her father.

And the vast majority of the adults in the brigade had already carried sickles, brought a bundle of soaked reed waistbands, and worn straw hats, taking advantage of the morning coolness to head to the wheat fields.

It was time to start reaping the wheat.

Tao Daqiang was also in this line.

At this moment, he missed the days of catching fish with Li Long immensely—although it was hard work and he got up earlier than now, at least there was something to look forward to.

Setting the net the day before, taking the net the next day, picking the fish, and then gathering the net.

After everything was done, there were 5 yuan.

What about now? Burying his head in reaping wheat, reaping several mu of land a day, with less than one work point per mu.

One work point was 0.3 yuan—this was already two or three times higher than last year.

What can 0.3 yuan do?

Buy a meat bun at the large meat canteen.

Is it enough to eat?

It's really not enough!

Bundling wheat requires things; some places use straw ropes.

The brigade uses reed waistbands or grass waistbands.

The grass is mainly used for making large brooms this year, so they are using reed waistbands now.

That is, the dried reeds cut last winter, with the skin removed, the reed hair removed, and then the whole reed trodden into a flat shape and soaked in water for a day, so that it has toughness and won't break when bundling wheat.

Arriving at the assigned field head, start reaping. It must be reaped as quickly as possible, because once the sun comes out, the wheat that was originally wet with dew will quickly become dry, and the dazzling sunlight and the prickly wheat awns will make people collapse.

Everyone has their own future.

At this moment, Wu Shufen had already sat on the bicycle that was picking her up—this bicycle was borrowed by her husband.

And at this moment, Li Long had already picked the first black tiger palm mushroom of the day.

Tao Daqiang was stung by a hornet.

(End of chapter) ===== CHAPTER 246 =====