The Lin family’s life was truly in complete disarray.
How could this not be considered karma?
On her way home, Song Wei hummed cheerfully.
“Song Zhiqing, is Song Zhiqing home?”
Just as the family had finished dinner, a familiar voice called from outside.
“Gao Zhiqing, Zhao Zhiqing, what brings you here?”
“We came to say goodbye.”
Two young men, recently tanned from the sun, grinned widely, their eyes brimming with visible excitement.
“You’re going back?!”
They nodded. “Yes, policies have relaxed a bit now. Although educated youth still can’t return to the cities officially, our families managed to pull some strings to get us back.”
They shoved the items they were holding into Song Wei and Lin Zhen’s hands.
“Please take these. You’ve both helped us so much since we became educated youth here. These are tokens of our gratitude.”
“Also, we have a favor to ask. Do you still have any dried game meat at home?”
As a matter of fact, they did.
They often preserved excess pheasants, rabbits, and other game by drying them into jerky.
“Yes, we do.”
Gao Le and Zhao Su’s eyes lit up.
“We’d like to buy some dried game meat, and dried mushrooms too, if you have any. Since we’re going back, who knows if we’ll ever get to taste these again? We want to bring some back for our families to try.”
Lin Zhen replied, “Sure, wait a moment.”
Lin Zhen fetched two dried pheasants, two rabbits, and two fish—six pieces of dried game in total.
“Will these do?”
“Yes, yes, absolutely! Your family’s dried jerky is the best. Even the dried fish is incredibly tasty.”
“How many mushrooms would you like?”
“About two or three jin.”
“How much? Do you need ration coupons?”
“Twenty yuan in total. Some grain coupons or similar will do.”
The two paid promptly without hesitation.
Song Wei went back inside and returned with two cans of tea, handing them over.
“A parting gift. It’s tea we made ourselves.”
Gao Le and Zhao Su didn’t refuse. Holding the tea cans, their eyes reddened slightly.
“We always complained about how tough life here was, always dreaming of going back. But now that we’re really leaving, it’s surprisingly hard to say goodbye.”
When they first arrived, they had struggled immensely, but over time, they grew accustomed to life here.
They still couldn’t earn many work points, but both had grown leaner and darker.
It wasn’t the gauntness of hunger but rather a firm, healthy leanness, and they felt much stronger.
Carrying their bundles, they smiled at Song Wei and Lin Zhen. “We still need to deliver gifts to the brigade leader’s family. Goodbye! We’re leaving tomorrow. We wish you both a smooth-sailing life together and a happy marriage till old age.”
Song Wei smiled. “Thank you. Goodbye.”
Few people knew about Gao Le and Zhao Su’s departure. They hadn’t spread the word, not wanting to cause any unnecessary trouble.
It wasn’t until the next day, when a car pulled into Ping’an Production Brigade, that everyone was stirred by the news.
Song Wei and Lin Zhen brought their two children to join the crowd and see the excitement.
A car had actually come to their small rural village, and everyone rushed to see it.
This wasn’t the first time a car had arrived in Ping’an Production Brigade—officials had come before to inspect the vegetable greenhouses, and a car had accompanied them then.
But such a sight was still a novelty, and no one ever grew tired of seeing it.
“How impressive! Which official has come to our brigade this time?”
Everyone buzzed with excitement as they discussed.
“Make way, make way, everyone, please make way…”
Gao Le and Zhao Su squeezed their way through the crowd.
“Gao Zhiqing, Zhao Zhiqing, what are you…”
The crowd watched as the two carried large and small bundles, loading them all into the car.
Everyone: !!!
“Gao Zhiqing, Zhao Zhiqing, is this car yours?!”
They knew these two had money, but they never imagined they were this wealthy.
Their families actually owned a car—a real car!
Even the local officials here couldn’t afford to ride in one.
The driver helped them pack their belongings.
Gao Le and Zhao Su smiled at everyone.
“Yes, it’s from our families. Folks, we’re heading back today. We’ll come visit when we have time. Goodbye!”
With that, they climbed into the car. “Farewell!”
It took a while for the crowd to process what had happened after the car drove away.
“They’re gone? What… what does this mean?”
The brigade leader explained, “It means they’ve returned to the city.”
“The higher-ups asked me to issue them permits. Their families have connections and managed to get them back.”
Now everyone was electrified.
“They really went back? Educated youth can actually return to the city?”
“And they came in a car! Good heavens, what kind of families do they have?”
“I always thought these two young men were different. They were the plumpest when they first arrived—their families must be well-off.”
“Why didn’t they take a liking to my daughter? She’s the belle of the surrounding villages, so pretty!”
The greed in those words was practically palpable.
“What wishful thinking! ‘Belle of the villages’—that’s a title you made up yourselves. Have some shame! My daughter is prettier than yours!”
“What’s the use of arguing? They’re already gone, and they won’t be back.”
Many felt regret. These were golden bachelor catches—if their daughters had caught the eyes of either, they could have become urban residents and married into wealthy families.
What a heartbreaking missed opportunity.
It felt like money and a better life had slipped right through their fingers, and they hadn’t managed to grasp it.
“What about the other educated youth? Are they leaving too?”
Many turned their attention to the remaining educated youth.
The ones under scrutiny, who had initially been envious of Gao Le and Zhao Su, suddenly froze.
“We… our families don’t have that kind of influence. We can’t go back.”
Liu Linlin and the others grew wary.
Though their families lacked connections, they had heard rumors about the college entrance exam being reinstated. They planned to use that as their ticket back to the city.
They couldn’t afford any complications at this critical juncture.
Quick-thinking, Liu Linlin immediately put on a pitiful expression.
“My family is poor. Even though we live in the city, all seven or eight of us are crammed into a house smaller than fifty square meters. The reason I came to the countryside was that my family heard there was more food here. They press me every month to send grain back home. My life is so hard—but they’re still my family. I can’t just ignore them.”
Hearing this, those who had been scheming quickly averted their eyes.
What kind of situation was this? A daughter-in-law who constantly sends resources back to her birth family was nothing but trouble.
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