“Your in-laws didn’t say anything, did they?” Bai Lan sat in her family’s main room, listening to her mother speak in a low voice.
“No, they didn’t say a thing. They just kept telling Jianbei and me to eat more.”
It had been over half a month since Bai Lan’s kidnapping. During this time, things had been chaotic outside, with rumors flying everywhere. But Bai Lan had actually been living quite peacefully.
It wasn’t until after Xu Jiandong had been kicked out of the compound that Bai Lan and Xu Jianbei found a free weekend to return to the compound together.
Lunch was eaten at the Xu family home. As always, the elderly Xu couple warmly urged Bai Lan and Xu Jianbei to eat more meat. No one mentioned Xu Jiandong or Su Xiaomei at the table. It was as if the two of them had never existed.
Even the two children hadn’t been heard asking for their parents. It just went to show how utterly useless Xu Jiandong and Su Xiaomei were as parents—their own kids didn’t even miss them.
Bai Lan found it quite ridiculous when she heard about it.
“Mom, don’t worry. Jianbei and I haven’t done anything wrong. No one over there is going to say anything.”
Bai’s mother nodded repeatedly. “That’s good. I was just worried your in-laws might be holding a grudge.” Naturally, as a mother, she wanted her daughter to get along well with her husband’s parents.
“By the way, the second son of the Xu family is leaving soon, isn’t he?”
“Yes, probably in the next couple of days.” Xu Jianxi’s main purpose in coming to Beicheng had been to uncover a spy network hidden in the city.
Rumor had it that this network was closely connected to another one that Xu Jianxi and his team had uncovered in the south. That was why he had come to Beicheng specifically to “fish.” Of course, Xu Jianxi had been vague about these details—only Bai Lan and Xu Jianbei knew a little. On the surface, everyone just thought Xu Jianxi had come to Beicheng to purchase screws for his rural farm.
Anyway, Bai Lan was particularly curious about how Xu Jianxi, an ordinary young man sent to the countryside, had ended up working in counterintelligence.
Xu Jianbei was also sitting in the Bai family’s main room. Seeing Bai Lan furrow her brows as she spoke, he knew exactly what she was thinking about.
But he hadn’t pressed Second Brother for details either. Knowing too much about some things wasn’t good. Still, his parents were reluctant to see Second Brother return to the island.
Just as he was thinking this, Bai Lan’s father, who had been asking about Xu Jianbei’s recent work, suddenly said, “This whole affair has blown up. I heard quite a few people were arrested at the steel plant. Did they arrest anyone at your screw factory?”
Xu Jianbei shook his head. The screw factory hadn’t yet been targeted by the “pork bomb.” However, he had heard that the factory’s canteen purchasing agent had been reassigned—likely implicated with that pig farm.
In this sweeping counterintelligence operation, while some people were arrested, others took the opportunity to rise.
Take him, for instance. Although no one at the screw factory had been arrested, thanks to his performance in this matter, Xu Jianbei had been promoted to senior technician in the technical department.
And Cao Changsheng’s situation was even more dramatic. Quite a few people at the steel plant had been implicated by Xu Qiang—either arrested or demoted. The vacancies had allowed many innocent and capable people to cheer their own promotions.
So Xu Jianbei hadn’t seen much of Cao Changsheng lately. That guy was busy!
“Oh, I also heard that Factory Director Song was reprimanded by his superiors because of this.” Xu Jianbei had heard this news, and its credibility was high. Having a spy hidden among his employees—one who had corrupted many people in key positions—was something Factory Director Song, as the top leader, could not escape responsibility for.
Bai Lan had also heard Xu Jianbei mention this. Now that he brought it up again, she looked over at him.
As expected, she saw a trace of worry in Bai Lan’s father and mother’s eyes. That worry wasn’t for Factory Director Song, but for Bai Ping.
Yes, the same Bai Ping who had quietly married into the Song family some time ago.
Although the Qian family were hateful, Bai Ping had been raised by Bai Lan’s parents as their own child. No matter how hateful she was, deep down, they still cared about her.
Bai Lan didn’t find that strange. She didn’t say anything either. Seeing her mother prick up her ears to hear more about the Song family, she stood up and walked outside.
—
Before she even reached the yard, she saw a unfamiliar aunt being led into the compound by Aunt Qin from next door.
Bai Lan glanced at them but didn’t pay much attention. But then she heard the aunt muttering, “Your compound has quite a few unmarried young men and women.”
Aunt Qin smiled ingratiatingly. “Isn’t that the truth! The kids have grown up, and it’s time for them to start thinking about marriage. But the young people in our compound just aren’t in a hurry. We parents are the worried ones. That’s why we have no choice but to ask for your help.”
The two of them chatted as they entered Aunt Qin’s house. The next moment, Qin Yan walked out wearing an expression of utter despair.
Bai Lan felt a little like laughing but held it in. She walked over and asked, “Are they pressuring you again?”
Qin Yan sighed. “Yeah! Not just me, but my brother too.”
Hearing Qin Tang’s name, Bai Lan paused for a moment. Too many things had happened around her in the past two months. Plus, because of Gao Qingqing, Qin Tang had moved into the textile factory’s dormitory. Bai Lan hadn’t seen him in a long time.
“I haven’t seen your big brother around much lately.”
Qin Yan curled her lip. “He’s afraid to come home! Gao Qingqing seems to have changed—she stays home all day now. But my brother is still scared of her.”
There was no easy solution to this problem. They couldn’t kick Gao Qingqing out. And from the look of things, the Hu family wasn’t going to divorce her. In the end, it was the victim who was forced to stay away.
“I think our family and the Hu family are cursed!”
“At our recycling station, the names for permanent positions came out,” Qin Yan muttered quietly. “Just as expected, Hu Aihua got one.”
Bai Lan hadn’t heard about this. Before this, Widow Hu had been all over the alleyways bragging about how outstanding her daughter was and how she was sure to get a permanent position. She hadn’t expected it to actually happen.
“Aren’t the people with connections at your recycling station unhappy about that?”
Qin Yan grinned slyly. “Of course they’re not happy. The station has been quite lively lately. If it weren’t for Su Xiaomei’s incident, this would probably have spread all over the neighborhood by now.”
Seeing that Qin Yan still had the energy for gossip, Bai Lan could tell that although this girl wasn’t happy about not getting the permanent position, it hadn’t really affected her spirits.
After listening to a few stories about the recycling station, Bai Lan thought to herself that the politics at a small recycling station were even more complicated than those in the textile factory’s big cafeteria.
As Qin Yan chatted, she suddenly pulled Bai Lan aside and said, “I’ve seen Bai Ping lingering around the alleyways a few times lately. Do you think she’s…”
At the mention of Bai Ping, Bai Lan thought again about Factory Director Song being reprimanded. Could Bai Ping be coming back to ask the family for help? That didn’t seem likely.
Then, the next moment, Qin Yan said, “Anyway, she just paces back and forth along the alleyways. Once, she even came to the recycling station gate and started digging through the scrap stones.”
Hearing this, Bai Lan instantly understood.
So Bai Ping had come back looking for those few pieces of jadeite rough stones! Bai Lan had used Bai Ping’s notebook to get ahead of her and bring those stones back for free. They were still hidden under Bai Lan’s bed.
How long had it been? And Bai Ping was only coming to look for them now? What had she been doing all this time?
Just as they were talking, Da Tou came running into the compound. Bai Lan waved at him. He smiled and headed toward his own home.
Qin Yan said enviously, “I envy Da Tou. Sure, he’s a temporary worker too, but he’s a temporary locomotive driver! He gets to travel and earn extra money on the side. How great is that? Once he’s been driving for a while and gains experience, he might even get a permanent position. Not like me—I collect trash at the recycling station. I’ll probably be doing this for the rest of my life.”
Bai Lan rarely saw Qin Yan so downcast. She reached over and patted her on the shoulder. She wanted to say that in just a few years, once the markets opened up, even garbage collectors could become wealthy.
—
Da Tou, the object of Qin Yan’s envy, had barely made it home and hadn’t even had a chance to drink his water when his mother said, “The Qin family hired a matchmaker to find Qin Tang a wife. How about I go ask her too?”
Da Tou had just taken a sip of water when he heard this and immediately sprayed it out. He coughed a couple of times, then said, “Mom, no, no need. Our family’s situation is what it is. If I married a girl, wouldn’t I just be dragging her down?”
Da Tou knew his own limits. Sure, he had become a temporary driver, but as an apprentice, his wages were very low. He only made a little hard-earned money by secretly helping people buy things. His family had heavy burdens. Finding a good wife now would just be ruining her.
Ning Ma’s expression immediately fell.
Ning Ba, lying in the room, started shouting, “It’s all my fault—I’m the one dragging you mother and son down!”
“Dad, what are you saying!”
Da Tou was a filial son. Hearing his father say this, he immediately went in to comfort him. His father had never taken care of him or earned a single cent to support him. But he was still his father. Da Tou hated it most when his father felt sorry for himself, so he was usually quite indulgent with him.
“Cough, cough.” Ning Ba coughed twice and continued, “I’m useless. Not only can I, as your father, not earn any money, but I also need you, my son, to spend money on me every day.”
Ning Ma comforted him. “Our son is already grown. He’s at the age to earn money. Don’t say such discouraging things. Your appetite hasn’t been good these past couple of days. Son, why don’t you ask Jianbei if he still has any of those dried oysters? Your father loves those in his congee. Can you take some money and trade with Jianbei for some more?”
There was nothing wrong with that. Da Tou agreed immediately. His only worry was that the dried goods might already be finished.
—
So, while Bai Lan was comforting Qin Yan, she saw Da Tou coming over with money to buy dried oysters.
These were the goods Xu Jianxi had brought back before the Lunar New Year. He had carried back a whole sack of seafood. But it contained everything from dried seaweed to salted fish, so there weren’t many dried oysters. Now that summer was approaching, the dried oysters had long since been eaten.
“We really don’t have any left. I’m not sure about the other dried goods—maybe some dried seaweed. Do you want me to ask Jianbei to check with my mother-in-law?”
That was a bit troublesome. But Da Tou thought of his father’s gaunt figure and immediately nodded.
Bai Lan knew Da Tou was filial. She smiled and called Xu Jianbei out.
After she watched Xu Jianbei go inside to ask, Bai Lan turned to Da Tou. “How’s work treating you lately?”
Previously, Da Tou had secretly been helping with the braised meat transport business. But a young man leaving the house every day, never home, and making money—after a while, anyone with eyes would know he was engaging in speculative reselling. So Xu Jiannan had helped him get an apprentice spot at the transport company.
Occasionally, he’d go out on a run with an experienced driver. He could learn the trade and make a bit of money.
At the question about driving, Da Tou broke into a grin that showed all his white teeth.
Qin Yan was still wallowing in self-pity. Seeing this made her a bit uncomfortable, and she grumbled, “You really are lucky!”
Da Tou cheerfully wiped his head, sensing that Qin Yan was in a bad mood and not daring to provoke her.
Qin Yan had no such reservations and started venting to Da Tou about the frustrating things that had happened to her in the past few days.
Just then, Aunt Qin came back out of the house with the matchmaker. Seeing Bai Lan and the others standing in the yard chatting, Aunt Qin waved at Qin Yan.
Leave a Reply