The 1960s: The Story of a Country Girl's Journey to the City

The exam was over, and Bao Ya walked out with the crowd. Everyone waited at the door for the results to be announced.

Bao Ya handed in a blank paper, so there's no need to check her grades. She's already getting ready to go home.

When she squeezed to the very edge, she heard Xu Shengmei's annoying voice again.

"What a fool of him! A peasant dreaming of becoming a worker."

They should take a piss and look at themselves in the mirror; they're born poor, yet they still dare to dream of a chance to turn their lives around.

Seeing Bao Ya about to leave, Xu Shengmei couldn't help but mock her again. The two girls next to her also watched her with schadenfreude.

Xu Shengmei thought that Lin Baoya didn't dare to do anything to her in front of so many people, but now she started being sarcastic again.

Bao Ya turned her head and saw Xu Shengmei looking at her sideways. She had almost forgotten about her. She hadn't settled the score with her yet, and now she was asking for a beating again.

If I get this job, I need to be mindful of my image and not act recklessly.

But now that I've gotten nothing, I can't just keep holding back my anger.

Thinking about it, he walked towards Xu Shengmei.

Xu Shengmei, who had been mocking her with her chin held high, suddenly shrank back a little when she saw Lin Baoya walking towards her.

Back in school, she always disliked Lin Baoya. She had a seductive face and caused trouble everywhere, yet all the boys liked her.

If she dared to say anything bad about Lin Baoya, she would become the public enemy of all the boys in the class and even the whole school, which made her feel very frustrated.

Normally, I would only dare to glare at her secretly, not daring to come closer and cause trouble. But today, I don't know what's wrong with her; it seems like the change of environment has altered Lin Baoya's temperament.

"Xu Shengmei, do you dare repeat what you just said?"

Looking at this ordinary face, Bao Ya couldn't recall any past grievances between them. Had this guy taken the wrong medicine?

"I'm telling the truth. What right do you, a peasant, have to take the exam? What are you so arrogant about? Go back to your hometown."

Xu Shengmei was a little scared, but she still forced herself to speak. With so many people watching, she didn't believe Lin Baoya would dare to make a move here.

Not all the people present came from working-class families; some came from the countryside.

Regardless of the reason, upon hearing Xu Shengmei's words, they all frowned and silently distanced themselves from her. Although that movement hadn't yet begun, anyone with a brain knew that one shouldn't speak carelessly.

Xu Shengmei's family originally lived in the commune; her mother worked as a temporary worker in the commune canteen. Her father was a military officer who moved to the city with her after being demobilized last year.

When I was studying in the commune, I habitually looked down on classmates from poor families and often talked about them behind their backs. Despite this, I was never short of sycophants.

"Everyone heard it, she's trying to sow discord between workers and peasants. I'm here today to teach her a lesson."

As she spoke, Bao Ya rolled up her sleeves and was about to grab Xu Shengmei.

A girl next to Xu Shengmei, sensing the situation was not good, said somewhat nervously:

"What are you trying to do? Shengmei's father is the head of the security department at the steel plant. Don't you dare do anything reckless."

Seeing her say that, Bao Ya looked at her a few more times. Was she helping Xu Shengmei or setting her up? If Xu Shengmei's family made friends with this kind of person, they would be doomed sooner or later.

"Oh, so it's the leader's daughter who looks down on people. Then I should teach her a lesson, otherwise I'll think the leader looks down on us peasants."

After saying that, he stopped arguing with them, grabbed Xu Shengmei, and slapped her twice.

"You dare hit me? I'll fight you to the death..."

Xu Shengmei covered her face and looked at Bao Ya in disbelief. She never expected that Lin Bao Ya would actually do something like that in front of so many people.

She had never been treated like this before, and then, as if losing her mind, she rammed into Bao Ya.

Bao Ya dodged, missed her target, and fell flat on her face.

Before she could even get up, Bao Ya kicked her, flipping her over like a little turtle, then pounced on her, straddling her and raining down blows with her tiny fists. While hitting her, she said:

"Serves you right for being so foul-mouthed!"

Upon seeing this scene, everyone was so shocked that they couldn't speak, and all that could be heard was Xu Shengmei's wailing and howling.

"What are you doing? Pull them apart! Go and call the security guards!"

Someone must have gone to the factory to report the news, because the middle-aged man who had just presided over the exam came out and shouted at the two of them.

There was a fight at the exam site, and it was between two young women. I've never seen anything like it.

When she was pulled away, Xu Shengmei's face was swollen like a pig's head. She didn't care about her image anymore and wiped her snot and tears on her sleeve, which was disgusting to look at.

"What's going on with you two? Why are you fighting here? Come with us."

The security personnel arrived quickly and, seeing that they were two women, wanted to call them in to find out what was going on.

"I'm not going. I'm not from your cotton mill. Why should you interfere? If you want to know what's going on, you should go to the police station."

Bao Ya didn't want to go inside with them to find out what was going on. The factory's security department had a lot of power these days. They might just frame her and lock her up for a couple of days.

"You woman, not only did you assault someone at our factory gate, but you also refused to be disciplined. Do you believe I'll arrest you?"

The security team leader said in an unfriendly tone that he had never seen anyone like this before, especially a woman.

"If you dare touch me, I'll report you for indecent assault. Everyone, look! The textile factory's security department is committing indecent assault in public! Help!"

Bao Ya wouldn't listen to them. She just yelled at the top of her lungs, trying to scare people. Anyone can do that.

"Hey, don't talk nonsense, lady. Everyone was watching. We didn't touch you."

The leader quickly explained that he dared not use the word "hooliganism." The person in front of him was a woman, a beautiful young woman at that; if he said such a thing, he would never be able to clear his name.

Seeing that he no longer insisted on resolving the matter at the factory, Bao Ya grabbed Xu Shengmei's braid and pulled her closer to her. She then loudly announced to everyone:

"Everyone, look closely. The person next to me is Xu Shengmei. Her father is the director of the security department at the steel plant. I believe everyone heard what she just said."

She said someone like me, a peasant, was born poor and had no right to work in a textile factory. I'd like to ask, what kind of person can work in a factory? A capitalist's daughter?

I will absolutely not let the textile factory's security department handle this; I suspect they have connections with the steel factory's security department.

If someone hadn't caused a scene during today's exam, probably very few people present would have known about it.

It's entirely possible that the two factories are colluding behind the scenes. Today the textile factory admits the children of steel mill workers, tomorrow the steel mill admits the children of textile factory workers. We ordinary working people have absolutely no chance.

The moment the words were spoken, the scene erupted. Even the bystanders who had gathered to watch the spectacle joined in the discussion.

"What? A recruitment exam for a textile factory? I've never heard of that."

"Yes, my relative came to tell me this morning that the exam is this afternoon. Who gives out job exam notices on the same day?"

"You don't know, there was a commotion at the textile factory this morning."

The security personnel and the middle-aged man who was in charge of the exam panicked. Sure enough, Lin Baoya was right. Not only the textile factory and the steel factory, but several large factories in the city had this plan.