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

Since things have already escalated to this point, let's make it even bigger. If things get out of hand, he won't be able to handle it. If he lets the factory security handle it, he won't even know how he died.

"Everyone, please be quiet and listen to me. It was wrong of me to hit someone today, but I really can't accept it when she points her finger at me and calls me a peasant and a poor wretch."

The great leader led us to liberation so that we would never again be oppressed by the privileged class, but their actions today have disappointed me greatly.

I can accept punishment from the public security authorities, but I absolutely do not accept punishment from the factory security department for engaging in privileged transactions.

Could someone please help me report this to the police station? I would be very grateful.

His words stirred the emotions of those present, and some righteous individuals stood up to speak out.

"Young comrade is right. We shouldn't bow down to criminal gangs. We all heard what she said. We'll all be your witnesses. Let's go to the police station together to report this. What do you all say?"

A man wearing glasses immediately responded and suggested to everyone that they go to the police station to report the case.

Those who were notified of the exam at the last minute today all knew there was something fishy about it, and some even felt that even if they did well, they might not be accepted. They were already dissatisfied with the textile factory.

It's becoming increasingly difficult for factories to recruit workers, and the government is encouraging educated youth to go to the countryside to support rural development. Sensitive people have already sensed some of these trends.

Moreover, nowadays families have many children, and if they don't have a job after graduation, they won't have any income, let alone housing allocation quotas, making it difficult to even start a family.

Lin Baoya only said she would go to the police station to resolve the issue, not that she was shirking responsibility, so everyone naturally supported her. Everyone unanimously agreed.

"Yes, go to the police station to report the case. Don't let the factory's security department handle it."

"Let's go to the police station!"

After she finished speaking, a large group of people surrounded Bao Ya, who was holding Xu Shengmei's braid in her hand, and dragged her towards the police station like a dog on a leash.

The crowd receded like a tide, leaving only a few people waiting at the entrance to see their results.

The people at the textile factory immediately sensed something was terribly wrong; if this escalated, the factory would definitely be implicated. The middle-aged man turned and ran towards the factory manager's office.

A group of people walking down the street attracted a lot of attention, causing passersby to stop and watch. Some curious people even followed them to see what was going on, and the crowd grew larger and larger, forming a huge procession.

Inside the police station, Chief Hou was leisurely sipping tea when he looked out the window and suddenly a large group of people appeared before him.

He thought he was seeing things, so he rubbed his eyes and looked outside again. There really was a large group of people, probably two or three hundred.

"Xiao Wang, Xiao Wang, assemble quickly! Grab your weapons and be on alert!"

My God, so many people! This is a mass incident; something terrible is about to happen.

Hou Longteng quickly called for people to prepare, lest they smash up their police station. He wondered whether he should notify the municipal bureau for reinforcements.

The police officers at the local police station noticed the situation outside and quickly prepared riot control weapons and put away all the important items.

Amidst the chaos, Tan Xinmin, hearing the commotion, also came out to see what was happening.

"Xiao Gao, go inside and keep watch by the phone. If things get bad, call the city bureau immediately for backup."

Tan Xinmin looked at the crowd moving in this direction and felt uncertain; this hadn't happened in many years.

Xu Shengmei did not struggle along the way. Even though she was beaten like this, she wanted to report it to the police.

"Officers, I've caught a bad element. Please lock her up!"

As soon as they entered, Bao Ya pushed Xu Shengmei to the front, her loud voice echoing throughout the entire service hall.

"Police officer..."

Then everyone started talking at once, recounting what had happened.

"Everyone, please be quiet. Let's take turns speaking, okay?"

When Hou Longteng saw Lin Baoya, his heart skipped a beat. Why was she here again?

Bao Ya felt frustrated when she saw Hou Longteng. She felt from the bottom of her heart that the leaders of this police station were incompetent and just tried to smooth things over.

However, she was unfamiliar with this area and hadn't even realized it was the police station she'd visited a few days ago.

Hou Longteng glanced at the others; a few were quite agitated, but most were craning their necks to listen. His anxiety finally subsided. He asked everyone to quiet down and then choose a representative to speak.

The same bespectacled man stepped forward on behalf of everyone and recounted the fight between Bao Ya and Xu Shengmei, emphasizing Xu Shengmei's words. He also mentioned his suspicions about insider trading at the steel mill and cotton mill.

This guy was a smooth talker. Everyone nodded in agreement, indicating that what he said was true.

By this time, Hou Longteng and Tan Xinmin understood that the main characters of the incident were Lin Baoya and Xu Shengmei, there were about twenty people who took the exam as witnesses, and the other two or three hundred people were just watching the show.

After understanding the situation, Hou Longteng breathed a sigh of relief; it was good that it wasn't a mass incident.

Xu Shengmei was taken to an interrogation room to give a statement.

They then ordered the two or three hundred people to be evacuated, and then took statements from the witnesses.

Bao Ya was led into the conference room by Zhou Yanhong, who poured her a glass of water, took her statement, and then told her to wait there.

Bao Ya immediately nodded in agreement. She had been startled when she turned around and saw so many people behind her.

All his attention was focused on Xu Shengmei, and he didn't notice that so many people were following behind him.

After an unknown amount of time, the lobby gradually quieted down. Bao Ya looked at her watch; it was almost five o'clock. Why hadn't anyone let her leave yet? Were they going to detain her?

Just then, Tan Xinmin and Hou Longteng walked in with a middle-aged man in his forties, followed by Li Qiang.

The middle-aged man was dressed in a pine-green security uniform. He stood tall and straight, with a stern face and his lips pressed into a thin line. He didn't reveal any emotion when he looked me over.

Bao Ya remained seated, guessing that the man was Xu Shengmei's father, but she only glanced at him contemptuously. How could he raise a daughter like that? He himself must be a terrible person.

"Please sit down."

Before anyone could speak, Bao Ya casually uttered two words.

Xu Jicong was slightly taken aback; he could clearly see the contempt in the girl's eyes.

She was about the same age as his daughter, but her composure surprised him.

Tan Xinmin and Hou Longteng were somewhat surprised by Lin Baoya's reaction, but not entirely. They braced themselves and went inside; another tough battle was about to begin.

Li Qiang frowned. He knew very well what kind of person Bao Ya was in the village, but now she was facing the leaders of the steel factory, and he was afraid he would suffer a loss today.

Thinking about it, he turned around and sat down next to Bao Ya. No matter what, she was his sister-in-law, and he should help her.

If Bao Ya knew what he was thinking, she would definitely tell him to get lost. It would be good enough if this person didn't drag her down.

"These two leaders brought Xu Shengmei's father without my consent. Are they determined to collude with them?"

Before they could speak, Bao Ya preemptively labeled them.

Whether it's punishment or reconciliation, one should first talk to oneself. Bringing Xu Shengmei's father over so casually is clearly against the rules.

"Comrade Xiaolin, we're old acquaintances, so we won't beat around the bush with you."

Look, this isn't a big deal. You hit someone, but they don't intend to pursue the matter. Why don't you apologize to them and let it go?

It's not good for a girl like you to have a criminal record, don't you think?

Hou Longteng forced himself to speak. They had just received a call from the textile factory leaders, asking them to suppress the matter no matter what. City leaders had also called the instructor, and even Xu Jicong had been warned.