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

"Yes, Comrade Xiao Lin, five hundred is indeed a bit too much. How about one hundred and fifty? Let's all be understanding."

Tan Xinmin tried to speak up; since there was room for negotiation, haggling wasn't out of the question. Didn't Li Qiang's family cut the price in half last time?

"Four hundred and fifty, that's the lowest I can go."

"Four hundred and fifty is still a bit too much, how about two hundred?"

"Forget it, let's not talk about it anymore. I'm going to stay in the detention center today, and nobody can try to stop me."

"No, no..."

In the end, the two parties agreed on a price of 350. Tan Xinmin also had a mediation agreement written in triplicate, which was then signed by both parties.

Bao Ya folded the signed mediation agreement and put it into her pocket.

Xu Jicong promised to gather the money and deliver it to the police station the next day, and then the group came out of the meeting room.

Xu Shengmei has been released, her face a mess of bruises, like a spilled palette. She's sitting in the front service hall, wiping away tears, accompanied by a middle-aged woman.

Upon seeing Bao Ya emerge, he rushed over like a madman, reaching out to grab her face while shouting:

"Lin Baoya, you bitch..."

Bao Ya took a step back, reached out and separated her hands, then made a fist with her right hand and punched her in the chin from bottom to top.

Xu Jicong tried to stop them, but he was at the back talking to Tan Xinmin and by the time he realized what was happening, it was too late.

With a muffled thud, Xu Shengmei fell backward. The woman behind her rushed over to help her, but both of them ended up falling to the ground.

It was already dark, and there was only one police officer on duty in the lobby. He didn't expect Xu Shengmei to be so crazy. She charged forward even after being hit, and ended up getting punched again.

"Wenxiu, you surpass Mei!"

When Xu Jicong saw the mother and daughter fall to the ground, he rushed over to help them up.

Seeing that her daughter had been wronged, Wang Wenxiu cursed her with foul language:

"You little bitch, how dare you hit my daughter? Do you even know who my man is?"

"Understood, you are a counter-revolutionary and a bad element who hates the country."

"That old woman's ferocious face is disgusting," Bao Ya said casually. "She deserves to be angry."

"You, you little bitch, I'll teach you to talk nonsense."

As she spoke, Sun Wenxiu's face contorted, and she stretched out her claws, about to lunge at her. Seeing that she was about to ruin things, Xu Jicong grabbed her and pulled her back.

"Shut up and stop making a fool of yourself."

Xu Jicong looked at Sun Wenxiu with disgust. This woman still didn't understand the situation and only caused trouble.

"Comrade Xiaolin, we have already agreed to compensation. Let's just let this matter go. It won't look good for anyone if we keep making a fuss."

"Compensation was for last time; it might not be the case next time."

Bao Ya said nonchalantly, "I can't expect you to take my compensation once and then support me for life."

"Bao Ya!"

The hall door opened, and Jiang Yuan rushed in from outside. He was almost going crazy looking for a wife.

When I got off work and my wife hadn't come home, I went to look for her at the back gate of the textile factory, but there was no one there anymore.

Then they searched along the way back, but still no one was there.

After going back and forth twice without finding anyone, I started to panic. I went back and asked a few of my close friends to help me look for him.

Later, I heard that there had been a fight at the textile factory that afternoon, and that the incident had taken place at the police station, so I came over to try my luck.

As soon as he opened the door, he saw that old woman about to hit his wife. He yelled and rushed over.

"Bao Ya, what happened?"

"They bullied me."

Without even thinking, Bao Ya pointed at the family of three and blurted it out. Damn it, she'd been too easygoing just now.

Xu Jicong stopped Sun Wenxiu and came over to explain to Bao Ya, but before he could even take two steps forward and open his mouth, Jiang Yuan swung his fist at him.

"Damn it, you dare to bully my wife? I'll beat you to death!"

"Hey, stop fighting, separate them quickly."

Everything happened too fast. Before Hou Longteng and Tan Xinmin could even try to stop him, Jiang Yuan had already made his move.

"Quickly separate them..."

Jiang Yuan grabbed Xu Jicong by the collar and rained down punches on him. Hou Longteng and Tan Xinmin, along with Li Qiang, tried to pull them apart.

However, Xu Jicong, who had been punched a few times, also got angry and started fighting with Jiang Yuan.

Whether it was due to his age or something else, after a few rounds, Xu Jicong was at a disadvantage and was unilaterally beaten by Jiang Yuan.

The others seized the opportunity and pulled the two apart.

"Jiang Yuan, stop fighting. We're all on the same side. This is your brother's comrade-in-arms."

Han Xinmin finally had a chance to speak, and quickly shouted. Seeing that the situation was under control, he then walked up to Xu Jicong and said:

"Old Xu, this is Jiang Yuan, Jiang Tao's younger brother. Look, the flood washed away the Dragon King Temple. It's all a misunderstanding, don't take it to heart."

Xu Jicong wiped the blood from the corner of his mouth with the back of his hand, frowned as he looked at Jiang Yuan, and exhaled a breath of stale air.

Tan Xinmin sighed as he looked at Jiang Yuan and Bao Ya. These two troublemakers were actually a couple; who knew how much trouble they would cause in the future?

Jiang Yuan glanced at him indifferently, then turned to check if his wife was injured.

"Jiang Yuan, this is your brother's comrade-in-arms..."

"Third Brother, let's go home, I'm hungry."

Before Tan Xinmin could finish speaking, Bao Ya interrupted, saying that after a whole afternoon of fussing, it was well past lunchtime and her stomach was rumbling. She was afraid she would faint from low blood sugar.

"Okay, let's go home."

After saying that, he straightened Bao Ya's scarf, and without waiting for Tan Xinmin to say anything, he pulled Bao Ya and walked outside.

"Instructor Tan, remember to tell them to prepare the money for me."

Bao Ya wouldn't be foolish enough to let Jiang Yuan build connections with them.

What if I talk to them about my comradeship with my brother-in-law whom I've never met, and in the process we end up losing all my compensation money?

Talking about their relationship will cost you money; it's not worth it.

Bao Ya sat on the back of the bicycle, one arm around Jiang Yuan's waist, the other hand in her pocket.

It had started to snow lightly outside, and the wheels of the car made a soft, rustling sound as they drove over the snow on the road.

"Bao Ya, I can support you even if you don't work, so don't rush to find a job."

Jiang Yuan pedaled his bicycle, tilted his head, and spoke to Bao Ya in a muffled voice.

"Okay, I won't look for a job anymore. I'll just wait for a job to come to me."

Bao Ya said carelessly, "The snowflakes feel cool on my face, but they bring a moment of clarity."

She wasn't that concerned about having a job. Since she didn't have to go to the countryside or work in the fields, she didn't think work was that important.

Everyone thought work was important, and she had nothing to do, so she had no choice but to follow the crowd.

The uproar caused by the fight is not over yet.

The news that various large factories were organizing internal exams to recruit only the children of their employees spread like wildfire, reaching every corner of the city.

Public opinion continued to ferment, and some people even began to organize petitions and write letters of complaint, accusing leaders of various large factories of manipulating recruitment matters behind the scenes.

Because the matter had become so serious, the municipal government had to convene a meeting with the leaders of various factories, demanding that they be more transparent in their recruitment practices and not give priority to the children of their own employees, especially the children of cadres.

In the following period, various factories began to recruit workers from the public, especially children of farmers; anyone who had received an education could take the exam.

Three days later, Bao Ya received her compensation. Jiang Yuan took her to the bank to open a savings account and deposited all the cash she had into it.

After this incident, Xu Jicong could no longer stay at the steel factory and volunteered to go to the Third Front to support construction. His whole family moved there with him.