Just as she arrived at the stone house, she heard arguing: "Zhao Tiezhu, you say you're here to work—are you actually after that tramp? You get home with me right now, or I swear I'm not through with you."
"Can you stop spreading rumors every single day? She's paying me to work, and tomorrow there's the ridgepole raising and a red envelope on top of that. What's it to you if she's divorced? How does that bother you?"
"I don't care. If you don't come home with me, I'm taking our son back to my mother's house. Zhao Tiezhu, you heartless bastard—I've borne you children and slaved for your family, and now you're out here carrying on with some divorced woman? How can you face me?"
The words grew uglier and uglier. Xiao Mandong pushed open the gate and saw Zhao Tiezhu with a face like stone, while his wife, Cai Shufen, sat on the ground throwing a fit.
Xiao Mandong didn't want to argue, so she spoke first: "You all go home and talk it over with your families. If they agree, come back to work. If not, find the brigade leader and settle up your wages from before. That's all."
"I don't need to discuss it. My wife is reasonable—she's not going to make a fuss."
"Me neither. We're working out in the open—what's there to discuss?"
"Right, same for me. My mother said a real man is one who earns money."
Wang Dazhuang said, "I'll head back for a bit. I just got married, and I don't want any unnecessary trouble—or to cause trouble for Educated Youth Xiao." With that, Wang Dazhuang sprinted off.
Cai Shufen, still sitting on the ground, scrambled to her feet, glanced at Xiao Mandong's attitude, and curled her lip. Zhao Tiezhu sighed: "I'm sorry, Educated Youth Xiao. I'll be heading back too." He turned and left without looking back.
About ten minutes later, Wang Dazhuang came running back: "My wife said I've got rocks in my head. Why even ask? If you're going to work, work—don't listen to village gossip. She told me to do a good job."
"Fine. Then you all work hard, and I won't shortchange you."
Because everyone still had to tend the fields, the progress wasn't fast, but at most it would take about three more days.
Jian Qiuyue and Fang Yuanyuan had gone to check the remaining rooms and decided to rent the one next to Xiao Mandong's—just a wall apart, easy to look out for each other. The two planned to go see the brigade leader about it shortly.
Just as they were about to leave, the brigade leader and Zhou Qichuan walked in. The brigade leader mentioned the matter of Zhao Tiezhu's wife coming to settle his wages earlier and told Xiao Mandong not to take it to heart.
Tomorrow's ridgepole raising was one man short, and Zhou Qichuan said he'd come help—without pay—as repayment for her saving his grandmother a few days earlier.
Xiao Mandong insisted on paying him. Money was the last thing she lacked, and besides, Zhou Qichuan had already helped plenty lately; that debt was long since paid off.
"Brigade leader, Fang Yuanyuan and I want to rent the place next to Xiao Mandong's. When can we sign the contract? And can the repairs be done soon?"
Jian Qiuyue had looked at Xiao Mandong's house and was already looking forward to having a home of her own.
"The place next to Educated Youth Xiao has already been taken. You'll have to pick another one."
"What? Who? How can that be?"
Zhou Qichuan gave an embarrassed little smile: "I just reserved it—bought it, actually, not rented."
He had split from his parents and moved out with his grandmother and little sister. After dividing the family property, he was eligible to buy a homestead plot in the village. Zhou Qichuan figured that since he was away from home most of the year, he couldn't rest easy leaving his grandmother and sister alone. Living near the educated youths meant someone could keep an eye on them.
So he'd bought a single room to count as his homestead. Strictly speaking, the plot was a bit small, which put him at a slight disadvantage, but since he was rarely home, as long as it was enough for his grandmother and sister, that was fine—a smaller place also stays warmer. Before he headed back to the army, he'd clear some extra private plot land behind the house.
Xiao Mandong hadn't expected to end up as Zhou Qichuan's neighbor, but it was actually nice—she wouldn't worry about her little sister being home alone when she went out.
Zhou Qichuan, however, reasoned that the matter he was investigating had yielded no leads, and Xiao Mandong was deeply suspect. He could have bought any house, but living closer made it easier to watch her every move.
"Uncle Brigade Leader, could you write me another permit? I want to buy some meat and pork fat to share with everyone. I don't feel like cooking, so I'll head to the state-run restaurant and get some dishes for the workers."
"Mandong, you don't need to be this generous. You're already paying their wages—no need to spend more on top of that. That money of yours looks like a lot, but it runs out quick. Who knows when you'll get back to the city, and when you do, you might need to buy yourself a job."
Xiao Mandong hadn't expected the brigade leader to speak so sincerely from the heart. She couldn't help but feel her eyes grow hot.
"Thank you, Uncle. I understand."
In truth, Xiao Mandong had far too many ration tickets, and they had expiration dates. She didn't dare sell them on the black market—Director Huang was too sharp, and who knew if he'd have someone lying in wait there? Better to spend them before they expired and win some goodwill.
Most important of all, ever since her rebirth, Xiao Mandong had grown a little superstitious. With so much unexpected windfall coming her way, she felt she ought to spend some of it to set her mind at ease.
Seeing her insist, the brigade leader didn't try to talk her out of it again and readily wrote the permit.
Xiao Mandong went to the village and bought thirty eggs, and the brigade leader's wife helped boil them into red-dyed eggs.
The next day, she headed to the supply and marketing cooperative bright and early. Cai Shufen's behavior the day before had left a bad taste in her mouth. So what if she was divorced? It wasn't like she wasn't paying them. If they didn't want to work, they could leave. There was no call for such vicious talk. Since that was how it was, she'd make Cai Shufen uncomfortable too.
For the six workers: two jin of pork each, one jin of pork fat, two jin of peach pastry, and two jin of egg cake each—thirty-five yuan and twenty-eight cents in total.
She also bought four jars of canned fruit, four boxes of Peony cigarettes, and six boxes of Daqianmen cigarettes, costing nine yuan and sixty cents. She bought a sheet of red paper, wrapped a Da Tuanjie note in each of several packets, bought five jin of fruit candy and five jin of White Rabbit candy for eleven yuan fifty, and picked up ten lunchboxes from the cooperative.
There was plenty of liquor left over from the last meal, so she'd share it around—leave it too long and the aroma would evaporate.
She went to the state-run restaurant and bought twenty big white steamed buns, two boxes of braised pork, two boxes of braised pork ribs, two servings of stewed old hen, two servings of braised beltfish, fried pork liver, and wood ear stir-fried with meat—six dishes in total. Worried it wouldn't be enough, she doubled up on the heavier dishes. On her way out, she bought four buns for Uncle Niu, who drove the ox cart.
Uncle Niu had never seen such a generous educated youth; his weathered face crinkled into a smile like the sole of an old shoe.
By the time the ox cart got home, it was time for the ridgepole raising.
Everyone not working in the fields had come to watch, because every ridgepole raising meant candy for the crowd and an exchange of lucky words.
Seeing Xiao Mandong endlessly hauling things into the yard, the villagers couldn't resist crowding forward to see what she'd bought.
"Golden beam atop the house, may the family flourish and grow—one lift brings gold, two lifts bring silver, three lifts bring fortune through the door, peace through all four seasons, and bounty in every harvest." As the foreman chanted the ridgepole-raising verses, the brigade leader's wife helped Xiao Mandong hand out candy and red-dyed eggs at the gate, and everyone who took some had to offer a blessing in return.
In the yard, a makeshift stove was set up and the dishes were warmed through. The crowd didn't stand on ceremony—they spread straw mats, sat on the ground, and clustered together, staring at such fine food they could hardly swallow their own tongues.
The villagers were green with envy. Everything came from the state-run restaurant, each dish better than the last. Wasn't she just the most generous soul around?
Of course, there were those who envied her, and just as surely, there were those who sneered. "This Educated Youth Xiao really doesn't know how to manage money. I was thinking of setting her up with someone—my nephew is quite good-looking, you know. But with her spending like this, I wouldn't dare to suggest it now."
"Fengqin, are you dreaming? She sold her job for more money than you could earn in a lifetime, and you think she'd settle for your nephew? Don't think just because she's divorced she's willing to make do with anyone. Look at her ex-husband—he begged and pleaded, and she still wouldn't take him back. So what makes you think your nephew is better looking than her previous husband?"
Ma Fengqin shut her mouth, feeling embarrassed.
