Because he was delayed going to Qin Laoda's place, Song Yan only caught the last bus back to the commune, and it was already getting dark when he got off.

By this time, all the carriages from the various brigades had already returned home. There was no way to hitch a ride along the way.

There's only one hotel in the commune; let's make do there for the night!

Let's put these things into our spatial storage! They're too heavy. Song Yan wants to find a quiet place!

"Is that Wei Lao Er's wife?"

Song Yan turned around and saw that it was Mao Xuebin from Tugang Village. He was driving a horse-drawn carriage behind him, with two men sitting in it. Song Yan didn't say anything, but just looked back at him.

Song Yan carried a bag on his back and a large bag in his hand. He looked like he had just returned from a trip. "You just got back? At this hour, all the other caravans' carriages have already gone home. Take my carriage! I'll turn a corner and take you back."

As soon as Mao Xuebin called out "Wei Lao Er's wife," the two men in the carriage knew who Song Yan was. After all, it was Wei Aiguo who had given Mao Xuebin a good beating back then, and Tugang Village hadn't gotten any advantage. With three grown men in the carriage, would Wei Lao Er's wife dare to get on?

Thinking about how happy the family would be to see her return under the lights... "It's convenient for me to get a ride with you, but I'll have to trouble you to give me a ride for part of the way."

“The villages are close together, it’s not far. Get in the carriage!” Mao Xuebin pulled on the reins, and the carriage stopped.

The other two people on the bus stared wide-eyed; this woman really dared to get on the bus!

Mao Xuebin jumped out of the car and helped Song Yan put her bag in. "Your bag is quite heavy."

"These are the books I bought." Song Yan climbed onto the carriage.

"You're a cultured person after all. Other people have to buy food and clothes when they go out, but you buy so many books."

The carriage clattered along.

The people on the bus glanced at Mao Xuebin, then at Song Yan, staring back and forth. Song Yan ignored them. Mao Xuebin couldn't take it anymore and turned around to glare at them fiercely.

The people on the bus quickly lowered their heads. They stopped looking, but their minds were filled with unease. What was Mao Xuebin up to? He'd been dealt with by Wei Lao Er, was he trying to seduce his wife while he was away? And this young woman had gotten on the bus without any fear. Did she not know who Mao Xuebin was? Or was she just incredibly reckless?

Mao Xuebin spoke casually to Song Yan. "Your village secretary is quite the troublemaker."

“Secretary?” Qingshan Brigade didn’t have a secretary before.

"It happened in the last few days. You were out and didn't know. It's someone from the Cheng family in Qingshan Brigade. He's Cheng Yi's uncle. He used to be the deputy captain of the brigade, but he was dismissed for drinking and assaulting someone." Mao Xuebin said to himself, not expecting Song Yan to respond.

Mao Xuebin specifically mentioned Cheng Yi, indicating that he was aware of the conflict between Wei Aiguo and Cheng Yi.

"Now Secretary Cheng is mainly in charge of your brigade's scriptwriting team."

"Shouldn't the brigade leader be in charge of production? The Party Secretary should be primarily responsible for ideological education, that's how it is in other brigades. What does Mao Xuebin mean by that?"

"Yes, that's how it is in other brigades, isn't it the same in yours? Your weaving group is the envy of those other brigades. It's a pity that some people in the village know how to weave, but there's no more cattail or corn husks. Do you believe that next year every village will be able to set up a weaving group?" Mao Xuebin rambled on.

“As long as you have the materials, weaving isn’t difficult,” Song Yan replied.

“It’s not difficult for Song, the educated youth, to weave, but you have to have a brain to come up with something that looks good. You all stick together. If Secretary Cheng had any brains, he wouldn’t be bullying the educated youth.” Mao Xuebin leisurely swung the whip in his hand.

"You've heard quite a lot. What do you want to tell me?" No wonder Mao Xuebin gave him a gift; he had an ulterior motive.

"Aren't all the brigades in the vicinity connected by relatives? News travels fast. Secretary Cheng assigned Li, the educated youth, as a deputy group leader, saying he'd help oversee the production of the organizational group. The day before yesterday, someone saw him go to see the director of the supply and marketing cooperative, carrying quite a few things."

"Your weaving group has added quite a few people, all of whom were unwanted by the previous group... You'll find out about those things when you get back. I think Secretary Cheng wants to keep a tight grip on your weaving group. That's why all the educated youth will be kicked out of the weaving group."