Chapter Thirty-One: Becoming the Workshop Foreman

Seeing Zhou Dalin blocking her way, Shu Yao's clenched heart finally eased a little. The man in front of her was clearly drunk, and drunkards are the most troublesome.

"Dad, let me take you home."

"You little brat, get the hell out of my way!"

This man was actually his father, and the man who had just been drunk was now enraged upon seeing him. While speaking, he slapped him across the face. The sound was so loud that Shu Yao felt pain just hearing it.

How could you hit someone?

“I’m his father, why can’t I hit him?”

Zhou Dalin didn't seem to care about being hit. Instead, he pulled Shu Yao aside and shook his head at her, signaling her to stop talking. Then he quickly dragged her to the side, out of his father's territory.

"Dad, I'll be going now. Please make yourself at home."

As he spoke, he pulled Shu Yao away, ignoring the man's curses behind them. He ignored the insults—the curses of "little bastard" and "go to hell"—and quickly led Shu Yao out of the alley.

Once they reached the main road outside, he released Shu Yao's sleeve. "Sister, hurry up and ride your bike, I'll take you home."

Shu Yao nodded, and after he got on the back seat, she rode off. The road was deserted, and she couldn't help but ask, "Does he drink often?"

He knew who this referred to and nodded immediately. "Yes. He's an alcoholic, everyone in the neighborhood knows that. He's usually fine, but you're a new face, so he might be a little curious."

That makes sense. If he were harassing women while drunk, he would have been arrested long ago. Shu Yao took a deep breath, feeling truly sorry for him. He only had one father to rely on, and yet he was an alcoholic.

He works at the ironworks, earning at least forty or fifty yuan a month. Could it be that his father has taken all that money for drinking, which is why he's so hungry?

They arrived at the textile factory gate quickly as they talked. Although they were late, they still had to come. She pointed to the factory building on the east side and told him.

“That’s our workshop. If you encounter any difficulties, you can come to me.”

"good."

She was three hours late. When her supervisor asked why she was late and absent from work the day before, she quickly explained that it was to save someone's life. "The doctor said it was severe malnutrition and prescribed nutritional supplements."

"So you're saying you were late because you were saving someone? Who can testify to that?"

“I ran into Meng Xi from the fourth textile workshop on the way. She saw me rescuing someone and said she was going to be late.”

During the break, the supervisor called Meng Xi over for questioning. In front of her, Meng Xi actually shook her head. "I don't know, I didn't see her. My husband was rushing to work, riding really fast, and didn't notice anything."

Shu Yao was immediately shocked, not expecting her to lie so blatantly. "Meng Xi, you can't confuse public and private matters. You clearly saw it, why are you saying you didn't?"

"I didn't see it in the first place," Meng Xi said matter-of-factly, showing no fear in front of her coworkers. "I was in a hurry to get to work, I didn't care about anything else. What does your lateness and absenteeism have to do with me?"

"I didn't say it's none of your business, I just asked you to tell the truth."

"I'm telling the truth, I didn't see anything."

Meng Xi didn't say she was lying, only that she didn't know. Whether I know or not, only I know. I'm unwilling to testify for you; what can you do about it? Absenteeism—on this record, Shu Yao, you can forget about promotions.

With no one to testify, Shu Yao was marked absent without leave, but she remained completely unfazed. "Meng Xi, you think you're so clever, don't you? With your attitude, once I find the person involved, what kind of good image do you think you'll have with the leadership?"

After the leader left, Shu Yao deliberately asked Meng Xi, "Why did you lie? You clearly saw it."

"What lie did I tell you? I don't know whether I saw it or not. I was in a hurry to get to work, I didn't see anything. Who knows what you were doing, skipping work and using saving someone as an excuse."

“Meng Xi,” she gritted her teeth in anger, “you’re a despicable person.”

"You cheated me out of so much money, what kind of good person are you?"

"You have to pay compensation because you did something wrong, but you punctured my tires and you still think you're in the right?"

Meng Xi was speechless with anger at her retort. Seeing the people around them watching, she instantly regretted starting the argument. The Sun family elders had said Shu Yao was gentle and generous, but look at how sharp-tongued she was—where was the gentleness?

I can't be bothered with you.

Meng Xi left, and Sister Xu came over and patted Shu Yao on the shoulder. "Don't pay any attention to her, she's not a good person. If she won't testify, so be it. Tomorrow, find the person you saved and have him come over to explain the situation."

"good."

The next day after work, she rode her bike away quickly, intending to go find Zhou Dalin first. She didn't know what shift he was on or if he was home, but she'd go check on him anyway. Losing her bonus didn't matter; what mattered to her was her reputation. She knew the workshop foreman was supposed to retire at the end of the year, and her work performance was exemplary; she couldn't let absenteeism affect her.

I was just thinking of going to see him after work this morning, and I had just changed my clothes when I saw a lot of noise at the entrance. It was him. He didn't have money to make a banner, so he used a red cloth to make a small banner with words of thanks written on it, and he was talking to his boss.

“I was malnourished and unconscious. If it weren’t for her, I might have starved or frozen to death. I am very grateful to her. She is my savior.”

Judging from his physique, the leader was already seven-tenths convinced. This man was too thin, thinner than a stick. How could someone become so thin? He was practically unrecognizable. His cheeks were sunken, his eyes were hollow, and his face was sallow and emaciated.

"The hospital has my medical records; you can check them." He pulled a slip of paper from his pocket. "These are the nutritional supplements the doctor prescribed. Take a look."

With this evidence, it perfectly proves that Shu Yao did indeed go to rescue someone last night, and was not absent from work without cause. It happened to be during rush hour, and her supervisor publicly praised her.

"Comrade Shuyao's act of bravery will be remembered by the factory. Here, on behalf of the factory, I would like to give her special commendation. Comrade Shuyao is a role model for all of us."

The applause from the crowd was thunderous, and Shu Yao was instantly in the limelight. Her gaze met Meng Xi's across from her, and she spoke silently.

Good and evil are rewarded accordingly; Heaven has eyes.

Meng Xi gritted her teeth. She had originally thought that this would be a blow to her, but after only one night, not only did it not have any effect, it made her stand out again.

The matter was resolved so quickly, and Shu Yao felt relieved. In her past life, because she had a large family to care for, and her two children were in poor health, she didn't work very hard. Sometimes when the children were sick, she had to take leave or even skip work. So, promotions were never hers, even though she was quite capable.

In this life, she hoped to move up in society. There were still more than a decade before the reform and opening up, and for those years she would have to make a living in the factory. A promotion would not only bring social status but also a higher salary.

She was praised by her boss, and after everyone left, she and Zhou Dalin left together. "What did you use to make the banner?"

"I found a piece of cloth at home."

What shift are you working today?

"Middle class".

"So you fainted on your way home from get off work yesterday?"

"Um."

Have you had breakfast?

Zhou Dalin nodded and smiled, saying he had already eaten. But as soon as he finished speaking, his stomach rumbled loudly. He was instantly embarrassed, his face turning as red as a bright red cloth.

"Let's go, I'll treat you to dinner."

“No, no,” he waved his hand, “I’ll just eat at home. Thank you so much for last night.”

"Walk."

Shu Yao forcefully pulled him into the canteen. She had money and food coupons, so she ordered two bowls of porridge and five multigrain steamed buns. A plate of pickled vegetables was free, but in limited quantities.

"Eat quickly."

Zhou Dalin lowered his head, trying hard to hold back his tears. Shu Yao didn't want to ask, but she was really worried about him.

"Does your dad drink often?"

"Yes." His voice choked up. "He's been like this ever since my mother died. He can't live without alcohol now, or he'll go crazy."

"Is your salary all in his hands?"

Zhou Dalin never talks about family matters with outsiders, but today he was defeated by her genuine concern and told her everything clearly.

His mother died in childbirth when he was born, and he was raised by his grandparents until he was three years old. After his grandparents passed away, he lived with his father, who accused him of causing his mother's death and constantly beat and verbally abused him. His father was an alcoholic and didn't work regularly, so the two of them often went hungry. After graduating from junior high school, he took his father's place at work, but his father would take all the wages.

"Keep some of it to yourself. Don't be foolish and let him bully you. Your mother's death has nothing to do with you, it wasn't your fault. Don't let him twist the facts and oppress you. You have to think about yourself. If your mother is watching from heaven, she would definitely want you to stand up for yourself and not be manipulated by your alcoholic father."

He suddenly looked up, his eyes glistening with tears. "Really? Mom won't blame me."

"Of course. What mother would blame her own child? Childbirth is inherently dangerous for women. Besides, you're just a child. You didn't do anything, so how can you be blamed?"

Tears streamed down Zhou Dalin's face as he wiped them away and quickly lowered his head to eat. He remembered his father constantly beating and scolding him, and at first, the neighbors would try to intervene. But his father would argue with the neighbors indiscriminately, and since no one wanted to provoke a drunkard, gradually no one intervened anymore.

People would say he was pitiful when he was beaten, but more often they would say: What can you do? He's your father. Your mother is gone, if you don't take care of him, who will? He started working in the factory to take over for his father when he was a teenager, but he only ever did his job and had to hand over all his wages as soon as he got paid.

This was the first time someone had advised him to think of himself. They taught him to hide money, told him that his mother's death had nothing to do with him, and that he didn't have to bear such a heavy burden.

There were two leftover steamed buns from breakfast, and Shu Yao packed them all up for him. As he rode his bike home alone, he was still lamenting how pitiful children without mothers are.

She took a nap at home in the morning, and after lunch she went to the restroom. As she came out of the women's restroom, she ran into Sun Yaozu, who seemed to have been waiting for her and wanted to say something to her.

"You really don't know who Zhou Dalin is?"

Shu Yao was completely bewildered, recalling Sun Yaozu's reaction last night. "He's just a pitiful person without a mother."

Sun Yaozu frowned, "Shu Yao, what's wrong with your brain?"

"Are you crazy? What exactly are you trying to say?"

"Fine. I don't want to say anything. If someone wants to die, then they deserve it."

That bastard Sun Yaozu actually left, thinking that Shu Yao would definitely come after him and dig deep into his past. He deliberately walked very slowly, wanting to regain his dignity in front of her.

However, Shu Yao didn't chase after him at all and went home on her own. He had been like this since last night, and she thought about it carefully, but she couldn't remember anything special about the name Zhou Dalin.

In her previous life, she was busy with work and going home every day because her two children were sickly and she had to take care of her parents-in-law and Sun Yaozu. She didn't pay much attention to the outside world.

Could Zhou Dalin be some kind of special person? Based on her understanding of Sun Yaozu, this guess was quite possible. But she didn't want to ask Sun Yaozu. That bastard wanted her to beg him, but she wouldn't do as he pleased.

Zhou Dalin, twenty years old, an ordinary worker at the ironworks, has only his father as a relative. Aside from his drunken father, he's no different from any other person; what problems could he possibly have?

Seeing her turn and go back to her house without hesitation, Sun Yaozu stomped his foot angrily. His wife was washing clothes in the yard; she called for his help when she saw him come in.

He usually shirks his responsibilities and declines, but today he went to help with the drying. "Stay away from Shu Yao from now on. She's asking for trouble; don't drag her down with you."

"Why did she have to die?" I told him the story of how Shu Yao saved people after I got home from get off work, and he's still frowning.

"Don't ask so many questions, just stay away from her."

"I can't be bothered with her. She puts on this compassionate act all day, like she's Guanyin. She's so skinny she's barely recognizable. Once I get involved with her, I'll see how she gets rid of me."

"Subsidizing grain is a minor matter."

"What could be so important?" Meng Xi asked curiously, as if he knew something.

"Just you wait and see, Shu Yao is asking for it, she deserves it."

Shu Yao, separated by only a wall, thought about it carefully, but found nothing. Ask Sun Yaozu? No, she wouldn't. She was upright and honest; she had nothing to fear.

She slept again in the afternoon, and when she woke up again it was completely dark. Su Xiangdong was away on a business trip, so she and her third aunt ate dinner with the children. Snow began to fall, and the temperature dropped very low.

Her aunt tidied up the kitchen and brought in hot water for her. "It's cold outside, remember to wear a hat and scarf when you go to work tonight."

"Okay." She works the night shift, and since Su Xiangdong isn't here, her third aunt is here to take care of the children. The two little ones already understand a lot of words, and when they heard their grandmother say that, they both leaned out the window to look outside.

"Mother,"

"Mother,"

Unaware of what was happening outside, the two were quite surprised. Shu Yao went over and put her arms around one of them, saying, "It's snowing, and the white stuff is snowflakes."

"snow."

"Snow."

"dad,"

Where is Dad?

"Daddy is away on a business trip and will be back in a few days. Be good, you two, and Daddy will praise you when he gets back. Xuxu, be good, and Yiyi, be good too."

The two little ones nodded obediently, and Auntie chuckled on the ground. "These two are really close to their father. Xiangdong is also patient and good to the children. I've raised several children, but that old man never took care of any of them, and the children's relationship with him is distant."

"Is he alright now?"

"At the eldest son's house," Auntie San sighed. "What's the big deal? As long as I don't starve, that's fine. He wants me to go home quickly, but I'm not going. If I go home, he'll scold me for being a freeloader, and I don't want to serve him."

Shu Yao didn't comment on this; of course, she hoped her third aunt could help take care of the children. But it was up to her third aunt's own willingness. Many women are oppressed their whole lives, yet they are trained not to resist. Fortunately, her third aunt wasn't like that, but it was still up to her to decide.

The two children go to sleep obediently before 10 p.m. and now they hardly wake up at night. Auntie only needs to stay with them just in case.

Did you come crying and looking for me yesterday?

"I woke up at seven in the morning. I told my mother that she would be back soon. We both held our mouths and didn't cry."

Looking at her child's peaceful sleeping face, her mother's heart softened. In this life, they were so much easier to raise, unlike in her previous life when they were always crying and fussing. Back then, they didn't get enough to eat, and the child was naturally thin and weak; when he was sick or uncomfortable, he would fuss. Grandma Sun always complained to her about how tiring it was to take care of the children.

Work keeps me constantly busy, and at home I have elderly parents and young children to care for. My mother-in-law always complains about how difficult it is to raise the children and how tiring it is to help her. That feeling of constantly owing her something is really exhausting, and I've gradually become so tired that I don't even want to talk anymore.

By the time she went out, a lot of snow had fallen. Her aunt saw her off, saying, "Be careful when you ride your bike. Push it over any rough spots."

"knew."

Watching her ride away on her bike, and then Sun Yaozu and his wife from next door, Auntie San muttered to herself, "Xiang Dong should be back soon. He should come back quickly."

Shu Yao isn't actually that fragile; she's just cycling to work, which is perfectly normal. Cycling alone in the snow is actually quite easy, but it's much harder with someone on the back.

"ah,"

A sharp female voice called out from ahead; it must have been Meng Xi. The two people who had been riding ahead of her had just fallen, accompanied by the sound of their bikes crashing. She rode over and saw that they had indeed fallen.

Meng Xi was thrown aside, and Sun Yaozu, grimacing, went to push the cart first. Meng Xi turned around and yelled at him, "You bastard, you actually helped the cart first and didn't even help me!"

"Get up right now, stop throwing a tantrum. You're making a fool of yourself."

"You think I'm embarrassing?" Meng Xi was furious, grabbing Xue and throwing her at him. "You only care about your own pride. I've been thrown around... ugh!"

Meng Xi clutched her stomach, her face as white as paper. Sun Yaozu, looking impatient, glanced down at the bicycle. These days, the old-fashioned bicycles were quite durable; even a fall wouldn't cause any problems.

“I already told you I only had a bowl of porridge for dinner and I’m starving. I’m taking you to work on an empty stomach in this cold, snowy weather. It’s so hard to walk, and I fell and hurt myself terribly. Get up quickly, don’t throw a tantrum.”

Sun Yaozu was furious. The past year or so had been the most unlucky time of his life. He and Meng Xi had a wonderful relationship in their past life, so why had things turned out like this after they were together and married? She had changed; she was no longer the gentle girl he remembered. Just as Jia Baoyu had said, women become like fish eyes after marriage.

"My stomach hurts so much, I..."

"Don't pretend..." He suddenly stopped speaking; there was bright red blood beneath her in the snow. She was immediately too frightened to speak or complain anymore.

He helped Meng Xi into the car, saying they were going to the hospital. Shu Yao walked past them to her workplace. During her break, her supervisor mentioned Meng Xi's absence without leave, and she explained the situation.

"I'm bleeding from my lower body, and I don't know what's wrong."

"Oh, I see. Shuyao, are you two neighbors?"

"Yes, we live right next door. We see each other almost every day on our way to and from get off work."

The leader knew perfectly well what was going on; he didn't say anything, but he understood everything. He nodded at her with warm eyes, knowing she was of good character. Meng Xi hadn't testified for her before, but now she had put aside past grievances and acted selflessly. High moral character might not be valuable in later generations, but in this era, it was a very important standard for judging a person.

Meng Xi miscarried. She had planned to tell them she was pregnant next week. She never expected to fall like that. Fortunately, the doctor said it was early pregnancy, without a specific timeframe. She had been back at her in-laws' house for a while, so the matter was somewhat smoothed over.

"Don't be sad, maybe it's just not meant to be with us," Sun Yaozu comforted her. Their daughter wouldn't be born for over a year; this child's connection with them was too shallow.

"My child,"

She miscarried and took two weeks off from work. Meng Xi stayed home to recuperate and did nothing, but after a few days, another argument broke out in the Sun family.

Shu Yao watched her child playing outside when she heard a commotion next door. Sun's mother was complaining that her daughter-in-law was useless, unable to even protect her child. Meng Xi retorted, arguing back. The two women argued fiercely, while the two men disappeared, remaining silent.

"dad,"

"dad,"

Hearing her child call, she turned around and saw Su Xiangdong had returned. Her husband was finally home from his business trip, and she happily went to greet him.

"How did your business trip go?"

"Not bad." He squatted down and picked up the two children, one on the left and one on the right. "Good babies, you actually remember Daddy. So smart, you are really Daddy's good babies."

"Giggle," the daughter laughed happily, while the son hid from his father's stubble-covered face. Shu Yao went to fetch water for him to wash up and took out all the clothes he had brought back to soak in water.

"Honey, you don't need to worry about it. I'll wash up after I'm done."

"Let me wash it for you."

"No need. Winter clothes are thick, you can't wash them."

Shu Yao felt a mix of laughter and tears. So this is what it means for a man to be good to you: he assumes you can't do anything, and he has to do it all himself.

He tidied himself up and spent half an hour washing the clothes. Since there was no spin dryer, Shu Yao helped him wring them out. He was really strong; she only needed to hold on tight, and he could wring the clothes until they were barely dripping wet.

In her past life, she did all these chores, and she was the one who exerted the most effort when wringing out the water. In this life, he pampers her like a child, even worrying that she might strain herself when wringing out water, and repeatedly tells her not to move.

My husband came home, and the house immediately became lively. The two kids kept calling "Daddy, Daddy!" and played with him until ten o'clock before going to sleep. He brought the potty back, so she didn't have to go out anymore.

"Time to go to the early shift, right?"

"Um."

"Did anything happen to you while I was away, working the night shift?"

"No." The security situation is still very good. "I encountered a man who fainted due to malnutrition, and I took him to the hospital."

He sighed, "The food problem is serious."

"His family is like this..." After explaining Zhou Dalin's family situation, "No ordinary family would be like that, but his father is really..."

The couple, who hadn't seen each other for some time, chatted casually, sharing their lives. There was no particular focus, just everyday routines. Such was the atmosphere between them, incredibly harmonious. They were willing to talk about their lives and listen to each other's, their ordinary days filled with warmth and happiness. A shared joy became twofold, a shared worry became half-shaved.

At night, her husband's body temperature was even better than a hot water bottle. She slept soundly all night, and the next day they went to work separately. He walked her all the way to the factory gate before turning back to go to his own workplace.

Shu Yao was in a great mood, singing as she walked home carrying her handbag. Her husband's return already made her happy, but then she heard even more exciting news at work.

"Comrade Shuyao, you have been promoted to workshop director of the third dyeing and printing workshop. The old director will retire next month, and you will officially take over."

Shu Yao became the workshop director, and for several days in a row, people she met, both familiar and unfamiliar, congratulated her. In the evening, her third aunt cooked a delicious meal, and the whole family celebrated happily.

I haven't had meat in a long time, so I bought eight ounces to make dumplings today. The cold vegetable salad tasted great; my aunt's cooking is excellent. The wine in the glass is hawthorn wine, sweet with a hint of sourness.

“Come on,” he said, making formula for the two children and showing them how to raise their glasses. “We congratulate Mom on her promotion.”

"Congratulations,"

"Congratulations,"

The room was filled with the sounds of adults, children, and laughter. He'd been promoted, his salary had increased, and things looked good on the surface. He'd gained both face and substance.