Chapter 113

The fifth brother was arrested so suddenly that both mother and daughter were a little panicked.

After entrusting the child to his fourth sister-in-law, Ye Manzhi hurried to the district public security bureau with Chang Yue'e.

The district police station's office was bustling with noise, and those blocking the door were all family members who had come to rescue someone.

Seeing the scene before her, Chang Yue'e said with some concern, "It seems the police have really been cracking down on speculation and profiteering, and they've rounded up your brother along with these people."

She wanted to go up to the police to ask about the situation, but Ye Manzhi stopped her.

"With so many people in line, it'll take a while. Let's see what the others are like first."

They listened for a while from behind and found out that most of these people were arrested in the Hongqi Market.

Some were involved in reselling grain, others in reselling homespun cloth and cooking oil, and still others were involved in smuggling woven gloves and copper materials, which the government prohibited private export of.

There are all kinds of things being resold.

But Ye Manzhi felt that his fifth brother was different from these people.

Fifth Brother has a fixed stall at the Anti-Imperialist Fair. In the past two years, he has cultivated a group of repeat customers, so he sells all the things he collects from the countryside at the Anti-Imperialist Fair and rarely goes to other free markets.

Moreover, her fifth brother had a letter of introduction from the commune, so he could openly help the members sell small local products, which was fundamentally different from those who engaged in sneaky speculation.

She knew what was going on, so she went up to the young police officer in charge of registration and negotiated with him, saying that they were Ye Manlin's family members.

The young police officer flipped through the notebook and muttered to the old police officer next to him, "Didn't Ye Manlin's family come here?"

The old policeman put down his teacup, coughed lightly, and said, "I don't remember anything. Can you see if there are any records?"

There is no record in the notebook.

The young policeman patted his forehead, looked at Ye Manzhi's student ID and letter of introduction, and then explained the situation to them.

"Ye Manlin was reselling Category 1 and Category 3 materials on the free market, and the amounts involved were enormous. This constitutes speculation and profiteering, and he was caught in the act by our police."

Ye Manzhi quickly explained, "Comrade, my brother was just selling small local products on behalf of the production team. He would never resell any of these items! And he has a letter of introduction from the commune. How can this be considered speculation?"

She was a little anxious, she couldn't admit to the crime of reselling certain materials!

The state divides commodities into three categories for management.

The first category is more than 30 kinds of commodities such as grain, cotton, and cotton cloth. These are purchased and sold by the state and self-sale is not allowed.

The second category is nearly 300 kinds of commodities such as wire, live pigs, and nails, which are purchased according to state plans. After factories or farms sell the commodities to commercial departments according to the plan, if there is any surplus exceeding the production plan, they can sell it themselves.

The third category is other commodities that are not included in the national plan, such as shoulder poles, baskets, small-scale fruits and vegetables sold at large markets, as well as small medicinal materials, handicrafts, etc.

The third category of goods is what Fifth Brother sells at the Anti-Imperialist Fair.

Although he often secretly bought grain from the countryside, he always bought it for Ye Manzhi. The beans and wheat were piled up in Ye Manzhi's cellar. Fifth Brother never resold the grain himself.

Moreover, after the city liberalized its grain control this year, people could buy food rations without food coupons. Ye Manzhi hadn't asked her fifth brother to bring her food for a long time.

How could Fifth Brother possibly resell such supplies when he knew that there was food in the city?

The police had explained the situation to the family members many times, and now they handed her a copy of the Binjiang Daily and a document notice.

Ye Manzhi suppressed his inner anxiety and read it carefully.

This is the "Notice on Several Temporary Measures to Strengthen the Management of Primary Markets" issued by the Municipal People's Committee.

The document contained a passage underlined in red ink: "Class I and II materials are not allowed to enter the market for trading; when members sell Class III materials individually or collectively, they must hold a certificate from the people's commune or work unit, and middlemen are strictly prohibited."

Ye Manzhi frowned in thought as he listened to the young police officer say, "The city has already issued a document stating that only individual members and collectives can sell Category III supplies. Ye Manlin has a city hukou, not a rural member, so he's not eligible to sell Category III supplies on behalf of others. Even with a letter of introduction, he'd still be considered an intermediary, and his letter of introduction has expired."

"As for reselling certain materials, there's solid evidence. When we caught him, there was a large bag of millet on his carriage, weighing over 30 kilograms."

Chang Yue'e reacted quickly and said, "Comrade, I asked him to buy the millet for me at the grain station. My daughter just gave birth and needs millet to nourish her body. The grain station on our street has a limited supply of millet, and it's more convenient for him to drive a horse-drawn carriage, so I asked him to go to the designated grain station and buy me 30 kilograms of millet."

In her opinion, the more than 30 kilograms of millet could be covered up by any excuse.

It is true that I resold three types of materials, but I absolutely cannot admit to the crime of reselling grain!

Ye Manzhi echoed, "Comrade, that notice was just issued on October 13th of this year. It's only been half a month. People like us who don't pay attention to the news really don't know the city's latest regulations. My brother is just a rickshaw driver, not well-educated, and doesn't usually read newspapers. He certainly hasn't heard of the latest notice from the People's Committee. In his case, he should be given a chance to correct his mistakes, right?"

Fifth Brother was a first-time offender and committed the crime because he was not familiar with the policies. According to her experience, Fifth Brother would at most receive verbal criticism and education from the police. In serious cases, his goods might be confiscated, resulting in some financial losses.

She also wanted to find a decent job for her fifth brother, so he must not have a criminal record now!

Ye Manzhi and Chang Yue'e both felt that the consequences would not be too serious, and at most they would just have to spend some money.

The young police officer said, "Ye Manlin is writing a confession."

"Why write a confession?" Chang Yue'e immediately retorted excitedly, "He didn't engage in speculation at all, what crime is he admitting to?"

Although her son is a money-grubber, he would not do anything illegal or criminal.

He had many opportunities to resell grain, but so far he had only brought grain to his family and had never sold it to outsiders.

Ye Manzhi held her unstable mother and asked the young police officer, "Comrade, can we see Ye Manlin?"

"Come with me."

The young policeman led the two men into a room at the end of the corridor. Ye Manlin was sitting behind a single table, holding a pencil, staring blankly at the blank manuscript paper in front of him.

Seeing this, Chang Yue'e quickly stepped forward, snatched the piece of white paper, and hit him on the shoulder a few times.

"Are you stupid? Is this a confession that can be written so easily? There are so many people out there busy trying to exonerate themselves, and not a single one has confessed. Why are you so anxious to confess? This is a crime of speculation and profiteering. Do you have the guts to do it?"

The fifth brother looked a little depressed, with messy hair and bloodshot eyes. He didn't even know how to dodge when being beaten by his own mother.

Ye Manzhi was observing Fifth Brother's situation from the side and suddenly asked, "Brother, the police officer just said that a family member came to visit you before. Who was that person?"

Fifth Brother didn't answer.

But this also shows that someone had indeed visited him earlier than the Ye family.

"My mom and I came to the police station to pick you up right after we received the notice. The others haven't finished their shift yet and don't know about you yet. The person who came to see you isn't a family member, right?" Ye Manzhi guessed, "Is it that Wu Tongyue?"

Fifth brother shook his head.

"If it's not Wu Tongyue, then it must be Wu Tongyue's mother. Why did she come to see you? To make you confess your guilt?"

Ye Manzhi really couldn't think of anyone else, apart from his own family, who would care so much about his fifth brother's situation.

He came to visit as soon as he was arrested.

The fifth brother sat dejectedly in the chair, still not saying a word.

Ye Manzhi folded his arms and said, "Brother, you don't think that the crime of speculation and profiteering is just a fine or a few years in jail, do you? If you really write a confession and leave a criminal record, it will directly affect our entire family."

"You've been busy driving a horse-drawn carriage for the past few years, and you haven't experienced a political investigation. You might not understand how strict these days are. Besides your parents, grandparents, and grandparents-in-law, even your aunts and uncles will be investigated. If you have a record of speculation, all of our children in the next generation won't be able to join the army, won't be able to apply for classified majors in university, and won't be able to work in key departments. Our family is a well-established working class family, a background that has always been a source of pride for us all. If you really write this confession, then the hard work of two generations, from our father to you, will have been in vain."

Fifth Brother: “…”

After Wu Tongyue's mother left, he kept thinking about what she said.

Time was short, and he had not yet thought about the impact this incident would have on his family, nor did he link the confession with the political review of the next generation.

Chang Yue'e was similar to him. She only thought about her son going to jail for this and did not think about the subsequent impact of this matter for the time being.

After hearing what her daughter said, she was so scared that her face turned pale and her chest felt stuffy and she couldn't breathe.

Ye Manzhi supported her shoulders, smoothed her chest, turned around and asked, "Brother, did Director Cai threaten you with something, or what?"

The fifth brother was silent for a long time, then whispered, "If I don't admit the crime of speculation, she'll sue me for being a hooligan."

Chang Yue'e and Ye Manzhi: "::::::"

"If she says she's a hooligan, then she's a hooligan?" Chang Yue'e shouted. "If someone's a hooligan, she has to provide evidence, right? Are you related to Wu Tongyue? How can you accuse someone of hooliganism without any evidence?"

Fifth Brother didn't say anything.

Seeing him like this, Ye Manzhi felt something was wrong and asked anxiously, "Brother, did something really happen between you and her?"

The fifth brother sat with his head down, a look of unnaturalness on his dejected face.

Something unexpected did happen between him and Wu Tongyue.

But it had already happened, and he had to take responsibility.

They just discussed the future arrangements a few days ago.

First, they each went home to tell their parents and family about their relationship, then took their household registration books and chose an auspicious day to get their marriage certificate.

But before he could go home and confess to his parents, he was suddenly arrested by the police for speculation and profiteering!

After listening to her son's introduction of the general situation, Chang Yue'e was surprised and stood there with her mouth half open, stunned for a long time.

My honest son actually did such a thing!

You haven't even gotten married yet, but you've already done something irreversible with the girl?

Her mind was in a mess and she was stunned for a long time before she could come back to her senses.

Ye Manzhi thought to himself, since Director Cai wanted to sue Fifth Brother for being a hooligan, he must have discovered that the two of them had slept together.

Young people have a de facto relationship, both sides have a good relationship, and both want to start a family. This is a matter of mutual consent.

If we follow normal people's thinking, parents should quickly arrange for their two children to get married.

But what was Director Cai thinking? Why did he send his future son-in-law to the Public Security Bureau?

The fifth brother said helplessly, "She said she just thought her daughter was bitten by a dog."

Anyway, Director Cai was determined not to let Wu Tongyue be with him, a lame coachman.

"..." Chang Yue'e risked her words, "No matter what her attitude is, you are not allowed to admit to the crime of speculation and profiteering! You are not allowed to write a confession! Doesn't she want to sue you for being a hooligan? Then let her sue you. Hooligans always have to have a target, right? Isn't she afraid of getting her daughter involved?"

The fifth brother sighed and said lazily, "She's not afraid."

Director Cai was indeed not afraid, and she said the same thing to her own daughter.

"Even if you never get married, I can't let you marry a cowardly man!"

Wu Tongyue sneered, "Didn't you marry a cowardly man yourself? And you married the same cowardly man twice! Don't you think it's ridiculous to say such things?"

"I knew Lao Zheng was incompetent, so I left him and followed your father. Now I'm too busy with work, and I found Lao Zheng again because he can help me take care of the family. But are you the same as me? Besides making a few bucks from speculation, what else do you have? You're in your twenties and still haven't accomplished anything. You're incompetent yourself, and you've found an even less capable man. I'd rather you not get married!"

Wu Tongyue thought sarcastically, Uncle Zheng is good at taking care of people, but he is taking care of your family and children, which has nothing to do with me.

She composed herself and said nonchalantly, "If it weren't for the connections my father left behind, how could you, coming from a rural village with no one to rely on, have achieved your current position? Ye Manlin isn't incompetent, he just hasn't encountered the right opportunity!"

Director Cai sneered, "Isn't his sister a college student? Is his brother-in-law a military representative at a military factory? With such a powerful foundation to lean on, he doesn't know how to take advantage of it. He spends his days toiling away driving a horse-drawn carriage and engaging in speculation, showing absolutely no ambition. What's the point of him clinging to that pitiful bit of self-esteem?"

"That's not a lack of ambition, that's called being sensible! His sister just got into college not long ago, and marrying a military representative was considered a high-class marriage. If she always helps her brothers on their side, how will her in-laws view her? Not everyone is like you, only thinking about themselves, never considering whether others are willing or not, or whether it is convenient or not!"

Director Cai could hear the ridicule in the other party's words. Wu Tongyue was still brooding over the fact that she had used her ex-wife's connections.

She said nonchalantly, "No matter what the reason, it's a fact that Ye Manlin is a coachman, right? Right now, people can still let you work at the company for the sake of me and your father. When you really marry that Ye Manlin, people won't say you're Director Cai's daughter, they'll just say you're the coachman's wife! Now you can just look at his pretty face, but in ten or twenty years, when I retire, you two will have no power or status in society, and you'll have no choice but to live with a disabled and incompetent man!"

Director Cai admitted that Ye Manlin did have some outstanding qualities.

He looks like a decent human being and is more handsome than Wu Tongyue.

But what’s the use of a man being good-looking?

That face can only deceive young girls like Wu Tongyue.

Wu Tongyue remained unmoved and said, "I know whether Ye Manlin is capable or not. He won't be a coachman for the rest of his life. Even if he really is a coachman for the rest of his life, I will accept it. In your unit, one person is working hard today, and the next person is going to the countryside. There is always a lot of rest. I would rather he be a rich coachman and live a peaceful life with me!"

"Shut up!" Director Cai scolded sternly.

Wu Tongyue wasn't frightened and continued, "Ye Manlin comes from a working-class family, so he's a legitimate family. Don't you always talk about class background and family background? Why is it that when it comes to Ye Manlin, this and that are no longer acceptable? Anyway, I've already made it a done deal with him. I'm not some virgin girl anymore. It doesn't matter whether you agree or not. We'll pick a date to get the marriage certificate."

Director Cai said the same thing: "I just think of you as being bitten by a dog. Even divorced people can remarry, let alone someone like you who's never been married! I'd rather you find someone who's remarried and capable than to marry a loser who'll bring shame upon you! If you dare to associate with him again, next time I won't report him for profiteering, I'll report him for rape and hooliganism!"

"Then go ahead and sue me. I'm the person involved. Then I'll tell them I raped him!"

*

In the end, the fifth brother did not write the confession.

After being called in by the police for criticism and education and having all the goods on the carriage confiscated, he was released along with several other first-time offenders.

Ye Manzhi felt that the key to this matter lay with Wu Tongyue and her mother.

She wanted to talk to Wu Tongyue and hear her future plans.

However, when she and her fifth brother found the supply and marketing cooperative, Wu Tongyue's colleagues said that she had taken a long vacation and had not come to work for several days.

After learning about the situation, Chang Yue'e said in a firm tone, "It's likely that her mother discovered her when she was trying to get the household registration or a letter of introduction, and she's been detained at home and won't let her out. Don't worry about it. Lao Wu wanted to marry his wife himself. If he dares to make things fait accompli with her, then he'll have to figure out how to deal with the subsequent troubles himself."

She made up her mind to ignore her son and teach him a lesson.

However, what happened next made her feel sad again.

The name and photo of the third brother Ye Mantang were actually in the newspaper!

Ye Mantang came from a legitimate working-class background. After passing the assessment of Factory 656, he was transformed from a technical worker into an engineer.

Technical workers are also workers. Transforming from a technical worker to an engineer is like transforming from a peasant to an intellectual.

This was the first time that the city appointed engineers who were originally skilled workers. There were only thirty of them in the city. The first secretary of the provincial party committee and the city leaders also came out to meet with these engineers.

The Binjiang Daily also published an editorial entitled "Actively Cultivate and Promote Red Experts from Workers."

Ye Manzhi hadn't heard any news until she saw her third brother's name in the newspaper. Then she knew that he had become an engineer!

"Brother, how could you have kept such a big happy event a secret? You and Dad didn't even tell us! You're a red engineer who was praised in the newspaper. How glorious! Our family should prepare a feast and help you celebrate!"

Being received by provincial and municipal leaders and even having his story reported in the newspapers, my third brother’s promotion must have been going on for at least half a month.

The third brother chuckled and said, "There was a misunderstanding when I went to study in the Soviet Union last time. How could I dare to tell you in advance this time! And I was able to get the engineer qualification thanks to my brother-in-law's help."

He actually wanted to go home and announce the good news, but the fifth brother had just been in jail recently and the fourth brother didn't have a proper job.

Everyone lives under the same roof, and if he brings it up now, it will inevitably make others unhappy.

It would have been fine if he had just celebrated privately with his wife behind closed doors.

Ye Manzhi put her daughter on the bed, alongside Taxi and Qiqiu, letting the three little ones lie in a row. Then she smiled and said, "Wu Zhengrong just lent you a few books. He didn't recommend you to be an engineer. Your ability to pass the factory assessment depends mainly on your own abilities!"

Having said that, she couldn't help but sigh in her heart.

Wu Zhengrong was the factory's military representative and was older. Although she often came to her father-in-law's house for dinner, smiled at everyone, and always offered to hold the children, her siblings weren't really close to her. Her fourth and fifth brothers would joke with her eldest and second brothers-in-law, but rarely with Wu Zhengrong.

Apart from Old Ye and Chang Yue'e, only the third brother and Wu Zhengrong are closest in the family.

When the men were eating and drinking, the third brother often discussed technical issues with Wu Zhengrong and Lao Ye, and the three of them would talk until the lights were turned off.

Moreover, the third brother would take the initiative to borrow books from Wu Zhengrong.

Although she benefited from Wu Zhengrong's influence, her third brother was indeed very hardworking. Since his failure in studying in the Soviet Union, he had been studying hard with great concentration.

He deserves this red engineer!

While Ye Manzhi was chatting with her brother and sister-in-law, she was paying attention to the movements on the big bed.

The three children's birthdays are only one year apart.

The taxi of the third brother's family is more than half a year older than Qiqiu of the fourth brother's family, and Qiqiu is four months older than Xiao Piaoliang of her family.

Taxi can already run and talk, but he doesn't like lying in bed all the time. When adults are talking, he gets up and squats on the bed, carefully observing his younger brothers and sisters around him.

He was holding a biscuit in his hand and stuffing it into the little girl's mouth.

Little comrade Wu Yuzhuo was still a breastfeeding baby and had never eaten such a high-end product as biscuits. After trying it a few times with her little mouth, she started giggling as if she had really tasted it.

Ye Manzhi took the biscuit and stuffed it into his mouth.

The cookies actually have cream filling inside!

She asked Wong Tai Sin as if she had discovered a new world: "Sister-in-law, where did you buy those cookies? Why are there fillings?"

Fourth sister-in-law Shen Liangmei was the first to speak up: "Haha, these biscuits are expensive, 80 cents a pack, and Third sister-in-law bought more than ten packs. We can't afford them all."

A dozen packs of biscuits would cost her half a month's salary. Apart from her extravagant sister-in-law, who would be willing to do that?

Huang Li said concisely: "This kind of biscuits are packaged and have a long shelf life."

Ye Manzhi suddenly realized and hurriedly looked at the outer packaging of the biscuits.

Nowadays, you don’t need food coupons to buy cakes, bread, and biscuits, but they are much more expensive than grain.

Ye Manzhi was not worried about the money, but the biscuits and pastries were sold in bulk and could not be stored for long.

The biscuits in the tin buckets were not good either. She bought two cans, but they got damp after only half a year.

But the biscuits bought in Wong Tai Sin are packaged in plastic and have a long shelf life, making them very suitable for stockpiling supplies.

Ye Manzhi asked for the location and heard that it was in a department store on China Street, so she took some money and went to China Street to stock up on goods on the weekend.

She asked Wu Zhengrong to take the children to the yard on Xincheng Street to wait for her. The fruits from the persimmon and jujube trees had not been picked this year, so they had to clean all the fruit trees in the yard today.

She herself rushed into the department store with great momentum. The store was full of people on the weekend, and there was a long line in front of the candy and pastry counter.

When she spent money like water in the store and returned home with twenty packs of biscuits and a dozen cans of food, Wu Zhengrong was making trouble in the yard with the child.

The father sat in the tree.

The girl was lying on the ground covered with dates, with her father tying a white towel around her head, like a little farmer.

In the open space next to it, the word "harvest" was arranged with ripe persimmons and dates.

Wu Zhengrong was holding a camera in a tree. As she walked into the courtyard, she heard the other party laughing and coaxing, "That's great. Don't move! Let's take another picture!"

Ye Manzhi: “…”

The baby didn't move at all, right?

She looked at her daughter's miserable state, and her vision went dark. She shouted angrily, "Wu Zhengrong, why did you let your daughter lie on the ground?"