"Child, don't be sad. This is a communist society now. No matter what difficulties you encounter, the country and the Party will not abandon you. Your parents are honorable. You must look forward. You should also find their unit to get the certificate and go to the Armed Forces Department. The country will take care of your life from now on."

Zhang Hongmei was deeply moved by these words. They were meeting for the first time, and while the woman's words of comfort were few, they were all for her sake. "Aunt Li, thank you so much. In a few days, my parents' comrades will bring their ashes back. I think the certificate you mentioned will be brought back. If not, I'll call their leaders again. I trust the country and the Party, and I will try my best not to cause them any trouble. My parents sacrificed themselves to defend the country, and as their daughter, I will definitely live on strongly and contribute to the country when I grow up." Zhang Hongmei made this promise with great enthusiasm, mainly because of the times and because this woman from the Women's Federation was a good person. She knew she might need her help in many ways in the future, especially since she was still quite young.

"What a good child. You can come to me if you have any difficulties. My abilities are limited, but I will do my best," Li Juying assured Zhang Hongmei. She genuinely felt sorry for the child; her parents had sacrificed their lives, leaving only this little girl. The government provides assistance to families of martyrs and soldiers, and the living expenses are enough for the child to grow up. However, she worried that someone might covet money for such a young girl. If someone genuinely cared for her, that would be fine, but she feared those unscrupulous individuals. She would keep a closer eye on her from now on. Human hearts are made of flesh; how could she not pity her? It's a tragedy; when will this war end?

Li Juying tentatively asked, "What's your name?"

"Aunt Li, my name is Zhang Hongmei, I live in Liujiatun, and I am 10 years old."

“Hongmei, either you should be adopted out, or you can find a family to join you. You are still too young, there should be quite a few families willing to take you in.”

“Aunt Li, thank you for your kindness, but I don’t want to live with anyone else. I have no relatives. My parents sent me back home when I was 5 years old, and I’ve been living alone ever since. The uncles, aunts, and other relatives in the village have all taken care of me, and they all help with the planting and harvesting of our land. I will not leave our village.”

"What a terrible thing! Well, you'd better remember to come to me if you ever have any trouble in the future, okay? I'm from Kanggezhuang, and my name is Li Juying. If anyone bullies you, come to me. The Women's Federation is the place to protect the rights of women and children. Now there is a place to seek justice."

"I'll remember that, Aunt Li. I'll need your help a lot in the future. By the way, is Mayor Wang still in a meeting? Have they had lunch yet?"

“Look at my memory, we’ve been chatting for ages. Hurry up and take off your coat, or you’ll get cold going outside. Wang Jianguo just keeps nagging about delivering documents from above, where are we going to eat? We’re all starving. Hongmei, are you hungry? I don’t have anything to eat here. How about I go to the supply and marketing cooperative to buy you something to eat later?”

"No need, Aunt Li, I'll go by myself. It seems like it won't be finished anytime soon. I'll go to the supply and marketing cooperative to see if they have any food. My third uncle and Uncle Zhang can have something to eat when they come out later."

Do you know where the supply and marketing cooperative is? Shall I go with you?

"No need, Aunt Li, I know the place, I can go by myself. It's so cold outside. I'll be right back." Zhang Hongmei said, standing up and walking out.

"Wait a minute, girl, here you go. This is a grain coupon and money. Take it. You can't buy food without grain coupons." Li Juying took out a faded handkerchief from her pocket, slowly unfolded it, and handed a grain coupon to Zhang Hongmei.

“Aunt Li, no need, I have food coupons and money.” Zhang Hongmei took out food coupons and money from her coat pocket and showed them to Li Juying. “Aunt Li, I’ll go first. If I haven’t returned by the time Liu Maocai, the village chief of Liujiatun, finishes his meeting, please let him know for me.”

"Zhong, you go quickly. I reckon the supply and marketing cooperative doesn't have much food left. Go check on them. I'll tell them to wait for you when they come out." Li Juying felt a pang of sadness as she watched Zhang Hongmei leave. How would such a young child survive in the future? It seems this girl has a really good character; she doesn't take advantage of others.

Zhang Hongmei walked out of the township government compound and headed towards the supply and marketing cooperative. Even if she didn't want to eat, she had to prepare something for Liu Maocai; she would need his help in the future. Besides, the meeting had been going on for so long today; Wang Jianguo must have been sabotaging things. She must have offended him, and she'd heard that Liu Maocai was going to pick her up after the meeting, which was why it was dragging on and wouldn't end. Wang Jianguo's petty and narrow-minded nature was really no good. She would definitely remember to stay away from him in the future and try to see him as little as possible to avoid trouble later.

Zhang Hongmei was right. Wang Jianguo was holding back the meeting for this very reason. Who told that little brat to be so disrespectful to her? Let her walk back on her own. She wasn't blind; she could tell that Liu Maocai and Zhang Hongqi were dissatisfied with her. But even if they were dissatisfied, they had to put up with it. They'd better not be able to find their way back.

Liu Maocai cursed Wang Jianguo in his heart. He was a complete scoundrel; the man kept repeating the same old spiel without ever ending the meeting. He wondered if Hongmei had even returned yet. How could they have let such a person become the township head? They were blind! He rubbed his rumbling stomach; he'd only drunk water all day. That old bastard had left to eat, leaving these idiots to discuss things amongst themselves. How unfair!

Zhang Hongqi was furious, but there was really nothing he could do. The old man had said before the meeting that no one was allowed to leave midway, and he was a real jerk. With that vindictive personality, it was best to avoid antagonizing him. If he retaliated, there would be no way to stop him. He wondered if Hongmei had returned yet. This little girl used to be so quiet around strangers; she seemed to have grown up. That was good, though. From now on, she would truly be alone. Even though Aiguo and his wife were gone, they were alive and, being soldiers, everyone treated the girl quite politely. But now that they were gone, people were always quick to judge those in power. If Hongmei didn't stand up for herself, things wouldn't work.

Actually, it would be best to let Hongmei come to my house. I've mentioned it before, but the girl wasn't willing. I'll ask her again today; it would be more convenient to take care of her if she came to my house. Zhang Hongqi was too lazy to listen to Wang Jianguo's nonsense and was thinking about how to talk to Hongmei later. But thinking about his own family situation made him feel helpless. He couldn't even get past his own mother, and his own children weren't even getting enough to eat. Sigh!