Chapter 1 Eyelid Twitching

Seeing Lin Qingqing's stunned expression, Xie Wei said again, "Come up."

Lin Qingqing then came to her senses, looked at the oxcart in front of her, walked around to the back of the cart, and sat down in a seat near the back. But Xie Wei turned to look at her and said, "Sit a little forward."

"ah?"

"Sitting too far back makes it easy to fall off," Xie Wei said.

Lin Qingqing had never ridden in an oxcart before; in fact, she had only seen oxcarts on TV dramas. She vaguely remembered that oxen pulled carts more smoothly than horses, which was why she sat in the back. Hearing Xie Wei's words, she was afraid she might actually fall off, so she moved forward a little.

After moving to a different spot, Lin Qingqing could see Xie Wei's back in his thick military uniform when she looked down, and his stubble-cut head when she looked up. She couldn't help but glance at the other side, hesitating whether to move closer to Xie Wei. But before she could move, Xie Wei looked up and started urging the oxcart forward.

The courtyard of the educated youth settlement was on a gentle slope. The oxcart moved suddenly, and if Lin Qingqing hadn't held on tightly to the fence, she would have fallen directly into Xie Wei's arms.

Even so, due to inertia, the distance between her and Xie Wei was only about an inch.

Lin Qingqing couldn't help but hold her breath.

Fortunately, the slope wasn't long, and once she went down it, Lin Qingqing was able to maintain her balance and distance herself from Xie Wei.

As the oxcart moved forward, Lin Qingqing gradually got used to it, not only maintaining her balance but also moving her body. She reached out and grabbed the fence on the other side, slowly moving her body to sit down.

She thought she had moved very quietly and Xie Wei wouldn't notice, but to her surprise, as soon as she sat down, Xie Wei turned around and asked, "What's wrong?"

"It's nothing, it's my first time riding in an oxcart, I'm not used to it," Lin Qingqing said with a dry laugh, then asked, "Why are you driving an oxcart?"

"I..." Xie Wei was about to answer when he heard someone rushing to work on the roadside call out to him. He turned around and said, "Uncle Yougen."

Xie Yougen saw Xie Wei from afar, but he was a little hesitant to recognize him because he saw him driving an oxcart with a young woman sitting on it. Only when he got closer and confirmed it was Xie Wei did he ask curiously, "Wei Zi, where are you going?" After asking, he looked at Lin Qingqing and asked who she was.

In winter, people in the production brigade start work late, and this was the peak time. Xie Yougen was followed by four or five people. One of them recognized Lin Qingqing and said before Xie Wei, "Isn't this the Lin family's daughter who recently settled in our brigade? What are you two doing together?"

"This is Comrade Lin Qingqing." After introducing Lin Qingqing, Xie Wei briefly told her who the people in front of her were.

After he finished his introduction, Lin Qingqing started calling out to everyone. However, she didn't want to follow Xie Wei's way of addressing them, so she called the men "uncle" and the women "auntie." After she finished, she explained, "The brigade leader arranged for Comrade Xie to help me ask the Lin family for grain."

Xingfeng Brigade held a special meeting regarding Lin Qingqing's household registration. At the meeting, Xie Baoshan stated that all the grain work points Lin Qingqing earned in Linjiazui Brigade this year would belong to her, and the brigade would not need to extend grain credit to her. Because of this news, many people who had previously worried about her having to extend grain credit no longer opposed her household registration.

Upon hearing Lin Qingqing's explanation, everyone nodded and said, "Then hurry up and go get more food!"

Xie Wei responded and drove the oxcart away. Lin Qingqing sat back, watching the crowd grow from five or six to more than ten people cheering them on. A smile appeared on her face, and her previously heavy mood eased considerably.

Lin Qingqing only looked away when the oxcart turned a corner and the figures of those people were blocked by the houses by the roadside. Hearing Xie Wei's voice, she turned around and looked ahead: "What?"

“The oxcart can carry a lot of things; if we need the grain, we’ll bring it all back at once,” Xie Wei repeated.

"Huh?" Lin Qingqing didn't immediately understand what he meant.

"Didn't you just ask me why I brought an oxcart?"

Lin Qingqing suddenly realized that Xie Wei was more thoughtful and thanked him again. But Xie Wei only said, "The brigade headquarters has been busy lately, and my older brother couldn't get away, so he arranged for me to handle these matters."

"Then I must thank you," Lin Qingqing said with a smile, wondering how to express her gratitude to Xie Wei.

He refuses to accept gifts, and I don't know if he'll come to dinner if I invite him.

But inviting someone to dinner is much more difficult than buying them food. Even if she manages to get the food today and isn't short of money, the educated youth settlement has a communal canteen, so it's not very convenient to invite someone to dinner alone.

Going to state-run restaurants requires food coupons, which are hard to come by. I don't know if I can exchange them at the brigade. If not, I'll have to go to the black market.

Although she had never been to the black market, the original owner of the body in the novel had, so Lin Qingqing knew where the black market was and the general process of the transaction.

With that in mind, Lin Qingqing decided that after obtaining the grain, she would take some time in the next couple of days to go to the black market, and then consider how to invite Xie Wei after exchanging it for grain coupons.

...

Chen Xiaocao had just prepared breakfast and brought it to the main room when Li Chunlian came out of the house. She looked like she had just woken up; her hair was messy, and the buttons on her cotton-padded jacket weren't fastened properly. She greeted her sister-in-law in a nonchalant manner, then walked to the dining table while buttoning her jacket and glanced at it.

A plate of radish strips, a pot of dried sweet potato porridge.

Li Chunlian pouted, "Why is it dried sweet potato again?"

Li Chunlian was severely beaten by Lin Weiguo after opening a cabinet in Old Lady Lin's room.

In the past, Li Chunlian might have swallowed her anger. Her family had many daughters, and she wasn't favored before marriage. Now her sister-in-law was in charge. Going home for a day or two was fine, but if she stayed too long, she'd have to endure her sister-in-law's mistreatment—she had no choice but to endure it. But the situation was different now. Even Old Lady Lin had been arrested; why should she be afraid of Lin Weiguo? She immediately packed her things and went back to her parents' home, waiting for Lin Weiguo to back down.

Lin Weiguo initially retorted that it was good enough that he wasn't divorced after what she had done, and that she was dreaming if she wanted him to come and pick her up!

But as time went on, the hope of Lin's mother being released became increasingly slim. When news of Lin Ying's arrest came, Lin Weiguo panicked and rushed to the Li family to bring his wife back. He also took the opportunity of Li Chunlian opening the cabinet to distance himself from his mother.

Because of this connection, Li Chunlian's return this time can be described as a serf becoming the master of her own destiny. Not only is her nitpicking mother-in-law gone, but her husband also grants her every wish. Even her uncle, who had previously held a grudge against her, has calmed down because her mother-in-law and sister-in-law were sent to reform schools a few days ago. As for her sister-in-law, needless to say, she was an honest man to begin with, and now she is even more subservient to her.

Listening to Li Chunlian nitpick about what she was eating, Chen Xiaocao hesitated for a long time before finally saying, "Didn't we always eat this before?"

"That's all in the past! We're not short of food, why are you being so stingy?" Li Chunlian said impatiently. She was already tired of eating dried sweet potatoes. In the past, she dared not speak out because Old Lady Lin controlled everything in the house. Now that Old Lady Lin had been sent down to the farm, she was the one who made the decisions at home.

Besides, with two fewer people in the family, the existing food reserves are enough to last until next year's harvest. Why should she make herself suffer by eating these dried sweet potatoes every day?

Chen Xiaocao felt a little wronged. She felt that although her family had food, it wasn't enough to eat and drink to their heart's content! This year's surplus was due to special circumstances, but what about next year? What if there was another famine? Besides, what's wrong with dried sweet potatoes? They've been eating them for so many years without any problems, so why can't they be eaten now?

But Chen Xiaocao had a soft temper, so she hesitated and asked, "Then I'll take turns doing it from now on?"

Lin Weiguo came out of the house just in time to hear Chen Xiaocao's words, and casually asked, "What do you mean by taking turns?"

Lin Weimin also came over from the east room. Seeing them all standing there, he asked, "What's wrong?"

Li Chunlian, quick to speak, explained the matter before Chen Xiaocao could, and then said, "I don't care whether you take turns or not, but I don't want to eat dried sweet potatoes anymore."

Lin Weimin frowned upon hearing this and said, "Where would we get so much refined grain at home?"

"Brother, I don't like hearing that. I know how much grain we have at home. It's just a little refined grain, so what?" Li Chunlian sneered. "If I hadn't opened the cupboard, our house would have been robbed by now. You wouldn't even have any coarse grain to eat, let alone refined grain. It's only been a few days, and you've already forgotten about it?"

Li Chunlian had made a scene earlier and hadn't returned for almost half a month. Lin Weiguo was afraid she would get angry and go back to her parents' home, so he quickly said, "Of course I remember." He then said to Lin Weimin and his wife, "It's not like we're short of food. What's wrong with letting my wife eat something good? Besides, if it weren't for my wife, we might all be living in a cowshed because of my mother."

Ever since Li Chunlian returned, the second son and his wife have brought up this matter from time to time. Yesterday, they even took the money and tickets left by Old Lady Lin under the pretext of this incident, and now they want to eat fine grains... Chen Xiaocao looked at Lin Weimin, hoping in her heart that he could refuse the second son and his wife.

However, when Lin Weimin heard them mention his mother, he felt disheartened and said with a bitter smile, "Fine."

Chen Xiaocao's eyes dimmed, and she could only comfort herself, "It's okay, there's plenty of food left at home. Even if Li Chunlian eats refined grains every day, it should be enough."

Chen Xiaocao was filled with worry, while Lin Weiguo was very happy and said with a smile, "Breakfast is ready today, why don't you just have some?"

Having achieved her goal, Li Chunlian was happy to put on a show and nodded in a very agreeable manner: "Since the food is already prepared, I won't make things difficult for you, sister-in-law. But you must remember, from now on, I will cook my meals separately and not with coarse grains."

After saying that, he sat down and ate a big mouthful of dried sweet potato, showing no sign of being tired of it.

While eating breakfast, Li Chunlian started complaining about the food again, telling Chen Xiaocao not to always cook pickled cabbage, and that it would be better to cook fish or meat every few days. Chen Xiaocao couldn't stand it anymore and said, "I don't have any money to buy fish or meat."

Li Chunlian's smile faded slightly, and she said impatiently, "Alright, alright, I'll give you some money later."

Upon hearing this, Lin Weiguo immediately said, "Didn't you say... you'd give me money to buy a pack of good cigarettes?"

But before he could finish speaking, Li Chunlian interrupted him. She glared at him and said with a smile, "Brother and sister-in-law, don't worry. I'm just keeping Mother's money. I definitely won't touch it. From now on, the money for fish and meat at home will come from here."

Lin Weiguo also realized what was happening and said, "That's right. Although Mother has been sent to the countryside, we are still brothers. We will continue to live the same life as before."

Lin Weiguo and Li Chunlian, the couple, had discussed it and decided that although their father had died and their mother had been arrested, it was better not to separate the family. Their eldest brother and sister-in-law were honest and hardworking, earning a considerable amount of work points throughout the year, and with the money in their hands, it would be easy for them to supplement their own income.

"Let's leave it at that for now," Lin Weimin said, not giving any definitive answer.

Upon hearing this, Lin Weiguo frowned. He wanted to speak but was stopped by Li Chunlian. Li Chunlian thought that since the money and tickets were in her hands, if Lin Weimin wanted to separate the family, then they could move out on their own. They shouldn't even think about taking a single penny from her!

Chen Xiaocao breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing her husband's answer. Although she was gentle by nature, she knew what kind of people Lin Weiguo and his wife were, and she still wanted to separate the family property. She had mentioned it to Lin Weimin before, but he hesitated and did not agree immediately. Just now, she was worried that her husband might be confused and agree not to separate the family property.

The adults were preoccupied with their own thoughts, but the children didn't think too much about it and ate their breakfast in silence.

After dinner, the children went to school. Lin Weimin and his wife waited for Chen Xiaocao to finish washing the dishes before heading to the fields. As for Lin Weiguo and his wife, one was thinking about good cigarettes and the other was craving snacks and candies. They both pretended to be unwell, waiting for fewer people in the production team to go to the supply and marketing cooperative.

Li Chunlian had made all the plans, but before she could even leave, someone came to her house, and it turned out to be a ruthless troublemaker!

...

Lin Hongwei woke up with his eyelids twitching, feeling extremely anxious. He couldn't sit still all morning and didn't dare go to the brigade headquarters after breakfast. His wife, seeing him like this, said irritably, "Look at you, such a coward! Your eyelids twitching is nothing, is it really that big of a deal?"

"What do you know!" Lin Hongwei said, shaking his leg.

The last time his eyelid twitched, that was when the Lin family had that incident. He couldn't sleep for nights on end, fearing he'd be implicated and dismissed. He only felt a little better after news of Old Mrs. Lin and her daughter arrived. But Lin Hongwei was still afraid. Although Secretary Zhou hadn't punished him yet, who knew if he'd hold a grudge?

Once bitten by a snake, twice shy.

Lin Hongwei's eyelids twitched, and he was worried that he was going to be in trouble.

But sitting at home wouldn't do; he was the head of the brigade, and he had to go to the brigade headquarters. Lin Hongwei shook his leg for a long time before finally mustering the courage to leave home.

Lin Hongwei's home wasn't far from the brigade headquarters, but today he was extremely uneasy, and the journey that usually took two or three minutes took him five. When he arrived at the brigade headquarters, Lin Hongwei saw that the courtyard was empty, and he breathed a slight sigh of relief, thinking that he must be overthinking things. The last time something happened was just a coincidence, how could he be so unlucky as to have something happen so easily?

The more Lin Hongwei thought about it, the more it seemed to make sense. He straightened his back, raised his head, and lifted his leg—

But before he could put one foot down, he heard a thud behind him, followed by a voice that sent chills down his spine: "Secretary Lin."

"Hey!" Lin Hongwei put his foot down firmly, turned around, and asked with a warm smile, "Commander Xie, what brings you here again...?"

Although Lin Hongwei realized his mistake and mumbled the word "again," Xie Wei, with his excellent hearing, heard it clearly. However, he didn't dwell on the word and said, "Comrade Lin and I went to the Lin family to get the grain."

Lin Hongwei was too nervous to notice Lin Qingqing behind Xie Wei, and breathed a sigh of relief, saying, "Oh, so that's what it was about!"

Seeing Lin Hongwei looking over, Lin Qingqing greeted him, "Secretary Lin."

"Hey, why are you being so polite, child? Just call me Uncle Hongwei like before."

Although Lin Qingqing chose to settle in Xingfeng Brigade, Lin Hongwei had no resentment towards her, because he was also hoping that Lin Qingqing would move away! Otherwise, although Old Lady Lin had been sent down to the countryside, Lin Weimin and his brother were still living in the brigade. If something happened to her again, let alone a promotion, it would be difficult for him to retire from his position as secretary.

Therefore, Lin Hongwei not only showed no displeasure towards Lin Qingqing, but also treated her with exceptional kindness.

But Lin Qingqing just smiled when she heard his words, without any intention of changing her mind.

Lin Hongwei was just being polite and didn't insist that Lin Qingqing change her address. After exchanging pleasantries with her, he turned to Xie Wei and said with a smile, "Why did you have to come in person? I can arrange for someone to deliver the grain to you."

"It's alright, our presence saves you the trouble of arranging for someone to make a special trip."

When Lin Hongwei last met Xie Wei, his attitude was far from aggressive, but certainly not friendly. Lin Hongwei even felt that if it weren't for him, Secretary Zhou wouldn't have gotten so angry, and things wouldn't have escalated to this point. Therefore, Lin Hongwei mentally labeled Xie Wei as someone not to be trifled with. Hearing him speak so amiably now, Lin Hongwei was flattered and couldn't stop smiling: "Not at all, not at all..."

But before Lin Hongwei's smile could fade, Xie Wei asked, "How many kilograms of grain should the Lin family give Comrade Lin in total? Should we go directly to the Lin family to collect it, or wait at the brigade headquarters for you to arrange for someone to deliver it?"

Lin Hongwei's smile froze: "What?"

"Didn't you say you'd arrange for someone to deliver the grain to Comrade Lin? Since you had this plan in mind, you should have already gotten the grain from the Lin family, right?" Xie Wei looked at Lin Hongwei's increasingly stiff smile with surprise. "Didn't you arrange this?"

Lin Hongwei certainly didn't arrange this!

Although he was happy to see Lin Qingqing settle in another brigade, and under Xie Baoshan's pressure, he agreed to give her all the work points and grain she had earned in the past year, he had no intention of going to ask for the grain himself.

After all, although Old Lady Lin had been sent to the countryside, the Lin brothers were still alive. If he rushed to ask for grain, wouldn't that be deliberately offending them? Offending the Lin brothers might not be a big deal, but they were still relatives. If the other people in the brigade found out about this favoritism, they might have some reservations.

Lin Hongwei had no intention of doing something that would make things convenient for others but difficult for himself.

However, as the brigade secretary, he couldn't be indifferent, hence his slightly polite manner. In Lin Hongwei's view, this was something even a child could figure out, and no one should take it seriously. Who knew Xie Wei would be so oblivious, leaving him speechless for a moment.

Seeing that Lin Hongwei remained silent, Xie Wei spoke again: "Secretary Lin?"

Lin Hongwei snapped out of his daze and looked at the two people sitting on the oxcart. Lin Qingqing was alright, just a young girl... but Xie Wei! Although he wasn't a brigade cadre, he was capable enough to be a regimental-level cadre and could even talk to Secretary Zhou!

Thinking of this, Lin Hongwei smiled and said, "I do have this idea in mind, but I've been busy these past few days and haven't had time to do it yet."

Xie Wei frowned slightly: "Like this..."

He stopped mid-sentence, and then stopped talking. Lin Hongwei was afraid that he would tell Secretary Zhou about it, so he gritted his teeth and said, "How about I go with you?"

"Have you been quite busy these past few days?" Xie Wei asked.

Lin Hongwei didn't think he was being overly kind, so he said against his will, "I've been busy for about half the day, so I'll go with you, so the Lin family won't say anything."

Having said all that, Xie Wei didn't nod directly. Instead, he turned to Lin Qingqing and asked, "What do you think?"

Seeing the two of them exchanging words, Lin Qingqing guessed Xie Wei's meaning and smiled at Lin Hongwei, saying, "Thank you, Uncle Hongwei." She was calling him "uncle" now.

Lin Hongwei felt bitter inside, but smiled and said, "Of course, of course. Shall we leave now?"

"Going empty-handed?" Xie Wei asked.

Lin Hongwei thought to himself, "You're going to ask for something. Are you going to bring gifts instead of going empty-handed?" But Lin Hongwei didn't dare say these words out loud.

Lin Qingqing asked with a puzzled look, "Is there anything else we need to bring?"

"The grain is stored at the Lin family's place, and they can't decide how much is eaten and how much is left over."

Lin Hongwei thought Xie Wei was worried that the Lin family was hiding grain, and said, "Why don't we just search the Lin family's house thoroughly? We left in a hurry, they can't possibly hide the grain somewhere else, can they?"

"There's no time to hide now, but what about before?" Xie Wei asked.

Lin Hongwei frowned, feeling that Xie Wei was being a bit nitpicky: "Why did they hide grain before?"

“Perhaps it’s not hidden, but it’s possible that it was given to relatives or exchanged for money or grain. Comrade Lin shouldn’t be responsible for this grain, should she?” Xie Wei said unhurriedly. “In addition, Secretary Lin, you previously promised that the work points, grain and money that Comrade Lin earns will belong to her. There are lazy people and hardworking people in the family. The work points they earn are different, so the grain they receive will naturally be different. Dividing the grain equally according to the current situation is not fair to Comrade Lin.”

Lin Hongwei initially thought that even if they exchanged gifts for grain, how much grain could they possibly get? And if it were divided among individuals, there wouldn't be much at all. Hearing this, he understood that Xie Wei wanted to make sure every single penny counted!

Lin Hongwei pondered for a moment and said, "Then shall I bring the work point book and the autumn grain distribution book?"

Xie Wei was finally satisfied, but he didn't stop for a moment. Just as Lin Hongwei turned to go into the brigade headquarters, he said again, "Bring another scale!"

Hearing the sudden sound behind him, Lin Hongwei almost tripped and fell. He managed to steady himself and said helplessly, "I know," before rushing into the brigade headquarters.

Lin Hongwei now understands.

My eyelid is twitching not because something is about to happen, but because Xie Wei, that jinx, has arrived!