In the afternoon, the sun was shining brightly and wasn't so harsh anymore.
The back gate of the residential compound leads to a gently undulating slope covered with grass, shrubs, and scattered trees. It's a place where the women and children of the compound often go to dig for wild vegetables.
Li Xiaocao, carrying a willow basket, had just walked a short distance from the back gate of the residential compound with Mingzhao when a strange, sarcastic voice drifted over from a side alley:
"Hey, isn't this Little Grass? Whose young lady are you taking for a spring outing?"
The speaker was a woman in her forties with high cheekbones and thin lips. She was wearing a slightly worn floral blouse and carrying a basket. She was Gou Yurong, the old friend of Wang Pozi, the mother-in-law of Li Xiaocao who had been sent back to her hometown.
She and Wang Xiufen had given Li Xiaocao a lot of pointers before, to the point that Li Xiaocao was somewhat afraid of her.
Gou Yurong's triangular eyes darted over Mingzhao, her expression one of undisguised disdain and schadenfreude: "Tsk tsk tsk, look at this delicate skin, never lifted a finger, huh? I heard she can't even light a fire, and almost set Commander Huo's house on fire this afternoon? The billowing smoke really startled everyone! I don't know how her family raised her, she can't do this or that, no manners at all!"
She deliberately raised her voice, attracting the curious gazes of several women nearby who were also preparing to go up the mountain.
Li Xiaocao's face darkened: "Aunt Gou, what nonsense are you talking about! Mingzhao is just starting out. Everyone has a first time! Who are you calling ill-mannered?"
"First time?" Gou Yurong scoffed, pursing her lips. "I think he's not quite right in the head. He's always staring blankly at his books, can't even speak properly, like an idiot! It's a pity that Commander Huo is such a good person, becoming a commander at such a young age, with a bright future ahead of him, but he ended up with someone like this..."
She deliberately drew out the words, uttering them in a shrill voice, "Female capitalist!"
In this day and age, these three words are nothing short of a poisoned knife!
Li Xiaocao was so angry her face turned pale: "You! You're slandering me! Mingzhao is innocent, she's not a capitalist at all!"
"Hmph, only capitalists could raise someone like this!" Gou Yurong said, hands on her hips, spitting as she spoke. "Can't lift a finger, can't even cook! It's laughable! Who knows what she'll become in the future?"
These words were extremely malicious, and even the women watching the commotion frowned.
Li Xiaocao was so angry that she was trembling all over. Just as she was about to pounce on her and tear her mouth apart, she was...
A clear, calm, and undisturbed voice rang out first.
“You said I am a capitalist.” She spoke slowly, but each word was clear, and her logic was exceptionally well-defined: “Capitalists exploit labor, own the means of production, and pursue surplus value.”
She paused, her gaze falling on Gou Yurong's worn floral jacket and mud-splattered trousers, then sweeping over the tattered basket she was carrying, which contained simple vegetable-digging tools: "What are you doing here today? What am I doing here today? Chairman Mao said that harmony and kinship among the people is true unity."
Mingzhao's voice wasn't loud, yet it seemed to possess a peculiar penetrating power, clearly reaching everyone's ears. With the most precise and emotionless language, she peeled back the layers of Gou Yurong's lies and malice:
“You accuse me of being ‘unable to lift heavy loads,’ which is true. But you say I’m not smart enough and am an idiot,” Mingzhao’s gaze sharpened, “that’s a personal attack based on your subjective malice and lacks factual basis.”
"As for the accusation of being a 'capitalist'," she said, looking at Gou Yurong's face, which was contorted with anger and shame at her rebuttal, each word like a verdict, "it is a baseless slander. Your malicious attack using political labels is despicable."
Mingzhao tilted his head slightly, as if making a final logical judgment, and clearly stated his conclusion:
“You are the one who reaps without sowing, betrays trust, and maliciously slanders others. Your behavior is the most despicable. If you do not stop your wrongdoings and continue to slander, I will report this to the organization and request that you receive the punishment you deserve.”
"You...you..." Gou Yurong was stunned by a barrage of incomprehensible words!
The women watching the commotion were stunned at first, then looked at Gou Yurong with disdain and sudden realization—so that's what happened with the ten yuan! This Gou Yurong is such a scoundrel!
Li Xiaocao was stunned, and then a huge sense of relief and joy welled up in her heart!
She straightened her back, put her hands on her hips, and loudly added insult to injury to Gou Yurong, whose face was ashen: "Did you hear that? Aunt Gou! You should have a conscience! Even Mingzhao can see through your filthy thoughts! Get out of here! Stop making a fool of yourself!"
Gou Yurong felt a tightness in her chest, her fingers trembling as she pointed at Mingzhao.
That wretched wretch, that mute idiot, how dare she? How dare she talk back to her?
"Alright, stop talking," someone advised Gou Yurong.
She looked at the disdainful gazes around her, at Mingzhao's calm yet clear eyes that seemed to see through all filth, and then at Li Xiaocao's triumphant expression.
She stomped her foot, grabbed her basket, and like a defeated bald chicken, slunk down the hillside without looking back, disappearing into the bushes in the blink of an eye.
"Pah! Serves her right!" Li Xiaocao spat in the direction she disappeared, feeling a sense of relief wash over her! She turned around, excitedly grabbing Mingzhao's hand, her eyes sparkling: "Mingzhao! You're amazing! Every word you said made sense, every word hit her right in the heart! Let's see if she dares to spew nonsense again!"
Mingzhao was slightly uncomfortable as Li Xiaocao held her hand, but seeing the genuine excitement and admiration in Li Xiaocao's eyes, the cold scrutiny in her eyes slowly faded, and she returned to her usual calm.
She simply hummed in response, as if her earlier, earth-shattering rebuttal was nothing more than completing a mundane exercise.
What surprised others more was that the mute man actually started speaking, and so fluently at that.
However, they could tell that Mingzhao was not someone to be trifled with, and none of them wanted to be the one to stick their neck out.
"Let's go! Let's pick wild vegetables! Let's ignore those scoundrels!" Li Xiaocao was in a great mood. She slung her basket over her shoulder, took Mingzhao's hand, and walked briskly toward the hillside covered with wild chrysanthemums and dandelions.
"Mingzhao, how did you manage to speak so fluently?" Just a few days ago, she was a stutterer who could only utter one word at a time.
"I learned it from the radio."
She would have recovered much faster if Howard hadn't been watching her closely.
But no, her current identity is still very sensitive, so she has to suppress her talent. Now that Howard has finally left, Mingzhao is thinking about getting on with what she needs to do.
She asked Li Xiaocao, "Do you know where I can get some cheap and good-quality mechanical parts?"
Li Xiaocao asked what they needed these for. Mingzhao replied that they were for studying.
Li Xiaocao praised Mingzhao again. Then, after thinking for a moment, she said to Mingzhao, "We can only go to the garbage dump."
Perhaps some people have unwanted mechanical parts lying around. But it would be hard to find good ones, after all, these are difficult times, and nothing is easy to come by. Even a piece of wire is kept by every household and used for dozens of purposes.
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