Chapter 5 Departure to the Troops

"Shuyin, how much is the monthly allowance for you arts soldiers?" Lin's mother asked during the meal.

Lin Shuyin picked up a piece of fish, dipped it in the chili sauce and put it in her mouth. "How would I know, Mom? I haven't joined the army yet."

It's annoying. She doesn't even have a job, but Lin's mother is already eyeing her salary.

Father Lin thought for a moment and said, "I heard from Old Liu that the first-year allowance for new recruits seems to be six yuan."

"So little?" Lin's mother said with some regret.

Father Lin said, "It's a lot. The army provides them with food, drink and shelter. There's not much to spend."

When Lin's mother heard this, she said, "That's true."

"Shuyin, I'm telling you, when you go to the army, I'll mail you your monthly allowance, and I'll save it for you as a dowry. If you get six dollars a month, you can mail four dollars home."

"Your army has no place to spend money. Two yuan a month is enough for you."

Zhou Baopi, Lin’s mother is comparable to Zhou Baopi.

It's only six dollars a month, and she's going to take four dollars.

But the emperor is far away and the sky is high. Whether she gets paid or not when she joins the army is entirely up to her. Can Lin's mother control it?

"Yeah." Lin Shuyin responded reluctantly.

The meal was quite harmonious. After the meal, Lin Shuyin went to the bathhouse to take a bath with her sister Lin Shuyi.

Lin Shuyi sighed, "Second sister, your job is solved, but what about mine?"

Lin Shuyin said, "Why are you in such a hurry? You still have more than two years before graduation. It's still a long way to go."

"It's not too early. Two years will pass quickly. If I'm unemployed by then, I'll definitely have to go to the countryside." Lin Shuyi pouted.

Her second brother definitely didn't have to go to the countryside. Maybe it was just as her second sister said, her mother retired and gave the job to her second brother.

By then, there would be five children in their family and she would be the only one without a job.

Lin Shuyin listened and said, "That's true. Well, we don't have a job and don't want to go to the countryside, so we can only get married."

Lin Shuyi, "Getting married? Even without a job, you still have to live under the thumb of your in-laws."

Lin Shuyin smiled, "You are quite clear-headed. You can marry a rich man, such as the son of a factory director. He might even be able to provide you with a job."

"Factory director's son? How can I get to know him?" Lin Shuyi muttered.

Lin Shuyin said, "Well, you still have more than two years before graduation. You can take your time to choose and look for a partner during these two years, or ask your elder sister, parents or others to introduce you to someone."

Lin Shuyi thought about it carefully for a while and nodded.

"Um."

Her second sister was right. If she didn't want to go to the countryside, besides finding a job for herself, she could only find someone who could provide her with a job.

It was an honor for a lady to join the army, so the next day Lin's father and mother took half a day off and sent Lin Shuyin to the train station. The new recruit joined the army, wearing a military uniform and a big red flower on his chest.

When we arrived at the train station to depart, Lin's mother actually cried.

"Take good care of yourself when you get to the army, don't get sick..."

Lin Shuyin felt a little... Lin's mother actually cared about her!

Lin's father said to Lin's mother, "Alright, alright, why are you crying on such a happy day? When your daughter arrives in the army, write a letter home."

"Yeah, Mom and Dad, you guys should go back, the train is about to leave."

It’s strange that Lin Shuyin was actually a little reluctant to leave. How could they have developed feelings for each other after being together for several months?

The train started moving. Lin Shuyin looked back and saw that her father and mother were still there. She turned around, sat down, and counted her small savings.

And then...then all the feelings I had for Mr. and Mrs. Lin disappeared.

When she went to the army, Lin's father and mother gave her ten yuan, saying that the army had little use for money and ten yuan was too much. After a month, when the allowance came, if she had not spent it all, she could give the money to them to mail it back.

Where there is love, there is money. Her daughter went to work in another place and had nothing, but she was given ten yuan. Lin Shuyin despised herself and didn't know what moved her just now.

It’s good to have space. Although it’s not big, it’s enough to store Lin Shuyin’s things.

After counting the deposits, Lin Shuyin looked around and found that their carriage was full of recruits, both men and women, but there were more men overall.

The train seat that Lin Shuyin was sitting in was a four-seater. She sat by the window. Next to her sat a lesbian, and opposite her sat a lesbian and a gay man.

The woman next to her has been wiping her tears since she got on the train. In fact, the others are the same, as they are more or less reluctant to leave their families.

She was happy in her heart. After all, no matter how much she pretended to be the original owner, she was not the original owner, and her patience was limited. If she couldn't pretend anymore, it would not be good to quarrel with Lin's father and mother or complain.

Now that she has joined the army and is living in the military, she has not seen the Lin family for eight or ten years, and no one in the military knows her, so she doesn't have to pretend anymore.

After the train had been running for a while, the female comrade next to Lin Shuyin finally stopped crying.

"Hello, my name is Wang Yanlin. I'm going to report to the Cultural Troupe of the Fifth Division of Hohhot, Inner Mongolia Province. How about you?"

The gay man sitting opposite Lin Shuyin started to introduce her.

Lin Shuyin, "My name is Lin Shuyin, and I am also going to report to the Fifth xx Division Art Troupe in Hohhot, Inner Mongolia Province."

"My name is Li Jinyue, which means today's Jin and past Yue. I am also going to report to the Cultural Troupe of the Fifth Division of the XX Division in Hohhot, Inner Mongolia Province."

The female comrade next to Wang Yanlin spoke.

Finally, the female comrade sitting next to Lin Shuyin said, "My name is Su Xiangwei, and I am going there just like you...By the way, what do you do? I play the violin."

Wang Yanlin: "I play the flute."

Lin Shuyin: “I sang.”

Li Jinyue, "I play the accordion."

The four of them were all going to the same place, working in the same unit, so they became colleagues from now on.

The relationship between the four people instantly became closer.

Li Jinyue asked, "How old are you? I'm twenty."

Wang Yanlin said, "Hey, we are the same age. I am also twenty."

Su Xiangwei, "I'm nineteen."

The three of them looked at Lin Shuyin. Lin Shuyin said, "I'm eighteen, but in a few months, I'll be nineteen."

Wang Yanlin said, "You are the youngest among the four of us."

As we were chatting, an officer came over and said, "Everyone, please be quiet. It takes more than two days to get from Sichuan Province to Hohhot, Inner Mongolia Province... I remember we recruited a few new soldiers from the art troupe."

"Which ones?"

"Report to the Chief, it's us!"

Lin Shuyin, Wang Yanlin, Li Jinyue, and Su Xiangwei quickly stepped out of the line and saluted each other.

The officer was Lu Feng, a troop instructor.

Lu Feng looked at Lin Shuyin and the others and smiled, "Okay, the journey is long, and it's boring to just sit there and do nothing. Let's sing some songs. You four art soldiers, warm up the place first."

"Yes, Chief!" the four people said in loud voices.

Wang Yanlin, "Shuyin, what song do you want to sing? We will accompany you."

Lin Shuyin thought for a moment and said, "Sing I love the blue sky of my motherland."

"good."

The three of them took out a violin, a flute, and an accordion from their bags.

This is an ensemble and needs to start together.

Lin Shuyin looked at them, asking if they were ready, and the three of them nodded.

Lin Shuyin slowly opened her voice, and the accompaniment of the three people began to sound.

"I love the blue sky of my motherland

The sky is clear and the sun is shining brightly

White clouds pave the way for me

The east wind sends me flying forward

The golden morning glow dances around me

There is a beautiful landscape under your feet

ah………"