Chapter 43 Wang Qingli
Xie Yun smiled and said, "Although the Military Service Law does not conscript female soldiers, it does stipulate that 'the Ministry of National Defense has the right to register female citizens who have received medical, veterinary, or other specialized technical training for reserve service and, when necessary, organize them for intensive training. In wartime, female citizens with such training can be conscripted to serve in the military, and female citizens who meet the requirements can also receive specialized technical training.' In other words, qualified female soldiers can be conscripted in wartime as needed. The female soldiers you mentioned probably refer to this type of situation, and are not subject to compulsory conscription."
Zhao Hongxia suddenly realized, "Oh, so that's how it is. Sister Binbin, how did you know?"
Xie Yun said, "Didn't I apply to go to the reading room a few days ago? I read the newspaper and came across the Military Service Law. I was curious about the issue of female soldiers, so I paid special attention to it. I saw in a newspaper that conscription of female soldiers began last winter, but only 7,500 were recruited nationwide, which is a very small number of places."
Wang Qingli sighed and said, "Since there are so few vacancies, the requirements must be high. They might even require applicants to be knowledgeable and educated. That alone is enough to eliminate me."
Wu Hongjuan smiled and said, "Although being a soldier is glorious, it's also dangerous. Listen to what Binbin said. Female soldiers are only recruited during wartime. That means once we women become soldiers, we have to go to the front lines. Our lives are harder than those of male soldiers."
Wang Qingli said, "That's right."
She sighed again and said, "I just don't want to go home. My sister is 24 this year. Since she was 18, matchmakers have come to our house to propose marriage for her. My sister is honest, always smiling, has no temper, and is capable. It's normal for someone to be attracted to her. But my parents asked for a huge betrothal gift of 100 yuan. That was six years ago, just after the famine. Who could afford 100 yuan? There was no other way, the marriage was delayed again and again. Now my parents have raised the betrothal gift to 180 yuan. They said that if she can't get married, she can stay at home and work. After all, my sister is so capable, they won't suffer any loss, and they can at least save some money to find a wife for my brother. In the past two years, my sister has been getting older, and fewer and fewer people have come to our house to propose marriage. And the ones they mentioned are all ugly, old widowers, and second-married people with children. None of them are good."
Xu Wumei was surprised and said, "So much? My family only received 60 yuan as a betrothal gift, and my mother even asked me to take it back when I got married."
Wang Qingli envied him, "You have a good mother. I don't. My parents only care about my good-for-nothing brother. My sister has no opinion of her own and listens to them in everything. I've urged her to find a boyfriend and run away, but she won't listen. I've tried to get her to be lazy and not do so much work every day. If she doesn't work as much as she eats, won't my parents be furious? Wouldn't they lower the bride price and marry her off? She won't listen either. I'm at my wit's end."
"Running with someone" is a colloquialism in Qushui County, meaning "elopement." People often use it with a touch of contempt and curiosity, but not outright disdain.
Not only unmarried girls may run away with others, but young wives who can't stand the bullying from their in-laws may also run away. People are more sympathetic to the latter and always blame the bullying in-laws.
If an unmarried woman runs away with someone, it depends on the circumstances. If her family is good and she's simply in love with a less-than-remarkable man, and runs away because her family doesn't approve, she'll be looked down upon. But if she comes from a poor family and suffers at home, then running away is fine. Even if someone knows where she's gone, they won't tell her family, giving them no chance to catch her back.
Zhao Hongxia said, "Is it possible that Sister Qinghong doesn't want to get married at all?"
Wang Qingli said, "No, I've noticed that every time a matchmaker comes to our house, my sister is always very happy. She was quite disappointed when the matchmaker was driven away by my parents. She probably still wants to get married. It's just that she has no opinion of her own. She just listens to whatever my parents say and won't fight for herself at all. For example, when she came out to participate in the militia training, I signed up on my own. She wanted to participate, but she had to tell my parents in advance. Of course, my parents didn't let her come. After all, they were all earning work points, and she could earn them in the brigade. She could also do housework at home and take good care of them. If she came to participate in the training, who would do the housework? As for the good food in the team and the knowledge she could learn, they didn't care."
Wu Hongjuan said, "It's not nice to tell others about running away with someone. Your sister might be worried."
Wang Jieyun said, "Actually, if you have no other choice, running away with someone is not a bad idea. It's not uncommon in our brigade. Some people run away, but after the matter is settled, they'll find someone to mediate. Then, once both sides recognize each other, go through the formalities, and get back together, no one will say anything."
Yan Yuying said: "Don't do it unless it's absolutely necessary. It's not a good idea to chase after someone. If a woman runs away with someone, not only will others talk about her, but she'll also be looked down upon by her in-laws. If she gets into a conflict with her in-laws and gets wronged, she can't go back to her parents' home, and they won't support her. And there's no matchmaker to mediate, then she'll be doomed."
Xie Yun said, "Sister Yuying is right. If she runs away with someone, her happiness in this life will depend on that man. He has to be a good man, a responsible man, a capable man, and a loyal man. Only then can Sister Qinghong be happy. If this man is even slightly worse, misfortune may await her. The variables are too great, and men are not very reliable."
Wang Qingli thought for a moment and said, "You're right. I was rash. Fortunately, my sister didn't listen to me. Otherwise, if something had happened in the future, I would have wanted to die!"
Xu Wumei asked, "Sister Qingli, if Sister Qinghong didn't propose marriage, then you can't propose marriage either?"
Wang Qingli smiled and said, "I'm not in a hurry. My parents want me to be their slave for my brother, but they'll see if I listen to them! My sister is just too easy to talk to. If she were as stubborn as me, she wouldn't be so controlled by my parents. Besides, my parents don't expect to sell me for such a high price. I heard them tell the matchmaker that they would marry me off for 50 yuan. That scared the matchmaker away. They're the same girl, but one wants such a high price, and the other offers it at a low price. It's obvious that the cheaper one isn't a good deal, hahaha."
Although she was smiling, Xie Yun could still hear a hint of sadness in her tone. She consoled him, "It's better not to marry than to marry someone who's not so good. I've gotten used to life at my parents' house, and I've gained experience fighting with them. This is familiar territory, and I have to adjust my fighting style in a new environment. How tiring it is."
Wu Hongjuan smiled and said, "Binbin makes sense. You have time to carefully choose someone for yourself. Once you've chosen one, take the initiative. Nowadays, people value freedom of marriage. If you and he are attracted to each other and he is completely devoted to you, he will take the initiative to find a matchmaker and come to your house to propose marriage."
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