Chapter 32 "Stay here, and see if you can stop me..."
Adil suddenly raised his foot and kicked the mud-brick desk next to him hard.
With a crash, the adobe bricks and wooden planks collapsed, raising a cloud of choking dust.
The little girl burst into tears, and Hu Zi, Shuan Zhu, and the other boys turned pale and shrank back.
The air seemed to freeze. The midday heat rushed in through the open door, mingling with the smell of children's sweat.
Adil pointed his finger directly at Shu Ran's face, and the stigma was smeared all over her.
She didn't flinch; her back was ramrod straight, like the flagpole outside the classroom.
Looking into Adil's eyes, burning with anger, she felt a deep unease. Since becoming a teacher in her previous life, she had never been verbally abused by a student. But it wasn't really an insult, because Shu Ran saw not only anger in Shi Tou's eyes, but also heartache.
Suddenly, her heart calmed down, a kind of weary calm.
“Adil,” Shu Ran began, her voice breaking the silence of the shed. She took a step forward, trying to reassure him, “Listen to me. Ayman going to school is good.”
“Bad!” Adil shouted back in louder Chinese, his neck stiff, still pointing at her, “Water! Steal! At night... go out! Bad!” His vocabulary was limited, but his expression was blunt and hurtful.
Clearly, those rumors of "slipping his hands" and "running around at night" have already reached the yurts in the pastoral areas.
Shu Ran's heart sank. Explain? To a boy whose eyes were burning with anger and prejudice? Language was an insurmountable chasm. She could only meet his gaze, unwavering, and tell him with her eyes: That's not how it is.
Just then, a figure suddenly rushed over from the side and stood between Shu Ran and Adil.
It's a stone.
He was about the same height as Adil, but a bit thinner. He stood with his arms outstretched in front of Shu Ran, his face flushed red, shouting at Adil in a mix of Minority and Mandarin, stammering and spitting as he spoke:
"Adil! No! Hello, teacher! My dad said he didn't steal the water! Going out tonight... might be in trouble! Ayman going to school... good! Learning to read... good too!"
He struggled to organize his thoughts, sweat beading on his forehead, his fingers gesturing anxiously, "Teacher... teach... name! Work points! Recognize! Okay!"
Adil was startled by the sudden appearance of the stone and its roar. The stone's bloodshot eyes glared at him, clearly not fully understanding the chaotic explanation, but the stone's attitude enraged him. He violently swung away the stone's arm that was blocking his way, with great force, and the stone staggered, almost falling over.
"Adili!" Shu Ran called out softly, reaching out to support Shi Tou's shoulder and gently pulling him to her side. She looked at Adili, and beneath that weary calm, a sharp edge finally emerged.
We can't let the children shield her from it.
“Adili,” she spoke again, her voice much steadyer, even a little cold, “I am a teacher. I teach children to read and understand reason. I didn’t steal the water. When I went out at night,” she paused, meeting Adili’s still disbelieving gaze, and said, word by word, “I went to find water. For cleanliness. Like you, Apa, you wash your hands after milking every day.”
She used a metaphor he could understand. The anger in Adil's eyes seemed to freeze for a moment, tinged with a hint of bewilderment.
Clean? Looking for water? To wash my hands like Apa?
Just then, the sound of rapid hoofbeats rang out again outside, followed by the neighing of a horse outside the tool shed.
The sound of military boots hitting the ground rang out, and Chen Yuanjiang walked in.
He was travel-worn, his trousers and boots covered in bits of grass. Behind him followed Company Commander Ma Zhanshan, his face ashen and wearing an overcoat.
The shed fell silent again.
Chen Yuanjiang's gaze first swept over the tense Adil, lingered for a moment on his clenched fist, and then fell on Shu Ran.
She stood straight, her face somewhat pale, but her eyes were clear, meeting his gaze without flinching or pleading.
Ma Zhanshan stepped forward, glanced around, and finally fixed his gaze on Adil. He suddenly raised his voice: "Listen up! An investigation has been conducted! The nonsense about Teacher Shu Ran stealing water and behaving improperly is all fabricated and spread by that woman Zhou Qiaozhen! She's wicked! The company branch has decided to give Zhou Qiaozhen a major demerit! She's immediately transferred out of the livestock company to report to the regimental construction team! If she dares to gossip and undermine unity again, I'll deal with her! This matter will be circulated throughout the company! Anyone who dares to spread rumors will suffer the same fate as Zhou Qiaozhen!"
A major demerit! Transferred out of the company! To the construction team! Announced to the entire company!
Company Commander Ma's roar was like thunder rolling across the rooftop. Hu Zi, Shuan Zhu, and a few other boys who understood Chinese stared wide-eyed.
Shi Tou gasped sharply, his eyes widening instantly, then gleaming! He understood! Teacher Shu was innocent! The bad guy who spread rumors was severely punished! He looked at Adil excitedly, his little chest heaving, his dirty little hands clenched into fists.
Adil looked blankly at Company Commander Ma, and finally looked to Chen Yuanjiang for help. He clearly only understood a few words.
The moment Ma Zhanshan finished speaking, Chen Yuanjiang immediately turned to Adil and spoke in the local dialect that Adil was familiar with: "Listen carefully: There are rumors that Teacher Shu stole water and did bad things, but they are all false! The organization has investigated and found out! She has been given a major demerit! She has been transferred immediately to work in the hardest construction team! The whole company has been notified of the criticism! Anyone who spreads rumors again will be dealt with in the same way! Teacher Shu is innocent! She is a good teacher!"
His local dialect is very authentic.
Adil was stunned. Chen Yuanjiang's unequivocal conclusion extinguished all the anger and suspicion in his mind. Only helplessness remained on his face.
After yelling, Ma Zhanshan seemed to calm down a bit, but then waved his hand irritably, "Alright, alright! Get back to what you were doing! Teacher Shu," he turned to Shu Ran, his tone softening, "you've been wronged. Teach the kids well! If you have any difficulties, go to the company according to the rules!" After he finished speaking, he yawned and turned to leave without waiting for a response.
The shed was quiet, with only Ma Zhanshan's grumbling echoing in the distance.
Chen Yuanjiang then stepped forward. His gaze returned to Adil's face, and he continued speaking in the local dialect: "Protecting one's own lambs is a shepherd's duty. But the whip should not be lashed at those who help protect the flock. Teacher Shu Ran is someone the organization sent to teach you to read, understand principles, and see a wider world. Adil, is it right to use gossip heard in the wind as a whip?"
Adil's face flushed red, the color spreading all the way to the roots of his neck. He stubbornly held his head high, his eyes filled with embarrassment and hesitation.
Chen Yuanjiang stopped looking at him, turned to Shu Ran, and switched back to Chinese, saying, "Comrade Shu Ran."
"Officer Chen," Shu Ran replied. The words of Company Commander Ma and Chen Yuanjiang's colloquial speech had stirred up a storm of emotions within her.
"If you have any difficulties in your life, please report them according to the procedures."
Chen Yuanjiang looked at her and continued, "The company has decided that, given the heavy literacy task at Qiming Elementary School, special permission has been granted that students may use the spare hot water tap outside the boiler room of the machine repair company for one hour every Wednesday and Saturday afternoon after class, upon presentation of a slip, for personal cleaning. Get the slip from Accountant Shi."
Hot water! Stable and compliant hot water!
She pursed her lips tightly to steady her voice: "Thank you for your concern, organization! Thank you, Officer Chen!" This wasn't just water; it was the foundation upon which she could regain her footing after the ruins of rumors! She had to seize it!
Chen Yuanjiang nodded. He glanced one last time at Adil in the corner and said again in the local dialect, "Stay here and see what you're preventing your sister from learning." With that, he turned and strode away, his dark blue figure disappearing into the sunlight outside the door, leaving behind a cold and hard silhouette.
The shed was silent for a few seconds.
Adil stood rooted to the spot like a wooden stake, head bowed, ignoring everyone.
A few seconds of silence fell over the shed. The children all secretly glanced at Adil, who remained silent at the back.
Shu Ran walked to the blackboard, picked up a piece of lime, and glanced at the children, including the figure in the corner. Her voice was clear and steady:
"Classmates, we are going to learn a new word—'trust'."
She turned around and carefully wrote a large character for "letter" on the blackboard. Sunlight streamed through the gaps in the ceiling, falling on the character and creating a small halo of light.
Stone was the first to loudly repeat, "Letter—!" Hu Zi, Shuan Zhu, and Xiao Ya's voices followed in succession.
Just then, the light at the classroom door dimmed. Turdi appeared there, his face bearing a complex expression—somewhat uneasy, yet also somewhat relieved.
Behind him followed Ayman, whose eyes were still a little red and swollen, timidly tugging at her father's clothes.
Turdi's gaze swept around the shed, landing on his son Adil standing against the wall at the back, then on Shuran in front of the blackboard. His lips moved as if he wanted to say something, but in the end he just gently nudged his daughter's back.
Ayman glanced quickly at her brother, then looked rapidly at Shuran, her big eyes shining with longing once more.
Shu Ran met Tuerdi and Ayiman's gazes, a smile spreading across her face. She extended her hand to Ayiman: "Ayiman, come, sit here. We are learning the character '信' (xin, meaning 'faith')."
Ayman hesitated for a moment, glanced at her silent brother, and finally let go of her father's clothes. She took small steps and ran quickly toward the empty stool that Shu Ran was pointing to.
Turdi stood at the door, watched his daughter sit down, glanced at his son in the corner, sighed heavily, and turned to leave silently.
Shu Ran watched as Ayiman sat down, then glanced at Adil, who remained silent in the corner but whose eyes had lost their fierceness. She picked up a piece of lime and repeated clearly:
"Come on, students, repeat after me again—the letter!"
"Letter—!" The children's voices mingled together, filling the small tool shed. The character "letter" seemed even brighter in the sunlight.
Just then, Adil, who had been silent all along, suddenly moved.
He lowered his head, not looking at anyone, and walked a few steps to the center of the classroom—where the clods of earth he had kicked over the adobe desks in his rage still remained.
He squatted down and began picking up the clods of dirt on the ground without saying a word. He gathered the dirt together and piled it in the corner by the wall, then rubbed the remaining dirt marks on the ground with the back of his hand.
The sound of reading aloud in the shed gradually faded. The children all looked at him, and even the little girl forgot to read.
Shu Ran stopped explaining and looked at him quietly.
Adil picked up the last slightly larger clod of dirt and straightened up. He still didn't look up, his fingers unconsciously twisting the hem of his clothes, which were covered in mud.
He hesitated for a few seconds, then finally raised his head, his gaze passing over the other children and looking directly at Shu Ran. His eyes held an almost stubborn frankness mixed with shyness. He spoke, slowly and deliberately, in broken but clear Chinese:
"Teacher... you're bad... I said it. I was... wrong!" He managed to squeeze out an even stronger promise: "The table... I... I'll pay for it! I'll work... to return it!"
After he finished speaking, his shoulders immediately relaxed, and as if afraid of hearing any response, he quickly lowered his head, walked back to the shadows in the corner, and stood there with his ears turning bright red.
Looking at the boy standing in the shadows, Shu Ran's lingering resentment suddenly dissipated.
She didn't immediately say anything to forgive him, which might have made him even more uncomfortable.
“Adili,” Shu Ran said calmly, looking at the boy in the corner, “Come here.”
Adil looked up, his eyes filled with confusion.
Shu Ran pointed to the mud brick, then to Ayman, who was looking at her brother with concern: "Sit here. Learn from your sister."
The shed became even quieter.
Adil looked at his sister Ayman's expectant and encouraging eyes, then at Shu Ran's calm and persistent gaze. A struggle between stubbornness and shyness flickered across his face.
Shu Ran didn't urge him any further, quietly looking at him with an inviting gaze, patiently waiting.
After a few seconds of silence, Adil finally moved. He walked to the desk with his head down, and awkwardly kicked the bottom of the adobe brick, as if trying to make it more stable. Then he sat down on the low stool.
Ayman immediately moved closer to her brother, a relieved smile spreading across her face.
Shu Ran's lips curved into a smile. She picked up the lime and tapped the blackboard again, the sound clearer than before.
“Okay, let’s continue. Stone pronounced it very well just now, ‘faith,’ the ‘faith’ of belief.”
She deliberately slowed her speech, her gaze sweeping over all the children: "A few days ago, some bad people spread rumors that teachers did bad things. Did you believe those words?"
Stone immediately shouted, "No! It's fake!"
The other children joined in, shouting, "It's fake! We don't believe it!"
Shu Ran nodded: "That's right! Those were lies, and they can't be believed! The organization investigated and punished the people who spread the rumors, clearing the teacher's name. This tells everyone that true 'belief' can withstand scrutiny."
She speaks slowly, making sure that every child, especially Adil, understands the core meaning.
Adil kept his head down, but Shu Ran noticed that his clenched fist loosened.
Shu Ran walked over to Adil, not looking at him, but pointing to the character "hand" that Ayman had crookedly written on scrap paper yesterday, which Shu Ran had helped her paste on the side of the adobe table. She said, "Ayman has learned to write 'hand,' this is her working hand. Just now," her voice softened, "Adil also used his own hands to clean up the classroom he had messed up, admitted his mistake, and said he would compensate and make amends by doing chores. He said it, and he's prepared to do it. He's showing everyone through his actions that when he said 'I was wrong,' he meant it with 'trust'!"
Adil suddenly looked up, staring at Shu Ran in disbelief. She...she actually called his apology and promise just now...a "trust"? His face burned even hotter, and he felt a bewildered and trembling sensation as if struck by a warm current.
Shu Ran walked back to the podium and said firmly, "Trust is gold. Speaking the truth, doing practical things, admitting mistakes, and correcting them—that's called integrity. Only people like that can be trusted by others. I hope you will all be people of integrity. Adil, would you like to learn to be a person of integrity with everyone?"
Adil's heart felt as if it had been struck heavily. He looked into Shu Ran's eyes, which held sincere expectation; there was no blame in her gaze, only a power that could encompass everything.
All eyes in the shed were on him. Ayman gently shook his arm, whispering words of encouragement in the local language.
Adil's lips moved, his throat tightened. He looked at the large "letter" on the blackboard and nodded firmly.
"Okay!" Shu Ran's voice was filled with relief; she didn't overemphasize the moment.
"Then let's continue learning the character '信' (xìn). The left side is '人' (rén, person), and the right side is '言' (yán, speech). What a person says should be—"
"Trustworthy!" Stone shouted, and the other children echoed, "Keep your word!"
Adil sat upright and straight. Sunlight danced on the words and fell on his sharply defined profile, as if a stone called "faith" had truly settled in his heart.
Shu Ran stood in that beam of light, her spine ramrod straight. The saline soil beneath her feet was still hard and barren, but at this moment she felt that her roots had grown an inch deeper.
The rumors were shattered, the stigma washed away. And that most stubborn block of ice was quietly pried open. Her next task is to ensure that this foundation is built ever stronger in the hearts of every child.
After class, the children rushed out of the tool shed, chattering excitedly. Shi Tou and a still somewhat dazed Adil walked side by side, gesturing and saying something in their broken Minnan dialect. Adil would occasionally utter a word or two in Chinese, as if he were learning Chinese.
Ayman followed closely behind her brother on the other side, a relaxed smile finally appearing on her little face.
Shu Ran stood at the entrance of the shed, watching the small shadows cast on the whitish dirt road, and let out a long breath.
She gathered up the lime blocks and several scrap reports covered with crookedly written "letter" characters, locked the broken door, and headed towards the cafeteria.
The canteen was still filled with the familiar aroma of oily food. A cacophony of voices filled the air as employees and their families, bowls in hand, crowded around long wooden tables, engrossed in their meals.
Shu Ran got her food—today it was carrot pilaf, with glistening rice grains mixed with bits of mutton.
She found an empty seat in a corner and sat down, eating in small bites with a spoon.
Just then, out of the corner of my eye, I caught a glimpse of a familiar figure carrying a lunchbox walking past.
It's Zhou Wenbin.
He seemed thinner, with dark circles under his eyes behind his glasses. He stared straight ahead, as if he hadn't seen Shu Ran at all, brushing past her table, even quickening his pace slightly, and sat down at a table full of male educated youth at the other end of the canteen, his back to her. A heated debate about "tractor modification" erupted at that table, and Zhou Wenbin immediately joined in, his voice rising with a deliberate excitement.
Shu Ran withdrew her gaze, her face expressionless. This is for the best. Peace and quiet.
She had just swallowed the mutton in her mouth when a figure sat down opposite her with a lunchbox. It was Xu Junjun.
"You must be exhausted?" Xu Junjun didn't stand on ceremony and directly scooped a few pieces of mutton from her lunchbox into Shu Ran's bowl without saying a word. "Look at your face, it's as pale as that door. Hurry up and eat something good."
Shu Ran didn't refuse, thanked her, and looking into Xu Junjun's bright eyes, knew that she must have something to say.
Sure enough, Xu Junjun leaned closer, lowered her voice, and said with a hint of mysterious excitement, "Hey, Ranran, guess what? This afternoon, Officer Chen rode off to the pastoral area again!"
Shu Ran paused in her chewing and looked up at her.
“It’s not about Adil,” Xu Junjun waved her hand. “Isn’t that matter over? I heard it’s a serious mission! The division issued a notice to speed up the construction of literacy points in pastoral areas, especially the grazing areas around our company.”
She tapped the table with her chopsticks. "Officer Chen personally led the team, along with two other officers and the company's propagandist, to meet with the elders and chieftains of several herding villages to do their work!"
Shu Ran slowly swallowed the steamed bun in her mouth. Promoting literacy? That's a good thing. But why is Chen Yuanjiang, a special envoy from the security department, getting involved in this? She thought of his deep-set eyes.
Xu Junjun seemed to see through her doubts and explained, "I guess this literacy campaign is just a pretext. Who knows... it might be related to what happened when we ran into him that night!"
Shu Ran's heart skipped a beat. Beside the spring, the terrifying sound of horses' hooves, the smell of gunpowder... and his stern warning.
Xu Junjun glanced around warily before continuing in a low voice, "You forgot? That night he was covered in dust, and the stains on his trousers and boots weren't just mud; they looked like... he'd been burned! And there was a smell, a faint one, like the smell of gunpowder after setting off firecrackers during the New Year! Today, Old Zhang from logistics came to the clinic to get iodine and casually mentioned to me that a few nights ago, the patrol team near the old wind gap to the north seemed to have heard gunshots! They said... they were shooting wolves? Hmph, I don't think it's that simple! It's probably just bad guys sneaking in!"
Her eyes held a hint of lingering fear, mixed with a gossipy excitement. "Officer Chen and his men are in security; they have a keen sense of smell! With the literacy centers expanding, and more of our people and literate children, won't there be more informants in those nooks and crannies? How will bad guys hide then?"
Shu Ran's fingers tightened slightly as she gripped the spoon. Wolf hunting? Enemy agents? The image of Chen Yuanjiang's cold, silent profile flashed through her mind, along with the cloth covering he always wore around his waist.
Xu Junjun's speculation stirred up ripples of unease in her heart. No wonder he was so strict about going out late at night, no wonder he always carried the air of someone who had been through a long and arduous journey.
“So,” Xu Junjun concluded, scooping up a spoonful of rice, “when we ran into him that night, he was probably just finished with something, or he was chasing after a lead! We were just unlucky enough to walk right into his trap, and luckily we weren’t arrested as suspects! Ugh, just thinking about it sends chills down my spine.” She exaggeratedly shrank her neck.
Shu Ran didn't speak, but picked up the bowl and ate the last bit of pilaf. The night in the Gobi Desert was darker and deeper than she had imagined.
“Oh, right,” Xu Junjun said, her tone lightening as if she had just remembered something, “Did you get the hot water slip? I’m free Wednesday afternoon, want to go to the machine repair unit with you? I heard there’s a huge pile of coal ash next to the boiler room, the smell is awful, it’ll be good for two people to keep you safe.”
Shu Ran nodded: "Okay, let's shower together."
Hot water was a real comfort. She needed this warmth to dispel the chill that the rumors had stirred in her heart.
The cafeteria was gradually emptying out. The chubby cook at the window started clattering away at the metal basins.
Xu Junjun finished eating, picked up her bowl and stood up: "I'm leaving, I still need to take Li Dazhuang's blood pressure. You should go back and rest early, look at your dark circles."
Shu Ran responded and watched Xu Junjun leave in a hurry.
The wind blowing at the cafeteria entrance felt sticky on her face. She stretched out her finger and gently traced the character "信" (xin, meaning letter) on the damp table.
A moment later, Shu Ran came out of the cafeteria and unconsciously paused in her steps.
At the entrance of the canteen, groups of employees' families were squatting and eating, and several women were huddled together talking quietly. When they saw Shu Ran come out, they paused and turned their gazes toward her.
The scrutiny was no longer tinged with suspicion and distance, but rather with a hint of awkwardness and even a touch of ingratiating smiles. A young woman holding a child even gave her an unnatural grin as a greeting.
Shu Ran nodded slightly in response. She knew that Company Commander Ma's thunderous speech in the classroom, Chen Yuanjiang's Minnan dialect, and the news that Zhou Qiaozhen had been transferred to the construction team had spread like wildfire throughout the company.
She didn't rush to leave, her gaze lingering on the distance. The sparse tamarisk grove at the western end of the company looked wilted under the intense midday sun. The spring that had once been her and Xu Junjun's lifeline must be seeping water even more slowly now, right? Perhaps it would be completely dry by tomorrow. However, Wednesday afternoon, the hot water tap outside the boiler room of the machine repair company… Chen Yuanjiang's words resurfaced clearly in her mind.
She hadn't received the note yet, but that promise made her feel much more grounded.
Back in the dugout, the door was ajar. Pushing it open, a faint musty smell hit me, yet it brought a sense of relief.
"You're back?" Sister Wang was sitting on her bunk, mending an old jacket by the light from the doorway. The needle and thread flew quickly between her rough fingers. She looked up, a smile on her face. "Company Commander Ma's loud voice could be heard from half a mile away! That's great! That troublemaker Zhou Qiaozhen should have been kicked out long ago!"
Li Xiulan was carefully wiping the broken wooden table that the three of them shared with a damp cloth when she heard this. She looked up, her round eyes sparkling, and whispered in agreement, "Yes, it's quiet now. Teacher Shu, are you... alright?" Her gaze fell on Shu Ran's still somewhat pale face, filled with concern.
"It's alright now," Shu Ran put the lunchbox on the table and smiled. "The rumors have been debunked, which is more effective than taking medicine."
She looked around the small dugout. Without Zhou Qiaozhen's always resentful figure, even the air seemed less stuffy.
"The children won't be coming to class this afternoon, will they?" She remembered that she had arranged for the children to help with some light chores around the house this afternoon.
"No, no!" Sister Wang put down her needlework, slapped her thigh, and exclaimed, "Perfect! None of the three of us have anything important to do this afternoon! The bad luck is over, we should celebrate! Let's have a good meal!"
Li Xiulan's eyes lit up with excitement: "Yes! Teacher Shu, you have a lot of votes! Sister Wang, can you use your little shed? I... I can get a few pieces of crushed tofu scraps this afternoon, it's no big deal, it's not stealing!" She hurriedly added, afraid of being misunderstood.
Shu Ran felt a warmth in her heart. In this era of extreme scarcity, "having a good meal" is the most genuine way to celebrate, and it is also the most sincere sentiment from her roommates.
“Okay!” she answered readily. “I’ll go to the company headquarters first to get a receipt from Accountant Shi, and then I’ll go to the supply and marketing cooperative to see what I can buy.”
In the afternoon, Shu Ran took the cloth bag and went to the accounting office next to the company headquarters.
Accountant Shi, wearing arm sleeves, was rapidly calculating on his abacus. Seeing Shu Ran enter, he looked up, his face showing understanding and politeness—clearly, news of Company Commander Ma's outburst and its aftermath had already spread.
"Teacher Shu? Is something the matter?" Accountant Shi put down his pen.
“Accountant Shi,” Shu Ran repeated Chen Yuanjiang’s notice, “Officer Chen said that I should come to you to get a slip for using the hot water tap in the machine repair shop.”
"Oh, about that!" Accountant Shi nodded, took out a small notebook from the drawer, opened it, and picked up a dip pen. "Officer Chen already spoke to me. Wednesday and Saturday afternoons, right?" As he asked, he neatly wrote down the date, time, location, and user's name in the notebook, finally stamping it with a clear blue seal. He tore off the slip of paper and handed it to Shu Ran.
"Here you are, Ms. Shu. Be on time. There are people keeping records over there in the machine repair company," Accountant Shi instructed.
"Thank you, Accountant Shi!" Shu Ran took the thin piece of paper, carefully folded it, and put it into her inner pocket.
The supply and marketing cooperative was not far from the accounting office, so Shu Ran pushed open the door and went in.
An elderly sales clerk sat dozing behind the counter. Shu Ran showed her teacher quota book and some accumulated vouchers.
"Comrade, what would you like?" The old sales clerk lifted his eyelids slightly.
"Do you have any meat? Fatty pork is fine too. And any oil? Rapeseed oil or cottonseed oil is fine," Shu Ran asked.
The old salesman slowly got up, rummaged through a bamboo basket covered with gauze behind him, pulled out a palm-sized piece of dark red stuff, and tossed it onto the greasy cutting board: "That's all the dried cured meat I have left. It was brought over from the regiment headquarters the other day. Lots of tendons and bits. Want some? Oil... I still have half a pound of cottonseed oil." He then pointed to an open jar next to him, "Coarse salt, plenty."
The cured pork was as hard as wood, dark black in color, and crisscrossed with veins. The cottonseed oil was cloudy and had a raw, astringent taste. But that's what makes it good.
"I'll take them all." Shu Ran handed over the money and coupons. She also bought some coarse salt, and after thinking for a moment, she used a few grain coupons to exchange for a small packet of precious white sugar—just for seasoning.
After leaving the supply and marketing cooperative, Shu Ran didn't go straight back to the dormitory, but instead turned into the wild fields on the edge of the company. The Gobi Desert wasn't completely desolate; clinging to the ground, wild vegetables like lamb's quarters, broom grass, and some unidentifiable wild greens grew tenaciously.
She crouched down and carefully dug with a small stick, avoiding those that were obviously dry and yellow. In no time, she had picked a whole cloth bag full of tender tips.
Back in the dormitory, Sister Wang and Li Xiulan were already prepared. Sister Wang was carrying a chipped earthenware pot, while Li Xiulan was carefully holding several irregularly shaped, slightly yellowed pieces of tofu, placed on a damp cloth.
"Let's go! To my little shed!" Sister Wang called out enthusiastically.
The "cooking shed" that Sister Wang mentioned was actually a row of extremely simple mud-brick sheds that the company had built uniformly on the outskirts of the dormitory area. The roofs were haphazardly covered with some red willow branches and old tarpaulins, barely enough to provide shade and shelter from the rain.
Each household was given a small compartment, or several single employees shared a small compartment, with a clay stove built inside, which served as the kitchen.
Sister Wang quickly started a fire using withered red willow branches and camel thorns they usually collected. Li Xiulan carefully cut the tofu scraps into small pieces. Shu Ran carefully washed the wild vegetables several times to remove the sand and saltiness.
The earthenware pot was placed over the fire, and Sister Wang carefully used chopsticks to pick up a small piece of solidified cottonseed oil and slide it to the bottom of the pot. The oil sizzled as it heated up, and a not-so-pleasant but enticing aroma wafted out.
In those days, people didn't have much oil or fat in their diet, so this was considered a very good delicacy.
"Teacher Shu, give me that dried cured pork." Sister Wang took the dried cured pork from Shu Ran, placed it on the cutting board, pounded it hard with the back of a knife, and then cut it into extremely thin, tiny cubes. There were too many tendons; she could only extract a little flavor from it.
When the diced pecans are added to the pan, they release an even stronger aroma in the hot oil, and their color darkens.
The wild vegetables were poured in and quickly stir-fried. The vibrant green leaves wilted and softened rapidly, becoming coated with oil. Li Xiulan carefully added the tofu cubes and a small half-ladle of water. Sister Wang sprinkled in a pinch of coarse salt, then, after a moment's thought, pinched a small pinch of the white sugar Shu Ran had bought, her fingertips trembling so that only a tiny bit fell out.
"To enhance the flavor!" she explained.
The earthenware pot was covered, and a small fire simmered. The three people sat around the stove. The shed was filled with the fresh scent of wild vegetables, the beany aroma of tofu, the salty fragrance of dried cured meat, and the mingled smells of firewood smoke.
Shu Ran knew this was the true essence of everyday life. This taste soothed her heart more than any delicacy she could remember.
"Teacher Shu," Li Xiulan said softly as she added a thin piece of firewood to the stove, "Now things are great. So many people in the company are praising you. They say you're not spoiled, you're capable, and you have a kind heart. Li Dazhuang's family tells everyone that you're Dazhuang's savior. I bet in a few days, more kids will be coming to enroll!"
Sister Wang stirred the soup in the pot with a spoon and nodded: "That makes sense! It's a good thing to have more children, but your shed, with its tables and benches... it's too shabby. Although Adil admitted his mistake and wanted to make amends, at his age, what kind of heavy work can he do? Expecting him to make tables is like asking for the moon!"
Shu Ran watched the white steam rising from the jar, pondering the matter in her mind. It wasn't a long-term solution for the older kids, like Shi Tou, to cram their writing onto a long bench.
"After we finish eating, shall we go take a look around the warehouse? See if there are any discarded wooden planks or anything. I'd like to get a few more low benches, and preferably... a decent lectern." She thought of her own lectern made of adobe bricks, where she always had to be very careful when putting things on it.
"Great!" Sister Wang slapped her thigh. "The old storekeeper can always find something usable in the scrap heap! I know Xiao Zhang from the machine repair team; borrowing an old saw and axe should work!"
The soup in the earthenware pot was bubbling, the tofu had developed small holes from stewing, the wild vegetables were soft and tender, and the salty and savory flavor of the diced cured meat had completely infused into the soup. Sister Wang lifted the lid, and a rich steam wafted out. She ladled a large bowl full for everyone.
The wild vegetable and tofu soup was thick and garnished with dark-colored diced cured meat. It didn't look very appealing, but on this afternoon in the Gobi Desert, it was a rare treat. Sister Wang then took out a few cornbread pancakes mixed with wild vegetables and shared them with everyone.
The three of them squatted in the shade outside the shed, holding bowls, slurping down hot soup and munching on coarse flatbread. Sweat streamed down their foreheads.
"Wow, they put sugar in this soup? It's so delicious!" Li Xiulan sipped the soup, her eyes shining.
"It's just a tiny bit, but Sister Wang's cooking is still the best." Shu Ran smiled, feeling extremely comfortable in her stomach. This meal was a taste of peace after surviving a disaster, of friendship, and of hope.
After finishing their meal and cleaning up the earthenware pots and bowls, the three headed straight for the scrap heap behind the company warehouse. Just as Sister Wang had said, it was piled high with all sorts of junk: broken plowshares, rusted sheet metal, bent steel bars, and some planks and timbers of varying lengths and crooked shapes, most of which were riddled with wormholes or blackened by rainwater.
The old storekeeper, with his pipe dangling from his lips, didn't even lift his eyelids: "Search for it yourself, take what you can use, just don't block the way."
They rummaged through the scrap heap like treasure hunters. Shu Ran, with her sharp eyes, spotted several pine planks that were thick enough and long enough; although the edges were somewhat rotten, the middle parts were still usable. Sister Wang dragged out two relatively straight pieces of wood, weighing them to see if they could be used as legs. Li Xiulan found several shorter, thick planks that could be used as stool seats.
Sister Wang went to find Xiao Zhang from the mechanics team, and soon borrowed a chipped old handsaw, a dull axe, and a few rusty iron nails.
It was too stuffy in the tool shed, so they started working on a slightly flatter open space behind the warehouse. The clanging and banging of tools filled the air. Sister Wang, being strong, was in charge of sawing timber to make stool legs. Shu Ran and Li Xiulan used axes to chop and trim the edges of the planks, trying to make them as smooth as possible.
The afternoon sun in the Gobi Desert was still scorching, making their scalps burn. Sweat quickly soaked through their clothes, mixing with sawdust and sticking to their faces and necks, causing a stinging and itchy sensation.
Li Xiulan's hand was pricked by a splinter, and she hissed in pain as blood gushed out.
Shu Ran immediately put down the axe and took out a small piece of clean gauze and mercurochrome that she had prepared in advance from her pocket.
"Bear with it." Shu Ran gently pulled out the splinter from her fingers, applied some mercurochrome, and then wrapped it with gauze. Li Xiulan looked at Shu Ran's focused profile, her eyes a little red, and whispered, "Teacher Shu, you're so kind."
"You helped me with the work and you still say I'm good? I should be the one saying you're good!" Shu Ran smiled and stuffed the remaining red medicine back into her pocket. "Thank you, Xiulan."
After more than two hours of hammering and tinkering, two crooked but sturdy low benches were born. The bench seats were made of spliced wooden planks, and the legs were made of thick wooden blocks, nailed together crookedly, but they were still quite stable after being shaken vigorously. Finally, they worked together to use the remaining wood to assemble a slightly taller lectern with a slightly larger tabletop.
The tabletop was uneven, and one leg was longer than the other; a stone had to be placed underneath to make it barely level.
"It's done! It's a bit ugly, but it's better than mud bricks!" Sister Wang wiped the sweat from her face, looked at their work, and grinned with satisfaction.
The three of them worked together to carry the newly made bench and lectern back to the tool shed. The shed was still stuffy, but looking at these new creations, the space felt much more organized.
Shu Ran walked to the old mud-brick lectern, preparing to move the things on it to the new lectern. She bent down and reached into the gap between the mud bricks—the place where the silk pajamas were hidden.
Her fingers touched the smooth silk. She pulled it out. The vibrant peach color was still eye-catching in the dim shed, and the delicate lace edges were stained with a little dust.
"Oh! It's really here!" Li Xiulan exclaimed softly, quickly came over to take a look, and then nervously looked back at the door.
Sister Wang also came over, touched the smooth material, and clicked her tongue: "This material... is really the root of trouble! Luckily you were clever enough to hide it here! If it had been found that night..." She didn't finish her sentence, but everyone understood what she meant.
"This thing... can't be kept." Sister Wang's tone was firm, her eyes filled with the warning of someone who's been through it all. "This time you were lucky, but what about next time? Who knows when it might become a weapon again. Burn it! Burn it cleanly, scatter the ashes everywhere, that'll save you the most trouble!"
Burned? Shu Ran's fingers tightened, the smooth silk against her palms. She remembered that brightly lit night before she transmigrated; she was wearing this very nightgown when she opened her eyes and found herself here. At that time, she felt it was her only connection to modern life.
Now, Shu Ran looked at the pajamas in her hands. Touching them now, they felt burning hot.
She remained silent for a few seconds, her eyes gradually becoming calm.
"Okay." She crumpled her pajamas into a ball and stuffed them into the old cloth bag she carried with her. "Listen to your older sister, burn it."
The golden rays of the setting sun spilled across the Gobi Desert, edging the undulating dunes and sparse tamarisk bushes with gold. A breeze blew by, carrying the lingering warmth of the day and the distant bleating of sheep returning to their pens.
At the entrance of the tool shed, Shu Ran, Sister Wang, and Li Xiulan squatted on the ground. In a small pit, the bright pink halter-neck nightgown was on fire. Flames, carrying the silk, crackled softly as the nightgown quickly curled up, turned black, and soon became a charred mess.
The firelight reflected on Shu Ran's face. Only a small clump of embers remained at the bottom of the pit.
Sister Wang used her foot to shovel some soil, completely burying and compacting the ashes. She patted the dirt off her hands, "Alright, now it's clean!"
Li Xiulan also breathed a sigh of relief and whispered, "It's good that it's burned, it's good that it's burned..."
Shu Ran stood up and brushed the dirt off her pants. The last lingering connection to the past turned to ashes in the evening wind of the Gobi Desert.
She turned to look at the crooked new tables and chairs in the tool shed, and the flagpole standing quietly.
The road ahead will inevitably be filled with trials and tribulations, but at this moment, she felt an unprecedented sense of security. The rumors were shattered, the stigma was cleared, her relationship with Adil had thawed, and even this dilapidated classroom finally looked presentable.
"Come on, go back and rest! We still have to teach the kids tomorrow!" Sister Wang called out.
The three walked back side by side, their steps light and easy.
They hadn't gone far when the sound of rapid hoofbeats grew louder. A figure in a dark blue uniform was seen galloping from the direction of the company headquarters, heading straight for the dirt road leading to the pastoral area. It was Chen Yuanjiang.
He rode very fast, his horse kicking up a trail of dust. As he passed them, he didn't slow down, his sharp gaze sweeping over the three of them, pausing briefly on Shu Ran's face before looking ahead at the Gobi Desert.
Chen Yuanjiang's figure quickly disappeared at the end of the dirt road.
Sister Wang and Li Xiulan obviously didn't see anything special, they just looked at Yang Chen and muttered, "Where is Officer Chen going again? He's in such a hurry."
Shu Ran frowned as she looked in the direction where Chen Yuanjiang had disappeared.
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Author's Note: [Sprinkling flowers] Thank you all for your continued support, and I hope you'll continue to support the official version!
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