Chapter 61: Things to be careful about recently
"We understand, thank you for reminding us. You can go ahead now, but don't get too close to us." Ning Xuan told Jiang Xiaohong to leave first, and she regretted it a little; she should have found a more secluded place earlier.
Jiang Xiaohong knew Ning Xuan meant well, so after hesitating for a moment, she asked softly, "May I ask your name?"
Without much thought, Ning Xuan casually answered with her name, "My name is Ning Xuan, Ning as in peace and tranquility, and Xuan as in daylily."
Jiang Xiaohong silently recited the two words in her heart, thinking that her benefactor's name was really nice. Today, she had resolved the matter that had troubled her for many days, and coincidentally, she had met her benefactor. Although they were unable to recognize each other, Jiang Xiaohong was still very happy and felt much more relaxed.
After saying goodbye to Ning Xuan, she returned to the department store. She happened to be off today and wanted to buy some things before going back to her dormitory.
After Jiang Xiaohong left, Ning Xuan and Xu Jiajia didn't discuss what they had just heard. Instead, they continued to go find Lu Xun and the others according to their original plan.
They don't plan to cook for themselves today. They'll have lunch at a state-run restaurant and then pack some food to take home for dinner.
Because the state-run restaurant was crowded with people, it wasn't convenient to talk, so the group didn't chat and went back to their brigade after finishing their meal.
Once back in the courtyard, Ning Xuan recounted the day's events to Lu Xun and Zhou Zhipeng.
"That's how it is. I heard that Zhang Qiang's aunt is very good to Zhang Youde and Zhang Qiang and his sister. I guess it was someone from her side who came to inquire. They might take it out on us and it could be bad for us, especially Jiajia." Ning Xuan finished speaking and gave a brief summary.
Zhou Zhipeng reminded her with a worried look, "Jiajia, you and Ningxuan shouldn't go out alone during this time. If you have to go out, remember to call us to come with you."
Lu Xun also felt that the two girls needed to be more careful.
Ning Xuan reminded Lu Xun and Zhou Zhipeng, "It's not just us, it's the same for you two. From now on, we'll be working at the brigade, so you shouldn't go to the black market anymore. We don't need money right now, so safety should be our top priority."
Just tell me what you need, and I'll try to get it for you.
Lu Xun did not refuse.
To their surprise, the other party acted so quickly and was not easy to deal with.
Spring plowing has begun, and Ning Xuan and her colleagues are back to working from dawn till dusk.
Then the next day, they suddenly said that a commune leader was coming to inspect, and it was said to be the new commune secretary, because the previous secretary had been transferred at the end of last year.
When Ning Xuan saw the group of leaders, she realized that they were here for them, because she actually saw Gou Sheng, Zhang Qiang's lackey, in the crowd.
Zhou Jianguo was also a bit overwhelmed. Spring plowing was a busy time, but he still had to accompany his superiors.
He Wei is the newly transferred secretary of Xiangyang Commune. This inspection is probably just the legendary "new broom sweeps clean" approach of a new official.
Zhou Jianguo hopes this fire won't spread recklessly.
Just as he was thinking this, He Wei suddenly stopped, pointed at Xu Jiajia and the others, and asked Zhou Jianguo, "These people knew about this, right?"
Zhou Jianguo answered yes.
He Wei shook his head. "This won't do. The reason why educated youth went to the countryside was to receive education and training. How can they work so slowly? This attitude is unacceptable!"
Zhou Jianguo wanted to explain a few words for Ning Xuan and the others, but before he could speak, He Wei asked again, "Can't we give the newly arrived educated youth some time to adapt? Are they new here?"
Zhou Jianguo answered honestly, "I've been here for less than a year."
He Wei wasn't satisfied with the answer he wanted, but he had already found out about Xu Jiajia and the others, so he tried to find a solution himself.
“You can’t just look at the time. They’ve been through the double harvest season, right? If they have experience, then they’re not like the new educated youth. Their work speed and attitude are both unacceptable.”
He Wei also found out that Gu Yunze and He Qiaofang were newly arrived educated youths from Beijing, and seemed to have a powerful background.
Although he wanted to teach Xu Jiajia and the others a lesson on behalf of Zhang Yufen, he didn't want to offend others and cause unnecessary trouble. So He Wei deliberately only used Xu Jiajia and the others as examples, and was more lenient towards the other educated youth.
After making up the mistakes, He Wei pointed to Xu Jiajia, Ning Xuan, Lu Xun, and Zhou Zhipeng, and said to Zhou Jianguo, "These educated youths have a bad attitude towards work. Call them over here."
Helpless, Zhou Jianguo called Ning Xuan and the others over.
When the others saw Ning Xuan and the others being called over by their superiors, they all secretly paid attention to what was happening.
Those who were nearby already knew that the leader was going to give Ning Xuan and the others a talking-to.
As Ning Xuan and the others approached, He Wei immediately began to lecture them, saying things like, "Your attitude is wrong. You need to understand that the purpose of going to the countryside is to receive education, not to enjoy yourself."
And ladies, don't make excuses. Women hold up half the sky; you should work just like the men!
Finally, the education plan was finalized.
"You are no longer considered new educated youth, so you must have the right attitude towards work. These two men are tall and strong, so you must earn the full work points every day. The two women are not required to earn the full work points, but they must earn at least 8 work points every day."
I've been making time to inspect these past few days. Even when I'm busy, I'll arrange for someone to come and check. If you continue with this attitude, then you'll have to be made an example of and dragged out for a public shaming."
The moment the words "PI Dou" were uttered, even Zhou Jianguo's expression changed. This was far too serious; he was already planning to ask the scorekeeper to go easy on him.
However, He Wei was clearly wary of Zhou Jianguo protecting Ning Xuan and the others, so he set a rule: "In order to make it easier for everyone to supervise, the four of them must clearly divide up the work each day to meet my work point requirements."
He Wei's idea was that every day when work started, Ning Xuan would be given a certain amount of work. For example, if Lu Xun needed to complete 10 work points, he would be given a corresponding plot of land, which he would have to finish that plot of land that day. The same applied to Ning Xuan and the others.
This is to prevent Ning Xuan and her group from cheating, or Zhou Jianguo and his group from letting them win.
Ning Xuan was so angry she almost laughed. They were just being so blatantly sneaky, weren't they?
She's fine with getting all the work points, but she really dislikes being forced to work like this, and if she shows off her competence, she won't attract much attention.
However, Ning Xuan suddenly realized that, given the current situation, it was obvious to anyone with eyes that they were not favored by the commune leaders, so they would usually stay away from them.
He Wei left Gou Sheng behind to supervise Ning Xuan and the others. Gou Sheng was originally working for Zhang Qiang and the G Committee, but now He Wei had given him a special assignment.
Those who still remembered Gou Sheng guessed that Ning Xuan and the others were being targeted.
Ning Xuan didn't want to be watched and do so much work every day. She was thinking about how to reasonably get He Wei to retract his previous decision without arousing suspicion.
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