Chapter 8 008 Courtyard No. 2
Since their private conversation on Sunday, Gao Xiaofang has reverted to her usual attitude towards her, as if they had never discussed separate rooms or He Shuangshuang that day.
No one was specifically targeting her anymore, trying to introduce her to potential partners, since she wasn't the only one who had been allocated housing. Moreover, someone had spread the word, claiming it was from inside the housing management department, that there weren't many workers left in the factory, and that getting married early before the next large-scale recruitment drive would allow her to get housing sooner.
As a result, the unmarried and childbearing-age employees in the factory became the focus of attention.
As for Comrade Xiao Guan from the factory office? There's been a lot of discussion about him privately.
"Who doesn't know that having a house is the safest thing for Comrade Guan? But don't you even look at how old he is?"
"I asked around, she's almost nineteen in real age and in her early twenties by the traditional Chinese age reckoning. Eighteen is a good age to get a marriage certificate!" She glanced around discreetly, then whispered, covering her mouth, "I've inquired, and Xiao Guan's family is very open-minded. She saves all her wages after she started working. Think about it..."
She twirled her fingers, implying: "Think about it, she's been a full-time employee for three years, she must have saved up several hundred."
The person who had just spoken was rolled their eyes at, "You think you're the most calculating? Xiao Guan is well-off, but how well-off can you find someone? You're hoping for someone else's house and money, but you probably won't even be able to step through their door."
Although everyone wants to climb higher, whether it's getting a wife or getting married, who doesn't want to find someone with good conditions? But can dreams and fantasies be the same thing?
People should be down-to-earth, or they'll end up with nothing!
The older woman was clear-headed and thought it best to ask other women in similar circumstances.
Guan Yuehe had been watched like a big piece of fat meat for several days, but now that her normal life has returned, she is rushing to the cafeteria again at mealtimes.
This has encouraged many workers to exercise by jogging during their spare time.
Xie Dongxue looked listless today, like a wilted cabbage in winter.
"Is it still about organizing a social event?"
Comrade Xie Dongxue was a union officer, and like her, she had been transferred from the production workshop. However, her situation was somewhat different from Xie Dongxue's.
The factory was poised for a major upgrade, and various departments were short-staffed. The leadership decided to first select workers from within the factory, and only recruit externally if necessary. People like her and Xie Dongxue, who had high school diplomas, were transferred out.
Xie Dongxue was eager to join the trade union, and she got her wish. However, she really wanted to be a warehouse registrar, but she wasn't selected and was eventually transferred to the factory office after considering all factors.
Ever since she joined the Zhuoyue Garment Factory, she had always dreamed of becoming a warehouse registrar.
Xie Dongxue tugged at her short ponytail, "Let me finish speaking before you sigh!"
"Oh, okay, go ahead and tell me." To show that she was serious, Guan Yuehe poked the steamed bun with her chopsticks but didn't put it in her mouth.
"Originally, we had already arranged with the Wuxing Automobile Factory's union to hold the event in our factory canteen. But today they told us it wouldn't work. The daily chemical factory is also having a joint event with Wuxing Automobile Factory, so we might as well go to the automobile factory. Their auditorium is big and can hold over a thousand people."
Guan Yuehe recalled the auditorium of the Five Star Automobile Factory and nodded. The auditorium of the Five Star Automobile Factory was indeed spacious. When she was a child, she often went to the auditorium with her family to watch performances, movies, and meetings...
But Xie Dongxue was angry, so she wisely didn't wipe her mouth and interrupt.
"So what if their auditorium is big?! Why didn't they tell us earlier that a daily chemical factory was coming to a social gathering?! If they had told us earlier, would we have been scrambling to be the host? The supplies and manpower were all arranged, and the event was supposed to be this Sunday. What day is it today? Wednesday! And they only just came to tell us!"
At this moment, Xie Dongxue had transformed from a wilted cabbage into a blazing firecracker.
"That's not all! Their union liaison officer even tried to shirk responsibility, saying he had communicated the situation to me beforehand, but I misunderstood! Ah! After the social event is over, I'll find a chance to tear his mouth apart!"
No wonder Xie Dongxue was so angry; she was tricked by an irresponsible person and probably even got criticized by her superiors.
If it were her, she would probably be even angrier, and might go home after get off work to find someone to help her.
"Don't be angry. Wait until I get home and find someone to help you find out about that person. You tear his mouth open, and I'll help you put a sack over it."
"Pfft!" Xie Dongxue's anger vanished instantly, and she slapped her arm, both angry and amused. "You think you can put a sack over your head? All you can do is run!"
Guan Yuehe laughed, "If you can't beat them, you have to run! Here, I'll share a piece of the meat I caught today with you."
"You're so stingy! You only picked out the smallest piece? Give me a little more..."
After finishing her meal, Xie Dongxue was full of energy and ready to get back to work.
"Come help out on Sunday too."
"Got it!" Her current status as a factory office worker is: to move wherever there is a need.
On her way back to the office, she passed the purchasing department and ran past it like a thief.
She wanted to ask Gu Mannian about the furniture, but she didn't know how to bring up the fact that her sister was dating.
The main problem is that she hasn't seen Gu Mannian this week, and she doesn't know if he's gone to the countryside to buy agricultural products again.
Going to the countryside to buy things doesn't always guarantee a same-day return trip. If you're going to distant places, it's normal to not see anyone for ten days or half a month.
Since she hadn't seen him, she should think about how to say it again.
In the afternoon, I was borrowed by the archives staff to help organize documents. Time flies when you have something to do, and before I knew it, it was five o'clock.
"Xiao Guan, I'll have to trouble you to come for half a day again tomorrow. That's all for today." The older woman who spoke had already quickly packed her things, picked up her bag, and urged her to hurry up and leave work.
At this point, Comrade Xiao Guan changed his goal for joining the factory: if he couldn't become a warehouse registrar, working in the archives would be just as good!
But that's just wishful thinking. Among the workers she knows, almost all of them stay in the same position until they die. Frequently changing departments is a privilege reserved for those who are groomed by their superiors to be their successors.
After returning to her dormitory to retrieve the prepared package, Guan Yuehe, unusually, went back to Ginkgo Hutong during a weekday.
"What did Yuehe bring home this time? It's not some defective fabric from your factory, is it? Can I exchange a few pieces with you to make a couple of outfits? My little grandson always wears hand-me-downs from adults, and he's so envious of other people's new clothes..."
Instead of answering, Guan Yuehe asked, "Aunt Hu, what's in your basket? It's not meat, is it? Can I trade you half a pound? I haven't had meat in ages, and I'm really craving it!"
Aunt Hu's eyes widened, and she instinctively protected the basket in her hands. "If you want to eat, go line up and buy it yourself!"
This was a huge piece of fatty meat that she had queued for ages to buy! There was no way she was going to exchange it!
"If you want new clothes, go buy them yourself with your tickets!" Guan Yuehe said, then walked towards Courtyard No. 3 without looking back.
But the lively atmosphere in Courtyard No. 2 stopped them in their tracks.
Normally, she would stay out of it and not get involved, but since she had made up her mind to exchange houses with the Ma family, she was naturally curious about what was happening in Courtyard No. 2.
It's good to take a look around and get to know your future neighbors better.
After just one glance, Guan Yuehe began to regret agreeing to move.
Fearing things might change, her mother brought Ma Lao Er's wife, Ma Er Sao, over yesterday to sign a contract with her, and she also gave her a deposit of fifty yuan.
The two families living in the east wing started fighting. Men, women, and children all joined in, and some even had wood-chopping knives in their hands!
No one dared to intervene, fearing they might get hurt by the careless knife.
"Hey guys from your compound, hurry up and break up the fight! It'll be a disaster if someone gets hurt!"
"Yes! They're all neighbors, are you just going to stand by and watch? Hurry up and go get them!"
"You all talk a good game, saying you're all from the same alley, so why don't you come and help? If you're worried about someone getting hurt, why don't you go and do it yourselves!" You're all just watching the show, talking without any real understanding of the situation.
"Stop talking, hurry and go to the neighborhood office to call someone!"
"Why are you yelling at the neighborhood committee? Who can those few people at the neighborhood committee stop? Go to the police station and report that someone is wielding a knife and attacking people in courtyard number two of Yinxing Hutong!"
"Why call the police? Didn't a policeman come to their hospital?"
"Officer Song hasn't finished his shift yet, and his wife hasn't come home either! Hurry to the police station!"
Guan Yuehe was just standing on the side watching, but now that it was time to get off work, some people who worked nearby had already gone home, and those who didn't work weren't in a hurry to cook dinner, so they all squeezed into the No. 2 courtyard. She was gradually pushed from the side by the crowd to the very front of the middle.
While this is the best vantage point for watching the spectacle, it's also the most dangerous!
The woman holding the wood-chopping knife had bloodshot eyes and looked like she was in a frenzy. Behind her were three girls, the eldest of whom looked only twelve or thirteen years old, holding a thick wooden stick high in her hand.
Opposite the three children and one adult were two elderly people, a seemingly honest and kind couple, and a dirty, snotty-sniffling seven or eight-year-old boy.
The old man and woman were so thin they looked like skeletons, and they kept spewing all sorts of nasty things, making them seem mean and acerbic.
Guan Yuehe's brows furrowed in disbelief. These old men and women were spewing nonsense; she really wanted to sew their mouths shut.
Some people in the crowd spoke up, saying, "No doubt about it, it must be those unscrupulous Sun family members trying to take over the Zhou family's house."
"Hmph, dream on! That house was allocated to Engineer Zhou by the factory. Now that Engineer Zhou is gone, his wife has taken over. The house belongs to the Zhou family, and no one can take it from them!"
"If you can't get it, then cause trouble. Do you think people only want a house? When Engineer Zhou first left, Sun Dashan wanted to get a divorce and marry Engineer Zhou's wife, then he would have both a job and a house."
"...Is that so?! Oh my, how thick-skinned is Sun Dashan!"
"Anyway, that's enough to plaster the city walls."
Standing in the middle, Guan Yuehe had her eyes and ears open, and had a general understanding of the situation of the two families in the east wing.
It seems that the person wielding the machete isn't scary; it's the "honest person" on the other side who needs to be guarded against.
As she tried to squeeze back, she wondered if she could open a small door for herself to go in and out; she was truly terrified of these demons and monsters.
"Yuehe, are you leaving already? Won't you take another look?"
"No, I'm in a hurry to get home."
"That's true. You'll be living in an apartment building from now on. I've heard that people who live in apartments don't like us here. They're always ready to fight and kill each other."
Guan Yuehe: "...It's good here too."
I don't even know who I'm trying to comfort.
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