Chapter 34 We need to build a career
Leaving the group leader's office, Jiang Suining kept shaking her head: "Asking someone who does scientific research to do ideological and political work is not her forte."
Lu Aiguo stood in the corridor and saw her shaking her head. He took a few steps forward and asked, "What's wrong? Did the team leader give you a hard time?"
“No,” Jiang Suining shook her head. “He asked me to do some ideological work with the workers.”
"Ideological work? Someone quit again?" Lü Aiguo laughed. "I really don't understand what these people are thinking. If they just give them money, no one will leave."
“That’s not the issue,” Jiang Suining said, pulling Lü Aiguo out of the office as if afraid the soundproofing would let the people inside hear. “He’s worried that the workers won’t study their education properly.”
“Oh, this,” Lu Aiguo paused for a moment, then covered his mouth and laughed, “I’m afraid this can’t be changed by doing some ideological work. Trying to instill three or four years of elementary school knowledge into the heads of these housewives in a few weeks is just a pipe dream.”
"What are you saying?" Jiang Huining didn't like hearing this. "What's wrong with being a housewife? Women hold up half the sky. Who do you look down on?"
"No, I didn't look down on anyone," Lu Aiguo realized that his words had touched a nerve with Jiang Suining, and quickly changed the subject, "What do you want from me?"
"If you dare to talk nonsense again, I'll beat you up!" Jiang Suining pretended to hit him.
Lu Aiguo covered his head with one hand and made a zipping gesture in front of his lips with the other: "I won't dare to do it again, I won't dare to do it again, senior, please forgive me this time."
"Alright, enough with the banter," Jiang Suining got back to the point. "I want to make sunscreen. Can you find diatomaceous earth and zinc oxide?"
“Zinc oxide isn’t hard to find,” Lü Aiguo said after a moment’s thought. “Diatomaceous earth is more difficult, but I’ll give it a try.”
“Okay, take it seriously. If it works, this thing can make a lot of money in the future,” Jiang Suining said in a low voice.
Lu Aiguo's eyes lit up. He quickly looked around and, seeing no one, relaxed. He lowered his voice and said, "My sister, it's the 1970s now."
“I understand,” Jiang Suining looked at him as if he were an idiot. “It’s already the 1970s, how far away is the 1980s?”
Lu Aiguo was both amused and exasperated. Yes, the opening up of the individual economy in the late 1970s hadn't really lasted many years.
"Okay, don't worry, I will definitely search diligently," Lü Aiguo assured him repeatedly.
Back at the labor protection factory, not long after the end of the workday, in the auditorium, the workers were copying the stroke order that Du Chunlan had taught in class. Du Chunlan and Chen Jun slowly paced around their seats, checking each person's writing, correcting mistakes in time, and making detailed records.
When Jiang Suining came in, she glanced at the blackboard, which was covered with grids, each with a different stroke order written in each grid.
"This is teaching from the very basics," Jiang Suining thought of Lü Aiguo's words. Looking at the workers who were engrossed in writing, she realized that if they didn't put in the effort, they probably wouldn't achieve the results the team leader wanted.
She thought for a moment, then walked to the podium and said, "Everyone, please listen to what I have to say."
Du Chunlan, Chen Jun, and everyone else looked up at her: "Right now, we're mainly studying academic subjects, which means literacy and simple arithmetic. Don't underestimate academic subjects. In the future, job assignments will be based on your performance in each assessment. Those who consistently achieve excellent results will be assigned as group leaders, class leaders, or even directors. Who knows?"
"real?"
"He can still be a director?"
"Comrade Jiang, do you mean what you say?"
"Yeah yeah."
“Of course it counts,” Jiang Suining said confidently. “So, everyone, don’t underestimate the importance of academic subjects. No matter how well you learn the technical skills, if you fail the academic subjects, you will definitely miss out on leadership positions. Moreover, if you learn the academic subjects well, you will be able to quickly get started with the technical skills later. Don’t think that raising chickens is just about feeding them and scattering food. There are many things that require you to read books and do calculations. If you don’t know how to read or do calculations, you won’t be able to understand them.”
"Wow, this is so difficult."
"Yes, these characters are too difficult to learn, I just can't write them well."
“I’m already thirty, and my son is in elementary school. I’m just like him, and people will laugh at me if they find out.”
"What's so funny?" Jiang Suining quickly corrected him, afraid that such thoughts would offend others. "As the saying goes, one is never too old to learn. You didn't have the opportunity to learn when you were young, but now that you have the opportunity, you should cherish it even more. How can you be afraid of being laughed at? Besides," she changed the subject, "who would laugh at us? Who would have the nerve to laugh at someone who is not ambitious and doesn't know how to learn?"
These words left everyone speechless. Seeing this, Jiang Suining quickly continued, "It's never too late to learn as long as you're willing to. You said you're learning what your son is learning at school, that's perfect! When you get home tonight, you two can do your homework together, review together, and make progress together. Isn't that great? It will strengthen your parent-child relationship."
"What you said seems to make a lot of sense." The woman who had asked the question earlier muttered to herself, thinking to herself that her child used to ask her for help when there were words he didn't know how to write in his compositions, but she didn't know them. After this happened many times, her child stopped asking her about his studies. Sometimes when she asked about his studies, he would always give her a perfunctory answer, saying that she had never been to school and why she was asking so many questions.
After discussing among themselves, the students all expressed their determination to study hard and strive for excellent grades.
Jiang Suining was in a great mood, and she easily completed the task assigned by her team leader.
After school, Jiang Suining went to the Women's Federation office to find Liu Hong, just as Liu Hong was walking out with her bag.
“Sui Sui, I’m sorry,” Liu Hong said, taking Jiang Sui Ning’s arm. “I know your Comrade Lu is still recovering from his injury, and I’m still making you stay with me.”
“It’s alright,” Jiang Suining quickly reassured her. “The regiment has assigned a young soldier to take care of his daily needs, so I don’t need to worry about it at all.”
"Really? That's pretty good." Liu Hong said with little interest.
Seeing this, Jiang Suining asked, "Are you feeling unwell? You look listless. Why don't you take a few days off? Go hiking or take a walk by the sea. It can lift your spirits and make all your worries disappear."
"Sui Sui, you...you guessed it, didn't you?" Liu Hong stopped in her tracks. "You heard about it?"
"Huh?" Jiang Suining immediately realized what was going on and quickly pretended to be confused. "What did you hear? What did you guess? What are you talking about? I don't understand."
Liu Hong smiled wryly: "So what if they know? I'm sure a lot of people know."
Jiang Suining sighed inwardly: "If you have something on your mind, just tell me. Don't worry, I will never tell anyone else, including Lu Ye."
"I know, I believe you." Liu Hong lowered her head, on the verge of tears.
"Don't keep things bottled up inside, talking about them will make you feel better." Jiang Suining felt bad seeing her like that.
"Let's talk about it when we get back." Liu Hong didn't want others to see her embarrassment, so she pulled Jiang Suining and walked back quickly.
The two went back to Jiang Suining's house first to explain the situation to Lu Ye, and then went to Liu Hong's place.
Liu Hong's parents were both workers at the food factory. She also has an older brother who got married two years ago. Her brother works at a seafood purchasing station, and her sister-in-law works at the post office. The family lives in the food factory's staff quarters.
The food factory has been quite busy lately, and her parents are working overtime and don't come home for lunch every day. After her older brother and sister-in-law got married, they moved to the house allocated by the post office. Now, the three of them live in the house, which is quite spacious.
Upon entering, Liu Hong gestured for Jiang Suining to sit down, then washed an apple, brought over some melon seeds and peanuts, and poured a glass of water. "Please sit down first. I'll go cook. We can talk after we eat."
"Let me cook with you." Jiang Suining stood up, wanting to follow her to the kitchen.
“No need,” Liu Hong pressed her down on the sofa. “The seafood has been cleaned. Just put it in the steamer and you don’t need to worry about it. I’ll go steam some rice and make some soup. It’ll be quick.”
Jiang Suining didn't stand on ceremony with her, sat down, and took an apple to eat. There was an open atlas on the coffee table, which she picked up and looked at. It was a map of Yunnan Province, with a red circle drawn in the upper left corner. Upon closer inspection, she saw that the circled area was Jiaxing City.
"Are you going to Chiayi City for tourism?" Jiang Suining asked instinctively without thinking much about it.
As soon as she finished speaking, she heard a clattering sound from the kitchen. A thought flashed through her mind, and she immediately remembered that Su Donglai had once said that he was not a local and was only working temporarily and would leave sooner or later. So, she couldn't help but look at the red circle on the map. This Su Donglai was from Jiaxing City, Yunnan Province.
"Serves you right for being so quick-tongued." Jiang Suining lightly patted her mouth, threw down her book, and rushed into the kitchen, where she saw Liu Hong picking up the broken pieces of porcelain from the floor; a bowl had been broken.
"Don't pick it up," Jiang Suining said, worried that she might cut her hand. Seeing a broom and dustpan by the door, she quickly grabbed them and started sweeping. "Let's sweep it up."
Liu Hong squatted on the spot, hugging her knees, and lowered her head, tears streaming down her face.
Jiang Suining quickly swept up the broken porcelain shards and saw that Liu Hong was still squatting there without moving. She bent down to look at her face and found that she was in tears.
"What's wrong with you?" She frantically tried to wipe away her tears, but she didn't have any tissues in her hand. "Why are you crying? Quick, get up."
Jiang Suining helped the person up and led them out of the kitchen to sit on the sofa.
Jiang Suining gently patted her back: "Cry, whatever is sad, just cry it all out, it will make you feel better."
Liu Hong burst into tears, and Jiang Suining comforted her gently. After a while, the crying gradually subsided.
Jiang Suining pushed Liu Hong away and looked at her eyes, which were swollen like peaches: "I'll go boil two eggs for you to cook, otherwise you won't be able to face anyone this afternoon."
“Hmm,” Liu Hong didn’t refuse, “the eggs are in the basket by the wall.”
Jiang Suining entered the kitchen. The seafood that Liu Hong was steaming was already steaming. She opened the lid and saw that it was all cooked through. She placed a cloth on the bottom of the pot, took out the seafood, and then put the pot back on the stove. She added some water and put in two eggs.
While the eggs were boiling, she picked out some seafood with dipping sauce and started steaming rice. Once the eggs were cooked, she took them out, put them in a bowl, and carried them out of the kitchen.
“Sui Sui,” Liu Hong had calmed down and stopped crying, “I’ve broken up with my boyfriend.”
Heartbroken? You were in love and then you broke up? Jiang Suining thought to herself, naturally not daring to say it directly, but pretending to be surprised, she said, "You have a boyfriend? When did this happen? How come I didn't know? Well, Liu Hong, I treated you as a friend and you didn't even tell me you found a boyfriend."
Liu Hong's voice grew softer and softer as she spoke, until finally she fell silent and her head drooped down.
Jiang Suining peeled the eggshell: "Do you have a handkerchief? It's a bit hot, wrap it up and roll it."
"Yes." Liu Hong went to the bedroom to get a clean handkerchief, which Jiang Suining wrapped up and used to apply it to the skin around her eyes.
"Who on earth is so blind?" Jiang Suining said first when she saw Liu Hong's low spirits. "Our Honghong is so outstanding and beautiful. She could have any kind of good man she wanted."
Upon hearing this, Liu Hong's mood improved somewhat, and she gave a shy smile: "I'm not as good as you say."
“You are much better than I described,” Jiang Suining continued to praise her. “Not only are you beautiful, but you are also educated, have a job, and your personality is beyond reproach. Whoever marries you is blessed by his ancestors and has accumulated good karma for eight lifetimes.”
"Oh dear, please stop talking," Liu Hong said, covering her face. "I'm so embarrassed."
"What's there to be shy about?" Jiang Suining pulled her hand down. "Being excellent is about being praised. Don't be like those fake modest people. Let me tell you, flowers only attract butterflies when they bloom. Don't believe those comforting words that gold will always shine. Your strengths should be displayed openly. Gold will always shine. Are you just sitting around waiting to be discovered? Pah, then you'll most likely be buried in the sand."
Liu Hong was stunned. Was that even a possibility? It was as if she had a new way of thinking. Could it be that I hadn't shown enough of myself, so he didn't like me?
"What's wrong with you?" Jiang Suining noticed that Liu Hong seemed a little lost in thought, so she waved her hand in front of her eyes. What are you thinking about?
“I’m thinking about what you just said, and it seems to make a lot of sense,” Liu Hong said, her expression somewhat agitated. “Do you think it’s because I haven’t shown my strengths that he doesn’t like me?”
Jiang Suining was speechless. She originally wanted to help her become more confident and get over the sadness of being rejected, but it turned out to be like giving her a bowl of chicken soup.
“Calm down,” Jiang Suining grabbed Liu Hong’s arm. “I think you can’t interpret my words like that. What I really mean is that you are very outstanding. The fact that he didn’t choose you means that he has a problem with his judgment. You should find someone who appreciates you.”
“Yes, you’re right,” Liu Hong said, somewhat obsessed. “I should show him my strengths.”
“Liu Hong, loving someone means accepting all their flaws and shortcomings,” Jiang Suining said, afraid that she would be rejected by Su Donglai again. “If he has you in his heart, he should accept you no matter what you are like. So, don’t go looking for him anymore.”
"Do you know who it is?" Liu Hong seemed a little lost. "Then, then go and tell him for me. You know my strengths, so please tell him for me."
Love-struck people are terrifying. Jiang Suining was a little annoyed. Although the two of them didn't end up together, their ideas were surprisingly similar. Su Donglai wanted her to be a mediator and persuade Liu Hong not to focus on him. Hey, Liu Hong actually wanted her to help bring the two of them together.
She doesn't like to arrange these kinds of connections, because she might end up being resented.
"You're not willing to help me?" Liu Hong was very disappointed when she saw that Jiang Suining remained silent for a long time, and released her hand from holding Jiang Suining's arm.
“This isn’t about whether to help or not,” Jiang Suining said, unwilling to let this ruin their friendship. “It’s fine for us to like or love someone, and it’s also fine for us to pursue what we love. But we can’t make ourselves humble or lose our dignity for that person! You like him, but you should love yourself even more, Liu Hong. No matter who that person is, no matter how outstanding or handsome he is, he’s not worth you putting down your dignity.”
Liu Hong shuddered, as if sensing something, but remained silent.
Jiang Suining continued, "Besides, as long as a woman can earn money, she can find any kind of man she wants. Why give up the whole forest for one big tree? Furthermore, relationships are not everything in life. We are all leading ladies of the new era, capable of holding up half the sky. Don't get caught up in these romantic entanglements. We need to focus on our careers."
After a while, Liu Hong slowly leaned back on the sofa and said leisurely, "Sui Sui, you're right. I... I won't go looking for him."
“That’s right,” Jiang Suining breathed a sigh of relief and pulled Liu Hong up. “Didn’t you say you wanted to make some soup? Hurry up, the rice is almost cooked, I’m starving.”
Liu Hong stood up and took a deep breath: "Okay, you sit down, I'll go get the soup right away."
During the meal, Liu Hong told Jiang Suining about her relationship with Su Donglai. Jiang Suining pretended not to know and showed a surprised expression, while occasionally providing her with emotional support and subtly influencing Liu Hong.
Liu Hong seemed to have finally figured it out: "Actually, he rejected me indirectly several times, but I refused to give up and pretended not to understand his unspoken meaning."
Jiang Suining hadn't expected the truth to be like this. No wonder Su Donglai wanted to talk to her and ask, "How did you suddenly come to your senses?" Afraid that she might have some lingering doubts, Jiang Suining still asked the question.
“It’s not that I’ve figured it out, it’s more like I’ve let go, it’s been touching,” Liu Hong said with a bitter smile. “You said that relationships aren’t everything in life, and that’s probably what made me let go. He’ll be transferred back to Chiayi City in a while, and I’ve thought about it. Even if we’re together, I can’t leave my parents behind if I go to Chiayi City with him.”
"It's good to have something to hold you back," Jiang Suining thought to herself. "Once Su Donglai is transferred away, you won't see him anymore, and you'll gradually let go of it."
"Eat up," Jiang Suining peeled a shrimp and handed it to Liu Hong. "There are plenty of good men out there. You're still young, take your time choosing."
Liu Hong just smiled. She wasn't exactly young anymore, and her family had been trying to introduce her to potential partners, but she hadn't liked any of them. Finally, she found someone she liked, but nothing came of it.
She sighed: "Forget it, if it can't work out, don't dwell on it. Why make yourself miserable?" Liu Hong was free-spirited and passionate. She had just finished crying, which had vented most of her anger. After hearing Jiang Suining's words, most of her resentment had dissipated, and she was no longer so concerned about Su Donglai.
Even she herself couldn't have imagined that since meeting Su Donglai, she had been so preoccupied with him. In the days following her direct rejection, she felt distressed and resentful, but little did she know that once she came to terms with it, it would all be just that.
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