After the New Year, both parents went back to work, and Yi Qingqing resumed her leisurely life. She would sign in at the bank every day, spend some time playing games with her family during dinner and after dinner, and stay at home to study at other times.
At noon on the ninth day of the first lunar month, Yi Qingqing had just finished lunch when she heard someone calling her outside.
"Yi Qingqing, there's a call for you!"
Yi Qingqing quickly agreed, locked the door and ran out.
The call was from Wang Lingling.
He said he felt a bit bored after the New Year and wanted to go back to his hometown.
The two of them agreed to go back together on the 16th day of the first lunar month, which meant it would be exactly one month before they returned. They could get tickets for consecutive seats, so they asked someone to send them to her when the time comes.
After setting the time to return to the countryside, Yi Qingqing felt relieved.
This time, she didn't need to carry a lot of luggage like the first time she went to the countryside. There was nothing to prepare. She just needed to prepare the dry food for the train the day before. She had everything else she needed. She just needed to carry an empty backpack back. She felt relaxed and even a little excited.
After dinner in the evening, while chatting as usual, Yi Qingqing mentioned that she received a phone call today and decided to return home on the 16th.
The lively and cheerful atmosphere disappeared in an instant.
"We're leaving now? Didn't they say that it would take more than a month for the Northeast to start working?"
Zhao Xianglan didn't expect that her daughter would leave so soon. She thought she would stay for quite a while!
Today, a colleague's family has children who will go to the countryside after the New Year. I asked her about the situation. She said that if possible, it would be best to go to the Youth League Office and find someone to be assigned to the Northeast. As long as you can buy a ticket for the New Year, you can go home and stay for more than a month. I didn't expect that her daughter would leave in a week.
"If we go back early, we can go to the mountains to get some things and collect some firewood before work. Spring planting will start soon after work, which is similar to autumn harvest. It will be easier if we prepare in advance," said Yi Qingqing.
She learned how to trap rabbits from others, and has told her parents about catching pheasants.
"Alas!" Zhao Xianglan sighed, "It's all because of your parents' failure that you have to suffer like this! Let's not go. You can't take over your father's job, but you can still take over mine."
"What are you talking about! I don't want to take over your job. You are a director now, and if I take over, I will be an ordinary worker at best. If we want to deal with defective cloth in the future, I am afraid it will be impossible to have new clothes to wear every year. What a pity!
And you can't just think that life in the countryside is hard. In fact, there are many places that are better than the city.
Anyway, I am now glad that I chose to go to the countryside. Not only did I meet a lot of friends, but I also learned a lot. The countryside really trains people. And I did a good job during the autumn harvest last year. This year, I probably won’t need to go to the fields for spring planting. It won’t be that tiring. Look at me, I don’t look like I suffered in the countryside, so don’t worry!”
Yi Qingqing really feels that the countryside is more suitable for her than the city.
Especially in the Xiangshui Village Brigade, she has become familiar with it and feels very comfortable there. The most important thing is that the surrounding natural resources are very abundant.
After leaving home, she had easy excuses for the changes that happened to her.
"You silly child, when others talk about going to the countryside, they all feel miserable, but you are the only one who makes it sound like a flower, as if you love going there so much that you don't even want to take my job!"
Zhao Xianglan tapped Yi Qingqing's forehead and said unhappily.
"I'm not stupid. I know what's best for me," Yi Qingqing said, hugging her mother's arm.
"Our daughter has grown up and is experienced enough. Her spirit of not fearing hardship is worthy of praise. It is a good thing to gain experience for a few years when you are young. It will be the same when you come back to take over your mother's job in a few years. No matter what happens, you must remember that we are here for you. Don't suffer alone." Yi Jianshe rarely said such a long string of words.
"Dad, I understand."
Yi Qingqing agreed readily, saying that there wouldn't be so many restrictions when she came back in a few years.
The daughter has made up her mind to go back to the countryside, and all the parents can do is support her.
Zhao Xianglan went back to the house and took out the money box, planning to sort out and prepare banknotes and other things for her daughter. If there was anything missing, she would have to find someone to exchange them in the next two days.
Yi Qingqing quickly held her mother's hand and said, "Mom, please stop asking for things from me. I still have more than half of the money you gave me last time. Besides, I can get meat by myself, so I don't need meat coupons. The team also distributed a lot of food during the New Year, which is enough for me to eat. I can also make money by contributing articles to the newspaper. You don't have to worry about anything when I go to the countryside this time. Just make me some pancakes the day before to eat on the way. Your pancakes are the best!"
Yi Qingqing even took out some money to prove that she still had savings. She was much richer than her family now, and she would feel bad if she took more money from her family and let her parents live a tight life.
Seeing that she did have quite a bit of money, Zhao Xianglan did not force it. "Even if you don't want money, you still need some tickets. For daily necessities, what you have now will definitely not be enough for a year. I'll go exchange some for you in the next two days."
Yi Qingqing had no suitable reason to refuse this.
However, she never expected that the day before she left, her mother would pack another big bag for her.
It was exactly as she requested. She didn't have much money and only a few food coupons, but she was given a lot of defective cloth and daily necessities coupons.
"Mom, why did you bring so much cloth for me?" Yi Qingqing took a look. Although the patterns and colors were good, there were only a few with bright colors, and the rest were darker in color. However, there were still quite a few of them, just enough to fill up her backpack.
"You don't have much to bring this time, so you can't leave the backpack empty. Make yourself two pretty clothes with nice patterns to wear when you are not working, and choose some other clothes to make a few sets of clothes for working in the fields. The rest are for you to exchange with others. The cloth is not very good, but it is wear-resistant, just right for working in the fields. I heard that cloth is in short supply in the countryside. Take these with you, and when you want to eat eggs, you can exchange them with fellow villagers you have a good relationship with. You can also exchange them if you don't have enough food. And as you said, you can exchange them for mountain products or ask people for favors. It is more convenient than money. Anyway, it is very cost-effective for mom to make these cloths, and since you can take out these things, others will look up to you and dare not bully you. But you can't be too generous. Just take out a little at a time, and you should also consider the person to exchange with," Zhao Xianglan instructed carefully. She would have done so long ago if her daughter could not take so many things last time.
Yi Qingqing was really impressed by her mother time and time again. She even considered this. In fact, she has always done this. Last year, she exchanged some scarce materials with fellow villagers she was on good terms with and successfully established a foothold in the village.