Chapter 77 Chapter 77 Lin Beibei's mind works really fast. ...

Jiang Qiuyue still had no impression of Zeng Qian, but when she said she was Qiu Hongyan's sister-in-law, she couldn't help but smile, "It doesn't matter if I know her or not, but this is a great thing. It's a pity that I just found out, otherwise I would have laughed at Qiu Hongyan when I just met her. She just passed by the Women's Federation and said that we looked noisy and had no quality, and said it definitely had nothing to do with her. Haha... I'm dying of laughter, she would never have thought that it would be her sister-in-law!"

It’s really interesting. Jiang Qiuyue even wants to go to Zeng’s house to take a look.

"They all have families, but they betrayed their families and messed around. They deserve any retribution they get." Bai Xiu Xiu had just finished speaking when there was a knock on the door from Wu Shuang Shuang.

Jiang Qiuyue immediately said, "Don't worry, I won't tell Sister Shuangshuang that you reported it. This matter ends with me, and I won't tell Lin Zhengrong."

Bai Xiu Xiu trusted Wu Shuang Shuang, but it was better if one less person knew about it. Although she didn't think she had done anything wrong, she didn't want to be entangled by the Xu and Zeng families.

Jiang Qiuyue went to open the door, "I was just planning to come over and talk to you. I just ran into Xiuxiu and we chatted for a while."

"I just came to see you. Have you come back? Tell me quickly, what happened?" After Wu Shuangshuang's belly got bigger, it was inconvenient for her to go out. Lin Rong and Jiang Qiuyue bought all the groceries for her. In the past month, she only walked around her home and was watched closely by Jiang Qiuyue.

Jiang Qiuyue talked about going to the Women's Federation, and also said that the one who had an affair with Cheng Guangsheng was Qiu Hongyan's sister-in-law. When Wu Shuangshuang heard this, she reacted the same way as Jiang Qiuyue and laughed.

"Oh, I laughed so hard that the baby in my belly moved." Wu put her hands on her bulging belly. "That Qiu Hongyan, she always said that she was a country girl with no manners. Now her sister-in-law is having an affair with someone. I really want to go to her house to see the excitement."

Jiang Qiuyue said that it was enough to think about it. "Your Lin Rong told me to look after you when he is not at home. You will hear about this kind of excitement. You don't have to go and see it yourself."

Wu Shuangshuang sighed, "What a pity. I just don't know if the Zeng family knows about this now?"

Jiang Qiuyue spread her hands, "That's right. Zeng Qian is having an affair, so the Women's Federation will definitely come to our house."

The fact was just as Jiang Qiuyue said. When the people from the Women's Federation went to Zeng's house to inform them, everyone in Zeng's family was dumbfounded.

Especially Zeng Xiong, the father, who called himself a people's teacher and educated his children to be well behaved, "You...what are you talking about? How could my daughter be having an affair with someone else?"

"How is it impossible? We saw with our own eyes that they were naked and hugging each other. That scene made me go crazy. I don't have time to talk to you more. You all should go to the Women's Federation for investigation. We have already notified the police, and the police station people will be here almost soon." After notifying the police, the people from the Women's Federation had to go to Xu's house, so they left in a hurry.

Zeng Xiong's knees went weak and he fell to the ground. "How is this possible? How could Zeng Qian be having an affair with someone else?"

He still didn't believe it, but the people from the Women's Federation said they had not made a mistake.

Qiu Hongyan, who was standing by, was stunned and couldn't move. When she passed by the Women's Federation, she said that she didn't care about those gossips. It turned out that it was her sister-in-law.

Reality gave her a hard slap in the face, and Qiu Hongyan felt extremely ashamed.

If you commit adultery, you will be paraded through the streets and sent to labor camp. Thinking of this, Zeng Xiong couldn't bear the blow and fainted with black eyes.

When Qiu Hongyan heard the "bang", she hurried to call for help, but because they had offended too many people, the neighbors were unwilling to lend a hand. It was her mother-in-law Ma Xiaocao who came back from washing clothes, and the two of them carried Zeng Xiong to the hospital.

By now, everyone in the compound knew that Cheng Guangsheng and Zeng Qian were caught having an affair, and the same was true in the hospital. When Qiu Hongyan was processing the paperwork for her father-in-law, the nurse who collected the fees looked at her with contempt.

"Hongyan, has your daughter Zeng Qian really been arrested?" At this time, someone who was looking for trouble came over and asked.

Qiu Hongyan's face turned dark. "What the hell does it have to do with you?"

"Hey, there's a shameless person in your family, and he's so arrogant? It's unbelievable. Isn't your grandfather a teacher? How can he teach students like this?"

As soon as one person started talking, another person would follow up, "Yes, Qiu Hongyan, your father-in-law is about to retire, right? He is losing his integrity in his later years. You two need to draw a clear line between the two, otherwise your family will be in trouble."

"I think the rest of her family isn't that great either. They keep saying that we are country folk with no manners, but we country folk are honest and don't steal people!"

…

Finally, a doctor came out and said that this was a hospital and people should not make noise and disturb the patients' rest. Only then did Qiu Hongyan escape the disaster.

When Qiu Hongyan returned to the ward, the people from the Women's Federation came to urge them to leave quickly.

There was no other choice, Qiu Hongyan and her mother-in-law could only go to the Women's Federation.

When they arrived at the Women's Federation, Qiu Hongyan swore that she knew nothing about this. She was so excited that veins popped in her neck. "Director Zhu, I swear to God, I really didn't know anything about this. We are all decent people. If I knew that Zeng Qian was having an affair, I would be struck by lightning!"

"Okay, stop saying such superstitious things. But you have to remember, you are saying you don't know now. If you find out later that you knew, your crime will be even more serious." Zhu Caixia saw that Qiu Hongyan did not look like she was lying, so she let Qiu Hongyan go out first.

Qiu Hongyan did not leave, "I want to draw a clear line between her and me. No, my whole family must draw a clear line between us and Zeng Qian!"

"I know your attitude. You should leave first." Zhu Caixia said, "But I have to advise you. Although you are from the city, the rural people are just like you. We are all good citizens of the country. There is no distinction between high and low. Look at your family's accident this time. Who has spoken up for you?"

None.

If someone else said this, Qiu Hongyan would still argue a little, but Zhu Caixia was different. She was the director of the Women's Federation and represented the organization's opinion.

When she walked out of the Women's Federation, Qiu Hongyan felt that everyone looked at her differently. After seeing her mother-in-law come out, she just wanted to go home quickly. She didn't even want to go to the hospital.

"Mom, we must draw a clear line between ourselves and Zeng Qian." Qiu Hongyan said.

Ma Xiaocao frowned, "She is a member of our Zeng family. Are you giving up on her so quickly?"

"What else? Are you going to let us be dragged down by her? If we don't draw a clear line between the two, Zeng Liang will have to go home to farm. Are you willing?" Qiu Hongyan was filled with anger. When she saw the Xu family coming out, she looked even more unhappy and dragged her mother-in-law away.

Xu Maosheng was filled with jealousy, and seeing his mother-in-law leave like this, he was even more furious. Who could have thought that while he was working so hard in the cafeteria, his woman was having an affair with a fifty-year-old man!

Seeing his daughter come out with red eyes and ask him what to do, Xu Maosheng said angrily, "You ask me, how should I know? Your mother is a shameless person, I wonder why she let you work in the supply and marketing cooperative, it turns out you were there to be fucked!"

Xu Meili was crying. Just now, people from the Women's Federation and the Discipline Inspection Commission came to talk to her. One was to ask her if she knew about her mother and Cheng Guangsheng, and the other was to investigate how she got the job and how she became a regular employee.

Xu Meili was so panicked that she shook her head vigorously and said she didn't know. But she knew it in her heart because her mother always told her that she must be careful when getting married and not just marry a loser. A man like her father would never let her work in the supply and marketing cooperative.

"Cry, cry, cry, all you do is cry!" Xu Maosheng dragged his daughter home. Everyone in the courtyard knew about this. He wished Zeng Qian would die right now.

Xu Meili was worried that her work would be discovered. She didn't want to implicate herself, so she broke away from her father halfway. She had to go back to the supply and marketing cooperative to ask Master He for help.

When she returned to the supply and marketing cooperative, Master He said he couldn't help her before she could even open her mouth, and asked her to confess.

Xu Meili was unwilling to give up the job she had finally gotten, which had only been permanent for a few days.

Seeing the strange looks from other colleagues, she felt that everyone was mocking her in their hearts, her chest heaving up and down, "Don't let me know who reported it, or I will make you pay!"

"Xu Meili, are you threatening us with this?" someone said unhappily. Everyone had tolerated Xu Meili for a long time. Now that Cheng Guangsheng was arrested, they didn't have to be afraid of Xu Meili anymore. They just said whatever they wanted to say, "Could it be that we saw your mother having an affair with someone, and we should help cover it up? You should understand that it was your mother who had an affair with someone, and she should be punished. And you got your job through the backdoor, you don't deserve to work here!"

"Yes, Xu Meili, you are the shameless one!"

"You want us to be in trouble? What do you want? If you have the guts, hit me. Don't be afraid of her, everyone. Let's go to the Women's Federation and report her together. Let her leave the supply and marketing cooperative and return her regular employment quota!"

…

Everyone was already very angry, and Xu Meili was still so ignorant. After someone took the lead, the others followed suit and wanted to report it. In the end, Master He called the deputy director, and everyone returned to their workstations.

"Director, I just have one thing to say: Xu Meili must leave the supply and marketing cooperative. Anyone can take this position, but Xu Meili can't. Otherwise, I will go to the Women's Federation and the Discipline Inspection Commission. Anyway, I can't work with such a person!"

Bai Xiuxiu came in at this time and also expressed her attitude, "Yes, Sister Yu is right, we must unite our front and defeat the evil tendencies of capitalism together!"

Seeing that no one spoke for her, Xu Meili felt very aggrieved, but she dared not be arrogant anymore, because she had heard more than once that Cheng Guangsheng was arrested and no one would be able to protect her in the future.

Xu Meili ran out crying, but she had to return the job since it was not hers in the first place.

The next day, the Women's Federation posted a notice that due to the extremely abominable behavior of Cheng Guangsheng and Zeng Qian, they had been sent to the police station for detention and would be sent to labor reform after receiving instructions from higher authorities.

The Xu family and the Zeng family both said they would draw a clear line between themselves and the incident would not affect them. However, Ma Xiaocao had to write a self-criticism because she knew about the incident.

Bai Xiuxiu went to read the notice and told Jiang Qiuyue when she got home, "I said, it's impossible that no one knows about this. Even if I write a self-criticism today and get away with it, there's still so much time in the future, and who knows when it will be brought up again."

She and Jiang Qiuyue both knew that it was still a long way off, and that the festival would not be open until 1976. For many more years, the Zeng family would not be able to rest in peace.

"Xu Meili must have lost her job, right?" Jiang Qiuyue was pickling dried vegetables. Now was the lean season in the vegetable fields and there were not many fresh vegetables. Fortunately, the vegetables grown this year were good. She dried eggplants, beans, etc. and was soaking some now to use to stir-fry peppers later.

"Well, that's it." Bai Xiu Xiu let out a breath of anger, feeling relieved. "She was said to have a bad influence, so the Youth Educated Office found her and asked her to go to the countryside for reform immediately. I heard that someone specifically made a call to have Xu Meili go to the farthest northern Xinjiang. Now that she's gone, her life will be hard."

Xu Meili usually doesn't look at people with respect, but now she steps on them whenever she can. Because of her mother's matter, Xu Maosheng even stopped going to class, let alone looking for a way for her. As for her uncle, Zeng Liang is even less likely to intervene at this critical moment, as everyone is watching.

"She deserves it." Jiang Qiuyue soaked some dried beans. "Then when her spot became vacant, did you tell anyone who would take it?"

Bai Xiuxiu said she didn't know. "I'm not interested in getting a permanent job this time. Whoever gets promoted will attract attention. I don't want to be stared at."

"That's true." Jiang Qiuyue asked again, "So what's going on between you and Xiao Li? You've been talking for so long, but he doesn't want to get married?"

"Don't be in a hurry. Let's wait until his housing application is approved. I can't live in my uncle's house while he lives in the dormitory after we get married." Bai Xiu Xiu was indeed not in a hurry. She was only twenty years old, at the prime age, and did not want to get married so early.

Now she just wants to seize the opportunity to become a regular employee, then earn more money to make her life better.

Jiang Qiuyue nodded and agreed, "You are all young, and this is the right time to work hard on your career. But it's okay if you can become a regular employee this time. Anyway, you are legal and compliant, so you don't have to be afraid even if someone is watching you."

Jiang Qiuyue handed Bai Xiuxiu a bag of dried beans and said, "Take them home and stir-fry them. The weather is good this year, and the vegetables in the yard are growing especially well. I can't eat them all. By the way, do you know where to buy cloth without a ticket besides the black market?"

The two children at home are growing up quickly. Lin Beibei is still very active, so a new pair of pants will be torn after two months of wearing, and will become unsightly after a few more months.

There were few cloth sellers on the black market, and Jiang Qiuyue and Lin Zhengrong also had to make new clothes themselves, so the cloth they bought was not enough.

"You can go to the cloth factory. I heard from my neighbor, Sister Yu, that her mother-in-law's sister went to the cloth factory to buy scraps of cloth. Some of those scraps are big enough to make pants."

Bai Xiuxiu said, "If you have any ideas, I can ask them for you in detail."

"Of course. I patch up Beibei's knees and elbows every now and then. He's growing fast. Luckily, kids nowadays don't like to compare clothes, otherwise we wouldn't have enough cloth at home."

Jiang Qiuyue and Bai Xiuxiu agreed and started cooking. She fried dried beans today, and a few small fish that Lin Beibei and others had caught at the river. It wasn't enough for one bowl, but Lin Beibei said it was delicious, so she asked the other children to cook it too.

First, fry the small fish until both sides are golden brown, then add rice wine, ginger and garlic to stir-fry. She also added green peppers, which were the last batch of green peppers in the field. Stir-fry for a while, then add a small amount of boiling water to stew.

At this time, Lin Beibei came in with a few children. They all held bowls, and after smelling the fragrance, they kept swallowing their saliva.

"Everyone line up. As agreed, Tang Hai, you have to keep one of the five small fish as processing fee." Lin Beibei looked up at his mother, "Mom, just give Tang Hai four."

Jiang Qiuyue was amused. "You little brat, you are just that young, and you are thinking about making processing fees. This won't do. You are friends, and friends should treat each other well. Besides, it's not something we do every day. Come on, Tanghai, these are your five small fish, and Daya, these are for you and your sisters."

Lin Beibei looked at her mother in confusion, "Then aren't we at a loss?"

"How come?" Jiang Qiuyue asked patiently, "Have you ever eaten the pumpkin cake made by Aunt Wu?"

Lin Beibei nodded and said yes.

"Did Tang Hai send you and Nan Nan home when it rained?"

Lin Beibei nodded again.

"You see, this is how good friends interact. If they treat you well, you should treat them well too. There's no need to worry about petty gains." Jiang Qiuyue thought that Lin Beibei's brain was really quick. It was just that he couldn't do business now. Otherwise, she felt that Lin Beibei would be able to make money in a few years.

Lin Beibei understood, "I understand. Good friends shouldn't haggle over every penny, but people you don't know well should be charged a processing fee, right?"

"Now we don't allow you to charge processing fees. Just refuse people you don't know well." Jiang Qiuyue pinched her son's chubby face, "Go wash your hands and get the dishes. Your Uncle Li will be here soon."

Lin Daya and Tang Hai said goodbye together. As they walked, they couldn't help but eat the food with their hands.

Lin Daya said proudly, "It's delicious, right? I always say Aunt Jiang's cooking is the best in the world. My mom learned to cook from her, and now her cooking skills have improved a lot, but she's still not as good as Aunt Jiang's."

Tang Hai was eating so much that tears were about to fall. He always thought that the cafeteria had the best food in the world, but he didn't expect that there were even better things. He was too jealous of Lin Beibei and Lin Nannan, and he wished his brother had such good cooking skills.

He had to save the rest and take it back to give to his brother.

The other children also nodded and said that Lin Beibei's mother's cooking was delicious.

They all took some back home. Some adults thought it was a snack for children and didn't try it. Some looked delicious and took a second bite. They were all amazed at Jiang Qiuyue's cooking skills. There was not even a hint of earthy smell. It was fragrant, spicy and especially delicious.

They ate the fish cooked by Jiang Qiuyue, and the next day they asked the children in the family to give them vegetables they grew themselves, or other things from the house.

This is what good neighbors are like. They don’t just take advantage of others, but are willing to share what they have with others.

A few days later, Wu Shuangshuang's mother was coming, but Wu Shuangshuang was pregnant, so Jiang Qiuyue accompanied Wu Shuangshuang to wait outside the family yard.

I happened to meet Xu Meili who was leaving with her bag. She was alone, with her face covered with a scarf. She looked much more haggard after not seeing her for a few days.

"Cheng Guangsheng and Zeng Qian were sent to the farm yesterday. They had a good life but had to make trouble instead." Wu Shuangshuang said with disdain. People who engage in promiscuous relationships between men and women do not deserve sympathy at all.

Jiang Qiuyue also heard it. "Cheng Guangsheng cried bitterly, saying that he couldn't stand the hardship on the farm at his age, and that Zeng Qian seduced him. He was also funny. It takes two to tango. Even if Zeng Qian took the initiative, he would have taken off his pants. Men are really like this. They are very unreliable."

"Well, I have to say something fair for your Deputy Captain Lin. He is still very reliable." Wu Shuangshuang said enviously, "Look around the family compound, which man would go to fetch water to drink? Only your Deputy Captain Lin gets up half an hour early every day to fetch water, and doesn't let you do any heavy work."

Speaking of this, Wu Shuangshuang suddenly thought of a good idea, "Don't you know that our compound is going to install running water?"