Chapter 17
After receiving the bottle of Moutai from Wu Zhengrong, Ye Manzhi mentioned treating Old Ye to a drink several times.
You know, in order to help her get a chance to go on a blind date with Wu Zhengrong, Old Ye would treat Old Chen from the Infrastructure Department to three drinks a week!
However, after the person to be treated to dinner was Wu Zhengrong himself, Old Ye became embarrassed.
When pressed, he yelled, "I, Ye Shouxin, make a living through my skills and abilities. Why would I need connections with factory leaders? I can't do that with Zhou Zhenye. After all, our two families were engaged as children more than a decade ago. Now that I'm free, I won't resort to nepotism!"
Old Ye suddenly became stubborn and refused to treat the leader to a drink no matter what.
Ye Manzhi actually accepted a bottle of Moutai from the other person, so it became very difficult to return the gift.
When Wu Zhengrong asked her face to face when she could have a drink with Lao Ye, all the shyness in her heart turned into embarrassment.
I even had the audacity to think, if all else fails, I'll just have a drink with you, and drink that bottle of Moutai!
"Captain Wu, let's talk about drinking, eh..." Ye Manzhi glanced at Comrade Xiao Qin who was still listening.
Qin Xiang immediately said, "Oh, oh, oh," and said, "I have something else to do over there. You guys can chat slowly!"
Turned around and walked out.
Ye Manzhi continued, "Let me tell you the truth, my dad thinks too much."
"Um?"
"He thinks you're the factory leader. If he takes the initiative to treat you to a meal and drinks, he'll be seen as trying to get close to you."
"Did he really say that?"
"yes."
Wu Zhengrong: “…”
After he came to the factory, he went to the workshop almost every day. He had known Foreman Ye long before he had a blind date with Ye Manzhi.
Ye Shouxin is a level seven welder, and his team was responsible for welding the products presented as a gift for National Day this year.
The two parties have had frequent contact at work and are considered old acquaintances.
Would Foreman Ye be afraid of getting close to him?
I think it was the bottle of Moutai he gave away that gave the other party the idea.
Ye Manzhi didn't realize that just a few words from him had made people see through his father.
Without Xiao Qin's encouragement, she felt more at ease and recalled her original plan: "Captain Wu, my dad is embarrassed to invite you for a drink. How about I treat you to a meal?"
Since her father is useless, she, a young and beautiful girl in her prime, has to go out and get drunk with Captain Wu herself.
Wu Zhengrong declined politely: "You just started working not long ago, don't spend money."
"It's okay. Although I haven't received my salary yet, I have some savings."
The more politely someone refused, the more Ye Manzhi felt that he should treat them to a meal to repay the favor.
"Besides, I have a book that's about to be published, and the publisher will probably give me quite a bit of royalties, so it's probably enough to treat you to a meal!"
Wu Zhengrong raised an eyebrow unexpectedly, immediately becoming interested. "What kind of book are you going to publish? In what field?"
When it comes to his own book, Ye Manzhi has a lot to talk about.
"It's a book introducing clothing styles for female comrades. The tentative title is 'Collection of Clothing Styles: 100 Examples of Women's Clothing'. It's currently in the preliminary editing stage and may not be published until the end of the year..."
This is an area that Wu Zhengrong has no knowledge of at all.
Nowadays, many women's and men's clothing styles are similar, such as Lenin suits, shirts, and work clothes. The styles of men and women are almost exactly the same, and are generally loose and baggy.
Every time they met, Ye Manzhi's dressing style always caught people's attention. It was obvious that she was the kind of girl who knew how to dress herself.
However, it is indeed unexpected that she can dress up to the extent of publishing a book.
After listening to her introduction, Wu Zhengrong smiled and praised her, "To be able to reach the level of publishing a book shows that your aesthetic level in this area has surpassed most people in the country. You are still so young, and if you study hard, your future is limitless."
Ye Manzhi was afraid that he would misunderstand, so she quickly clarified: "Captain Wu, those clothes were not designed by me. I just compiled beautiful styles together."
Wu Zhengrong has his own understanding: "Everyone knows the characters in the Xinhua Dictionary, but not everyone can compile a dictionary."
Ye Manzhi thought to himself, you are really good at talking. When a senior intellectual praises someone, it really makes people happy!
She was so flattered that her eyes and eyebrows were filled with joy. She couldn't help but ask, "Captain Wu, do you have any sisters at home? How about I give you a few copies of my book after it's officially published?"
"I have an older sister and a younger sister." Seeing her emotions written all over her face, Wu Zhengrong couldn't help but laugh. "You could give me a few books, I think female comrades would like them very much."
Ye Manzhi works in the street office, and the most basic skill she needs is the ability to chat, otherwise she won't be able to join in the gossip in the office.
In just a few words, she had a pretty good grasp of the situation of the female compatriots in Wu Zhengrong's family.
There are many female comrades in the Wu family. Giving Captain Wu a few more books would be a very good return gift!
When the bugle sounded for the end of the shift, Ye Manzhi took the initiative to stand up and say goodbye, "Captain Wu, it's settled. I'll treat you to a meal. Thank you for your help."
Wu Zhengrong did not refuse this time. He made an appointment with her for the next meeting and personally saw her out the door.
*
The next afternoon, Ye Manzhi took his fifth brother, who had just returned from the countryside, to the Housing Management Office to complete the house rental procedures.
Comrade Xiao Qin from the military representative office is here, and that's more effective than a cop.
The rent for the newly rented yard is the same as the other four units in the inn, which is five dollars a month.
When the fifth brother got the key, he felt like a pie fell from the sky and happened to be caught in his mouth.
"Come on, tell me the truth, what's going on with this house?"
"I asked the military representative for help." Ye Manzhi honestly explained what happened.
The fifth brother looked at her suspiciously, wanting to ask why the military representative was helping him, but he endured it and asked nothing. He had to talk to Chang Yue'e about this matter and let their mother make the decision.
"They've helped me with such a big thing, shouldn't we show some appreciation? When I move, I'll invite that military representative to my house for dinner. I have two pigs, so I'll kill one and treat him!"
Ye Manzhi gave his fifth brother a thumbs up.
Fifth brother is much more open-minded than Old Ye.
When asked to treat Lao Ye to drinks, he was hesitant, but when it was Fifth Brother's turn, he wanted to kill the pig directly!
Those two old sows are Fifth Brother’s treasures. One is called Dahua and the other is called Erhua. They have been raised for more than a year. Now they are in a state of eating without gaining weight, but Fifth Brother is reluctant to kill them.
"Let's talk about dinner later," Ye Manzhi said, not caring about anything else. She just wanted her fifth brother to move out of Yueya Hutong as soon as possible. "There's an old stable in the inn. It's convenient for you to raise pigs and horses. I think you should move as soon as possible and give Hongzao, Dahua and Erhua a better environment."
Since there was a better house, Fifth Brother naturally wanted to move in as soon as possible, and immediately agreed to go back and pack up his belongings and prepare to move.
Ye Manzhi felt relieved and reminded him, "Brother, if anyone asks you about this house, don't mention the military representative's office. Just say you rented it by chance."
Wu Zhengrong was even reluctant to issue a note, as he was still very careful about his reputation.
"I see. How could your brother not understand even this? Don't worry."
In fact, the Ye brothers and sisters don’t need to worry too much about this matter.
Of the two houses released by the military agency, one was rented to my fifth brother, and the other was bought by a salesperson from the supply and marketing cooperative who went to the housing management office to rent a house that day.
Compared to the fifth brother, this one is the real lucky guy. He rented a yard in this area for five dollars, and his smile is so bright that it can reach the sky.
After moving into the new house, he boasted to everyone about how lucky he and Ye Laowu were to have rented the temporary housing that the military agency had just sold at a low price.
Fifth brother didn't even have to think about what to say, he just nodded.
…
Ye Manzhi helped her fifth brother move to a new place, and she felt half relieved, but the other half was still worried about the old Zheng family in Yueya Hutong.
The Zheng family is like a landmine buried in Yueya Hutong. Once it is accidentally touched by someone, it will be the end of everyone.
The complicated situation of this family made her feel difficult. When she didn't know what to do, someone brought the Zheng family's problems to the table.
The cause was the armed fight a few days ago.
Among the five seriously injured people sent to the hospital, one had a lumbar fracture. With the current medical conditions, it may be impossible for him to recover as before, and there is a high probability that he will suffer from lifelong disability.
It is certainly unacceptable for a healthy and strong laborer to become disabled, both the individual and his family members.
The family couldn't think of a solution for the time being, so they made a most practical request - to become a relief recipient.
"I know the Wang family. They've filled out the relief form several times, but they never meet the requirements," Zhang Qinjian said, noting on the form. "While Wang Zhiqiang might have residual health issues, he's not the only able-bodied person in his family. Under these circumstances, they shouldn't be approved for relief."
Welfare committee member Wei Zhen sighed awkwardly, "The rest of his family is indeed able to work, but the problem is that none of them have jobs!"
"This year's aid recipient review is about to begin," Director Mu suggested. "Why not take this opportunity to review all the aid recipients in the entire street? The country needs funds for construction now, and the city and district governments are very strict in reviewing aid recipients."
"There are 87 households receiving assistance on Guangming Street, the second-highest number in the district. Constantly asking for money from higher authorities is not a long-term solution. We need to find ways to help these people become self-reliant."
Ye Manzhi and four other small cadres were allowed to attend the street welfare discussion meeting, but they had no right to speak and could only listen.
Although they couldn't speak, the others were not idle. Liu Jinbao whispered to Ye Manzhi, "Those who can work should be allowed to go out and work to earn money. If they can become welfare recipients without working, won't everyone follow suit and no one will have to work anymore!"
"You're right, but where will the jobs come from?"
"Many factories in the city are hiring. If you have hands and feet, go apply."
"That's easy to say," Chen Caixia said speechlessly. "Those people receiving assistance are almost all illiterate or semi-literate. Factories have educational requirements for hiring workers. If anyone could be a worker, then everyone would become a worker!"
Four people were chattering nearby, their voices growing louder and louder. Director Mu cleared his throat and reminded them to keep quiet.
Zhang Qinjian smiled and said, "I think Liu Jinbao is right. People who are able to work should be mobilized to go out and actively participate in labor. Look, these two households..."
He picked out two relief application forms from dozens of them.
"One is the Qian Shengli family in Waibozi Hutong, and the other is the Zheng Dong family in Yueya Hutong. Both families had applied for relief a long time ago, but were never approved. Their situations are very typical: the young and old women and children are the only ones left after the young working men in their families have become paralyzed."
Wei Zhen was very familiar with these two families, and there was a hint of disgust between his brows.
"Qian Shengli's family is relatively okay. At least his husband, Qian, still knows how to weave baskets to supplement the family income. The Zheng family is the real problem," Wei Zhen said with a gloomy look on her face. "I've been to their house several times and even introduced Zheng Dong's parents to a job pasting matchboxes. But they either complain of back pain from sitting too much or rheumatism in their finger joints. Anyway, they just can't work."
When talking about the Zheng family, Ye Manzhi couldn't help it.
"Sister Wei, his family's main reason is that his daughter-in-law and daughter are so capable. Xue Qiaoer works as a rickshaw driver to earn money, while Zheng Dongmei stays at home to take care of the children and do housework. Although their son is paralyzed, it doesn't affect the couple's normal lives."
Wei Zhen immediately found a kindred spirit and clapped her hands, saying, "Xiao Ye is absolutely right. The Zheng couple's bad habits were caused by their child!"
She had mentioned the Zheng family's problem once before, but no one believed her.
Old Man Zheng and Aunt Zheng have always been kind people, and they are very tolerant of their daughter-in-law who was born a prostitute. They have a good reputation among their neighbors. The director of the neighborhood committee and the leader of the residents' group both say that the Zheng couple are honest people.
Instead, it was Xue Qiaoer and Zheng Dongmei, the sister-in-law, who had constant problems in the alley.
But Wei Zhen has been working in welfare for several years, and she has seen all kinds of monsters and demons, as well as fish, turtles, shrimps and crabs.
In her opinion, the Zheng couple are not easy to deal with.
Everyone was talking about the applicants' situations, and all the gossip and privacy of each family was brought out for discussion.
Ye Manzhi listened to the gossip with rapt attention, but Director Mu interrupted, "Alright, each of these applicants has their own circumstances, but we shouldn't increase the number of recipients on Guangming Street. Aside from those who are truly unable to work, we can help them through their difficult times. Everyone else must fend for themselves!"
"Everyone distributes these relief forms according to their neighborhood committees, and liaison officers go to these households one-on-one to work with them, trying their best to find ways to help these people find a way out and not add burden to the country."
There are six neighborhood committees in Guangming Street. Ye Manzhi and Chen Caixia are the liaison officers of the fifth and sixth neighborhood committees.
The two of them were assigned nine relief lists, including the Zheng family's.
Ye Manzhi knew very well that although her fifth brother would soon move out of Yueya Hutong, the crisis was not over.
If anyone else provokes Zheng Dongmei, she will get angry and start a fire at any time, burning down the entire street.
This not only concerns the jobs of everyone in the street office, but is also a matter of life and death!
She felt that among the people in the street office, Wei Zhen's views on the Zheng family were more consistent with hers, so she took the relief form and asked Sister Wei for advice.
"His family's affairs are both complicated and simple," Wei Zhen whispered to her. "If I were to sum it up in one word, the Zheng couple are two-faced! They're too bossy, treating their daughter and daughter-in-law like animals. The key is that the two young people don't think there's anything wrong and are willing to support the entire family."
Ye Manzhi thought of Xue Qiaoer's smile and thought that it might not be willing.
She whispered her plan, "Sister Wei, what do you think about letting Zheng Dongmei leave home first? Zheng Dongmei is quite capable. After all, she's a strong laborer. She should be allowed to go out and work, leaving the old couple at home to do the housework and take care of the children. Once Zheng Dongmei leaves home, the Zheng family will have two people earning wages, and naturally they won't be rated as a relief household."
Chen Caixia was not optimistic about this idea.
"It's difficult! Maybe his family doesn't want their daughter to go out to work just to get the relief package. Unless we can find Zheng Dongmei a job that pays much more than the relief money."
However, they are still in the probation period and may not even be able to keep their own jobs, so where can they find such good jobs for others?
Wei Zhen chuckled twice and didn't respond.
"Sister Wei, just tell us what you think," Ye Manzhi said, holding her hand. "You know the Zheng family better than we do. We'll listen to you!"
Seeing that the two young men were staring at him eagerly, Wei Zhen hesitated for a long time, but still whispered his guess.
"I might be misleading you by saying this, but I'm afraid the Zheng couple would rather receive welfare than allow their daughter to go out and work."
"Why?" Chen Caixia asked doubtfully, "Wouldn't it be good to earn more money for the family?"
Wei Zhen asked, "In the past month since you started working here, quite a few people have wanted to introduce you to potential partners, right?"
"I'm already married!" Chen Caixia pointed at Ye Manzhi. "Xiaoye is quite popular. There are always people who want to introduce her to someone."
"Look, you two just arrived at the company, and someone wants to introduce you to someone," Wei Zhen asked. "If Zheng Dongmei goes out to work, she's not ugly and is quite capable. Will she be introduced to someone? If she gets married, no matter how much she earns, she can't give it all to her parents, right?"
Zheng Dongmei is already twenty-six or twenty-seven years old. Other girls at her age would have children running around.
If they really love their daughter, why don’t the couple find a husband for her?
Unless the Zheng family's grandchildren can set up their own households and earn money to support the family, Zheng Dongmei will have to be a nanny in her mother's family for the rest of her life.
Ye Manzhi and Chen Caixia looked at each other, and there was a hint of realization in each other's eyes.
*
There are nine families in the fifth and sixth neighborhood committees who have applied to become relief households. They have to assist the comrades in the neighborhood committees and do the work door to door.
That evening, after dinner at home, Ye Manzhi put on his backpack and went out for a home visit.
"Hey, big official, please wait a while before going out." Chang Yue'e stopped her daughter.
"Mom, I have something urgent to do."
"Let me ask you something," Chang Yue'e pulled her aside, her expression as if sharing a secret, "Should we start using meat purchase certificates?"
"Who told you that?"
"This is news from the neighborhood committee. Tell me the truth, this is a serious matter, don't be careless!"
"Oh, Director Mu won't let us tell you! What if everyone rushes to buy pork and something goes wrong?"
As a street cadre, Ye Manzhi knew three days ago that pork would also be supplied with tickets in the future.
The neighborhood committee was responsible for filling out the meat purchase certificates for the residents under its jurisdiction, and then taking them to the street office for stamping. She and Aunt Feng were the ones who stamped the certificates.
Her wrists were sore from carrying thousands of meat purchase certificates.
Chang Yue'e tapped her forehead and said, "Why are you so stubborn? If you don't tell me, someone will tell me that this matter has spread all over the building, and everyone is preparing to grab the meat tomorrow morning!"
"Oh, although the supply is limited, there are basically enough meat coupons, so there's no need to rush to buy in advance. It's so hot now, why buy so much meat?"
"Your father does manual labor, and he'd have no strength if he didn't eat meat!" Chang Yue'e rolled her eyes and said, "I don't care. You all should get up early tomorrow morning. While we still don't need tickets, let's buy more meat and make more sausages for easy storage!"
Ye Manzhi had no choice but to agree, and was dug out of bed by her mother at four o'clock the next morning.
Without even having time to comb his hair, he followed the crowd out to grab pork.
She and Chang Yue'e came to the vegetable market near Waibozi Hutong.
Others were assigned to go to more distant vegetable markets and meat stalls, determined to grab the first pork when the market opened today!
Ye Manzhi was yawning when she went out, but when she arrived at the entrance of the vegetable market and saw the long queue in front of the door, she immediately became energetic.
"You see, we're still late," Chang Yue'e sighed, "Those people ahead of us must have been lining up last night!"
Ye Manzhi: “…”
Everyone really fought hard for a piece of meat!
In the past two years, the city has gradually started to use grain purchase certificates, cloth purchase certificates, sugar purchase certificates, firewood purchase certificates, and oil purchase certificates. Most of the daily necessities are in limited supply.
Everything else is manageable, but the purchase of food and oil is limited, which really makes everyone feel frustrated.
For families with workers who do heavy manual labor, pork is as important as grain and oil.
The vegetable market hasn't opened yet, and the queue is so long that you can't tell the beginning or the end.
With her extensive network of contacts, Chang Yue'e found a good position among the rickshaw drivers' families.
"Aunt Chang, I heard that your son is going to move out of Yueya Hutong?" The family of the rickshaw driver Lao Zhang came to talk to Chang Yue'e.
"Yes, it's inconvenient to get in and out over there. My son's pony is always getting scratched by branches in the alley, and he feels sorry for the horse."
"It's better to change!" Mrs. Zhang said meaningfully, "You were too close to Xue Qiao'er before. Your son isn't married yet, so it's better to stay away from him if possible."
Chang Yue'e smiled and waved her hands: "It's not because of that young wife, she has become a good woman, it's okay!"
"How is she okay? I'm embarrassed to talk about the things she does!" Mrs. Zhang curled her lips. "The work she's done in the past two months would rank her in the top ten of the fleet! With her body, how could she possibly do so much work?"
Another Wang's wife sneered, "You don't know, do you? Seven or eight of the drivers in their fleet have had their salaries reduced, and Old Sun gets the lowest. Because of this, his wife Ge Hong went straight to the police station and reported Xue Qiaoer for resuming her old job. But the local police didn't seem to do anything. I heard there was no evidence."
This kind of thing spreads the fastest among family members. The slightest sign of trouble will be heard by the families of the entire convoy.
Ye Manzhi knew that Director Mu was still investigating Xue Qiaoer's case, so she asked curiously, "Sister-in-law, the masters' salaries have decreased. Maybe it's just that they haven't worked enough, and it doesn't necessarily have anything to do with Xue Qiaoer, right?"
"If it wasn't a big deal, would she have given someone a handkerchief for no reason?" Mrs. Wang pouted. "We live across the street from Old Chen's family, and his wife nearly blew the roof off because of this handkerchief. But Old Chen's wife is still not as ruthless as Ge Hong. Ge Hong directly reported it to the police!"
Ye Manzhi was full of doubts. What was going on with Xue Qiaoer?
Why do you always give handkerchiefs to men?
The last time Ge Hong went to the police station to hang herself, she also said that she took out a scented handkerchief from the pocket of her husband Lao Sun.
This time it was another handkerchief.
Could this be some kind of strict rule in Liushao Hutong?
"Forget it, forget it. I think Xue Qiao'er is just a fool! She relies on this kind of business to support her in-laws! I don't know what's so good about the Zheng family that makes her so devoted! Bah, forget about her!"
A group of the driver's family members quickly shifted their attention and started talking about other topics.
Ye Manzhi whispered to her mother what she saw in Yueya Hutong that day.
"Xue Qiao'er may have seen through the Zheng family. She's not the fool they say she is. But since she's seen that something's wrong with her in-laws, why doesn't she divorce? She's so hardworking, so there might be a way out after the divorce."
Chang Yue'e sighed deeply.
"I come from a good family. When I divorced your eldest sister's father, I almost lost everything. I was criticized a lot in the first few years. Even I was in such a situation. How could someone from Xue Qiao'er's family get divorced so easily?"
She knew that her daughter would be exposed to some things in the street office and would understand everything she needed to know, so she no longer had the previous concerns when talking about it.
"Do you know where all the prostitutes went when Liushao Hutong was liberated?"
Ye Manzhi shook his head.
"Those who have homes can go home, and those who don't can find their own way out. Some have found new jobs, while others who are truly homeless and have no means of living can go to the mines if they wish and marry single miners who don't mind their background."
"The mountains are high and the roads are long, and it's an unfamiliar environment. Some people didn't want to go and chose to stay. It was under those circumstances that Xue Qiao'er was picked out by her husband and brought home to be his wife. At the time, it seemed like he was doing her a favor."
Ye Manzhi thought that when Xue Qiaoer chose to stay, she certainly didn't expect that the Zheng family would be such a hell of a place.
Chang Yue'e sighed, "So, in her situation, she can be widowed, but she absolutely cannot divorce. Otherwise, she will be drowned in spit, and her life will be even more unbearable in the future."
You can be widowed but not divorced?
Ye Manzhi chewed over this sentence over and over again, feeling that these few short words were like thunder, making her head buzz.
What was the original fate of the Zheng family?
Zheng Dongmei was executed by firing squad. Except for Xue Qiaoer and her child, everyone else seemed to have been burned to death?
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
