Chapter 90 The Red Flag Team pulled off a stunning comeback! ...
Brown Sugar considers itself a well-informed dog.
After all, no dog's life will ever witness watermarks appearing out of thin air, a thermos floating in mid-air, or clothes hanging on the clothesline...
If it were just these bizarre things that made the dog's brain almost smoke, that would be one thing, but one day, Brown Sugar started hearing a voice talking in its ear.
The startled black dog barked fiercely: Woof woof woof woof! (Who is it! Who is playing tricks on me! Come out!)
Brown Sugar bared its teeth fiercely at the air, but couldn't see any figure. It could only smell the clear, cool river water—hmm, a familiar scent.
Dogs don't understand, so dogs can only let it go.
Just like being forced to bathe in the river by an invisible force, Hongtang couldn't understand it and could only console herself: considering the doghouse made from old clothes and the occasional scratching and back-rubbing, the dog wouldn't mind, the dog would let it go.
Brown sugar may seem acceptable, but it actually makes you numb.
The big black dog lay down dejectedly, its tail swaying and patting the ground, its fluffy, erect ears twitching. Hongtang tried to listen to what the strange sound beside her ear was.
The hazy, indistinct sound gradually became clearer.
"...I am...your father..."
Suddenly, the brown sugar stood up on all four legs again!
Strange things are happening more and more often, and this isn't the end of it. Brown Sugar, which could have been running around freely, is now controlled by a mysterious force and is staying by its friend's side. Whenever another man gets close, that mysterious force pushes it forward.
"Go and stop him. You don't want a second father, do you?"
The dog was confused, but it still went ahead without hesitation.
And so, the dog security guard diligently worked day after day, and today was another day of standing guard on all four legs!
"You're so petty! My mom even asked me why I've been carrying the dog around all the time lately, like a ten-year-old carrying brown sugar everywhere..."
"Yes, I did that a couple of years ago, but back then it was to keep an eye on you!"
"Ouch! You bit my face! Are you a dog?!"
The human-like furrowed brows, and Red Sugar, nestled in its doghouse in the corner of the room, blinked its dark eyes, as if it saw a half-transparent, blurry figure embracing the human.
A dog... a dog that walks upright? Is this its father?
——
Zhong Ying was unaware of this little incident where she was suspected of having questionable conduct. She was too busy settling scores with Li Linshi, who bit her cheek. Zhong Ying retaliated with more than one bite.
Adam's apple, collarbone, chest... Anyway, Li Linshi doesn't need to see anyone, so leaving a few marks won't matter.
When Deputy Secretary Zhao realized he had misunderstood, he didn't bring it up again.
On the third day of their stay, the inspection team had a pretty good understanding of the situation in the Tonggan production team, and they also learned about the local people's worship of the mountain goddess.
Deputy Secretary Zhao stood in the mountain god temple, looked around, and then frowned. "Captain Zhong, do the members of your production team still believe in gods?"
Zhong Ying knew this was a sensitive topic, so she immediately explained, "When people get sick, they still go to the team doctor. It doesn't affect people's lives. It's just a thought, something to do when people come here to burn incense and make a wish during festivals."
“Well, things are alright here. I heard that in other production teams, some people even register their children under the name of a god to pray for longevity, buying paper money, burning incense, and offering food. It’s such a waste,” said Old Chen, a representative of the Poor Workers’ Association, from the side.
Zhong Ying sighed, "It's the parents' best intention. Children die so easily. But rather than believing in God, it would be better if there was a barefoot doctor in the production team who could treat illnesses."
Officer Zheng and Accountant Zhang nodded in agreement.
Deputy Secretary Zhao's expression softened somewhat. "It's good that you have such awareness. As a production team leader, believing in gods and ghosts is a backward idea!"
Zhong Ying's voice sounded a little weak as she echoed. Although she had never seen the mountain god, ghosts were standing right next to her.
However, Deputy Secretary Zhao really cared about this point, and he didn't forget to mention it in his concluding remarks before leaving: "...Your production team has actually done a good job in all aspects. If you could get rid of this belief in gods, it would be even better. Look at Panpokou Production Brigade, after the Medicine God Temple was demolished, the land was distributed to the commune members as private plots. Isn't growing vegetables better than burning incense?"
Zhong Ying just laughed it off.
"Also," Deputy Secretary Zhao said, glancing at the thin young man in the crowd one last time before leaving, his expression becoming somewhat meaningful, "some comrades, making unfounded accusations is not a good habit. You should focus your attention on your work."
Having risen to the position of deputy secretary, Zhao Liang wasn't stupid. Upon reflection, he realized that Qiu Yucai's simplistic attempt to sow discord had almost been used as a pawn by the young man.
Following the leader's gaze, everyone's eyes fell on Qiu Yucai, who looked flustered and helpless.
After the four members of the verification team left Tonggan Production Team, the commune members were finally able to relax their tension in front of outsiders, and their tone of voice returned to normal.
"I'm trying to figure out what the leader meant by that," Hu asked thoughtfully. "If we want to be selected for the Red Flag Team, we have to demolish the mountain temple first?"
Zhong Ying sighed, "Yes."
They've all used the example of the collapsed Yaoshen Temple slope, isn't that the point?
This caused quite a stir.
Lai Hunzi looked indifferent. "Then let's just decline. Getting the Red Flag Team award is the most important thing."
His words immediately provoked an outrageous rebuttal from the crowd.
"No way!" As the oldest person in the production team, Third Aunt had personally experienced the past flash flood and held the Mountain Goddess in high esteem and gratitude. She frowned and said, "The Mountain Goddess protects us. How can we demolish her temple!"
"Exactly! There's no reason to tear down a temple just to please superiors or to be named a Red Flag Team. Isn't that like crossing the river and then burning the bridge?" Nie Ying said angrily.
Liu Qiang also said excitedly, "We can't demolish it. If we can't be named a Red Flag Team, does that mean we can't work hard on our own in the future? But if we demolish the temple, what if the Mountain Goddess gets angry and causes a flash flood? Then everything will be over!"
"Yeah yeah……"
Lai Hunzi could only awkwardly touch his nose and dared not utter another word.
Zhong Ying wasn't afraid of being blamed or not; she just felt that even if someone wasn't a god, there was no reason to demolish another person's house when they weren't home.
“Alright, let’s not tear down the temple,” Zhong Ying said loudly. “As for the Red Flag Team election, the evaluation is already over, so we don’t need to do anything more. We can just wait for the results.”
Once everyone's emotions were calmed down, they stopped gathering together to discuss the matter.
Before the crowd dispersed, Zhong Ying called out to the young man who was trying to minimize his presence and pretend to be invisible.
“Qiu Zhiqing,” Zhong Ying called out to him.
Qiu Yucai felt a chill run down his spine. How could he not feel guilty when facing the person involved after doing something wrong?
He turned around stiffly, revealing an awkward smile, "Captain Zhong."
Zhong Ying understood perfectly what Deputy Secretary Zhao meant by his last words. Besides, this Qiu Zhiqing in front of her had a "criminal record"—he had spread rumors about Yu Jing in the past, and now he was definitely spreading rumors about someone else. Wasn't he tired enough? If he was tired to the point of wanting to die, he wouldn't have any wicked thoughts. "The leader said that you should focus your mind on labor, which means he values you and hopes that you can make a difference through labor. Fortunately, there is a piece of wasteland to the west. Take advantage of the winter off-season to cultivate it and plant beans next spring. That way, you won't let the leader down."
Qiu Yucai opened his mouth, wanting to refuse. It was the dead of winter, and the ground was frozen solid. How could he be asked to clear the wasteland?
But under Zhong Ying's all-knowing gaze, Qiu Yucai could only reluctantly accept this arduous task. She knew this was punishment.
A week later, the commune's auditorium was filled with cadres from various production teams, while on the stage sat the commune's leaders, including Director Ding, Secretary Sun, and Deputy Secretary Zhao, with bright red flags behind them and simple banners above their heads.
"As 1970 draws to a close, the various production teams under our Liuzhang Commune have continued to demonstrate the spirit of hard work and continuous progress. The Panpokou Production Brigade has developed sideline businesses in the past year..." Deputy Secretary Zhao presided over the meeting, recounting the achievements of each production team one by one.
Zhong Ying sat calmly in the audience. She had already accepted the fact that the Red Flag Team might not be the Tonggan Production Team. Actually, it didn't matter if she didn't get the award; she would just lose the right to use the tractor and the watermelon seeds.
When the production team has money, they can buy one tractor and use it exclusively for their production team.
Watermelon seeds haven't been allowed to circulate easily in recent years, but once the national economy improves and reforms take effect, people will be able to grow whatever they want. As long as they live long enough, they'll be able to eat them!
Zhong Ying comforted herself very well, but Li Linshi couldn't read minds and couldn't guess what she was thinking. He could only keep looking at her expression.
Li Linshi cleared his throat and comforted them, "Actually, it's not necessarily true that if we don't promote the mountain god temple, we won't be considered for our production team. That might be a point deduction, but we still have quite a few points to gain."
Zhong Ying glanced at him, but because of the people sitting around her, she couldn't speak.
Li Linshi offered his hand and placed it on her lap.
On the surface, Zhong Ying appeared to be sitting upright like everyone else, looking at the people on the stage in front of her. No one noticed the barely perceptible movement of her fingers.
Zhong Ying wrote word by word in Li Linshi's palm: It's okay, I'm mentally prepared for not being able to accept the praise.
As Zhong Ying's warm fingertips traced lines on his palm, Li Lin had to desperately ignore the itching sensation to decipher the words she was writing. Each word seemed to be etched into his very soul, making him tremble.
After a long while, Li Linshi finally finished reading the complete sentence. He looked up and gazed at Zhong Ying's calm and composed profile.
“You can take one of those drawings and burn it for me when we get back,” Li Linshi said.
Zhong Ying didn't seem sad, but he still wanted to do something for her to make her happy.
Upon hearing this, Zhong Ying couldn't help but gasp for breath, and instinctively gripped Li Linshi's hand tightly.
Zhong Ying didn't just draw clothes for him to wear every day. Occasionally, when she was in the mood, she would draw clothes that would get her attacked online for being "borderline" and criticized, such as aprons without a bra, gray sweatpants, deep V see-through outfits, and towels wrapped around the waist. Li Linshi couldn't accept any of them and refused them outright, so these could only become her treasured possessions.
These paintings were truly the most treasured possessions; they were kept at the very bottom of Zhong Ying's dowry chest.
Zhong Ying thought these things would never see the light of day again. Given Li Linshi's level of conservatism, she could only indulge in them while drawing.
But now Li Linshi actually said that we can draw a card!
Zhong Ying's calm emotions were instantly stirred by him. She tried her best to control her excitement and anticipation, showing no emotion on her face, only in the words written on her palm: You are so good!!
Zhong Ying couldn't wait to applaud the production team that had been awarded the Red Flag Team, and then go back to enjoy her feast of male beauty.
She was both excited and troubled. If she could only choose one, should she choose the apron or the bath towel? Or should she draw an even hotter and more provocative one?
Zhong Ying was caught in a dilemma. Her passive skill of "taking advantage of a snake" was itching to be used. She thought, since Li Linshi could already accept one, then she could coax him into accepting the second and third. After that, it should be possible to achieve it as well.
Li Linshi only sensed Zhong Ying's increased excitement. At that moment, he was unaware that some things, once a door is opened, can become uncontrollable.
As Deputy Secretary Zhao's presentation on the stage drew to a close, he announced the final results: "After discussion and comprehensive evaluation, the Tonggan Production Team has made the most significant contributions and made progress in all aspects this year. Therefore, the commune hereby designates it as the advanced production team of this year!"
Zhong Ying subconsciously stood up and clapped along with the people around her. After clapping twice, she came to her senses. Wait, did she hear that right?
Li Linshi gave her a push, "Hurry up and get on stage!"
Zhong Ying walked to the front of the stage like a lost soul, and was given a banner and a big red flower, and asked to speak.
This scene remains vivid in the memories of many people. The youngest production team leader, who was also a woman, led the production team, which had always been the poorest, to a remarkable turnaround in that year!
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Author's Note: Zhong Ying: So, what about... is there anything else? Never mind, not getting the award is a consolation prize, but if I did, shouldn't I get a reward? That's right, I get a year-end bonus at work, how can I not get one now? I deserve it! (Full of self-righteousness)
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