Chapter 60: Why don't they deserve the first prize? ...
In the morning, Jiang Xueyi just woke up and received a letter from the postman.
He Chengze yawned and asked, "Who sent the letter?"
Jiang Xueyi smiled happily and showed him the signature.
"It's from Shanghai," He Chengze said. "Let me see, the sender is...Hao Fang?!"
"Yes." Jiang Xueyi opened the letter and read it quickly. "She said she had settled in Shanghai with her son and mother. There was a friend she met there when she used to work in a factory. He took good care of her and even found her a job. The salary isn't high, but it's more than enough to support her family."
Hao Fang described her life in Shanghai in an almost excited tone.
Along with the letter, he also sent two silk scarves, saying that it is now popular among young girls and wives there.
Jiang Xueyi picked up the silk scarf, put it on her neck, and asked He Chengze, "Does it look good?"
He Chengze smiled and said, "You look good in anything you wear."
He was telling the truth. Jiang Xueyi's skillful hands folded the light yellow square silk scarf into a triangle and tied it around her neck, which made her skin look whiter and set her off very well.
Jiang Xueyi glared at him: "You are just so smooth-talking."
He Chengze laughed and said, "I'm not being glib. Everything I say is the truth."
Jiang Xueyi stood on tiptoe and kissed him on the corner of his mouth: "Beauty, let me see your little mouth. Is it like tasting honey? Why is it so sweet?"
Her eyes are so charming that they make people feel itchy.
He Chengze picked her up sideways and said, "You were the one who hooked me first."
With a tug of the hand, the scarf slowly fell to the ground, covering up the beautiful scenery.
Some things are just more exciting to do in the morning.
If it wasn't almost time to go to work, she thought He Chengze would still be reluctant to let her go.
When Jiang Xueyi entered the office carrying the little bun, she saw Xu Shanshan rushing over, her face full of joy, unable to contain itself: "Xiao Jiang, the manuscript we submitted to the Provincial Propaganda Committee won a prize!!"
Jiang Xueyi was stunned for a moment and asked in disbelief, "Won a prize?"
Section Chief You grinned from ear to ear. This was a huge honor. "Yes, I won a prize, and it's first prize!"
Jiang Xueyi couldn't help but feel ecstatic and asked, "Where is Liu Lu?"
Xu Shanshan pointed: "It's in their publicity department office."
Jiang Xueyi went to find her, and as soon as she opened the office door, she saw Liu Lu surrounded by a group of people, congratulating her.
"Xueyi." Liu Lu saw her and walked over happily, holding her hands. "The promotional article we wrote won an award!"
"Yeah!" Jiang Xueyi looked at her and saw smiles in each other's eyes.
To be honest, Liu Lu actually had some premonition that she would win the award.
Before sending it to the provincial level for review, she contacted Jiang Xueyi again, and the two of them stayed up all night to revise the manuscript carefully, requiring it to be smooth word by word, citing classics, and even quoting a few quotations from the □□. Even Director Xie applauded after reading it, so how could it not win an award?
However, Liu Lu thought she only won the third prize, but she never expected that she would win the first prize.
She was almost beside herself with joy.
Director Xie came over, teacup in hand, and said with a smile, "Xiao Liu, Xiao Jiang, you two did a great job this time, and you've won honor for our Women's Federation." She waved her hand and said, "Not only will the Provincial Propaganda Committee give bonuses to winning manuscripts, but I'll make the decision. Our Women's Federation will also approve a bonus for you two."
Xu Shanshan screamed, "Xiao Jiang, you've made a fortune! You probably haven't spent all the prize money from the lecture yet, and now you've got another one." She held Jiang Xueyi's hand, "No, I want to follow you from now on."
Jiang Xueyi pinched her nose and teased, "Okay, I'll take you to a restaurant every day from now on."
Xu Shanshan said happily: "Then why should I look for a partner? I'll just marry you."
Chief You: "You're dreaming. First ask Deputy Brigade Commander He if he agrees."
This caused everyone to burst into laughter.
Liu Lu asked eagerly, "Director Xie, how much is the bonus?"
Director Xie raised a finger and said, "One hundred yuan."
"What!" Liu Lu shouted excitedly.
She suddenly covered her stomach: "No, it's not good, my stomach."
Jiang Xueyi looked down and saw a pool of blood under her skirt. "Oh no, her water has broken." She added, "Hurry and send her to the hospital!"
Everyone was really scared and rushed her to the hospital.
When Captain Zhao arrived, the child had already been born.
It's a girl.
Captain Zhao opened the swaddling clothes and looked at it again and again.
There were no deformed genitals, no extra fingers or toes.
She was just a healthy girl with pretty eyes and a loud cry.
Captain Zhao was crying and laughing, thank God, the doctors and nurses thought he was crazy.
After Liu Lu woke up, she learned that she had given birth to a healthy baby girl, who behaved just like Captain Zhao.
The couple almost hugged each other and cried bitterly.
In the past, the two of them were somewhat patriarchal and hoped to have a boy.
But after the story about the sex-changing medicine, as long as the child is safe and healthy, I don't ask for anything else.
Captain Zhao had to stay in the hospital with Liu Lu, so Zhao Xiaorui asked Jiang Xueyi to take care of her.
On the way back, Jiang Xueyi picked up Zhao Xiaorui from school.
When Zhao Xiaorui learned that she had a younger sister, she was overjoyed: "I have a younger sister?"
"Yes." Jiang Xueyi held her hand and said with a smile.
Zhao Xiaorui said excitedly: "Isn't it the same as when the little bun was just born, like a red monkey?"
Jiang Xueyi was happy: "Almost the same, but your sister has more hair. She will definitely have long, shiny black hair when she grows up."
Because Zhao Xiaorui was there, Jiang Xueyi simply made two sweet and sour dishes for dinner, scrambled eggs with tomatoes and sweet and sour fish.
Children love to eat sour and sweet things, and Zhao Xiaorui likes it very much.
Zhu Changchang and Qi Xiaohao heard that Zhao Xiaorui had been eating at the He family for several days. They looked resentful and asked why it was not their mother who gave birth to the child, and they also wanted to eat there.
When Zhao Xiaorui touched her little face and felt that it had become rounder.
Liu Lu has also finished her confinement.
Both of them now have to bring their children to work. Jiang Xueyi simply asked someone to make a large crib with four wheels, and placed it in the office, and put Xiao Baozi and Xiao Yueya in it.
Xiao Yueya is the nickname Liu Lu gave to her little girl because she loves to laugh and her eyes look like crescent moons when she laughs.
Ever since the little boy started calling mom and dad, it seemed as if he had unlocked the talent for language, and he could speak one word at a time.
He sat with his chubby legs crossed, raised his handsome face, pointed at the little crescent moon and said, "Sister."
Liu Lu was happy: "Yes, it's my sister."
Little bun, stretch out your hand, I pinch you~
Little Yueya had her face pinched and started crying.
The office was in chaos, which brought a lot of fun to everyone.
Now that the little one can walk and jump, he doesn’t like to stay in the crib anymore. He prefers to sit in the stroller and move around.
Like a little old man, inspecting everywhere.
With his handsome and cute appearance, he wins cheers wherever he goes, if he were not old enough to eat candy.
Jiang Xueyi suspected that he could bring a big bag of candy every time he came back.
Director Xie slowly came over again, holding a teacup. She glanced at Liu Lu, then at her stomach: "I was really scared that day."
Liu Lu smiled sheepishly and said, "Director Xie, I was just too excited that day."
Director Xie handed her the envelope containing the bonus and glanced at her belly. "You haven't given birth to your second child yet, have you? I have another piece of good news for you."
Liu Lu suppressed her joy and said, "Director Xie, please go ahead."
Director Xie waved his hand and called Jiang Xueyi, "Xiao Jiang, come here and listen."
After Jiang Xueyi came over, Director Xie said, "Congratulations to you two. The higher-ups have decided to send someone to present you with the awards. You two should get ready and dress neatly. On that day, you'll have big red flowers tied around your chests and will be happy to receive your awards."
To receive the award, the clothes I usually wear are not suitable.
Director Xie simply gave the two of them a day off early and let them go choose clothes.
As soon as the two left, someone said sourly, "Jiang Xueyi has only been here for a few days, and she's already on stage to receive the award."
Liu Lu is a writer in the Propaganda Department, so no one is surprised that she won the award.
It's Jiang Xueyi. She has only been in the Women's Federation for half a year, but her performance is so outstanding that she is very eye-catching.
"If you can write a good article and give a brilliant lecture on menstruation knowledge, you can also go on stage to receive the award," Chief You said calmly. "If you only know how to say sarcastic things and don't learn from others' strengths and virtues, the time you can go on stage to receive the award will be in your next life."
Jiang Xueyi won the award, and as the head of the rights and interests department of her family, she was also proud of it. How could she not be biased towards her subordinates?
The man blushed and fell silent.
In the evening, when He Chengze came back, he heard Jiang Xueyi say that they were going to the province to receive the award.
Jiang Xueyi worried, "I definitely can't wear casual clothes to receive an award. It would look so informal." She added, "Liu Lu and I spent the entire afternoon browsing the department store in town, but we couldn't find any suitable clothes. What should we do?"
He Chengze had an idea: "How about wearing Jiang Qing's skirt to receive the award?"
Jiang Xueyi was a little confused: "What is a Jiang Qing skirt?"
He Chengze gestured to her, and Jiang Xueyi suddenly realized that it was actually an open-collar dress.
It turns out that this is the "Jiang Qing skirt", which became popular in the streets and alleys in later generations, and can even be said to be the basic style of many skirts.
Jiang Xueyi hesitated and said, "Um...Won't it cause trouble if I wear this?"
He Chengze laughed and said, "Although □□ was overthrown, the aesthetic trends she left behind will not change." He coughed and said, "When I went to the provincial meeting, I saw many female cadres wearing this 'Jiang Qing skirt'."
This is a trend nowadays.
Female leading cadres took the lead in wearing it. When others saw it, they thought, "Oh, this person is wearing a 'Jiang Qing skirt', she must be a female cadre."
Of course, it can’t be called that now, but is simply called ‘open collar dress’.
So, she asked someone to get two open-collar dresses, one for her and one for Liu Lu.
Of course, the awards were not given to just the two of them. There were two first prizes, five second prizes, and countless third prizes.
On the day of the award ceremony, Director Xie specially applied for a bus to take Jiang Xueyi and Liu Lu to the provincial capital.
When seeing the two off to the car, Director Xie noticed the open-collared dresses they were wearing and expressed his satisfaction: "Not bad, this way others won't look down on us."
It was not until she arrived in the province that Jiang Xueyi understood who the 'others' Director Xie was talking about were.
There were about forty or fifty people who came to receive the awards, some from the city and some from the town like them.
When there are a lot of people, they are inevitably divided into different levels.
The staff in charge of reception originally wanted to take them to a second-class reception room, but when they saw the open-collar dresses they were wearing, they guessed that they were two female cadres, so they took them to rest with the people from the city who came to receive the awards.
The reception room used by city officials naturally has much better treatment.
Not only was there tea, but there was also fruit.
However, few people move, for fear that they will eat or drink too much, which will cause them to have urgent needs and become embarrassed.
You can enjoy tea and fruit at any time, and receiving an award may only happen once in your life.
There is still some time before I can officially receive the award.
Everyone greeted each other: "You are the second prize." "Yes, I am the third prize."
Someone asked Jiang Xueyi and Liu Lu: "What prize did you two win?"
There were two young female cadres, one of whom was so young and beautiful, wearing an open-collar dress. She didn't look like she was here to receive an award, but rather to walk the runway.
The person asking the question couldn't help but look down on it and answered himself: "It's the third prize, right?"
Liu Lu puffed out her chest proudly: "We won first prize."
As soon as these words fell, everyone in the reception room looked over.
The list of award recipients has been drawn up long ago, and everyone knows that the first prize winners this year are two female cadres from the town women's federation.
It turns out it was them.
A middle-aged man with slightly gray hair and wearing glasses said with a forced smile: "Ladies, I have read your propaganda draft. It is really 'original'." He emphasized the last four words.
This middle-aged man is the penman of the Municipal Party Committee, named Liu Qing. He has always won the first prize in previous years, but this year he only won the second prize. It is understandable why he is unhappy with the two of them.
Jiang Xueyi smiled faintly and said, "What advice do you have?"
Liu Qing: "I've read your manuscript. It's all about having children and all sorts of other trivial matters."
He didn't talk about himself, but mentioned others: "Take our Municipal Party Committee's Lao Zhang. His article, 'The Tide of Steel Surges Forward,' describes the city's steel production. It's so bold. But you, on the other hand, keep staring at women's bellies and write things like 'It doesn't matter whether you have a boy or a girl'—is that considered propaganda?"
Someone sneered, "Women are just small-minded."
When Mr. Zhang, the municipal party committee member, heard Liu Qing mention him, the ash in his cigarette shook. "Hey, Brother Liu, you're flattering me. In my opinion, your article 'Tractor Enters the Village', which deals with agricultural mechanization, is so realistic. It should be the winner of the first prize this year."
Jiang Xueyi was pouring hot water into an enamel cup, steam rising from her brows. "Is this tractor made of iron?"
Liu Qing secretly laughed at her lack of experience. No wonder she was from the town. He taunted her, "Well, what else? Could it be made of paper?"
Two-thirds of the people in the reception room burst into laughter.
"Iron must first be smelted from ore, ore must be dug from the mountains, tractors must be driven by people, and people must first be born." Jiang Xueyi placed her water cup on the table, leaving a pale yellow mark on the bottom of the cup. "You think childbirth is a trivial matter, but what major event in this world doesn't start with childbirth? Without people giving birth, where would the torrent of steel and the tractors come from?"
Liu Qing's face turned pale and he stopped talking.
Old Zhang threw his cigarette butt to the ground and crushed it with his foot. "But all you write about are those things like the gender of a child. That's too trivial. We're writing about national development, about national affairs, and you're writing about family matters. How can they be the same?"
"Family gossip?" Jiang Xueyi's voice suddenly rose. "There's a woman in the commune downstairs. Because her third child is also a girl, her mother-in-law forced her to wash diapers in the river. The water was so cold in December that her fingers were swollen like carrots. Her husband squatted by the door smoking, saying, 'You deserve this for not giving birth to a boy.' Is this family gossip? This is torturing someone to death!"
Liu Lu also said coldly, "Last year, seventeen women in the county were forced to divorce because they couldn't give birth to a boy, and three of them drank pesticide! Comrades, do you think this is a small matter?"
In order to write this promotional article well, she visited many people and checked a lot of data.
Old Zhang's face turned the color of liver. "But...but these are just household chores, trivial matters. How can they be as important as writing about large-scale production and construction?"
Every year, the manuscripts that win the first prize will be published in the newspaper.
What does this mean?
This means that people across the province can see, hear and understand from the newspapers the politically correct direction advocated.
Instead of getting bogged down in trivial matters between men and women, it is better to focus on production and construction.
"Household chores, trivial matters?" Jiang Xueyi smiled faintly. "Which woman wasn't born by her mother and raised by her father? Which woman hasn't harvested wheat in the fields or spun yarn in the factory? Their lives aren't worth anything, but just because they didn't give birth to a boy, they've become worthless grass."
She walked over to Lao Zhang and said, "When you wrote about the iron rush, you knew you had to choose the best ore. When you wrote about tractors, you knew you had to maintain the engine. But have you ever considered that people are the most fundamental 'ore' and the most precious 'engine'? If you give birth to a girl, she'll be thrown away as scrap, and if you give birth to a boy, he'll be spoiled like scrap metal. In ten or twenty years, who will be making steel? Who will be driving the tractor?"
"Massive production and construction are ultimately about infrastructure, about making life more convenient for the people, and about empowering people to live more like human beings. If even the birth of a boy or girl is categorized as different, and women's lives are not valued, what's the point of producing more steel and driving more tractors?"
People are the foundation of a country.
Old Zhang was shocked, rubbed his hands, and lowered his voice: "That's what I said, but after all..."
"After all, you haven't seen it," Jiang Xueyi interrupted. "You haven't seen a wicked mother-in-law secretly drown a baby girl in a basin, or a woman being called a 'laying hen' by the villagers for not giving birth to a boy, or a ten-year-old girl forced to drop out of school to save money for her younger brother's tuition. These things are hotter than a steel furnace, heavier than a tractor. Why can't I write about them? Why don't I deserve an award?"
She held her head high and said, "We truly deserve this first prize."
As she said this, the slight uneasiness and confusion in Jiang Xueyi's heart about winning the award also dissipated.
They deserve this prize, very much so, extremely well.
Words are powerful and contagious.
As long as this article can make a mother-in-law scold her daughter-in-law less, and make a man love his daughter more, this article will not be written in vain, and this award will not be won in vain.
Jiang Xueyi had said exactly what she was thinking. Liu Lu excitedly grabbed her arm tightly and said in a trembling voice, "You're so right!
Jiang Xueyi snorted and took Liu Lu's arm: "Let's go receive the award."
As the two left, Liu Qing let out a long sigh, and his originally straight back became hunched.
He finally admitted that he was inferior to these two women.
Because what they write about are not trivial things, but the most real things in the world.
People must first be treated as human beings before we can talk about anything else.
This is probably why the Provincial Propaganda Committee awarded their two manuscripts first prize, while her own was only awarded second prize.
There was a faint smell of coal smoke in the auditorium, and the red silk above the stage was swaying slightly in the wind. The golden words "Provincial Propaganda Work Commendation Conference" shone with a faint golden light under the sun.
"The first prize winners are Comrade Jiang Xueyi and Comrade Liu Lu from the Town Women's Federation!" The host's voice came through an old-fashioned microphone, with a little electric noise.
Jiang Xueyi and Liu Lu looked at each other, took a deep breath, and walked onto the stage.
There was a sea of people sitting under the stage. The front row was filled with leaders wearing Zhongshan suits, and the back row was mostly filled with propaganda officers from various units.
The person in charge of presenting the awards to the two was Director Wang of the Provincial Propaganda Committee. He smiled and handed over the certificates to the two people: "Comrades, your propaganda draft is well written. Our secretary was so impressed after reading it."
Jiang Xueyi shook hands with Director Wang and said with a smile, "You're too kind. We are simply conveying the voices of the grassroots, the voices of women, to more people."
Director Wang secretly exclaimed in his heart, praising Jiang Xueyi's words as appropriate and frank.
He couldn't help but ask a few more questions: "Comrade Jiang, I heard that you were admitted to the Women's Federation not long ago."
Liu Lu chimed in, "Director Wang, Xiao Jiang got into the Women's Federation with a perfect score on both the written test and the interview." She added, "Director Xie from the Women's Federation said that the interview questions were so difficult, yet Xiao Jiang answered them perfectly and received a perfect score. It shows she's got real talent."
Director Wang knew Director Xie, and the two often held meetings together.
My impression of her was that she was a rather serious and meticulous woman.
Such a person can open his mouth to praise others, even praise them endlessly... Director Wang couldn't help but look at Jiang Xueyi a little more highly, and said with a smile: "Well, not bad, not bad."
He half-jokingly said, "People always strive for higher positions. The door of our Provincial Propaganda Committee is always open for you."
Liu Lu scolded him, "Director Wang, why are you poaching people?"
Director Wang smiled and said, "Well, that's not the right way to put it." He then added, "We're not going up here to enjoy comfort. Just like Comrade Jiang said, we need to convey the voices of women to more people. Standing at a higher position, our voices will be louder."
Something seemed to pass through Jiang Xueyi's mind.
She smiled and said vaguely, "If there's a chance, I'll definitely go."
Director Wang encouraged the two of them a few more words before letting them leave.
After all, there are so many people who will receive awards later.
When they got on the car back home, Liu Lu was still very excited: "Xueyi, pinch me, am I dreaming? Did we really win first prize?"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
