The competition was held in Workshop 4, with about a hundred employees including the foremen. At the director's command, "The competition begins!" the competition started in front of all the leaders. Unsurprisingly, Xia Liang emerged victorious, followed by Sun Fangfang, who was the most skilled worker besides Xia Liang. The most unexpected result was Liu Lihong's victory. Since becoming a foreman, she no longer needed to operate the sewing machine, and most foremanes had become rusty and couldn't compete with the frontline workers who operated the sewing machines every day. Therefore, Liu Lihong's victory was surprising. Xia Liang, Sun Fangfang, and Liu Lihong will travel to the provincial capital next Monday to participate in the competition. To incentivize the participants, the factory has invested heavily: each of the top three winners will receive a sewing machine ticket.
When Xia Liang got off work, she saw Gu Yanxiao waiting for her at the factory gate. She smiled and walked towards him. The two were about to go to eat when they saw several girls waving at her from a distance. Xia Liang recognized them as acquaintances, the ones she had met at the social event. Xia Liang told Gu Yanxiao to wait for her and went up to greet them. "What can I do for you?" Xia Liang asked with a smile. One of the girls, who had a round face, said, "Didn't we ask you where you made your dress? A few of us want to make one, so we came to find you today." Xia Liang smiled and said, "I can't tell you that, but you can give me your preferred color and size, and I'll pass it on to her to make it for you. After it's finished, we'll arrange a place for you. I brought my own fabric, and the labor cost was three yuan. If you don't bring your own, it's twelve yuan per dress." Everyone exclaimed, "That's so expensive!" "I can't help it. Tickets are hard to come by, and you all know how complicated it is to make my dress." Everyone thought about it and agreed. If the dress wasn't so beautiful, they wouldn't have come all this way to find Xia Liang. After whispering among themselves for a while, the group said, "Alright, it has to be as nice as yours." Xia Liang smiled and said, "Of course." After that, they tallied up the colors and sizes the girls liked, collected a five-yuan deposit from each of them, agreed on a delivery location, and then said goodbye and left.
Xia Liang returned to Gu Yanxiao's side and explained, "I met her at the social gathering. She thought my dress looked good that night, so she asked me to make a few for them." Gu Yanxiao nodded, "It really did look good, but you look even better." His face and ears turned red as he finished speaking. The two went to a state-run restaurant, and Gu Yanxiao ordered the dishes: two meat dishes, one vegetable dish, and a soup. Xia Liang couldn't help but ask, "Won't this drain your wallet? You don't have to eat like this every time. Life should be lived frugally." Xia Liang was worried that he would overeat to save face. After all, unlike in later years when money could buy almost anything, now everything required ration coupons. She was concerned that he would go hungry if he ate and drank like this every time.
To everyone's surprise, Gu Yanxiao laughed and said, "Don't worry, eat as much as you want. You won't bankrupt me. I'm just a battalion commander right now, with a monthly allowance of a little over eighty yuan and only a little over ten days of vacation a year. There's nowhere to spend money in the army, so I don't lack money or tickets. If you want anything, just tell me, and I'll buy it for you." Xia Liang picked up a piece of braised pork and put it in her bowl, breaking it into small pieces and eating slowly. As she ate, she said, "No need. I earn my own money and I'll buy whatever I want. By the way, I'm going to the provincial capital for a competition next Monday. Do you have time? Let's go have some fun together." Gu Yanxiao was overjoyed to hear Xia Liang's invitation and said, "I have time, and even if I don't, I'll make time for you." Xia Liang smiled.
After finishing their meal, the two went for a walk along the riverbank. A row of willow trees lined the path, and wildflowers bloomed beneath their roots, creating a beautiful scene. Halfway there, Gu Yanxiao cautiously reached out and took Xia Liang's hand, as if afraid she would refuse. Seeing that she didn't, Gu Yanxiao's smile stretched almost to his ears. He truly wished this path had no end, so he could walk with her like this forever. He walked Xia Liang to her doorstep, reluctant to part. No matter how much Xia Liang tried to persuade him, she wouldn't leave. Finally, she shamelessly kissed him on the cheek, and while he was still stunned, she pushed open the door and ran back inside. Gu Yanxiao was left standing at the door, touching his cheek and grinning like a fool.
Xia Liang returned home and found the corresponding fabric in the warehouse. She gave her mother the size and color of the fabric, telling her that someone had ordered the dress she had worn before. Xia Liang's mother was happy to have something to do, and when she learned that each dress cost twelve yuan, she was even more excited and wanted to stay up all night. It was Xia Liang who persuaded her to go to bed early, saying that she would use the sewing prize money she received after returning from the competition on Monday to buy a sewing machine, which would make the dress faster. Only then did Xia Liang's mother go back to her room to rest. Sunday arrived in the blink of an eye. The three of them agreed to go to the station at a certain time to buy tickets to the provincial capital, planning to arrive a day early and get a good night's rest so they would have the energy for the competition the next day. When buying the tickets, Xia Liang offered to buy them herself, and the other two did not refuse. While queuing, they saw Gu Yanxiao. Seeing her go to join the queue, Gu Yanxiao followed and stood behind her. The two pretended not to know each other, but kept whispering to each other.
They bought seats together, but Xia Liang let the other two sit with her while she went to her own private seat. Gu Yanxiao sat down next to her. In this day and age, dating has to be done secretly, not openly. But where no one could see, Gu Yanxiao reached out and took Xia Liang's hand, and the two smiled sweetly at each other. After arriving in the provincial capital, they found a guesthouse near the provincial garment factory to settle in, and then went out for dinner together.
The next morning, Xia Liang and the others went to the provincial garment factory. After the factory leaders explained the competition rules, they had the workshop foremen lead everyone to the workshop for the competition. There were about twenty-four or twenty-five people. The provincial garment factory workshop was large, and everyone was accommodated in one workshop. The foreman who came in repeated the competition rules, asked them to sit down in turn, check the condition of their sewing machines and the fabric, and after confirming that everyone was in good condition, the foreman counted down: "Three," "Two," "Start!" Everyone began to operate, and for a while, the "clattering" sound of sewing machines could be heard. Unsurprisingly, Xia Liang raised her hand first. After she finished, most people who had only finished one shift were stunned to see her hand in her finished product. Picking up their jaws in surprise, they didn't care about their astonishment and hurriedly continued their work. About half an hour later, the last comrade finally finished. After everyone handed in their finished products, the garment factory leaders inspected the quality and tallied the final results. Xia Liang came in first, a female comrade from the provincial garment factory came in second, and Liu Hongli, Xia Liang's former team leader, came in third. The provincial garment factory also gave them some small rewards. After having a meal at the provincial garment factory, everyone went home.
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