Chapter 28, Good-looking
As soon as Lin Qingqing entered the Women's Federation office, she saw Director Yang sitting behind his desk, looking at her with a teasing expression. Her face flushed slightly, and she walked in and called out, "Director Yang."
"Yes!" Director Yang responded, and after she sat down, he asked, "I heard that you and Wei Zi are dating? When did that happen?"
"It's just something that happened in the last few days." After blushing, Lin Qingqing quickly calmed down, took out the manuscript she had finished writing before her vacation from her desk drawer, and handed it to Director Yang, saying, "This is the manuscript I wrote. I'd like to polish it a bit, but the general content won't change. Please take a look."
"So that's why you all came to my house together last time..." Director Yang smiled and shook his head, reading the manuscript by the light shining in from the window.
Upon reading it, Director Yang became completely absorbed, and after finishing, he put down the manuscript and asked, "Did you write this?"
"I wrote the content, but it incorporates my actual experiences." The actual experiences Lin Qingqing referred to were the original owner's life and the events that unfolded after she transmigrated.
But Director Yang asked this question not only because of the plot, but also because of Lin Qingqing's concise writing style and well-paced storytelling. If she hadn't watched Lin Qingqing write page by page these past few days, she wouldn't have believed it was written by someone who had only just begun to learn to read.
Looking at Lin Qingqing's handwriting, although it lacked finesse, the characters were neat and clean, even better than the handwriting of someone who had worked in the Women's Federation for over a decade. Director Yang couldn't help but feel sorry for Lin Qingqing. If her family were still alive, she wouldn't have had to live such a hard life, only able to learn to read and write at the age of twenty.
"Your manuscript is very well written. You can decide how to polish it," Director Yang nodded and asked Lin Qingqing how many days it would take to finish revising it so she could schedule a meeting.
"I'll try to finish revising it today, but it would be best if you familiarize yourself with the draft before the meeting," Lin Qingqing said.
"How many days will it take you to familiarize yourself with the manuscript?" Director Yang asked, noticing her troubled expression. He then said, "Just tell me what difficulties you have, and I'll do my best to help."
"I was thinking of writing this article this way, but it might not be appropriate for me to deliver it," Lin Qingqing said hesitantly.
Director Yang was taken aback: "What's wrong with it?"
Lin Qingqing wanted Director Yang to present the manuscript for two reasons. First, it's often not good for subordinates to stand out too much in a team. If Director Yang presents the manuscript herself and the meeting is successful, there won't be any misunderstandings between them. Second, the story contains some supernatural elements, and since she is the prototype for the character, having her present the manuscript might cause unnecessary trouble.
Of course, Lin Qingqing did not reveal the first reason to Director Yang.
Focus only on number two.
After listening to Lin Qingqing's explanation, Director Yang thought for a moment and said, "I can explain it myself."
After deciding who would be the main speaker, Lin Qingqing continued to polish the manuscript, while Director Yang went out to find Captain Xie to discuss the Women's Federation meeting. They finally decided to hold the meeting on the afternoon of the last two days of the month.
...
After dinner, as soon as she returned to the dormitory, Li Juan asked in a low voice, "Did you see this while we were eating?"
Lin Qingqing stuffed the clean lunchbox into the drawer, sat down at her desk, and started to loosen and re-braid her hair in front of the mirror. Hearing her question, she asked in confusion, "What did you see?"
"Wang Li! Didn't you notice how dark her face was? And the way she looked at you!" Li Juan couldn't help but laugh as she spoke.
She and Wang Li were sent-down youths on the same bus last year, but they didn't get along from the moment they boarded. Wang Li thought Li Juan was tactless, while Li Juan thought Wang Li was pretentious; they simply disliked each other.
Yesterday, after hearing that Xie Wei and Lin Qingqing were dating, Li Juan was first surprised, and then laughed for a long time.
Wang Li was proud and arrogant. After being sent to the countryside, not only in the production brigade but also in the educated youth team, several male educated youths showed interest in her. Wang Li was determined to return to the city and didn't care about them. She didn't make them do less work, but maintained a distant relationship with them. Until Xie Wei returned, many female educated youths in the team started having designs on her, and Wang Li was no exception.
While others might not know, Li Juan was well aware of Wang Li's repeated attempts to go to the Xie family's neighborhood to pretend to bump into them, but to no avail!
Now that her plans have fallen through, Li Juan feels a sense of satisfaction whenever she thinks about it.
But after the initial excitement came a bit of worry. He frowned and said, "However... she's the most petty and vengeful person. Now that you're dating Commander Xie, she'll definitely hold a grudge against you. Be careful."
Lin Qingqing recalled the fleeting resentment in Wang Li's eyes during dinner that evening, and nodded, saying, "I know what I'm doing."
After Li Juan finished speaking, she realized she might have been overthinking things. No matter what, Lin Qingqing was still a member of the production brigade, and now she was Xie's girlfriend. What could Wang Li, a sent-down youth, possibly do to her? Reassured, she smiled and looked at Lin Qingqing: "Are you... going to see Xie?"
Lin Qingqing paused in her braiding, a slight smile appearing on her lips: "Mm."
Xie Wei had to go to the brigade headquarters in the afternoon, and the two met briefly. Xie Wei said he had something to say to her and asked her to go for a walk that evening. Lin Qingqing thought that although they were dating, they didn't have much time together, so she agreed.
Li Juan laughed jokingly, but when her gaze fell on Lin Qingqing's loose braids...
When I looked up, I couldn't help but feel something was off: "Your braid..."
"Isn't it pretty?" Lin Qingqing asked, turning her head to the side.
Li Juan carefully examined Lin Qingqing and had to admit that although her braids were loose, they looked quite pretty and made her face look smaller... Of course, her face was already small, and it didn't look big when her hair was neatly combed, but it looked even smaller this way. Intrigued, she asked, "How did you braid these? I'll try braiding them too."
Lin Qingqing had already finished braiding her hair. Hearing that she was interested, she said, "Let me braid it for you. It's actually quite easy. Just loosen your hair a little and don't braid it too tightly."
"That feeling..." Li Juan was about to agree, but then remembered that Lin Qingqing had a date to go on, so she quickly shook her head and said, "Let's forget it, you're going out, right?"
“It’s alright if it’s a little later.” As soon as Lin Qingqing finished speaking, a female educated youth from next door pushed open the door, smiled at Lin Qingqing and said, “Comrade Lin, Commander Xie is waiting for you outside.”
"You'd better hurry up and go. Don't keep Commander Xie waiting. We'll talk about the braid when you get back."
Lin Qingqing blushed slightly, straightened her clothes, and said, "Then I'll be going now?"
“Go… wait a minute,” Li Juan called out to Lin Qingqing, who was about to leave. She looked down at Lin Qingqing’s clothes, which were quite clean and neat with few wrinkles, except for a patch on the hem and the back of her clothes. “Are you going to see Commander Xie like this?” she asked.
Lin Qingqing nodded, completely bewildered. She looked down at the patches on her clothes and realized what she meant. She said nonchalantly, "He knows my situation perfectly well. Why pretend to be something he's not?"
“You can’t just go like that,” Li Juan said, unable to bear seeing Lin Qingqing go out like this. “Wait here.” She turned around and rummaged through her wardrobe, finding a thick plaid coat and handing it to Lin Qingqing.
Lin Qingqing saw that the jacket was about 80% new and that she rarely saw Li Juan wear it, so she immediately waved her hand and said, "Really, there's no need. If I wear this, he'll probably ask me something."
"Just take it. It's not like I'm giving it to you; I'm just lending it to you." Li Juan shoved the clothes into Lin Qingqing's hands, saying, "You're not allowed to leave the house today until you put this on!"
Although she herself had never been in a relationship, she had an older brother and sister. When it comes to dating, who wouldn't want to dress up and look their best to meet their partner? Lin Qingqing said it didn't matter, but if she weren't in a bad situation, wouldn't she really want to dress up nicely to meet Xie Wei?
Her attitude was firm, so Lin Qingqing had no choice but to change into her coat.
Their body types were different; Lin Qingqing was taller and thinner, but precisely because of this, Li Juan's well-fitting clothes looked better on her.
It fits perfectly.
Li Juan nodded in satisfaction: "Not bad." Her gaze fell on Lin Qingqing's feet, and she took out a pair of small leather shoes that she herself rarely wore from under the bed and gave them to her. "Put them on."
“Our shoe sizes may not be the same,” Lin Qingqing said.
"You'll know if they fit once you try them on," Li Juan said smugly as she watched Lin Qingqing put on the shoes. "Look, aren't they on now?" She then made Lin Qingqing spin around.
Lin Qingqing turned around. Even in her usual bulky, patched cotton-padded coat, her natural beauty was still undeniable; in a plaid shirt and leather shoes, it was even more obvious.
Looking at the girl in front of her, Li Juan finally understood why so many girls at the educated youth settlement had failed to attract his attention, while Lin Qingqing had managed to win him over in such a short time.
Li Juan clapped her hands and laughed, "Go ahead." But after only two seconds, she added, "Don't come back too late."
...
Xie Wei was still waiting at the entrance of the female educated youth dormitory, but unlike usual, there was no bicycle parked beside him.
Winter days are short and nights are long; it was only 6:30, but it was already completely dark. Lin Qingqing had just finished braiding her hair and changing clothes, and instead of using a kerosene lamp as usual, she turned on the electric light in the room. Therefore, when she came out, the light behind her was bright.
Backlit, Xie Wei couldn't see her face clearly, but he could see her slender figure and that her clothes were different from those worn during the day. So when Lin Qingqing approached, Xie Wei asked, "Did you change your clothes?"
Lin Qingqing hadn't expected him to be so perceptive. She hummed in agreement and asked, "You noticed?"
"This coat is different from the cotton-padded jacket you wear during the day."
Lin Qingqing asked with a smile, "Do you think my clothes look better during the day, or the clothes I'm wearing now?"
"They all look good," Xie Wei said seriously, turning around and walking out side by side with Lin Qingqing.
Lin Qingqing chuckled and said, "Liar!"
"Huh?" Xie Wei turned his head to look at Lin Qingqing. "How did I lie?"
"How could I look good in such a bulky cotton-padded coat that I wore during the day?" Lin Qingqing said with a light smile.
Xie Wei disagreed with her statement, shaking his head and saying, "You look good in anything."
Lin Qingqing's smile widened. What girl doesn't like to be praised? What's more, Xie Wei's praise sounded particularly sincere, and even if there was an element of flattery involved, she was still very happy.
After laughing, Lin Qingqing told Xie Wei about the origin of her clothes and shoes.
Xie Wei lowered his head to look at Lin Qingqing's leather shoes, but unfortunately they had just walked into a dimly lit area, and he could only see a black mass, unable to make out what her shoes looked like. He asked, "Leather shoes?"
Do they fit well?
"They fit..." Lin Qingqing said, then realized something was off. She looked up at Xie Wei and said, "You're not thinking of buying me leather shoes, are you?"
Having his thoughts exposed, Xie Wei touched his nose and said, "Isn't it good?"
“No,” Lin Qingqing shook her head and said before Xie Wei could speak, “We agreed that we should give and take, but I didn’t reciprocate when you gave me fabric before, and now you’re giving me leather shoes. Doesn’t that make it a one-sided gift from you? What kind of person would I be?”
"Didn't you invite me to dinner?"
"I invited you to dinner to thank you for all the help you've given me before. Do you really think I'm with you to repay a debt of gratitude?" Lin Qingqing stopped and looked at him mockingly.
"Of course not." Xie Wei denied it outright. His heavy mood was lifted by her words, but he also understood what she meant and said, "It's just that you're being too clear-cut in your calculations."
Lin Qingqing knew this, of course, but she couldn't help but distinguish between them.
If her circumstances weren't so different from Xie Wei's, and she had money and a job, she would naturally accept the cloth shoes he gave her, because she could reciprocate with a gift of equal value next time.
However, the reality is that she has only just resolved her financial crisis by selling grain, and she can't repay the money Xie Wei gave her, or rather, she'll find it very difficult. She might need to keep selling grain to survive. But there will come a day when the grain runs out. What will she do then if she has no money, no coupons, and no grain?
Lin Qingqing didn't want things to come to that.
After Lin Qingqing finished speaking, seeing Xie Wei remain silent, she stepped forward, took his hand, and said, "I know you care about me and want me to eat well and dress well, but if I'm worried about you giving me too many things every day, and my mental pressure increases, isn't that putting the cart before the horse?"
Xie Wei raised his eyebrows to look at her; his eyes were bright and deep in the darkness.
Lin Qingqing continued, "Of course, if you pass by the river and pick up a pretty stone, or pass by the field and pick a beautiful flower and give it to me, I would be happy to accept it."
“It’s winter now,” Xie Wei said in a low voice.
Lin Qingqing seemed to just realize it, and said with a surprised look, "Oh right, it's winter now, there are no flowers!"
Xie Wei chuckled softly, then took Lin Qingqing's hand in his. Feeling his relaxation, Lin Qingqing smiled and said, "It doesn't matter if there are no flowers, leaves or feathers are fine too. As long as it's a gift from you, I will cherish it."
Her words weren't exactly sweet talk, but they were even more sweet than sweet talk. Xie Wei's heart burned with passion as he listened, and he gripped her hand tightly, saying, "Okay."
...
When Xie Wei left after dinner, his mother asked him where he was going. He said he had arranged to meet Lin Qingqing and wanted to tell her about coming over for dinner. His mother was overjoyed and told him to make sure he invited her over.
But in reality, this was just an excuse; he just wanted to see Lin Qingqing.
So they walked around the main road of the brigade, and Xie Wei didn't mention the matter until he sent Lin Qingqing back to the educated youth settlement, when he said, "My mother knows about us."
Lin Qingqing was about to say goodbye to Xie Wei when she was suddenly stunned by these words, but she wasn't really surprised.
The news of her and Xie Wei's relationship has spread throughout the entire Xingfeng Brigade. Just now, when we were taking a walk, the brigade members who saw them holding hands made some jokes. It's not surprising that the Xie family knows about them.
However, Lin Qingqing was unsure of the Xie family's attitude and was still a little worried, so she asked, "What is Auntie's attitude?"
"She asked me to invite you to her home for a meal." Xie Wei smiled when he saw Lin Qingqing's nervous expression. "Don't worry, my family has a very good impression of you. My mother just wanted me to invite you to her home for a casual meal, nothing more."
Although Lin Qingqing had a good impression of Li Xingfang, she didn't dare to assume that Li Xingfang was satisfied with her. As for Xie Wei's words, she only dared to believe half of them. It wasn't that she didn't trust him as a person, but rather that men were always less sensitive when it came to mother-in-law/daughter-in-law relationships.
But Li Xingfang was, after all, an elder, and Lin Qingqing couldn't refuse her invitation. After thinking for a moment, she asked, "When?"
"The time is not set. When are you free?" Xie Wei asked.
"Can we wait until after the meeting?" Although she had finished writing the draft, she still had to help Director Yang proofread it and prepare for the meeting; there was a lot to do. She also needed a few days to mentally prepare herself, as the whole thing had been so rushed, and she was understandably a little nervous.
Xie Wei had heard Xie Baoshan mention the meeting time, and thinking that it would end on New Year's Day, he said, "Then let's set it for New Year's Day?"
New Year's Day is a holiday, and it's reasonable for her, as Xie Wei's girlfriend, to visit his home. She nodded and agreed, "Then let's go on New Year's Day."
In the dead of winter, few people wanted to be outside in the wind. Before eight o'clock, there were hardly any people in the courtyard. The educated youth had long since gone back inside, and those who went to bed early were already fast asleep.
So after discussing the meal, Xie Wei didn't linger. He said goodbye to Lin Qingqing and watched her walk into the dormitory before leaving.
...
When Lin Qingqing entered the room, Wang Fengxia and Li Juan were sitting on the bed rolling up a ball of yarn.
Seeing her return, Wang Fengxia pointed to the thermos and said, "I heard from Juanjuan that you went to see..."
"Thank you, Commander. I've brought back some hot water. Do you want to take a shower?"
"Let me take a shower," Lin Qingqing said.
The educated youth dormitory didn't have individual bathrooms; there was only a small, empty room at the very back with a ditch for pouring water, which could barely be used as a bathhouse. There was no heating in the room, and although the windows were always covered with urea bags, the winter temperatures were so low that showering inside was freezing. Therefore, even the female educated youth didn't shower every day; if they did, it was only during the warmer midday sun.
Lin Qingqing had taken a shower yesterday, and since she hadn't worked or sweated all day, she didn't plan to shower again. She quickly washed herself in the bathroom, brushed her teeth, and washed her face before returning home.
Wang Fengxia and Li Juan had already rolled out the yarn, and she began knitting a sweater with needles in hand. Li Juan, meanwhile, sat on the bed in a daze, watching Lin Qingqing return and lean over the bed, asking, "How did your date with Commander Xie go?"
"What do you mean, how is it?" Lin Qingqing asked as she sat on the edge of the bed, taking off her clothes.
"Pretend you're stupid!" Li Juan thought she wasn't being honest and said, "Of course I'm asking how your relationship is going!"
"How well can they get along? It's all the same, isn't it?"
Li Juan scoffed and said, "Didn't she compliment you on how beautiful you looked today?"
"You want people to compliment your clothes, right?" Lin Qingqing asked with a smile. Seeing her nod, she said, "Yes, they did. They said my outfit was particularly well-coordinated and that Sister Li has excellent taste."
Li Juan proudly raised her chin: "That's right."
As they were talking, Lin Qingqing took off her clothes, sat on the bed, covered herself with the blanket, and watched Wang Fengxia knit a sweater. As she watched, she noticed something was wrong and asked, "Isn't the color of this sweater too dark?"
Upon hearing this, Li Juan burst out laughing: "What are you thinking! This is a sweater she knitted for Chen, the educated youth." Chen was Wang Fengxia's boyfriend; the two were educated youths who went to the countryside in the same year.
Wang Fengxia was a little embarrassed by what she said, and explained, "I thought of knitting him a new sweater because I saw that his usual sweater was torn."
"Tsk tsk, Chen Zhiqing is so lucky," Li Juan said enviously. "When will someone knit me a sweater?"
"Maybe one day," Lin Qingqing said with a smile. Thinking of Xie Wei as Wang Fengxia knitted a sweater for her boyfriend, her heart softened. She asked, "Sister Wang, do you know anyone in the brigade who can sew clothes?"
"You want to make clothes?" Knitting is a difficult thing to start, so Wang Fengxia didn't look up when she spoke.
Li Juan also looked at Lin Qingqing. She paused and said, "Yesterday, Comrade Xie and I went to the commune's supply and marketing cooperative, right? When he bought fabric for his mother, he also bought me a piece."
"He gave it to his mother"
"Did you buy this for me while you were buying the fabric, or did you buy this for his mother while you were buying the fabric for me?" Li Juan asked jokingly.
Lin Qingqing's cheeks flushed, but she appeared calm: "Is there a difference?"
“Of course there’s a difference.” Li Juan sat up in bed, wanting to have a detailed discussion with Lin Qingqing, but Wang Fengxia, being perceptive, noticed her embarrassment and said, “Whether you’re buying the fabric for someone or just for someone else, it’s always good to have the intention.”
Lin Qingqing nodded and said, "Mm."
Seeing that they both said the same thing, Li Juan understood and stopped talking. She asked, "What kind of material is it? What kind of clothes are you planning to make?"
Lin Qingqing got out of bed, opened the closet, took out the piece of fabric, and handed it to Li Juan, saying, "I just want to make a jacket."
At that time, there were few types of fabrics available. Li Juan could tell at a glance that the fabric was khaki. She said, "This fabric is thick, but it's definitely not enough for winter clothes. We'll have to stuff it with cotton."
"I also want to find someone to buy some cotton, but I don't know if they have any at the market," Lin Qingqing said.
Wang Fengxia put down her work and said, "Cotton is rarely sold at the market. You can ask Guozhu's wife. She's good at tailoring clothes, and many people in the brigade get their clothes made by her. She might know which family has cotton."
“That’s right, you can ask her.” Li Juan also remembered.
Lin Qingqing had only been living in Xingfeng Brigade for a short time, and she hadn't gotten to know all the brigade members yet. She only knew that there were two men in the brigade named Guozhu, one surnamed Xu and the other surnamed Lin. As for whose wife was good at sewing, she wasn't quite sure. She asked, "Which Guozhu's wife?"
“Lin Guozhu, I remember his house is right next to the Xie family’s. If you don’t know, why don’t you ask Commander Xie to take you there tomorrow?” Li Juan said with a wink. “Maybe you two can have a better chat.”
She had been teasing Lin Qingqing whenever she had the chance these past two days, to the point that Lin Qingqing had become thick-skinned and nodded seriously, saying, "That's an idea too."
Upon hearing this, Li Juan burst into laughter, saying that she was shameless.
"If I nod, you say I'm shameless; if I shake my head, you say I'm dishonest," Lin Qingqing shook her head helplessly. "This is so difficult for me!"
Li Juan was speechless upon hearing this, and denied it, saying, "I'm not being so unreasonable."
The two of them were bickering happily. Although Wang Fengxia didn't participate, the smile on her lips never left her face while she was knitting.
...
Although she didn't deny Li Juan's words, Lin Qingqing didn't really intend to ask Xie Wei to take her there, because she wanted to wait until the clothes were finished and then wear them to surprise him, so she didn't want him to know until they were done.
She was lucky; when she went to the Lin family's house the next day, she didn't run into Xie Wei. After explaining the situation to Guozhu's wife, the woman said she knew someone who had cotton and agreed to act as a middleman. So, after agreeing on the style and price of the clothes and leaving half a deposit, Lin Qingqing left.
The two had agreed that the clothes would be delivered in seven days, so Lin Qingqing didn't go to the Lin family to inquire about the situation in the following days, as she was busy with the meeting.
On the morning of the 30th, Lin Qingqing and Director Yang held another mock meeting.
At 2 PM, the brigade headquarters loudspeaker announced that a meeting would be held at the drying ground at 4 PM.
Author's Note: First update
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