Chapter 20
The journalist exam required knowledge of news theory and writing practice. Tong Yufei's multi-faceted life included libraries and used book markets. Adhering to the principle of "reading is beneficial, borrowing rather than buying, and shopping around before buying expensive books," he borrowed from the library books like Gan Xifen's "Foundations of News Theory," Peng Juhua and Guo Guanghua's "Practical News Writing," Fallaci's "Interviews with Influential Figures," and Ge Gongzhen's "History of Chinese Journalism" published by Sanlian Bookstore. He traded old books for new ones at the used book market, acquiring Shao Piaoping's "Methods of Collecting News Materials," a series of battlefield military reports by the renowned military journalist Yan Wu, such excellent nonfiction works as "Drinking Horses from the Yangtze River" and "Lang Son After the War," some of which were given to him by Cheng Yuan, a collection of works by war correspondent Chen Chaorong, Fan Changjiang's masterpiece "Northwest Corner of China," and clippings of the works of Jin Feng, one of the first female journalists of the People's Republic of China, covering interviews, correspondence, sketches, and commentary.
Tong Yufei sorted her scattered works into categories, bound them into books, wrapped them in book covers, and stuffed them into a large cardboard box half a person's height. She kept it in a sunny spot in her study, and brought a copy with her to work every day. Deadlines at the newspaper were irregular, and they spent a lot of time waiting for manuscripts, especially in the second half of the night shift. To pass the long nights, her colleagues had their own ways of passing the time: some listened to Shan Tianfang's storytelling, some played cards together, some chain-smoked, and some persevered with coffee. She frantically applied cooling oil to her temples and reviewed her textbooks. She knew her foundation was weak, her fundamentals lacking a solid foundation, and she could only rely on this scramble to make up for it, putting the saying "diligence can make up for lack of talent" into practice.
The newspaper office and the printing factory shared a cafeteria, which was located in a commune 50 meters to the right of the newspaper office gate. Tong Yufei was reciting the knowledge points in the cheat sheet while eating. Sister Xin snatched the notebook from her and told her to eat well and not to eat the handwritten notebook while multitasking, and to be careful not to eat the handwritten notebook as a steamed bun. Then, she read the notes to her word by word while she was eating.
Some colleagues laughed at Sister Xin for being partial, but Sister Xin made no secret of it: "If you work so hard, you can still advance at work. I'll also tell you, this recruitment exam is even harder than the college entrance examination. If you put a lot of money into it, there's a high probability that your hard work will be in vain. If you want to jump over the dragon gate, you have to take off first, right?"
Brother Cao chimed in: "It's not that I'm old, I'll just dance with Xiao Tong anyway. Becoming a journalist is a small matter, but promoting the indomitable spirit of the proofreading department is a big deal."
He Yanjun and Qin Hong sat at another table. Qin Hong also signed up, but after flipping through the books for two days, she gave up. She hadn't touched a book in years, and those news books were harder than the Book of Heaven. She looked at Tong Yufei and sighed in despair: "She married well and worked hard. Comparing yourself to others is frustrating. I admire her very much. She has perseverance and ambition."
He Yanjun ate some cabbage and tofu and glanced at Tong Yufei. "It's not that you lack ambition, it's that you can't learn it. She's a dance major, she's an actress after all, she's a very good actress. Just say you want to become a journalist. Regardless of whether you pass or not, the spirit of perseverance has already been spread. If there are any internal transfer indicators in the future, they will think of her."
It was the first time Qin Hong knew Tong Yufei was a dancer. She was almost shocked: "Why is she coming to the newspaper office if she's not going to dance?"
"One minute on stage is the result of ten years of hard work off stage. There are so many people who give up halfway because they can't stand the loneliness. And her husband is a decent person, but to say he's married is an exaggeration. There are so many people who read a lot these days, but not all of them have a bright future."
Qin Hong disagreed with He Yanjun on this point. "You might not know this, but I heard from my colleagues in the Human Resources Department that Tong Yufei lives on Wuling Street. The man's surname is Mo, and the number of people with the surname Mo in Wuling Street who match that can be counted on one hand. My cousin's husband works at the Honglian Machinery Factory. He said that Director Mo's eldest son is a returned overseas student who thrived in a foreign company and returned to China to start a business. Director Mo's wife is a leader in charge of culture. If this is true, Tong Yufei must be climbing a high branch. She's determined to pass the journalist exam, and she's going to use it as a stepping stone to take over her mother-in-law's job."
He Yanjun curled her lips. "She's not afraid of getting her tongue snapped by the strong wind. According to you, why would she bother to study so hard? Her mother-in-law said a word and she was carried in."
Qin Hong retorted, "He's an honest official, he doesn't do those things that are done by someone else. True gold fears no fire. A fool who can't be trained won't last long even if he takes over. Once he's trained, he'll rise to the top. Who's true and who's false will be revealed in the future. But there's one thing I don't understand: how could anyone say her husband is dumb? If he looks like he's dumb, we'd all be complete fools."
He Yanjun's eyes rolled around: "Could it be that they are not the same person?"
Qin Hong looked around and almost covered He Yanjun's mouth: "You can eat whatever you want, but you can't say whatever you want. Don't spread rumors. A woman's reputation is so important. If it's ruined, her life is over."
He Yanjun crushed the tofu on the plate into crumbs and gave Qin Hong a cold look: "If you are upright, you have nothing to fear. If she hasn't done anything wrong, we can't accuse her. If she has done something wrong, we don't need to say it. The truth will eventually come to light."
----
The next day, the police sent a written notice, releasing Tong Yi without charge on the eighth day of the first lunar month. When the news reached Tong's family, Tong Jianzhong burst into tears, feeling mixed emotions of sadness and joy. He was sad that he would not be able to see his son during the New Year. This was the first time his son had not been at home for the New Year since he had grown up. He was happy that his son was safe and sound. He could celebrate the Lantern Festival instead of New Year's Eve, and he had hope in life again.
Hearing that Mo Daoyan had contributed, Tong Jianzhong was deeply moved and said to Tong Yufei, "No matter what, I must invite my son-in-law to my house for a chat."
Zhao Weimin chimed in, "My brother-in-law is here, but I haven't made up for the wine I gave him three days ago. The new son-in-law has become the old son-in-law, but he hasn't even been to my father-in-law's house yet. It's really outrageous. My father-in-law ran all over town to entertain this distinguished guest, Mo Daoyan, and gathered chicken, duck, fish, donkey meat, river shrimp, two pots of loose wine, and bottles of Songhe liquor. He emptied out all his family savings."
Tong Wan pushed Zhao Weimin aside and said, "The Tong family is very wealthy. Don't exaggerate and scare your brother-in-law away."
Tong Yufei relayed his family's cordial invitation to Mo Daoyan: "They want to thank you in person."
Mo Daoyan was drawing in his study. After hearing what Tong Yufei said, he calmly handed over a two-page divorce agreement: "It's just a small favor. There's no need to make a big fuss. If you want to thank me, just thank me."
The agreement was drafted by a lawyer who was a distant relative of Qiao Zhuocheng. They had no children and no house. The content mainly included confidentiality clauses and deposit division. The confidentiality clause was to keep the specific content of the agreement and the negotiation process secret, and not to spread the other party's information maliciously in any form. This clause was written in great detail to prevent her from taking the money and making endless trouble. In the numerous divorce cases in the past, there were always paranoid parties who were obsessed with details and hated the party who let go, and would not give up until the party was infamous.
If he is not doing it for himself, he must do it for his family. It is better to be safe than sorry.
Mo Daoyan divided the deposit into 30% and 70%, giving her 70%. Once the divorce conditions were put on paper, the legal framework was thinner than what was mentioned verbally before. He could have followed the rules, but he still told her carefully that if she had additional provisions, she could directly modify the original agreement. He would not deny it and just signed it.
This was the reason he had condescended to run around for her brother. She accepted the agreement but didn't comment on its contents. "We're still short of some New Year's goods. In previous years, Aunt Lin was on vacation, so Dad always squeezed in time to buy them. This year, he can't spare the time, so let's check and fill in the gaps."
Mo Daoyan rested one arm on the table, supporting his chin with a faint smile: "Ms. Meng really chose a good daughter-in-law for herself."
There is Uncle Yan at home without her father. She wants to do everything herself, but he won't accompany her. Besides, he doesn't have time to accompany her. He refuses to have much contact with the Tong family because he doesn't want to pour cold water on others when they are enjoying their family happiness as divorce is imminent. He wants to have as little contact with them as possible. There is also a practical reason: he can't leave for work.
For nearly a decade, the Chinese refrigerator industry has been embracing the myth that "Snow Flower in the north, Wanbao in the south"—a hallmark of its unparalleled monopoly. Coincidentally, both companies achieved this by importing advanced foreign appliance production lines and technologies. At the start of Xinli's founding, Chen Huaili, following the example of his peers, signed a contract with a renowned Japanese company, acquiring a four-star refrigerator production line. However, the results were disappointing. The high cost of importing this technology led to a corresponding surge in product prices, a fatal flaw without the backing of a strong reputation, deterring potential customers. Furthermore, foreign companies often kept their technology secret, offering only complete assembled units. Even though Xinli was able to achieve low profits but high sales, its reliance on foreign companies only grew.
With the intensification of reforms, domestic companies have sprung up like mushrooms after rain. A revolution in domestic production is inevitable. Once technologies and products that can compete with foreign brands emerge, the entire industry will be reversed, shifting from following foreign standards to setting international standards, establishing a foothold in the domestic market and expanding into the international market. This is a challenge faced by most companies, and Xinli is no exception. Mo Daoyan and his colleagues began a round-the-clock battle to overcome compressor technology in Xinli's simple 60-square-meter laboratory.
During the Spring Festival holiday, he only took one day off, which was New Year's Eve.
The 29th was the last day of work before the Lunar New Year. A gloomy sky was drizzling with rain. After work, Mo Daoyan went to the Mingguang Library on the adjacent street. The library's stacks and reading area were separated: the first floor was the stacks, the second floor was the reading area. There were two black plastic buckets at the entrance, filled with borrowers' umbrellas of various colors. Among them was a bright yellow oilcloth umbrella, like a brilliant yellow ribbon, which caught Mo Daoyan's eye, and a chaotic and contradictory thought instantly grew. He knew it was an ordinary umbrella, and that many people in the city used it, not just for one person. But an inexplicable excitement lingered in his chest. The girl who had danced alone on a snowy night was among the readers, in the same library as him. At the same time, he felt self-loathing. How could he be so concerned about a stranger girl?
There was a time when he hated indulging in strong emotions the most, as being too sentimental would lead to losing his mind and heart.
Unable to control his joy, Mo Daoyan suppressed his disgust. He walked in and returned the borrowed book at the book-borrowing and returning workbench in front of the library. Then he went to the catalog card cabinet that looked like a drawer in a Chinese medicine pharmacy, looked for the catalog cards of the two books he wanted to borrow, wrote down the call numbers, and handed them to the administrator. The administrator went to the library to find the books. He leaned against the workbench and took the opportunity to look around. Most people were preparing for the New Year on this day. Most of the people who came to the library were young people with nothing to do and their parents at home, as well as some students on winter vacation. These young and beautiful figures invisibly built a maze for Mo Daoyan to find people.
The dim figure in the night became increasingly hazy. Looking for her was like a song sung by Su Rui, just follow your feelings.
The administrator came back with the book he borrowed, registered his information and stamped it on his library card and the book's borrowing and returning information card, completing the borrowing process. Mo Daoyan took the book to the reading area. When he searched the crowd for the sapphire-gray bell-bottom pants, he couldn't help laughing, laughing at himself for following the map, which was so stupid, but he could do nothing about it.
"Hey, you dropped something, comrade with the yellow umbrella..."
Mo Daoyan was lost in thought when the administrator's call from downstairs brought him back from his illusory state. He quickly went downstairs and said to the administrator, "Give me the things. I'll return them."
"She rode away on her bike. Do you know her?"
"I know her."
Mo Daoyan put his notebook in his pocket and rode his bike to the tube-shaped building area on Changqing Street. These tube-shaped buildings were built in the 1960s. The outer walls were eroded by wind and rain, and the sunny side was exposed with dark red stone bricks, while the shady side was covered with moss. The corridors were dark and damp, as narrow as goat paths. Dried fish, bacon and clothes were hung out to dry in the corridors, and cardboard boxes, bottles and jars and other sundries were stuffed in the corners. Kitchen utensils were placed at the door of some rooms, and part of the corridor in front of the door was used as a kitchen. The walls were smoked and burned by oil, and their original appearance was no longer visible. The single rooms ranged from a few square meters to dozens of square meters, the smallest was five square meters, and the largest was eighteen square meters. There was no bathroom in the house, and the public toilet was on Gusong Road, two hundred meters downstairs.
She had left an olive green rubber-covered book at the lending desk. The cover was printed with a picture of a crane catching the moon, and the title page was signed "Ye Yimo" in elegant, pleasing handwriting. Three tube-shaped buildings stood enclosed, forming a circle that resembled the Chinese character "口" (mouth) with a hole in it. Mo Daoyan entered through the gap and asked a burly, gray-haired woman downstairs if she knew Miss Ye Yimo and which floor and room she lived in. The word "burly" was rarely used to describe women, especially older women, but for this tall, broad-shouldered woman, who was only a fraction shorter than him, the word "burly" was perfectly appropriate.
The old lady, carrying a load of goods and a rattle drum she used to visit households, glanced at him. He looked unfamiliar, and it was obvious he wasn't a local. His appearance and clothing were eye-catching, and everyone who passed him turned around to take a second or third look. Therefore, who he was looking for and what he was doing in the tube-shaped building became her concern. "Are you Xiaoye's colleague, friend, or someone else? Don't think I'm being nagging. Xiaoye is taken. You have to have a reason to come to see her, otherwise people will gossip about you."
Mo Daoyan didn't finish his answer when a flash of yellow caught his sight. On the corridor on the second floor of Building No. 2, a man was holding a girl in one hand and holding a bright yellow oilcloth umbrella in the other, spinning wildly. Raindrops from the rotating umbrella corner were scattered all around. He shouted with a smile, "Little Leaf, look, big and small pearls are falling on a jade plate." He said it more than ten times in a row, as innocent as a child who had never experienced the world.
The man was moving very fast, and Mo Daoyan couldn't see the girl's face clearly, but he could feel her happiness.
"I recognized the wrong person."
Mo Daoyan turned around and left without waiting for the aunt to say anything. He had to return the notebook, but not now. No matter whether he was Mo Daoyan or a woman's husband, it was inappropriate for him to appear in her home and return a notebook that was not very important. The burly aunt was right. Once a woman's reputation was linked to an extramarital affair that could be presumed to be true, she could never wash it off even if she jumped into the Yellow River. I wonder if she would still go to the library. Maybe it would be more appropriate to mail it.
The rain stopped and the moon peeked out from behind the clouds. His thoughts were like a silver hook in the sky, becoming clearer and clearer.
Divorce, he must divorce.
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