Volume One, Chapter 20: Entering the County Town

The commune secretary’s office.

Two sturdy men sat in front of Yuan Yan, their faces beaded with sweat and their clothes and hands caked in mud. They had rushed straight from the fields after receiving his message.

“This is the design drafted by the educated youth in our production team—a hand-held tractor. I recall the county owns one of these.”

“As long as we can provide the funds to buy the engine and transmission, she can assemble a tractor. I think it’s worth a try.”

The commune secretary and director examined the blueprint, hesitating. It was a good plan, but would this be condemned as the behavior of a bourgeois intellectual?

Sensing their uncertainty, Yuan Yanzhou fanned the flames:

“I’ve already asked—although this blueprint was designed by an intellectual, its purpose is to help farmers with production. It won’t be criticized.”

In truth, he hadn’t asked anyone.

Yuan Yanzhou knew there was some risk, but the benefits outweighed it. Given what he knew of them, it just might work.

As expected, after exchanging glances, the secretary handed the blueprint back to him.

“All right! Since you insist, let’s do it! But our commune has little money—will thirty-five yuan be enough?”

As he spoke, the accountant beside him readied himself to fetch the money.

Even without formal training in mechanics, Yuan Yanzhou had some common sense: an engine alone cost five or six hundred yuan, not to mention the other parts.

He knew the commune was poor, but hadn’t realized it was this dire.

The director seemed to notice his hesitation and smiled awkwardly, explaining, “All our funds went to buy rice seed. What’s left must be used for fertilizer and renting tractors—there’s nothing to spare.”

Their commune was mountainous and the roads narrow, not conducive to any business ventures. Honest farming was all they could do.

But the land was barren—the yearly grain harvest only just filled the bellies of the commune members, never a morsel more.

They had once thought of planting fruit trees for extra income, but without expert guidance or transportation routes, nothing came of it.

Yuan Yanzhou sighed inwardly, his mind already made up.

The military district laboratory had plenty of materials from various places; he would submit a report and use them to assemble a prototype. If it succeeded, he could then apply to the city for funding to produce them in bulk.

With the thirty-five yuan in hand, Yuan Yanzhou returned to the Fifth Production Team and saw, at the village entrance, a crowd gathered around a woman.

“Comrade Jiang, tell us your idea?”

“Comrade Jiang, come to my house for dinner tonight—we’re having braised pork!”

“Move, move! Make way!”

The widow’s son shoved through the crowd, clearing a path for her.

With a fawning grin, he said, “Let’s go.”

“Oh, Comrade Jiang, your son is here!”

A burst of laughter followed.

“Don’t talk nonsense!”

Jiang Yingli kept a polite smile, her expression cool and distant.

Most of those clustered around her were unmarried, vying for her attention with obsequious flattery. After her contest with the widow’s son that morning, they all began to see her as a hot commodity.

A woman who could earn full work points—who wouldn’t want her for a wife?

But to be frank, not a single one of these men appealed to her.

Her gaze landed on Yuan Yanzhou in the distance. Quickly, she slipped through the crowd and half-hid behind him.

Sure enough, as soon as the team members saw Yuan Yanzhou approach, they wisely stayed put and dared not crowd around her any longer.

“You’re back?” he asked quietly.

Yuan Yanzhou gave a soft “Mm” in reply, not sparing the male team members a glance as he led her toward the office.

“Tsk, if you ask me, the captain and Comrade Jiang are a perfect match,” sighed one of the team members, who had been pushed into this by his family. He knew his own worth—how could someone as outstanding as Comrade Jiang ever choose him?

He understood himself, even if others didn’t. At his words, the others responded with playful punches, especially the widow’s son, whose blow left a lump on his head.

The beaten young man limped away, muttering, “Pfft, as if any of you could really win Comrade Jiang’s heart! You should take a good look at yourselves!”

The widow’s son raised his fist high. “Say that again! I’ll twist your head off!”

Only after the others had gone did he lower his hand and head home.

Others might not know, but he thought he stood a chance.

Why else would Comrade Jiang give candy to him and only him, even feeding it to him herself? The softness of her fingertip still lingered in his mind.

Especially that afternoon at work—he caught Comrade Jiang glancing at him several times, even throwing flirtatious looks his way! Surely, that meant she was interested, sending him a signal! That whole contest had only been to get his attention!

If Jiang Yingli knew what he was thinking, she’d tell him to look in the mirror.

Was she looking at him? The northwest wind had blown sand into her eyes and she’d been trying to get it out!

“So? Did the director and secretary agree?”

“They said we could give it a try. The equipment will be delivered tomorrow.”

Jiang Yingli held out her hand to him, palm up. Yuan Yanzhou was momentarily puzzled.

Touching his earlobe in embarrassment, he placed the commune’s thirty-five yuan in her hand.

She looked at the crumpled bills, then caught his retreating hand and stuffed the money back into his palm.

“The blueprint?”

“Oh, right!” Startled, Yuan Yanzhou quickly pulled back his hand and handed her the blueprint, taking care not to touch her.

“I’ll need a letter of introduction—I’m going to the county to look for materials.”

Without another word, Yuan Yanzhou wrote one for her, dating it for a month to allow her to enter town as needed.

As he handed her the letter, he asked, “Do you know how to get to town? Should I come with you?”

“No need.”

She had a mouth, didn’t she? If she couldn’t find it, she could ask.

Gripping the letter and blueprint, Jiang Yingli strode back to the cowshed. Yuan Yanzhou watched her elegant retreat, his earlobes burning as if scorched by fire.

Jiang Jinguo, passing by with his shoulder pole, caught sight of their exchange and muttered curses under his breath.

Not watching his step, he trod on a smooth stone and fell heavily to the ground.

The bucket spilled its yellow-and-white contents all over him, with several drops landing straight into his open mouth.

He choked and gagged, his head spinning. As he lost consciousness, he couldn’t help thinking—if those people hadn’t come to him, if he’d never learned the truth, would everything have been different?

Jiang Yingli knew nothing of Jiang Jinguo’s fainting spell after being overcome by the stench of manure. Early the next morning, she set off on foot for the commune.

Only upon reaching the main road did she see anyone else. She waited half an hour at the bus stop before a vehicle finally arrived.

“Heading to the county?” the conductor asked at the door.

“Yes.”

Before she could react, someone tugged her up onto the bus.

“Forty cents,” the conductor said.

Jiang Yingli handed over the coins and found a seat.

Perhaps because of the high fare, the bus was nowhere near full, even after the two-and-a-half-hour journey to the county station.

It made no difference to her. Her first stop was the department store.