“On what grounds should Ye Qiu take over the job?”
“That job is mine! I’ll decide who takes over my position!”
“When it comes down to it, you are just showing favoritism…”
The sounds of the argument grew louder, piercing through the thin walls and into the room. Sitting on the edge of the bed, Ye Qiu rested her chin in her hands and let out a deep sigh.
It was happening again.
This wasn’t the first time the Ye family had argued. In the five or six days since she had transmigrated here, a similar scene had played out almost daily.
The issue was all about who would take over the job and remain in the city, and who would be sent down to the countryside.
There were four children in the Ye family. The eldest, Ye Chun, had been married for several years and worked at the machinery factory with his father, Ye Weijun. The youngest, Ye Dong, was still young and had just started high school. The second child, Ye Xia, and the third, Ye Qiu—aged twenty and eighteen respectively—were both at the age for being sent to the countryside.
Ye Weijun was a level-five fitter at the Jin City Machinery Factory. In a major metropolis, that might not be much, but in a small city like Jin City, a level-five fitter was a pillar of the factory. It was precisely because of Ye Weijun that the Ye family had been able to raise four children in this difficult era, send them all to school, and even purchase a job position for the eldest, Ye Chun.
Ye Weijun’s monthly salary was 57.5 yuan, so his position was absolutely untouchable; otherwise, the Ye family would instantly slide into abject poverty.
Zhao Li worked at a canning factory. Her position could be vacated, but between the two daughters, who would take over and who would go to the countryside?
According to the original plan, Ye Qiu had a timid personality, spoke little, and was not as physically robust as Ye Xia. Fearing she would be bullied in the countryside, they planned to let her take over the job. Ye Xia had a personality like her mother’s—someone who would never let a matter rest if she felt she was in the right. They thought if they sent her to the countryside, the family could help her out from time to time, and she wouldn’t struggle to survive.
Everything had been agreed upon, and Ye Xia had initially consented. For the past few days, Zhao Li had been busy gathering clothes, daily necessities, and food, intending to send her eldest daughter down to the countryside well-prepared.
However, for some reason, Ye Xia had suddenly changed her mind a few days ago, refusing to go. She insisted that since they were both daughters of the Ye family, why should the third child be the one to take over the job?
The Ye family had started bickering over this issue, and it was only because they argued every day that Ye Qiu was able to piece the situation together in such a short time.
She had transmigrated here six days ago. In her past life, she was a downtrodden worker who had slaved away just to buy a home with her own savings. Before she could enjoy it for more than a few days, she woke up and became this “Ye Qiu.”
From the original owner’s memories, this era was almost identical to the 1970s in China. The names of places and people were slightly different, but the major historical events were the same. It was an era of shortages and extreme scarcity of materials.
Thinking of this, Ye Qiu clutched her heart in pain. Her fully-paid apartment!
She didn’t know what to do now. According to policy, young women had to either get married or take over a job; otherwise, they were all to be sent to the countryside. The Ye family had considered marrying the two daughters off, but they couldn’t find anyone suitable on such short notice! Any man who was even remotely decent had already been snatched up. Anyone left by now couldn’t just be called “unsuitable for marriage”—you would feel it was a tragedy just looking at them twice!
After reviewing a crowd of “top-tier” disasters of men, the Ye family finally gave up on that idea.
Sending a daughter to the countryside, while bitter and exhausting, was still better than marrying her into a tiger’s den. If she went to the countryside, the family could provide subsidies; if she married the wrong person, could the family really afford to support the son-in-law’s entire household?
As for divorce, that was not even worth considering. In the current social climate, it would result in being looked down upon and ostracized for a lifetime.
Ye Qiu clenched her fists, composed herself, and only opened the door when the “war” outside entered an intermission.
“Dad, Mom, I want to go to the countryside.”
“No!”
Ye Qiu had barely finished speaking when she was rejected by Zhao Li. “No, your temperament is too weak, and you can’t handle manual labor. You won’t survive the work in the countryside!”
“Then am I just meant to be the one sent away?”
Ye Xia muttered from the side, only shutting her mouth when she caught a sharp glare from Zhao Li.
Ye Qiu gave a bitter smile. Of course, she knew it wouldn’t be easy. Her grandmother, who had lived through the war years, had told her many stories about not having enough to eat or wear in the past. Even now, it wasn’t as if the neighbors didn’t have children in the countryside. The letters that came back were filled with weeping complaints about how miserable life was; some even crippled themselves just to get back to the city. She knew that the rural villages of now were completely different from the villages of decades later.
“Mom, I know life in the countryside is hard, but someone from the family has to go. Little Brother will be of age in a few years.”
Sure enough, as soon as Ye Qiu mentioned the youngest son, Zhao Li was at a loss. The Ye family didn’t have the power to keep all their children in the city. The eldest already had a job, so they didn’t need to worry about him. Of the remaining three, someone had to go—either the two daughters or the youngest son.
Ye Dong had a sweet mouth and knew how to please people. He looked like his maternal grandfather and was the apple of Zhao Li’s eye. She couldn’t bear to let her youngest son go…
Seeing Zhao Li fall silent, Ye Qiu comforted her, “Mom, don’t worry. I’m grown up now; I can take care of myself.”
Ye Qiu wasn’t blindly confident. In choosing to go to the countryside, she had a plan. It was already 1974; the college entrance exams would return in three years. If she started reviewing three years in advance—and considering she was a graduate of a prestigious university in her past life—she couldn’t possibly fail to get into college this time around, could she?
Most importantly, after experimenting for the last few days, she had finally figured out the function of the “Alien Energy Collection System” in her head. Perhaps even in the countryside, she wouldn’t struggle to survive.
Furthermore, Ye Qiu couldn’t keep up this act anymore. She had an esteemed eldest brother and a fiery second sister above her, and a sweet-talking younger brother below her. The original owner had always been the one overlooked. Although her parents tried their best to be fair, children are the most sensitive; how could she not know how much love her parents actually had for her? This had fostered the “Ye Qiu” personality—timid and soft-spoken, a “soft bun” who wouldn’t even make a sound when bullied.
Rather than being thought of as crazy, it was better to go to the countryside. By spending a few years away, when she saw her family again, she would have a justifiable reason for her change in personality.
Considering all these factors, even if going to the countryside was difficult, it was the best choice for Ye Qiu right now.
Ye Xia couldn’t wait to speak up, solidifying the result of Ye Qiu’s departure. “Mom, since the third child is going, prepare more food and supplies for her. The countryside isn’t like the city; there are many things you can’t buy there.”
Zhao Li saw through her daughter’s petty motives immediately, but the matter was settled. There was no way to change the situation, so she could only do her best to prepare more things to make life easier for her youngest daughter.
Zhao Li stroked her youngest daughter’s hand, her eyes stinging with tears. “Third child, Mom is truly helpless…”
Ye Qiu kept her head down, pretending to be saddened as she comforted Zhao Li. “I know. The policy is just like this; there is nothing any of us can do.”
Ye Qiu didn’t actually blame the Ye family. Setting aside the fact that she wasn’t the original owner and didn’t have deep emotional ties to these parents, even if the original owner were still here, she would likely have made the same choice. Her going to the countryside could be considered as repaying her parents’ kindness on behalf of the original owner.
Ye Weijun, who was puffing on a water pipe nearby, struck the final blow: “Then the third child goes to the countryside, and the second child takes over the job. The second child will send five yuan from her salary to the third child every month, for at least two years.”
Ye Xia taking over Zhao Li’s job meant her starting salary wouldn’t be high—likely only around ten yuan a month. Sending five yuan to Ye Qiu was quite a lot.
Ye Xia pursed her lips. “I have no objections. But two years isn’t enough. I am the one who went back on my word about going to the countryside, so I will send her money for three years.”
Although she didn’t want to go to the countryside, Ye Qiu was her own sister, and Ye Xia wasn’t heartless. If she were the one sent away, her life would be ruined, but Ye Qiu was different. In a few years, with Ye Qiu’s grades, she might be able to test back into the city! But she couldn’t; she had taken the college entrance exam in her past life (in this timeline’s context of academic attempts) and had failed several times. She had completely lost faith in her own ability to test her way back from the countryside.