That afternoon in the fields, after working for a while, Xiang Wenshan noticed the team leader’s wife stand up to stretch. She followed suit, casually rolling her neck and wrists.
As if asking idly, she said, “Aunt Jinhua, do we have an Auntie Xiujun in the production team?”
The leader’s wife squatted back down and continued working. “We do — actually, two of them. Which one are you asking about?”
Xiang Wenshan smiled. “Oh, nothing. I just heard people chatting, mentioning Auntie Xiujun talking about gossip. I got curious — does she know a lot of juicy stories?”
The leader’s wife frowned slightly. “You must’ve misheard. Neither of the Xiujuns likes gossip. One of them is so quiet you couldn’t get a word out of her with three sticks. The other… well, her daughter married into the city, so she likes to show off a bit.
If we’re talking about gossip, that’d be me, Wang Cuihua, and Ma Chunhua. But Ma Chunhua’s not here today — she’s one of the best workers and went with the main group to dig the riverbank.”
“Oh, I see.” Xiang Wenshan didn’t press further.
The leader’s wife assumed she was simply interested in gossip. “If you want gossip, I do have one.”
Since fieldwork alone was dull, Xiang Wenshan asked, “What gossip?”
Seeing her eyes light up, the leader’s wife smiled. This Educated Youth Xiang was becoming more down-to-earth — growing closer to them. Chatting like this really shortened the distance.
When she first arrived, she’d seemed cold and unapproachable. Turns out she’d misjudged her.
“It’s about an old maid in our team who’s finally getting married. She’s twenty-three — wedding’s next month.”
Twenty-three. An “old maid.”
Modern-day her was twenty-seven — what would that make her? An ancient relic?
“Twenty-three isn’t old. How is that old?” Xiang Wenshan protested.
The leader’s wife chuckled. “City kids go to school longer, so marriage might be delayed to seventeen or eighteen. But in the countryside, girls start being matched at fifteen or sixteen. If they’re not married by eighteen or nineteen, the family’s already anxious.
If there’s an unmarried older daughter at home, it even affects younger siblings’ marriage prospects. Girls who aren’t married by twenty? You could count them on one hand.”
Xiang Wenshan clicked her tongue. She knew women married young in this era, but hearing it spelled out like that still felt shockingly early.
“Then why is she marrying so late?”
“It’s not that she didn’t want to. It’s just… she looks a bit masculine. And there are family reasons. She has a grandfather, a younger brother, and a younger sister. Her parents passed away years ago.
Back then her siblings were little, and her grandfather couldn’t manage alone. She had to stay and take care of them. Now that they’re older — and with relatives urging her not to delay further — she finally agreed.”
Xiang Wenshan nodded. “She sounds like a good and filial woman.”
“Isn’t she? If her parents were still alive, I’d have introduced her to my youngest son. She’s a good person.”
Wenshan pressed her lips together in a small smile. Good, yes — but many people still looked down on her family circumstances. Even if Aunt Jinhua didn’t say it outright, she probably felt the same. If that woman’s parents were alive, she’d have married long ago.
“What about the man she’s marrying? Is he from this production team?”
“No, from the neighboring team. He’s twenty-six, still a bachelor. His family background isn’t great. Years ago, his father followed the landlord around. When the landlord fell, people spat on his father too. To avoid dragging the family down, his father committed suicide.
His mother was pregnant at the time. With everyone pointing fingers at her, she was so distressed she miscarried. After that her health declined, and she passed away two years later.”
Xiang Wenshan sucked in a breath. Tragedy piled on tragedy. But this era itself was harsh.
“Well… I hope their lives improve from here on.”
“They will. Both are hard workers. Things should get better.”
After chatting a while, they focused on working. The team leader passed by twice, noticing they were talking but seeing their hands never stopped moving, so he didn’t say anything — though his eyes lingered. Probably because Aunt Jinhua was the leader’s wife.
After work ended, Xiang Wenhui hurried toward her. That afternoon they’d been assigned to different areas, though only about twenty or thirty meters apart.
“Sis! Sis! I’m here!”
“Mm.” Xiang Wenshan held out her arm for her to link.
Wenhui grinned and hooked onto her arm. “Sis is the best. Guess what? I earned two work points this afternoon!”
“Nice job.” Xiang Wenshan had earned three. Two in the morning, three in the afternoon — manageable, though still tiring.
Walking behind them, the leader’s wife chuckled to Wang Cuihua. “Those two sisters are really close.”
“They are! One loves to act spoiled, the other loves to dote. How could they not get along? Come on, let’s head home.”
“Mm, time to go serve a whole household.”
“Oh please. Your daughters-in-law cook — what are you serving?”
“I’ve been serving this family for half my life.”
“Haha, fair enough.”