Upon hearing the words “wild man,” a vein bulged on Li Yanzhong’s forehead. He tightened his grip, and Yu Xiuchun immediately cried out in pain, unable to make any other sound.
“Comrade Li, please let her go.”
Yu Jingqiu’s gentle voice rang out. She first instructed Li Yanzhong, then turned to apologize to Director Wu and the others at the door: “I’m sorry you had to witness this. This is my elder sister from my maiden family, with whom I rarely keep in touch. She must not have known that I had invited you comrades here today, which led to this misunderstanding.”
Director Wu and the others nodded understandingly. They had heard the shrill-voiced “elder sister” shouting about servants and slaves from outside the door. With such poor character, it was remarkable that the Feng family had such patience and hadn’t immediately thrown her out.
Li Yanzhong was slow to release his grip, only letting go completely after Yu Jingqiu had finished speaking. The moment Yu Xiuchun regained her freedom, she immediately yelled, “Don’t listen to her nonsense! She’s just a capitalist—”
But before she could finish, Director Wu frowned and scolded, “Comrade, our Party ‘considers class background but does not judge solely by it.’ Your thinking and awareness are far from adequate. Tell me, which unit do you belong to?”
Seeing Director Wu with her neat ear-length bob, dressed in a Lenin suit, and accompanied by several men in Zhongshan suits, Yu Xiuchun sensed an authority even more imposing than the factory secretary. Realizing the situation was unfavorable, she glared and retorted, “What business is it of yours which unit I’m from? Mind your own business! Get out of my way!”
She barged through recklessly and took off running, all the way out of the Feng family foreign-style house. When no one came after her, she grew smug and spat toward the courtyard gate, “Pah! Think you can find out my unit and report me? Not a chance!”
With her chin held high, Yu Xiuchun strode away, unaware that inside the Feng family foreign-style house, Director Wu’s subordinates had inquired with Li Yanzhong and recorded Yu Xiuchun’s unit, address, and family members.
Director Wu chatted warmly with Yu Jingqiu and her daughter, while her companions carefully appraised and packaged the Feng family’s calligraphy, paintings, and antiques one by one, waiting only for the borrowed vehicles to arrive to transport everything to the museum for preservation and display.
As for the Feng family’s money and land, Yu Jingqiu had already handed them over and completed the procedures two days prior.
Director Wu was genuinely pleased. If every capitalist had the same high level of awareness as the Feng family, municipal work would be much easier, accelerating Bin City’s development and improving the people’s living conditions.
She took Yu Jingqiu’s hand and said, “We must certainly publicize this matter, with a prominent feature. I will personally oversee the promotional article and report it to higher authorities. However, the reporting process involves many steps and may take some time, but it will definitely be published no later than the Spring Festival.”
“Director Wu, you’ve gone to so much trouble.”
“It’s my duty.”
“Comrade Yu, if you encounter any difficulties in your life or work in the future, you can always come to my unit and report them to me. As long as there are no issues of principle, the organization will do its best to help resolve them.”
Director Wu felt that a mere matchmaking opportunity was hardly commensurate with the wealth the Feng family had donated, so she made this additional promise.
Yu Jingqiu did not refuse and once again expressed her gratitude to the organization and Director Wu.
The two conversed pleasantly, with Feng Mingshu obediently sitting with them throughout. In the end, Director Wu addressed her by name.
“Mingshu, the social is in three days. Remember to come on time. I’ve looked over the list for you—all the attendees are outstanding single officers. You must choose carefully when the time comes.”Feng Mingshu’s cheeks burned with embarrassment from the teasing, and even after seeing Director Wu and his party off, the rosy flush on her face hadn’t faded much.
Yu Jingqiu watched her daughter’s shy demeanor with amusement, draping an arm over her shoulder as they entered the room. “Don’t be shy, Zhuzhu. Come with me to the room. I’ll give you some jewelry to wear at the social gathering.”
“Mom, I don’t want it.”
Feng Mingshu instinctively refused, but then she saw her mother open a section of the wall, revealing hidden compartments one after another. Lifting the lids exposed gold and silver jewels, hairpins and accessories, antique paintings and calligraphy, along with a full box of small gold bars. Her pupils dilated in shock, and she snapped the lid shut with a sharp clap.
“Mom, how can there be so much here…? Didn’t we donate everything?” Feng Mingshu asked in a hushed voice, nervously glancing around. There was no one else in sight, and the door was securely closed.
In her previous life, their home had been thoroughly ransacked and turned upside down, yet they were still repeatedly interrogated by the Red Guards about hidden family wealth—the torment of those moments was beyond description.
So, upon discovering there truly were hidden treasures, her first reaction was tension.
Yu Jingqiu stroked her daughter’s soft hair and smiled. “Your mother isn’t that selfless. What we donated earlier was the Feng family’s publicly known assets. What remains here was never recorded—it’s reserved for you and your sister’s dowries and for your brother’s future marriage.”
Having weathered storms and turmoil over the years, Yu Jingqiu knew that wealth attracted envy and, without the power to protect it or mishandled, could lead to disaster. But as a mother, she felt it necessary to leave her children some means of survival, even if it involved taking risks. Moreover, if they had truly donated everything, danger might still find them in the future.
Seeing that matters had reached this point, Feng Mingshu didn’t try to persuade her mother further, though the tension in her heart was hard to dispel. “Mom, I won’t wear any jewelry from now on. Let’s pretend we donated everything. We need to hide these things quickly and make sure no one finds them.”
“This hidden wall won’t do, and neither will our courtyard. If the building gets occupied someday, they’ll surely dig three feet deep.”
“Uncle’s house isn’t safe either. Aunt is greedy—if she takes our things, she’ll never admit to it…”
Watching her daughter mutter and fret over hiding the treasures, looking as nervous as a little mouse that just stole oil, Yu Jingqiu felt both amused and heartache. She hugged her and said, “Don’t be afraid, Zhuzhu. Mom will find a way to move them. I’m telling you this because you’re the eldest daughter in the family. If anything should happen to me…”
Feng Mingshu immediately grew frantic. “Mom, nothing will happen to you! You’re not allowed to say such things.”
“Alright, I won’t say it. Here’s the ledger—keep it safe.”
In the end, Feng Mingshu took the ledger and tucked it under her pillow, her heart growing heavier.
…
“Mom, did you find out for sure? Does Feng Mingshu really have a matchmaking prospect?”
Chu Xuanxuan had been turned away from the Zhang family for several days in a row and hadn’t been able to see Zhang Yunxiao at all. The anxiety had caused several pimples to sprout on her face, and she even suspected that Feng Mingshu had hooked up with Zhang Yunxiao again. Now, seeing her mother return from the Feng residence, she rushed forward to ask.
Yu Xiuchun shot her daughter a glare, gulped down a large glass of water, and then scolded, “Look at you—so impatient! No matter if that wretched girl has a match or not, that Zhang fellow isn’t escaping from my grasp!”
Chu Xuanxuan, having let her imagination run wild these past few days, grew suspicious. “Mom, did you even find out anything?”
Yu Xiuchun, her cover blown, darkened her face.After throwing a tantrum and storming out of the Feng residence, she had walked some distance before remembering she hadn’t gathered any information. She didn’t dare return to the Fengs, so she thought about asking the neighbors. But just then, she saw several military vehicles driving into the Feng family’s courtyard one after another. Terrified, she immediately fled without looking back.
The moment Chu Xuanxuan saw her mother’s expression, she knew her guess was right. Stamping her foot in anger, she cried, “Mom, why can’t you do anything right? You call me stupid, but if I am, it’s because I inherited it from you!”
“How dare you talk back to me!”
Right as mother and daughter were arguing fiercely, Chu Hongjun rushed into the house, his face flushed with rage. Pointing at Yu Xiuchun, he shouted, “What trouble have you caused now? The Party Secretary specifically ordered you to attend a study session!”
Yu Xiuchun was stunned. “I haven’t done anything! I just took half a day off from the factory to go out.”
“Why did you take time off? Where did you go?” Chu Hongjun demanded.
Suddenly realizing something, Yu Xiuchun’s face turned pale.