Huo Yunlei put on a long face and said, "Eldest Brother, since you overheard everything, you shouldn't be harsh with me. We didn't do anything wrong. It's all those restless Educated Youth who are scheming all day to avoid work, or figuring out how to sponge off someone else's place to be lazy."
Huo Yunting's eyebrows twitched slightly: "Tell me, what do you plan to do?"
Huo Yunlei was, after all, just a half-grown child; how could he guard against Huo Yunting?
In a flash, he confessed everything clearly.
Huo Yunting was no longer a child; he keenly noticed that Su Xiaoruan intended to target Li Jun and Song Hongjuan, but didn't want to implicate herself, which is why she had Huo Yunlei notify Sun Xiaoju.
Huo Yunting had been back for a few days, and he hadn't heard of these two having any feud with Su Xiaoruan.
If it was purely because Song Hongjuan wanted to pursue Su Xiangdong, there was no need to make such a big fuss, right?
"Enough, do what needs to be done. Don't make a sound about this, and definitely don't tell anyone else."
"Understood, Eldest Brother."
Although Huo Yunting didn't know Su Xiaoruan very well, his intuition told him that girl was not someone who would actively stir up trouble.
Therefore, since he knew about this matter, he couldn't just ignore it.
Moreover, he would be returning to the Military soon, so it was quite necessary to help the little girl solve a big problem before leaving.
Thinking this, Huo Yunting unconsciously curved the corners of his lips.
Su Xiaoruan didn't pin all her hopes on Huo Yunlei; she still thought she should find an opportunity to speak with Secretary Geng of the Commune.
After much thought, she felt that having her paternal uncle help introduce her to visit Secretary Geng's home was feasible.
She knew Secretary Geng was very upright and incorruptible, and disliked the practice of giving gifts.
Su Xiaoruan simply went to the Town, disguised as an Old Lady, claiming she was visiting relatives but had lost the address and couldn't find them.
After asking around several times, Su Xiaoruan actually managed to find Secretary Geng's address, and so she first went ahead in disguise to scout things out.
After loitering near the front door twice, she placed some Grain into the Bamboo basket she carried.
Secretary Geng's family had three children, all of whom were now at the age where they drain their parents' resources. Although they were a double-income couple, they couldn't manage with three children to raise, oh, and an Old Lady who had lost her ability to work.
Su Xiaoruan retreated into a corner and waited for about half an hour, then saw a middle-aged woman pushing a Bicycle return.
Su Xiaoruan judged that this must be Secretary Geng's wife.
"Sister, can you help me with something?"
Su Xiaoruan was dressed as a poor Old Lady, which helped lower the other person's guard.
"Auntie, what is it?"
Su Xiaoruan, playing the part of the Auntie, said awkwardly, "It's like this, I came to visit relatives, but after arriving, I found out they had moved. I still need to go to the County to catch a Train. But when I came, I exchanged all my Money voucher for Things, and now I truly have no money for the ride. I don't have any other relatives here, so I was hoping your family could take these Things, enough for me to eat a meal and buy a Train ticket."
Secretary Geng's wife, Li Yuejiao, was also kind-hearted, and seeing the Old Lady in tattered Clothes, her heart naturally softened.
"Let me see what you have?"
Su Xiaoruan wasn't polite and directly took down the Bamboo basket.
"Please take a look. This is a ham hock and two fish I specifically brought for my eldest nephew's family. Oh, and some White Flour too. I never expected the people I was looking for would be gone. If these Things sit overnight, they might spoil. I truly had no other choice."
Li Yuejiao saw that the items were indeed good, and since the person only wanted money and not vouchers, these Things were Hot Items—ones that might not even be available at a State-run store.
"Alright then. Your ham hock is quite big, and it's already cooked. How about this, I'll take everything. That will be twenty yuan in total, and I'll give you a few Steamed buns to eat. How does that sound?"
Su Xiaoruan did some mental calculations; if she took these Things to the Black Market, they would probably sell for about twenty-two or twenty-three yuan.
This person wasn't taking too much advantage of her right now.
"That works, thank you, Sister. You've helped me out a great deal."
Li Yuejiao was straightforward and invited her into the Courtyard. After putting the Things away, Su Xiaoruan quickly surveyed the inside and outside of the room, gaining a clear picture.
"Oh, you have an Award certificate hanging on your wall! Your child is truly promising."
As a mother, no one dislikes hearing praise for their own child.
Li Yuejiao looked very proud, though her words were quite modest; however, her tone clearly indicated her happiness.
"They're alright. This is the Eldest Brother's, he's only in Junior high school, I don't know what he'll be like in the future."
"If I had a child as promising as yours, I would wake up smiling in my dreams at night."
Li Yuejiao's mood brightened even more.
Because of this exchange, the two chatted more as they went back and forth.
When Su Xiaoruan left Secretary Geng's home, nearly ten minutes had passed.
When she was leaving, Li Yuejiao saw that Su Xiaoruan's Clothes were too ragged, so she took out an Old Clothes belonging to her Mother-in-law that she never wore and gave it to her.
This gave Su Xiaoruan a new understanding of her character.
From this trip, Su Xiaoruan figured out what the Geng family needed most urgently right now.
With the identity of this Old Lady, Su Xiaoruan also figured out what excuse she would use to visit the Geng family next time.
Su Xiaoruan had traveled quite a bit in her previous life; the accent she used while impersonating the Old Lady was from a neighboring province, just to avoid being exposed.
Upon returning home, Su Xiaoruan eagerly went to discuss things with her Grandmother.
Grandma Su was decisive and knew that if this matter concerning the job didn't work out this time, her Eldest grandson might be discouraged for the rest of his life.
"Yes, I think it's fine. Your method is quite clever. But you are not allowed to act on your own initiative next time."
"Understood, Grandma."
There was no time to lose, as delay could bring complications, so Su Xiaoruan took her Grandmother to the Town again.
The two arrived right on schedule; they showed up just five minutes after Secretary Geng arrived home.
"Hello, is anyone home?"
Su Xiaoruan's clear voice rang out, naturally drawing the attention of those inside.
Secretary Geng came out first, looking puzzled: "Who are you two looking for?"
Grandma Su paused for a moment, then tentatively asked, "Are you Secretary Geng?"
Secretary Geng nodded: "I am. And you are?"
Grandma Su slapped her thigh: "Oh my, what a coincidence! We came to deliver something. That Old Sister only gave us the address but didn't say it was your home!"