Summer 1975, Beijing City.
At the entrance of the compound, Ruan Tang stared at the man before her, her delicate brows slightly furrowed. “Why choose me? I don’t have a job.”
“So what? I don’t have one either. Anyway, our parents can earn money—they can support us.”
Jiang Ye spoke earnestly.
Ruan Tang listened earnestly.
“Alright, as long as this engagement is called off, I’ll marry you.”
A flicker of triumph passed through Jiang Ye’s eyes as he gestured for her to get on the bike. “Come on, your future partner is taking you to catch some adulterers.”
Ruan Tang was stunned for a moment, feeling that something wasn’t quite right.
However, she didn’t have time to overthink it and could only obediently climb onto the bicycle, following Jiang Ye as they weaved through these story-filled alleyways.
Watching the receding street scenes, Ruan Tang fell into deep thought.
A few days ago, she had a long, strange dream.
Someone had reported her, and the neighborhood committee came to urge her to go to the countryside for the Re-education of poor and lower-middle peasants.
Ruan Tang felt it was an honor to contribute to the nation. So, filled with passion, she headed to the rural areas, only to realize upon arrival that reality was completely different from what she had imagined.
There were no simple, warm-hearted villagers—instead, there were men with greedy eyes and ill intentions.
Terrified, Ruan Tang’s first instinct was to run.
But it wasn’t that easy. From the moment she stepped into the village, she had already lost her freedom.
Ruan Tang was locked by the village chief in a dilapidated adobe house, awaiting her “fate.”
Unexpectedly, that night brought a heavy rainstorm. The long-neglected house couldn’t withstand the soaking rain—the walls collapsed, the beams broke, and Ruan Tang was buried beneath the rubble.
She woke up from the dream trembling, drenched in sweat.
At the time, she thought it was just a nightmare and didn’t think much of it. But the next day, the neighborhood committee showed up at her door, saying the exact same words as in her dream.
Panicked, Ruan Tang hurriedly sought her family’s advice.
Ruan’s mother, Wang Yun, never wanted her daughter to go to the countryside in the first place, so she said, “Finding a job now might be too late. Let me go talk to your Aunt Wu—your marriage with Jincheng should be brought up soon.”
“Even if we don’t hold a wedding, just getting the marriage certificate first will do.”
Wang Yun and Su’s mother, Wu Mengzhi, had known each other for over ten years, both working at the cotton mill. She thought the children’s marriage was a settled matter and wouldn’t face any surprises.
But when she finished explaining the situation, Wu Mengzhi said, “Our Tang Tang has just come of age—her body hasn’t fully developed yet. Getting married too early isn’t good for her health.”
“Besides, going to the countryside is answering the nation’s call—it’s an honorable thing. How can you take shortcuts just to avoid it?”
“No wonder you’ve been working all these years and are still just a loom operator. Your ideological awareness just isn’t up to par.”
A flash of disdain crossed Wu Mengzhi’s eyes. This Wang Yun was truly naive—did she even stop to consider whether Ruan Tang was still worthy of her Jincheng?
Her son was a regular employee, she was the workshop director at the cotton mill, and her husband was the deputy director of the Revolutionary Committee.
What was Ruan Tang? She didn’t even have a job, yet she still dreamed of marrying into the Su family? It was pure wishful thinking.
Wang Yun’s face immediately darkened. She never expected Wu Mengzhi not only to refuse help but to criticize her to her face.
Yet back then, it was Wu Mengzhi who had repeatedly begged her to arrange the childhood engagement between the two children!
Now that it was time to marry, she was going back on her word.
Unwilling to give up, Wang Yun told Ruan Tang to go talk to Su Jincheng herself. After all, they had grown up together since childhood—surely there was some affection between them.
Su Jincheng worked in the propaganda department of the cotton mill. Ruan Tang went directly to the factory to find him, but after three visits, she hadn’t managed to see him.
What they were implying, how could Ruan Tang not understand?
She asked a staff member from the propaganda department to relay a message: if he didn’t want to marry, that was fine—they could call off the engagement. She wouldn’t cling to him desperately.
Yet Su Jincheng still didn’t show his face.
Ruan Tang was pressed for time; she couldn’t afford to wait.
So today, she planned to intercept him at the Su family home. Unexpectedly, as soon as she stepped out, she ran into Jiang Ye.
He wore a white short-sleeved shirt left unbuttoned, revealing a tank top underneath, paired with army-green trousers.
Straddling his bicycle, a few strands of hair fluttered in the wind over his forehead, his narrow dark eyes brimming with amusement.
This guy seemed to know everything about her. He came straight out with it: “Call off the engagement, and I’ll marry you.”
At that moment, she had only one thought: as long as she could stay in the city, even marrying a playboy like Jiang Ye would do.
At least he could resolve her immediate crisis.
“We’re here.” Jiang Ye planted his left foot on the ground, turning his head to alert Ruan Tang.
She snapped out of her thoughts, hopped off the bike, and frowned at the sight of the dilapidated ancestral temple before them.
“Here to catch someone in the act?”
She wasn’t quite buying it!
Jiang Ye gave a mysterious smile, but before he could explain, a man emerged from behind a collapsed section of the wall.
He crooked a finger at Jiang Ye, signaling them to come over.
“Brother Ye, hurry! It’s starting inside.”
Jiang Ye strode over, said something unintelligible, and the man leaped out from inside and ran off.
But as he passed Ruan Tang, he cheekily called out, “Hello, Sister-in-law Ye.”
Ruan Tang was bewildered.
Sister-in-law Ye?
She didn’t even know him—why was he calling her that?
Straightforward as she was, it never crossed her mind that he might be referring to her.
Jiang Ye motioned for Ruan Tang to come closer, pointed at the top of the wall, and tentatively suggested, “How about I lift you up?”
“No need, step aside.”
Ruan Tang, wearing a white floral short-sleeved top and black trousers, hitched up her pant legs, took a running start, and vaulted onto the walltop using her arms.
Jiang Ye raised an eyebrow. This girl looked fair, delicate, and soft—how was she so fierce?
Once inside, Jiang Ye led Ruan Tang straight to the backyard.
This rundown temple was once the private ancestral shrine of some high-ranking official.
It used to see frequent visitors for worship, but after the movement began, superstition and incense-burning were banned, turning the place into forbidden grounds.
The backyard was overgrown with weeds, towering trees blocking out the sky, giving it a eerie, sinister atmosphere.
If she hadn’t known the species inside were human, Ruan Tang would have thought two ghosts were brawling.
“Xiaolan, give it to me quickly, I can’t take it anymore.”
“Not yet, Brother Jincheng. Haste makes waste.”
That voice belonged to Cai Xiaolan.
Ruan Tang was taken aback.
They lived in the same tenement compound. Though not particularly close, they always exchanged greetings when they met.
Cai Xiaolan was very enthusiastic and proactive, occasionally asking about Su Jincheng.
Now it seemed her intentions were ulterior!
Ruan Tang clenched her small fists, ready to charge in, but Jiang Ye grabbed her and pulled her into a corner under the eaves of the east wing.
She glared at him angrily, not understanding what he was up to.
A hint of helplessness in his eyes, Jiang Ye leaned close and whispered, “Wait a bit longer. I have a plan—I won’t let you lose out.”
Ruan Tang looked skeptical.
“Trust me, will you?”
“Good people don’t lie to good people!”
Seeing his earnest expression, Ruan Tang gave a soft humph, turned around, pressed against the windowsill, and began to eavesdrop.
In the room, a deity statue stood on the central table, with several broken-legged chairs toppled on the floor.
On the wooden plank bed in the corner, Su Jincheng’s clothes were spread out, and the two sat there kissing passionately.
Su Jincheng’s hand had even slipped inside Cai Xiaolan’s skirt.
Before Ruan Tang could utter a curse, someone covered her eyes.
Jiang Ye’s voice sounded in her ear immediately after, “Don’t look. It’s too dirty—you might get a sty.”
Just then, Cai Xiaolan stopped Su Jincheng from proceeding further.
She said, “You haven’t gone to see Ruan Tang these past few days, have you?”
“Let me tell you, don’t you dare soften up.”
“As long as she registers for the rural assignment, we can have the Educated Youth Office assign her to those rugged mountains where the locals are fierce. Then, you and I can be together without any obstacles.”
She couldn’t let all her meticulous planning go to waste now.
She had only managed to get close to Su Jincheng because her sister-in-law was pregnant.
She had begged her mother to let the sister-in-law return home for maternity rest, which allowed her to take over the sister-in-law’s job in the propaganda department of the cotton mill.
As the saying goes, the one closest to the water gets the moon first.
She had to seize this golden opportunity to marry into the Su family with glory and splendor.
And as for Ruan Tang—this stumbling block had to be kicked aside. Reporting her for rural assignment was the quickest and easiest way.