Baolan and Dingqing looked at each other, unsure how to respond, and could only let out an awkward laugh.
“You’re all production line workers, right? You know we’ll be assigned to teams after training? And after that, we’ll choose a team leader. I’m definitely going to be team leader—since we’re in the same dorm, you should all vote for me.”
Unexpectedly, Wang Xiaoping started canvassing for votes on the spot.
Dingqing, whose father was a village head, was more experienced in this sort of thing than Baolan. She shook her head at Wang Xiaoping. “That won’t do. We don’t even know each other yet—how can we just pick you as team leader? That wouldn’t be responsible to ourselves.”
“How is this not knowing each other? What more do you want—my home address?” Wang Xiaoping said, displeased.
“What do we need your address for? We care about character—whether you can handle the responsibility of team leader. We’ll see how you perform first. If you do well, then we’ll choose you.”
Dragging “character” into it made Wang Xiaoping sulk a little, but she stretched out her voice and said, “Fine—you can watch my performance. I’m well-known back home for being a good person.”
“I’ll definitely manage. My parents are both leaders in the factory. Not to brag, but I’ve got family training!”
Dingqing blinked and quietly asked Baolan, “Do you want to be team leader?”
Baolan replied, “If I get the chance, I’ll go for it. If not, then forget it.” She was young and felt her chances weren’t very high.
Dingqing nodded. “Mm.”
As the two whispered, Wang Xiaoping asked, “What are you talking about? Is there something I’m not allowed to hear? Why are you forming a little clique?”
Baolan: “Uh…”
Caught off guard, Baolan simply fell silent.
Seeing they weren’t talking, Wang Xiaoping leaned in mysteriously and said, “Do you know who got selected as warehouse manager this time?”
Baolan and Dingqing shook their heads.
Wang Xiaoping looked at them with pity, as if thinking, How sheng—you know nothing.
“Who got it?” Dingqing asked.
“There should be a list posted outside—we can check later,” Baolan said.
“Oh, what’s the point of checking? I’ll tell you—it’s Li Shengnan,” Wang Xiaoping said. “With the surname Li, she must have connections. That office clerk in the factory is also surnamed Li.”
Baolan: “…It might just be a coincidence.” She noticed that this Comrade Wang kept talking about “connections,” despite being so young. In Baolan’s impression, it was usually older people who brought that up all the time.
“You don’t believe me? There were two warehouse positions—one wasn’t even open for recruitment, definitely reserved for someone with connections. As for the other one, more than a dozen people competed, and she got it. That’s obviously connections at work!”
Wang Xiaoping spoke with absolute confidence.
Hearing such “inside information,” the two country girls half believed it. Baolan silently felt lucky she hadn’t impulsively applied for the warehouse job.
But whether it was connections or not had nothing to do with them.
The three chatted idly for a while when a series of footsteps came clattering up the stairs outside.
It sounded like quite a few people.
Wang Xiaoping stood up and peeked outside. It turned out the six people from Room 301 across the hall had returned.
Wang Xiaoping greeted them enthusiastically, “Oh! Your dorm is full already—we’ve only got three here.”
Someone outside replied, “Don’t worry, more people will come soon. Xiao He took a group to the clinic.”
“They recruited over a hundred female workers this time. The whole dorm building will be filled.”
Since they would all be working in the same factory, it made sense to get acquainted. Baolan and Dingqing stepped to the doorway and joined in.
They were all young women in their late teens or early twenties, and introductions came quickly.
The girls next door were Liu Jiaqing, Lan Xianying, He Mingying, Li Xiaohua, Ran Yun, and Liu Hua. Among them, Liu Jiaqing and He Mingying were locals from Anping District, while Li Xiaohua, Ran Yun, and Liu Hua came from nearby towns, and Lan Xianying was from Qingjiang County.
Wang Xiaoping loudly said, “You’re from Qingjiang too? Baolan and Dingqing are also from Qingjiang—you’re fellow townsfolk!”
Lan Xianying, fair-skinned and neatly dressed in a dress, asked softly, “Where in Qingjiang are you from?”
“We’re both from Hongsha Village, Daling Town.”
“Oh, I’m from the county seat. It’s good you have each other.”
“Yeah, hehe.”
Since they had just met, everyone was polite. After chatting for a while, three more girls came upstairs carrying their luggage. Seeing a crowd gathered in the corridor, they paused in surprise.
Wang Xiaoping continued her enthusiastic welcome. “Are you staying in 302? Over here, over here! Come on, Baolan and Dingqing, let’s welcome our new roommates!”
“Here, I’ll help you take your luggage down.”
One of the girls was small and delicate but carried an enormous sack that nearly swallowed her whole.
Baolan and the others stepped forward to help.
“I’ll help too.”
Goodness—five or six hands ended up holding the same sack.
Everyone worked together to get the three into Room 302, and only then did the girls from 301 return to their own room, satisfied.
“Thank you, thank you,” the petite girl said gratefully.
Another girl with big eyes and a few freckles on her nose looked around. Seeing that the beds and cabinets had already been taken, she asked, “You’ve all made your beds already? How were they assigned?”
With arms crossed, she scanned Baolan’s group, clearly dissatisfied.
Wang Xiaoping shrugged.
Baolan explained, “There was no assignment. We just picked based on who arrived first.”
The big-eyed girl frowned. “You took all the good spots and left the bad ones for us. That’s not fair. The six of us should draw lots—whoever gets which bed sleeps there.”
“Draw lots? What for?” Dingqing lifted her chin and looked down at her. “First come, first served—understand? Those who come early pick better spots. It’s your own fault for coming late.”
Baolan added, “The three of you can draw lots among yourselves. There are still three beds left.”
Fair or not, this arrangement was allowed by the factory.
The petite girl smiled. “I won’t draw lots. I’ll take this bed.”
She placed her bedding on the middle bed in Baolan’s row, directly opposite Wang Xiaoping.
Now only the two beds near the door remained.
The short-haired girl, who hadn’t spoken until now, chose the bed behind the door, next to Wang Xiaoping.
That left just one bed for the big-eyed girl.
She stared blankly for a moment, then angrily said, “You two traitors!”
“Hey, watch your mouth. I’m not your follower—I don’t have to listen to you,” the petite girl snapped back.
“I was fighting for our rights, and you two turned around and picked beds behind my back. If that’s not betrayal, what is?”
“Who asked you to fight for me? If you want a better spot, don’t drag me into it! I like this bed just fine. Enough arguing—say ‘traitor’ again and I’ll hit you.”
The petite girl raised her fist in warning.
The big-eyed girl glared at them, then slammed the door and stormed out.
“What kind of person is that? Does she think the world revolves around her?” the petite girl snorted, then turned to Baolan and the others. “My name’s Tian Lianghui, eighteen, from Tianjia Town. What about you?”
Hearing “Tianjia Town,” Baolan felt an unexpected sense of familiarity—after all, she had once pretended to be from there on the boat.
She smiled warmly. “I’m Xing Baolan, and this is Yu Dingqing. We’re both fifteen, from Hongsha Village in Qingjiang County.”
“I’m Wang Xiaoping, twenty-one, from Anping Textile Factory. Just mention my name in Anping—everyone knows me.”
The four of them got acquainted and then looked together at the quiet girl who had barely made a sound. Seeing their attention, she lowered her head nervously.
Tian Lianghui said, “Little Wu, don’t be shy—introduce yourself.”
The short-haired girl spoke in a voice as soft as a mosquito’s buzz, “I… I’m Wu Niandi, fifteen, from Xiufeng Village.”
“Xiufeng Village? That’s right behind the factory—you’re so close. Why stay in the dorm?” Wang Xiaoping leaned forward curiously.
Wu Niandi fell silent again.
Tian Lianghui quickly smoothed things over. “Hey, staying in the dorm is convenient—you can go to work in a few steps. By the way, the one who just left is Xiangyang. I thought she’d be easy to get along with, but she called me a traitor. Hmph, I’m not being friends with her anymore.”