After calling out, Yang Xiaofang felt her spirits soar. She stopped following Meng Guyu and walked toward Zhao Jinlai with a touch of shyness.
In public, she didn’t dare get too close. She simply held out the small mesh bag in her hand. “Jinlai, you said your parents haven’t had much of an appetite lately. I just bought these crispy cakes specifically for you to take home and eat.”
Zhao Jinlai glanced at Meng Guyu, then flashed what he considered a dashing smile. “Xiaofang, you should take these home for yourself. I should be the one buying things for you. How can I let a lady buy something for me?”
His words made Yang Xiaofang smile coyly. “Jinlai, don’t be so polite. Here, take them.”
Zhao Jinlai looked moved. “Xiaofang, you’re so kind.”
As he spoke with her, his peripheral vision remained fixed on Meng Guyu.
When he saw her walking away without a glance back, he couldn’t restrain himself any longer. “Meng Guyu!”
Meng Guyu hadn’t expected him to call her name. She turned to look at him. “What is it?”
For the past few days, Zhao Jinlai had been utterly confused. Meng Guyu used to fawn over him the moment she saw him.
She would happily clean his house, wash his clothes, and do the laundry. All it took was a few kind words from him, and she would cheerfully do whatever he asked.
His parents weren’t in good health, and their family desperately needed someone to do the chores. They had already agreed to marry Meng Guyu into the family so she could look after them all.
He had no objections to the arrangement. After all, Meng Guyu was the prettiest girl in the whole alley.
Even without a job, countless young men wanted to marry her. To marry her into his family to serve them was a prize many envied.
Besides, his family had some wealth.
They had always looked for an unemployed wife who could handle the laundry and cooking, and Meng Guyu fit the bill perfectly.
But he never expected her to suddenly act like she’d lost her mind. Just a few days ago, she had declared that “everything was over” between them.
He was furious.
Fine, if it’s over, it’s over.
With his background, he could marry the factory director’s daughter if he wanted. Unless she came crawling back to beg him, he wouldn’t even spare her a word.
Yet, to his astonishment, she hadn’t shown her face for days. And today, when she finally saw him, she acted as if he were invisible.
And she even had the nerve to ask, “What is it?”
He had deliberately been seen with Yang Xiaofang these past few days, yet Meng Guyu didn’t seem the least bit jealous.
“If you beg me,” he sneered, “I might just forget what you said that day.”
Yang Xiaofang, anxious to interject, started to speak, but Meng Guyu cut her off.
“I’m standing by what I said. And as for begging you? Never.”
With that, she turned and walked away.
Even a single glance at Zhao Jinlai brought back memories of his contemptuous, scrutinizing gaze from her past life. It made her stomach churn with disgust.
“You!” Zhao Jinlai ground his teeth. “Meng Guyu, don’t be so ungrateful!”
Meng Guyu ignored him completely. But Yang Xiaofang was secretly delighted.
Yes, fight! Keep fighting! she thought. The more bitter this ends, the better. My chance has finally come.
Meng Guyu didn’t care what they were saying. She went home, packed up her sewing kit, checked her things one last time, and got ready to leave.
She had agreed to cook lunch today, so it was best to set off early.
Meng Gucang walked her to the town bus station. The thought of his sister being away for several months made his heart ache.
He pulled five yuan from his pocket. “I heard the family compound has its own supply store and cafeteria. Take this. Buy whatever you need, don’t go without.”
Meng Guyu knew all too well how her brother and sister-in-law managed their money. Her brother turned over his entire salary every month, leaving him with almost no pocket money.
She knew how long he must have been saving this five yuan.
“I can’t take it, Brother,” she said. “Mom gave me money before I left, and I’ve saved some myself. It’s enough. The family is providing meals, and the compound has a place to stay, so I won’t need much. Keep your money.”
Without another word, Meng Gucang unzipped her shoulder bag and tucked the money inside. “Take it.”
Meng Guyu knew her family would worry, but five yuan was no small amount of money. With three children at home, their burden was heavy.
She thought for a moment, then set aside three yuan and handed it back to him.
“Brother, I only need two yuan. There will be too many people on the bus, and it won’t be safe to carry more than that. Keep this three yuan and buy something good for my nephew and niece.”
“If you don’t take it,” she threatened, “I’ll throw all the money out the window as soon as I get on the bus and won’t keep a single cent.”
Meng Gucang stopped resisting, took the three yuan, and conceded. “Fine, fine. I’ll keep this. You can have it next time you come back.”
Meng Guyu smiled, but before she could speak, the bus arrived.
She hastily grabbed her belongings and boarded, calling out to Meng Gucang as she turned back, “Brother, get back to work! Tell Mom and Dad not to worry about me. I’ll work hard.”
Filled with reluctance, Meng Gucang kept nodding and muttering, “Eat well. If the job’s too hard, you can just come back. Don’t scrimp on money. Spend it if you need to.”
He happened to be standing right by the window on her side of the bus.
As it slowly pulled away, she waved outside and called, “Go on, Brother! I’ll come back when I have time. Don’t worry about me.”
No matter what, this was her first time traveling so far from home. How could they not worry?
Meng Gucang watched the bus disappear into the distance before finally turning back, glancing over his shoulder every few steps as he walked home.
He had taken the entire morning off just to see Meng Guyu off. When he returned, Liu Sulian was tending to their little granddaughter, Yueyue.
Seeing him, she hurriedly asked, “How did it go? Did she get on the bus? Was everything smooth?”
Meng Gucang grunted in affirmation, his spirits low.
When his daughter reached out for him, he took her into his arms and looked at Liu Sulian. “Mom, my heart’s just aching. Just a few days ago, Guyu was like Yueyue, always following me around. Now, in the blink of an eye, she’s out there earning money on her own. I don’t know if the people there are easy to get along with. She’s all alone—if she gets bullied, there will be no one to speak up for her.”
At his words, Liu Sulian’s eyes reddened.
She wiped the corner of her eye with her sleeve. “You can say that again. I just hope everything goes smoothly for her. I asked Aunt Qian, and she said that although you can’t just leave the factory whenever you want, you can get permission to go out if you apply. Wait until next Sunday, then you go visit her. See how she’s doing. If it’s not working out, just bring her back.”
Hearing that he could go next week, Meng Gucang finally felt a bit more at ease. “Alright. If it’s not working out, I’ll bring my sister back.”
Meng Guyu had no intention of going back to her old life. She was determined to work hard and earn a steady living.
That was why she put so much effort into preparing lunch.
It was the transition from spring to summer, a time when fresh produce was scarce. For her first official day on the job, Meng Guyu had planned to cook with whatever was already in the house.
But Shen Ye pulled her straight toward the supply and marketing cooperative.
“I’m tired of the same old food at home,” he said. “I already checked—they have meat today. Let’s buy some.”
Normally, if the employer wanted a certain dish, Meng Guyu would just make it. But this was her first day, and she had no money of her own. “Is your father coming home for lunch? Shouldn’t we ask him first?”
Shen Ye groaned. “He’s busy up front today and won’t be back. I can make my own decisions, you know! Besides, I have money!”
He pulled five yuan from his pocket and handed it to her. “Here, Dad told me to give this to you. Stop overthinking it! I’m going back to school tomorrow, so I won’t even get to eat this for lunch.”
What else could Meng Guyu say? If the child wanted to eat it, she would cook it. She took the money, thinking she should find a notebook to keep track of the expenses.
Then she asked Shen Ye, “How about braised pork, or pork stewed with potatoes?”
“There are still potatoes at home,” Meng Guyu said. “If we add those, we can use less meat.”
But a six- or seven-year-old boy was at the peak of his appetite. Without a second thought, Shen Ye declared, “Braised pork!”
Meng Guyu didn’t argue further. She followed him to the supply and marketing cooperative.
Located in the center of the family compound, the cooperative was close to the Shen residence. Shen Ye, having grown up in the compound, was known by everyone.
As soon as he arrived, he shouted at the top of his lungs, “Aunt Liu, is there any meat left?”
The woman working at the cooperative that day was Liu Chunhua. Her round face was naturally kind.
Seeing Shen Ye run in, she pointed to a slab of meat hanging on a nearby shelf and laughed, calling him a little glutton. “There, isn’t that some?”
Shen Ye turned back to Meng Guyu. “Hurry, buy it, buy it!”
Since they were determined to buy it, Meng Guyu didn’t object. She followed Shen Ye’s lead and bought half a jin of meat.
Liu Chunhua was a sociable person who could chat with anyone. Noticing Meng Guyu’s shy demeanor, she smiled warmly. “Are you the new nanny at Technician Shen’s place? Finally, someone is here to keep an eye on little Ye. Otherwise, he’d be running wild and causing trouble all over the compound every day.”
Shen Ye protested, “Aunt Liu, I don’t cause trouble!”
Liu Chunhua tied the meat with hemp twine and handed it to Meng Guyu.
Smiling, she asked Shen Ye, “If you don’t cause trouble, how did you get those bruises?”
Then, she recounted Shen Ye’s latest feat for Meng Guyu. “Last week, this little one led a group of kids to the shooting range in the front. They were doing live-fire drills, and the kids scrambled inside to pick up shell casings. It gave everyone a real scare.”
She turned to Meng Guyu. “You’ve arrived just in time. You can cook for him; Technician Shen is often away from home, so at least someone will be looking after the boy on the weekends.”
Shen Ye grumbled and protested, “Who needs her to look after me? Even if my dad isn’t home, I can take care of myself.”
Liu Chunhua humored him with a few words, then continued chatting with Meng Guyu about gossip from the family compound. She told her she was welcome to stop by the cooperative anytime for a chat and not to be shy.
Though Meng Guyu didn’t say much, she was secretly thrilled.
In her past life, she had spent so many days feeling suffocated and powerless.
She’d always wanted to find a job after the Reform and Opening-up, when many private enterprises began hiring.
She’d even considered applying, but the Zhao family had always held her back.
They’d told her she was nothing more than a housewife who knew nothing of the world, claiming that working outside would only embarrass them and that she’d never succeed at anything.
Why was she so foolish that she hadn’t dared to take the first step?
Carrying the meat, some cinnamon, other seasonings, and a pound of bean sprouts, Meng Guyu returned home with Shen Ye.
He had been playing all morning and was already a little hungry.
He turned down a group of neighborhood kids who invited him to play, and the moment they stepped inside, he started urging Meng Guyu to make the braised pork.
Meng Guyu nodded. “You can go play for a bit. I’ll put the meat on to braise and stir-fry the bean sprouts, okay?”
Shen Ye didn’t like bean sprouts.
He shook his head immediately. “Bean sprouts aren’t good. I want the potato shreds you made yesterday.”
Meng Guyu put the bean sprouts away. Since it was just the two of them, she decided to let the child have his way.
I’ll make extra braised pork, she thought. I can just eat potato shreds. Shen Ye is still growing, so there should be some left for him for the afternoon.
But once Shen Ye started eating, she realized she had underestimated his appetite.