Life in the city was inconvenient in many ways.
After staying only one night, Uncle Jiang refused to listen to anyone’s attempts to persuade him to stay longer and insisted on returning home the next morning.
Left with no choice, Jiang Jianshe took half a day off work to personally escort him to the bus station.
Watching her uncle leave, Jiang Lai felt genuinely reluctant to see him go.
Noticing her daughter’s low spirits, Ma Laihua suggested they go out together to buy groceries so the whole family could enjoy a proper reunion dinner.
As soon as they stepped out of the factory housing compound, a series of bicycle bells rang behind them.
Instinctively, Ma Laihua pulled Jiang Lai aside.
To their surprise, the bicycle stopped right beside them.
The rider was a girl of about seventeen or eighteen.
She had long black hair flowing down her back, held in place by a light-colored headband. She wore a pale yellow floral dress that reached her calves, giving her an elegant yet youthful appearance.
“Aunt Ma, I heard Lailai came back.”
“This must be her, right?”
“Oh, Wenwen.”
Ma Laihua’s gaze swept over Song Wenwen before shifting to the three young men riding bicycles behind her.
“Where are you headed?”
This was Jiang Lai’s first time seeing the novel’s heroine in person.
Her eyes naturally drifted to the young man beside Song Wenwen.
He wore a crisp white shirt and army-green trousers.
That must be Zhao Qinglin—the heroine’s childhood sweetheart.
Seeing the heroine in the flesh for the first time, Jiang Lai couldn’t help taking a second look.
Song Wenwen noticed her gaze.
Their eyes met.
With a gentle smile, Song Wenwen greeted her.
“When you have time, come visit me.”
“I work at the candy counter in the supply and marketing cooperative.”
“Sure.”
Jiang Lai returned a faint smile.
Polite.
Yet unmistakably distant.
Song Wenwen brushed a strand of hair behind her ear.
“Aunt Ma, I’ll be going now.”
Then she pedaled away in a flash.
Watching Song Wenwen’s retreating figure, Ma Laihua suddenly felt a competitive streak rising inside her.
She looked Jiang Lai up and down before declaring firmly,
“When I get paid this month, I’ll buy you two pretty dresses.”
“And two pairs of little leather shoes.”
“Look at how stylish she is.”
“My daughter isn’t any less pretty.”
“We can’t let her outshine you.”
Jiang Lai glanced down at the clothes she was wearing.
They were still the ones she’d brought from the countryside.
Nothing fashionable.
But clean, neat, and perfectly respectable.
Having seen countless haute couture and custom-made designs in her previous life, clothing hardly mattered to her anymore.
She linked her arm through Ma Laihua’s and smiled.
“As long as I have something to wear, it’s enough.”
“Our priority right now is saving money for Xiaowei’s surgery.”
The moment Xiaowei was mentioned, Ma Laihua let out a long sigh.
Her face filled with sorrow.
“I noticed something was wrong with his eyes before his first month was even over.”
“When he was just over a year old, we took him to the provincial hospital.”
“They diagnosed him with strabismus.”
“He needs surgery.”
“But they can’t perform that operation here.”
“We’d have to go all the way to the capital.”
“It’ll cost at least thirty thousand yuan.”
“Our family has never even been to the capital.”
“The older he gets, the more noticeable it becomes.”
“If he doesn’t have the surgery…”
“…finding a wife later will be difficult.”
She sighed again.
“Mom.”
“I know how much this weighs on you.”
“The day I went to bring Sister-in-law home, I overheard Aunt Wen scolding her.”
“It was awful.”
“In the future…”
“Please don’t argue with Sister-in-law anymore.”
“Going back to her parents’ house isn’t any easier for her.”
Ma Laihua nodded helplessly.
“I don’t want to argue either.”
“Your third brother still isn’t married.”
“I don’t want people saying I’m some vicious mother-in-law.”
“It’s just…”
“…your sister-in-law and I simply can’t get along.”
She gently squeezed Jiang Lai’s hand as they continued toward the market.
The old state-run produce station had now become an open market.
Farmers from nearby villages were free to sell their produce there.
Aside from places like state-owned restaurants, supply cooperatives, and factories—where ration coupons were still required—most other transactions could now legally be conducted with cash.
Along the way, Ma Laihua ran into countless acquaintances.
Every time she greeted someone, she proudly introduced Jiang Lai first.
By the time they finally returned home carrying groceries, Jiang Lai vigorously rubbed her cheeks.
Buying vegetables had taken only half an hour.
Chatting with everyone along the way had taken another full hour.
The rest of the family was still at work.
Only mother and daughter were home.
As they prepared lunch, Ma Laihua brought up Jiang Lai’s new job.
“The receptionist’s job is easy.”
“You just sit in the reception office, fill out registration forms, and take guests to their rooms.”
“You’ll hardly ever be busy.”
“It’s one of the best, easiest jobs there is.”
Jiang Lai casually picked up a potato and began scraping the skin off with a stone.
Thinking about the thousand yuan they’d spent made her heart ache.
That money had become the root of the family’s internal conflict.
“You have no idea how many people wanted this position.”
Ma Laihua continued.
“I wasn’t afraid of spending the thousand yuan.”
“Look at the Zhao family down the alley.”
“Their daughter came back from the countryside a year and a half ago.”
“She still doesn’t have a proper job.”
“Every day she wanders around with a bunch of loafers.”
“Her parents get furious just looking at her.”
“I’d rather spend more money and know you came back safely.”
“That alone makes it worthwhile.”
Seeing Jiang Lai still slowly scraping the potato, Ma Laihua simply took it from her.
“Go play somewhere.”
“I can handle this little bit of work.”
There were five households in their alley.
At the very end lived the Yuan family—three generations sharing one courtyard.
The second-to-last courtyard belonged solely to the Song family.
The Zhao family lived in the middle.
The Jiangs lived just ahead of them.
At the entrance of the alley, two more households shared another courtyard.
Back when Hongxing Textile Factory had sent two hundred educated youths to the countryside, many had gradually returned by replacing their parents at work or by passing college entrance exams.
Cases like Zhao Ting’s—returning because of illness—were comparatively rare.
The quiet alley was suddenly broken by a loud argument.
Doors slammed.
Objects crashed.
Both Ma Laihua and Jiang Lai immediately stopped talking and pricked up their ears.
“I already told you to move my bedding before you started cooking!”
“Now it’s covered in grease!”
“You don’t do any real work!”
“You won’t even cook!”
“All you do is loaf around all day!”
“And I still have to wait on you!”
“If you cared so much about your quilt, why didn’t you move it yourself?”
“You think I enjoy doing nothing?”
“I was doing perfectly well in school!”
“You were the ones who forced me to go to the countryside in my older brother’s place!”
“You promised that once I turned twenty, I’d inherit your job!”
“Now you’ve changed your mind?”
“Your words are worth less than a fart!”
“How dare you talk to your mother like that!”
“Your mother’s perfectly healthy!”
“Why should she retire early so you can take over her job?”
“If my brother was so suited to the countryside, why didn’t you send him instead?”
The shouting gradually escalated.
Soon came the sounds of things smashing.
Finally, a door slammed violently.
Silence returned.
Ma Laihua quietly glanced at Jiang Lai before letting out a deep sigh.
In a low voice, she explained,
“Mom didn’t let you replace your brother because I favored sons.”
Jiang Lai nodded.
“I know.”
“My mom isn’t someone who values sons over daughters.”
Ma Laihua worked quickly.
By the time half the dishes were finished, the rest of the family began coming home.
The two youngest children had been at the factory daycare.
Their parents picked them up on the way home from work, and the house instantly became lively.
The only one missing was Jiang Chunxiang, who had gone out on a date.
“Today’s meal is almost as grand as New Year’s!”
Jiang Chunyang strolled over with one hand in his pocket, grabbed a freshly cooked piece of meat with his fingers, tossed it into his mouth, and sighed with satisfaction.
Ma Laihua entered carrying a braised fish.
Smiling, she said,
“Your little sister came home.”
“That’s a family reunion.”
“It’s even more important than New Year’s.”
In previous years, the family had rarely managed to gather together during the holidays.
Today truly felt like a reunion.
Jiang Jianshe was in especially good spirits.
Holding his grandson and granddaughter by the hand, he announced he was going to buy some beer.
Normally, Ma Laihua never allowed him to drink.
Today, however, she made an exception.
She took out five yuan and handed it to him.
“Buy a little baijiu.”
“And two bottles of orange soda for the children.”
“It’s getting cold.”
“A little baijiu will warm everyone up.”