The train arrived at Harbin Station at dawn.
By the time Lin Wan stepped off the green-skinned train with the flow of passengers, a heavy bundle strapped to her back, her legs had gone weak. Six days and five nights—the hard-seat carriage had been crammed with people the entire time. The air had been thick with the smells of sweat, food, and coal smoke. She had barely slept at all, needing both to guard her luggage and to endure the hardships of long-distance travel in this era.
But the moment her feet touched the platform and she breathed in the crisp March air of Northeast China, a strange sense of familiarity washed over her.
Cold.
A dry cold, completely different from Beijing’s damp chill. The air carried the scent of burning pinewood, mixed with the rusty, oily smell unique to railway lines. The platform buzzed with noise—voices speaking in accents from all over the country. The educated youths looked around in confusion while reception workers shouted and waved signs.
“Those for the Heilongjiang Production and Construction Corps, gather over here!”
“Educated youths for the Suihua region, this way!”
“Mudanjiang forestry farm recruits, follow me!”
Lin Wan tightened the rope-bound bundle on her shoulder. Inside were not only clothes and bedding, but also the little iron pot and bag of grain she had carefully packed. Following the signs, she found the “Songhua River Region Educated Youth Assignment Point.”
It was a temporary shed with several long tables inside. A few cadre-like officials sat behind them, checking lists. Outside, a long line had already formed—young men and women around twenty years old, their faces a mixture of excitement, confusion, and exhaustion.
After nearly an hour in line, it was finally Lin Wan’s turn.
“Name?” asked the middle-aged clerk behind the table without looking up.
“Lin Wan. From Beijing.”
The clerk flipped through a thick registry. “Lin Wan… found you. Assigned to Xiangyang Production Team, Hongqi Commune, Shuanghe County, Songhua River region. Take this slip and wait for the transport over there.” He tore off a paper stamped with a red seal and handed it to her.
“Comrade,” Lin Wan asked cautiously, “this Xiangyang Production Team… is it far from here? How do we get there?”
The clerk finally looked up at her. Perhaps seeing that she was a young woman traveling alone with heavy luggage, his tone softened slightly.
“It’s north of Shuanghe County, another thirty li from the county seat. Someone from the production team will come pick you up today. Just wait.”
Lin Wan thanked him and walked to the designated waiting area with the slip clutched in her hand.
More than twenty educated youths had already gathered there, both men and women. Most were thin and sallow-faced, dressed in patched but carefully washed clothing. Some whispered quietly to each other, some sat silently, and most stared blankly at the unfamiliar surroundings.
She found a corner to set down her luggage and leaned against the wall.
Her legs were still weak, but her mind gradually sharpened.
Xiangyang Production Team.
She had no memory whatsoever of this place, but since she had been assigned there, she would simply have to face it. She began calculating quickly in her head: by late March in Northeast China, the ground was probably not fully thawed yet, though preparations for spring plowing had likely already begun. Temperatures were probably still below freezing, and nights would be even colder. If the production team’s conditions were decent, they should at least provide housing—but heating…
“You’re going to Xiangyang Production Team too?”
A timid female voice sounded beside her.
Lin Wan turned and saw a girl around her age, wearing glasses and two braided pigtails, looking at her cautiously.
“Mm.” Lin Wan nodded. “You too?”
“My name’s Zhou Xiaomei. I’m from Tianjin.” The girl sat beside her, hugging her luggage to her chest. “There are six of us going to Xiangyang this batch. I heard from people who arrived earlier that Xiangyang is considered well-off within Hongqi Commune. Last year, one work point was worth eight fen.”
Eight fen.
Lin Wan calculated instantly. In Northeast rural areas, that really was considered a decent income. In her previous life in Heihe, she had heard older people say that during the 1960s and 70s, many production teams only paid four or five fen per work point. Wealthier ones could reach a full mao.
“That’s pretty good,” she replied simply.
Zhou Xiaomei seemed to relax, becoming more talkative.
“You’re from Beijing? This is my first time traveling so far too. I barely slept on the train… Do you think, once we get there, where will we live? What will we eat? What kind of work will we have to do?”
Seeing the genuine anxiety in the girl’s eyes, Lin Wan softened her tone.
“The production team will arrange things. Since we’re here, we’ll adapt.”
Just then, a sudden rumbling “putt-putt-putt” sound echoed from outside the waiting area.
The noise grew closer and closer—deep and powerful, completely distinct from the surrounding chatter.
Everyone raised their heads toward the source of the sound.
A dark green tractor was driving in from the east side of the station square.
Black smoke puffed from the front, while its enormous rear wheels crushed over the gravel road. The cargo bed was wooden, its edges worn shiny from years of use. The driver looked to be in his forties, wearing a dog-fur hat and an army-green padded jacket. His face was dark red from years of wind exposure.
The tractor stopped in front of their waiting area.
A young man jumped down from the back. He looked around twenty-seven or twenty-eight, tall and strongly built, also dressed in padded winter clothes, though his movements were quick and efficient. Holding a sheet of paper, he swept his gaze over the waiting educated youths.
“Xiangyang Production Team! Educated youths for Xiangyang, gather up!”
Lin Wan and Zhou Xiaomei exchanged glances before hurriedly picking up their luggage and walking over. Four other educated youths—three men and one woman—also gathered around.
The young man checked the list.
“Beijing’s Lin Wan, Tianjin’s Zhou Xiaomei, Shanghai’s Zhao Jianguo, Harbin’s Liu Zhijun, Jinan’s Sun Xiuying, and Shenyang’s Wang Weiguo. Everyone here?”
“All here!” several voices answered unevenly.
“Good. I’m Lu Xiangjun from Xiangyang Production Team. This is my father, Brigade Leader Lu Guangcai.” He pointed toward the middle-aged man in the driver’s seat. “Climb aboard. We’ve got a long trip ahead—need to reach the village before dark.”
Lin Wan looked toward the driver’s seat.
The brigade leader, Lu Guangcai, nodded at them without speaking, his eyes gentle. Deep wrinkles marked his face from years of wind and sun exposure, yet his gaze was steady and clear, giving people a sense of reliability.
The cargo bed wasn’t very high, but climbing into it with heavy luggage wasn’t easy for the educated youths. Lu Xiangjun first helped lift the two girls’ luggage aboard, then reached out to pull them up.
When it was Lin Wan’s turn, she didn’t wait for him to offer a hand. Grabbing the edge of the truck bed herself, she stepped onto the tire and climbed up smoothly in one motion.
Lu Xiangjun looked at her in surprise.
The cargo bed was lined with dry straw and relatively clean. The six educated youths squeezed together, their luggage piled in the middle. Lu Xiangjun jumped up last and knocked on the back window of the driver’s seat.
“Dad, let’s go!”
The tractor roared to life once more and slowly drove out of the station square.
Lin Wan sat near the front, holding onto the edge of the truck bed. The March wind of Northeast China was still fierce, slicing across her face like little knives. She tightened her scarf until only her eyes remained exposed.