RIRW – Chapter 10

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The old team leader didn’t spend much time introducing the educated youths. In his heart, nothing was more important than the autumn harvest. The weather had become unpredictable, and who knew when a rainstorm might destroy the crops still in the fields? Harvesting quickly and storing the crops safely in the granary was the only way to feel at ease.

Meanwhile, Xu Fengxia wasn’t paying attention to the educated youths either. She was busy complaining to her close friends in the village about her grievances.

“I’ve never seen such an inconsiderate younger generation. At my age, I’m still being ordered around by a junior. I wonder how such children are brought up. No wonder they say bourgeois types are troublemakers—none of them are good people.”

“That’s right. When your sister-in-law first came to the village, didn’t she charm a bunch of people?” chimed in a stout woman with a sharp tone.

Li Hui, coming from the provincial capital, was indeed strikingly beautiful when she arrived in the village.

The two women continued to gossip while sneaking glances at Li Hui.

By now, the team leader, Zuo Shuisheng, had finished assigning tasks.

The newly arrived educated youths weren’t immediately given heavy labor. Male youths were sent to harvest wheat, while the females were assigned to sun-dry the wheat on the threshing ground.

After giving instructions, Zuo Shuisheng called out, “Dandan, you lead the new female comrades in their work.”

This was a way of easing Zou Dan’s workload. During the busy farming season, young women like Zou Dan usually worked alongside men to harvest wheat.

However, seeing the bandages wrapped around Zou Dan’s head, no one raised any objections.

Xu Fengxia, however, was visibly annoyed. She had been assigned to carry wheat with the men, a physically demanding job.

“This isn’t fair. Dandan is old enough to take on heavier work. Our Zuo family doesn’t raise slackers. She should join us in the fields,” Xu Fengxia exclaimed. She wasn’t afraid of the team leader and was determined not to let Zou Dan have an easy time.

After all, if it weren’t for Zou Dan’s family, Xu Fengxia believed she might have married a commune secretary by now. Why should she fear a mere team leader?

Her outburst drew strange looks from others in the crowd, surprised at her willingness to make life difficult for her niece.

Zuo Chengtai, Zou Dan’s third uncle, immediately retorted, “Sister-in-law, are you even listening to yourself? Must Dandan suffer for you to feel satisfied?”

“What did you just say?” Xu Fengxia glared at him.

Zuo Chengtai shrank back nervously. “I—I didn’t say anything wrong.”

Li Hui pleaded softly, “Sister-in-law, I’ll take on more work, okay?”

Zou Dan’s father, Zuo Dacheng, also tried to mediate with a darkened expression. “Sister-in-law, don’t worry. I’ll do twice the work later.”

Villagers who were on good terms with the Zuo family couple chimed in to dissuade Xu Fengxia.

“Dacheng, Hui’er, don’t overexert yourselves. It’s not worth ruining your health.”

“That’s right. Do what you can and leave it at that.”

Zou Dan, meanwhile, was quietly fuming. She hadn’t expected Xu Fengxia to be just as unreasonable outside the home. She wasn’t particularly bothered about the work itself; this body was even more capable of enduring hardships than her original one. She could get through it if she gritted her teeth.

But what she couldn’t stand was letting Xu Fengxia get her way. So, she said with a faint smile, “Aunt, all work is assigned by the team leader. Every task needs someone to do it. Sun-drying wheat isn’t exactly slacking off; we’ll do as much as we’re supposed to. Hardworking people will always accomplish more than others, no matter the task. Lazy people will find ways to avoid work, even when carrying wheat.”

“Dandan’s known for being a diligent worker in the village. We all believe in her,” said a middle-aged woman standing by Li Hui’s side. She was short, thin, and sallow, clearly someone who had done hard labor for years.

Zou Dan recognized her as Aunt Ma, Li Hui’s closest friend in the village. A widow, Aunt Ma had raised her son and daughter on her own after her husband passed away.

As Aunt Ma spoke, others joined in to support Zou Dan.

On the other side, one of the male educated youths, Li Chenliang, chewed on a blade of grass and muttered, “Who would’ve thought this girl has such good relations in the village?”

“No kidding,” Gao Wei whispered. “I’d heard she came from a capitalist family and thought she’d have a hard time in the village. But it seems things are different here compared to the city. They don’t care about that stuff as much.”

Zuo Shuisheng’s expression darkened as he listened to the murmurs around him.

When Xu Fengxia had first spoken up, his face had already soured. Out of respect for her past role as a team leader, he hadn’t openly rebuked her.

But seeing the growing murmurs sparked by her comments, he realized he had to step in or risk losing his authority.

“Enough,” Zuo Shuisheng barked. “Zou Dan’s right. All tasks are assigned by the team. If anyone has complaints, say so directly. Xu Fengxia, if you disagree, look at Zou Dan’s head. If you want to sun-dry wheat like her, go find a rock and give yourself an injury. I’ll reassign you right away.”

“We’re all neighbors here. Helping each other is the way to go. If everyone acted like you, Xu Fengxia, and kept quibbling, should we start dividing food rations only by how much work people do? If you don’t work, does that mean you won’t get any food?”

Zuo Shuisheng’s words hit home, reminding everyone of their shared hardships. Many had elderly parents and children who couldn’t work but still needed to eat.

“That’s right. We all overlook these things, but she’s nitpicking. What kind of aunt would treat her niece like that? Her heart’s cold,” someone with a large family chimed in.

Zuo Hongjun, who had been silent and smoking on the sidelines, finally looked up. Though he usually ignored these debates, Zuo Shuisheng’s words about rationing had clearly struck a chord.

Unexpectedly, Xu Fengxia caused public outrage with her antics. Feeling humiliated, he angrily retorted, “Seems like if I don’t hit you for three days, you’d forget your place. Is it your turn to talk?”

Her frustration was fueled by everyone’s criticism and Zou Hongjun scolding her in front of so many people. Overwhelmed with anger and shame, she pointed at him and shouted, “You ungrateful man! Why am I so unfortunate?”

“Mom, please stop crying,” her daughter, Zou Qing, softly comforted her.

“Get lost! It’s all because of you harbingers of bad luck!” Xu Fengxia snapped and gave her daughter a hard shove, nearly causing her to fall. Fortunately, someone nearby caught her just in time.

Watching the scene unfold, Zou Shuisheng’s face darkened like coal.

Bang! Bang! Bang! He struck the gong forcefully and bellowed, “Enough! Disperse now! Get to work. If anyone doesn’t go, their work points will be deducted.”

The mention of docked work points got everyone moving quickly. They scattered in groups of two or three, heading to their respective tasks in the fields.

Soon, only the members of the Zou family were left at the threshing ground.

Li Hui, worried about her daughter, hesitated as she glanced at the direction of the educated youths, but her husband, Zou Dacheng, pulled her along. Reluctantly, she followed him, her head lowered, filled with worry.

Zou Shuisheng glared at Xu Fengxia, who was still dragging her feet, and snapped, “Xu Fengxia, if you don’t want to work, then I’ll make sure your six-person share of grain isn’t distributed anymore. That’s something I can decide.”

Though Xu Fengxia was usually aggressive and dismissive of Zou Shuisheng, she dared not openly defy him when he got serious. Resentful, she clenched her teeth and shot a venomous glare at Zou Dan.

In response, Zou Dan cheekily made a face at her, enraging Xu Fengxia even more. She was about to lose her temper again, but her husband, Zou Hongjun, yanked her away with considerable effort, leaving her seething.

As they left the threshing ground, Xu Fengxia fumed at her husband, “Why are you pulling me?”

Zou Hongjun, exasperated, replied, “We’re all one family. Why are you making a scene?”

Xu Fengxia stood akimbo, furious. “What do you mean by ‘making a scene’? I just said one thing, and look at how the second and third brothers treat me! Can’t you see? Those two are ganging up, and they don’t care about you at all. You’re their elder brother, but do they show any respect? You’re the only one foolish enough to care about them.”

Hearing her words, Zou Hongjun paused his smoking, took a deep drag, and fell silent.

Seeing his lack of response, Xu Fengxia pressed on through gritted teeth, “I don’t care. As soon as there’s a chance, I’m bringing up the matter of splitting the family. This family must divide!”

Meanwhile, back at the threshing ground, Zou Dan was working while cheerfully humming a tune.

When she learned last night that they’d be working in the fields, she had mentally prepared herself for hard labor. To her surprise, today’s task was quite manageable: spreading out the wheat to dry, flipping it regularly, and threshing the dried wheat. While tedious, the work required little physical exertion, making it ideal for her current condition.

The same couldn’t be said for the female educated youths working nearby. Being their first time doing farmwork, they struggled. The wheat stalks were scratchy, and threshing often resulted in small cuts on their hands. After a while, their discomfort grew unbearable.

Su Xue glanced at the small cuts on her hands, her eyes brimming with tears. Seeing the others still focused on their tasks, she shifted her gaze toward Zou Dan, who was humming a tune and working effortlessly. After some hesitation, Su Xue shuffled closer to her.

“Comrade Zou Dan, I noticed your village folks seem very protective of your family. Isn’t your background supposed to be… bad? How come everyone treats you so well?”