Capítulo 14: Chapter 14 Paving the Road
"Pole vaulting was not a challenge for Qiao Qingyu, who stood five feet five inches tall.
As she pedaled her bicycle under the blue sky with the spring breeze brushing her face, Qiao Qingyu felt even more stylish than when she drove her multi-million dollar sports car in reality!
The office was not far from the department store. Pushing open the door, she presented her family certificate which boldly listed her spouse's name, He Xiuyu.
The director of the office was a woman surnamed Zhao, in her forties, with short hair that gave her a clean and capable look. She greeted Qiao Qingyu with a warm smile, insisted she sit down, and poured her a glass of water, expressing a very affectionate attitude, "Comrade Qiao Qingyu, please have some water and rest for a moment."
"Thank you, Director Zhao," Qiao Qingyu replied in a soft and gentle voice, appearing very obedient.
She then explained her purpose, "…Director Zhao, I did not mean to bother the office, but my uncle brought me a lot of vegetable seeds this time. Even though Xichuan City is only a few hundred miles away from the Xiaxi Commune, it requires several transfers, and some of the seeds have already sprouted, especially the cabbage seeds. We must be careful in transporting them. Not to mention, my uncle also brought a lot of fertile black soil for seed cultivation. He said that with proper management, we can have fresh green baby cabbages in half a month. So, if I could hitch a ride on the office's trip back to the base, that would be ideal. If not, I will have to find another way…"
The more Director Zhao listened, the brighter her eyes shone. Fresh green baby cabbages within half a month, and stewed with tofu in a big pot would allow the comrades at the base to replenish their vitamins!
The office in Xichuan had many responsibilities, but its main job was logistical support for the base.
This time of the year was a period when the old harvest ends and the new one has not yet begun, and she had been wracking her brain to bring in some cabbages and potatoes from the Jiangbei region. However, due to storage and transportation issues, the various grain-producing areas could only offer a few thousand pounds of potatoes, most of which had already sprouted.
But she had agreed to the transportation despite this, since it was still better than eating pickled vegetables every day.
She urgently inquired, "How many cabbage seeds do you have?"
It would be a letdown if there weren't enough.
"My uncle prepared a lot for me, nearly enough to plant fifty acres. Uncle loves me and is worried about me not having good food here, but he didn't consider how I could possibly use so much," said Qiao Qingyu, her tone filled with vexation.
Director Zhao couldn't help but rub her hands with excitement. After a moment's hesitation, she negotiated, "Qingyu, do you think you could spare some cabbage seeds for the base?"
Qiao Qingyu smiled sweetly, "Director Zhao, actually even if you didn't ask, I had the same idea."
"That's just wonderful, Comrade Qiao Qingyu! On behalf of the base, I thank you."
"Director Zhao, you're too polite. As He Xiuyu's family, it's also my duty to do something for the base."
Director Zhao knew that He Xiuyu had married a village woman who was rumored to be uncultured, vulgar, and not much different from a shrew.
She had even felt pity for He Xiuyu in secret.
But this was a matter between the couple, and as a subordinate, it wasn't her place to comment.
However, seeing her today, she realized that you should never rely on hearsay – seeing is believing.
This young woman was indeed a perfect match for He Xiuyu.
Quickly, Director Zhao arranged for a truck. She had just purchased over a hundred pounds of dried wood ear mushrooms and a large jar of pickled mustard greens, which would now be taken back to the base with Qiao Qingyu.
There was a guesthouse here, but Qiao Qingyu declined the offer to stay, citing that she didn't want to cause any trouble for the office. After all, since she was not an employee of the base, it wouldn't be quite appropriate.
With each passing moment, Director Zhao found Qiao Qingyu to be more understanding and generous, and she looked at her with increasing fondness.
As she was leaving, Qiao Qingyu inquired about the textile factory in Xichuan.
If it hadn't been Qiao Qingyu's first visit to Xichuan, Director Zhao would have suspected that she already knew something, for her husband had been transferred to the Xichuan Textile Factory as its director just yesterday afternoon."
After finding out that Qiao Qingyu wanted to buy some odds and ends of fabric, Director Zhao didn't hesitate to personally take her to the Xichuan Textile Factory.
Although Director Zhao's husband had been in office for only one day, Director Zhao herself came from the textile factory where she had served as Women's Director for eight years.
She had a very good reputation and had protected quite a few people during difficult times, which resulted in some of the elderly having special feelings for her.
Furthermore, now that policies had become more lenient, the factory could discretionally deal with some of the backlogged inventory.
So, they took Director Zhao and Qiao Qingyu to the warehouse.
They sold the faulty fabric and fabric scraps by weight, ten cents a pound.
Qiao Qingyu didn't hold back and took away a thousand pounds.
After all, there was a truck to transport it.
She went to the finance office, paid one hundred yuan, and the factory assigned two transportation workers to deliver five sacks of fabric to the room in the bus station guest house where Qiao Qingyu was staying.
Qiao Qingyu was also generous, slipping a pack of cigarettes to the two workers on the spot in the warehouse.
Cigarettes were a rare commodity that needed coupons to be bought. Even the Xiaxi Supply and Marketing Cooperative didn't have a quota for cigarettes. Being pretty was already an advantage, and since Qiao Qingyu was also tactful, the two workers ended up hauling two more sacks of scrap fabric for her from the waste pile.
Though they were only scraps, skilled people could still use them to make clothes.
Qiao Qingyu locked her room door and then rode her bicycle to a family near the bus station that specialized in making millet cakes, a tip she got from the daughter-in-law who worked at the noodle shop.
Twenty cents a pound, half the price of what the Xiaxi Commune Supply and Marketing Cooperative offered.
This family had a heritage of craftsmanship, and the millet cakes they made were not only tasty but also easy to preserve, supplying the needs of customers within several dozen miles of the bus station.
She bought five hundred pounds, spending one hundred yuan, and had the family's young man help move it all into her room at the guest house.
With this, Qiao Qingyu's plan had successfully been half completed.
She had thrown out the thousand silk hemp to get Vice Director Qian interested, and found Director Zhao to legitimately deliver the cabbage seeds to the base.
Yes, she gave them away for free, not wanting any money.
She was paving the way for her future plan, for she had her eye on the barren land in the family housing area and planned to contract it.
What happened next depended on her uncle.
In the afternoon, Qiao Qingyu finally met up with Qiao Zhiyuan and his group.
Captain Qiao not only brought his own son but also brought the team's accountant and scorekeeper.
The moment Qiao Zhiyuan saw Qiao Qingyu, his eyes reddened. Qingyu was the only girl in their generation of the Old Qiao Family, and so she had always been pampered. If not, how could she have been raised so healthy and chubby despite hard times?
If it hadn't been for this incident, her brother's family would still be living well in the Qiao Family Team, and the villagers wouldn't dare to point fingers and laugh at them.
The more he thought about it, the angrier he got. If it weren't for being in public, he might have started cursing.
Qiao Qingyu grabbed Qiao Zhiyuan's hand, her voice choking up, "Uncle, big cousin, I've missed you so much…"
As soon as she said this, not only did Qiao Zhiyuan soften, but big cousin Qiao Tianbao, who had a stern face, also teared up, "You silly girl, how could you be so foolish? Marrying anyone but a man with the last name He. It's such a long journey just to come back home, grandma talks about you all the time…"
Qiao Qingyu asked with tear-filled eyes in a low voice, "How are grandpa and grandma, where exactly are my dad and mom, and my younger brother, has he really stopped attending school?"
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