บท 7: Chapter 7: Leave of Absence
The few men standing at the entrance of the male dormitory saw two female comrades leave, and Zhang Shuo carefully warned Gao Shu beside him, "Lu Jingqiu has gone out again, she might be troubling your girl."
Gao Shu frowned slightly as he watched Lu Jingqiu walk away upon hearing this.
Zhang Yumin slapped him on the back and said, "Don't talk nonsense. If you're so idle, come help with the cooking."
Zhang Shuo replied, "Captain, it's not my turn to cook today."
Shen Mu, standing nearby, said, "Captain, Gao Shu and I are on cooking duty today." Saying this, he dragged Gao Shu towards the kitchen and ran.
After the two of them had left, Zhang Yumin reminded Zhang Shuo again, "Comrade Jingqiu has been pretty well-behaved these days. Don't stir things up in front of Gao Shu."
Li Qing seemed to joke, "Captain, the thing is she's just too bored and wants to stir up drama again."
Zhang Shuo snorted softly, ignoring Li Qing.
Lu Jingqiu and Li Yinger braved the heavy rain to reach the captain's house.
They were greeted by Mrs. Xia, who initially looked at Li Yinger with a smile, but the smile on her face disappeared instantly when she saw Lu Jingqiu, "What are you here for?"
Lu Jingqiu didn't mind and instead smiled back, "Aunt Xia, I'm here to see the captain today, I would like to ask for leave."
Li Yinger, standing by, also hurriedly tried to smooth things over, smiling, "Aunt, is the captain home? I have something to discuss with him."
Lu Jingqiu turned to glance at Li Yinger, who smiled at Mrs. Xia, and subtly nudged her from behind.
Lu Jingqiu was very grateful in her heart.
Mrs. Xia's face warmed up again with an enthusiastic smile towards Li Yinger, "Your uncle is inside."
As she said this, she called into the house.
The captain then walked from the inside to the entrance of the main room.
Mrs. Xia quickly let them in.
Li Yinger led Lu Jingqiu into the main room of the Xia Family, smiling at the captain, "Captain, I'd like to make a phone call home. Is the phone at the brigade working yet?"
The captain gestured for them to sit, while shaking his head, "Before the Autumn harvest, the tractor from the next village knocked down the signal pole, and it's still not fixed. If you want to contact your family, go to the town's post office, send a telegram or write a letter."
Li Yinger said, "Ah, that's too bad." Saying this, she nudged Lu Jingqiu discreetly.
Lu Jingqiu got the hint and quickly placed the items she prepared in front of Captain Xia, smiling, "Captain, it's been over two years since I came to our village, and I haven't gone back once. I'd like to visit my family after the Autumn harvest."
Although Captain Xia wasn't as obvious as Mrs. Xia, he also disapproved of her, "What are you doing? Take it back, take it back."
Jingqiu was not in a hurry, she pushed the items forward again, "Captain, I know I was naive before and caused you a lot of trouble. These small gifts are just a token of my appreciation."
On ordinary days, Captain Xia took good care of the educated youths and was very responsible towards the villagers. But when it came to his precious daughter, he changed. Ever since Jingqiu arrived in Ten-miles Village, she had been causing trouble for his daughter.
Today, Captain Xia finally got a chance to see Jingqiu asking him for a favor, and he wasn't going to be swayed by these little things, "Although it's true you haven't been home for two years, and I should approve your leave, you chose to ask during the busy farming season when we're short of hands. If I approve your leave, and other educated youths get to know about it and come to ask for leave, what precedent would that set? Should I approve theirs or not? Let's not even mention the other educated youths; there are quite a few lazy folks in the village who don't want to work either. I can't approve your leave, please take these things back with you."
Li Yinger intervened from the side, "Captain, don't worry, at our Educated Youth Spot, Jingqiu is the only one going home to visit relatives right now. You're forgetting that a few of us have already taken turns visiting home in the past two years. Besides, with the season and the weather, the rest of us wouldn't go back now. Jingqiu truly has something important to handle."
Captain Xia retorted, "You little girl, do you think you can make decisions for your Educated Youth Spot? Or can you keep the villagers from asking for leave?"
Captain Xia clearly intended to make things difficult for her, and Jingqiu was no longer polite, "Captain, during the busy farming season in the past, there weren't a few who asked for leave, and some villagers have also asked for leave these past few days, haven't they all been approved? Why does it become a problem when it comes to me? It's as if once I set the example, everyone in the village will follow suit and stop working."
No sooner had Jingqiu finished speaking than Captain Xia could reply, Mrs. Xia entered from outside with a cold face, "Comrade Lu, are you saying that the village chief is purposely making things difficult for you? Everyone in the village who asks for leave, do they not have urgent matters?"
If others don't like it, whatever you say is wrong, "Whether it's deliberate or not, I don't know, but my return home is also due to important matters. Otherwise, I wouldn't have chosen this time to go back. Moreover, I am not one of those second-rate lazy bums from the village. Although I, Jingqiu, may have been pampered, I know my limits. Otherwise, I wouldn't have waited until the work in the field was done before asking you, Captain. So, do you approve my leave?"
Seeing that Jingqiu was relentless, Captain Xia digressed, "It's pouring rain, and you've been busy all day long. You better head back now; let's wait a bit longer for this leave."
Jingqiu knew that waiting a bit longer could mean an indefinite delay. She felt frustrated; after all, she and his daughter were at odds and he was taking his personal grudge into the public realm. Being just a simple educated youth, she had no choice but to endure it.
Looking at the items on the table, since she couldn't accomplish her goal and leaving them there wouldn't do any good, she might as well not give them the advantage, so she took them in her hands again, "Since Captain says to wait, then I will wait. Oh, a few days ago Xia Lin came specially to deliver an invitation card to me. You two are getting married in half a month, right?
Captain Xia also knows that I, Gao Shu, have been deeply in love with you. Watching you two get married, how could I bear it?
With my temper, if no one stops me, I might cause a scene at the wedding. Captain Xia, you might have to put up with more then, after all, I followed Gao Shu from the city to the countryside.
Sigh, originally, Sister Yuzhi and Yingzi had been advising me these days, and I was thinking of letting go. After a heartbreak, I just wanted to go back and see my parents. Since Captain is worried that my leave at this time will look bad, then I will listen to the Captain." As she spoke, she turned her head to Li Yinger, "Sister Yingzi, do you have anything else to do? If not, let's go."
"Oh, is Aunt Xia and Xia Lin at home? I have something to ask her."
Mrs. Xia, stunned by Jingqiu's words, was left speechless, pondering what to say, until Li Yinger called out and brought her back to her senses, "Linlin? She just stepped out, insisted on running out in this heavy rain, saying she won't listen."
Jingqiu didn't want to stay at the Xia family's place any longer and said to Li Yinger, "Sister Yingzi, I will wait for you outside."
After saying that, she took the items into her arms and left, as they didn't want them and she wasn't keen on giving them anyway.
The Xia family's home was located on the eastern side of the village, with a shallow river behind it and an open field to the right, which bordered a small bridge leading to the fields.
As soon as Jingqiu stepped out, she faintly heard voices coming from the right.
In the heavy rain, it was hard to hear clearly, let alone see who was speaking.
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