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After school in the afternoon, Hu Ruoyun went straight home with Mao Jie. Since it was Saturday, Mao Jie's mother, Zhang Xiuzhen, and sister, Mao Na, were both at home. They greeted Hu Ruoyun warmly as he arrived, preparing for dinner.
Hu Ruoyun had something on his mind; he randomly ate a couple of steamed buns and drank a bowl of porridge before putting down his chopsticks. During lunch, Mao Jie had briefly mentioned him to her father, Mao Weiguo. Seeing that Hu Ruoyun had stopped eating, Mao Weiguo also put down his chopsticks and said to his wife and child, "You all eat; I need to talk to Xiao Hu about something."
Noticing his serious demeanor, Mao Na refrained from gossiping with Hu Ruoyun about the two female classmates from before. The two of them sat down on the sofa, and Hu Ruoyun pulled out a stack of papers from his pocket. "Uncle Mao, please take a look at this..."
Mao Weiguo took the papers with both hands, found his glasses from a drawer, and began to read carefully.
The first page listed several outlines:
1. Go out: Collaborate with enterprises to help workers find jobs and earn money.
2. Bring in: Combine local agricultural characteristics and actively connect with relevant enterprises to introduce cooperative projects.
3. Adjust rural industrial structure: Guide the development of related industries and integrate them into the larger industrial chain.
It further explained that southern and coastal cities were developing rapidly and urgently needed a large number of production workers. Anan was relatively underdeveloped; it was suggested that Gaoqiao Town create a plan to report to the County Committee, government, and relevant departments for targeted labor transfer.
Attention should be paid to the development of deep processing enterprises for agricultural products and actively connect with them. The provincial capital's " Si Quan Food Factory " was about to be established and would require a large supply of regular vegetables; it was recommended that Gaoqiao Town initiate contact to establish a good long-term supply-demand relationship.
In Inner Mongolia's Hohhot Hui District, there was a cattle farming cooperative group that later became Red Flag Cattle Farm, which would undergo restructuring next year... The autumn corn here could provide silage feed; discussions could be initiated to establish a breeding base in Gaoqiao Town...
With the adjustment of the rural industrial structure, the livestock industry would experience explosive growth, and related feed and equipment would surely have good market prospects; visits could be made to the provincial capital's livestock market for targeted production...
While labor export might be understandable, how could people trust these predictions?
Mao Weiguo looked at the stack of papers in front of him, feeling shocked but still raised his doubts.
Hu Ruoyun remained calm. "Uncle Mao, you can confirm the accuracy of this information through the county's relevant departments tomorrow!"
After thinking for a moment, Mao Weiguo said to Hu Ruoyun, "Let's go talk in the office!" He then turned to Mao Na and said, "You and your mom stay home tonight; I'll stay in the office. Let Xiao Hu stay in your dorm for one night; we might be talking late."
Mao Na blushed. "Dad..."
Mao Weiguo didn't notice his daughter's embarrassment. Hu Ruoyun quickly reassured her, "It's fine; I'm agile enough; I can easily get over the school walls."
Mao Jie chimed in, "How about Ruoyun and I squeeze together?"
At this moment, Mao Na also recovered from her awkwardness. "You guys go ahead to the office; after dinner, I'll tidy up my dorm room and then bring the keys over to Xiao Hu."
This statement holds true.
In the office of the Mayor of Gaoqiao Town, a kettle was boiling on the electric stove. Mao Weiguo sat behind his desk while Hu Ruoyun sat across from him. The two were engaged in an enthusiastic discussion over a stack of papers, not writing or calculating anything.
Mayor Mao occasionally raised questions, but each time he found solace in Hu Ruoyun's logical thoughts and words.
As their conversation grew more animated, they completely forgot their identities and the passage of time.
Uncertain how many cups of tea they had consumed, Mao Na finally arrived. Mao Weiguo glanced at his watch; it was nearly midnight.
Though they were still eager to continue, it was time to wrap things up.
Mao Weiguo stretched widely and instructed his daughter, "I'll take Xiao Hu to your dormitory; you can head home now."
Mao Na asked, "In this pitch darkness, do you even remember which room I'm in?"
Mao Weiguo scratched his head, "Well then, let's all go together. You two can find your way back while I keep you company."
Mao Na stopped him, "Forget it; you should rest. I'll accompany Xiao Hu; once he finds the door, he can bring me back... It's not too far anyway. Didn't Mao Jie say he could handle eight people by himself?"
After a long day of meetings and now chatting through the night, Mao Weiguo felt quite fatigued. He let out a long yawn and said, "Alright then, let Xiao Hu make another trip."
Hu Ruoyun and Mao Na exited Mao Weiguo's office. Once they stepped out of the town government courtyard, they found there were no streetlights. Mao Na seemed a bit frightened and leaned closer to Hu Ruoyun, their shoulders occasionally bumping against each other.
"It's really dark tonight," Hu Ruoyun remarked.
The town government courtyard was over two hundred meters from the post office. If it weren't for the darkness, they would have reached it quickly; however, the pitch-black surroundings and uneven ground meant it took them six or seven minutes to finally see the dim yellow light at the post office courtyard entrance.
Mao Na seemed to relax all at once and teased Hu Ruoyun, "I heard from Mao Jie that the girl you had dinner with last time was flirting with you?"
Hu Ruoyun chuckled bitterly in self-deprecation. "Heh... She said we come from different backgrounds."
Mao Na responded, "Is background really that important?"
Hu Ruoyun didn't reply as they arrived at the back gate of the post office. Mao Na fumbled for her keys to unlock the iron gate when suddenly a shadow about a foot long dashed out from the darkness with a loud "meow."
In the dead of night, with silence surrounding them, the sudden appearance of a shadow startled Mao Na so much that she screamed and leaped onto Hu Ruoyun.
Instinctively, Hu Ruoyun reached out with his right hand to wrap around Mao Na's waist, lifting her slightly off the ground as he spun around. At the same time, his right foot kicked out forcefully at the approaching shadow. The shadow let out a pained yowl and flew three or four meters away before collapsing without getting back up.
Hu Ruoyun wanted to check on it, but Mao Na trembled and clung tightly to him, preventing him from going closer.
Reluctantly giving up on that idea, Hu Ruoyun opened the courtyard gate while supporting Mao Na, who could barely walk. Following her directions, he opened one of the room doors.
The room was small—about seven or eight square meters—with a bunk bed against one wall. The upper bunk held a suitcase while the lower bunk was covered with pink sheets and stacked pink blankets. A small table at the head of the bed held a mirror, combs, face cream—everything a girl might need—while at the foot stood a wooden wardrobe with double doors. The room was very clean and carried a faint fragrance.
At that moment, Mao Na finally regained her composure. "You scared me to death!" she exclaimed, handing a bag she had tightly clutched to Hu Ruoyun. "Here, you must be hungry. Have something to fill your stomach."
"What is it?" Hu Ruoyun asked.
"A chicken leg," Mao Na replied.
Hu Ruoyun reassured her, "Don't be afraid. That was definitely just a cat. It smelled the delicious chicken leg in your hand and wanted to snatch it from you."
Mao Na nodded, still shaken. "Yeah!"
After calming down a bit, she pointed out various items around the room. "That thermos has hot water, that basin is for washing feet, and that one is for drying them..."
Finally, she pulled a flashlight from the drawer. "Alright, let's go. You still need to take me back."
As they stepped outside and closed the door, Mao Na bravely shone the flashlight toward the spot where the shadow had fallen earlier. There lay a large black cat, blood oozing from its mouth and nose; it looked like it wouldn't survive.
"Mao Jie said you could take on eight people by yourself. I didn't believe it at first, but now I'm starting to," Mao Na teased Hu Ruoyun.
"I didn't fight eight; there were seven or eight of them, but only one came at me. After I knocked him down, the others didn't dare approach..." Hu Ruoyun chuckled. "You can't trust those rumors in the martial world."
With the flashlight illuminating their path, they walked back much faster. For some reason, though, Mao Na felt a twinge of regret about bringing the flashlight along...
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