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墨書 Inktalez
No matter how well any relative or friend is doing, one should never feel jealous; it brings no benefit and can easily harm relationships.
On the third day of the Lunar New Year, Hu Ruoyun's family gathered again at her grandmother and grandfather's home, along with Second Aunt and her younger aunt.
After the events of the past six months, Zhang Yang's younger aunt had become much more reserved. Upon arriving at her maternal family's home, she set down the large bags of New Year gifts, tied on an apron, and joined her sisters-in-law and older sisters in the kitchen, busying herself without uttering any trivial nonsense.
When it came time to distribute the red envelopes, her attitude was particularly enthusiastic. She handed each of Chunsheng and Chuncao a brand new "Steelworker" five-yuan note from the third series of Renminbi, saying, "Take these! San Gu has made up for the last two years!" This delighted her little nephew and niece immensely.
This year, during the harvest of wheat and autumn crops, Sister-in-law drove a tractor loaded with all necessary equipment. Second Brother-in-law and Brother-in-law Three also rushed over. Compared to previous years, they worked harder but saved a lot of effort. Additionally, Sister-in-law repaid part of the debts owed to each family, especially those owed to her father-in-law. Hu Ruoyun's aunt-in-law finally felt a weight lifted off her shoulders... With a clear mind and no worries, her perspective broadened, allowing her to celebrate the New Year with joy.
This time, the entire family gathered together in an atmosphere of unprecedented harmony and happiness. The men drank two bottles of baijiu, and even Hu Ruoyun's grandfather had a bit too much.
As they were leaving, Hu Ruoyun's mother Zhao Meirong quietly slipped a hundred yuan bill into her mother's waistband. Although her grandmother insisted on refusing it, Zhao Meirong said, "Just take it! Buy whatever you want to eat with your father; don’t hold back. Chunsheng and Chuncao are here; buy them whatever they need... Our family's situation has improved!"
Is there truly such a thing as unfilial children? Perhaps there are some, but we have reason to believe that in this era, most so-called "unfilial" behavior is driven by life's necessities.
In the Records of the Grand Historian: "When granaries are full, people know etiquette; when clothing and food are sufficient, people know honor and disgrace." Doesn’t that convey a similar meaning?
As the tractor drove off into the distance, Hu Ruoyun could still see her grandmother testing her eyesight with her sleeve; this time it was definitely not out of sadness.
Theoretically speaking, after the Spring Festival, Hu Ruoyun would turn sixteen years old—seventeen by rural standards.
On the sixth day of the Lunar New Year, Hu Ruoyun’s fifth-grade homeroom teacher Shao Jianguo came to visit. Teacher Shao was there to propose a marriage.
According to him, the girl was Zhang Meina, daughter of the Party Secretary from Pingbei Township’s Zhangjiazai village. She was the same age as Hu Ruoyun—attractive and tall—and currently studying at Annan County Experimental High School in the same grade as Hu Ruoyun.
He even took out a group photo from the 1990 graduating class of Pingbei Township Middle School and pointed to a tall girl in bright clothes with short hair in the back row saying, “Qihua Ge and Qihua Sao, look at this girl—her name is Zhang Meina.”
Teacher Shao also mentioned that Zhang's family had a son named Zhang Ling who graduated from Jiangbei University and stayed in the provincial capital; he was now deputy director at a street office in South District.
Teacher Shao shared Hu Ruoyun's situation briefly with Zhang’s Party Secretary while emphasizing his "exceptional talent," omitting details about his average height or looks or their family's ordinary circumstances.
Since Teacher Shao and Zhang’s Party Secretary were classmates from years ago—there’s a saying that "classmates are like family"—it was clear that there was no ill intent in this introduction. They agreed that both families could get to know each other better.
Zhao Meirong and Hu Qihua expressed some concerns: “But our family conditions can’t compare…”
Teacher Shao reassured them confidently: “That doesn’t matter! My classmate said it’s mainly about how the children are doing. With our Hu Ruoyun around, things will definitely turn out well. For now, let’s just gather some information so you have an idea.”
"The main thing people care about is Hu Ruoyun," someone remarked.
Who doesn't have a bit of vanity?
Being able to form a family alliance with the village officials would mean a change in the Hu family's reputation. Moreover, there was also an older brother working in the Provincial Capital. There was no reason for Zhao Meirong and Hu Qihua to refuse, so they readily agreed. They even wanted Hu Ruoyun to dress up and take a photo at the Township photography studio for Shao Jianguo.
Shao Jianguo said, "No need to take a new one; the latest issue of Story Collection has a photo of Hu Ruoyun. I've already shown it to them."
Since Hu Ruoyun's work, "Humanity's Forbidden Island," began serialization in Story Collection, it received a good response. Many readers wrote to the Editorial Department, wanting to know more about the author. The editor wrote a letter to Hu Ruoyun, discussing the situation and specifically included a "creative" suggestion regarding photos. Thus, a photo of Hu Ruoyun "lost in thought" was born.
In the photo, Hu Ruoyun sat under a grape trellis, with a stone table in front of her. On the table were a cup of tea and a pen resting on a stack of manuscript paper. Holding a book, Hu Ruoyun gazed thoughtfully into the distance...
To achieve this photo, Shaoying put in considerable effort, changing the scenery and outfits countless times. They even invited a hairstylist from Township, who had supposedly trained in Jiangcheng, to create a hairstyle: hair styled into the trendiest middle part, blow-dried and set with mousse, wearing a white shirt, vest, and collared jacket. If you didn't look at her face, she could almost pass for one of the Four Heavenly Kings!
After the photo was developed, even Hu Ruoyun felt that she looked quite "stylish" in it.
Later on, this photo was enlarged and framed by both Shaoying's photography studio and the hairstylist's salon named "Looking Back," where it was displayed as a model.
In reality, whether from her family background or her own circumstances, Hu Ruoyun felt insecure but deeply yearned for recognition...
On the sixteenth day of the first month in 1992 according to the Lunar Calendar, schools reopened.
Hu Ruoyun returned to school; life continued as usual. Her studies remained steady—her grades weren't great but hadn't significantly declined either.
While playing basketball with Mao Jie, he didn't seem very happy.
Hu Ruoyun asked him, "What's bothering you?"
Pulling Hu Ruoyun to a corner of the court, Mao Jie said, "My dad is always frowning; it's making our whole family unhappy..."
It turned out that two projects in Gaoqiao Town, the "White Project" and the "Modern Commercial Street Development," had failed miserably, causing negative repercussions in the county. Under pressure, Mao Weiguo had been tasked with finding new development strategies but had yet to come up with anything effective.
Last year's rankings saw Gaoqiao Town drop seven places! Now, Mayor Mao was under immense pressure.
Recently, county leaders had repeatedly pointed out that Gaoqiao Town was experiencing slow economic development and that its governance capabilities needed improvement!
Such evaluations left Mayor Mao unable to eat or sleep peacefully.
In January, the county's Business Bureau announced its investment attraction targets for the year: an ambitious goal of 80 million yuan for the entire county, with 3 million allocated to Gaoqiao Town!
This only added to Mayor Mao's worries.
His mood affected everyone in his family.
Whether for Mao Jie or Sister Mona, as someone who had been through similar experiences, Hu Ruoyun wanted to help Mayor Mao!
He desperately tried to think about what achievements Annan County had made in terms of "foresight," hoping to "borrow" or "adapt" them for Gaoqiao Town and Mayor Mao. Of course, there were no "golden fingers" here; such matters could not be rushed.
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