Chapter 24: Naming

Lin Xiang felt numb. Having never been pressured to marry in her past life, she was experiencing it in full force in this one.

She watched her mother, whose mouth hadn't stopped moving, with a smile fixed on her face. Mother Lin, parched from her long tirade, stopped to take a sip of water. Seeing Lin Xiang smiling back at her with an expression of complete agreement, she said triumphantly, "Do you see now? Don't you think my analysis makes a lot of sense?"

"Yes, it makes perfect sense."

Mother Lin beamed. "So, have you decided to become a factory worker?"

"I've decided to go to school," Lin Xiang replied with a smile. "I can't handle the hardship of working every day."

But she could certainly handle the hardship of studying.

Seeing that her long-winded lecture had been for nothing, Mother Lin pursed her lips and stopped paying any attention to Lin Xiang. She grabbed a large steamed bun, dipped it into the sauce from a dish of braised potatoes and pork, and began to eat with great relish.

Lin Xiang didn't begrudge her the bun. After telling her mother she was heading out, she went to the Brigade Leader’s house.

The Brigade Leader’s wife was washing clothes, grumbling as usual. Although winter hadn't fully arrived yet, her hands were already covered in chilblains, some of which had even cracked open.

"Auntie, is Uncle home?" Lin Xiang asked politely over the fence.

Seeing it was Lin Xiang, the Brigade Leader’s wife shed her usual surly attitude and warmly ushered her inside.

"Your uncle is home, Niuzi! Come on in, child!"

"Thank you, Auntie." As Lin Xiang entered, the Brigade Leader emerged from the house.

"Niuzi, you just got back from town, right? Did that collaboration you mentioned with the foreign guests work out?"

Lin Xiang smiled. "I didn't let you down, Uncle; it's a success. I didn't come here for anything special today, just had some free time and thought I'd come over for a chat."

The Brigade Leader was no fool; he understood her meaning immediately.

"It's too cold to be standing out here in the wind. Come inside first, and I'll have your auntie make you some sugar water."

In the rural areas of the 1970s, "sugar water"—simply white sugar dissolved in hot water—was considered the highest gesture of hospitality one could offer a guest.

Hearing that she was expected to prepare sugar water, the Brigade Leader’s wife, who had only just begun to view Lin Xiang in a better light, reverted to her old self. She complained loudly, "What sugar water? Where would we have any white sugar left? Your precious daughter-in-law already took all the sugar coupons back to her parents' house!"

The Brigade Leader’s expression darkened, and just as he was about to lose his temper, Lin Xiang quickly waved her hand in refusal. "No, no, Uncle! My mom is waiting for me to go home for dinner. I’ll just chat for a moment and be on my way."

"But..."

"Let's just go inside. I don't want anyone to see me sneaking over here and start spreading rumors."

"Alright then, come in and sit down." The Brigade Leader had no choice but to let her in, and as he walked behind her, he didn't forget to glare fiercely at his wife.

In the main room, the Brigade Leader's daughter heard Lin Xiang's voice and hopped out from her room. "Sister Niuzi, you're here!"

The young girl was only in her early teens, at an age prone to worshiping those she saw as capable. Because Lin Xiang had been able to work as an interpreter and had even helped the Pear Blossom Brigade install telephone lines, she was a standout not just within their brigade, but across the entire commune.

The girl seemed to have forgotten all the negative things previously said about Lin Xiang, calling out "Sister Niuzi" with great enthusiasm.

"Lin Xiang is here."

Another voice came from the west room. Lin Xiang looked over and saw the daughter-in-law who had just been scolded by the Brigade Leader’s wife.

"Sister Huifang, you're showing so much already! Are you due soon?"

Qian Huifang placed her right hand on her prominent belly, her eyes filled with a gentle, radiant smile. "The doctor says the baby is due in the middle of next month. Niuzi, you should name the baby for me when the time comes."

Lin Xiang’s cheerful expression froze. She waved her hands repeatedly, looking genuinely resistant. "Oh, I couldn't possibly! Sister Huifang, I still have things to discuss with Uncle, the Brigade Leader. Let's chat more later!"

Lin Xiang knew clearly that the change in people's attitude toward her was only partially due to the telephone lines. The most important factor was her ability to interpret, her mastery of a foreign language, and her ability to gain recognition from the leadership.

But she couldn't afford to get cocky.

Qian Huifang smiled and didn't press the issue, taking the Brigade Leader’s young daughter back to her room. Only Lin Xiang and the Brigade Leader remained in the main room.

The Brigade Leader sat on a stool, nervously rubbing his rough hands together. "Niuzi, what was it you wanted to talk to me about?"

"Uncle, has our Pear Blossom Brigade decided on what kind of workshop to set up yet?"

The Brigade Leader gave a bitter smile and shook his head helplessly. "We don't have any special skills. We know how to make tofu, but opening a tofu workshop just isn't feasible. Do you have any good suggestions, Niuzi?"

Lin Xiang told him truthfully, "I spoke with Chef Shen from the state-run restaurant about this today. He suggested that our brigade should set up a sweet potato starch workshop."

"A sweet potato starch workshop?" The Brigade Leader calculated the feasibility in his mind.

The Pear Blossom Brigade did indeed produce an abundance of sweet potatoes, but the problem was that everyone in every brigade already knew how to make sweet potato starch. Even if they made it well, it wouldn't sell!

"Chef Shen said the state-run restaurant needs one hundred jin of sweet potato starch every month. He can also help us connect with other clients, provided that our quality is up to standard."

The Brigade Leader’s sun-darkened face wrinkled into a tight knot. "There's no need to worry about quality; our Pear Blossom Brigade never cuts corners."

However, a quantity of one or two hundred jin a month could easily be handled by villagers working in their own homes; there was no need to open a workshop at all!

If other brigades found out that they had opened a workshop just to sell one or two hundred jin a month, they would be the laughingstock of the region. Furthermore, the commune might not even approve the application.

After weighing the pros and cons, the Brigade Leader ultimately rejected Lin Xiang's proposal.

"Niuzi, Uncle knows you have a good heart and want the best for our brigade. But opening a sweet potato starch workshop just won't work."

Since the Brigade Leader had refused, there was nothing more for Lin Xiang to say. Seeing that it was getting dark, she took the opportunity to take her leave.

"Uncle, please get some rest. I'll head back now. I'll keep asking around when I get the chance to go to town."

"Alright, thank you for your thoughtfulness."

The Brigade Leader personally saw Lin Xiang out of the courtyard. He watched her figure disappear at the end of the road before heading back inside.

Seeing his wife still washing clothes in the dim light, his anger flared up again. "When I told you to make sugar water for Niuzi earlier, what kind of attitude was that? She's a favorite of the leaders now—we don't need to grovel, but we certainly shouldn't offend her! You couldn't even spare a little sugar; aren't you embarrassed?"

The Brigade Leader’s wife, already seething with resentment, kicked the washbasin over in response to his accusations.