A New Look for Women
When Lin Hai returned home, he found Su Su in the front yard helping Mother Lin take apart quilts to wash. After all, the New Year was approaching, and everything in the house needed a thorough cleaning.
This was a massive undertaking, so even Su Su, who typically avoided chores, had to lend a hand.
Lin Hai placed the money he had withdrawn on the kang bed, every penny accounted for, and said, “Sister-in-law, the village head wants you to attend a meeting.”
“Me? I’m not part of the village committee. Why would I need to attend a meeting?” Su Su wasn’t eager to go, especially since she didn’t want to deal with the male lead’s judgmental glares, which seemed to blame her for everything.
“I don’t know, but he said you should hurry,” Lin Hai replied as he went to fetch water.
Lin’s father interjected, “If they’re calling you, you should go. It’s probably something important.”
At that moment, Mother Lin came back and said, “It’s cold and slippery outside, Lin Hai. Don’t carry water. Go escort your sister-in-law instead.”
“Huh? It’s not that far; does she really need me to go with her?”
“Just do as you’re told,” Mother Lin snapped, glaring at him. Lin Hai had no choice but to accompany Su Su.
Su Su sighed and climbed down from the kang bed, making her way toward the village committee office.
“Mom said I should come pick you up after the meeting,” Lin Hai informed her.
“That won’t be necessary,” Su Su replied.
“Better listen to Mom. Otherwise, she’ll get mad,” Lin Hai said sheepishly.
“Oh, okay.” Su Su thought it was a bit excessive to be escorted to and from the meeting. At first, she suspected Lin Chuan had left such instructions, but now it seemed Mother Lin was simply being overly protective. She wouldn’t let Su Su do much work and was always careful about her well-being, especially when the roads were bad after snowfall. Even when Su Su wanted to heat the kang herself, she wasn’t allowed to. This behaviour was starting to seem peculiar—perhaps she should ask about it later?
When she arrived at the village committee office, she found several people already gathered: the village head, the team leader, the women’s committee director, and a few other women, including some educated youth, one of whom was the female lead.
As soon as Su Su entered, the village head said, “Comrade Su, you’re here. Please, have a seat.”
Su Su sat down, and the village head began, “We’ve gathered all the knowledgeable and respected women of the village to discuss organizing an activity.”
“What kind of activity?” Su Su asked with a smile. Given her university background, she was accustomed to the idea of holiday activities as part of cultural tradition. Perhaps this alternate world followed similar customs.
The village head quickly explained the context: The past two years had been good for the harvest, and the commune had even received praise from higher-ups. However, an incident involving a woman who had been trafficked and returned to her original village had caught the attention of the authorities. They felt that women’s status in this region needed improvement. As a result, the higher-ups had initiated a New Year event called “New Face of Women”.
Each village was required to organize a performance showcasing women’s talents—just one performance would suffice. The performances would then be evaluated, with prizes awarded to the best villages. Winning villages would not only receive gifts but also additional grain, and the village committee would earn a certificate of merit.
In this era, Honor was everything, so everyone was eager to participate. The problem was that rural women, who rarely left their homes, had little experience with performing. Even asking them to buy things at the commune market often led to mistakes, let alone preparing for a performance. Most of them preferred to stay home, warm and snug in their quilts, rather than go out and participate in such activities.
Given the challenges, the village leaders had convened this meeting to brainstorm ideas.
So that’s what this was about. Su Su nodded and said, “I’ve only just arrived and don’t know much. You all can discuss it.”
But Qin Yueyue, one of the educated youth, chimed in, “Comrade Su is a university graduate. You must have some suggestions. We were waiting for your input.”
“I don’t really have any opinions. After all, this is a village matter,” Su Su replied.
“But you’re part of this village now. Isn’t it a bit inappropriate to act like it’s none of your concern?” Qin Yueyue said with a smile, though her words subtly pressured Su Su to take a stance.
Su Su smiled back and said, “That’s true. I’m part of this village, and so are you, Qin Yueyue. Isn’t it better if we all work together to come up with ideas? I’m the youngest here, so I should respect everyone else’s opinions. Don’t you agree, Comrade Qin?”
Qin Yueyue frowned slightly. She realized that despite Su Su’s youth, her words were sharp. Not wanting to cause a scene and give others more reason to exclude her, Qin Yueyue chose to back down for now.
The village head observed their exchange and said with a laugh, “Comrade Su, you’re new here, so it’s good for you to get involved in village affairs. Why don’t we let you take charge of this? No matter the outcome, no one will blame you. What do you think?”
Su Su hadn’t expected the responsibility to fall on her. But since the village head had said so, she couldn’t refuse. “I’m worried that I lack the experience and might not succeed,” she said.
“That’s not a problem. The women’s committee director, Aunt Sun, will assist you. If anyone causes trouble, you can come directly to me,” the village head assured her.
The women’s committee director, Sun Ying, nodded and said, “I may have the title of director, but I haven’t had much education. This sort of thing is better handled by young people like you. Most of the educated youth are going home for the holidays, so we’ll have to rely on you, Comrade Su.”
Su Su didn’t want to take on this task, but with the village leadership showing her so much trust, refusing would make her look bad. Besides, she couldn’t afford to tarnish Lin Chuan’s reputation. He was a source of pride for the village, being the first person from here to hold a position outside.
“Alright, since the village head and Director Sun believe in me, I’ll do my best,” Su Su finally agreed. It was just one performance, after all, and she had some experience organizing events in school.
“Excellent! Let’s give Comrade Su a round of applause,” the village head said, and the room broke into applause.
Su Su nodded at everyone and said, “I’ll do my best.”
The village head asked, “Do you have any ideas for the performance?”
Su Su thought for a moment. “Since this is an official task from the commune, we should approach it seriously. Poetry recitals or choral performances would work well.” In this era, those were the most popular types of performances. Dancing was also an option, but it wasn’t realistic to teach a group of rural women to dance in such a short time. “I think your idea is very clear. Let’s discuss the specifics of the performance,” the village head said. The group then began brainstorming, with some suggesting revolutionary songs and others favoring poetry recitals for their simplicity and smaller cast requirements.
Leave a Reply