Although Gu Xinguo’s household registration was attached to the transport team in Linqing County, both Shen Jiao and little Gu Zheng remained registered with the Shuanma Village production brigade.
Since they were registered there, they were entitled to receive a share of the farmland.
No one in their household might be available to cultivate it, but why should they surrender something that rightfully belonged to them?
Even if they did not farm the land personally, they could let someone else cultivate it. The person who received the use of the land would at least owe their family a favour.
If Shen Jiao selflessly gave up her rights, no one would praise her for it anyway.
Naturally, Shen Jiao returning to Shuanma Village with her child to claim their shares of land made certain people unhappy.
The first among them was Wang Xiangxiu.
If Shen Jiao saw her again, she might not even recognise her.
Wang Xiangxiu had become terribly thin and haggard. Her complexion was waxy yellow, and her eyes had grown dark and gloomy whenever she looked at anyone.
Ever since the Li family failed to keep their tailoring shop open in the county town and returned to the village in disgrace, they no longer bothered maintaining a respectable appearance.
Whenever the slightest thing displeased them, they beat Wang Xiangxiu.
What made matters worse was that the apprentices Shen Jiao had taught were all prospering, whether they had opened tailoring shops or started sewing classes.
After losing their business in town, the old tailor’s family had now also lost its position and customers within Shuanma Village.
With their income drastically reduced, how could they treat Wang Xiangxiu—the person they blamed for everything—with kindness?
Eventually, they beat her when they were happy and beat her when they were unhappy.
They had paid five hundred yuan to bring this daughter-in-law into their family, only to discover that she was not merely a bringer of bad luck but also a hen incapable of laying eggs.
She had been married into their family for more than two years without becoming pregnant once.
The more they thought about it, the more cheated they felt.
The more bitter Wang Xiangxiu’s life became, the deeper her hatred towards Gu Xinguo and Shen Jiao grew.
Now that the village was dividing the land and Shen Jiao had returned, Wang Xiangxiu arranged for rumours to spread that Shen Jiao had earned a fortune in the city yet still intended to return and compete for the livelihood of impoverished farmers.
She wanted to stir up the villagers’ resentment towards the wealthy.
She also found someone to send a message to Shen Chunshan and Du Lingxiang in Shenjia Village.
The message informed them that their wealthy younger sister had returned and would remain in the village for only a few days.
If they wanted to benefit from her success, they had better hurry over before she left.
The fact that Wang Xiangxiu could contact Shen Chunshan was not entirely coincidental.
After Shen Jiao moved to Zhangcheng to open her tailoring shop, Shen Chunshan and Du Lingxiang eventually ignored Gu Xinguo’s stern warnings and travelled to Shuanma Village, hoping to take advantage of Shen Jiao.
Unfortunately, the Gu residence was already empty, and their journey had been wasted.
Wang Xiangxiu had always remained in contact with Li Mingxia, so she naturally knew exactly what sort of people Shen Jiao’s brother and sister-in-law were.
At the time, she had wanted to give them Shen Jiao’s precise address.
Unfortunately, she did not know it herself.
During the past two years, Shen Jiao had never remained in the village for long.
Even when she returned for the New Year, she stayed for no more than three days before going back to Zhangcheng.
She and Gu Xinguo had already purchased the shop they had originally rented in Zhangcheng, so they could be considered settled there.
However, because Shen Jiao intended to open a garment factory, she had not transferred her household registration to the city even after purchasing the property.
With Shen Jiao staying in the village for only two or three days at a time, she would probably have left before Shen Chunshan could arrive, even if Wang Xiangxiu managed to inform him.
Now everything was different.
Shen Jiao had returned to the village.
Wang Xiangxiu wanted to see how she would escape her bloodsucking brother and sister-in-law this time.
They both had unreliable maternal families, so why should Shen Jiao be allowed to live better than her?
She laughed inwardly.
Let them see how proud Shen Jiao could remain then.
Lowering her head, Wang Xiangxiu looked at her hands again.
They no longer possessed a young woman’s softness.
They were covered with marks left by chilblains and thick calluses.
She had schemed so carefully, yet somehow, she had still ended up in such a miserable state.
Wang Xiangxiu’s plan initially succeeded.
She successfully stirred up resentment towards the wealthy among the villagers.
Dozens of people went to the production brigade office and petitioned for Shen Jiao and her son’s right to land to be revoked.
They argued that she was already wealthy and operated a profitable shop in the city. She should not return and compete with poor farmers for their means of survival.
The village Party secretary’s surname was also Gu.
Although his family and Gu Xinguo’s were already beyond five degrees of kinship, Shen Jiao had helped his daughters-in-law establish a tailoring class.
That had increased his prestige as Party secretary.
His family and the brigade captain’s family had found a way for the young wives and unmarried women of Shuanma Village to earn money.
Because of this, the young women from Shuanma Village had become the most desirable brides in all the surrounding villages.
Some men from the cities had even come seeking wives there.
How could the Party secretary not feel grateful towards Shen Jiao?
The brigade captain’s circumstances were the same.
His family had received countless indirect benefits from the sewing classes.
Naturally, he also stood on Shen Jiao’s side.
Moreover, it was obvious that someone had deliberately created trouble to target Shen Jiao.
This dispute concerned whether the household responsibility system could be implemented smoothly.
It had to be handled properly.
Both men gritted their teeth whenever they thought of the person secretly stirring up trouble.
If this caused chaos at such a crucial moment, they swore they would make the culprit pay.
“Party Secretary, Brigade Captain, you don’t need to worry. The villagers are making trouble because they’re afraid their families will receive less land and lose income.
“I’ve operated a tailoring shop in the city for two years. Although I haven’t earned an enormous fortune, I have accumulated some savings.
“Brother Gu and I both came from the Shuanma Village production brigade. Now that our lives have improved, we cannot forget our fellow villagers.
“Therefore, I intend to invest money and establish a ready-made clothing factory here. When the factory begins recruiting workers, priority will be given to members of our own brigade.
“Of course, all of this depends on my household registration remaining in Shuanma Village. If the people here don’t welcome me, I’m sure another production brigade would be delighted to have me.”
“Why would you go to another brigade?”
Party Secretary Gu immediately objected.
“Although Xinguo’s registration has been transferred to the county town, his grandfather, his father, and the Gu family’s ancestral graves are still here in Shuanma Village.
“Xinguo’s wife, you can establish your factory here without worry.
“As for the allocation of land, the brigade captain and I will personally watch over it. Let me see who dares create trouble.”
Party Secretary Gu settled the matter decisively.
He was terrified that Shen Jiao might become angry and take the factory to another village.
Things were different now.
The production teams were being dissolved, and the land was being contracted to individual households.
The government was encouraging people to develop side businesses and become prosperous.
He and the brigade captain had racked their brains without finding any good opportunity.
Now Shen Jiao had suddenly offered to build a garment factory in their village.
It was like receiving a pillow just as they began feeling sleepy.
If they revoked Shen Jiao’s right to land, angered her, and drove the factory to another brigade, the Party secretary would be too ashamed to show his face again.
News that Shen Jiao intended to establish a garment factory in Shuanma Village spread throughout the entire village almost immediately.
People also heard that because the brigade did not want to allocate land to her, she was considering building the factory elsewhere.
If that happened, she would naturally recruit workers from the other brigade.
How could they allow that?
Which rotten bastard in their village had opposed allocating land to Shen Jiao?
They would tear that person’s mouth apart!
And so, Shen Jiao effortlessly defeated the first scheme directed against her.
The villagers became so afraid that she would grow angry and cancel the factory that some went directly to the brigade office and told the Party secretary and brigade captain to allocate Shen Jiao the best available land.
They wanted to do everything possible to calm her anger.
What a joke.
Given the opportunity to become factory workers and earn wages, who would choose to scrape a living from the soil?
Working in the fields meant enduring wind and sun, exhausting themselves, and still earning very little.
They absolutely could not allow Shen Jiao to leave in anger.
Besides, only Shen Jiao and her son were entitled to shares. No matter how generously the land was allocated, how much could the two of them possibly receive?
Everyone had calculated the matter clearly.
The resistance to Shen Jiao receiving farmland ended as loudly as it had begun but with no lasting result.
Not only did the villagers stop opposing her allocation, but they became afraid that she might be given too little land or receive an undesirable plot and become disappointed.
Wang Xiangxiu had never expected such an outcome.
While cooking, she almost dropped the wok.
She patted her chest in lingering fear.
Fortunately, she had not actually dropped it. Otherwise, she would receive another beating that evening.
“Humph. Don’t think everything is settled. Du Lingxiang isn’t someone easy to deal with.”
After receiving Wang Xiangxiu’s message, Shen Chunshan and Du Lingxiang acted with remarkable speed.
They immediately hired a passenger tricycle and travelled to Shuanma Village.
Their lives had been extremely difficult over the past several years.
Because of what had happened with Shen Jiao, their family’s reputation had been ruined.
They had also received a large sum of money because of her.
However, once their wealth became known, outsiders began coveting it.
Even Du Lingxiang’s own family wanted a share.
The two families eventually fought over the money so fiercely that several people ended up in hospital.
They became a laughingstock throughout all the surrounding villages.
Although Shen Chunshan and Du Lingxiang ultimately protected the money, their relationships with both the villagers and Du Lingxiang’s maternal family were destroyed.
Everyone knew they possessed money and constantly came to borrow from them.
Did those people think their home was a charitable hall?
Du Lingxiang refused to lend money even to her own relatives, much less outsiders.
Not only did she refuse, but she insulted eighteen generations of the borrowers’ ancestors.
It would have been more surprising if she had not offended anyone.
Because of that money, the couple began thinking of themselves as superior to everyone else.
They stopped doing proper work and were unwilling even to earn work points.
Their daily lives consisted entirely of spending money.
Within half a year, they had spent every last cent.
At first, Gu Xinguo’s warning had frightened them away from approaching Shen Jiao.
That man was too ruthless.
They had personally watched him split a brick with a single strike of his palm.
Their skulls were certainly not harder than bricks.
Furthermore, Gu Xinguo apparently knew the chief of the commune police station.
Shen Chunshan had personally seen the two men laughing and talking together.
He truly feared that Gu Xinguo might send them to a labour reform camp.
In reality, Gu Xinguo did not know the police chief at all.
He had merely taken advantage of the situation and deliberately created that impression so the couple would remain cautious.
However, once they became so poor that they could barely afford food, their fear was pushed aside.
They had lost all willingness to support themselves through honest labour.
Apart from seeking money from Shen Jiao, what else could they do?
Because Shen Jiao intended to establish a garment factory in the village, she was in no hurry to return to Zhangcheng.
Her two apprentices were already fully trained and capable of managing the shop independently in her absence.
Both women were also planning to open their own shops, but their premises were still being renovated.
Since they could not begin operating yet, they might as well continue helping Shen Jiao for a few more days.
Deputy Director Lin’s younger sister, in particular, treated Shen Jiao even better than she treated her own brother.
Shen Jiao had pulled her out of a desperate situation.
She had given her the opportunity to learn a valuable skill and open a shop.
Furthermore, being a skilled seamstress had made her a more attractive marriage prospect, allowing her to find a good partner.
Lin Hongxia understood that Shen Jiao might not have accepted her as an apprentice without her brother’s influence.
The same was true of Liu Xueli, who had studied alongside her. If Liu Xueli had not been the landlord’s daughter, Shen Jiao might not have accepted her either.
Lin Hongxia understood all of that.
But who could understand the helplessness and suffering she had experienced at the time?
The mocking and contemptuous gazes of others had followed her every day.
Her mother had also constantly scolded and rejected her.
Sometimes, she had even considered ending her life.
If her employment problem had remained unresolved, she did not know whether she might eventually have chosen that path.
It was not an exaggeration to say that Shen Jiao had given her a second life.
Therefore, she managed Shen Jiao’s tailoring shop with even greater care than she devoted to her future shop.
That was why Shen Jiao felt comfortable leaving the Zhangcheng business in her hands.
Shuanma Village had been lively every day recently.
Apart from the distribution of farmland, everyone was discussing the construction of the garment factory.
Each day, Shen Jiao carried little Gu Zheng, who was slightly over a year old, on her back and walked around the production brigade, searching for a suitable location to build the factory.
There were two reasons she had not established it in the city.
First, rural land was cheaper.
Second, Linqing County had convenient railway transport.
Although Zhangcheng also had a railway line, how could that small branch compare with the major Beijing–Guangzhou railway artery?
The railway passing through Zhangcheng was merely a minor branch of China’s railway network.
Shen Jiao did not understand why the regional government had been established in Zhangcheng rather than the more conveniently located Linqing County.
However, it had little to do with her.
After briefly considering the question, she pushed it from her mind and continued searching for a suitable factory site.
One day, she had just returned from walking around the village when she saw two familiar figures standing outside her home.
They were Shen Chunshan and Du Lingxiang, whom she had not seen for two or three years.
Those two never acted unless there was something to gain.
They might not have met for several years, but could a dog truly stop eating filth?
Shen Jiao was unwilling to gamble on even the slightest possibility that they had changed.
Gu Xinguo was not at home.
Her son was also young, and it would be disastrous if they frightened him.
Shen Jiao immediately carried the child to the Party secretary’s home.
Because of the garment factory, the Party secretary now treated her even more favourably than before.
During the past few days, he had practically been flattering her, afraid that she might change her mind.
When faced with trouble, one should seek help from the government.
A village official was still an official.
The moment Shen Jiao saw Party Secretary Gu, she gave him a complete account of Shen Chunshan and Du Lingxiang.
“Third Uncle, although I’ve earned some money during the past two years, you know how expensive establishing a factory will be.
“I’ve borrowed from here and shifted money from there, and I’ve only just managed to gather the start-up capital.
“My brother and sister-in-law are never satisfied. They would gladly tear apart my bones and squeeze out my marrow. They won’t stop until they’ve extracted my final drop of oil.
“Brother Gu isn’t home, and I’m only a weak woman with a nursing child. If they become violent, I might have no choice but to hand over the money meant for building the factory.
“Even if I refuse, once the factory is established, those two will come and behave like honoured ancestors.
“I’m afraid our garment factory would be destroyed by them before it even opened.”
How could that be allowed?
They had finally found a project capable of bringing prosperity to the village.
It could not be destroyed like this.
Party Secretary Gu immediately summoned several young men from the village.
They dragged Shen Chunshan and Du Lingxiang out of the village by force.
They also issued a stern warning: if the couple ever entered the boundaries of Shuanma Village again, their legs would be broken.
They attempted to return twice afterward, but the villagers beat them away both times.
Shen Chunshan was a coward.
After being beaten several times, he immediately betrayed Wang Xiangxiu without even needing to be questioned.
However, when the Party secretary and others went to confront Wang Xiangxiu, they discovered that she had run away.
The old tailor’s wife cried bitterly, mucus and tears covering her face.
She claimed Wang Xiangxiu had stolen their family’s tailoring pattern books and demanded compensation from Wang Naozi’s family.
That was a dispute between the two related families.
Wang Xiangxiu had disappeared.
Apart from reporting her to the police station, what else could they do?
Shen Jiao never imagined that the next time she saw Wang Xiangxiu would be in the capital.
Spring passed and autumn arrived.
After overcoming countless difficulties, the garment factory was finally established in Shuanma Village.
Shen Jiao’s funds were limited.
To preserve more cash for purchasing raw materials, she did not spend heavily on sewing machines.
She bought only several overlock machines.
For the ordinary sewing machines, she borrowed them directly from village households that owned one.
She paid each household fifteen yuan a month as compensation for depreciation.
According to their calculations, they would receive one hundred and twenty yuan over a year. By adding a little more money, they could purchase another new machine.
There was never a shortage of clever people.
After calculating the benefits, many families immediately lent their sewing machines to Shen Jiao.
A machine would not wear out after only a year or two, and the compensation would eventually allow them to buy another.
Although sewing machines were still not particularly easy to purchase, they were far more available than before.
To the villagers, they were no longer impossibly rare possessions.
Once the machinery problem was resolved, the factory’s first product was denim jeans.
Gu Xinguo helped obtain the denim fabric.
He had apparently purchased it from a town in Guangdong where there was a factory specialising in denim.
After the jeans were produced, Shen Jiao sold them locally and also had several advertising boards made.
Every day, people stood beside the railway holding those boards to attract merchants travelling south who wanted to purchase jeans wholesale.
Although the factory’s jeans cost ten fen more than those produced farther south, once travel expenses were included, buyers purchasing large quantities still saved money by sourcing them from Shen Jiao.
Furthermore, the jeans produced by Xinjiao Garment Factory had guaranteed quality and followed the latest fashions closely.
When wholesalers came to purchase jeans, they often bought other clothing styles and fabrics from the factory as well.
Business at Xinjiao Garment Factory became extraordinarily prosperous.
Once she had accumulated sufficient funds, Shen Jiao travelled to the capital.
In addition to searching for new fabric suppliers and equipment, she intended to recruit university students specialising in fashion design.
If the garment factory was to become stronger and larger, she had to introduce talented professionals.
Although Shen Jiao knew how to sew, she was not particularly skilled at original design.
She needed people with genuine design talent, and the more she could recruit, the better.
The task would not be easy, but Shen Jiao had no intention of fighting an unprepared battle.
She was confident that the terms she offered would be attractive enough to persuade them.
What she had not expected was to encounter the three greatest enemies of both her lifetimes in the capital.
And judging by their behaviour, the relationship between them appeared rather complicated.
Leave a Reply