Back To The 80s-Chapter 34: Choice_1
In this era, pregnancy before marriage meant dubious morals. As Chi Xiaoyue was in the military, if word got out, she’d probably have to leave the army.
She certainly didn’t want to return home. With five children in her family, three older brothers and one older sister, she was the most doted upon.
Yet, with so many children and only her father earning an income when they were young, the family was on the brink of poverty, grateful just to have their hunger sated. So her eldest and second brothers joined the army the moment they came of age.
Her eldest brother sacrificed himself in a war, becoming a martyr. Due to the military status of her third brother, the local authorities found him a job.
Moreover, the military granted special permission for her sister, Chi Xiaomin, to study military nursing. She and her sister were only a year apart and both in their final year of junior high school. Xiaoyue saw this as her chance to break away from her poverty-stricken family, crying and throwing tantrums at home, even refusing to eat. Left with no choice, her sister tearfully relinquished her place, and got married at the age of eighteen.
If she returned now, how would she face them? When she left, she was the envy of the young girls in the village. If she returned now, wouldn’t she be the laughingstock?
Xiaoyue covered her face with her hands, tears spurting through her fingertips. Someone opened the office door and, seeing Xiaoyue in this state, asked with concern, "Sister Xiaoyue, what’s the matter?"
Xiaoyue quickly wiped her tears away, seeing it was her colleague Yang Li. She whispered, "Nothing, I just miss home a little."
"Why don’t you wash up and head back to the dorm first? I can cover for you here." Yang Li saw that Xiaoyue looked pale and didn’t press further.
Knowing how bad she looked, Xiaoyue nodded and left without a word.
Instead of going back to the dorms, after collecting herself, she found herself involuntarily heading toward the training range.
She watched Lu Zhanguo’s upright silhouette from afar. Her heart ached, resenting Zhanguo a bit. When they were first pushed together by everyone else, she hadn’t been attracted to this dark-skinned man who knew nothing about sweet talk. Upon learning about the powerful background of the Lu Family, her interest piqued.
But before she could react, she heard of Zhanguo’s wedding.
Had Zhanguo not concealed his identity, how could she possibly have missed her chance? Watching the back of Lu Zhanguo, she simmered in resentment and frustration.
There are always people who blame others for their own wrong choices, never introspecting. Xiaoyue was one such person.
Gu Xiaobei had been obsessed with learning abacus, and has gotten quite proficient at it.
Ling Yun joked, "I’ve taught my disciple well, my career will be doomed when you become good at it."
"Hehe, don’t worry Ling, my goal isn’t to become an accountant." Gu Xiaobei chuckled.
"Oh, then what do you aspire to be?"
"A good wife and mother, taking care of my husband and educating our children." Gu Xiaobei said confidently.
Ling Yun almost choked on her water. She studied Xiaobei for a moment before speaking softly, "Women need to be self-reliant. You can’t make a man your whole world." An inexplicable sadness resonated in her voice.
Xiaobei couldn’t understand why Ling became somber all of a sudden. She didn’t feel it was her place to ask and kept silent.
After a while, Ling Yun continued, "When I first got married, I thought like you. I devoted myself entirely to my husband and my child. But when our living conditions improved, my husband started to cheat on me. Everything at home annoyed him. When he got drunk, he would beat me and our child. The marriage was unbearable, and we ended up getting a divorce. I took our child and moved to T City."
Xiaobei was shocked. Even though divorce was common in the 21st century, in this era, it was still considered dishonorable, especially for a woman raising a child on her own. It was astounding to see such a kind woman stand strong.
Xiaobei didn’t know how to comfort her. Not waiting for her to say anything, Ling Yun gave a faint smile, "I’m doing fine now. I quite enjoy living alone with my child. But women need to choose their paths wisely, and not let their lives revolve around their families."
Xiaobei nodded, deeply agreeing with Ling Yun’s sentiment. She had her own plans because she was always someone who made mindful decisions.
"Ling, I’ll remember your words. I will do my best," Xiaobei said enthusiastically, raising her fists high.
Ling Yun smiled and nodded, "As long as you remember."
While they were talking, Gao Dailin suddenly returned with two people. One was a young man in his twenties, of average height with a buzz cut. The woman looked about twenty, thin and slightly dark, standing there tensely.
Gao Dailin introduced them, "This is Li Hao and Liu Cuicui, new recruits. As our business steadily grows, our team will also expand. Cuicui will be in charge of cooking while Hao will handle the inventory records."
Li Hao nodded hurriedly, "Yes, yes, yes."
Gao Dailin glanced at Hao, then continued, "This is Ling Yun, our accountant, and Gu Xiaobei, our secretary. In case you need anything, you guys can communicate with them." He then retreated to his office.
Xiaobei didn’t quite like this Li Hao; she felt his gaze was unnerving.
Li Hao was, in fact, Li Juan’s younger brother. The day after he was sent back home, he came to T City by train, followed by Liu Cuicui, his girlfriend.
The Liu family didn’t like Li Hao much; they considered him an outsider with no hukou (residential registration) or steady job. But their daughter was pregnant, and they had no choice but to marry her off to him and have them fend for themselves. 𝐟𝐫𝕖𝗲𝘄𝚎𝗯𝕟𝐨𝕧𝐞𝚕.𝕔𝕠𝐦
Although, when Li Juan promised to arrange jobs for the young couple in the city, tensions eased.
Seeing Gu Xiaobei, Li Hao lit up, mesmerized by the beautiful, fair-skinned woman who carried herself with grace and poise. As he glanced at Cuicui, thin and dark standing next to him, he felt intense regret.
Cuicui was oblivious to Hao’s wandering thoughts. Just the thought of earning twenty yuan a month and having her living expenses covered made her extremely content.
As lunchtime approached, Cuicui was tasked with cooking. It included two kilos of rice, and Gao Dailin had also brought meat and fish, wanting to join them for lunch.
Cooking for six people seemed manageable, but Cuicui faced a challenge as seldom had she cooked meat at home. Fearful of ruining it, her mother always took over when meat was on the menu. She had no idea how to cook meat, and fish stew was entirely out of the question.
After hesitating, she discreetly pulled Hao into the kitchen, shyly admitting, "I don’t know how to cook meat."
Hao scoffed at her, "It’s just chopping and frying, can’t you even do that? What can you do?" Comparing her to Xiaobei, he despised Cuicui even more.
Not daring to say anything more, Cuicui reluctantly picked up a knife to slice the meat. Hao watched her submissive demeanor and left the kitchen, disgust written all over his face.
