CHAPTER 80: CHAPTER 80: DECISIVE AND EFFICIENT

"Fired!"

The implication being, you can go without worry, and no one will gossip.

Yi Chichi still wasn’t reassured, "Are you sure going alone won’t get people gossiping and labeling me?"

The labels these days are really powerful; she definitely doesn’t want to be tagged.

"I’m sure!"

Knowing what she was worried about, the squad leader generously gave her some reassurance.

"If anyone starts gossiping about you, come find me or report to the secretary. See if I won’t make them clear manure."

Clearing manure isn’t a good job.

It’s not like modern times when crops rely on chemical fertilizers and pesticides—it’s purely human and animal waste used as farm fertilizer.

Moreover, farm fertilizer can’t be used immediately; it needs to be fermented before application.

The smell when applying fertilizer not only can knock a person out but also lingers for a long time.

People can smell the fertilizer odor on you from far away; nobody wants to do this job.

Being made to clear manure is certainly a punishment job.

With the squad leader’s assurance, Yi Chichi finally relaxed completely.

So, after greeting Wang Nan and the others back at the Youth Corps Courtyard, she locked herself in her room and started rummaging through her things.

The small room was arranged very cozily; she had bought a single-door cabinet from Liu Dahai the carpenter in the village, along with two wooden boxes.

Everything that had been shipped over back then was packed into these boxes.

Five sets of cotton-padded clothes in total—four for women and one for men.

She sold a set to Zhou Qiuyu; she was wearing a set herself, leaving one men’s and two women’s sets, plus a military coat.

She organized Zhang Lanxiang’s cotton-padded jacket and pants along with a set of Yi Yong’s clothes, compressed them with a stool, rolled them up, and packed them to deliver to the old man and the others early the next morning.

Additionally, she packed some scraps of cloth and a bag of cotton for Mrs. Song to make a few pairs of cotton-padded shoes.

Xiao Jiu also didn’t have long johns, so she needed to make two sets of those as well.

Yi Chichi couldn’t make shoes but could make clothes.

So, deftly, she took apart Yi Ling’s 70-80% new long johns and spent an entire afternoon and most of the evening making two sets for the child.

Afterward, she packed some brown sugar, White Rabbit candies, and meat sauce together.

She stored these in her room; Wang Nan and the others knew she had these foods but weren’t sure exactly how much, but they could take some.

The frozen fish and meat foods in the courtyard couldn’t be given away as the reduction would be hard to explain.

Then there were cornmeal and millet; she took a bit of both. She didn’t like millet and cornmeal hurt her throat when eaten.

Rice...

She didn’t have much left, so she didn’t take any.

After packing everything up, she washed up and lay down on the bed for a deep sleep.

In the cat-like winter days, nobody wanted to get up early. Even if awake, they preferred to stay warm on the heated brick bed rather than venture out into the cold.

Unless it snowed heavily, requiring snow clearing.

But the snow had stopped yesterday, and what needed clearing had been cleared.

Thus, when Yi Chichi got up, Wang Nan and the others were still asleep.

The Youth Corps Courtyard was silent. She checked the time and found it was just past six, so she quietly washed up, gathered her things, and quietly slipped out the door.

Kao Shan Village, covered in a silver coat, was silent.

Not a soul in sight, not even a bird.

Carrying a mountain of stuff, she first went to the infirmary, took a medicine box, and grabbed some medication before cautiously heading to the place where the old man and the others lived.

Half an hour later, having successfully reached her destination, she knocked on the door to wake them and entered the house.

"Grandpa, help me out, it’s so heavy!"

With dozens of pounds on her back, she not only had to be careful not to be seen but also had to watch her step to avoid falling, leaving her exhausted.

"What do you have here?"

The old man quickly took the bundle off her back, gauging its weight, and finally understood why she was panting and sweaty.

"Clothes and food!"

She sat on the edge of the heated brick bed catching her breath, while Mrs. Song poured water into a chipped bowl and handed it to her, "Little girl, have some water and take a break."

"Thank you!"

Yi Chichi took the bowl, tested the temperature, found it just right, and drank it down in one go before handing the bowl back to the old lady and pulling over the bundle placed on the bed by the old man.

"Grandpa, handle these two sets of clothes carefully, remember to disguise them well and don’t let anyone find out."

Two sets of thick cotton-padded clothes, one for a man and one for a woman, appeared before everyone.

"Here are three pounds of cornmeal and about two pounds of millet, eat them first, and I’ll bring more when I have some."

The bag of food was pushed forward.

Yi Chichi casually handed the scraps of cloth and cotton to Mrs. Song, "Make shoes, make them look worn and shabby."

"Xiao Jiu, this is for you."

She stuffed two sets of long johns into Qin Jiu’s arms. The child’s eyes suddenly widened, "For me?"

"Yes, your aunt made them for you."

"Thank you, Aunt!"

"Good boy!"

She ruffled his head, feeling the slightly greasy texture indicating he needed to wash his hair.

But the weather was cold, so a little dirtiness was better than catching a cold.

She handed him White Rabbit candies, "These are also yours."

How they were distributed was up to the little one, "Don’t eat too much to avoid cavities!"

The brown sugar and meat sauce were given to the old man, "Grandpa, remember to hide them and eat them secretly..."

She moved quickly and talked fast, but the old man and the others were even faster, already hiding everything almost the moment she finished speaking.

Once she finished allocating and advising, the old man and the others were also done.

"All hidden..."

Lifted her eyes to find the things all gone, leaving Yi Chichi speechless for a moment at their swiftness; was this speed too fast?

Still, it was a good thing.

"I’ll go make the medicine; if you want to sleep, you can continue."

With the words barely out, she grabbed the medicine package and was about to leave.

The old man’s mouth twitched, noticing that her decisive style was identical to Zi Shuting’s.

"Watch Xiao Jiu, I’ll go stoke the fire for her."

Throwing down these words, the old man walked out.

Song Yanshan and the others looked at each other.

Then—

"Jiujiu, would you like Great-Grandma to help you put on the long johns?"

"Yes!"

The child obediently handed over the long johns, and the old lady took them. Song Yanshan leaned over, "New?"

"No, Miss Yi must have taken hers apart to alter for Xiao Jiu."

She picked up the long johns and took a look, finding the stitching tight, the craftsmanship excellent, and the fabric quite soft—it was clearly washed many times in water.

"Such a good girl!"

Ye Yuntang praised, and Song Yanshan and the others nodded, agreeing.

Despite not seeing each other for years, and despite the identity of Old Qin and the others, she wasn’t disdainful or distant; instead, she was willing to be close, showing her good character.

It’s easy to add flowers to the brocade; it’s truly rare to deliver coal in the snow.

"Could it be possible that the little girl is investing because she wants something in return?"

Having experienced betrayal by friends and family, Grandpa Ma Baoshan was no longer hesitant to assume the worst about people, unintentionally voicing his suspicion.

Stunning Mr. Song and the others into looking at him in unison.

"That can’t be, right?"

Ye Yuntang frowned, "Given our situation, any truly shrewd person would run as fast as they could rather than risk helping us."

The premise of investing is profitability—what do they have now?

The identity of a bad element.

The future is uncertain, but as things stand, it seems no different from being condemned to death.