Chapter 262: Chapter 262: The Truth

Jiang Baohua thought he heard wrong, “What, what did you say?”

Liu Qingsong and Wei Qimin widened their eyes. Not selling – does this mean the factory isn’t going to operate anymore?

Wei Qimin asked what was on his mind.

“The factory will still operate, but we don’t plan to sell machines for now,” Jiang Xingye said.

“Then you produce the machines and store them at home to look at?” Wei Qimin commented humorously.

“We will establish a harvesting team and a threshing team. If you can’t afford the machines, you can hire our people and machines, paying us with work points or grain instead of paying for a machine all at once.”

Jiang Baohua’s eyes lit up. This was really a good idea. If all teams were like the Liaozhong Team and New United Team, they wouldn’t need to open the tractor factory.

Not only would they not earn money, but they’d be bankrupt because of outstanding debts.

But if it’s about renting, surely they can afford at least some grain or money!

Liu Qingsong and Wei Qimin were at a loss for words. This plan put an end to their schemes of getting something for nothing, but it really was a good plan, leaving no room for error.

“Are you planning to do this forever?)” Liu Qingsong asked, “This isn’t a long-term solution!”

Jiang Xingye stayed silent, but Jiang Baohua sensed he had a plan in mind. Smiling, he said, “We’ll worry about the future when it comes. Maybe then all the production teams will have money and be willing to buy our machines, and we’ll definitely be happy to sell them.”

Liu Qingsong and Wei Qimin felt deeply let down but had nothing to say, coming empty-handed and leaving empty-handed.

Xu Qinghuan wasn’t idle on the way to the county town; everyone in the car was gossiping about Xu Manman.

“They say she went for an abortion, but the county hospital said it was already implanted or something, so she couldn’t get it, and came back.”

“Why have an abortion? Why? They’re getting married. Isn’t it inevitable they’ll have kids sooner or later?”

“Who knows, they say Jiang the educated youth and Zhou the educated youth fought fiercely, but why?”

“You didn’t hear? Little Xu the educated youth was crying and shouting beside them, ’Don’t fight, don’t fight because of me,’ oh my, I got goosebumps all over listening.”

Everyone in the car laughed.

“I’m telling you, the two male educated youths were fighting over little Xu the educated youth. You didn’t see how Zhou the educated youth looks at little Xu, I saw it several times already, it’s like a fierce dog looking at a piece of juicy meat, it’s terrifying.”

Someone whispered, “So, the child in little Xu the educated youth’s belly might be Zhou the educated youth’s?”

“That’s a tough call!”

“Didn’t Jiang the educated youth express that they’re young now, can’t make money, both families can’t support them, and they shouldn’t have kids for now?”

Another person spat, “You believe this crap? Who doesn’t get married and have kids at seventeen or eighteen in this brigade? I was seventeen when I had my first child.”

“Besides, how much does it cost to raise a kid? For the first two years, if the adults have food, so do the kids.”

As the conversation went on, somehow it turned to Xu Qinghuan.

Aunt Li: “Qinghuan, when are you and Xiao Ye planning to get things done?”

Up front, Jiang Xingye was so nervous his hands were trembling while gripping the rail. He was all ears, like a radar, receiving information coming from Xu Qinghuan.

“Depends on A Ye!” Xu Qinghuan’s face was flushed, but it wasn’t just shyness; neither in her current life nor her previous one had she faced such an ordeal.

Last life, no one urged her to marry; this was her first time in this life; it always feels like there’s no suitable answer.

Jiang Xingye pursed his lips. Everything seemed beautiful to him today – the sun shining bright, the autumn breeze gentle, the sky so high and blue, with fluffy clouds floating by. It was beautiful.

Inside the compartment, everyone chuckled kindly.

Li Xingzhi laughed, “Look at Xiao Ye! Xiao Ye is yearning to marry you today and sleep with his wife tonight!”

Everyone burst into laughter again, leaving Jiang Xingye feeling quite uneasy. Though he thought about it himself, hearing it spoken out loud made him feel both sweet and shy.

These married old ladies were all very bold.

Luckily, they all understood that Xu Qinghuan was a single girl yet to marry, so their teasing was light-hearted and didn’t delve further.

“Hey, isn’t Lu the educated youth without a partner? Her mother came last time and didn’t say anything about bringing her back; it seems like her family has some connections.”

Qian Datao, Dong Youfu’s mother, perked up at this, “Xu the educated youth, what’s Lu the educated youth’s family situation? That person who came last time seems to have some relation with you, how come Lu the educated youth also called her ’mom’?”

The conversation went back and forth, mostly about Song Wanlin.

Xu Qinghuan said, “That’s not Lu the educated youth’s real mom. Lu the educated youth’s situation is a bit complex. Her family is from Yan City, anyway she’ll go back sooner or later, and they have some influence.”

“Don’t you have a courtyard house in Yan City? Did Xiao Ye stay at your courtyard house last time he went to Yan City?” Qian Datao’s probing question carried some undertones.

Xu Qinghuan smiled, “I bought that courtyard house, and A Ye contributed money too. He certainly can stay there, and we’ve been engaged, what’s the point of dividing things?”

“That makes sense!”

The rest of the people on the bus were sharp; they immediately picked up on the undertone.

“Datao, didn’t your Youfu initially fancy little Xu the educated youth, and now he’s planning to switch to Lu the educated youth?” Li Xingzhi asked.

“Well, little Xu the educated youth can’t compare to Xu the educated youth. I heard she’s a wild child born from her mom and some wild man, and she’s pregnant with someone else’s child. My Youfu won’t touch that kind of mess even if he stays single forever.”

“Your Youfu better hurry then! Lu the educated youth is in high demand, and if he really marries her, he’ll have commodity grain when they move to the city!”

“That depends on my Youfu’s skills!”

Maybe Jiang Xingye’s luck sparked it. Now in the team, those lazy bachelors are all itching to find someone like Xu the educated youth, hoping to get a house in the city and wear an imported watch on their wrist like Jiang Xingye.

When they got to the commune, Jiang Xingye dropped some people off while Xu Qinghuan continued to ride the tractor to the county town with the remainder of the group. When they arrived at the state-run restaurant, he reminded them, “The tractor needs to haul goods. You’ll have to take a bus back this afternoon.”

He helped Xu Qinghuan off the tractor; it was still early, so they went to Xinhua Bookstore first to submit the assignment, which was over 10,000 words last time, about ten articles, each a thousand words.

Gong Mingjie glanced at it, inwardly commenting on how beautiful the handwriting was.

He packed the translated drafts into a folder and handed her three and a half yuan, a pound of meat coupons, and a three-foot cloth coupon, saying, “This is payment for your first thousand words translated. For junior translators, Y language pays three yuan per thousand words, D language pays fifty cents more than Y language.”

Xu Qinghuan collected the money and coupons and asked, “If I pass the intermediate translation exam, will the payout level be higher?”

“Certainly, it will be higher. Four and a half yuan per thousand words for intermediate level. If you translate ten thousand words, it’ll be forty-five yuan.” Gong Mingjie nodded at the folder.

Xu Qinghuan was quite wealthy now and didn’t care much for forty-five yuan, but having this money made it natural for her to enjoy good food and drink.

Submitting these ten translated drafts would nearly get her intermediate translation certification soon, and Gong Mingjie pulled out roughly twenty thousand words of original work for her, “It’s best to translate quickly, the sooner you do, the sooner we can learn from their experience.”

Xu Qinghuan glanced at it, mostly dealing with mechanical topics, which posed no difficulty for her.

Xu Qinghuan needed to visit the armed forces headquarters, and Jiang Xingye accompanied her. As they passed a dead-end alley, seeing nobody around, he pulled Xu Qinghuan inside, pinned her against the wall, and completely shielded her with his body, “What you said on the tractor earlier, was it true?”

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep