Chapter 25: Well Done

Gu Wenbo hadn't expected things to go so smoothly. The transport team didn't lose out either; on the contrary, they made a profit because they received not only leafy greens but also half a basket of eggs.

Obviously, the Neighborhood Office intended to keep the remaining eggs for themselves.

Gu Wenbo breathed a complete sigh of relief. Qiao Ge had handled this beautifully. She hadn't tried to show off or claim credit while things were noisy and crowded; instead, once the families had left, she stayed behind to help clean up and quietly arranged the trivial details.

Who did she take after? He remembered that his uncle and Lu Zhiguo weren't like this.

Gu Wenbo drove away with a sense of peace.

By this time, Director Hu and the others had already invited Old Lin inside for tea.

Seeing so many cadres, Old Lin was still quite nervous.

He had mentioned that he needed to go back to distribute items to the commune members, so Huang Juan began reconciling the accounts using the papers Lu Qiaoling had noted and the items received by the Neighborhood Office.

It looked complicated, but it was actually quite simple, as the daily necessities only increased.

In the end, they loaded a large horse cart to capacity. Setting aside everything else, Old Lin felt that just from the matches alone, the households in Gucitun wouldn't need to buy any for about half a year.

There were also packs of soy sauce, vinegar, white sugar, brown sugar, and salt.

These were all things the commune members couldn't afford.

The Neighborhood Office was generous and gave him extra daily necessities; he didn't even know how to express his gratitude.

However, as the cadres of the Neighborhood Office repeatedly thanked him and invited him for tea, Old Lin felt both proud and deeply moved.

Meanwhile, at the Neighborhood Office, the family members who had rushed over upon receiving the news were still there, but the truck had already driven away.

With Director Hu present, it wasn't easy to complain; after all, in these times, supplies were scarce, and one had to scramble to buy anything.

Seeing Director Hu talking with Huang Juan, Lu Qiaoge walked over with a smile. "Two leaders, my task is complete. If there are no further issues, I will head home after seeing Captain Lin out of the compound."

Naturally, the top leader, Old Hu, spoke up. He said with a smile, "Qiaoge, go ahead and see the Captain out, but come by the office this afternoon. We need to have a chat."

Lu Qiaoge glanced at the Neighborhood Office cadres, who were all looking at her with smiles, and nodded obediently. She climbed onto the Captain's horse cart and headed toward the main gate.

By the time Lu Qiaoge arrived home, it was exactly the time work ended. On her way, acquaintances specifically stopped to talk to her.

"Qiaoge, next time there's a vegetable exchange, you must remember to tell your auntie. I used to hold you when you were a baby!"

"When you came to play at my house, I even gave you candy. If there's another event like this, you must let me know in advance..."

Lu Qiaoge responded to everyone with a generous and graceful smile.

When she reached the gate of the Neighborhood Office, she made an effort to minimize her presence.

The cadres only needed to know what she had accomplished.

But in private, there was no need for hypocrisy.

Still, she maintained a bright smile and acted exceptionally well-behaved. "Aunties, just remember to listen to the Neighborhood Office's notices. But if I find out in advance, I'll have my mother tell you."

"What if there isn't another exchange in the future?"

Lu Qiaoge's eyes flickered slightly as she said with certainty, "There will be. As long as there isn't enough leafy green vegetables in our residential compound, there will be activities like this."

Just now at the gate, she had specifically reminded Old Lin that he could report today's situation to the commune chairman first. In such a large commune, there were countless villages below, and every household now had their own private plots. Especially in the North, where land was vast and people were sparse, every family's vegetable garden was quite large. Furthermore, with the current promotion of raising chickens and ducks, no one would fail to plant leafy greens.

Hearing this, the neighbors left feeling satisfied.

When Lu Qiaoge returned home, she was met with the loving gazes of her family, who looked as if they wanted to pull her into a hug.

Even Old Lady Zhao was silently chanting "Amitabha" in her heart, praying for blessings.

It truly lived up to the saying: "With grain in the house, there is no panic in the heart."

In this era, many things differed from the era in Lu Qiaoge's memory, but the general direction was similar.

Private enterprises had not yet appeared; everything was under public ownership, and sales were conducted according to plan. Supplies were still very tight, and grain production had not yet reached the stage of massive increases.

Even though Meng Xia had some saved-up labor protection supplies and other daily necessities, she couldn't exactly set up a stall to sell them.

But today, her second daughter had actually exchanged for so much grain and vegetables.

Not a single cent had been spent; these were all things the family couldn't use for the time being and couldn't easily turn into cash.

They would eat something simple for lunch and make leek dumplings for dinner.

She whispered mysteriously to Old Lady Lu, "I feel like Qiaoge's mind has cleared up and she's become much smarter since the engagement was broken. She's so sensible and capable. Mom, do you think Liang Aishu is a jinx to our Qiaoge?"

Old Lady Lu nodded without a second thought. "That's right, it's Liang Aishu's fault. But let's just keep this between us; don't let anyone else know."

Lu Qiaoge, who had actually heard everything, didn't expect them to reach such a conclusion.

Meng Xia went to tidy up the vegetables with great joy. The leafy greens were arranged in bundles in the large baskets. When she reached the bottom layer, Meng Xia froze—there were actually eggs inside.

"Qiaoge, come here!"

Meng Xia called Lu Qiaoge over just as she was about to enter the house. She said with a mix of surprise and worry, "Qiaoge, why are there eggs here? Does the Neighborhood Office know?"

Lu Qiaoge lowered her voice. "Captain Lin also exchanged two baskets of eggs for the Neighborhood Office. Actually, normally commune members would sell eggs at the supply and marketing cooperative for seven cents an egg, but we gave nine cents each. However, Director Hu said the eggs would be distributed last to prevent fighting."

"As for the grain, it's really nothing to worry about. Rubber shoes, flashlights, and Number 1 batteries are all things the Brigade Headquarters needs."

Only after hearing that the Neighborhood Office also had eggs did Meng Xia feel relieved.

The Lu family happily packed away the grain, vegetables, and more than thirty eggs. Meng Xia went to cook with great joy. Seeing Su Hui return, she rarely insisted that she take a rest.

She also called out to Lu Qiaoge, "Qiaoge, take a rest for a bit. You have to report to the Neighborhood Office this afternoon, so you must carry yourself with confidence when the time comes."

It would be a lie to say she wasn't hopeful; with her second daughter being so capable, she might even be recruited.

Lu Qiaoge readily agreed. She washed her face and then went to lie down in the room quite casually.

Opening the back window allowed a draft to flow through, making it much cooler.

Lu Qiaoling just poked her head in to take a look before running off giggling.

A person's spirit is refreshed when something good happens.

That was certainly true.

Looking at the overflowing storeroom, Meng Xia felt a sense of satisfaction she had never experienced before.

She felt that today's sky was bluer than yesterday's.

Su Hui, naturally, felt awkward about resting, but she was also stunned by the amount of grain, vegetables, and eggs.

In these times, such supplies were not easily obtained.

Her second sister-in-law was truly amazing.

Her own family was poor and they could barely eat their fill; how could they ever look after her?

Now, with so much grain, she felt like she could finally catch her breath.

Meanwhile, at the Liang family, Old Liang asked his wife, Qian Li, in confusion, "How did I not realize Lu Qiaoge was so capable? Look at what she's done these past few days; it's like she's a different person."

Liang Aishu, whose face was grim as he lowered his head to eat lunch, said nothing.

But he was clearly distracted...