Chapter 30: The Letter of Report

Lu Qiaoge knew the big carp had been hooked because it was following the turtle to watch the excitement.

That part was understandable.

But the large black fish—the tyrant of the Hunan waters who ate whoever it caught—had actually been deliberately lured in by a group of seemingly gentle grass carp.

As expected, one could never underestimate any species.

Lu Qiaoge didn't know what Qin Hengzhi used for bait to make it so attractive to fish.

Thus, the lake tyrant, the large black fish, successfully took the hook.

The black fish cursed profusely; it was unclear from whom it had learned such language, but it actually cursed little Si, who had hooked it, saying he would choke to death on fish, and even called him a short-lived brat for daring to risk his life to eat it...

Lu Qiaoge glared at it, wanting nothing more than to start a fire and roast it right then and there.

This stretch of water was very clean and unpolluted; the black fish would surely taste delicious. Lu Qiaoge wanted pickled vegetable fish, and if paired with rice, she could easily finish three bowls.

Lu Qiaoge felt her mouth watering.

Even in this era of scarcity, it was actually possible to eat quite well if one knew how.

Lu Qiaoge couldn't be bothered to analyze Qin Hengzhi's motives; as long as there was no ill intent, it didn't matter.

Come to think of it, he really was a very good person.

So, Lu Qiaoge quickly pushed him to the back of her mind.

Taking advantage of Lu Qiaoge's distraction, the tabby cat crouched by the bucket and began slapping the black fish's head with its paws, like a game of Whac-A-Mole.

Moreover, it was clever enough not to interact with the black fish in any other way, acting as if it simply couldn't understand its speech.

The black fish was beaten into a frenzy, fleeing wildly while continuously cursing.

The tabby cat ended up soaked with water.

When Lu Xiaosi tried to stop it, Lu Qiaoge said, "This fish is too fierce. I'll handle it. You go catch some bitterlings, and Huahua, you go too."

Bitterlings were the tabby cat's favorite snack, so it obediently followed Lu Xiaosi back to the previous spot.

Lu Qiaoge suddenly sensed that those lingering grass carp were herding the bitterlings toward Xiaosi—quite a lot of them, in fact. Were they worried she would release the black fish?

With a single punch, Lu Qiaoge knocked the cursing black fish unconscious. Finally, the whole world went quiet.

No, not quiet; she could hear cheers coming from the nearby waters.

The Lu family had pickled vegetable fish for dinner. It wasn't the kind commonly eaten in the North, but the Southern-style pickled vegetables prepared by the wife of the neighboring Lin family. They made a huge pot, along with scrambled eggs with chives, and steamed a large pot of rice.

When Lu Da and Lu Zhiguo entered the courtyard, Xiaosi's eyes were sparkling as he showed off the fishing rod Qin Hengzhi had given him.

Even without an adult to guide him, Xiaosi couldn't even touch the rod properly, but he was still happy.

However, Meng Xia's heart was uneasy.

Why did Qin Hengzhi suddenly go fishing for no reason? Why couldn't she trust him?

Thinking back to the incident at the restaurant, it hadn't even been a few days.

Meng Xia glanced at her second daughter, who was eating happily, and for a moment, she felt she might be overthinking it.

After dinner, Old Lu found an opportunity to speak to Meng Xia: "Don't overthink things, and don't mention these matters to outsiders."

Meng Xia didn't insist; she gave him a glare and went out to tidy up some cardboard boxes.

Just then, the main gate was pushed open. It was Uncle Fourth of the Lu family.

He was carrying a bag of flour and a mesh bag of eggs.

Old Lady Lu, slowly waving her fan, said, "Your family's food isn't abundant either; take this back quickly."

Uncle Fourth smiled, set the items down, and greeted his eldest brother and sister-in-law. He said, "It'll be next month in a few days; this is enough to eat."

Meng Xia never bickered with Uncle Fourth regarding such matters, simply because his family's burden was heavier.

His wife had met with an accident while at the farm and was still bedridden; it was Uncle Fourth's parents-in-law who were looking after her.

They also had three children, the eldest being only fifteen, all of whom were in school.

The in-laws had pensions, but their health was also not great.

In short, their situations were much the same.

But Uncle Fourth insisted: "This is for Mother. Shuxian said so early this morning. I only just found the time."

Shuxian was Uncle Fourth's wife, a schoolteacher before she fell ill.

Meng Xia went to pack some bundles of vegetables. She didn't touch the grain in the storeroom, nor did she tell Uncle Fourth about it; at a time like this, one had to be careful.

"These are the green leafy vegetables Qiaoge traded for."

Uncle Fourth knew about this and praised Lu Qiaoge for her quick wit and capability.

Old Lu didn't argue; he had been quite shocked these past two days.

It turned out that there were other reasonable ways to obtain what one wanted.

Old Lu listened happily as his brother praised his second daughter.

Uncle Fourth took a piece of cardstock from his pocket and handed it to Lu Qiaoge: "This is the temporary permit Director He asked me to make for you."

Old Lu didn't know what was going on until he heard his brother's explanation, at which point he became even more delighted.

"Qiaoge, this is Director He's care for you. Don't take it lightly."

Lu Qiaoge, of course, took it seriously and accepted it obediently. She still needed to go to Director He's place to look for information to see what that "White Water Bamboo" the old turtle mentioned actually was.

She didn't quite believe that in a human settlement, there would be species undiscovered by mankind.

But since she could travel through space and understand animal speech, nothing seemed impossible.

***

The next day, Director Hao of the military factory took a report from the mailbox at the entrance, opened it, and scanned it quickly.

Lu Qiaoge?

Who was that?

He knew Huang Juan, the deputy director of the neighborhood committee.

He made a phone call, and before long, Director Hu arrived, sweating profusely.

Director Hao hurriedly poured water for Director Hu. After a sip, Director Hu felt much better and looked at the report.

Then, he smiled and explained the whole story regarding Lu Qiaoge to Director Hao.

"...Her problem-solving ability is quite good. Although she's a bit impulsive, it's partly because of her age and partly because she's been unemployed without work experience. Plus, Duan Xiaoxiang was mocking her at the time, so she carried some personal emotion.

As for the recommendation slot, there's nothing wrong with Lu Qiaoge's personal resume. Her father, Lu Da, is a national model worker. It's completely reasonable and compliant; there's nothing to fear from an organizational investigation..."

Director Hao laughed: "So she's Lu Da's daughter. I see."

That was how it was in this era; many family members worked in the same unit.

When job opportunities arose, they were usually internal rather than external.

To harp on about this would be a joke.

Old Hu didn't take it to heart; such a report wouldn't cause any waves.

They were working overtime tonight for a meeting, primarily to discuss the twenty-nine recommendation slots.

First, Ren Xiaocui was asked to announce the results of these candidates.

Out of thirty exam questions, twenty had been solved.

Twelve people had automatically withdrawn.

Some had found new jobs, while others felt the work at the neighborhood committee was not ideal.

There were now eighteen candidates.

Lu Qiaoge alone had accounted for three of the solved problems.

Director Hu said, "Let's vote. A secret ballot."

At this time, there were over a dozen cadres in the neighborhood committee, and they all agreed.

Just as they were about to begin, Director Hao's voice suddenly rang out from the loudspeaker, which was not used frequently: "Attention all employees and families of the 516 Military Factory. In ten minutes, one of our factory's warehouses will undergo a timed demolition due to construction needs. The sound won't be too loud, but to avoid panic, we are notifying everyone..."

Old Hu waved his hand: "Let's continue."

When a dull explosion sounded, Old Hu and Huang Juan also saw the voting results...