Chapter 109: Good News

Chapter 109: Chapter 109: Good News

She packed a handbag, took her money and coupons, and headed straight for the public phone booth.

Su Wan first called the number Lu Zhengchuan had left her.

Before Lu Zhengchuan left for the Capital Military District, he had told her to contact him directly if anything came up. It was the contact number for the Capital Military District; she just had to give his name.

The call went through. Su Wan gave Lu Zhengchuan’s name, and after a moment, someone else came on the line to speak with her.

"Ma’am, my name is Xiao Deng. I’m the aide to Qi Battalion Commander Qi Hao. Battalion Commander Lu is currently on a mission and can’t take your call. Before he left, he asked me to be your point of contact."

Su Wan understood. Lu Zhengchuan must have already started his month-long training exercise. He had probably arranged for Xiao Deng because he was worried she would be anxious if she couldn’t reach him.

"Xiao Deng, it’s nothing important. I just wanted to tell Lu Zhengchuan about some day-to-day things. It’s not urgent. Just let him know I called when he gets back from his mission."

"Have him call me back then."

"Yes, Ma’am."

Since she couldn’t reach Lu Zhengchuan, and the matter wasn’t pressing anyway, Su Wan simply left a message and hung up.

"Mom, how is everyone at home doing lately?" Su Wan immediately made another call to her family back home.

At first, the brigade leader answered. When he heard it was Su Wan’s voice, he quickly hung up and sent someone to the fields to get the Su family.

Mother Su arrived and waited at the commune office for a few minutes before Su Wan’s call came through again.

"Everything at home is the same as always, no problems here. Wanwan, don’t you worry about us. Have you and your third brother gotten used to the Capital? Everything must cost money there, right? Don’t be too frugal." A mother always worries when her children are far from home. Mother Su was constantly thinking about her two children.

She had been talking about them at home all this time, but making a phone call was expensive, and the family really couldn’t afford to call often.

Making even two calls a year was considered a luxury.

"Mom, my third brother and I are doing very well. Zheng Chuan is in the Capital now too, so we’re living together. I have both my brother and Zheng Chuan looking after me."

"Zheng Chuan even hired an Aunt Zhao to take care of me. So there’s someone to cook my meals and wash my clothes. My third brother can also have a hot meal when he gets back from doing business. You and Dad don’t need to worry." Su Wan knew that if she wasn’t specific, her parents would be on pins and needles.

So she explained everything in detail. Sure enough, after hearing this, Mother Su felt much more at ease and was especially pleased with her son-in-law, Lu Zhengchuan.

"It’s a good thing you married Zheng Chuan. That boy is hardworking and reliable—a good kid."

"Oh, by the way, we just harvested the cucumbers from the fields. I’ve started pickling them. I’ll figure out a way to mail some to you."

"Mom, don’t mail them. With the money you’d spend on postage, I could buy some cucumbers here and pickle them myself until they’re ready to eat." Su Wan missed her mother’s cooking, but it was so far away. Not only was postage expensive, but if they were actually sent, they would probably spoil long before they arrived.

It would be a waste of her mother’s kind intentions and her parents’ hard-earned money.

"Now that you’re so far away, you can’t even have a taste of the pickled vegetables from home anymore." Mother Su’s voice was tinged with melancholy.

Father Su, who was next to her, gently shook his wife’s arm. "Honey, I want to talk to Wanwan for a bit, too. Let me have the receiver."

Listening to her parents’ playful bickering, Su Wan felt a pang of homesickness.

But she remembered the important matter she had to discuss and was also worried about wasting money on the call, so she quickly spoke up.

"Mom, I’m calling about something important."

"Here’s the thing. Because I did a good deed and saved someone, I was given a letter of recommendation for a job as a transport worker at the clam factory. It’s a driving job. Who in the family do you think should take it?"

"What? A transport worker! A job in the city?"

Mother Su’s voice was full of shock. But Father Su, who had been listening in, suddenly clapped a hand over her mouth and glanced around, afraid that other villagers might have heard.

Fortunately, most of the brigade members were out in the fields, and the brigade leader was outside the commune office, far enough away that he didn’t hear.

"Let go, I’ll be quiet." Mother Su realized her mistake. She pried Father Su’s hand away and, as if she had a guilty conscience, lowered her voice to ask Su Wan a question.

"Wanwan, what’s this all about? Tell me everything, in detail."

"I have a job opportunity here for a truck driver. I was wondering who in the family would be the best fit for it."

"The monthly salary is sixty yuan. But as you know, drivers have a lot of perks. They can also earn extra money on the side by transporting goods for people." Su Wan explained the job’s terms. "The only drawback is that the clam factory closest to our village is in the city proper. So whoever takes the job will have to live in the city for long periods. The factory provides a dormitory, so they won’t need to rent a place, but being a driver is hard work—all that running around and driving back and forth is exhausting."

Su Wan clearly laid out the pros and cons of the job.

"Mom, Dad, go home and take your time discussing it. There’s no rush. Once you’ve decided, I’ll figure out how to arrange for driving lessons."

"Okay, wait for our word then."

Father Su and Mother Su hung up the phone.

The two of them looked at each other. Father Su anxiously grabbed her arm and shook it. "Honey, is what Wanwan said true?"

"There’s really a job?"

"Stop asking questions! Let’s go home first!"

Mother Su smacked him on the arm. Father Su nodded repeatedly. "Right, right. Let’s go. We’ll talk more when we get back."

The brigade leader was in the courtyard, reading a newspaper.

Seeing the two of them come out, he greeted them with a smile. "Old Su, Wanwan is so good to you. I heard she sent a lot of things back for you this time."

"Oh, that child is just so sincere. The moment she earns a little money out there, she starts thinking about us, her parents. I told her not to buy anything, but that stubborn girl just won’t listen." Mother Su covered her mouth with a laugh. "She said it was something called ’chocolate.’ It’s so dark it looks like a block of medicine, but it’s actually sweet when you eat it."

"That’s right. Wanwan said it’s a kind of candy, from a foreign country," Father Su added proudly.

The brigade leader sounded envious. "I’d be happy if my kids were half as capable and good to their parents as your Wanwan."

"Sigh, the child is capable, but she’s too capable. We don’t even get to see her once all year," Mother Su sighed.

The brigade leader was momentarily speechless. He had many children around him and only found them annoying; he had yet to experience this kind of blessed trouble.

Mother Su took Father Su’s arm, said goodbye to the brigade leader, and they headed back to the fields first.

The village had already started harvesting the rice, and everyone was busy with work.

Mother Su and Father Su were very patient, diligently finishing their work in the fields. By the time they were done, it was already one in the afternoon.

Mother Su first took their bowls and went to the brigade canteen to get lunch.

It was too hot at this time of day, so they had a lunch break until two-thirty in the afternoon before starting work again.

Father Su followed closely behind Mother Su.

As soon as the two of them got home, the other family members trickled in one after another.

The weather was scorching, but thankfully, their old house was an adobe and tile-roofed building, so it was relatively cool inside.

The large family sat scattered around the main hall, each with a cattail fan in hand, fanning air thick with the hot, dry scent of rice paddies.

Mother Su was exhausted from the morning’s labor. She buried her head and quickly ate the food in her bowl. It wasn’t much of a meal, really—just dried sweet potato rice with stir-fried pumpkin slices and green peppers.