Chapter 28, First Update

Qin Yao had an imperfect but beautiful dream. She dreamt that she was a leisurely crab basking in the sun on a sunny beach. She walked sideways arrogantly, and when someone tried to catch her, her crab pincers tightly clamped onto the man's hand.

When she saw the cold and stern face, the little crab clamped even harder, feeling a sense of joy in her heart... until she woke up.

The window had been left slightly ajar from the previous day, and the wind had blown open the curtains, letting in the sunlight. Zhang Yufei had woken up early, and by the time Qin Yao woke up, she was no longer in bed.

The only benefit of working in the seventies was probably the short commute time. The family housing area was connected to the hospital, and the eight o'clock work bell could be heard ringing everywhere.

In addition to the bell, there were various bugle sounds starting from six o'clock, as the officers with military status in the hospital conducted exercises and raised the flag.

After finishing their washing, Qin Yao and Zhang Yufei went out and, standing on the third floor, saw a group of young soldiers running outside the hospital from afar. The children, wearing red scarves, mischievously wove in and out of the line.

It was a thriving scene, with everyone's face full of energy.

"Qin Yao."

When Qin Yao and Zhang Yufei arrived at the staff canteen, Li Fangfang called out to her, inviting her to have a bowl of two-liang pickled noodles. With ration tickets, it cost twelve cents, and she had also added an extra portion of meat topping for an additional three cents, making it fifteen cents in total.

Steamed buns and flower rolls in the canteen required two liang of ration tickets and five cents, and a serving of pickles cost one cent.

Such low prices made it clear that the fifty yuan that Li Fangfang almost lost the previous day was a substantial amount of money, equivalent to two or three months of their wages.

In the canteen, purchasing staple food required ration tickets, but side dishes did not.

Currently, Qin Yao received twenty-six jin of ration tickets per month and was temporarily on an apprentice's wage, earning only fourteen yuan. After three months, her salary would increase to twenty-five yuan, and with various allowances, it would not exceed thirty yuan.

At this time, an ordinary clerk earned forty-five yuan a month, and a company-level cadre earned over seventy yuan. Those on a Level 20 salary, like Chen Baozhen and her husband, one a teacher, earned thirty yuan each month, while her husband Gao Jianguo earned over one hundred yuan. Without children, they could save a significant amount of money each month even without being frugal.

In this era, without tickets, it was hard to spend money even if you had it.

Especially with the limited quota of ration tickets, women had a surplus, eating two liang for breakfast and three liang for lunch and dinner, totaling eight liang a day or twenty-four jin a month. Those with smaller appetites, eating only two liang per meal, would need only eighteen jin a month, leaving some ration tickets remaining.

Women had surplus ration tickets, while men were tight. Girls could suffice with a two-liang steamed bun for breakfast, but men needed several.

Some people would save ration tickets to exchange for goods at the end of the month.

Qin Yao sat by the window with a bowl of pickled noodles, while Zhang Yufei, unwilling to spend money on rice noodles, bought a five-cent steamed bun and a one-cent pickle, saving money for her family. Qin Yao shared some of her meat topping with her.

The meat topping contained only a few strips of lean pork, and even with the extra portion, there were also two small sea shrimps in the noodles.

Pork cost seventy-eight cents a jin and required meat tickets; sea shrimp cost less than ten cents a jin and did not require tickets.

"That's enough, thank you." Zhang Yufei carefully dipped her steamed bun in the marinade of two strips of pork, moistening it with the savory flavor of meat, and ate it with satisfaction.

Pork was the most delicious food in the world!

Qin Yao stirred the rice noodles with wooden chopsticks, ensuring all the flat noodles were coated with the fragrant marinade. No matter the era, rice noodles were always cheap, delicious, and filling peasant food. Two liang of rice noodles, paired with a few pieces of meat in soup, was more satisfying than anything else.

If one wasn't particular about taste, a cheap and protein-rich breakfast could be a steamed bun with boiled sea shrimp and seasonal fruit, provided one could eat it.

"Little Pear, why are your eyes so swollen?"

"Did you cry? What's wrong?"

...

Yuan Li, with red eyes, sat down with a bowl of noodles. The theft incident from the previous day had not spread, known only to a few people, and it was a serious matter that no one dared to talk about casually.

With a resentful gaze, Yuan Li looked at Qin Yao's back. If it weren't for her meddling yesterday, she wouldn't have been so embarrassed and wouldn't have lost the fifty yuan that was almost hers.

"It's nothing." Amidst the comforting words of those around her, Yuan Li wiped her tears. She noticed Li Fangfang looking at her, and the next moment, she burst into tears.

"Little Pear, were you bullied?"

"If you were bullied, you must speak up."

Crying and finishing the noodle soup, Yuan Li, with red eyes, went to find her aunt, Xu Yun. Her aunt was also a nurse in the Military Hospital. This time, it was Xu Yun who recommended Yuan Li for the position, providing her with a separate set of exam review materials, which helped her pass the assessment successfully.

Xu Yun was a gently dressed woman with a round face, soft facial lines, and plain features. Although her appearance was not outstanding, she was a woman who attracted men.

Before she married, Xu Yun had the air of a good wife and mother, full of maternal charm that fascinated men.

She was the best-married among her sisters, and now she had become a nurse. The others, her elder sisters, had married farmers and were still farming in their hometown, while Yuan Li's mother had married a small-town worker, with a bunch of poor relatives, living a life better than some but worse than others.

Yuan Li had admired this aunt since childhood and wished to become the second her.

Her own mother was jealous of her sister Xu Yun and, behind her back, said she pretended to be gentle and pitiful while actually being ruthless and not a kind woman. But Yuan Li did not think so; she believed that an aunt like Xu Yun was the smartest woman in the world.

Weakness and being pitied were the best weapons for a woman.

"Aunt, do you know Qin Yao?" The others in the hospital did not know that Yuan Li was Xu Yun's niece, and she called out to her softly.

Xu Yun was surprised: "Did Qin Yao ask you to find me?"

Head Nurse Ge had already spoken to Xu Yun, saying that if Qin Yao came to seek her advice, she should teach her well on how to win men's favor.

Yuan Li was stunned: "Find you? Why?"

"Don't you know? This Qin Yao is quite formidable. It is said that she is in a relationship with Captain Gu."

Yuan Li's heart skipped a beat. Captain Gu, Gu Cheng? Was he the chief instructor from that time? The cold and handsome man had left a deep impression on Yuan Li during training.

A man like that, with a good family background, profession, and appearance, must have high standards in choosing women, but he was actually in a relationship with "Qin Yao"? Yes, Qin Yao was a city girl, but her father was just a fat-bellied cook, and she was raised to be a "chubby girl."

If Gu Cheng had seen Qin Yao three months ago, would he have liked her?

This Qin Yao had meddled in her business yesterday.

Xu Yun said gently with a smile, "Qin Yao is really beautiful, isn't she? But Comrade Gu has high standards and is especially picky. He’s only giving this girl a chance to get close. I heard there’s a three-month evaluation period. If Qin Yao passes his evaluation, they’ll submit a report to get married three months from now."

"Though it’s called an evaluation, it’s not much different from how men and women usually date. It’s just that the roles are reversed. Outside, men chase women, but here, women try to please men. It’s normal. If you want to marry up, you have to keep the man satisfied."

After parting with Xu Yun, Yuan Li made several mistakes in her work that morning. It was like a wild cat was clawing at her insides, making her restless.

This Qin Yao had ruined her plans and even got to date Gu Cheng. How could something so unfair happen?

The more Yuan Li thought about it, the angrier she became, and she couldn’t even eat lunch.

After lunch, she came up with a plan.

Soon, in the afternoon, rumors started spreading that the new nurse, Qin Yao, was beautiful but had a bad temper. She loved bullying people behind their backs and even flaunted her relationship with Captain Gu to show off and oppress others.

In the women’s restroom, there was a row of squat toilets separated by half-height cement walls. The toilets were connected by a long trench. At the far end, a tap was left running, making a faint sound of dripping water. A bucket hung below, and when it filled, it would tip over, sending water rushing through the trench.

This restroom was a newly built public one. Even though it was a bit farther away, many people preferred using it because it was much cleaner than the old pit latrines.

No matter how clean it was, there was still a smell. However, restrooms have always been a good place for whispered conversations.

A woman in a nurse’s uniform walked out of the stall and went to the far end. The bucket hadn’t filled yet, so she manually tipped it over, letting the water flush through and take the smell away.

Standing behind the restroom, she waited for her companion to come out. She said, "I didn’t expect Qin Yao to be that kind of person. I didn’t think she had a bad temper before."

"Now that she’s climbed up to Captain Gu, she’s become powerful. Why would she care about us? Xiao Li was crying so much this morning. I heard it was because Qin Yao bullied her."

"Now, just hearing Qin Yao’s name makes her cry. If you ask her what happened, she doesn’t dare to say. That helpless look really irritates me!"

"She probably doesn’t dare… After all, Qin Yao is dating Captain Gu."

"Is there no human rights anymore? Are we just going to let her bully people?"

"Xiao Hong, do you think her good grades might be because of cheating?"

"It’s possible—"

Before they could finish their conversation, the woman standing behind saw Qin Yao suddenly appear. Her face froze. No matter how righteous their gossip had been, they were still talking behind Qin Yao’s back and were caught in the act.

Qin Yao ignored her and turned the tap on, washing her hands clean with a splash.

In just one day, the rumors spread throughout the entire Military Hospital, along with Qin Yao’s name, reaching every department. Even the patients in the wards had heard about it.

Gu Cheng was a well-known figure. No matter who he dated, it would be big news. What’s more, the rumors painted Qin Yao as bad-tempered, arrogant, and someone who bullied the younger nurses, making people clench their fists in anger.

Qin Yao didn’t expect to become famous in such a way.

Nurse Director Ge hesitated before approaching her. "Xiao Qin, how did this happen?"

"Nurse Director Ge, don’t worry. I didn’t do anything wrong. I just helped catch a thief."

The next day at noon, Qin Yao found Yuan Li. They stood at the entrance of the cafeteria. Yuan Li looked at her timidly. As Qin Yao approached, she grabbed Yuan Li’s wrist.

"Her favorability towards you: -80 (She is full of hostility towards you)"

Qin Yao didn’t let go. "Yuan Li, why are you putting on this expression? Am I really bullying you, or do you just want to tell everyone the truth?"

Yuan Li looked at her with tear-filled eyes, silently crying.

To the outsiders, it appeared that Qin Yao was bullying Yuan Li with her arrogance.

"Qin Yao, Xiao Li is already like this. Don’t go too far!"

"Yeah, Qin Yao, you’re going too far."

...

A few people who knew the truth stood in line, biting their lips. Some things were better left unsaid. If this got out of hand, it wouldn’t be a small matter. It was better to avoid trouble.

Since Qin Yao was already dating Captain Gu, even with these rumors, it wasn’t a big deal. They could explain it privately. Poor Xiao Li was crying so pitifully, which tugged at their heartstrings.

The others could hold back, but Tian Shuyun couldn’t stand it any longer. She walked over and yanked off Yuan Li’s hat, slapping her twice in front of everyone.

Everyone was stunned.

Yuan Li was also frozen. She knew that Tian Shuyun didn’t get along with Qin Yao and had said plenty of bad things about her before. Why would she jump out now?

From Xu Yun, she had also heard a piece of gossip that Tian Shuyun was in an ambiguous relationship with a male officer. They were at a critical stage, so she shouldn’t dare to cause a scene.

Tian Shuyun, known for her quick and thoughtless speech, shouted, "I’m going to write a complaint letter! How shameless you are! Distorting the truth!"