Chapter 91: First Update

Qin Yao started working at the county cultural center. The office she was assigned to was called the Literature and Arts Office. There weren’t many specific tasks on a day-to-day basis; their work depended entirely on the propaganda arrangements from above. For example, if they were instructed to write articles on certain topics, they had to follow those guidelines. Other than that, the schedule was flexible.

In addition, she had to work at the library two days a week, volunteering to organize books.

The cultural center had many talented individuals. There were specific rooms for poetry recitation, dance, accordion practice, and singing. Many young men and women worked there, and their hours were not fixed. Most people started work around 9 or 10 a.m. and left at 3 or 4 p.m., leaving plenty of time for artistic practice.

While the freedom was nice, after a month on the job, Qin Yao was growing tired of it.

The first task assigned to Qin Yao at the cultural center was to “share her experiences on the creation of *The Woman Militia Member Ye*.” Initially, it was just an internal sharing session with colleagues in the unit.

Because she gave such a good talk, she was selected as an exemplary speaker and began giving lectures in various large and small enterprise units, and even in farms. By the end, Qin Yao was so tired of talking about the book that even mentioning it made her feel nauseous.

“You’ll get used to it. When Old Zhang first came here, he wrote a very popular poem that he treasured. After that, at every gathering, he would recite this poem. Whenever someone mentioned him outside of work, it was always about this poem. Now, when he hears someone recite the poem, he looks like a dead man, saying that the poem is only fit to be used to wipe the toilet.”

This was said by Xu Lu, a young male actor in the cultural center. He was in his early twenties, a handsome young man with bronze-colored skin and thick, tousled hair like a cloud. He had a bright smile and spoke with a clear, deliberate broadcast-like voice.

Xu Lu had a beautiful girlfriend who was a female educated youth. They had been dating for two years but were not married yet. Xu Lu was witty and enthusiastic in the unit, able to chat with anyone. He was the “top male star” of the cultural center.

Young girls in the unit took pride in being able to chat with Xu Lu. Girls from other units also liked to ask people from the cultural center about Xu Lu; his plays were very popular.

In Qin Yao’s opinion, Xu Lu’s acting wasn’t that great, but he was popular mainly because he took more care in dressing and grooming himself than the average man. He always wore well-tailored new shirts and long pants, and his shoes were good leather shoes costing dozens of yuan. He even used women’s soap and facial cream, dressing himself up like a peacock.

Xu Lu loved taking photos. As a male actor, most of his salary went towards his personal upkeep. He was frugal with food but never skimped on clothes. He always wore fashionable fabrics.

Whenever he wore new clothes, he would ask his photographer friend to take solo photos of him outdoors. After developing the photos, he would display them on the cultural center’s bulletin board for everyone to admire.

Because of this, he was very popular in the cultural center, a small-town “male star” of his time.

Xu Lu had good relationships with many female colleagues in the unit. He would chase and play with several girls, saying witty and teasing words, but in a time when the atmosphere around male-female relationships was tense, no one ever thought he was being inappropriate.

It was the girls who approached him, not the other way around. Being able to chat with the cultural center’s “male star” was seen as a big deal.

The last time Qin Yao was washing guava in the courtyard of a neighboring unit, a young girl asked, “Is that Xu Lu from your cultural center around? Is he taken?”

“He has a girlfriend.”

“Is he married?”

“No.”

“Then why isn’t he married yet?”

...

Who knows?

Qin Yao kept a low profile at the cultural center. After a month, she hadn’t brought her two children over. She did her job well in the unit and alternated childcare duties with Shen Guixiang at home. When Gu Cheng returned, the couple would take care of the kids together, playing games with the two little ones. Life was going smoothly.

Lately, Xu Lu had been making an effort to talk to her. Other people in the unit had noticed, and gradually, there were some rumors.

These were all just jealous remarks.

“Xiao Qin, I heard you’re married. You should be careful about getting involved with anyone else.”

“Your husband is in the military, isn’t he? Even though he’s not home much, you shouldn’t do anything inappropriate.”

"It's just that you married early, otherwise you would have had a good man like Xu Lu."

These were the words said openly.

Behind the scenes, more people were saying: "That newcomer Xiao Qin, she looks like a vixen, seducing Teacher Xu as soon as she arrived."

"Women, they're all like that. No matter how beautiful a woman is, they all like our Teacher Xu."

"Xiao Qin is married, to a man ten years older than her, an officer. He earns a high salary but is never home. She must be lonely."

...

Because of these rumors, Xu Lu came by to apologize to Qin Yao, "Don't take this idle gossip to heart, Xiao Qin. They're just baseless rumors."

"My relationship with you is purely professional."

With that, Xu Lu gazed at Qin Yao with what he believed were deep, affectionate eyes, hoping to move her.

Xu Lu wasn't attracted to Qin Yao's beauty per se; rather, he was interested in her status. A young married woman with a high-earning husband who was often away from home must be lonely, and he could get some money from her.

Xu Lu didn't love anyone; he only loved himself. He was dating his educated youth girlfriend because he saw her family's wealth. Every month, she sent him money and subsidies. She lived frugally to support his habits of buying leather shoes and polyester clothes...

But now, Xu Lu's expenses were growing, and one woman's support was no longer enough to maintain his "handsome" appearance. He wanted to keep up his wardrobe with new clothes, shoes, and belts.

Women were easy to handle, and lonely women even more so. If he could win over Qin Yao, he would gain more support.

Whenever he had the chance, Xu Lu would "display his feathers" in front of Qin Yao, believing his charming and suave demeanor outshone Qin Yao's rough, older husband who was never home.

He had no intention of interfering with Xiao Qin's marriage; he just wanted to benefit from it.

"Don't misunderstand Qin Yao and me, we really have nothing going on. Please stop saying things that hurt our feelings. Qin Yao has her own family, and I have my girlfriend. My girlfriend and I are doing very well..." Xu Lu proactively explained to others.

One female secretary with the surname Lan, who was a bit sour about the situation, said, "You and your girlfriend may be doing well, but her relationship with her husband might not be. You never know what's really going on behind closed doors, Xiao Xu. Be careful, don't get tricked and betray your love."

This female secretary, Lan Baiyu, had short hair and loved wearing various fabric headbands she made herself. If her hair was long, she would tie it up before going out. If it was shoulder-length, she would let it hang loose. She preferred wearing headbands and didn't braid her hair.

Before Qin Yao arrived, Lan Baiyu and another female writer, Jia Hui, who also had a boyfriend, were closest to Xu Lu. The three of them often flirted and played around. Jia Hui was short and chubby but had excellent writing skills and strong work abilities. She had a worker-peasant-soldier college student boyfriend who was a cadre. They were in a long-distance relationship, communicating only through letters.

Lan Baiyu was slender and beautiful. Many men pursued her, but she hadn't found the right person yet. She loved hanging around Xu Lu, asking about his romantic details with his girlfriend, Huang Mingli, always speaking of how she envied their "beautiful relationship," using it as an excuse to get closer to Xu Lu.

Lan Baiyu often talked about Xu Lu's girlfriend, Huang Mingli, claiming she was "keeping an eye on Xu Lu" for her. This made it hard for anyone to suspect anything improper between them.

Those who didn't know their relationship well often mistook Lan Baiyu for Xu Lu's girlfriend, which secretly pleased her.

Besides Jia Hui and Lan Baiyu, there was another petite and charming young woman with a baby face, very likable, who revealed a pair of small tiger teeth when she smiled—Cui Ying. She was also one of Xu Lu's supporters.

Cui Ying no longer worked at the cultural center; she had transferred to a high school as a Chinese language teacher and only visited Xu Lu during holidays. She never said she came to see Xu Lu but rather to visit her best friend, Lan Baiyu.

Jia Hui, Lan Baiyu, and Cui Ying were Xu Lu's "three musketeers."

Xu Lu also had an official girlfriend, Huang Mingli, who was a rural educated youth. They didn't see each other often, but she came to deliver things to him every month. Xu Lu gave Huang Mingli his "handsome photo," so she could hold onto her longing heart, seeing the photo as seeing him, a small comfort.

Even with his "three musketeers," Xu Lu wasn't content. He intended to bring "Qin Yao," an outsider, into his fold and reorganize his "four confidants."

Xiao Qin was married, so it was safe to approach her. However, she wasn't as shrewd as the others, and her beauty made her stand out.

Jia Hui, who also had a boyfriend, played around with Xu Lu without anyone gossiping.

Lan Baiyu was the smartest, using her "envy for his relationship with Huang Mingli" as an excuse to be close to him, and no one could fault her.

"Xiao Lan, you and Comrade Qin should become good friends. I think you have a lot to talk about. The more you interact with Qin Yao, the more misunderstandings will be cleared up," Xu Lu tried to set Lan Baiyu and Qin Yao up, hoping they would become harmonious sisters.

A woman should be gentle, obedient, and know her place, and never let jealousy get the best of her. Only by avoiding jealousy can several women live in harmony as a family and serve the same man well. Xu Lu admired how the ancestors invented the term "a woman's jealousy" to warn and discipline these women, emphasizing that they must stay in line.

As for jealousy between men, how could that be called jealousy? That's called ambition, a form of praise.

Lan Baiyu snorted coldly, full of wariness towards Qin Yao. She was afraid that Qin Yao might take her place next to Xu Lu.

Qin Yao had given her a sense of crisis, and it was Lan Baiyu who had spread the recent rumors.

In her view, although Huang Mingli was Xu Lu's girlfriend, she was far away and they probably wouldn't get married. Jia Hui, though lonely, had a decent cadre boyfriend and only liked to flirt and toy with Xu Lu.

As for Cui Ying, she was too dim to be any real competition.

Qin Yao was married, but she was beautiful, young, and had a great figure. Her husband was rarely around. What if she and Xu Lu developed real sparks between them and decided to throw caution to the wind?

"Qin Yao, don't misunderstand. Don't think that just because you're pretty, everyone likes you. Xu Lu won't like you. He has a good temper and is friendly with everyone... I’ve watched Xu Lu and Mingli’s relationship grow, and whoever dares to ruin it will face the consequences," Lan Baiyu warned Qin Yao, invoking Huang Mingli's name.

Qin Yao said, "I don’t play games."

Lan Baiyu widened her eyes. "What do you mean?"