"Big Sister Ma, where did all these books come from?" After several days together, Gongshu Feng had learned the name of the woman caring for him.
"Some were bought, some were picked up," Big Sister Ma replied. "And people who went to Shenzhou would bring some back for us too."
"Do you usually read?"
"I'm too slow at recognizing characters. Usually, I listen to others talk about them more." She smiled a little sheepishly. "But the leader said it made no difference whether you read or listened. Either way, you learned the same principles."
Gongshu Feng found it hard to imagine seeing regret and disappointment over poor literacy on the face of a woman born into a farming household.
"Do you think reading... is useful?"
"Of course." Big Sister Ma did not hesitate. "I never read before, and I thought life could still go on just fine. But now that I've read books, I feel like the principles of the world have become so much clearer. Going back to how things were before would be impossible instead. Look at the slogan posted over there—"
She pointed toward a corner of the cave.
Gongshu Feng narrowed his eyes and made it out after a while. "The world is only as vast as the knowledge you understand...?"
"Yes. The first sentence in the Elementary Education Series." Big Sister Ma sighed. "It sounded strange at first, like the words did not even make sense when put together. But the more I learned afterward, the more I felt it was right. You may not know this, but our leader only decided to stand against the authorities to the bitter end after reading several of those books."
Gongshu Feng's heart jolted. Could those be the legendary "rebel books"?
"Which books? May I read them?"
"There