"The Sixth Set of Radio Exercises now begins. Stretching exercise, ready—go! One, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight... Two, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight..."
"Aimin, Aimin, wake up!"
"Teacher Han! Teacher Han!"
"Stop shouting! Hurry and get Teacher Han to the hospital!"
"Who knows whether he broke any bones? We can't move him carelessly. We should call the hospital!"
Han Aimin was jolted awake by the overlapping shouts. Opening his eyes, he saw familiar yet unfamiliar faces gathered around him, each one more anxious than the last. Then a searing pain shot through his elbows and knees.
"Aimin's awake. Everyone, make room." A man in his forties let out a sigh of relief and urgently asked, "Aimin, are you all right?"
Unless he was dreaming, the man before him had to be Zhong Jianyu, his former colleague and big brother. He was a military cadre who had been transferred to 985 Factory after leaving the army. Since he knew nothing about technology and the factory had no shortage of political cadres, he had been assigned to the Children's Middle School as a political teacher.
Behind Zhong Jianyu stood a young woman in a Floral Plaid Spring and Autumn Shirt. Her surname was Liu, and her name was Liu Pingping. She was both a 985 Factory Descendant and third sister's classmate from nursery school through middle school. After graduating high school and failing to get into university, she had been assigned by the factory to teach English at the Children's Middle School. But she was neither a cadre nor a formal employee. She was a "Collective Worker," whose salary and benefits were one grade below those of formal employees...
"Aimin, look at my hand!" Not knowing what Han Aimin was thinking, Zhong Jianyu raised a finger and moved