Preparation

Author's note:

The previous chapter was slightly revised. It won't affect the reading experience. Thank you!

Main text

After leaving the cowshed, the two went to Cheng Hu's house to ask him for help weaving some simple pen holders from vines and bamboo. They planned to give them to the attending leaders on the day of the legal education class.

"They don't need to be too complicated—small and delicate, with a five-pointed star on each. Twelve in total. I need them the day after tomorrow. Can you finish them?"

Shen Jianan said apologetically, "I only just remembered this. I want to use those leaders to promote the Chaoyang Production Brigade's handicrafts, but I don't think much of anyone else's workmanship, so I came to you at the last minute."

"What are you talking about!?"

Cheng Hu smiled and shot him a glare. "Being able to use my skills to help you and the brigade is something to be proud of."

He added, "Don't worry! Something this small won't stump me. Don't we still have two days? Pen holders are much easier to weave than bags. I can finish them all tomorrow."

"Then thank you."

Shen Jianan smiled as he thanked him. "I can't let you work for nothing. I'll have the secretary make it up to you elsewhere."

"Fine."

Cheng Hu accepted calmly. After everything he had been through, his temperament had changed. He was no longer the foolish person who only knew how to give.

"Alright, we'll be going, then."

Shen Jianan and Gu Yu stood to say goodbye. Before leaving, Shen Jianan added, "Once things settle down in a few days, you and your wife can come to my place for the winter-clothing work," then they left the Cheng Household.

When the two returned to Half-Mountain Courtyard, Chen Ming and the others had not gone to sleep yet. Shen Jianan took out the two clothing samples he had made that day and asked them to see whether anything needed improving.

The first set was a black suede silhouette jacket with a turn-down collar. The folded cuffs and zipper with metal buttons added highlights to the overall look. Below it was a pair of black distressed, high-waisted, slim-cut wide-leg jeans.

"This outfit is unisex. Both men and women can wear it, so I plan to make two hundred sets in both men's and women's sizes."

Holding up the jacket and standing on tiptoe to measure it against his beloved, Shen Jianan said, "If a girl wears it, I suggest pairing it with a loose red sweater with a small round neckline underneath.

The length should ideally fall around the middle of the hips. The color contrast would create a strong visual impact.

If it's cold, add a thick black scarf and tie her hair in a high ponytail. It'll guarantee she looks both beautiful and cool.

Boys can dress like that too, but I'd suggest white, gray, or black base layers underneath for the safest and best-looking option.

Of course, if the customer is fashionable and bold enough, they can layer it. For example, wear a turtleneck sweater as a base, add a white silhouette shirt over it, then put on this jacket. You'll be at the forefront of fashion."

"Hehe! Jianan, where did you learn all these words? They're so fun."

Zhang Qiao lovingly stroked the clothes in Shen Jianan's hands, already calculating that once they went into mass production, he would order himself a set first.

"I learned them from movies and books before."

Shen Jianan set the clothes down and smiled at him before continuing with the introduction of the second women's outfit—a duffle-coat-style wool overcoat.

The one he had made was green. There was also a more versatile black version that he had not made yet. The coat still had a POLO collar, with only three toggle buttons ending just above the waistline.

On the corresponding positions on both sides of the coat, long pointed-tab fasteners had been made from wool fabric of the same material.

This coat could be worn open or buttoned all the way up, creating two entirely different styles. In autumn, it could be matched with long or short skirts or trousers. It looked elegant and stylish, making it the perfect flattering outfit for girls.

In winter, it could be paired with long or short boots. Add a light-yellow scarf then, and it would be warm and fresh. Wearing this outfit outside, the head-turning rate within ten meters was guaranteed to be one hundred percent.

Shen Jianan stopped speaking and carefully looked at the four people present. "What do you think? Is there anything that needs improving?"

"No."

Before he could finish, Gu Yu had already raised his hand in a thumbs-up. "What you made looks especially good. It'll definitely set off a winter fashion trend."

"..."

Zhang Qiao, Qu Feng, and Chen Ming rolled their eyes speechlessly, only to hear the youth say, "I think so too. Wasn't I just hoping you'd praise me?"

The three of them were defeated. Big brother, even if it was true, couldn't the two of you restrain yourselves a little? If outsiders heard that, they might say you were young and reckless, ignorant of the vastness of heaven and earth.

However, the two people involved clearly did not care. They began discussing the number of custom orders and sales channels for the clothes on their own.

Gu Yu felt that both outfits were very fashionable. He hoped Shen Jianan would directly target the high-end market and perhaps cooperate with department stores or other people.

"You absolutely don't need to go around trying to sell them one by one. Of course, you can provide door-to-door service for quality customers introduced by Sister Bai Yun, the female comrades at the Public Security Bureau, and people like Gao Xiaofen. Forget everyone else.

Look at those family members in the compound. They say Zhao Qiancheng and his brother's actions have nothing to do with you and that each matter should be treated separately, but behind your back, they buy your clothes while talking about you. You shouldn't indulge them.

Buy if they want to, forget it if they don't. Don't let those people think your clothes can't sell and that you're begging them to buy them!"

"Mm! I've actually wanted to do that for a while."

Shen Jianan smiled and continued, "But before, I wanted to build up my reputation and word of mouth first before considering it. Who knew plans couldn't keep up with changes?"

He spread his hands and went on, "Now that you mention it, I think moving the plan forward isn't impossible.

Even though they can place orders for several hundred sets at a time, I'm not happy earning that money. Then I'll just find another group of customers. There are so many towns around here—am I supposed to worry that my good clothes won't sell!?"

He reached out and patted the clothes on the kang, then smiled and winked at Gu Yu. Gu Yu instantly understood what he meant and nodded. "I'll make arrangements in a few days. Right now, the most important thing is to hurry up and produce the goods."

"Mm!"

Shen Jianan nodded. "Once the legal education class is over, I'll get people to work overtime. At worst, I'll pay them more overtime wages."

The two spoke as if no one else were there, leaving Zhang Qiao and the other two completely confused. They had no idea what riddle the pair was speaking in, but they did not care much either.

Neither Zhang Qiao nor Qu Feng lacked money. They had followed Gu Yu since childhood and had always treated him as their leader. They were already used to obeying whatever he said.

Back then, if the Gu Household had not run into trouble, Zhang and Qu's elders, fearing the two would be implicated, would not have sent them away that very night to stay elsewhere for two years. Otherwise, the two of them would likely have found a way to follow Gu Yu to the Chaoyang Production Brigade.

As for Chen Ming, he was even less likely to ask questions. As long as he knew to be obedient and not betray them, he might not make huge money, but small money would keep coming endlessly.

As long as he worked diligently, even if he returned to the city in the future and had nowhere to go, the money he earned now would be enough to rent a place and live steadily for a while, until he found a way forward.

With the matter settled, they did not delay any longer. After washing up, they returned to their rooms to sleep. There was still a battle ahead, and they had to rest well to face it.

The next day, before dawn had fully broken, Zhao Gang and several other cadres arrived at the brigade early to carefully inspect the two blackboards. Seeing that the third coat of paint applied yesterday had dried completely and that there were no bubbles or dents around the surface, they finally felt relieved.

Not long after, Shen Jianan, Gu Yu, the other three, all the educated youths from the Educated Youth Station, and children such as Zhao Chengcai arrived one after another.

After thanking everyone for their hard work, the cadres all headed to the fields. With the educated youths and so many children making the blackboard newspapers, they had to fill in for them, or the villagers would not be able to keep up with the work.

Once the others had gone far away, Shen Jianan asked everyone present what ideas they had. Wang Hongbo said that the male educated youths planned to make the blackboard newspaper at the brigade entrance mainly about commemorating revolutionary martyrs.

However, Lu Xiaoyue and the other female comrades felt that the first edition should feature something else. Since the legal education class would be held tomorrow, they needed to stay on theme. They had argued until now without reaching a decision.

Upon hearing this, Shen Jianan asked whether they had each prepared any material and suggested they could explain the pros and cons separately. The result was that no one said a word.

Clearly, both sides wanted to use their own content, but they were afraid it would not be approved, so neither side had prepared anything.

Shen Jianan was so angry that he lost his temper on the spot. "We agreed long ago that you would settle on a theme as soon as possible. Yet now, when it's time to start, you still haven't decided. How am I supposed to dare entrust important matters to you in the future?"

All the educated youths flushed red with embarrassment at his words and did not dare speak. Even the children who had come to help shrank to the side in fright, afraid of getting caught in his anger.

Yet Shen Jianan did not stop criticizing them. He looked at everyone present and berated them coldly, "I created an opportunity for all of you, yet you didn't seize it properly. In the future, don't complain that all you do is work every day and that you never get a chance to put your remaining energy to use.

It's a virtue for boys to yield to girls, but you have to consider the timing. The fire is already burning your asses, yet you're still coyly passing things back and forth. When it comes to critical moments, are you going to give away your futures and jobs too?"

He glared angrily at the male educated youths, then turned to Lu Xiaoyue and the other women. "And you female educated youths—ladies first does not mean whoever argues the loudest is right.

If you want to establish yourselves among men, you have to put in more effort than others. Otherwise, society will be the first to eliminate you. I'm not looking down on female comrades; this is simply the reality of the environment.

Have you considered what the leaders will think of the entire Chaoyang Production Brigade if we cannot finish this blackboard newspaper today, or if we do a poor job because we were unprepared?

They'll think we're putting on a show and going through the motions. Once that idea takes root in their minds, what consequences will we face? Do you know?"

"We do."

Everyone nodded guiltily. Feng Yi stepped forward and said sincerely, "Shen, I'm sorry. We let down the opportunity you created for everyone. Rest assured, there won't be a next time. We won't make such a low-level mistake again."

"Yes, yes! Don't be angry anymore."

"Shen, we're sorry!"

"Enough."

Shen Jianan interrupted them, frowning. "Stop apologizing. I'll only give you one chance. If you mess up this legal education class, don't expect me to lead you in doing anything again. Then when your records look bad when you return to the city in the future, you won't be able to blame anyone."

As soon as he finished speaking, he turned and called Chen Ming and Gu Yu over to help. "There's no time. Chen Ming, you're good at drawing. See if you can first draw some representative pictures on the blackboard—make them as eye-catching as possible."

"No problem. Leave it to me."

Chen Ming patted his chest in assurance, then crouched down, gathered up the tools, and stepped forward to get to work. Shen Jianan finally felt somewhat relieved and turned to look at Gu Yu.

"Brother Gu, you and everyone else should look through the books I bought for material about 'Passing Down the Revolutionary Spirit Through Generations' and copy it onto the blackboard. Pay attention to the layout, lettering, and color scheme.

If you have any good ideas, you can add them in the middle, but don't make it too cluttered. I'll take Cheng Guang, Chengcai, and the others to prepare the other things we need for tomorrow."

"Alright, go on!"

Gu Yu patted his head soothingly. Shen Jianan immediately smiled, then looked at everyone. "Work hard! Whatever you have to say can wait until we're done."

With that, he took Cheng Guang and the others into the brigade compound. Gu Yu immediately turned around and waved his hand. "Let's begin! Don't waste time."

"Okay, okay!"

The educated youths all nodded. Carrying books and tools, they went forward, divided the work among themselves, and began a busy day.

After leading the children into the brigade compound, Shen Jianan assigned Chengcai and Zhao Tian to cut all the kraft paper he had bought into palm-sized pieces. They were then to stack ten sheets together, bind them into booklets with needle and thread, and write the four words "Study Manual" on them with fountain pens.

Meanwhile, he used red paint to write eight large characters on the cement wall above the blackboard in the courtyard: "United in Endeavor, Create New Glory." He then outlined them in black paint, turning them into an eye-catching study slogan.

Afterward, he called all the remaining children into the office and began teaching them what they needed to say and do when facing the leaders tomorrow. Only after everyone had memorized it firmly did they move on to the next step: rehearsing the welcoming ceremony.

The children all attended school in town and were already familiar with these procedures. A little guidance was enough for them to grasp the essence, so Shen Jianan did not have to worry too much.

Thus, after going through several procedures, only half the morning had passed. Shen Jianan told them to go home for lunch first and return in the afternoon to help him clean up the courtyard, then dismissed them.

Afterward, he left the compound alone to find Gu Yu and the others. Because he had lost his temper that morning, everyone feared delaying the work and being disliked by him in the future, so their efficiency was exceptionally high.

In just one morning, they had completed more than half of the blackboard newspaper. Once Chen Ming finished the remaining drawings, they only needed to fill in the borders around the different sections.

Shen Jianan stood quietly before the wall, looking over the content with great satisfaction.

At the top center of the blackboard were seven eye-catching characters: "Passing Down the Revolutionary Spirit Through Generations." Directly below them was an article titled The Great Wall in My Heart.

The chalk handwriting was vigorous and forceful, flowing like clouds and water. The article itself was passionate and stirring, fitting the background of the era and especially inspiring.

Shen Jianan asked with a smile who had written it. Gu Yu shifted slightly toward him. "I did."

"Impressive."

The youth gave him a thumbs-up, then looked to the side. Written there was the Chairman's Seven-Regulated Poem: The Long March, while below it was an article titled Paying Tribute to the Martyrs.

The content was fairly decent. When Shen Jianan asked, he learned it was Feng Yi's work. Shen Jianan nodded in satisfaction. This man was intelligent and talented; his future achievements would certainly not be low.

After thinking it over, he asked Feng Yi to handle tomorrow's meeting records. Everyone was confused upon hearing that. Why did they need to keep records?

Shen Jianan did not hide anything and explained his reasons for the arrangement to everyone. They suddenly understood and praised him for being farsighted and thoughtful, saying he truly was the finest among the educated youths.

"Enough."

Shen Jianan laughed. "Don't think that flattering me means what happened this morning no longer counts."

He glared at everyone, then called Gu Yu and Chen Ming to head back with him. Feng Yi and the others breathed a sigh of relief, knowing that most of his anger had faded and that he would not get angry again for the time being.

However, everyone had barely been happy for long before their faces fell again, because Jiang Hongmei, Zheng Lei, and Huang Qimei—the three troublemakers—had returned.

As soon as Shen Jianan received the news, he immediately went to Zhao Gang and asked him to have someone keep an eye on the three, lest they cause trouble.

The cadres were worried too. They had previously discussed with Lei Zhensheng about sending the three to another Commune. Unfortunately, the Chaoyang Production Brigade's reputation had become terrible, and the incident of the three fighting at the hospital had spread everywhere. Who would be foolish enough to take them?

Zhao Gang was beside himself with worry. He was considering speaking with Jiang Hongmei first and sending her near the farm where Zhao Jianguo was being reformed. After all, the two had previously discussed getting married. Perhaps Jiang Hongmei would be willing to travel a thousand miles to follow her man?

As for Zheng Lei and Huang Qimei, he wanted to send them to the forestry farm. Wasn't that place always short of people? The two of them were young and strong laborers, so the person in charge of the forestry farm would probably not refuse. But before he had the chance to arrange it, they had returned.

For some reason, he felt uneasy. He had a feeling that nothing good would come from the three returning. Shen Jianan worried about the same thing, which was why he reminded them and secretly made arrangements.

Sure enough, his words proved true. The three began causing trouble that very night, only to be countered by the prepared Shen Jianan. In the end, they were arrested and sent to prison.