Gu Xiaoxia

Biodata

Background / History

Childhood and family circumstances

Gu Xiaoxia arrived at the Production Team with her father, Gu Boyuan, when she was approximately three or four years old. He was the team’s only university graduate, but few residents knew why he had settled in such a remote place. Their early life included living in an earth cellar before moving into a house 21 284.

She grew up separated from her mother and younger twin sister. Some village children mocked her as a “motherless child”; Gu Boyuan complained to their parents, and the harassment stopped after adults intervened. Liang Yuemei also helped raise her, teaching her things her father did not know how to explain or handle 927 1270.

After graduating from high school, Xiaoxia returned to agricultural work on the team. At her introduction, she seeks lamb to nourish her sick father. Li Long escorts her home and frightens away a shadowy figure on the route, surprising her because she had previously heard that he was timid 21.

Fate in Li Long’s previous life

In Li Long’s recollection of his previous life, Xiaoxia qualified to teach at Central Elementary School rather than the middle school. The elementary school had no dormitory, requiring her to commute from the team. She eventually married Gu Ermao after his persistent pursuit, divorced him because of domestic violence, and subsequently disappeared from Li Long’s knowledge 21 124.

Education and career

Li Long’s advance information about the teaching examinations gave Xiaoxia roughly a month to prepare. With Gu Boyuan tutoring her, she resumed studying despite forgotten material, village gossip, and Wu Shufen’s discouragement. She came to regard the examination as a decisive opportunity to leave exhausting agricultural labor 104 120 124.

The Education Bureau secondment initially worried her because no dormitory was available. Li Long offered accommodation in his newly purchased Big Courtyard, where she chose a separate bedroom. Having housing settled allowed her to begin work without needing the bureau to resolve personal arrangements 241 244.

She continued studying after work, recognizing that formal qualifications affected both pay and advancement. Her evening studies focused on Radio and TV University, and she later stated that she intended to pursue a bachelor’s degree. Completion of that degree is not established in the supplied chapters 255 1031.

Courtship and marriage

Xiaoxia later tells Gu Xiaoyu that she made the first move in her relationship with Li Long. She admired the capable man he had become, rather than his earlier personality, and resisted the idea that Wu Shufen’s previous relationship with him should prevent her from associating with him 120 931 949.

During an early mountain outing, she explored Li Long’s winter camp, found a mushroom ring, and discovered a piece of Ma River Jade while washing mushrooms. She gave the jade to him, and they prepared a meal together at the cabin 167 168.

Their families arranged their engagement without betrothal money, a decision Xiaoxia supported. Both agreed to postpone the wedding for her career. When Teacher Wang questioned whether gratitude was being mistaken for love, Xiaoxia explained that their feelings had developed gradually rather than from one favor 239 240.

She married Li Long wearing a bright red wedding outfit and decorated her family’s windows with double-happiness paper-cuts she had made herself. After the wedding, the couple held a feast for their helpers and made the customary third-day return visit to Gu Boyuan 434 436.

Motherhood and household life

By the time Li Long brought home a young roe deer and jade, Xiaoxia was pregnant. He decided to return home daily while she continued working. After she gave birth to twins, he stayed home through her postpartum recovery and declined wheat-harvesting work to care for her and the babies 635 680.

Once her recovery was complete, Xiaoxia encouraged him to return to the mountains and pursue his livelihood. Li Long and Sister Yang subsequently handled much of the children’s daily care, allowing her to concentrate on work; she openly credited them rather than herself for the boys’ good behavior 680 921 928.

Her household’s prosperity also changed her view of secure state employment. Although she valued her own career, she no longer regarded state grain rations as the only desirable path, and accepted that Li Long preferred work outside the restrictions of the system 513.

Reunion with Gu Xiaoyu

Gu Boyuan and Li Long eventually explained that Xiaoxia had a younger sister and that her mother might still be alive. She missed them but did not actively search, partly because locating someone after nearly twenty years was so difficult 739.

When Gu Xiaoyu arrived from Yanjing, Xiaoxia obtained leave from the Education Bureau and collected her from the guesthouse. Her greeting—“I’ll take you home”—immediately eased the younger sister’s sense of separation. The reunion gave Xiaoxia a confidante with whom she could discuss feelings she could not comfortably share with colleagues 928 929.

The sisters’ closeness did not extend to an uncomplicated reconciliation with their mother. After learning that Fan Wenli had deliberately left her with Gu Boyuan and later built a comfortable life in Yanjing, Xiaoxia felt resentment. During preparations for a Yanjing visit, she said she wanted to see her mother without announcing her presence rather than arrange a formal reunion 931.

She later helped plan Gu Boyuan’s marriage to Teacher Song and welcomed Song’s considerate treatment of the family. A telephone confrontation with Fan Wenli remained painful, but Xiaoxia avoided criticizing their mother to Xiaoyu, recognizing that her sister’s experience had been different 1252 1265 1269 1392 1395.

Appearance

• Pretty and increasingly polished: Her appearance and county-seat clothing attract admiration from Li Long’s relatives and acquaintances 253 324.
• Left-cheek scar: A rooster pecked her in childhood, leaving a small scar resembling a dimple 1269.
• Neat ponytail: At her reunion with Xiaoyu, she wears her hair in a ponytail rather than permed waves 928.
• Clothing: Shown wearing a wool coat and scarf, later a down jacket; her wedding outfit is bright red 324 434 928.
• Resemblance to Xiaoyu: The twins look notably alike, though their different upbringings have left differences in appearance and manner. Liang Yuemei recognizes Xiaoxia partly by her arm-swinging walk and facial scar 927 1269.

Personality

Xiaoxia is initially soft-spoken, easily embarrassed, and reserved. As her father’s circumstances improve and she gains secure work, she becomes more openly cheerful and curious. Li Long interprets her excitement during their mountain trip as the release of interests long suppressed by family hardship 21 168.

Her gentleness does not prevent her from setting boundaries. Before the teaching examination, she refuses to let Wu Shufen’s jealousy dictate her transport arrangements or endanger her prospects. She later nearly throws liquor at Wang Qiyuan after he insults Li Long, though her husband stops her 120 921.

She is diligent but initially inexperienced in office politics. Senior colleagues burden her with time-consuming tasks, and she worries that refusing them will damage workplace relationships. Li Long helps her distinguish cooperation from allowing herself to be pushed around 454.

Although she sometimes enjoys others’ envy, she is not habitually vain. She remembers how she obtained her opportunities, remains content with her household, and supports generosity toward relatives. Strong emotion can make her choke up or cry, even though her generally happy marriage leaves others seeing her as calm and steady 498 876 1265.

Abilities & Skills

Chinese Teaching

• Teaches Chinese to first-year junior middle school students 134.
• Prepares lessons, supervises revision, and takes an interest in both high-achieving and troublesome pupils 240.
• Initially intends to remain a teacher for life before her bureau transfer opens another career path 378.

Handwriting and Document Writing

• Practices handwriting under Gu Boyuan’s supervision from childhood, copying his work when copybooks are unavailable 242.
• Develops broad, assured penmanship suited to handwritten documents, examination papers, and wax stencils 242.
• Writes official materials and helps Deputy Director Wang compile the office’s annual work plan 378 614.
• Writes short stories from childhood, encouraged and guided by her father 242.

Cycling and Driving

• Learns to ride independently in less than an hour under Li Long’s instruction 243.
• Begins learning to drive a Volga, but her first lesson goes wrong when she becomes distracted, hits a pothole, and confuses the accelerator with the brake 1165.
• Rehearses the controls afterward and improves enough to start, shift without looking down, slow, and stop during a later lesson 1167 1169.
• Later helps Li Juan and Li Qiang learn to drive. Li Long still discourages her from attempting an unfamiliar, dangerous long-distance route 1252 1327.

Cooking and Handicrafts

• Cooks at her school dormitory and shares meal preparation with Li Long 231 498 502.
• Makes the double-happiness paper-cuts used at her wedding 434.

Equipment / Personal Items

• Phoenix 26-inch women’s bicycle — Bought by Li Long; fitted with a full chain guard and a kickstand. Becomes her regular transport between home, work, and the village 243 244 378.
• Shanghai Brand wristwatch — One of a matching pair purchased after she and Li Long discover that each has been saving to buy the other a watch 253.

Relationships

• Li Long — Husband. Supports her education and career, provides practical help, and takes a large share of childcare. She admires his judgment and ability to maintain relationships 124 241 680 1227.
• Gu Boyuan — Father and childhood tutor. Raised her through difficult circumstances and consistently supported her departure from agricultural work. She remains attentive to his welfare and helps arrange his later marriage 21 104 583 1252.
• Gu Xiaoyu — Younger twin sister. Their reunion develops into an easy, intimate friendship; Xiaoxia also supports efforts to give Xiaoyu additional income and financial security 928 929 972 1395.
• Fan Wenli — Biological mother. Childhood longing gives way to resentment after Xiaoxia learns more about their separation. Their later telephone exchange is strained 931 1265.
• Mingming and Haohao — Twin sons. She balances motherhood with her career and, together with Li Long, expresses a wish that they remain in China rather than settle abroad 928 1369.
• Li Jianguo and Liang Yuemei — Brother-in-law and sister-in-law. Their household supported her before the marriage; Liang Yuemei cared for her almost as a daughter during childhood 21 239 1270.
• Li Qingxia and Du Chunfang — Parents-in-law. She addresses them as her parents after marriage and maintains a harmonious relationship with them 449 498.
• Li Xia — Sister-in-law. Xiaoxia welcomes her warmly and gives her a new headscarf at their first meeting, putting her at ease 553.
• Sister Yang — Provides meals and substantial childcare support. Xiaoxia sympathizes with her difficult past and encourages her to build a life in Northern Xinjiang 569 928.
• Deputy Director Wang — Bureau superior who recognizes her abilities, oversees her permanent transfer, and encourages her continued development 253 378.
• Teacher Song — Stepmother. Xiaoxia appreciates her consideration and accepts her into the family 1392 1395.
• Wu Shufen — Former close friend and Li Long’s former girlfriend. Examination disputes, comparisons between their partners, and their increasingly different lives erode the friendship. Xiaoxia finally accepts its end when Shufen avoids her after seeing her driving 120 244 929 1432.

Notable Quotes

“A friend? Friends should want each other to do better, right?” 120

“What he wanted to tell me was that our relationship had developed step by step, not because of any single incident. So our feelings can stand the test...” 240

“Xiaoyu, come on. I’ll take you home!” 928