Chapter 59 – First Part

Chapter 59 - First Part

The land had been turned over, fertilized, and disinfected. Qin Yao held a design drawing in her hand, imagining how to plan her yard. Besides a small vegetable patch, she intended to plant a ring of flowers around the edges.

She intended to plant a climbing giant bougainvillea. The island's climate didn’t support climbing roses, so she could only plant shrub roses. The winter temperatures were too warm for sufficient vernalization, meaning they wouldn’t bloom much the following year. To create a wall of climbing flowers, the easiest and most resilient choice was bougainvillea.

She decided to plant the most common type: purple bougainvillea!

Qin Yao had previously grown green and red bougainvillea, as well as various white roses. In reality, it turned out that no matter how beautiful white flowers appeared in photos, seeing a string of “white flowers” at home didn’t make one feel good. Instead, it brought to mind the paper flowers seen everywhere during the Qingming Festival.

While bright red and purple flowers might seem gaudy, they were indeed beautiful when used for decoration. A large expanse of purple bougainvillea cascaded down like a waterfall, splashing with vibrant color. From afar, it was a sea of flowers.

Bougainvillea was drought-resistant and bloomed more profusely in drier conditions.

On the second-floor balcony, she also planned to plant a bougainvillea. In the relatively shady corners, she would plant hydrangeas, camellias, rhododendrons, and celosias. She wouldn’t plant many of each type, just one or two. For hydrangeas and camellias, planting them in the ground would allow them to grow into large, flowering shrubs.

Qin Yao favored hydrangeas for their ease of care, resistance to diseases and pests, but they needed shade protection.

All the flowers Qin Yao chose were easy to maintain. She added a couple of shrub roses and dwarf petunias. Roses shouldn’t be overplanted. With ample sunlight and ground planting, roses grew vigorously, almost like wild weeds. A large shrub rose, bristling with thorns, required monthly pruning.

Gu Cheng asked, “Planting so many flowers?”

In his opinion, planting two or three in the yard and caring for them well was enough. A single bougainvillea could cover four to five square meters with flowers, filling the trellis with blooms, and it had many thorns, making it troublesome to handle.

—Eventually, he would end up dealing with his wife’s thorny flower vines when he returned home.

“When you plant flowers with intention, they may not bloom; when you plant willows unintentionally, they often grow into forests,” Qin Yao shrugged. In flower gardening, she was quite relaxed. “Plant more, and keep the best. Half will naturally be eliminated.”

It was like transplanting seedlings for vegetables. Seedlings that didn’t thrive weren’t worth transplanting. Some seedlings, from the moment they sprouted, were already ahead, the true good ones.

Nature is a process of survival of the fittest.

Qin Yao suddenly thought of her luck skill, which she had never quite understood. Using it didn’t bring extraordinary luck, nor did it shower fortune. The only time it was useful was during a snowball fight, when she frequently dodged snowballs with lucky moves, not exactly a groundbreaking skill.

So, she used her “Luck” skill while planting and transplanting seedlings.

Especially when transplanting flower seedlings, Qin Yao silently prayed for mutation, mutation, mutation, hoping her bougainvillea would bloom in a taro purple color!

*

Qin Yao returned to work at the Military Hospital. After marrying Gu Cheng, she planned to treat her colleagues and comrades to a casual meal in the canteen, following the common practices of the time.

I’ve already taken care of things back home, and now it’s just a formality at work.

"Xiao Qin, you’re finally back." Head Nurse Ge was very happy to see her and quickly shared the good news. "Your articles have been reprinted in several major newspapers and even won awards!"

"Your writing is very good. With a bit more effort, if you write more poems and articles for recitation during the Mid-Autumn and New Year's festivals, you might join the local Writers Association next year."

Qin Yao felt curious. What were the requirements for joining the local cultural association and working in the hospital’s publicity office at that time? Who made the decisions? Unable to hold back, she asked, "Head Nurse Ge, do you think I could work in the hospital's publicity office?"

Head Nurse Ge was surprised. "If you want to go, I’ll recommend you."

Qin Yao was shocked. Is it really that simple?

What Qin Yao didn’t know was that there were very few people with an education at that time. Those who had finished junior or senior high school were considered 'highly educated' in a village. At that time, there was more emphasis on studying science and math, and many were reluctant to engage in cultural propaganda for fear of getting into trouble.

But Qin Yao was not afraid of such risks. She knew that culture would become more open in the future. It would be a gradual process of liberalization and wouldn’t revert to the way it was in earlier years.

Especially in the 1980s, it was a time of literary flourishing and the golden age for print media.

When Qin Yao graduated and became an editor, traditional print media had already started to decline. Many magazines and journals had long ceased publication, becoming a memory of past glory, but some journals and magazines were still thriving.

Qin Yao had studied the history of print media development during those years and yearned for the golden era of literary and journalistic development. Having returned to that time, she was determined to start a magazine to catch the wave of the era.

And so, Qin Yao entered the hospital's publicity office to do odd jobs. The office had only four people: a director, a deputy director, and her and another youngster who were responsible for publicity slogans, publicity materials, taking photos for performances, and hosting visiting leaders for study and exchange.

The director, Ms. Huang Mingxia, was a middle-aged woman in her forties. Her husband was a middle school teacher, and their eldest daughter was already in high school. Director Huang had a round face, thick lips, and smiling eyes that gave off a kind and approachable vibe. She was slightly overweight and was a close friend of Head Nurse Ge, who recommended Qin Yao. Director Huang then accepted her.

The world is indeed a grand improvised stage.

"I’ve read the articles you wrote. They’re really good, Xiao Qin. You’re a cultured person with great writing talent... In the office, you don’t have to call me Director. Just call me Sister Xia."

Qin Yao smiled and nodded. "Alright, Sister Xia."

"Xiao Chen has left, and we were short-staffed, but then you came. What a coincidence." Director Huang pulled her in and kindly introduced her to the office.

The hospital's publicity office was important, but not essential. However, it was still significant. The office was quite large, about thirty square meters. Upon entering, there are two rows of sofas and a coffee table. On both sides are display cabinets with various newspapers, photos, and self-made hospital publicity brochures. Beneath the display cabinets were storage cabinets filled with office supplies.

When she arrived, Director Huang didn’t say much but showed her how to boil water and where the various teas were stored. There were also many snacks, biscuits, and melon seeds in the storage cabinet for entertaining guests.

"In the future, whoever arrives at the office earliest—either you or Xiao Pan—should boil the water first."

Xiao Pan, like Qin Yao, was another errand worker, a young man in his twenties.

Inside, four desks were pushed together to form a square layout. Qin Yao’s and Director Huang’s desks were aligned in a row, facing Xiao Pan’s desk across from them. Director Huang sat opposite Deputy Director Liu.

Deputy Director Liu was also a woman, around twenty-eight years old, and not yet married. She wore glasses and was a student from a worker-peasant-soldier background. She was shy and refined in speech but capable and efficient in her work.

Including Qin Yao, there were three women and one man in this office. Xiao Pan was responsible for the physical tasks that required moving things around.

"Hello, Xiao Qin."

Director Huang and Deputy Director Liu warmly welcomed Qin Yao’s arrival. Xiao Pan looked at Qin Yao with a half-smiling expression and sighed in a drawn-out tone, "Another Xiao Qin has come. Now I’m the only man in the office."

"It must be nice to be a woman like you. Marry a good man and just sit in an easy job."

Qin Yao smiled slightly and said, "Xiao Pan, you seem quite resentful. Did your partner cheat on you?"

As soon as she said this, Xiao Pan’s expression stiffened. No one else spoke, and Qin Yao guessed she had hit the mark.

Qin Yao sneered inwardly. Showing hostility right away was clearly a test to see if she was easy to bully. If she didn’t stand up to him now, they would push her around even more in the future.

An easy job? Who wouldn’t want a relaxed job?

Her internship salary had been only over a dozen yuan a month, and now it was twenty yuan. It wasn’t a lot, but it wasn’t negligible either. Compared to those who worked on planes, submarines, and warships, it was lower. But in this era, a couple earning forty yuan a month could support not only themselves but also an entire family if managed well.

"There are so many nearby state farm rubber plantations, Xiao Pan. You’re young and full of strength. Instead of sitting in this office doing an easy job, there are plenty of positions that require hard work."

Having been mocked by Qin Yao, Xiao Pan felt angry but didn’t say anything more.

Seeing this, Director Huang shook her head. Xiao Pan was someone who thought highly of himself but couldn’t get along with others. He wasn’t good at getting along with people in the unit and wasn’t competent in his work. He had always wanted to transfer to a school to teach, but no school would have him.

Of course, there were many village schools that lacked teachers, but Xiao Pan looked down on them. Working at a village school wasn’t as prestigious as being at a military hospital. The last time his family arranged a match for him, the woman thought he was an officer and praised him highly, but when she saw Xiao Pan’s actual situation, she ended up with another cadre instead.

While Qin Yao was out fetching water, Director Huang quietly explained to her, "Don’t take Xiao Pan’s comments to heart. He’s the only educated person in the family, with a few sisters who all support him. He’s his parents’ pride in the village and is spoken of highly outside, but he really doesn’t have much ability. He can’t get along with others in the unit and can only stay in our office."

Qin Yao said in disbelief, "A man like him has the nerve to say it’s better to be a woman? Aren’t his sisters human too?"

All the women in the family have doted on him since childhood, and yet here he is envious of women who get to 'enjoy life' after marriage. Ha ha.

Director Huang: "That's exactly how it is."

Despite everything, Director Huang still has a good heart and keeps Xiao Pan around. Xiao Pan has a good temperament and high tolerance. He is the sole heir in his family, and all the women in his family tolerate him, indulge him, and pamper him, which has made him prone to speaking inappropriately, disdaining women, and speaking abusively without taking it seriously.

Xiao Qin’s husband is Team Leader Gu. He previously served as a nurse, fulfilled his duties diligently, and earned everyone's praise. He also writes well. Any reasonable person would treat her with respect.

Xiao Pan, still hoping he'll attain a leadership position, but if he could just avoid offending people, it would be a blessing. Outside, who would put up with him?

Director Huang has indeed thought about dismissing him, but his sister and mother came to plead with her earnestly, leaving her with no choice.