Chapter 103

Chapter 103

After finishing the newspaper, Ye Qing finally had the peace of mind to check the other letters and packages.

Ye Qing had received two packages, both sent from Shen City. One was from Chen Youde, and the other was from his nephew Zhao Yongfei, who worked as a procurement officer at a machine shop.

Some time ago, Ye Qing had collected quite a few mountain goods from the Changbai Mountains and smoked a lot of bacon herself. She sent some to both Chen Youde and Zhao Yongfei, and after more than a month, they had sent her gifts in return.

Neither Chen Youde nor Zhao Yongfei were stingy. The items they sent were products of Shen City, rare goods that were impossible to find in the countryside of the Northern Wilderness—things like soap, cold cream, high-grade cigarettes, wool, and the like, all of which looked quite expensive.

This made Ye Qing feel a little embarrassed. The mountain goods and bacon she had sent hadn’t cost her a penny, and in comparison, she felt like she had taken advantage of them.

Especially since Chen Youde, worried that Ye Qing might be having a hard time in the countryside, had slipped a stack of nationwide ration coupons into the package. Ye Qing didn’t count them carefully but estimated there were at least thirty or forty. She didn’t know how long that elderly man had been saving those tickets.

Ye Qing really hadn’t expected this. She and Chen Youde were merely acquaintances, and even though she had once saved Chen Youde’s sister, there was no reason for Chen to repay the favor. Moreover, Chen Youde’s family had already paid Ye Qing two hundred yuan as a thank-you gift, which should have settled the matter. Who would have thought that Chen Youde would send her so many tickets, treating her like a relative and secretly subsidizing her?

Looking at the items and tickets in the package, Ye Qing felt both warmth and bitterness in her heart. She decided to keep in touch with them, and if there was ever a need for her help in the future, she would not hesitate to assist.

Apart from the packages, there were a few registered letters. The thickest one was from Song Huilian, the female thief.

That young girl had been writing to Ye Qing regularly, sending a letter almost every week. Each time, she would ramble on for several pages, talking about her intensive training at reform school. Her letters were riddled with spelling mistakes, and when she encountered characters she didn’t know how to write, she would use pinyin or drawings instead. Each time, Ye Qing had to figure out what she meant, which always left her both amused and exasperated.

Another letter was from Gu Weidong. Ever since they had revealed their true identities to each other, Gu had placed great trust in Ye Qing. Although he had gone to the military headquarters for further studies, he still wrote letters to Ye Qing for consultation and discussion.

He had knowledge and technological information from the next ten-plus years, but because he wasn’t a specialist, most of his understanding was fragmented and superficial. So, whenever he thought of something, he would record it, but he often encountered obstacles in the process of deduction and replication. During such times, he would write to Ye Qing, hoping to get supplementary information from her.

Although Ye Qing’s era was decades later than Gu Weidong’s, it didn’t mean she had any expertise in military matters. Most of the questions Gu asked were beyond her knowledge, and when she read his letters, she often felt like her brain had been drained, unable to come up with any answers.

In addition to these two letters, there were two more, both from the Western Province. The envelopes didn’t have clear sender information, but upon seeing the postmarks, Ye Qing had a faint guess in her heart.

Sure enough, when she opened the letters, they were from the original body's mother.

The two letters were probably written separately. The first one was likely sent two or three months ago, around the time the family had just arrived in the Northwest. The letter was filled with vicious curses and insults, written by the original body's brother, though it was probably dictated by the original body's mother. The insults were so familiar in tone and wording that it was unmistakably her.

Ye Qing hadn’t expected that even after suffering a second stroke and partial paralysis on one side of her face, the original body's mother would still have the energy to write such a letter to curse her.

But cursing was just cursing. Ye Qing didn’t take it to heart. After all, she was now in the Northern Wilderness, completely cut off from that notorious family. Even if they wanted to interfere, they were too far away to do anything.

The second letter was more amusing. It was probably written by the original body's father, Ye Lijun. The tone was much gentler compared to the mother’s.

The letter began with an apology, acknowledging his past selfishness and mistakes, admitting that he had been too partial to Ye Hong and Ye Zhi Gao and Ye Zhiyuan, which led to neglecting his second daughter and causing her many hardships.

Then, it played the emotional card, saying that a father loves all his children equally, and no matter what had happened, the past should be left behind, and they should still be a loving family.

This letter left Ye Qing feeling sick to her stomach.

She wasn’t stupid. Couldn’t she see how fake those words were?

When she had taken revenge on the original body's family and sent them all to the Northwest to support border region development, the Ye family probably wanted to skin her alive and feast on her flesh. This was clear from the first letter the mother sent.

But now, Ye Lijun had written this flattering and conciliatory letter against his conscience. Ye Qing quickly figured out what had happened.

Although the two letters arrived in her hands at the same time, the postmarks indicated that they had been sent two months apart. It was likely that something went wrong with the first letter during the delivery process at the Northwest post office, causing both letters to arrive in Qing Shan Town simultaneously.

Based on the timeline, after the family was sent to the great northwest, the Ye family struggled and harbored deep resentment toward Ye Qing. But since they could do nothing about her, Mother Ye could only have her son write that insulting letter to vent her anger.

However, not long after, Hang Tingfang went to Kaoshan Village for an interview, and Ye Qing was featured in the newspaper. As soon as the article came out, Ye Qing became a well-known national heroine. Although the great northwest was far from both Northern Wilderness and Jicheng, the newspaper's circulation might be slightly slower, but it should have reached the area within a month or so.

Therefore, it's likely that the Ye family saw Hang Tingfang's report and Ye Qing's close-up in the newspaper. Realizing that Ye Qing was living a prosperous life in Kaoshan Village and had become a local folk hero, Father Ye immediately saw that Ye Qing's new status could be advantageous. So, he decided to put aside past grudges and try to coax his daughter back into his control.

Unfortunately for Father Ye, his clever plan would only work if Ye Qing was willing to go along with it.

Why would Ye Qing go out of her way to stir up trouble when she’s living so carefree? As for the original family, it was already more than enough that she didn't seek further revenge on them. To expect her to help them was a pipe dream!

Ye Qing couldn’t help but sneer inwardly, and without the slightest hesitation, threw those two letters straight into the stove.

The affairs of those people didn't stir the slightest ripple in Ye Qing's heart, and she didn't care about their lives or deaths. Instead of wasting time on these irrelevant people, she'd rather teach her four apprentices one more medical care tip.

The first issue of the *Women's Gazette* left Ye Qing feeling uneasy, and she kept wanting to call Hang Tingfang for updates. But with the heavy snowfall outside and not wanting to cause trouble for Hang Tingfang at that moment, she gave up the idea of making the call.

However, her internal conflict didn't last long.

On the third day after receiving the newspaper, Secretary Lai braved the heavy snow to visit her early in the morning. He informed her that Hang Tingfang had called and wanted her to go to the commune to receive the call.

Ye Qing was also very curious about the public's reaction to the first issue of the *Women's Gazette*, so as soon as she received Secretary Lai's notification, she immediately followed him back to the commune.

It took about an hour before Hang Tingfang called.

As soon as Ye Qing picked up the phone, she heard Hang Tingfang's excited and hearty laughter from the other side:

"Ye Qing, you've received the first issue of our newspaper, right? What do you think?"

Ye Qing smiled and replied, "Comrade Hang, what matters isn't my opinion, but what the readers think."

Hang Tingfang, who had originally planned to keep her in suspense, couldn't hide it anymore given Ye Qing's eagerness:

"Since we've just started, we're required to print the newspaper once a week, and we're only allowed 13,000 copies per issue. But 13,000 copies aren't bad for the first issue. In Jicheng, we printed 5,000 copies, and it's been four days since the release. All the newspapers have been sold out!"

"On the day of release, the newspaper office was flooded with calls. Many trade unions and Women's Federation organizations called to give feedback, praising the high quality of our newspaper and competing to request subscriptions!"

"According to my statistics, there are 400 to 500 organizations in Jicheng that have called in the past few days, wanting to subscribe to the newspaper, each ordering at least ten to twenty copies!"

Hang Tingfang paused and added,

"The most popular piece is your *Liqiu*. Many female comrades were captivated by the character Li Qiu after reading the first two chapters and are eager to know how the story will develop. Many called the newspaper office to ask for more content and suggested that we increase the space allocated to *Liqiu*. The response has been exceptionally good, better than we ever expected!"

Hearing this good news, Ye Qing was also very excited.

"Really? That's wonderful! Comrade Hang, you're amazing!"

Hang Tingfang immediately replied,

"It's not me; you deserve the credit for the *Women's Gazette*. Without your guidance and the content you provided, this newspaper wouldn't have been launched so smoothly."

Ye Qing didn't dare to accept this praise. She wasn't foolish. While there were many people who could write articles in this era, founding a newspaper or magazine was not as simple as in later generations. After all, media at this time was the mouthpiece of the Propaganda Department, and not just anyone could start one.

The fact that Hang Tingfang could navigate the complex relationships and complete all the tedious procedures in such a short time showed that she was extraordinarily capable. This journalist was clearly no ordinary person.

However, with such a successful launch, Ye Qing finally felt at ease.

"Our next goal is to transition from a weekly to a daily publication and strive for larger print runs. As long as our newspaper maintains high quality and builds a solid reputation and influence, I believe this goal will not just be an empty slogan!"

Hang Tingfang was full of ambition and drive, brimming with confidence in her new publication.

Ye Qing also believed Hang Tingfang was fully capable. Thinking about the serialization of *Liqiu*, she quickly informed Hang Tingfang that the second half of *Liqiu* was already completed.

The first half of the novel had already been handed over to Hang Tingfang when she came to Kaoshan Village to announce her resignation from *Jicheng Daily* and her plan to launch the *Women's Section*.

Ye Qing had Meng Jia and a few others help transcribe the second half of the manuscript. She originally planned to mail it to Hang Tingfang through the post office.

However, Hang Tingfang insisted on sending someone to Kaoshan Village to pick it up in person.

At the time, the postal service was notoriously unreliable, with mail often going missing. Ye Qing's novel was crucial to the *Women’s Section’s* steady sales. If something happened to such an important manuscript during transit, Hang Tingfang would be in a real bind.

To play it safe, Hang Tingfang decided it was better to have someone personally deliver it from Kaoshan Village to Jicheng.

Ye Qing didn’t object at all.

Honestly, Ye Qing wasn’t too confident in the postal service either. This was clear from the two letters from the Ye family, which arrived at the same time even though they were sent months apart.