Chapter 29: Generous Xiao Tuantan, Dad Bullies Tuan Tuan.

**Chapter 29: Little Tuan Tuan’s Dad Teases Tuan Tuan**

Outside the post office, not a soul was in sight. Su Xiaoxiao asked Tuan Tuan, “Didn’t Aunt come with you?”

Tuan Tuan shook his head. “Aunt went home.”

Su Xiaoxiao asked, “Do you remember which Aunt it was?”

Without hesitation, Tuan Tuan said, “You know, that Aunt!”

Su Xiaoxiao sighed.

The clerks chuckled at him.

Thinking they didn’t believe him, Tuan Tuan emphasized again, “It really was *that* Aunt!”

Seeing her son about to raise his voice, Su Xiaoxiao quickly said, “Tuan Tuan, so many Aunts come every day—Mom can’t remember them all. Was it someone who came here to find Mom, or one from our side of town?”

“The Aunt who came to ask Mom to write a letter!” Tuan Tuan placed a bamboo shoot on the table. Su Xiaoxiao almost scolded him for getting it filthy with dirt, but seeing his hands and clothes were already just as messy, she held back and pulled him to the kitchen in the back to wash his hands with warm water. Casually, she asked, “Was she taller or shorter than Mom?”

Playing with the water, Tuan Tuan said, “Shorter than Mom,” gesturing with his little hand. Su Xiaoxiao almost corrected him—that meant height, not age—but instead asked, “Should Mom call her *‘jie’* [older sister] or *‘mei’* [younger sister]?”

Without thinking, Tuan Tuan said, “*Jie!*”

Su Xiaoxiao now had a rough idea of who it was.

Wu Shuang, seeing the mother and son return, asked, “Did you figure it out?”

Su Xiaoxiao nodded. “A woman around thirty came a few days ago—I wrote a letter for her. By the way, I think you weren’t here that day.”

The clerk at the next counter remembered. “I know her. At first, I wondered if she hadn’t attended anti-illiteracy classes—why else would she need help writing a letter? Even if she couldn’t read, surely her children had gone to school. But when I heard the letter’s contents, I understood why she didn’t ask her family for help.”

Wu Shuang asked curiously, “Was it something private?”

Su Xiaoxiao said, “Nothing unspeakable. Her sister’s family lives in the northwest—probably stayed there after being mobilized for frontier development years ago. Life there isn’t like here, so the woman wrote to ask if her sister had any difficulties. If things were really bad, she could bring her sister’s kids here. She was probably worried her husband’s family would object, so she wanted to *ask for forgiveness, not permission*.”

Wu Shuang frowned. “How could she do that? Wait—her sister doesn’t even have a salary?”

Su Xiaoxiao replied, “The recipient’s address wasn’t a farm—she might’ve married a local. Even if she had a salary, she might be the only one earning. With four or five kids, it’s no surprise they’d struggle with food and clothing. Even if there are mountains in the northwest, they don’t have spring bamboo shoots and winter roots, summer wild bayberries, or autumn oranges, chestnuts, and walnuts like we do here. Plus, the northwest’s droughts mean they can’t gather enough from a single tide harvest to feed the family for a day.”

“Even if it’s as bad as you say, she still shouldn’t act without asking,” Wu Shuang said. “That’s no way to handle things.”

Su Xiaoxiao nodded. “I understand what you’re saying, but what if your own nieces and nephews were going hungry and cold at home?”

Wu Shuang fell silent.

Just the day after Su Xiaoxiao sent goods to her in-laws earlier this year, Wu Shuang had also sent two crates of seafood to her own parents. Last Spring Festival, Su Xiaoxiao hadn’t sent money to her in-laws, but Wu Shuang had sent fifty yuan to her parents, claiming it was for them to buy something nice since she couldn’t visit for the holiday.

In the countryside, the commune slaughtered New Year pigs, and with vegetables from the fields and chickens and ducks at home, there was no need to spend extra. Country folk pinched pennies—a mere fifty yuan could stretch a whole year. Wu Shuang giving so much for just one holiday was clearly an excuse to support her natal family.

Wu Shuang asked, “If she really brings the kids over and her husband’s family refuses, what will she do?”

The clerk at the counter couldn’t help but say, “Saints like Lei Feng—or people like Su-jie’s parents—are few and far between. Most would think, ‘Since they’re already here and we have enough food, let them stay for now.’ Besides, that woman might still have her own parents.”

Su Xiaoxiao suddenly thought of herself. “Maybe she’s like me and Tuan Tuan’s dad—living with her natal family.”

The clerk nodded. “Exactly! I bet that’s it. Back then, the government mobilized people for frontier development, but her sister’s parents refused to let her go. She insisted, and they got so angry they might’ve even cut ties with her. That’s why the woman didn’t want her kids to write the letter—afraid her parents would find out—so she asked Su-jie for help.”

Wu Shuang nodded. “Now it adds up.”

Tuan Tuan looked puzzled: "Mom, why don’t I understand?"

Su Xiaoxiao: "That’d be strange if you did."

"Why can’t I understand?"

Wu Shuang wanted to say, "You’re still young," but before she could, Su Xiaoxiao replied: "Because you know fewer words than Sister Shuang. No wonder you can’t follow our conversation."

Tuan Tuan took it seriously: "Mom, where’s my pen?"

Su Xiaoxiao handed him a pencil and gave up her own chair. Tuan Tuan took a newspaper and started copying the words on it.

Wu Shuang glanced around and said, "Let’s keep this to ourselves. Don’t breathe a word of this to anyone."

Su Xiaoxiao nodded: "We know."

As soon as she finished speaking, someone entered, and everyone fell silent.

The sudden quiet startled the newcomer, who froze in place. Su Xiaoxiao smiled and greeted them: "Comrade, are you here to mail a letter or do some banking?"

The person snapped out of it and nodded absently: "Mail a letter."

Su Xiaoxiao: "Then hand it to me. Stick the stamp—" Seeing there was already a stamp, she added, "We just need to postmark it."

The person nervously reminded her: "Don’t lose it."

Su Xiaoxiao: "We won’t. If no one collects it, it’ll be returned."

Hearing this, the person thanked her and left.

The clerk stifled a laugh as they watched the person go.

Su Xiaoxiao casually asked: "You know that guy?"

This clerk was also from the island, though the post office only had a few islanders among its staff. The other employees were either military spouses, vets, or active-duty personnel assigned by the military. In truth, if not for maintaining good relations with the local community, the post office wouldn’t have made a local the postmaster. The military didn’t have many highly educated administrative personnel, but they could still spare one to oversee the post office.

The clerk nodded: "They’re from the work brigade next to mine. Our rice fields are right next to theirs, and we used to work together often. Never knew they had city folk for relatives."

"Maybe it’s similar to the situation with the woman who gave Tuan Tuan bamboo shoots—someone who enlisted or did aid work years ago—" Su Xiaoxiao stopped mid-sentence when she saw the mailing address, "Ningbo proper?"

Wu Shuang leaned over: "Let me see."

Su Xiaoxiao handed it to her: "Downtown Ningbo."

Since the other counter was free, the clerk wandered over, curious. After confirming the address, they said, "It really is downtown Ningbo. I was just there last weekend."

Su Xiaoxiao suddenly remembered something Zhang Huaimin had mentioned last year when she first arrived—about a soldier who wanted to divorce his wife due to her poor background and remarry, only to find out his new flame was a plant.

Then she scolded herself for letting her mind wander on company time: "Xiao Chu, are you sure that person doesn’t have relatives in the city?"

The clerk, surnamed Chu, was four years younger than Su Xiaoxiao and over a decade younger than Wu Shuang. Wu Shuang called her "Xiao Chu," and Su Xiaoxiao followed suit. Xiao Chu herself was used to the nickname.

Perhaps because 70% of the mail handled at this post office was for soldiers and military dependents—some of which went straight to the couriers without even entering the post office—Xiao Chu, upon hearing Su Xiaoxiao’s question, instinctively thought of "security breach."

"Sister Su, I think you’re overthinking it. He barely got through literacy school. Besides fishing and farming, he doesn’t—" Xiao Chu gasped when she saw the handwriting on the envelope.

The two normally silent coworkers exchanged glances and simultaneously stood up to approach Xiao Chu. After seeing the writing, they exclaimed in unison: "That’s better handwriting than ours!" Then, remembering something, they turned to Su Xiaoxiao, "Xiao Su, is that on par with your handwriting?"

Su Xiaoxiao had practiced calligraphy in both her past and present lives—pushed by her family in her past life, and taking it up willingly this time around because her grandfather had once said, "The handwriting makes the man."

Su Xiaoxiao took the letter and copied the recipient's name and address. Wu Shuang was absolutely certain: "The handwriting on this envelope was practiced. My husband Zhou used to say that neat and beautiful handwriting always comes from practice."

Xiao Chu had only heard about spies on the island and always thought such people were far from her world. Now, she panicked and grabbed Wu Shuang’s arm: "Sister Shuang, what should we do? Sister Su, I—"

Su Xiaoxiao: "Hold on, don’t panic yet. Sister Shuang, is the director in her office?"

The post office director mainly handled remittances, deposits, and payroll. Wu Shuang said, "She is, but she’s no expert either. In the past, when there were suspicious mail items, the military would send someone to handle it."

Su Xiaoxiao: "She’s still the director. If we need the military to send someone, she should be the one to call. Besides, what if we’re wrong? Maybe that guy was just mailing a letter for a sent-down youth?"

Xiao Chu suddenly added, "Right, I almost forgot. Both our production team and theirs have sent-down youth."

Wu Shuang: "I’ll get her."

When the director was summoned, she instead asked for input from Wu Shuang and Su Xiaoxiao.

Wu Shuang was speechless—since you’re the one with the higher salary and position, shouldn’t you be the one making decisions?

Xiao Chu ventured, "Should we call the military?"

The director hesitated: "What if we’re wrong?"

Wu Shuang couldn’t help but say, "If we’re wrong, that’s even better—it means there are no spies on the island."

"What if the military blames us for causing trouble?"

Wu Shuang retorted, "If anything, they’d praise us for being vigilant."

"Are you sure?"

Wu Shuang couldn’t be certain. If they happened to interrupt a meeting or training, the person who came would surely complain. "I’m not a mind reader—how would I know what they think? You’re the director, it’s your call."

The director turned to Su Xiaoxiao: "Sister Su, what do you think?"

Su Xiaoxiao thought, *We’re the same age, no need to be so polite.* "I think we should pretend we never saw it."

"What if this blows up later and they investigate us?"

Su Xiaoxiao was fed up—nothing seemed acceptable unless everyone shared the responsibility with her.

"Should I make the call?" Su Xiaoxiao looked at the director. "If the military sends someone and asks who thought this letter was suspicious, I’ll say it was me. If it turns out to be nothing, they can chew me out. Same if it’s the other way around?"

The director hesitated again.

Su Xiaoxiao scooped up Tuan Tuan and sat down, letting him sit on her lap. "Director, it’s almost noon. We don’t have much time before it gets dark. These letters will be sent out tomorrow morning."

The director pointed at the sender’s name: "Xiao Chu, is this his real name?"

Xiao Chu shook her head: "I don’t know. Back home, people mostly use nicknames. Like me—my relatives and neighbors all call me A-Lian. Folks just call him A-Jiang in dialect. But it could also be ‘Gang.’ You know how it gets mixed up—sometimes we can’t tell the difference between ‘j’ and ‘g’ sounds."

The director, being a native islander, knew well how different the dialect was from Mandarin: "His name doesn’t have Gang or Jiang in it."

Xiao Chu: "So… let it go?"

The director wasn’t about to gamble and looked at Su Xiaoxiao again. Su Xiaoxiao smiled: "If you leave it to me to decide, then you can’t fall on the sword while cutting me out of any rewards."

"Come on, Sister Su, this is serious," the director frowned. "Is this really about a bonus? Maybe all we’ll get is a pat on the back!"

When it came to spies, this was no time to nickel-and-dime. Su Xiaoxiao wasn’t afraid of being chewed out if they were wrong. But it depended on the situation. If the director pushed the panic button and it turned out to be a mistake, Su Xiaoxiao could take the blame. She believed Wu Shuang and Xiao Chu would also explain for the director—or even take responsibility themselves.

Despite being the director, she hoped military wives like Su Xiaoxiao and Wu Shuang would take the lead. Su Xiaoxiao had to be wary: "Even if it's just a few words of praise, I’d be willing. In all my years working here, I’ve never been praised."

Tuan Tuan turned to his mother, wondering why no one praised her.

Su Xiaoxiao pinched the child’s cheek: "Mom and Auntie are talking about work. Go play!"

The director turned to Wu Shuang.

Wu Shuang avoided mentioning the deliberately neat handwriting on the envelope: "I only attended a few years of literacy classes. You know this—I can’t even write my own name properly. I don’t understand anything, so staring at me won't help."

The director then turned to Xiao Chu: "You were the one who noticed it first?"

Xiao Chu was speechless: "I’ve never heard of him having relatives in the city."

"Go ask him at noon if that’s the name on the letter," the director concluded firmly. "That's all for now." With that, she returned to her office.

Xiao Chu looked at Su Xiaoxiao: "How should I ask? Just go up to him and ask if his name is such-and-such?"

Su Xiaoxiao: "That would tip him off. And we can’t ask his relatives or neighbors either. If he gets arrested, they’ll suspect you tipped them off. If he’s the breadwinner, his wife and kids will be at your doorstep every day."

"Right!" Xiao Chu hesitated for this very reason. "If it’s a mistake, the villagers will blame me for making waves."

Wu Shuang asked: "Then what should we do?"

Two others chimed in: "This is something the director should report." Then they added, "Luckily Xiao Su reminded us. Otherwise, no matter the outcome, she’d blame us for taking matters into our own hands."

Su Xiaoxiao said to Xiao Chu: "Check with your family first. If they don’t know either, let the director handle it herself."

Xiao Chu glanced at the clock on the wall: "Maybe I should head out early?"

There were four clerks at the counter—one on rotation, the director, Xiao Chu, and one other. When it was busy, the director would step in to help. Today wasn’t the weekend, so it was slow. With one colleague on rotation, Xiao Chu could leave early, and the remaining clerk could manage.

Xiao Chu didn’t own a bicycle, so it took her over half an hour to get home. Her parents were about to start cooking. Seeing her return with a lunchbox, her father grew alarmed: "What happened? Did they fire you?"

"Nothing, nothing." Xiao Chu saw her mother coming out of the kitchen with some seafood and pulled her father aside, pushing her mother back into the kitchen. She told them about the letter with the deliberately neat handwriting and how she and her colleagues agreed it was better to investigate than regret it later, but the director insisted she come home to ask around.

Xiao Chu’s mother frowned: "You can't just go asking about something like this."

Xiao Chu mentioned the sender’s name and asked her father: "Is this his name?"

Her father thought carefully: "I believe that's his name. I've heard someone call him that."

"Then why do they call him A-Jiang?"

Her father: "That’s his nickname. Your older brother’s proper name is different from his nickname."

Xiao Chu wanted to say her brother’s nickname was "A-Niu," but decided against adding commentary not present in the original text. "So should I say the letter is from him?"

Her father thought again and confirmed it: "But he couldn’t afford school. Where would he get the money for notebooks and pens to practice writing?"

"Then let the director decide."

In the afternoon, as soon as Xiao Chu arrived at the post office, the director came out of her office and asked if she had found out. Xiao Chu told the truth—it was indeed his name, but he had never attended school, let alone written so neatly.

Without missing a beat, the director said: "He must’ve had someone write it for him." She glanced at Su Xiaoxiao. "Our Sister Su here often helps people write letters."

Su Xiaoxiao, pretending not to notice the sarcasm, smiled and said: "Just serving the people!"

A military wife who came in to mail a letter happened to hear this and couldn’t help but say: "Our Comrade Xiao Su really has her priorities straight!"

The director was speechless, his expression stiffened. He turned and went back to his office.

The military wife mailing the letter was puzzled, wondering what that was about.

Wu Shuang stood up to defuse the tension: "Writing to your parents again?"

The military wife approached: "My younger sister is getting married soon, so I’m sending some money with it."

Wu Shuang nodded: "That’s only proper. If your sister’s in-laws know how much you care for her, they wouldn’t dare mistreat her."

"Exactly." The military wife handed the letter to Wu Shuang and went to the next counter to send the money.

Su Xiaoxiao still believed it was better to err on the side of caution, so that evening when she saw Zhang Huaimin, she told him about the matter. After finishing, she thought of their neighbor and asked Zhang Huaimin, "Should we inform Staff Officer Zhou?"

Zhang Huaimin pondered for a moment: "Let’s eat first, we’ll talk after dinner." Turning to Tuan Tuan, he said, "Tuan Tuan, whatever Mommy and Daddy talk about at home mustn’t be told to anyone. Not even your big brother."

Su Xiaoxiao’s expression was serious, and Zhang Huaimin didn’t seem to be joking either. Tuan Tuan didn’t dare defy his parents on purpose: "I won’t tell." Then he couldn’t help but complain: "I didn’t understand. Mommy said I don’t know enough words. Daddy, Mommy is a big liar!"

Zhang Huaimin chuckled: "Mommy didn’t lie this time."

Tuan Tuan gasped in disappointment: "Really?"

Su Xiaoxiao: "Something as important as going to school to earn money—how could Mommy lie to you? Besides, what good would lying do me?"

Tuan Tuan shook his head—none at all!

"Go play outside with Daddy for a bit, then come back for dinner."

Zhang Huaimin carried his son outside for a stroll. At one point, Tuan Tuan wanted to get down, but seeing no one around, he curled up in his father’s arms to look at the stars.

After dinner, the couple took Tuan Tuan next door and asked Wu Shuang’s children to take him out to play. Su Xiaoxiao let Wu Shuang in on her decision.

Wu Shuang couldn’t help but nod as she listened: "I was thinking the same. Earlier while cooking, I found myself griping about Old Zhou—when I wish he’d stay away, he comes every day, but when I want him home, he stays at the barracks."

Zhang Huaimin: "Should I tell the higher-ups that both you and Xiaoxiao think the letter is suspicious, or just say Xiaoxiao believes the person is problematic?"

Wu Shuang: "Just say Xiaoxiao. I never went to school, and I’m just a temporary worker. If the director finds out I was involved, she’d surely find ways to make trouble and have me fired. She can’t touch Xiaoxiao’s position—it’s secure."

Zhang Huaimin: "I remember this director being very upright and approachable. Political Commissar Zhang even regretted that she married early and couldn’t be introduced to our comrades."

"That’s when her own neck isn’t on the line." Troubled by the letter at the post office, Wu Shuang hadn’t been able to focus on anything else. Back home alone, preparing vegetables in the quiet, she recalled something: "Once before, something like this happened here, and she said she was glad it wasn’t a post office staff member, otherwise she wouldn’t know what to do. At the time, I thought, why couldn’t I be the one to catch a spy?"

Zhang Huaimin: "Since you don’t object, I’ll head back to the barracks now."

Su Xiaoxiao couldn’t help asking: "Going back so late?"

Zhang Huaimin nodded: "Need to set up security measures."

Fortunately, in those days, the police answered to the military. Zhang Huaimin handed over the recipient’s name and address that Su Xiaoxiao had brought back, and with one call from above, undercover agents from Yongcheng’s police were sent to investigate.

This matter was out of Su Xiaoxiao’s hands, so she focused on preparing things for her in-laws.

The next morning, Wu Shuang helped Su Xiaoxiao take the items to the post office. After Su Xiaoxiao packed everything, a dockworker came by, and she gave him ten yuan to buy picture story books.

The next morning, the postman delivered a box of picture story books to Su Xiaoxiao, with some change remaining.

Su Xiaoxiao wanted to say the books were cheap, but then she remembered that four yuan was a whole week’s pay for her. Fifty years later, that would equal seven or eight hundred yuan. She bit back the comment and called Tuan Tuan over for story time.

Tuan Tuan couldn't read, but he loved looking at the pictures in the book, staying put for a full hour. Su Xiaoxiao worried he might wet his pants, so she took the book away: "Gotta pee?"

Tuan Tuan had forgotten, but upon hearing his mother, he grabbed his pants and ran to the backyard: "Grandpa, grandpa, I need to pee!"

Su Xiaoxiao picked up the kettle and mixed half a cup of soy milk in Tuan Tuan's small enamel mug.

As expected, Tuan Tuan came back shaking his wet hands and immediately wanted a drink.

Su Xiaoxiao added a bit of cooled boiled water and handed it to him: "Sip it slowly."

Three days later, everyone except Wu Shuang and Su Xiaoxiao thought the matter was over. The military sent someone to inform the post office director that from then on, the post office would split duties—the counter would still be managed by the director, while mail operations would go to Su Xiaoxiao. Soon, the military would appoint someone to supervise the entire post office.

Once the military personnel left, the director asked Su Xiaoxiao: "Is the post office getting a new director?"

Su Xiaoxiao: "That seems to be their intention."

"Why so sudden?"

Su Xiaoxiao: "Why’re you asking me? If you don’t know, how should I? I’ve only been here a few months."

Xiao Chu at the counter remembered what her parents said.

An elderly man living by the road was a light sleeper. Two nights ago, he heard movement and saw two jeeps from the neighboring village arrive, leaving after about ten minutes.

The old man mentioned it offhand, but Xiao Chu’s parents read into it. At breakfast that morning, they asked her if those jeeps were here to arrest someone.

Since no one had come to the post office to investigate, Xiao Chu was sure it had nothing to do with that letter and insisted they were overreacting.

Now, Xiao Chu suspected the letter was indeed problematic—and Su Xiaoxiao was the one who’d reported it. However, she didn’t plan to tell the director. With how the director was, she’d likely blame Xiao Chu for not informing her earlier about the military’s nighttime operation.

In fact, it wasn’t just Xiao Chu—others had also thought of the letter but kept quiet about it.

In the evening, Wu Shuang walked her bike, Tuan Tuan riding along, chatting with Su Xiaoxiao as they walked: "Is the military sending a director because they think the current one can’t handle the job? I suspect even if that letter wasn’t an issue, they’d still doubt her managing the whole post office."

Su Xiaoxiao nodded: "Probably. What did Staff Officer Zhou say?"

"He hasn’t been home lately. Has Tuan Tuan’s dad come back either?"

Su Xiaoxiao: "No. Tuan Tuan, do you miss Daddy?"

Tuan Tuan shook his head: "Don’t miss Daddy."

Wu Shuang: "Daddy can play with you."

Tuan Tuan shook his head again: "Daddy’s mean to Tuan Tuan."

Wu Shuang: "He’s just playing around. By the way, Xiaoxiao, now that you’ll have more responsibilities, what’ll they pay you?"

Su Xiaoxiao: "The people who came today didn’t mention it. Probably the same as the director’s."

"If it’s the same, she’ll throw a fit. But who cares? If her family hadn’t been so eager when the post office was established, someone like her wouldn’t have become director." Wu Shuang said, "Don’t overthink it. If anyone dares to bully you, I’ve got your back!"

Su Xiaoxiao played along: "Then I’ll be relying on Sister Shuang from now on."

"What’s in it for me?"

Su Xiaoxiao smiled: "Help me first, then we’ll see."

Despite her words, once home, Su Xiaoxiao stuffed Tuan Tuan’s pockets full of candy and sent him next door to play.

As soon as Tuan Tuan arrived at Wu Shuang’s place, he handed out the candy to the big kids without hesitation.

Wu Shuang, seeing the child take out dozens of candies, quickly said: "Keep some for yourself."

Tuan Tuan had pockets in both his pants and shirt, all filled with candy. He had emptied three pockets but still had one left. The little boy patted his chest: "Tuan Tuan’s got plenty!"