Su Laosan suddenly became talented, and he didn't understand why.
"Uncle, my dad is a member of the Red Heart Brigade and doesn't have a job!" Su Xiaotian's sweet voice rang out.
Su Laosan smiled foolishly, his expression as usual.
"Uncle, my dad is very capable, he's the tractor driver in our brigade," Su Xiaotian continued.
Most of the people around were drivers from the transport team. Upon hearing that Su Laosan was just a tractor driver from the brigade, they all burst into unrestrained laughter.
But after a few laughs, someone suddenly felt something was wrong.
What right did they have to laugh at him for being a country bumpkin, a tractor driver?
He wasn't a professional, but he could fix cars, so driving should be no problem, right?
They, who considered themselves professionals, were not as good as a country bumpkin!
Tian Yuanzi was stunned, looking at Su Laosan in disbelief. When did the members of the brigade become so capable?
He glared at the people under him, why were they all so useless? Not as good as a country person.
Everyone stopped laughing!
Their gazes towards Su Laosan gradually shifted from contempt to respect.
Su Xiaotian understood these people's thoughts, but she was a child and could pretend not to understand. Therefore, she looked at everyone blankly, her smiling eyes curving, and asked, "You all think my dad is very capable, right?"
Tian Yuanzi wanted to say no, but then he thought about it and felt it wasn't quite like that.
Although this man in front of him was a tractor driver in the brigade, he could fix cars. Wasn't that quite capable?
"He is quite capable! Comrade Su, are you interested in joining our transport team?"
Chen Zi'an was surprised when Tian Yuanzi asked this.
Tian Yuanzi was a stubborn person. He wouldn't accept people he looked down on, even if they were arranged by leaders, but now he was directly inviting him.
Su Laosan hesitated. He knew that he was able to fix the car smoothly today because of his daughter's contribution.
If he really came to the transport team to work, he couldn't bring his daughter every time he fixed a car, could he?
But Su Xiaotian started clapping at this moment, shouting, "Great, great!"
Su Laosan quickly tried to cover Su Xiaotian's mouth, but it was too late.
"Dad, if you become a worker too, you can be in the county town with Mom."
It had to be said that Su Laosan was attracted by his daughter's words.
During this time, his wife worked in the city, and he drove tractors in the brigade. He had also thought about being able to accompany his wife in the city.
But it wasn't easy to become a worker in the city.
Finally, Su Laosan decided to consider it and discuss it with his family.
Tian Yuanzi said, "I'm going on a trip soon. I'll be back in half a month. I'll come to find you then!"
After Su Laosan returned, he told Su Manxiu about this. Su Manxiu thought it was a good thing.
Su Taohua also thought this opportunity was very good. Being able to stay in the city, what a great thing?
"But, I really don't know how to fix cars!" Su Laosan said hesitantly.
"Dad, you'll learn. I'll teach you," Su Xiaotian said happily. "Uncle, are there bookstores in the county town? There should be books on this topic in bookstores."
Chen Zi'an said, "I have books on this topic at home. However, does Third Brother recognize characters?"
It wasn't that he doubted. Su Manxiu had said that neither she nor her brothers had been to school. Su Manxiu had learned to recognize many characters by following him in recent years.
But in the countryside, the three of them certainly wouldn't have had the chance to study.
Although there were literacy classes, everyone knew that literacy classes were just for show.
"Yes!" Su Laosan's voice was not loud, but it was firm, with a hint of pride.
Although Chen Zi'an still had doubts, he didn't say much. Instead, he took out a few books from a box.
"There aren't many useful books in bookstores now. I got these from a scrap recycling station," Chen Zi'an said.
Su Xiaotian's eyes sparkled upon hearing this.
"Uncle, I want to go to the scrap recycling station to have a look, can I?"
She had heard in her previous life that there were many good things in scrap recycling stations during this era, and she wondered if it was true.
Coincidentally, she had recently studied some appraisal books, and perhaps she could try her luck!
What if, what if she found something valuable!
As someone who had lived again, treasure hunting was also important.
Chen Zi'an hadn't expected a little girl to have such an idea.
He patted Su Xiaotian's head, "Yes, I'll arrange it later, and you can go and have a look."
"Thank you, Uncle!" Su Xiaotian immediately thanked him with a happy smile.
"Little girl, why are you being so polite with your uncle?"
Chen Zi'an truly doted on Su Xiaotian. Seeing his tone, Su Laosan even wondered if he, as her father, was too strict with the little girl.
On the other side, Su Taohua was talking to Su Manxiu.
She took out a few grain coupons and wanted to give them to Su Manxiu.
Su Taohua was a considerate person. She felt embarrassed to live in Su Manxiu's house, and it would be too shameless to eat for free.
"Manxiu, this is all the grain coupons I have. Please accept them, don't mind if it's not much. I didn't think of this when I came and forgot to bring food!"
Su Taohua's face turned red as she said this.
These grain coupons were sent by her son. There weren't many, only five catties in total.
She had brought them thinking she might need to eat, but she ended up eating at Su Manxiu's house after arriving.
Su Manxiu didn't expect Su Taohua to give her grain coupons. She immediately put on a stern face and pushed them back.
"Sister Taohua, if you do this, I'll get angry. You are my sister, and I can't accept your grain coupons if you stay at my house for a few days?"
"But, in this era, no one's food is abundant!" Su Taohua said hesitantly.
Su Manxiu said, "No matter how not abundant it is, it's not lacking for Sister Taohua's meal."
She paused and then added, "Besides, you are involved in this matter. Others may not know, but our family knows it's for Xiaotian."
She was a benefactor to the old Su family, so it was more than just providing meals, it was even appropriate to give gifts.
After Su Xiaotian discussed with Chen Zi'an, she planned to go to the inner room to play with the little brother.
The little guy could stand by holding the wall these days, but he wasn't stable. It was funny every time he stood up and fell.
Su Xiaotian loved to tease him into standing up.
As a result, she heard this conversation as soon as she entered the room.
"Aunt Taohua, my dad has prepared grain coupons and will buy food back later. Don't worry, you won't go hungry!"
Su Taohua didn't know what to say. This child, really, was she afraid of herself going hungry?
Wasn't she afraid that they would eat too much food every day and go hungry later, with Manxiu and her two children?
Even if Chen Zi'an was a leader, his monthly grain coupons were limited, and he also had to help his father-in-law's large family. There probably wasn't much extra.
But Su Manxiu insisted on not accepting, and Su Taohua couldn't persuade her.
Finally, Su Taohua thought about it and decided to send some grain to Su Manxiu's house after the summer harvest.
Although the family's grain was not abundant, they could spare some for Manxiu.
With the decision made, she stopped insisting.
Su Laosan went out and indeed returned with grain, and not just a little, but a whole bag.
"When I went today, the grain store had just received a batch of rice, so I bought some more!" Su Laosan said as he put the bag of rice in the kitchen.
"Third Brother, why did you buy so much?" Su Manxiu actually wanted to ask where he got so many grain coupons, but she thought about it and decided not to ask.
It wasn't easy to buy so much grain at once.
In this era, having grain coupons didn't guarantee you could buy grain. You also needed good luck to encounter grain.
Moreover, if the grain coupons in hand were national grain coupons, you could buy even more grain.
She suddenly realized that Su Laosan might have national grain coupons.
People at the grain store liked national grain coupons. When resold, one catty of national grain coupons could be exchanged for an extra liang, so they would take special care of people holding national grain coupons.
Thinking about it again, the grain coupons her mother gave her were also national grain coupons.
"It's because there are many people eating," Su Laosan said, scratching his head and smiling foolishly. "Me and Xiaotian, plus Taohua, and Teacher Shen, your family's grain won't be enough to eat."
"So much white rice, if exchanged for coarse grains, how long would it last!" Su Taohua said with concern.
One catty of white rice could be exchanged for two catties of corn or five catties of dried sweet potato.
Didn't eating fill the stomach? Why insist on eating white rice and white flour?
At the very least, mixing them would be better, and it would save more than eating white rice and white flour directly.
"Sister Taohua, since my brother bought it, let's eat it!"
After Su Manxiu figured it out, she didn't mind anymore. It was grain sent by her brother, so she would accept it.
"Oh my, I've never eaten white rice like this in my life!"
Even when Li Changming was alive, the family ate little white rice and white flour. Later, after that man had an affair, they couldn't even see white rice and white flour.
"Sister Taohua, help me cook!"
The two sisters asked Su Xiaotian to watch over the child Chen Xiuyuan and went to cook together.
Soon, the sisters finished cooking. After the family ate, Su Laosan took his lunchbox to the hospital, saying he would stay at the hospital to look after Shen Zizhen and wouldn't come back that night.
Chen Zi'an also did not return.
Three days passed in a blink of an eye. Chen Zi'an only returned once during this period, which showed how tricky this matter was.
Although the family tried to hide it from Su Xiaotian, not wanting her to recall those unpleasant experiences, Su Xiaotian still overheard the conversation between her father and aunt.
It turned out that the Li family had come up with many tricks, not only to get Li Zhiguo out but also to smear the Red Heart Brigade and Shen Zizhen.
They even went to the hospital and threatened Shen Zizhen, telling him not to tell the truth.
They also told Shen Zizhen to surrender, saying that he was having an affair with Su Taohua in the cornfield when Li Zhiguo caught them.
Shen Zizhen was almost angered to death by these words. He had seen shameless people, but he had never seen anyone as shameless as the Li family.
He sternly refused. The Li family, enraged, threatened to make Shen Zizhen suffer.
Then, the Li family indeed arranged for people to go to the hospital.
Fortunately, Chen Zi'an had already arranged for people to protect Shen Zizhen, otherwise, Shen Zizhen would have suffered again.
When Su Xiaotian heard these words, her impression of the Li family in the county town worsened. How could such people still hold high positions and act so arrogantly?
Fortunately, such days should not last much longer.
"Dad, Aunt, don't worry, everything will get better!" Su Xiaotian comforted the others in the family instead.
Su Laosan, Su Manxiu, Su Taohua, and others all felt that Su Xiaotian was just speaking childishly and didn't realize the seriousness of the problem.
But they didn't want Su Xiaotian to worry, so they all nodded and smiled, saying, "Yes, Xiaotian is right, everything will pass!"
Two days later, Su Taohua and Su Xiaotian were called in for questioning.
The person who called them was Chen Zi'an's subordinate.
Su Taohua was very flustered, fearing that she might say something wrong, and worried that Su Xiaotian, as a child, might say something wrong when questioned.
Su Xiaotian held Su Taohua's hand and smiled, "Aunt Taohua, don't worry, it will be fine."
"Xiaotian, when you go in, don't say anything. Just say you were scared and don't remember anything after waking up."
After all, Xiaotian was a child, so it was normal for her to not remember.
"Aunt Taohua, I'm not afraid, and you don't be afraid either. With Uncle here, he will protect us."
Su Xiaotian had her own ideas about what to say when she got there. Although she was a child, she was also a key witness, and she couldn't forget everything!
Aunt Taohua was doing this to protect her, but she had grown up and should also learn to protect the people around her.
When they arrived at the interrogation room, they were interviewed separately. Su Taohua nervously recited the prepared statement.
Naturally, these statements were discussed with the brigade leader, Chen Zi'an, and others. These statements were unfavorable to Li Zhiguo but would not implicate her and Shen Zi'an.
Shen Zi'an had also been briefed and would give the same statement.
Su Xiaotian was also arranged to be interviewed in a separate room.
A man and a woman, who looked very kind, at least didn't put pressure on Su Xiaotian.
Seeing the little girl, they didn't expect to get much information. The little girl in front of them looked very young and probably didn't understand what Li Zhiguo was trying to do.
But to their surprise, although the little girl didn't understand what Li Zhiguo was trying to do, she kept saying that Li Zhiguo was a bad person and dragged Su Taohua into the cornfield. Aunt Taohua struggled, and she happened to see it.
As for other things, the little girl put on a straight face and refused to say more. Did they think she didn't know?
Because Su Xiaotian was young, the interrogators knew they couldn't get much information. What they got was already a pleasant surprise.
After all, if there was no ulterior motive, why would someone drag a perfectly fine person into a cornfield?
The two exchanged glances and smiled at Su Xiaotian, saying, "Little girl, the information you provided is very valuable. Here are two candies for you!"
The female cadre took two candies out of the drawer and placed them in Su Xiaotian's hand.
From the investigations in the past few days, they discovered that Li Zhiguo was a pervert. What he intended to do was not to the middle-aged woman Su Taohua, but to the little girl in front of them.
After all, according to the evidence they had, this was not the first time Li Zhiguo had done such a thing.
But Minister Chen had said that the little girl needed to be protected.
The Li family was unwilling to be bullied by a mud-legged person like this. After failing to coerce and lure them, they found many people and spent a lot of manpower and material resources to try to get Li Zhiguo out.
But they didn't expect that just as they found some clues, the provincial authorities directly sent people to investigate.
When the provincial authorities arrived, the people they had found dared not exert themselves anymore. They even hinted, explicitly or implicitly, that they should take care of themselves.
How could they not know that Chen Zi'an was the one pulling the strings?
But what could they do? Li Zhiguo had offended the wrong person this time!
Chen Zi'an was truly stubborn.
Since no serious consequences had occurred, why insist on sending Li Zhiguo to prison?
But Chen Zi'an's reputation was well-known, and no one in the county town was unaware of it. Of course, they also knew that no matter how hard they tried, they couldn't persuade him.
Some members of the Li family decided to give up on Li Zhiguo, but Li Zhiguo's father insisted on protecting his son.
"Dad, we can understand you wanting to protect Li Zhiguo, but can you look at the fate of the Xiang family before making a decision?" Li Zhiguo's eldest brother finally exploded in anger.
His father was becoming more and more muddled. For the sake of Li Zhiguo, was he going to ruin the entire Li family?
Was it easy for their Li family to get to where they were today? Because of this Li Zhiguo, they had lost all face.
This time, the higher authorities had issued a strict order for a thorough investigation, and Li Zhiguo was beyond saving!
But their old man, for the sake of a scoundrel son, had even brought out people who hadn't been used for many years, gratuitously losing favors!
"If Zhiguo is punished, what face will our old Li family have in the county?" Old Master Li said angrily, puffing out his beard.
If his son was branded a criminal and dealt with as a hooligan, his old man's reputation for a lifetime would be gone.
"When he was doing those things, didn't you feel you lost face? Dare you say you really didn't know anything about what he did?" Li Zhiguo's eldest brother said angrily.
Old Master Li dared not speak. Of course, he knew some things. Although he didn't know everything, he had heard some things, and some things were cleaned up by him privately.
"Dad, I'm putting my words here today. If you want to continue making trouble, we'll split the family. I won't sacrifice my own family for this beast."
Li Zhiguo's eldest brother made his stance clear. Li Zhiguo's second and third brothers also expressed their desire to split the family and not be buried with him.
They were not unaware of what Li Zhiguo had done, but since they had not been targeted, they had turned a blind eye.
But this time, Li Zhiguo had kicked a steel plate!
Old Master Li doted on his youngest son, but since the other three sons wanted to split the family, he had no choice but to compromise, no matter how unwilling he was.
Although he compromised on the surface, Old Master Li still thought of many ways privately.
But after several days of tossing and turning, he only got one piece of news: Li Zhiguo had confessed.
Upon hearing Li Zhiguo's charges, Old Master Li fainted directly!
His son had committed so many evils?