Chapter 59: Just a Code Name
Chen Fan took off his green military uniform and put on the newly delivered homespun single-layer clothes, then slipped into the padded jacket over them. Immediately, he felt much more at ease.
Most importantly, no one would say a word if he wore these homespun clothes to work – he wouldn’t even feel bad about getting them dirty.
Chen Fan looked at the cotton shoes Jiang Lili had given him, sat down to try them on. They were a bit big, but they didn’t slip off his feet – with an insole and socks, they’d be just right.
Hey, how had she known his shoe size?
He took the cotton shoes off, put the cloth shoes Captain Yang had given him back on, and stored the cotton shoes in his wardrobe.
Then, taking his letter of introduction and picking up a wooden stick, he walked over to Jiang Lili’s door and cleared his throat. "Ahem, ahem."
Jiang Lili looked back at him, puffed out her cheeks, then lowered her head without speaking.
Chen Fan leaned against the doorframe and smiled at her. "You made those cotton shoes specially for me, didn’t you?"
Jiang Lili didn’t look up as she said, "Once it snows in a few days, those single-layer cloth shoes won’t be enough to keep your feet warm. I just happened to have some leftover cotton – not enough to make clothes, so I made you a pair of shoes instead."
The day before yesterday, she’d seen Chen Fan sitting alone with tears in his eyes (actually from the ginger used to soak his feet irritating his eyes) and noticed him staring at a pair of worn-out cotton shoes. She’d thought he was feeling sentimental about his past and missing his family somewhere far away, so she’d taken pity on him. Plus the weather was getting colder by the day – single-layer shoes would never get him through winter, so she’d made him the cotton shoes.
She hadn’t expected Deputy Captain Xiao to give him a pair of leather boots though – it made her feel like her gift was unnecessary.
Chen Fan smiled. "Thank you – though they’re a bit small, feel a bit tight on my feet."
"Ah?"
Jiang Lili looked up and hurried over, surprised. "Small? I made them a bit bigger on purpose!"
Chen Fan looked curious. "Did you know my shoe size?"
There was a hint of nervousness in Jiang Lili’s eyes. "I used the size of your cloth shoes as a reference. Since you’ll wear socks in winter, I made them a full size larger. A bit bigger is fine because cotton shoes are thick and fit snugly – how could they be small?"
A bit big could be fixed with extra insoles, but what could you do if they were too small?
Chen Fan suddenly understood. "Oh, I see."
Then he nodded. "I was wrong – they’re not small, just a bit big. They’d be perfect with an insole."
Jiang Lili’s face stiffened slightly before she huffed in exasperation. "You’re such a tease!"
She turned and plopped down heavily on her chair, too annoyed to speak.
Chen Fan chuckled. "Don’t be mad – a prime minister can hold a boat in his belly. You’re such a capable woman, how can you bother with someone like me, a little guy?"
Jiang Lili burst out laughing, then tried to keep a straight face but couldn’t hold it, finally breaking into giggles. "Who does things like that?"
Chen Fan spoke earnestly. "Mr. Li said that men and women are equal, and women can hold up half the sky. We shouldn’t only talk about ‘big men and little women’ – we can also say ‘big women and little guys’."
Jiang Lili looked at him with a smile and rolled her eyes. "Cheater."
After a pause, she added, "You’re only sixteen, yet you lied and said you were eighteen, and you even called me ‘Xiao Jiang’."
Chen Fan looked perfectly righteous. "I’ve turned sixteen and am going on seventeen – by Chinese age reckoning I’m eighteen. I didn’t lie!"
Jiang Lili was both amused and exasperated. "You’re just quibbling – I already told you I was born in 1959."
Chen Fan kept arguing. "The year you were born doesn’t necessarily determine how old you are – it was just a beautiful misunderstanding."
Seeing that Jiang Lili still wasn’t speaking, he put on a resigned expression. "How about this – from now on you call me Xiao Chen, and I’ll call you Sister Jiang. That should work, right?"
Jiang Lili felt a bit dizzy. "Sister Jiang? People would think we’re talking about Red Crag."
She pouted slightly. "I can’t call you Xiao Chen anyway – everyone in the team calls you Master Chen now. If I call you Xiao Chen, people might think I’m making a mistake."
Chen Fan seized the opportunity. "Then you can just call me Master Chen too – give me the same respect as the captain."
Jiang Lili couldn’t help it and burst into giggles again.
After laughing for a while, she looked at the sky and said softly, "Alright, alright – I forgive you. It’s getting late though, so you should hurry over there. Otherwise you’ll be delayed and have to come back in the dark."
Chen Fan looked at her and smiled. "So you’re not mad anymore?"
Jiang Lili shook her head with a smile. "No more anger."
Chen Fan said, "Then let’s get on the same page – from now on you still call me Chen Fan, but what should I call you?"
Jiang Lili thought for a moment. "Just call me by my name."
Then she smiled. "Names are just code names anyway – it doesn’t matter what you call someone."
Chen Fan nodded in deep agreement. "I agree – names are just code names. So I’ll still call you Xiao Jiang."
Jiang Lili looked at him speechlessly.
Chen Fan waved his hand. "See you later, Xiao Jiang – see you tonight."
Before Jiang Lili could respond, he grabbed his "dog-beating stick" and fled.
Watching his retreating figure, Jiang Lili couldn’t stop smiling.
After quite a while, her smile gradually faded, a hint of sadness flashing in her eyes. She bit her lip gently, lowered her head, and turned back to her room.
...
Using the stick as a walking cane, Chen Fan strode toward Team 8.
This time he didn’t take the production team’s main road, but walked along the embankment instead.
The people from Team 7 had taken him back along the embankment the day before, and that was when he’d learned that all the villages of Lujiawan Production Team were built along the river embankment. For teams on the same side, the embankment was the shortest route, whereas the "main road" was rarely used – only when going to the commune.
So once he was on the embankment, Chen Fan noticed that not only did pedestrians prefer this path, but the electrical wires were also strung along the embankment.
Standing on the embankment, he could see groups of team members busy at work in the distance.
About five or six people were assigned to each spot. Once they’d marked the location, they’d dig a deep hole, stand the utility pole upright, then secure it with three or four one-meter-tall wooden stakes to keep it from tilting. They’d nail it firmly with double-pointed nails, and to be safe, wrap it a few times with wire or bamboo strips. Once it was stable, they’d fill the hole and tamp the earth down firmly.
Only then was a utility pole considered properly installed.
For now though, they were just burying the poles – the tops were bare, with nothing attached. They’d have to wait for people from the power supply office and post office to come string the wires and make adjustments before electricity and communications could be connected, and the loudspeakers could be used.
As Chen Fan walked past, people waved to greet him.
He didn’t know them, but that didn’t stop him from waving back and calling out greetings as he walked along the embankment.
"Ah, heading to Team 8 – teaching them how to butcher turtles!"
"Sure thing – I’ll come visit once you’re done with this!"
"Slaughtering a pig? Great, great – I’ll definitely come for the pork feast if I have time!"
"Thank you, thank you – still need to hurry to Team 8. Talk to you later, goodbye!"
Walking and calling out greetings all the way, he finally reached his destination.
After working half a day each at Teams 8 and 9, and being sent back by the folks from Team 9 in the evening, his task of teaching people how to cook turtles was officially complete.
(End of Chapter)
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