Reborn in 1966

Chapter Seventeen Discussion

Party Secretary Tian said, "You know what their family situation is like. Why are you so stubborn? Lingling, your parents are doing this for your own good. Why can't you understand?"

Tian Lingling said, "Dad, if you want what's best for me, you need to know what I want. City people aren't as honest as people from our village."

Party Secretary Tian said, "You can't marry someone like Shen Shengqin. Look at him, he can't do any work well. He just relies on the commune's propaganda team to earn some work points. If you marry him, how will he support you?"

Tian Lingling said, "I married him so that the two of us could live together. It's not like I don't earn money. I have hands and feet, how could I go hungry?"

Secretary Tian earnestly advised, "Lingling, living together as a couple isn't as simple as you think. Her brother is still a rightist, and the whole family is implicated. If you have children in the future, they won't be able to join the army or get jobs because of his status as her uncle. You need to think this through carefully."

Tian Lingling said, "Dad, I've thought about it a lot, and I think Shen Shengqin is the best."

Party Secretary Tian was so angry that his eyes were seeing stars. He said in a fit of rage, "I just don't agree."

Enraged, Party Secretary Tian turned around twice with his hands behind his back, pointed at Tian Lingling and said, "I raised you all these years, and you can't even make a decision on this little thing?" After saying that, he left with his hands behind his back.

Tian Lingling was so angry that she threw the clothes in her hand into the basin of water, sat on the stool, and lowered her head to shed tears.

After his father had walked away, Tian Aiguo crouched down and entered the yard, snuggling up to his sister and whispering, "Sister, stop crying. Will crying here get things done?"

Tian Lingling wiped away her tears and said, "Then what do you think I should do? My dad is looking for a husband for me in the city. If I don't hurry, I might end up marrying someone I don't even know."

Tian Aiguo said, "Wouldn't it be better to find someone from the city? Everyone's thinking about moving to the city these days, but you're the one who doesn't want to go."

Tian Lingling said, "What's so great about city people? They're so arrogant and look down on us country folk. I don't want to go there and suffer their humiliation."

Tian Aiguo said, "It's not like you have to marry Shen Shengqin. There are plenty of good young men in our village. I don't think Shen Shengqin is a reliable person."

Tian Lingling said, "What do you know, you little kid? I'm the one who's going to live with someone. If I think it's good, that's all that matters. Why do you have to think it's good too? It's not like you're the ones going to live with someone. Our dad is like this, and you, little one, are like this too."

Tian Aiguo said, "Oh, sister, we're just concerned about you. Look at the women in our village who married into unsuitable families. Some are beaten by their husbands, and some have men who are lazy and don't work, leaving the women to earn work points. They have such a hard life."

Tian Lingling said, "Don't worry, Shen Shengqin would never be the kind of man who beats his wife. Besides, we've seen what kind of family the Shen family is since we were little. Shen Shengqin just can't do farm work. I have a salary, and he can earn work points in the workers' propaganda team. We'll definitely be able to make a good life for ourselves."

Tian Aiguo sighed and said, "Sister, you keep saying you want to marry the second brother of the Shen family. What does the second brother of the Shen family mean? I don't see him treating you any differently."

Tian Lingling said, "Once I marry him, she will have to treat me differently. Patriotism, why does our dad dislike Shen Shengqin so much?"

Tian Aiguo said, "How would I know? Hey, sister, why don't you go and talk to our third grandfather about this and see what he thinks? If our third grandfather agrees, I guess our father won't have any objections either."

Tian Lingling's eyes lit up, and she said, "That's right, I'll go to my third grandfather's house to take a look." After saying that, she ran out of the yard.

Tian Aiguo looked at the clothes that were still not clean in the yard, sighed, sat on a stool, rinsed them clean, wrung them out, and hung them on the clothesline.

Tian Lingling rushed to her third grandfather's house. Her third grandfather was over seventy years old and was the oldest and most respected elder in the Tian family in Shenjia Village.

My third uncle had traveled all over the country in his early years and was very knowledgeable. Whenever the Tian family had something to do, they would ask my third uncle for his opinion. And my third uncle's opinion was often the final opinion of the Tian family. Even Tian Baogen, the Party Secretary, would listen to his third uncle's opinion on some things he was hesitant about.

When Tian Lingling entered, her third grandfather was lying on a recliner under the shade of a tree in the courtyard, with a small wooden table next to him, on which were a small teapot and several small teacups.

Hearing the commotion, Third Grandfather saw that it was Tian Lingling and said with a smile, "I knew you had to come here. Don't rush, sit down and rest for a while. Your brother Aijun sent me some green tea. Third Grandfather will pour you a cup of tea to cool you down."

Tian Lingling sat down respectfully, took the teacup handed to her by her third grandfather with both hands, took a sip, and said, "It smells so good."

Third Grandpa chuckled and said, "Right? I think it smells delicious too."

Tian Lingling put down her teacup, rubbed her clothes, and said somewhat shyly, "Third Grandfather, I need to talk to you about something."

Third Grandfather said, "Is it about you and Shen Jiashengqin? Everyone in the village is talking about you going to the park with him. I don't think Shen Jiashengqin would dare to ask you to go to the park. Did you drag him there?"

Tian Lingling said shyly, "Third Grandpa, how come you are so amazing? My dad has always wanted me to find a husband in the city. You know, city people are not as honest and reliable as people in our village. I can't stand the way city people look down on others."

Third Grandfather said, "Why did you choose the second son of the Shen family? There are plenty of good young men around here, why did you have to set your sights on him?"

Tian Lingling said, "Shen Shengqin is a good person. When I was little, I played with Brother Aijun and the others, and Shen Shengqin always took care of me. One year, I went to Beiling to play. After running around all day, I was so tired that I couldn't walk anymore. Everyone was in a hurry to go home and no one cared about me. It was Shen Shengqin who carried me back."

The third grandfather stroked his graying beard, listening with a smile to his lively and outgoing granddaughter talk without interrupting. Tian Lingling had been talking since she was a child, and now that she was in her early twenties, her heart and eyes were still with Shen Shengqin. She probably had no intention of marrying into another family.

The tea leaves in the teapot had been steeped three times. Tian Lingling asked her third grandfather, "Third grandfather, do you think my dad is being a big warlord by forcing me to break off my relationship with Shen Shengqin? If my mother hadn't stopped him that night, my dad would have slapped me. Look at the guy he found for me, he's from the city, so what? He's not very mobile. There's a girl in our factory who found someone from a very wealthy family, but he's disabled. You didn't see the scars on her body from being beaten by her boyfriend. We all say that people with physical disabilities aren't mentally sound either."

Third Grandfather said, “Girl, let’s not talk about Brother Shen Shengqin being a rightist right now. After you marry into this family, you’ll encounter many things, and you’ll have to figure out how to solve them yourself. Your father wanted to find you someone with better conditions so that you can handle whatever problems you encounter in the future. Don’t underestimate the importance of daily life. It’s not just about eating, drinking, and basic necessities; it also involves interpersonal relationships and social interactions. Once you’re married, you have to establish yourself. Once you’re established, you have to support yourself. If your partner isn’t able to support you, you’ll have to do it yourself, and it will be very tiring.”

Tian Lingling said firmly, "Third Grandfather, I'm not afraid. I just think that life is about living behind closed doors. It's better to live alone than to live with someone you don't like."

Third Grandfather said, "Third Grandfather knows your feelings now, but do you know how Shen Shengqin feels? Does he also want you to like him, just like he likes you?"

Tian Lingling said somewhat embarrassedly, "No, I told him that his family's class background is not as good as ours, and he has so many children in his family. I would suffer if I married him."

Third Grandfather said, “Lingling, Third Grandfather thinks the Shen family is a good family. To be honest, although the eldest son of the Shen family was labeled a rightist and sent back from Beijing for labor reform, he is still so upright. Shen Shengqin has been taken care of by his older brothers and sisters since he was a child, and he is a bit spoiled. But he is still a good child at heart. But you have to know that marriage is to build good relations between two families, not to make enemies. You insisted on taking Shen Shengqin to the park. This is slapping your father in the face. How do you expect your father to feel? You are thinking too simply. Your father went through so much trouble to send you to work in the machine factory to find you a way to have a good life. Now some people in the village have heard about the two of you going to the park. How can your father face so many people in our village?”

Third Grandfather sighed. Tian Lingling's lips moved, and after a long while, tears welled up in her eyes as she choked out, "Third Grandfather, my father asked someone to help me find a boyfriend. The matchmaker arranged for us to meet that day, and the meeting place happened to be near the commune. The boy's parents are factory workers, and he's a young man in his early twenties who doesn't do any real work. He just squats at the factory gate, and he's taken advantage of many of my girlfriends. Do you think I can marry someone like that?"

Third Grandfather looked at Tian Lingling, who was sobbing at the edge of the field, and said, "Alright, girl, stop crying. Third Grandfather will have a good talk with your father and see if we can change his mind. Sigh, you've been spoiled since you were little. You know too little about life. You'll take many detours in the future."

Tian Lingling said, "Third Grandpa, anyway, you can make your way through life by walking. Whether it's a winding road or a straight road, you can reach the end if you walk it carefully. Please help me."

Third Grandfather said, "You've always been stubborn. Have your dad come to our house tonight, and I'll talk to him about this. Whether it works out or not is not up to me."

Tian Lingling smiled through her tears, saying, "As long as Third Grandfather takes action, everything can be resolved."