country bumpkin

Kong Xiufang went to the workshop, found Director Xu, told her about Qi Feifei's situation, and helped her get a day off.

Director Xu didn't ask Qi Feifei in detail about why she went out drinking. She simply approved her leave.

Kong Xiufang returned to the workshop with the leave slip. Several of her roommates saw her and asked her how she was doing.

Everyone was worried that Director Xu might not approve the leave slip and would mark Qi Feifei as absent without leave.

Having a leave slip won't result in a deduction from your salary, but you won't receive your pay for that day, and you'll also miss out on the full attendance bonus. Absence without leave will result in a deduction of three days' pay, which is very harsh.

Director Xu usually doesn't count absenteeisms as absenteeism, unless someone is absent for three days without a clear reason.

She knew very well that these young girls didn't earn money easily. Many of them came from rural areas; they were hardworking and wouldn't cheat or shirk their duties.

Therefore, Director Xu appreciates them very much and will always make things convenient for them, even for small matters.

The workshop staff also respected Director Xu. Another reason was that Director Xu and the factory manager were good friends.

After hearing Kong Xiufang's words, her roommates were relieved and returned to their respective work stations.

Aunt Qu, who works in the dormitory, is inspecting the cleanliness of the dormitory. As I walked to the door of room 102, I heard loud snoring.

She was puzzled; everyone should be at work in the factory at this time. Why would anyone be sleeping?

She walked over to knock on the door, but the door was pushed open as soon as her hand touched it.

Upon entering the room, one would see Qi Feifei sprawled out, fast asleep.

The room reeked of alcohol; the smell was strong and pungent. Aunt Qu frowned, quickly covered her nose, and went to the small back room to open the window.

A gentle breeze blew by, instantly refreshing Aunt Qu. Only then did she lower her hand from her nose.

She walked back to Qi Feifei's bedside and gently shook Qi Feifei's arm. The person on the bed did not react at all.

She was still snoring loudly. Aunt Qu sighed, thinking that even if she woke her up, she probably wouldn't wake up properly, so she decided to let her sleep.

Aunt Qu left the room again, gently closed the door, and went to check the hygiene of other dormitories.

It wasn't until noon, after everyone had finished eating in the cafeteria, that they returned to their dormitories.

Kong Xiufang and Qi Feifei weren't very familiar with each other, nor did they have any particular grudges, so she got her a meal.

When they returned to the dormitory, Qi Feifei had already woken up, and was gently tapping her head, which was throbbing with pain.

Kong Xiufang poured the food into her lunchbox and handed it to her.

Qi Feifei looked up, her eyes filled with surprise and gratitude, and said softly, "Thank you, Xiufang."

Kong Xiufang smiled and said, "You're welcome. You must have been feeling very unwell this morning. Eating something will make you feel better."

Qi Feifei got out of bed, took the lunchbox, and sat on the stool to eat. After only a few bites, tears started streaming down her face.

The other roommates were somewhat surprised to see this scene.

Qi Feifei choked up as she said, "I received a letter from home yesterday afternoon saying that my father was sick and needed money urgently. I was so anxious and didn't know what to do, so I went out drinking."

The crowd sighed and offered her words of comfort.

At this moment, Wang Huihui stepped forward and said, "Let's all chip in and send some money back to help with the emergency." The others responded enthusiastically.

Qi Feifei was deeply moved and thanked him repeatedly. She also felt embarrassed and ashamed of what she had done yesterday.

She looked at everyone and bowed deeply, choking back tears as she thanked them, "Thank you all, thank you for forgiving me, thank you for still being willing to help me when I was in trouble."

Everyone rushed over to comfort her, saying there was no need to be polite. Shao Yuwei said, "It's fate that we can live together, so it's only right to help each other out."

Qi Feifei was even more grateful, looking at everyone with tears in her eyes.

Just as everyone was discussing how to pool their money, Director Xu suddenly appeared at the dormitory door.

It turned out she had also heard the news and rushed over to see for herself. She was holding an envelope containing some money.

"This is temporary relief money from the factory. Take it to get your father medical treatment first."

Qi Feifei took it with trembling hands, her heart filled with warmth. She knew that in these difficult times, the kindness shown by everyone in helping each other in times of need was as precious as the warm sun.

After delivering the money, Director Xu stayed for a while longer before heading back. The other roommates also went back to work in the workshop.

Qi Feifei looked at the bulging money bag in her hand, feeling both happy and touched.

He quickly ate a few mouthfuls of rice, preparing to leave to catch a bus home to deliver the money. He tidied his hair and clothes, washed his face, slung his crossbody bag over his shoulder, and headed to the station.

Arriving at the bus station, looking at the bustling crowds coming and going, I was filled with mixed emotions.

This is her second year working at the garment factory. When she first came to the city, she faced setbacks everywhere she went. She finally found a garment factory that was hiring and went through several interviews before she managed to get a job.

Looking back, it seems like several years have passed. She gazed deeply in the direction of home; it had been so long since she'd been back, and she missed her family terribly.

Every year, including Labor Day, National Day, and the Spring Festival, no matter how many days off there are, she never goes home. Instead, she secretly takes on part-time jobs, working as a kitchen helper or waitress in hotels.

Because her family was poor, she was very competitive. She felt that if she was inferior to others, she would be looked down upon.

So whether it's at work or finding a boyfriend, she has to excel.

She hasn't been promoted to team leader in the past two years, but she has a good relationship with several team leaders. They usually assign her some light tasks that are paid relatively well in piecework.

This time, she genuinely liked Song Ke and felt that she had finally found someone she liked, a man with a great job.

I never imagined that after all her hard work, she would still be taken away from me. That's why she's become increasingly disliked.

After thinking for a long time, the car to take her home arrived beside her. Without any hesitation, she quickly got on and found an empty seat.

Five minutes later, the ticket seller came over and asked her to buy a ticket. She took out some change from her outer pocket and paid 2 yuan for the ticket.

She secretly touched the inside pocket of the jacket. Inside was her father's life-saving money, a bulging bag.

She carefully zipped up the zipper, then looked around to make sure no one was paying attention to her before she felt relieved.

Her biggest worry on the bus was encountering pickpockets, which she had experienced before. So this time, she only put a small amount of pocket money in her outer pocket as a cover.

He was also carrying a cloth bag, which was also a decoy.

Most thieves only steal from backpacks or pockets where money is being taken out; no daring thief would steal from someone's inner pockets.

The car bumped along the road, and Qi Feifei gazed at the scenery rushing past the window, her thoughts drifting away.

Suddenly, a commotion erupted on the bus. It turned out that a passenger had discovered his wallet was missing and was anxiously searching around while shouting for help to catch a thief.

Qi Feifei was startled and instinctively protected her inner pocket.

The driver stopped the car to check the situation. At this moment, a young man stood up and said that he saw a suspicious person loitering around the passenger from before, but that person had already gotten off the car in the chaos.

The owner could only accept his bad luck, and the people on the bus condemned the thief's evil deeds.

The bus started moving again, but Qi Feifei's tense nerves didn't relax. Finally, they arrived at the station, and she hurriedly got off and ran home.

When she got home, she saw her father lying in bed. With tears in her eyes, she handed the money to her mother and asked her to take her father to the hospital for treatment.

The family was deeply moved. Qi Feifei felt that although life was full of hardships, the warmth between people was enough to overcome all difficulties.

After a brief stay, she embarked on her journey back to the factory. She needed to go back to work and earn money to repay her roommates. As for relationships, she'd leave it to fate.