Refusing to marry a widower, I went on a crazy spree of sending my children to the army.

Qiao Manman knew that haste makes waste, and that a change in mindset needed to be combined with the development of productivity.

Just like now, she can't refute the other party's claim that girls are more useful than boys, because many jobs require a lot of physical exertion, and men are indeed stronger than women.

Only when society develops and more and more people see that girls have just as good a future as boys can many policies truly be implemented.

Just like in later generations, with the development of technology and the improvement of production efficiency, more and more women are stepping out of the confines of the home and making their mark in the political, business and scientific research fields.

Their social status rose accordingly, and they would no longer be subjected to insulting terms like "cheap girl" or "worthless trash."

Of course, these things cannot be accomplished overnight; they require the joint efforts of everyone.

Qiao Manman only asked a brief question before leaving. The journey was marked by silence.

Zhang Shuhan comforted her, saying, "Not everyone will listen to advice; most people can only see the small part around them."

Unless there's an exceptionally talented girl in their family or neighborhood who changes their fate, they'll never believe that girls are stronger than boys.

"Comrade Zhang doesn't seem to mind such 'anti-Heavenly Gang' remarks!"

Zhang Shuhan laughed and said, "I have two older sisters. One works in the municipal government, and the other sings in a cultural troupe."

Those two are so outstanding; compared to them, I, working in a machine factory, don't stand out at all.

Qiao Manman chuckled: "Comrade Zhang's family must be very harmonious."

"Well, it's alright. My mother taught us from a young age that 'women are just as capable as men' and 'who says women are inferior to men?' She said that if she hadn't been born a few years later, she would at least have become a female general."

Qiao Manman was amused. She went back to her office, put her things down, waved goodbye, and rode her bike home.

In the sunset, beside a small tree, a girl's hair fluttered in the wind.

Birds fluttered in the air, and Qiao Manman's mood suddenly brightened.

What's there to be afraid of? She's here to change the world.

The road ahead is long and arduous, but we will reach our destination! The future belongs to these young people who dare to dream and act!

Qiao Manman hummed a little tune as she returned to Qingshan Brigade, where she happened to run into He Nian, who was finishing work.

Her face was rosy, and the thin layer of sweat on her forehead glistened in the afterglow of the setting sun, radiating a joyful aura.

"Mother!" Qiao Manman called out.

He Nian smiled and replied, "Yes!"

He jogged over: "Was work tiring today?"

"I'm not tired. Where's Mom?"

"It's okay too!"

The mother and daughter walked back together. On the way, He Nian told Qiao Manman about Granny Qi.

Qiao Manman expressed her full support for He Nian's actions, and said, "Mom can spend more time talking with Grandma Qi when she has nothing to do. The most painful thing for old people is to be alone."

"If we cook something delicious at home, let Grandma Qi try it too. She's a hero, and heroes shouldn't shed tears."

"Mom knows, she even brought her lunch at noon!"

Qiao Manman nodded with a smile. When she got home, she took out a bag of peach shortbread from the house and said, "Mom will take this to Grandma Qi tomorrow as a treat."

He Nian didn't say anything, tidied up the yard, washed his hands, and cooked.

Before they were even finished, the brigade leader came over, puffing on his pipe, looking annoyed: "Man'er, you guessed right, the commune really did assign us a task."

But tell me, what do we roughnecks know? Not only do the commune members not understand the law, but even the brigade leader hasn't received any professional training!

That's why your uncle has come to learn from you!

Qiao Manman poured him a glass of water: "Our machinery factory is also busy with this matter. How about I ask the leader tomorrow to see if I can give you a copy of the information?"

Alternatively, they could select common legal provisions and have the educated youth explain them to everyone.

They have at least a junior high school education; if they study carefully, they can still understand it.

With such a great opportunity to showcase themselves, I believe that the educated youth will actively participate.

However, I was thinking that you could ask around at the commune. Ideally, we could send a few educated youth there for training, and once they've passed, they could then give presentations to the brigade members.”

Wang Defa thought about it and realized it was true. He puffed on his pipe and said, "Alright, I'll go to the commune to ask tomorrow."

After seeing Wang Defa off, the family enjoyed the cool air in the courtyard.

For dinner, they ate millet porridge and steamed bread. Qiao Manman took out a plate of crystal papaya shreds and a plate of spiced beef slices and shared them with her parents.

After finishing my meal, I went back to my room to rest. I slipped into my space and, seeing the strawberry seedlings that had sprouted leaves, happily squatted down and started fiddling with them.

The fruit tree seedlings have also sprouted new leaves, with small bulges that are not noticeable unless you look closely.

Qiao Manman changed into a pair of rubber shoes and went to the field to harvest rice.

Like the mutated wheat, the mutated rice had very tough stalks. She used a lot of effort to cut just a few ears of rice.

In order to enjoy the sweet and soft rice, Qiao Manman did not give up and used the "spiritual victory method" to vigorously harvest two rows of rice.

After finishing her work, her hands and feet were sore and tired. She came out of the field and sat on the recliner that she had specially arranged for her.

Beside me is a small wooden table with a pot of tea, a plate of osmanthus cake, and some cherries on it.

She wiped her hands clean with a wet wipe and then rinsed them with tea. Qiao Manman picked up a piece of osmanthus cake and put it in her mouth to taste.

Mmm, it's so delicious! Soft, chewy, and sweet, but not cloying. She could eat eight pieces by herself!

After eating and drinking her fill, Qiao Manman came out of the space and heard a commotion outside, saying that there was a fire.

Qiao Manman was startled and quickly got dressed to go out and help.

He Nian and Qiao Runming were also woken up. When they came out to see the flames shooting into the sky in the distance, they panicked.

"It's the middle of summer, and the wheat straw is still piled up in the village. If we don't handle it properly..."

Upon hearing this, Qiao Manman told her parents to lock the door and then took a large basin to put out the fire.

He Nian tried to stop her, but her daughter had already run far away. All she could do was call out to her retreating figure, "Manman, be careful!"

Qiao Manman rushed into the center of the village against the wind and discovered that the fire was actually burning the brigade's warehouse.

Flames shot up from the corner of the wall, and thick black smoke emitted a pungent smell.

Many people were putting out the fire, pouring buckets of water into the yard.

Without a word, Qiao Manman joined the firefighting team. When Wang Defa saw this, he grabbed her arm and said, "Why are you getting involved? Go back!"

Qiao Manman shook her head: "Uncle, is this the time to talk about these things? I'm strong, let go of me, let's put out the fire and then we can talk!"

Wang Defa didn't want the girl to take any risks, but there was still grain in the warehouse that hadn't been distributed yet.

If this were burned to ashes, he and Liu Yun would be sinners in the Qingshan Brigade.

There was nothing else I could do but let go of Qiao Manman and tell her to be careful.

Qiao Manman poured water into the fire, basin after basin, for an unknown amount of time until the fire was finally extinguished.

All that remained was the scorching heat and the acrid smell of smoke.

Wang Defa led his men to investigate and discovered that the fire originated from the wheat straw piled up at the warehouse entrance. The straw was so dense that even a tiny spark could ignite it. Now, only ashes remained.

Fortunately, the warehouse was built with red bricks, and apart from the walls being blackened by fire, it did not collapse.

Wang Defa kicked open the charred warehouse door and found two pale bodies lying on the ground, unconscious.