As the leadership contingent noisily departed the county seat to greet the Commissioner during the lunch hour, I scurried back to my quarters with my own plate of stir-fried meat. Full and lying down on the **, I heard the unmistakable sound of police escort vehicles entering the county government compound—the Commissioner had arrived. Good, now we would see if this official could discern the true maladies afflicting Liangshan County.

After an unknown span of sleep, I was dimly aware of two girls’ footsteps ascending the stairs, followed by three soft raps on my dormitory door. I swung my legs out of bed and opened it to find Ning Shixuan and Yun Yao standing outside. “May I ask what brings the two young ladies to my door?”

“Hey, why didn’t you eat in the mess hall earlier?” Ning Shixuan demanded. I was certain it was Yun Yao who had knocked; if it had been Shixuan, she would have simply kicked the door in. The more familiar I became with her, the less ladylike she acted—her temperament was easily a match for Su Xue’s.

I replied, “Because Fatty Master cooked me a private meal today. Of course, I couldn't stay in the dining hall where everyone could see. Today, they were all eating boiled greens so they could save the meat for me while they reminisced about the hard times.”

Ning Shixuan wasn't concerned with my extra meat portions. “It’s a shame you missed the men’s behavior, though. Every single one of them rushed toward Yun Yao like their lives depended on it, leaving the Fatty Master at the other serving window completely ignored. Only when Secretary Ma, Magistrate Zhao, and Commissioner Zhou arrived together did they finally settle down. A bunch of lechers, it was hilarious.”

Hearing Ning Shixuan describe it, I couldn't help but look at Yun Yao twice. Despite being clad in a drab, country-style uniform that Shixuan must have sourced from somewhere, her figure was enough to topple a legion of men. Her slender waist was perfectly graspable, yet her bust was undeniably fuller than Ning Shixuan’s. Though a lock of bangs half-obscured her face, her innate beauty was impossible to hide. Never mind ordinary men desperately crowding around her; even I felt a stirring of attraction. Fortunately, having assisted her in the kitchen earlier, I had already witnessed her allure firsthand, so I remained composed now.

“Commissioner Zhou? Is the provincial government official handpicked by the Central Committee named Zhou? Did he eat in the mess hall too?”

Ning Shixuan chirped, “Yes, and he’s so young, probably not much older than you. He’s also very affable and doesn’t put on airs like a high-ranking official; everyone felt comfortable talking to him. I think he might be a good official.”

Seeing Yun Yao standing quietly with a troubled expression, I casually asked Ning Shixuan, “A good official? Do you believe there are bad officials, then?”

Ning Shixuan spoke with a world-weariness beyond her years. “Little child, you haven’t seen much of the world yet. You’ve only eaten public grain for a few days; you’ll soon understand the darkness of society.”

Yun Yao’s complexion grew even paler. I suspected it wasn't due to yesterday's heatstroke; she was lively enough when I saw her this morning. I’d have to find time to talk with her soon. Perhaps she was a lotus blossoming in the bitterness of socialism, and it was my historic and societal duty to save a damsel in distress.

Ning Shixuan continued, “Oh, right. I spoke with Chairman Sun from the Labor Union, and Yun Yao will be staying in the room next door from now on. You can help her clean up the place this afternoon; you don’t have anything else pressing to do anyway.”

With that, Ning Shixuan pulled Yun Yao away to rest in her own quarters, leaving me to handle the other task. Being ordered to clean and tidy a room felt like forcing a duck onto a perch, but considering how busy Yun Yao and Ning Shixuan would be these next few days, and realizing that besides the old gate guard, I seemed to be the only idle person in the entire government compound, I relented. Fine, I’d do it.

And so, Yun Yao was officially 'settled' into the county government. Ning Shixuan took time that evening to go out and buy bedding, mosquito nets, and the like, even picking up a set for me, which moved me to tears—what a good person!

The next day, nearing noon, I was busily helping out in the kitchen, hoping to earn another delicious meal from Fatty Master, when Secretary Liu rushed in and grabbed me. “Little Zhao, finally found you! You still have the mind to mess around here? Big trouble has erupted! Secretary Ma wants you in his office immediately. You should know what that means.”

Secretary Liu left in a hurry. Yun Yao, who was washing vegetables beside me, was startled by the gravity in his tone. “Brother Zhao, what happened? You should go quickly; don’t let work delay you and cause punishment. I’ll handle things here.”

Even as I walked up to the second floor, I couldn't fathom why Secretary Ma would summon me. But the moment I saw the crestfallen Director of Propaganda inside the room, I understood instantly. It seemed my good deeds had finally come to light.

Sure enough, the Director of Propaganda lunged forward and grabbed my collar the moment I entered Secretary Ma’s office. “You little brat, you’ve ruined me! I told you to go to Fengjia Village for a demonstration, so what did you do instead? Do you know what the villagers told Commissioner Zhou during his inspection tour today? You’re trying to kill Liangshan County!”

Secretary Ma scoffed, “People from the big cities are certainly bold. You’ve caused a huge disaster this time. You can forget about getting any signature from our county leadership on your transfer request. You either resign voluntarily, or you can stay here forever printing your damn newspaper!”

This was my first time in Secretary Ma’s office. I pulled the Director of Propaganda’s hand away and took a careful look around. It was indeed far superior to the offices downstairs—a completely different world inside. Secretary Ma’s executive chair alone must have cost several thousand yuan, not to mention the high-grade executive desk large enough to play table tennis on.

“Secretary Ma, what happened?” I asked him, feigning ignorance.

“What happened?!” the Director of Propaganda roared at me. “Don’t play dumb! The documents I gave you that day were perfectly clear, but what did you tell the villagers in Fengjia Village when you went down there? You didn’t help at all; instead, you created a monumental screw-up! That five million yuan in poverty alleviation funds is now completely gone. Do you want all the people of Liangshan County to starve with you!”

I stated solemnly, “Secretary Ma, do you find it interesting to cheat the country out of poverty alleviation funds using that method? If you genuinely wanted to do something for the people of Liangshan, not just five million, but even fifty billion wouldn't be impossible. But the key issue is that according to your original plan, you rely on crying poverty to secure five million. Once that five million is spent, you apply for the next round of aid. Year after year, will the people of Liangshan truly remain poor and downtrodden forever? Can’t we find a permanent solution to fundamentally resolve Liangshan’s poverty?”

“Well said, very well said,” Magistrate Zhao entered, applauding from outside. “I wondered who was giving such an impassioned speech; turns out it’s our fellow university student comrade. So, what have you experienced during your time working here?”

I replied, “Magistrate, what experience? I spend my days delivering papers and printing them. I finally managed to go down to the countryside to handle one matter, and I get criticized by Secretary Ma.”

Secretary Ma slammed his desk, pointing at me with blazing anger. “Criticized is an understatement! I nearly want to beat you! If you can’t even handle such a small matter correctly, what use are you alive for! I have never seen such a useless person as you!”

I felt a surge of anger too. No one had ever dared speak to me that way; those who had in the past were now dead men. This Secretary Ma remained unrepentant, dead set on scamming the state for poverty funds to spend. Even if the funds arrived, I wouldn't let him get a single cent!

Magistrate Zhao tried to placate him. “Old Ma, we can’t entirely blame Little Zhao for this. Let’s be frank: the state has supported Liangshan’s poverty alleviation for over a decade. After injecting hundreds of millions, we are still stuck in poverty. I agree with what Little Zhao said; perhaps we should focus our efforts more on finding ways to achieve prosperity.”