Travel through famine years and awaken a post-apocalyptic survival system.

"Oh well!"

He then looked at the old man and said, "Chief Zhao, we will be conducting a full examination later."

The old man agreed: "Okay!"

Seeing this, Zhao Qingsong finally spoke up: "Sir, the doctor has arrived, and I need to go home, so I'll be leaving now."

The old man looked at him and smiled, "Alright, you can go back now. Thank you for today. You're from the steel factory's security department, right? Your name is Zhao Qingsong?"

"Yes, that's right! You have a great memory!"

"Okay! You go back first, and I'll thank you again when the old man is better."

"Hey, it's nothing, anyone would have helped if they saw it! I'll be going now!"

I said goodbye and left the ward.

After Zhao Qingsong came out, he hummed a little tune and didn't care whether the other party would come to him to repay the favor.

If you don't contact him afterwards, there's nothing he can do.

I rode my bike home.

……

It was nearly five o'clock when he returned to the village.

The entrance to the brigade headquarters.

Zhao Qingsong happened to run into Wang Mancang.

"Captain!"

"Hey, Qingsong! You're back! You even bought the car?"

Wang Mancang was also surprised to see him pushing the cart back.

Zhao Qingsong parked the bicycle, offered him a cigarette, and said with a smile, "Where would I afford a bicycle? This belongs to a friend at the factory; I'm just borrowing it for a bit. Is my mother here?"

Wang Mancang took the cigarette and laughed, "I didn't even realize you were wearing these clothes! They're nice! They were issued by the factory. Your mom's in there twisting hemp rope!"

After saying that, he called out into the house, "Zhang Xiulan, Zhang Xiulan! Qingsong is back."

Zhang Xiulan was working in the room when she heard this and was taken aback.

"Is Qingsong back?"

He quickly put down what he was holding and stood up.

Seeing this, the others followed out out of curiosity.

……

"The pine tree!"

Zhang Xiulan came out and stared straight at him.

She walked closer, looked him over, and then exclaimed excitedly, "These are new clothes from the factory? That's great! Is it tough at the factory? Does anyone bully you?"

He asked in a rapid-fire manner.

Zhao Qingsong looked at the old woman in front of him.

Although she wasn't my mother, her concern was genuine, and it warmed my heart.

He chuckled and said, "Yes, these are work uniforms issued by the factory. There are three sets, one for spring, one for autumn, and one for winter. You can get a new set every three years. I'm in the security department now, so no one bullies me."

"well!"

Zhang Xiulan's eyes reddened, and she nodded repeatedly.

The young women and wives who followed behind also spoke up.

"Qingsong, you've got a stable job now, is the salary high? How much is it a month?"

"Xiulan, Qingsong is going to be working at the factory, you two are going to have a great time!"

They laughed and chattered amongst themselves.

Zhao Qingsong greeted everyone one by one and offered a cigarette to each of the smokers.

These days, many women smoke too.

Even if she doesn't smoke, she'll give it to her man to smoke.

Zhang Xiulan felt an overwhelming sense of pride as she watched her son hand out cigarettes to others.

Seeing that he had finished walking, she urged, "Come on, let's go home. Are you hungry? Mom will cook for you."

Seeing this, Zhao Qingsong went to push the cart.

"Captain, you're busy, I'll head back now! Aunt Liang, Aunt Song..."

He greeted everyone in turn before leaving with Zhang Xiulan.

……

Pushing the cart along the road, Zhao Qingsong asked with a smile, "Mom, how's Dad's health?"

"Okay, your dad is all better now. He's just like a normal person, working very efficiently. He went to gather firewood and should be back in a bit."

"Okay, that's good. How's your uncle's family? Are they making a fuss?"

"Hey, there wasn't any trouble. Your aunt called her brother over, so I went to find your uncle and the others. We almost got into a fight. In the end, I had to pay 5 yuan for medical expenses, which I borrowed from the village committee. It's okay, we've got you covered. Don't worry."

Zhao Qingsong nodded slightly upon hearing this.

Things that can be solved with money aren't really problems.

After all, he was the one who injured the person. Five yuan is five yuan. He probably paid for the medical expenses and there was nothing left.

He then said, "If they cause trouble again next time, I'll hit them again. I'll just pay them back."

"You silly child, did this money just fall from the sky?"

Zhang Xiulan complained.

The two hurried home together.

……

I pushed open the gate and pushed the car inside!

"elder brother!"

Just as I parked the car, a surprised voice rang out.

The little girl rushed over happily.

He chuckled and said, "Brother, your clothes look really good! You actually look quite presentable!"

Upon hearing this, Zhao Qingsong felt a wave of dizziness.

"Where did you learn that from! 'Looking like a respectable person'—that's not a compliment!"

The younger sister scratched her head: "Ah! Er Gouzi is wearing new clothes, and even the brigade leader said he looks presentable. Isn't that a compliment to his nice clothes?"

Zhao Qingsong was speechless for a moment.

"If you don't know how to compliment someone, then don't just give them random compliments!"

They untied the items from the car and carried them inside.

The little guy followed anxiously behind, asking, "Brother, brother, what delicious food did you bring me?"

"All you ever think about is eating. You'll see soon enough."

Zhao Qingsong carried the things into the house, placed them on the heated kang (a traditional Chinese bed-stove), and opened the contents.

"Here, eat up!"

"Peach shortbread?"

The little girl's eyes lit up, and she was practically drooling.

"Mmm, eat up! There's quite a lot! And here's some candy, and this is a hair accessory for you."

Seeing this, the mother quickly took the things from her: "We can't give them all to her. Keep some for yourself. You need to eat well at the factory. Don't skimp on yourself and make others look down on you."

Zhao Qingsong smiled and said, "It's alright, don't worry. I have my own. This is for you all, have some."

Then they took out four pheasants and two rabbits.

There are still two strings of meat left.

Wild boars are not easy to slaughter, so we didn't bring them out.

Giving too much meat is not a good thing in rural areas.

"Mom, this is grain. Hide it later so no one can see it. Also, keep this meat. You can eat it openly. Don't be reluctant to eat it."

"My goodness, why did you get so much food? Can we even eat this meat openly?"

"Yeah, the grain is mixed with what we have at home. The meat is fine. I hunt at the factory, and the company gives me about ten pounds of meat! I caught these pheasants and rabbits when I came back."

He then explained the gist of the matter.

Other supplies can be traded, but food cannot be openly discussed, mainly because of the quantity—there is too much.

After saying that, he smiled and said, "Mom, don't ask me anything else. Don't worry, I won't steal or rob."

Hearing this, Zhang Xiulan said with some concern, "Child, you...you have a proper job now, don't let anyone report you, or you'll lose your job."

Zhao Qingsong smiled nonchalantly: "Hey, don't worry, I'm in the security department. What does the security department do? They arrest people. Even if they see me, they won't arrest me!"

He was just making things up.

"real?"

"Of course it's true!"

Then some cotton was taken out.

"Mom, keep this safe. Use the old cloth to make a few pairs of cotton shoes and a few cotton-padded jackets and trousers for the family. They'll be warm to wear in winter."

In the countryside, people aren't so particular.

New cotton is fine as long as it's warm.

The mother looked at the things and felt a pang of sadness; just before, the family had been starving.

So many supplies now.