September 19, 2024, Thursday.
According to the calendar, this day was the year of Jiachen, the month of Guiyou, and the day of Bingxu. Auspicious for: marriage, travel, cleaning, manicures, and foot baths.
It was morning in Jing City, Yunan Province, where the weather was clear and the sunlight was streaming into a townhouse community named Golden Scale Bay. In the front garden of a certain household, Ms. Li Xiaolei, Jiang Qingkui’s mother, slapped an almanac in front of Jiang Qingkui’s father, Jiang Jiaxing, and said angrily,
"See, the almanac says I should go for a ’manicure’ today, so why won’t you let me go?"
"The word ’auspicious’ only means you can do it, it doesn’t mean you have to... and what kind of ridiculous almanac is this, with ’manicures’ in it?"
Squatting to pull weeds, Jiang Jiaxing flipped through the calendar with a head full of black lines, unable to understand.
"If I say you’re behind the times, you still won’t admit it. Shouldn’t calendars move with the times?"
Dressed in quite a fashionable way, Ms. Li Xiaolei, who didn’t look like she was just over fifty, snorted disdainfully. "It even mentions ’foot baths,’ why don’t you criticize that?"
"A ’foot bath’ and ’washing feet’ are two different things..."
"I don’t care, just tell me if I can get the manicure. Worst case, you can go wash your feet too?"
"Sigh, why would I wash my feet? With my status, is it suitable for me to go to those places?"
"Oh, our Director Jiang hasn’t washed them enough, huh?"
"You... this woman, don’t slander me! Even if I’ve gone a few times, it was for company business, and it was all legitimate foot therapy. Didn’t I report to you each time?"
Feeling wronged, Jiang Jiaxing threw down the small hoe in his hand and stood up huffily.
"If there’s nothing to hide, why get so worked up?"
"...No, do you listen to reason? What does my getting worked up have to do with whether I have something to hide?"
As the two argued in the garden, a cheerful voice came from the doorway.
"Old Jiang, Xiaolei, have you had breakfast yet?"
Turning to look, standing by the garden gate were the two neighbors, Old Wang and his wife.
Both worked at the same unit, and they had been old friends for many years.
Seeing the couple bicker didn’t seem strange to them as every couple had their way of interacting, and for so many years, that’s how the Jiang couple got along.
In private discussions among the neighbors, they were all envious, for as time passed, all that remained of home life was a flat, stagnant set of trivialities, like a pool of dead water. Couples like Jiang Jiaxing and Li Xiaolei, who seemed to "argue" every day, had feelings that were actually more solid.
"We’ve eaten, have you guys eaten?"
Sure enough, with the appearance of Old Wang and his wife, Jiang Jiaxing and Li Xiaolei stopped arguing, turning their heads with smiles to greet them.
After a few simple exchanges, Old Wang and his wife had not left, and given Jiang Jiaxing’s astuteness, it was clear to him they had something else in mind. Quickly, he went over to open the door, invited Old Wang and his wife to sit in the garden, and went to pour two cups of tea.
Being very familiar with each other, Old Wang and his wife did not refuse, sitting down by the small table in the garden. However, Old Wang still seemed a bit hesitant.
"Come on, Old Wang, just say what you need to say. No need to look so troubled. Surely you’re not here to borrow money... how much do you need? Tell me the figure, and I’ll discuss it with my wife."
Seeing Old Wang hesitate to speak, Jiang Jiaxing proactively said.
"No, no, we’re not borrowing money—not borrowing from you two."
Old Wang quickly waved his hand, seeing his wife signaling with her eyes; he then stopped beating around the bush and carefully said, "Well, Old Jiang... I heard you’re getting along well with Minister Zhou now?"
"Minister Zhou?"
Jiang Jiaxing was momentarily stunned, not immediately realizing who Old Wang referred to as "Minister Zhou." After his wife softly reminded him, he understood.
"You mean Old Zhou, Zhou Dajun, right?"
You can’t blame Jiang Jiaxing for being slow; mainly, the title "Minister" was hard for him to associate with Zhou Dajun...
But now, Old Zhou was an actual "Minister."
Just last week, with a directive from the board, Comrade Zhou Dajun, who had been stuck in the archive room for years, was appointed, assuming the new position of Deputy Minister of Human Resources—a rank below Jiang Jiaxing, but with the same benefits.
"Yes, yes, Old Zhou..."
"Now, Old Wang, what you said isn’t quite right. It’s not just now that Old Zhou and I get along well; we’ve always been on good terms. Just recently, we’ve been in more frequent contact."
Half understanding what Old Wang wanted, Jiang Jiaxing waved his hand with a smile. Exchanging a glance with Li Xiaolei, they both saw a trace of emotion in each other’s eyes.
The Zhou family’s situation truly improved now...
Having such an accomplished son benefitted even the parents.
Zhou Dajun had been nearing a smooth retirement, but managed to embark on a second career spring. The Human Resources Department was one of the most coveted departments in any state-owned enterprise. Holding a leadership position there, in terms of actual standing, slightly surpassed Jiang Jiaxing.
Zhao Guihua, a rural woman, was someone Li Xiaolei had harbored some natural disdain for during earlier exchanges between the two families. But now, even though she still didn’t understand much about style or dress, that bracelet worth tens of thousands worn at gatherings was more than enough to outshine everything else...