When Fei Ni arrived in the morning, she had worn socks inside her plastic sandals, but by the end of her shift, the socks were wrapped in old newspaper and tucked under the rear bike rack. In their workshop, there was a particularly fastidious and politically orthodox older sister who couldn't stand the sight of girls exposing their toes, scolding them for being improper. At first, Fei Ni didn't understand why this sister was so vehement, but after reading some decadent literature, she vaguely realized that the sister wasn't as progressive as she appeared—in fact, she was quite feudalistic. Only in the old society would people view women's feet as highly sexualized organs, where not even a single toe could be shown.
She only privately concluded that the older sister in the workshop wasn't progressive, yet she still consciously wore socks inside her sandals. Today, she had left in a hurry, not bothering to dry her feet properly before slipping on her sandals, so her feet felt somewhat sticky against the plastic. Her toes, freshly trimmed yesterday, were neatly rounded, and her ankles were slender. Between her skirt and sandals, a section of her calves was exposed. The evening breeze brushed against her legs, drying the remaining moisture and lifting the hem of her skirt.
As Fei Ni drew closer, she realized Fang Muyang was making a spectacle of himself right at the entrance of their factory. He was still wearing a white shirt with the sleeves rolled up to his elbows, hands in his pockets, and a bunch of flowers tucked under his arm. Only the stems made contact with his body, occupying about a quarter of the flowers' length. The flowers were wrapped in newspaper, revealing white petals inside. He wasn't holding them properly but rather clamping them, which, unlike the somewhat foolish but harmless act of holding flowers outside a factory, made him appear somewhat rogueish.
Fei Ni really wanted to pretend she didn't know him, but Fang Muyang didn't give her the chance. He brought the flowers close to her nose for her to smell.
They were white Gladiolus.
Fei Ni asked him, "Where did you get these?" In recent years, there had been no cut flowers sold in the markets.
"Bought them at the market. They're for you."
Fang Muyang hadn't been staying at the hospital these past few days; instead, he had been riding trams all over the city with a newly bought map, getting off at places that caught his interest. Today, while browsing the market to buy a gift for Fei Ni, he happened upon a vendor from the southern suburbs secretly selling flowers from a basket. Remembering the artificial flowers in Fei Ni's vase at home, he decided to buy her some real ones.
What era was this to be giving flowers? If anyone saw, she might become the talk of the bathhouse again. The bouquet was too conspicuous, so Fei Ni snatched it and placed it in her bike basket.
Fang Muyang's shirt carried the scent of soap dried in the sun, but Fei Ni also noticed it wasn't clean, with black stains here and there. He wasn't really washing his clothes—just soaking them in soapy water and then hanging them out to dry. With that method, even washing eight times a day wouldn't get them clean.
"How did you find this place?"
"Don't you want me to come?"
Pan Lili from the third workshop spotted Fei Ni and walked over to greet her, then looked Fang Muyang up and down, smiling as she asked Fei Ni, "Fei Ni, is this your new boyfriend?"
Fei Ni replied impatiently, "No."
Pan Lili was famously beautiful in the factory, but Fei Ni wasn't in the same workshop and rarely had any contact with her. She couldn't understand why this person would talk about her behind her back like that.
Pan Lili didn't leave it at that. She smiled and said to Fei Ni, "Then let me introduce you to someone. I have a classmate who works at the sewing machine factory..."Pan Lili disliked Fei Ni because her husband—Officer Yang from the propaganda department, who spoke fluent Mandarin—had asked Fei Ni to the movies multiple times before pursuing her, only to be rejected by Fei Ni each time. She only learned about this after marriage, and though she was a proud person, her husband had made her feel inadequate. It made her feel as if she had picked up someone Fei Ni didn’t want. Had she known before marriage, she would never have married him. Because of this, she paid extra attention to Fei Ni’s romantic life.
Fei Ni interrupted Pan Lili, "I’m already seeing someone. There’s no need for you to introduce anyone to her."
Pan Lili inwardly scoffed. If she was already seeing someone, why was she still flirting with some unknown pretty boy?
Still smiling, Pan Lili pressed, "Who is it? Which factory does he work in? How come I’ve never heard you mention him?"
Fang Muyang answered for Fei Ni, "You’ll find out soon enough."
Fei Ni thought Fang Muyang must have learned about her relationship with Ye Feng. Knowing that, he still showed up at the factory gate with flowers to wait for her. If others saw, who knew what gossip would spread.
After Pan Lili left, Fei Ni asked Fang Muyang, "What did you need to see me about?"
"Can’t I come see you without a reason?"
A wave of floral fragrance drifted into Fei Ni’s nostrils. She remained silent and pushed her bicycle forward.
"You like watching movies, don’t you? Let’s go to the park this Sunday to watch the open-air film."
"I’m busy."
"Then save some time for me next week. I’ll be returning to the educated youth point soon, and before I go, I’d like to watch a movie with you."
Hearing the words "educated youth point," Fei Ni’s voice unconsciously rose, "Why are you going back there?"
"I noticed a restaurant nearby. Let’s eat there—my treat."
The most popular item in the small restaurant was draft beer, with a crowd of people queuing up to buy it. Fei Ni found a seat by the window and, before even sitting down, asked, "Who told you to go back?"
"Do you want beer?"
"No. Did the Office of Educated Youth talk to you?"
"Then let’s have soda." Fang Muyang pointed to the menu on the wall and asked what she wanted to eat.
When Fei Ni didn’t respond, Fang Muyang ordered for her. By the time he reached the fourth dish, Fei Ni stopped him, saying it was enough.
"I’m leaving on my own. I don’t want to stay in the hospital any longer—it’s too boring for a healthy person to be stuck there. You know Lin Ge, right? He’s from the same educated youth point as me. He’s back on home leave, and I thought I’d return with him once his leave is over."
"So many people fake pneumonia or nephritis just to return to the city, and here you are—finally back, yet you want to run off to the countryside again. In your condition, who’s going to look after you out there? Do you really think the locals need you? The place where you’re sent lacks everything except labor. They don’t even have enough grain for themselves—how could they spare any for you? Do you think if you go back this time, you’ll ever make it back to the city?" Fei Ni quickly regained her composure and lowered her voice, "You’ve spent years in the countryside being re-educated by the poor and lower-middle peasants. It’s time you came back to help build the city."
Fang Muyang laughed, "By staying in the hospital?" He scooped a spoonful of clay pot tofu for Fei Ni, "Eat up."
"The Office of Educated Youth should find you a job. If they don’t, you should go and demand it from them—once, twice, as many times as it takes...""But aside from you, there's nothing in this city I care about."
Fei Ni didn't believe him. "Weren't you just sketching that young nurse at the hospital the other day?"
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