Chapter Nine: The Decision

"Our home is right on the border, and it’s plenty rugged. We’ll take Zhuzhu home, have her apply for the machinery plant, take the technician’s exam—Zhuzhu is smarter than me, she can definitely do it! There hasn’t been any hiring lately, but that’s okay, I’ll hand over my job to Zhuzhu!"

Even if it meant trading a technician’s position for a temporary laborer’s spot, as long as Zhuzhu could be settled, it would be worth it!

Since last year, hiring had been frozen everywhere, and quotas were no longer being distributed. Otherwise, with Zhuzhu’s education, she would never have lacked for work. One only had to look at her older sister to know that in years past, university students were highly sought after! They even received subsidies while studying, and upon graduation, their starting salary grades far exceeded those of ordinary workers who had been on the job for years.

"Mobilizing youth to go to the countryside? I’ll go. Isn't it just farm work? I’m a grown man, I’ve got the strength! Taking Zhuzhu home is only a temporary fix; we don’t know how long it will take for things to return to normal. We can’t just let her sit at home forever, can we?"

Public opinion is a fearful thing. People wouldn’t say anything for a day or two, but as time dragged on—and in the current climate, which encouraged university students to go to the mountains and countryside, to receive training and support development...

"There are always those malicious types looking to stir up trouble; that’s when we’d be vulnerable. As long as Zhuzhu has a job, we can nip the hidden danger in the bud!"

They wouldn't fight the tide, but surely they could swap places with someone else!

"When you reach the mountain, there will be a road, Mom, little brother—don't be angry. Anger hurts your health, and it breaks my heart! Dad, big sister, don't worry. We should be happy; we already know the worst-case scenario, so we just need to find a way to make it better as quickly as possible!" Jiang Jingzhu hugged her mother, comforting her trembling body.

She then took her little brother’s hand and forced his grip to loosen; in just that short time, he had already dug five bruised, crescent-shaped nail marks into his palm. Looking at her father, who was simmering with quiet rage, and her older sister, who was venting her sorrow, she consoled them one by one.

"Don't get upset or hurt yourselves on my account. If you keep doing this, even if you don't care about your own health, I do!" Being unconscious was one thing, but now that the worst hadn't happened yet, they couldn't afford to break down first.

Since waking up yesterday with memories of her past life, she generally knew that this timeline was still long and full of hardships. Han Hongying’s notification was simply the final shoe dropping.

Nothing was set in stone yet, and even if it were an immediate execution, there was still room for maneuvering. At worst, the initial period would be difficult for a couple of days. She didn’t believe there wasn't a single person with a discerning eye; it wasn't a desperate situation. Her mindset remained remarkably calm—this was confidence in her own abilities.

It was just ironic how quickly the tables had turned; yesterday she was filled with high aspirations to achieve something great, and today she was immediately facing the prospect of being ground into the dust!

If this were all happening under normal circumstances, she would just follow the established path. The school was her best platform and backing to showcase her talent; her teachers and the institution could be directly entrusted with her work.

Although the reality was that she was about to be left without schooling, making even graduation difficult, let alone conducting research—she would lose the opportunity to access those cutting-edge projects.

But in extraordinary times, one must take extraordinary measures. "Let’s turn passive into active. I can proactively apply to support the frontier! This way, I can ensure the destination for moving to the countryside is somewhat controllable—at the very least, I’ll know the direction!"

Those people wouldn't give her too much time. She needed to expedite the application, preferably find someone to pull some strings, and act before they could make a move, ensuring she wasn't blocked, swapped, or branded with a label.

Scientific research allows for no sloppiness. In this era, there were no convenient computer-aided designs or calculations like in the future. In an age where computational power relied solely on hands, brains, and slide rules, and drafting was done entirely by hand, she couldn't possibly produce a world-shaking design in a day or two. Whether it was fighter jet design or naval ship design, everything required absolute precision and could not tolerate a single oversight.

More importantly, the school currently had no one she could trust with these designs. Going to the countryside for a while would serve as a buffer; she wouldn't let herself remain buried in the dirt forever!

"All of you, please take care of yourselves first. Even if not for your own sake, do it so you can better support me later! Once I set off my big fireworks, I’ll still need you to help me find someone to save me from this sea of bitterness!"

It wasn't that she couldn't handle the hardship of staying in the countryside—well, perhaps she really couldn't handle the back-breaking, day-after-day toil—but she had such loving and adorable family members in this life who had truly spoiled her!

Given the current state of the nation, there was no time to waste. She might as well accomplish something in the field she excelled in.

As she spoke, Jiang Jingzhu was already shifting her focus. Where should she begin?

Aerospace or the ocean?

Better to stick to naval vessels; that was her foundation in this life, and her academic grounding over the past three years was quite solid.

"You silly girl, it’s not that easy. It would be better if I stepped down and you took my place, Zhuzhu!" Tong Shufen’s tense body relaxed slightly; she had always believed that a living person could never be suffocated by their own circumstances.

Work in the production corps, especially at the infirmary—while it was impossible to let Zhuzhu take over without any medical experience, as that would be irresponsible to the organization, she had an idea: "We can use the time difference while you’re recovering from your injury. I’ll teach you thoroughly and find professional books for you to study. Our Zhuzhu is so smart; with your brain, if you’re willing to learn, you can definitely master the basic skills in a very short time!" Truth be told, she didn't mind if Zhuzhu held the title while she did all the actual work!

It wasn't as if they were at a dead end. They hadn't lost everything yet, and they would never let Zhuzhu walk the worst path.

Jiang Baoshan smiled bitterly: "I’ve long considered stepping down to let Zhuzhu take my place. Even the most complex calculation problems are child's play for her; she can solve them just by thinking about them. The work of an accountant is something she’s been exposed to since she was small—she could help me with the books when she was just a child. If I teach her the rules step-by-step, it wouldn't be an issue at all. But the difficulty lies in the fact that Zhuzhu’s files are at the school; they can't be moved at will!"

It wasn't something they could simply arrange or manipulate.

The Huining Project was built on a military-industrial foundation and had to follow directives from above. Those people held Zhuzhu’s files, and under the guise of the state encouraging educated youth to go to the mountains and countryside to reclaim land and defend the borders, they certainly wouldn't make it simple by allowing her to return to her home of record to work.

Files were so important now. If they let those people fool them and blacken her records, then there would be no operation they could perform!

Although the production corps wasn't in chaos, they could still feel the tense atmosphere whenever they went into town for supplies. They had been worried about this for a long time. Since last year, when distributions stopped, with so many children waiting for assignments, if they were all assigned at once, could there possibly be any good places left?

They knew their own child’s character—Zhuzhu couldn't just go with the flow.

Taking the child away was easy, but what about her education? Not only had she studied for so many years, but all her efforts would go to waste. Most importantly, as long as her files were still at the school, they were holding their lifeline!

Without her files, she couldn't be hired or take over a position. Their location wasn't exactly a pure rural area, and now that educated youth were being mobilized everywhere to support the frontier, if Zhuzhu came home without a job, they wouldn't be able to protect her.

One word of "mandatory enforcement," and none of them would be able to stop it!

As parents, the most helpless feeling is knowing you are powerless to protect your child.