Daily Life in the 70s
Chapter 297: Top the Position

Chapter 297: Chapter 297: Top the Position

After Ge Sanni and Feng Erxi left, Yang PeiMin glanced at Shen Yixiang with amusement. "Yixiang, acting like this is going to be really awkward for you."

Shen Yixiang shook her head nonchalantly. "I just can’t stand her. If it weren’t for her, you could still be lying here."

Yang PeiMin: "..."

"By the way, I got a letter from home today, asking about your situation."

"Then you tell them everything’s fine."

"I was thinking the same." Shen Yixiang said happily.

The weekend came around, but now whether or not it was the weekend made no difference to Yang PeiMin. Shen Yixiang came back from outside, furious. Yang PeiMin found it strange and asked, "Who’s made you so angry?"

Shen Yixiang threw the letter in her hand onto the table with a slap and said angrily, "My fourth sister wrote to me, saying that someone has taken over my job."

Yang PeiMin was surprised, "Didn’t Principal Li promise to take good care of it? How could this happen?"

Shen Yixiang sat down and brooded, "Don’t mention it. Principal Li has been transferred; he’s not at Yu Ying Primary School anymore."

Yang PeiMin hadn’t expected this and, seeing her expression, she asked, "What else did fourth sister say?"

Shen Yixiang looked up at her. "She also said, the person who took my place is your cousin, named Yang Peiyan."

Yang Peiyan?

Yang PeiMin paused for a moment. Before she came over, she knew that this cousin hadn’t been admitted to university. She had been hiding in her room and hadn’t come out. Bai Hehua had once gossiped that Yang Peiyan had openly declared to her brother and sister-in-law that it didn’t matter if she didn’t get into university; she could still find a good job. This talk had come from Yang Peiyan’s own sister-in-law and was taken as a joke because Bai He’s intention was to have Yang Peiyan marry off early, sparing the family from her wasting their money at home.

She didn’t expect that the job Yang Peiyan found was such a one.

"Yixiang, what on earth is going on with your cousin? How could she just take my job like that? It’s not like I won’t be coming back to work; I’ll be returning after a while, and besides, the school isn’t short of teachers."

"Pei Min, don’t worry, it’s not like someone can just take a job because they say they will. The key is with the principal. If he hadn’t said they needed to hire a new teacher, who would dare to just waltz in and take it? I haven’t gotten along with that cousin of mine for a long time, and I’m not speaking in her defense."

"Even if it is the principal’s problem, she must have used some underhanded tactics."

Speaking of tactics, Yang PeiMin found herself at a loss for words, as it did seem likely. It was something Yang Peiyan could do; both sisters were made of the same cloth.

"Did fourth sister mention whether the school gave any explanation to our family?"

Shen Yixiang shook her head. "No, fourth sister was also puzzled when she heard the news, so she went to ask the school. They said it was because I had taken leave for too long without a valid reason, so it was treated as if I had resigned of my own accord, and therefore there was no need for me to return." Saying this, Shen Yixiang grew angry again. "I had already submitted my leave request following the proper procedures, and now just because the principal has changed, they don’t recognize people. There’s no logic to it."

Although she sometimes had disagreements with her colleagues, she liked her job very much. Teaching that group of children gave her a sense of achievement and responsibility. Another important thing was that the school was close to home, so she could always go back to take care of her parents. She didn’t have to work in a factory somewhere else, where it was complicated and unfamiliar, even though the salary was less.

Yang PeiMin thought it through and realized there wasn’t much room for argument. After all, the systems in some workplaces and schools weren’t that well-established at that time. Personnel arrangements were very casual, with no records or backups. If they found a reason to make you leave, you really had no place to argue. However, she could come over in person later to ask, and at least get an explanation.

However, after Shen Yixiang had been angry for a while, she adjusted her mood on her own. "Forget it; I’ll just find a new one when the time comes. I don’t know when I can return anyway, and it’s inevitable that the school will have to find someone soon to cover the classes that have been postponed for too long."

Yang PeiMin felt a bit guilty. "Speaking of which, it’s all because of me..."

But before she could finish her thought, Shen Yixiang interrupted her, glaring over. "What does it have to do with you? I came here by my own choice, and I did it for our mother, for my little nephew. Ensuring the continuity of the Shen family is also an important task. To be honest with you, before I came here, our mother said she would compensate me an amount equivalent to three months of my salary. Even if I lost my job, do you think you would kick me out?"

Yang PeiMin looked at the earnestness on her face and felt warmed inside. She nodded, "We will also compensate you. While you are taking care of me here, we’ll pay you a salary, how about that? It’s only two more months until New Year’s, and I think in about half a month, I should be able to leave the hospital. Then I can go home for recuperation, and you won’t have to work so hard. By then, whether you want to go home first or find something to do here is up to you."

She also thought that keeping busy with legitimate work would prevent Shen Yixiang from dwelling on the past.

Shen Yixiang turned her head, glanced at Yang PeiMin, and said, "I’ll take care of you until New Year’s and then we’ll go back together. Isn’t that what we agreed on? I never thought about changing my mind. As for the salary, forget it. Our mother has already given me some, and you should keep yours. Aren’t you in need of money every day? After the baby arrives, won’t he need money to be raised?" These days, just the food, the various soups, and nutritious meals, seemed to cost money like water. Even if she wasn’t using her own money, it still hurt to watch the expenses pile up. But she couldn’t not eat because she needed to be there to take care of Yang PeiMin, and she couldn’t leave to make soup sometimes. This meant ordering from restaurants, which made the food even more expensive. Now Shen Yixiang didn’t dare to take Yang PeiMin’s money, fearing that after she’d eaten it all, there’d be nothing left to raise the child.

Yang PeiMin shook her head, "Alright, if you want to take care of me here, that makes me happy, but you must accept the salary. Think of it as spending money from your brother-in-law and me. And don’t worry, despite our expenses these days, it actually comes down to at most three yuan a day. I still earn money from deliveries and can’t starve myself, right? When we have a free day, I’ll take you out, and you’ll see."

Shen Yixiang was half convinced.

A week later, Yang PeiMin could be discharged from the hospital. Even though she could leave, she could only get out of bed, basically just to change her location. Once at home, she had to continue resting in bed. If there were any discomforts at home, she had to go to the hospital immediately.

No matter what, Yang PeiMin was very happy. She felt she had had enough of the hospital’s air, the hospital’s smell, and the hospital’s bed.

She proceeded with the discharge procedure when Shen Yiguang arrived.