Rebirth in the 50s: The Couple with the Hidden Space-Chapter 454 - 343: Published in the Pictorial

A pest control campaign put Zhou Jiao back in the public eye. Her collaborative wall painting and individually planned propaganda comics have garnered widespread acclaim.

Zhang Guoqing only found out from his colleagues about his wife’s big achievement after returning to work post-holiday.

Taking the newspapers handed over by his colleagues, every one of them was full of reports. No wonder the colleagues were cheerfully asking the couple to treat them.

Zhao Dashan came out of the office, smiling, "You couldn’t have just found out, right? Jiao Jiao really made our county shine this time. Especially those series of drawings of elderly folks and kids holding mouse tails—they’ve made the provincial city aware of Zhou Jiao’s name."

Listening to his colleagues’ teasing, Zhang Guoqing smiled repeatedly, "I genuinely didn’t know. I’ve been tidying the courtyard in the village these past few days. Jiao Jiao didn’t mention anything to me beforehand. No need to say anything more; such a happy occasion, I’ll treat everyone at the canteen at lunchtime. Brother Wen, do you think my salary this month is enough for you guys to splurge a bit?"

As soon as he finished speaking, everyone burst into laughter.

Talking about salary brings a little anecdote. Zhang Guoqing is warmhearted and hospitable, having an excellent relationship with his colleagues. When he first started working, he was continuously whisked away by his colleagues for meals at the canteen. When he finally got his salary, he realized he had been eating off others’ tabs.

As a result, without informing his colleagues, he privately made an arrangement with Xiao Wang, who managed meal tickets at the canteen, to directly charge all group meals to his account. Before the end of the month, Xiao Wang loudly declared that his salary couldn’t cover the meal expenses anymore. This incident led to days of teasing from the comrades at the armed department. 𝚏𝕣𝕖𝚎𝚠𝚎𝚋𝚗𝐨𝐯𝕖𝕝.𝕔𝐨𝕞

Accountant Brother Wen knew Zhang Guoqing was loyal and generous, but Zhang also had a wife and son to support, so he subtly held onto his salary. Seeing him inquire now, he chuckled, "Don’t treat us to a meal; just bring wine in the afternoon instead."

Zhang Guoqing noticed the colleagues agreed with Brother Wen’s suggestion and didn’t refuse. He exchanged glances and smiles with Zhao Dashan. In his mind, he planned to bring some cured meat over.

Since Xiao Wang exposed the meal ticket incident, the colleagues were all aware and wouldn’t let him suffer. Having taken advantage often, Zhang Guoqing felt a bit embarrassed, trying to eat at home when lunch wasn’t busy.

Seeing it was time to work, Zhao Dashan joked, "Alright, everyone, let’s get to work. Xiao Wu, remember to mail these newspapers to your father-in-law for him to have a look."

Zhang Guoqing nodded with a smile. He had just sent packages and letters to Beijing a few days ago, wondering if his father-in-law and buddies in the big courtyard received them. It’s likely that godfather Zhao Chuan Guang had already mailed these newspapers to Beijing.

After the noon shift, Zhang Guoqing took the newspapers straight home. As he entered the courtyard, he noticed Zhou Jiao feeding their son egg custard, with two newspapers tossed on the side.

He bent over to pick up the newspapers, showing a playful smile to Zhou Jiao, "You’ve been sneaky, huh? Getting involved again? Thinking of going back to work?"

Zhou Jiao continued cautiously feeding the child, barely noticing the teasing tone in his voice. She simply replied, "Soon done, let’s talk later." Finally seeing the child finished his custard, she breathed a sigh of relief. Her son was such a chatterbox; the sight of people made him too excited to eat, reducing him to aaaa-ing. She’s worn out by him and doesn’t know where all the excitement comes from.

Glancing at the newspapers on the table, Zhou Jiao frowned slightly, "Let’s have lunch first. I didn’t expect this to happen. Last time Aunt Wang and a few old men asked for help, I didn’t think much and went ahead with the painting. But today Uncle Li sent over newspapers, asking if I wanted to go back to work. It’s giving me a headache."

Zhang Guoqing took the child, listening to her words with a smile. At the moment, he’s seriously considering Li Aiguo’s suggestion. Refusing the job could be done, but not too obviously. Since it’s outsiders delivering the message, it requires careful deliberation.

After washing his hands, Zhang Guoqing thought for a while and said, "Right now, you shouldn’t return to work. We can’t trust anyone with our son yet. At least wait until he’s one year old and can communicate, then send him to daycare. By then, you can go to work.

As for Uncle Li, I’ll go reply in person later. The job he’s talking about involves tagging along with those youngsters all day, making slogans, painting walls, putting out blackboard journals. That’s not feasible—tiring and dirty. I’ll say you’re currently raising a child and still haven’t finished your studies, making work hard to fit in. Just have him notify you if your help is needed."

"Won’t it seem like I’m loose in attitude, not proactive in work? Everyone seems very enthusiastic now, and I’m worried it might have a bad impact."

Zhang Guoqing shook his head with a smile, "If you go to work, would you really want to be as enthusiastic in discussions as they are? Carrying buckets of paint to graffiti every day? No need to worry about the impact. Aunt Wang from the street will likely often ask for your help, and you can volunteer to help those youngsters when you have time. That’d look pretty good."

Hearing this, Zhou Jiao delightedly nodded, having him step in was the best option. Rather spend spare time with the son than follow those people around.

She returned from home yesterday planning to clean up the space, preparing cooked food. She’s now trying to compress the materials in the space as much as possible; otherwise, she’d worry about having no room for things if she goes up the mountain again.

Zhang Guoqing highly agrees with her thinking. A foundation needs to be prepared first. He’s currently organizing coarse grains, aiming to gather a considerable amount. Unlike Zhou Jiao’s perspective, he favors storing rough foods, coarse cloths, and crude supplies. While he wouldn’t let his wife and child suffer, it’s different for others. Not daring to test human nature, he’s even planning on storing chaff for eventualities.

These thoughts he didn’t share with Zhou Jiao, worried it might cause her anxiety. Without the Zhang family’s backing, his strength alone wouldn’t let the family of three suffer, not to mention having his father-in-law’s support.

But living in this world, not as an orphan, means relatives are connected. Reaching a certain point, he couldn’t possibly burden his father-in-law.

After lunch, Zhang Guoqing headed out to visit Li Aiguo. The Li home wasn’t far, taking less than half an hour on foot. Along the way, he planned this weekend’s trip back to home for a night stay. The borrowed family was moving these days, creating an opportunity. Various wild items in the space awaited without processing; even a bit of meat fragrance in town would be noticeable.

At Li Aiguo’s place, Zhang Guoqing elaborated his ideas very factually. Treating the truthful with sincerity, he believed Uncle Li would understand.

Li Aiguo smiled warmly, nodding, kicking his son.

Li Qinglin yelped repeatedly, being hit a few times by his mother before grinning, straightening his posture.

Finally, before leaving, Li Aiguo suggested: have Zhou Jiao submit writings frequently, blend into the crowd—never ignore the honor of being an advanced element. Especially Zhang Guoqing should promptly apply to join the organization in the next couple of years.

Zhang Guoqing sincerely appreciated the honesty shown by the other. After expressing his gratitude, he headed out with school-bound Li Qinglin. On the way, Li Qinglin brought up school life, classmates’ disputes, Zhang Yuntao’s foolishness. Eventually talking about plans to gather folks for football, watch movies, splurge on out-of-town bites, and seek fun.

These leisure activities left him a bit distracted. At the same age, he bore much more responsibility than his peer. As for Zhou Jiao, he realized how he neglected his wife’s thoughts since starting work.