Chapter 2004 - Making a Fool in Public
Du Yibin glanced at several sick patients and felt a stab of disappointment. He'd originally thought that since they'd worked as prostitutes, their appearances would be at least passable. However, looking at these few, he could only describe them as plain-featured. Some were even coarse and homely.
Hair shaved during purification had grown back somewhat. They wore indigo "New Life Uniforms"—mostly old work clothes eliminated from troops, factories, and mines, then repaired, dyed, and distributed. This was also the standard wear of the "Purification Camp."
Du Yibin knew, of course, that women in this era—due to nutritional deficiencies and different aesthetic standards—rarely met modern standards of beauty. But even so, the gap was larger than he'd expected.
Seeing the "chief" arrive, several patients retreated one after another. They still weren't quite accustomed to Senate etiquette rules.
Lu Cheng asked if he wanted to inspect the dormitories. Du Yibin shook his head. His intention was to see the people, not to concern himself with "prostitute reform."
"Let's go to the workshop."
The workshop was located in the rear two long houses. These two had higher stories. Though the roofs were also covered with reed mats, they were "luxuriously" equipped with multiple skylights, making the interior bright. The walls had more windows than the dormitories. Ventilation and lighting conditions were excellent. These windows were all inlaid with glass—the most extravagant building material in the entire compound.
Du Yibin recalled when he'd "settled down" at the farm. The dormitory for agricultural workers had been at this level. One year, a typhoon blew through and destroyed everything.
The floor was compacted earth. Many bamboo worktables were arranged throughout, piled with various fabrics and cut clothing pieces. Some female students sewed clothes, others folded and packed items. They appeared busy and industrious.
The moment Lu Cheng entered, a brawny naturalized female cadre immediately rushed over, her face full of obsequious smiles: "Director Lu... Director Lu... Director Mao... Oh! And... a chief... gracing us with their presence. This, this, this..."
She held her breath, wanting to recite an eloquent eulogy. However, with limited ink in her belly, after holding it in for a long moment, she could only manage: "Lit up the whole place!"
"Alright, alright." Du Yibin was particularly unaccustomed to this kind of naturalized citizen flattery. "I've only come to see the female students' learning situation. Don't make a fuss." Seeing her about to blow her whistle, he stopped her. "Don't tell them to stop working. I'll just take a look. I have nothing to say."
However, this commotion had already caused a small-scale disturbance in the workshop. The female students sized up the newly arrived young man with varying degrees of curiosity. From the respectful manner of the cadres, they roughly knew this must be a "big official"—eight or nine out of ten, a "chief." Prostitutes' ability to read situations was higher than ordinary people.
"An officer came!"
"Probably an Australian Senator."
"Look at the clothes he's wearing. Really sharp."
"He's a pretty boy."
...
Seeing the students whispering and pointing, Du Yibin knew they were discussing him. He could roughly understand a few sentences of Cantonese now. He was young, and his ordinary days at the farm and calculation center were a monotonous two-point routine. His face was far less weathered than other Senators. In the beginning, even going to the lottery to select a life secretary had been done sneakily. Now, stared at by hundreds of women's eyes, he felt uncomfortable all over. Forcing himself to remain calm, he coughed once and said: "Explain the situation."
"Yes." Lu Cheng said the Jiliang Institute currently had a total of four hundred and eighty students—all prostitutes rescued during the Public Morality Rectification campaign. Part were dispatched by the Guangzhou Comprehensive Governance Office. Some were dispatched in teams to various places in the city to engage in menial labor, returning at night. Another part engaged in washing and sewing clothes at the Jiliang Institute, processing semi-finished products from outbound processing sent by the garment factory.
"This workshop is the sewing workshop. Mainly for attaching buttons and shoulder loops for various uniforms and work clothes, and sewing shoe uppers."
"Do they receive remuneration?"
"Yes. They use a piece-rate system. Settlements are made monthly in circulation coupons. But we deduct their basic living expenses first. This helps establish their labor consciousness."
Du Yibin thought this seemed rather stingy. He sized up the students in the room. At first glance, he could barely distinguish their looks and ages—they all seemed about the same as the patients he'd seen outside. He couldn't say they were good-looking or ugly. But their complexions seemed quite healthy.
"Age distribution?"
"When they were sheltered, they ranged from twelve to sixty years old. We've already done diversion. Those under eighteen were diverted to the purification camp in Hong Kong. Currently, those remaining here are mainly in the eighteen-to-fifty age range, with the twenty-five to forty bracket being most common. There aren't many over fifty."
"You still have women in their fifties and sixties?!" Du Yibin said, shocked. He found it somewhat incredible. He hesitated. "They also... received clients?"
"How could they not?" Lu Cheng looked at his particularly surprised expression, feeling this young chief was truly somewhat sheltered. "Quite a few were sent here. Some had venereal diseases too..."
"Christ!" He cursed. "What's the venereal disease situation?"
"Very common." Lu Cheng explained that because the prostitutes sheltered here were mostly middle and lower-class, receiving clients at least four or five times daily—some even over ten times—they were universally infected with venereal and gynecological diseases.
"...Now, after treatment, most have already recovered. A portion are still continuing treatment..."
"That portion must be eliminated. They can't be put on the list."
Lu Cheng didn't know what this cryptic instruction meant exactly. She could only answer messily, "Yes."
But regarding age, he felt quite satisfied. The appropriate-age population was larger than the "single women," and relatively younger. Although looks couldn't be called "beautiful," at least they didn't have faces full of sorrow like the "single women." It was just that this behavior needed reform. All this whispering—not a shred of discipline...
What had originally been low-voiced whispered discussions now grew louder and louder, with occasional bursts of snickering. Some students near him ignored the glares of Lu Cheng and others, even deliberately posturing toward him. Du Yibin felt quite awkward.
"Look at him. He's a chick."
"Don't tell me he's a virgin?"
"Then doing his business—wouldn't that require paying back lucky money..."
"Paying lucky money? Old Mother would be willing!"
"With your decrepit looks, you want to serve the chief?"
"Heh. You don't know, do you? Australians like big tits most of all. Old Mother has the biggest tits. Want to touch and see...?"
...
The words grew not only louder but increasingly vulgar. Lu Cheng's brow had been tightly furrowed; now anger surged up. She'd squatted at this post for months and had endured quite some frustration from these women. She picked up her whistle and blew fiercely, then roared at the group: "Silence!"
The crowd quieted slightly. Lu Cheng singled out the student who'd claimed to have the "biggest tits" and scolded: "Bian Cuibao! What nonsense are you spouting again?! Not a shred of discipline!"
Bian Cuibao was unwilling to shut up. She said: "I said my tits are big. Which rule does that violate?"
This was nearly sophistry, yet it left Lu Cheng temporarily unable to pinpoint her error.
"The chief is speaking. What idle talk are you spewing below?!"
"Director Lu, you're clearly aware! Just now this chief only spoke to you. He didn't tell us to stop working and listen to a lecture. We sisters are working. When we're tired, aren't we allowed to joke a few sentences? Besides, whether he's a chief or not—how would I know? You didn't tell us."
Lu Cheng was instantly speechless. Because indeed, she hadn't ordered everyone to stop working and listen, nor had she introduced Du Yibin's identity.
Bian Cuibao was sharp-tongued and sharp-witted, with a spicy temperament. She was quite famous among the students. She frequently had verbal conflicts with the Jiliang Institute cadres and was a notorious "thorn."
Lu Cheng, angered to the point of dizziness, shouted: "Bian Cuibao, come out here!"
At this shout, the entire workshop fell silent. Several of Bian Cuibao's close friends broke into a nervous sweat. These past days, they'd taken the measure of the Jiliang Institute cadres' mentality. They knew the Australians valued the Jiliang Institute heavily and didn't dare easily "dismiss people." Talking back would at most result in a meal of rattan stripes or, at worst, a few days' confinement in the dark room.
Beatings? They basically weren't afraid. They'd all been beaten three times a day. Compared to the torture methods under the madams' hands, the Australians' thin rattan whippings truly felt like scratching an itch. Confinement in the dark room with reduced rations—though uncomfortable—at least they didn't have to work daily until their hands ached and their eyes blurred.
But today, there was an Australian here. An official much, much bigger than Lu Cheng!
Seeing a chief present today, Bian Cuibao's heart also held some fear. But she'd grown accustomed to playing the tough in front of her sisters and was unwilling to lose face here. Steeling herself, she stood out. Glancing over, she saw that the young Senator showed no anger. Instead, he was looking at her with immense interest. Her mischievous streak rose again. With a cheeky, smiling face, she approached Lu Cheng.
"Look at yourself! Truly shameless!" Lu Cheng scolded loudly. "This isn't a brothel. Put away that whorish manner! Someone!" she called. "Take her down..."
Before the words had dropped, Bian Cuibao laughed: "Don't trouble others. Isn't it just a rattan beating?" She finished speaking, then pulled down her pants, laid her body across the table, stuck out her rear, and said: "Beat away."
At this, the entire venue erupted. The students below roared with laughter. Lu Weijia, Mao Xiuyu, and the others had probably seen such behavior before. They just turned their faces aside, pretending not to notice. Lu Cheng, seeing this woman so utterly shameless—making her lose face publicly in front of the chief—turned pale as paper. In her heart, she could have stabbed Bian Cuibao to death with a knife.
The female cadre supervising on-site reacted fastest. She rushed forward, grabbed a piece of cloth, and covered Bian Cuibao's body while roaring: "Are you all dead? Hurry and help!"
Several student activists nearby woke as from a dream. They hurried over, jumping forward to press Bian Cuibao down firmly. One student squatted and helped pull up her pants under the cloth cover.
"Tie her up!" Lu Cheng's face turned iron-green. "Confine her for ten days!"
(End of Chapter)