"Secretary Ding, I've just returned today and I'm disturbing you right away, I'm really sorry. Today, I came for two reasons: first, to wish you a happy new year; second, I have something personal to discuss with you. As I'm already in my senior year, next semester I'll be starting my internship, which will last for two months. The school has issued a certificate, and I was thinking of doing social practice under your guidance."

  "Oh, time flies so fast, you're about to graduate soon, what's up, didn't your school arrange an internship?"

  "If the school arranges it, we usually go to Xilin City for internship. I don't want to teach, I still want to follow you to do social practice."

  "Hehe, Little Xu, it seems you're not willing to teach. Alright, then come to Huaiyang City for social practice. However, you can't follow me. Tell me, what's the purpose of your social practice?"

  "Secretary Ding, I haven't thought it through yet. The main goal is to understand some actual situations. Two months is too short a time. If I were to do something, I wouldn't even have time to get familiar with it before leaving. So I was thinking of doing some investigation. I've always grown up in the county town and wanted to go to the countryside to take a look and understand some actual situations."

  "Uh, the idea is not bad, but with two months' time, you can't get familiar with rural areas at all. Many things will only be truly understood after deeply entering into it. How about this: take a good rest at home and come to Huaiyang City in mid-March? The municipal party committee office will issue a certificate for you to conduct social surveys in Huaian City. I have two points to remind you of: first, I won't speak on your behalf; you need to rely on your own efforts to do well in the social survey. Second, think carefully about what specific investigation to focus on. The approach of grasping everything at once is impractical, and having too broad a topic is also not feasible. You haven't graduated yet and haven't truly entered society, so it's best to go down and understand some actual situations without thinking that you can come up with any survey conclusions. Calm down, as long as you can get familiar with some actual situations in rural areas, your social survey will be a success."

  "Secretary Ding, thank you, I will definitely do a good job on the social survey."

  "Xiao Xu, I heard your father passed away many years ago, can you talk about your father?"

  Xu Shaojie fell silent for a few seconds before speaking slowly.

  "Secretary Ding, my father was a southerner. After graduating from university in the 1960s, he went to work in the county town and never left. He was a kind and diligent person who got along well with his colleagues. My father was an ordinary cadre until his death. I used to think that my father lacked ability, but later I realized that as an outsider working in a small county town, it wasn't easy for him. Before he passed away, he told me to study hard and work diligently, one step at a time. Now, I miss my father very much. He had high hopes for me, and I will definitely work hard not to disappoint him."

  Ding Yuan also fell silent for a moment, as if he had thought of something.

  "Xiao Xu, work hard from now on, your father is great."

  Xu Shaojie left Ding Yuan's house with a very happy mood, and the gifts were finally left at Ding Yuan's house. Xu Shaojie took a look, two packs of Chinese cigarettes, two bottles of Maotai wine, these things are unimaginable for ordinary families, but Xu Shaojie didn't think that much, after all, Zhang Shaocai is very familiar with the doorways here. Through this gift-giving experience, Xu Shaojie gained some insight, the meaning of gift-giving is not just about sending out things to achieve one's purpose, sometimes, gift-giving represents building closer relationships and leaving a deep impression on the other person. Of course, Xu Shaojie later learned more about the meanings of gift-giving through practice.

  Xiao Xinglan sat in the living room, Ding Yuan had just returned home. At this moment, officials from Huaiyang City would not come to visit yet. After today, it might not be so easy. Past experience told her that until the 30th of the lunar new year, don't think about having a quiet day at home. Xiao Xinglan wanted Ding Yuan to return home, but was also afraid of him returning home, especially during holidays, when officials came to visit in droves. During the New Year's festival, you can't give people a cold face. However, Ding Yuan had very strict rules: gifts like cigarettes and wine could be accepted, but money was strictly not allowed. Of course, there were a few special subordinates of Ding Yuan who belonged to special cases.

  "Lao Ding, you seem to be quite fond of this Xu Shaojie, I haven't seen you like this before."

  "Xing Lan, I knew Xu Shaojie a few years ago. At that time, I had a deep impression of him. This Xu Shaojie has some similarities with me in his experiences, and his performance at school was also good."

  Ding Yuan slowly spoke out some of Xu Shaojie's behavior in school, and Xiao Xinglan listened very carefully.

  "So it's like this, Xu Shaojie is about to graduate soon, and judging from your tone, you've already accepted."

  "I think so, this is a good seedling, cultivate it well and it will have a future. This time he went down to do social practice, just in time to understand the situation, for the actual situation below, he really can understand some of it, which will be helpful for his future work. The school is also like that now, the taste of internship has changed, I see many students are not doing internships but thinking of ways to run units, once the unit is settled, everything will be fine."

  "It's not the students' fault, who wouldn't want a good assignment? Xu Shaojie is pretty good, willing to go to the grassroots level. Not to mention Xilin University graduates, many ordinary university graduates are thinking about staying in the provincial capital, that's just reality."

  "Hmm, it's not bad that Xu Shaojie has such an understanding, but he doesn't understand the true social reality and always thinks that starting from the grassroots level step by step is the best approach. I think this time's social practice will make him understand these things. If my prediction isn't wrong, Xu Shaojie's focus in this social practice will be on understanding systemic problems."

  Xu Shaojie brought gifts, Ding Yuan was not too concerned, there were too many cigarettes and wine at home, but he had to accept them. If he refused all the gifts from his subordinates with a stern face, pretending to be extremely honest, the final result would be that everyone would turn against him, and he would have to leave in disappointment.

  "Xinglan, are things ready for east and west? I'm going to Secretary Xu's house right away, the appointment is today and time is almost up."

  "I knew it, I've already prepared for you, remember to report back properly."

  Xiao Xinglan took out a black bag, and the gifts inside had been prepared long ago.

  During the Spring Festival, Xu Shaojie's mood was very pleasant, and the effect of going to Ding Yuan's home was very good. Xu Shaojie could feel that Ding Yuan had a high opinion of himself, but he didn't know why. However, Ding Yuan's deep concern for him had already been revealed in his words, and Xu Shaojie knew that after graduation, he would definitely work in Huaiyang City.

  Zhang Shao Cai and Yan Yu Huan returned home on the 29th of the twelfth lunar month.

  The main force in organizing the annual reunion dinner was Yan Yuhuan, with Han Qing'e assisting. Liu Xiaomei couldn't move as she was heavily pregnant. The whole family had a happy reunion. Since there were no relatives or friends in the provincial city, they had a quiet and relaxing Spring Festival. Zhang Shaocai and Yan Yuhuan left on the second day of the first month to visit Yan Yuhuan's hometown for New Year's greetings. Due to health reasons, Liu Xiaomei couldn't return home, so Xu Yijie went alone to Liu Xiaomei's hometown.

  Liu Xiaomei's due date was in the first month, so during the New Year, the whole family was still quite tense, paying close attention to Liu Xiaomei's condition at all times. Xu Yijie rushed back after being out for two days, which should have been around the 10th of the first month, when everyone was still at home. Xu Lan also wanted to see her nephew.

  On the evening of January 9th, Liu Xiaomei had an attack.

  The whole family was in a flurry, with Xu Shaojie driving to take Liu Xiaomei to the hospital, accompanied by Xu Yijie. Han Qing'e and Xu Lan were packing up the prepared items, waiting for Xu Shaojie to come pick them up. After everyone arrived at the hospital, the doctor conducted an examination and told them that Liu Xiaomei's physique was weak and her pelvis was not large, so a cesarean section would be necessary, which carried certain risks. Han Qing'e and Xu Yijie's faces changed immediately, and Xu Yijie trembled as he signed the consent form for the operation. At this moment, Zhang Shaocai and Yan Yuhuan rushed over, asked about the situation, and then Zhang Shaocai pulled Xu Yijie aside, saying he needed to discuss something with the doctor. After the doctor came out, Zhang Shaocai quickly took out a red envelope and stuffed it into the doctor's pocket, saying words of encouragement while asking if the operation could be done immediately. The doctor didn't say anything, just smiled and entered his office.

  A few minutes later, the doctor came out and said that the operation would be performed immediately, everything was ready. The reason was very simple, Liu Xiaomei's physical condition was not good, she had to have the operation as soon as possible, otherwise there would be some danger. Of course, others who were preparing for the operation would have to wait a little longer. The doctor had seen many cases and rarely looked at the pregnant woman who was in great pain.

  At around 11 o'clock, Liu Xiaomei, who had already turned pale with pain, was pushed into the operating room. Everyone waited outside while the operation was in progress. Yan Yuhuan kept comforting Han Qing'e, who was the most anxious person outside the operating room, her face white and her hands shaking constantly. Zhang Shaocai invited Xu Shaojie and Xu Yijie to go outside for a smoke, Xu Yijie's hand was also trembling, no one spoke a word.

  Less than an hour later, the doctor came out and said to Han Qing'e:

  "It's a boy, 7 jin 2 liang (approximately 3.5 kg), both mother and baby are safe."

  The stone has fallen, everyone is overjoyed. The nurse carries out the little one who has just taken a bath, and everyone rushes to take a look. The nurse is about to send the child to the nursery, where they will spend the first three days, except when the mother breastfeeds, the rest of the time, the little one is in the nursery, cared for by nurses.

  The little one was too small, with closed eyes and a red face, couldn't see who he looked like. Han Qing'e said softly that she wanted to hold him, the nurse smiled and handed the child over to Han Qing'e. Zhang Shaocai hastily took out the red envelope he had prepared early on and gave it to the doctor and nurse, repeatedly expressing his gratitude. Xu Shaojie knew that this time's red envelope was incomparable to the previous one given to the doctor.

  During the few days in the hospital, Liu Xiaomei and the child received meticulous care. The doctor and nurse came to see the child every day, carefully instructing Liu Xiaomei on what to pay attention to. They probably knew that Han Qing'e would be responsible for taking care of the child afterwards, so they didn't forget to tell her some basic knowledge about childcare. Han Qing'e listened very carefully, and the nurse even taught her hands-on how to wrap the baby and what to pay attention to during bath time. The other people in the same hospital room were all envious - who was this Han Qing'e that the doctors and nurses were being so meticulous for?

  January 24, Liu Xiaomei was discharged from the hospital. Because it was a cesarean section, she had to stay in the hospital for a relatively long time. After the doctor carefully examined her and found that she had no problems, she was allowed to be discharged. Normally, patients are discharged after three days of hospitalization. At this time, Xu Lan had already gone to Beijing for school, Zhang Shaocai had gone to Huaiyang City, and Yan Yuhuan stayed behind to accompany Han Qing'e in taking care of Liu Xiaomei. Han Qing'e repeatedly asked Yan Yuhuan to go to work, but Yan Yuhuan still stayed behind.

  The task of naming the child was mainly undertaken by Xu Shaojie. After the child was born, Xu Shaojie racked his brains and thought that the name should have a good tone. Since "Jie" belongs to the Ping tone category, he actually considered only one character. Xu Shaojie thought for two days and before everyone left, he gave the answer: Xu Pingfan.

  This name has a certain idea, Xu Shaojie hasn't explained it yet, but Xu Lan already understood. Xu Pingfan, ordinary, means extraordinary, the nephew will definitely be extraordinary and achieve great things in the future. The whole family burst out laughing, saying that this name is good, no need to make any changes.

  After returning home, Xu Shaojie was also packing his things. It wasn't far from what Ding Yuan had said earlier. Xu Shaojie was going to Huaiyang City for an internship. The family's focus was now on Xu Pingfan. There were diapers everywhere in the house. Han Qing'e changed them quickly. The stove was drying diapers, and the balcony was airing out diapers. This Xu Pingfan was really a bit annoying. He slept during the day and cried at night. Han Qing'e, Yan Yuhuan, and Liu Xiaomei were all very busy. Liu Xiaomei was sitting in confinement and couldn't go out. Buying groceries was now Xu Yijie's responsibility. Yan Yuhuan cooked meals, and Han Qing'e took care of Xu Pingfan. Of course, Yan Yuhuan also helped out. At this moment, Xu Shaojie was at home but couldn't help with anything. He really didn't know how to take care of children. Once, Han Qing'e had something urgent and asked him to hold Xu Pingfan for a few minutes. When Han Qing'e saw Xu Shaojie's posture, she quickly took back Xu Pingfan and repeatedly said that Xu Shaojie didn't know how to hold him. Yan Yuhuan, who was standing beside her, burst out laughing and said that in this aspect, Xu Yijie was much stronger.

  When Xu Pingfan was full moon, Liu Xiaomei's parents and brother-in-law came. This is their first time to come to the provincial city. Xu Shaojie went to the station to pick them up. Looking at the awkward and curious appearance of the group, Xu Shaojie didn't say anything. According to rural customs, after a child is full moon, they should have a full moon wine, but since Xu's family has no relatives or friends in the provincial city, this was omitted. Xu Shaojie had to go to Huaiyang City and reminded Xu Yijie not to forget to give Liu Xiaomei's parents and brother-in-law travel expenses.

  Zhang Shaocai came to the provincial capital, picked up Xu Shaojie and went to Huaiyang City. When Xu Shaojie left, there were many people at home, including Liu Xiaomei's parents, etc., Han Qing'e didn't care about Xu Shaojie and simply instructed a few sentences.