Chapter 135: Drawing Lots

In the crowd, Zhou Dafu and a few others were overjoyed, even feeling like crying.

Hadn’t they risked their lives going into the mountains all this time just to get a job in the city?

And now, the shortcut had arrived. As long as they were lucky enough to draw a winning lot, they wouldn’t have to worry about money anymore. They could just repay a bit each month.

Everyone within the eligible age group stepped forward, faces full of anticipation and joy—the chance to change their fate had come. At that moment, their hearts were filled with gratitude toward Uncle Sixteen.

Especially the girls present.

Girls were often overlooked—that was the case in many regions. Good things rarely came their way. But Uncle Sixteen had given them this opportunity.

They lined up and stepped forward to draw lots one by one.

The draw was simple. If the end of the stick that couldn’t be seen had characters on it, that meant you were selected. If you drew a blank stick, you were just out of luck.

“Hold on, how many did you take?” the village elder glared at Zhou Dafu.

Zhou Dafu explained, “Secretary, it’s for the five of us.”

The elder looked at the other four. “You’re sure you want him to draw for you?”

If only one winning stick came out, who would it go to? That would be another headache.

The other four nodded. “Let him draw for us.”

There was no helping it! They figured Zhou Dafu’s luck was better than theirs, so they let him do the honors.

“You’re drawing five at once—how are you going to split them? Don’t expect me to sort out your mess later,” the elder warned ahead of time.

If none were winners, or all were, there’d be no dispute.

But all being winners? Not impossible, but highly unlikely.

“We’ll draw among ourselves afterward depending on what he gets,” they already had a plan.

Alright then. Seeing they had it figured out, the village elder didn’t stop them.

Zhou Dafu casually drew five lots. His luck really wasn’t bad—he drew two winners. The others’ faces shifted slightly. After all, there were only nine spots in total, and they’d already snagged two.

Zhou Dafu and his group immediately erupted in cheers.

“I told you—you’ve got what it takes.”

“Good job, Dafu!”

Next, the five of them had to draw among themselves.

With five sticks and two winning ones, the odds were a lot better.

“I’ll go first, is that alright?” Zhou Dafu asked. After all, those two winning spots had come thanks to him. Even if he hadn’t earned them, he’d worked hard—surely that earned him first pick?

The other four readily agreed. “Sure, Dafu, you go first.”

Zhou Dafu didn’t say more. He reached out and picked a stick he felt good about. Although the sticks had been shuffled again, he vaguely remembered this was one of the winners.

But just as it reached his hand, he hesitated and changed his mind, swapping it for another.

The moment he finished drawing, someone else picked up the stick he’d initially chosen.

Zhou Dafu’s face went pale—he’d drawn a blank. When he turned and looked, the person who’d picked the stick he’d dropped had gotten a winner.

It felt terrible.

“Dafu! You’re such a loyal guy,” that person said, not forgetting to rub salt in the wound.

Everyone who saw it felt bad for Zhou Dafu. He’d basically handed his chance to someone else.

The rest of the people went on to draw.

All the slots were filled.

Among the winners were three girls. Including Xiaoxue, that made four girls from the village who had secured spots.

Even the village team leader was a bit gloomy—both of his children had drawn blanks. Fate was fate.

It was fair competition, so there was nothing to say. No one could be blamed.

“Yingzi, give your spot to your brother. Once he has a stable job, he can help you too, right?” A parent was trying to reason with his daughter.

The son hadn’t drawn a winner, but the daughter had.

What did a girl need a job for anyway? In a year or two, she’d just get married. If she kept the spot, wouldn’t that just benefit someone else’s family? So he was trying to persuade his daughter to be sensible and hand over the opportunity to her brother.

Zhou Xiaoying was torn and troubled.

She knew this was her chance to change her fate. If she gave it away, then she’d be stuck following the traditional path—marrying some random farmer, bearing children, and living out her days like that.

But if she didn’t give it up, things at home would become strained.

Who knew what outsiders would say? That she was unfilial, perhaps.

And Uncle Sixteen hated unfilial people most.

At that moment, the village elder couldn’t stand it anymore and said, “Yimin said clearly: whoever draws it, gets it. No transfers allowed. Don’t make me start scolding people!”

Hearing that, the three girls who had drawn winning lots felt delighted.

With Uncle Sixteen’s word backing them up, their families couldn’t force them to give up their slots for their brothers.

No one wanted to give up their spot!

Now that was settled—Uncle Sixteen had their backs.

Yingzi’s mother sighed and could only try to appeal emotionally: “Yingzi, in the future you should…”

It all boiled down to this: after she started working, they hoped she’d spend sparingly and send more money home.

“Alright, those who didn’t draw a slot—don’t get discouraged. Our village isn’t bad at all, and there might be more chances in the future,” the village elder encouraged the others.

He had confidence in Zhou Yimin.

After speaking, the village elder led them to meet Zhou Yimin.

When they arrived, they found Zhou Yimin inspecting eggs, using a flashlight to check each one.

“Yimin, these are the ones who drew winning lots. I brought them to see you. Say a few words,” the elder said.

Yingzi and the others greeted him in unison, calling him Uncle Sixteen and so on.

Zhou Yimin shook his head lightly. “Nothing much to say. It’s still early—you don’t start until next month. You’re all from the same village, so I hope you’ll support each other at the factory.”

“Accommodation’s probably going to be tight when you first start. I’ve got a courtyard in the city—Da Qiu’s living there now. Once you arrive, you can all stay there temporarily until the factory arranges housing.”

The elder and the others were touched—he’d arranged everything so thoroughly.

Yingzi and the others thanked him again.

“Alright, go back for now. When the time comes, I’ll take you into the city. No need to rush. Secretary, I need to discuss something with you.”

Hearing that Uncle Sixteen had something to talk over with the village elder, Yingzi and the others happily took their leave.

The village elder, seeing Zhou Yimin inspecting eggs with a flashlight, couldn’t help but ask, “What are you doing?”

Zhou Yimin explained that these eggs were for hatching chicks. He was checking them to weed out the ones that wouldn’t hatch, so he wouldn’t waste effort.

“You can tell just by looking with a flashlight?” the elder asked in surprise.

He knew some eggs wouldn’t hatch, but he never could tell which.

“Look here—this egg has a little black dot inside. That means it’s been fertilized and can hatch a chick,” Zhou Yimin demonstrated.

“So that’s how it works. Right, you said you had something to discuss—what is it?”

Zhou Yimin said, “In three or four days, isn’t it my grandmother’s 60th birthday? I want to throw her a celebration.”

(End of Chapter)