His wife looked at Jiang Sanping with concern.
"SIGH." Jiang Sanping heaved a long sigh. He recounted the procedures he had gone through that day to enter probation. He also brought out a handbook titled "Notice for Persons Serving Probation" and handed it to his wife.
The handbook listed all the important regulations to be aware of during probation, including the significance of the electronic bracelet.
This is even more miserable than being in prison.
"This... this... Does that an you’ll be held back from earning money even more?" his wife asked.
Upon hearing this, her first reaction was the reduction in ti available to earn money. They worked on construction sites, where their wages were calculated by the hour and paid daily. This ant that on the days he had to report to the Correctional Community Office and the Judicial Office, he couldn’t work at all. Their inco would be significantly reduced.
"What if our son gets into a university like Tsinghua or Beijing University after his college entrance exams? Wouldn’t we be unable to afford his tuition then?" His wife glanced towards the study and suddenly grew anxious.
"The foreman said the next project is in the eastern part of Jin City. I guess... I probably won’t be able to go," Jiang Sanping said, pointing to his electronic bracelet and giving a bitter smile. The activity area assigned to him by the Judicial Office was limited. There were so jobs he was now destined to miss out on.
"What?" His wife’s eyes widened, and she beca furious. Unable to restrain herself, she cursed, "What kind of bullshit probation is this, where you can’t do this, and you can’t do that? It’d be better to just go to prison!"
Jiang Sanping’s face darkened upon hearing this. For now, probation was still more comfortable than prison. He did not want to go to prison.
"By the way, the Correctional Community Office just inford that there’s a ’labor rehabilitation activity’ in a few days. I have to go to the Jin City Nursing Ho to volunteer, so I guess I can’t work at the construction site then," Jiang Sanping said quietly after a mont, looking at his sowhat distraught wife.
"Another volunteer event?" Seeing this, his wife grew even more infuriated.
A month only has thirty days. After deducting all these mandatory activities, her husband would be unable to work at the construction site for at least twelve days. This might not an much to office workers, since they have weekends off. But for their type of work... they worked year-round. No rest, and you earned what you worked for!
This way, it seed the entire family burden would fall solely on her shoulders.
"I... I’ll try to co back early. I’ll ask the foreman for so ti off then," Jiang Sanping sighed, speaking helplessly.
「Jin City. A certain residential complex.」
After dinner, Jiang Erping dragged his exhausted body ho, only to find his son and daughter-in-law sitting on the sofa, planning a trip. They had already shortlisted several tourist destinations.
"Dad, you’re back? Just in ti. Xiao Wan suggested that it’s been a while since our family went out. She thought we could go on a trip in a few days. Let’s all go together."
"A trip?" Jiang Erping swallowed hard. He instinctively glanced at the watch on his wrist.
"Yes, didn’t you use to love traveling? This ti we’ll go on a road trip," his son said, oblivious to any change in his father’s deanor, and continued, "Let’s not consider places around Jin City this ti. How about we go out of province..."
But Jiang Erping rolled his eyes. Angrily, he said, "You two go ahead. I’m not going."
This kid is really touching a raw nerve. A trip, my foot!
He had just completed the probation registration procedures today and had learned all the rules for his probation period. With the electronic bracelet on, his permitted range of movent wasn’t large.
Forget leaving the province; he couldn’t even leave Jin City!
"Dad, what’s wrong?" His son and daughter-in-law looked at each other, finally noticing sothing was off.
"The staff from the Correctional Community Office said that I... I can’t just go anywhere," Jiang Erping said, tossing out the "Notice for Persons Serving Probation" handbook as he recounted what he had ’learned’ that day.
All kinds of restrictions. All kinds of demands. He had to attend study sessions, undergo ideological re-education, and perform labor rehabilitation. He also had to report his daily life and work situation to the Correctional Community Office staff every day.
It was said that occasionally, soone under community corrections would violate the Probation Regulations and have their probation revoked. They would be imdiately arrested and taken to prison to serve their original sentence.
"If I leave this designated area... I reckon I’d be arrested the very next day," Jiang Erping said, looking at his son and daughter-in-law with a complex expression.
Now... he could only stay put within this area. The electronic bracelet would monitor his real-ti data.
"So, this is what probation is like?" His son and daughter-in-law exchanged a look, as if they’d just learned sothing new.
"Well, if that’s the case, then it’ll just be the two of us going," his son finally said.
In the end, his son and daughter-in-law offered a few words of comfort to Jiang Erping and then resud planning their trip.
Jiang Erping sat in a corner of the sofa, listening to their discussion, utterly frustrated. The vast and beautiful sights of his holand seed to be completely out of reach for him now.
Ti passed slowly.
「Two days later.」
The entrance of the Jin City Nursing Ho was festooned with lights and colorful decorations, adorned everywhere with large, red paper cutouts of the ’happiness’ character. A huge poster was displayed on the walkway outside the nursing ho. It depicted Zhang Qingyuan, dressed in a festive red traditional Chinese groom’s attire, and a beaming Feng Cuihua bowing to each other. They exuded an aura of sweet marital harmony, radiating profound happiness.
The entire nursing ho was bustling with activity for their wedding. Everyone, from mid-level supervisors down to regular employees, was busy with the wedding preparations. They aid to make this wedding a resounding success, envisioning it as a future promotional showcase for the nursing ho.
Inside the nursing ho, in a makeup room:
"Just a little makeup will do. I’m an old man already, what’s the point of looking so handso?" Zhang Qingyuan sat in the chair, constantly complaining to the makeup artist.
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