Chapter 25: Meeting Lu Huaishen and Zhou Ye Again

“They got straight into the car. It was arranged by their commune.”

“Our commune’s situation is different, not like theirs. So there’s no arranged transport. We have to take the bus ourselves.”

The ten people: “……”

What kind of ‘different situation’ was that?

Just say it outright—they were poor, unlike that other commune.

Envy was envy.

But they still had to carry their belongings and go catch the bus.

After walking for about ten minutes, they arrived at the bus station.

Each of them bought a ticket.

Once they had their tickets, Li Jianguo turned to the group of ten and said, “Stick close behind me and rush onto the bus when it arrives. Snatch a seat if you can—if not, you’ll have to stand for over an hour.”

The ten people: “……”

With Li Jianguo’s reminder,

The moment the bus doors opened,

They followed him and shoved their way forward.

Well.

As expected, apart from Li Xinyue and Zhao Zirui,

Song Yue, along with eight others and Li Jianguo, successfully grabbed seats.

By sheer coincidence,

Song Yue ended up sitting next to Li Jianguo.

Worried that she might get motion sickness, he let her take the inner seat by the window.

Opening the window allowed for ventilation.

As more and more people got on,

Li Xinyue and Zhao Zirui, who hadn’t managed to get seats, were forced further and further back as they stood in the aisle.

The scene was chaotic.

Li Xinyue had her feet stepped on several times, her shoes got dirty, and no one even apologized.

The more she thought about it, the angrier she got.

She suddenly let out a wail.

The unexpected crying startled everyone on the bus.

Li Jianguo noticed that she hadn’t gotten a seat and thought to himself that this delicate city girl probably wouldn’t last through the bumpy ride.

So he considered offering her his seat, letting Zhao Zirui stand with him.

But just as he stood up, Li Xinyue started howling.

He quickly spoke up, “Comrade Xiao Li, stop crying. Here, you can take my seat.”

Li Xinyue frowned. “But it’s just one seat. What about Zirui?”

It was the first time Li Jianguo had seen someone respond to an offer of a seat with a counter-question instead of gratitude.

He was momentarily stunned, then smiled and said, “Comrade Xiao Zhao is a man. Standing for a while won’t be a problem.”

“Who says it’s not a problem? It is a problem.” Li Xinyue’s face was full of misery. “Didn’t you say earlier we’d have to stand for over an hour?”

Li Jianguo: “……”

Lin He, irritated, said, “Li Xinyue, why do you have so many complaints? Uncle Li already told us before getting on—every man for himself.”

“If you didn’t get a seat and Uncle Li is kind enough to offer you his, why are you dragging Zhao Zirui into it too?”

After scolding Li Xinyue, he turned to Zhao Zirui. “And you! Why are you letting her drag you around? Why didn’t you try to grab a seat earlier?”

“If you had, you two wouldn’t be making such a fuss now.”

Zhao Zirui lowered his head, silent.

Of course, he had wanted to grab a seat, but Li Xinyue had been clinging tightly to him…

Being called out in front of so many people, Li Xinyue felt embarrassed and angry. “Lin He, I haven’t even asked you to give me your seat, yet you’re butting in.”

Lin He rolled his eyes. “Give you my seat? Keep dreaming. You’re not my girlfriend.”

Li Xinyue: “……”

Song Yue’s brow twitched. This Lin He was something else—far better than Li Xinyue and Zhao Zirui.

Li Jianguo stepped in to smooth things over. “Alright, enough arguing. It’s just a seat.”

He looked at Li Xinyue. “Comrade Xiao Li, do you want to sit or not?”

Li Xinyue hesitated. If she sat while Zirui stood, that wouldn’t look good.

While she was still wavering,

Zhao Zirui immediately responded, “Yes, thank you, Uncle Li.”

Li Xinyue turned to him. “Zirui, if I sit, what about you?”

Zhao Zirui smiled gently. “You’re worried about me? Let’s take turns sitting.”

“That works.”

Li Xinyue nodded and walked over. Seeing that the person next to the seat was Song Yue, she instinctively tried to make her move. “You—”

Song Yue cut her off. “Not switching. Take it or leave it.”

Having experienced Song Yue’s temper before, Li Xinyue didn’t dare say anything else and obediently sat down.

The bus sped along, stopping and starting along the way.

By the time Song Yue felt she was about to throw up,

The bus finally stopped.

She heard Uncle Li calling for them to get off.

Ignoring Li Xinyue beside her, she grabbed her things and forced her way off the bus, paying no mind to Li Xinyue’s complaints behind her.

She rushed off the bus, reached the roadside,

Dumped her things on the ground, and leaned over the bushes—

“Ugh—”

“Ugh—”

……

Zhang Shumin was the first to rush to her side, putting down her things and gently patting Song Yue’s back. “Song Yue, are you okay?”

Li Jianguo also walked over. “Comrade Song, how are you feeling?”

Seeing Song Yue throwing up, Li Xinyue’s stomach churned as well. She dry-heaved a few times before quickly turning her back, unwilling to look.

Lin He wanted to step closer to check on her, but Zhao Zirui grabbed his arm.

Song Yue waved a weak hand. “Give me a moment.”

“I feel awful.”

Li Jianguo softened his tone. “Then rest for a bit.”

Zhang Shumin stayed silent, continuing to rub Song Yue’s back.

By the time everyone had gotten off,

The bus doors closed and it drove away.

Song Yue crouched on the ground, feeling miserable. The others stood by, waiting.

Mostly because they had no idea where to go without Li Jianguo leading the way.

Passersby cast curious glances at these newly arrived city youth.

Most of the stares focused on Li Xinyue and Zhao Zirui, sizing them up.

Uncomfortable under the scrutiny, Li Xinyue turned her back.

Not far away,

Two figures approached, each carrying a large sack.

Seeing the group by the roadside,

Zhou Ye’s eyes lit up. “Boss, I think they’re over there.”

Lu Huaishen lifted his gaze, instantly spotting the frail figure crouching down.

Zhou Ye also saw Song Yue and murmured, “She doesn’t look too good…”

Lu Huaishen frowned and took a step forward.

“Hey—” Zhou Ye reacted quickly, grabbing his arm. “Boss, what are you doing?”

Lu Huaishen turned to look at him.

Lowering his voice, Zhou Ye said, “Don’t forget, our identities are a bit… special right now.”

“If you go over now, you might cause trouble for Comrade Song.”

Lu Huaishen stared at him for a moment, then pried Zhou Ye’s fingers off one by one. “I see the brigade secretary. Just saying hello isn’t inappropriate, is it?”

Once he freed himself,

Lu Huaishen strode forward, his gaze dark.

That petite girl looked so frail—definitely an easy target for bullying.

Zhou Ye: “……”

He hurried to catch up. “Boss, wait for me!”

……

Li Jianguo had just been about to ask Song Yue if she felt well enough to move on when—

“Secretary Li.”

He instinctively responded, “Yes?”

Then he turned to look. “Huh?”

Song Yue froze at the voice.

That voice!

Why was he here?

Slowly, she turned her head.

And was met with a familiar face.

That Comrade Zhou was here too.

Neither of them was looking at her, but at Uncle Li.

For a moment, she remembered something.

Her gaze flickered with a hint of wariness.

Wait—Uncle Li was the brigade secretary?

That was unexpected. She had assumed he was just a team leader or something.

Li Xinyue, meanwhile, stared blankly at Lu Huaishen.

There was someone here even better-looking than Zirui?

Liu Wei, too, was staring at Lu Huaishen, eyes wide: !!!!!