Chapter 5

The clothes were obviously expensive, so the “wild man” she got them from must be well-off.

The female educated youth fumed with anger.

Hu Lihong nodded, “I heard that she dressed up all nice and went to the reservoir.”

“Ugh, how shameless can she be?”

“I told you, military comrades are sharp-eyed and wouldn’t be fooled by a scheming fox.”

“Looking at her, she must have ended up rolling around with some wild man.”

“Hooking up with one after another,” the female educated youth spat, “Shameless…”

Before she could say more, a basin of cold water was poured over her head. The other educated youths screamed and scattered. The female educated youth didn’t manage to run in time and was drenched to the bone.

Behind her, Ruan Mingfu, her face flushed with anger, held an empty iron basin.

This female educated youth had always had a problem with Ruan Mingfu and often spoke ill of her behind her back.

Ruan Mingfu wasn’t one to tolerate being bullied. If she didn’t teach her a lesson, she’d think she was easy to push around.

“You shameless bitch, I’m going to tear you apart!”

Seeing the female educated youth reaching out, Ruan Mingfu hurled the basin at her. There was a loud thud, and the female educated youth’s head rang, with an echo in her ears.

The seemingly delicate Ruan Mingfu had actually hit the robust female educated youth like a bull!

The other educated youths, shocked, quickly helped the dazed female educated youth up. The male educated youths, hearing the commotion, also came out.

“You bitch! How dare you hit me!”

The female educated youth, enraged, tried to hit Ruan Mingfu but was restrained by the other educated youths. Her eyes were full of hatred, wishing she could immediately stab Ruan Mingfu to death.

Hu Lihong also got caught in the commotion, half of her body wet from the water.

“Ruan Mingfu, I’m going to speak up for some fairness here.”

“If you want to take sides, then take sides. What’s the point of talking about justice?”

The original owner was pampered and soft-hearted, otherwise, these educated youths wouldn’t have dared to speak ill of her so freely. But Ruan Mingfu was different. If she was unhappy, everyone had to be unhappy.

“Since you’re so good at talking, go ahead and keep talking.”

Hu Lihong: “…”

From her past experience, it was better for her to stay silent now.

The othereducated  youths were intimidated by Ruan Mingfu.

She had never been this fierce before.

Ruan Mingfu, with her angry expression and wearing the “wild man’s” clothes, still managed to look elegant, even in the midst of a confrontation.

The male educated youths were mesmerized.

“If I hear you criticize me again, we’ll see whether your head is tougher or my basin is,” Ruan Mingfu glared at the female educated youth and paused at the door, “By the way, this jacket I’m wearing is Comrade Xie’s.”

“Don’t worry, if I marry Comrade Xie, I’ll definitely invite you all to the wedding.”

The male educated  youths’ hearts… were shattered.

The other female educated youths: “……6”

So fast?

If the relationship wasn’t strained, the female educated youth really would have wanted to beg Ruan Mingfu for a class.

Only the beaten female educated  youth looked at Ruan Mingfu’s back with eyes filled with rage.

*

Xie Yanzhao drove the tractor and smoothly arrived at the hospital.

The rescue was timely, and Zhuzi was not in serious trouble. However, to be safe, he stayed in the hospital for a couple of days. Xie Yanzhao helped with the paperwork and then sat down on a bench to rest.

Xu Zhu sat down beside him, “When are we going back?”

“Wait for another half hour.”

“Today was really nerve-wracking,” Xu Zhu sighed, “By the way, what was up with that female comrade? Does she have a thing for you?”

Xie Yanzhao recalled the scene of her saving the child from the water, pursed his lips, and his emotions were too complex to read.

After a long pause, he finally said, “Just asking for directions.”

Xu Zhu: “…”

“Do you think I’m an idiot? Going up the mountain to ask for directions? And then, running off crying afterward? Come on, tell me what really happened.”

Xie Yanzhao looked at him casually.

Xu Zhu, feeling frustrated, said, “I saw that female comrade, and she’s quite beautiful. Even the performers from the art troupe can’t compare. You shouldn’t hesitate—she must come from a good background. You two are a perfect match.”

“You know who she is,” Xie Yanzhao’s face darkened, “and you dare to call it a perfect match.”

Xu Zhu thought for a moment. “…Should I inquire more about her?”

“Don’t bother. There’s no chance between us.”

A wave of irritation suddenly surged within Xie Yanzhao, and his face turned stern, making him look extremely unapproachable. The atmosphere around him became tense, causing the hospital staff to feel terrified and hesitant to approach.

Xu Zhu knew that this man’s bad temper was flaring up again.

“Alright, I’ll report to the old leader when we get back, and let him have a word with you.”

When they were sending Zhuzi to the hospital, it was noon, and he hadn’t had a meal yet. The state-run restaurant had already closed.

Xu Zhu opened a package to reveal a lunch box. “It looks pretty generous. Let’s eat together.”

“Where did this come from?”

“From the tractor you drove, of course,” Xu Zhu sniffed the food, “probably given by some local who saw we hadn’t eaten and brought it over. But it’s a bit scant, one portion isn’t enough.”

Xie Yanzhao grabbed the familiar lunch box from Xu Zhu’s hands.

Xu Zhu, about to take a bite, said, “…Old Xie, what’s going on?”

“I have other matters. I’m leaving first.”

Xu Zhu looked puzzled.

Old Xie is getting more and more strange.

*

Ruan Mingfu’s delicate and beautiful face looked a bit haggard, with dark circles under her eyes. She had spent all night thinking about how to win over that dog man, but had come up with no ideas.

She tossed and turned, and eventually, she fell asleep without realizing it.

Damn dog man!

Ruan Mingfu bit into a sweet potato, gnashing her teeth as if the sweet potato was the flesh of that dog man.

The dining table was silent, except for Xu Pandi.

Having been drenched with water and then scolded by the team leader of educated youth who came running, Xu Pandi lost all face and was glaring at Ruan Mingfu.

Ruan Mingfu ignored her.

Such a coward only knows how to make noise. If it came to a real fight, Xu Pandi would immediately kneel.

Miss Ruan drank a bowl of clear, light porridge and sighed.

She couldn’t bring herself to confront the dog man now. After all, she had just made harsh remarks yesterday… It would be too embarrassing. Ruan Mingfu thought and thought, finding all her paths blocked.

Troubling…

Damn dog man!

Damn local tyrant!

Ruan Mingfu gritted her teeth.

She didn’t believe it. If she truly didn’t want to marry, could the local tyrant really force her? At worst… she’d rather perish with him!

Ruan Mingfu covered her lunch box and stormed back to her room.

As she disappeared from sight, Hu Lihong let out a long breath. She patted her chest. “That scared me. I thought she was going to fight me.”

Other educated youth shook their heads, too scared to offend Ruan Mingfu.

“Why are you all so afraid of her?” Xu Pandi touched the spot where she had been hit with a basin yesterday. “Damn it!”

Hu Lihong retorted, “Why didn’t you curse her in front of her earlier?”

Xu Pandi: “…”

Damn it, all of them are damn people!

Ruan Mingfu staggered off to work. On the way, the male comrades she encountered all brightened up.

“Educated Youth Ruan, have you eaten?”

“Educated Youth Ruan, what did you have for breakfast…”

Ruan Mingfu nodded in response. Even without speaking, the male comrades’ ears turned red, and their expressions became excited.

This led to her being greeted by a blushing, anxious male comrade every couple of steps, who would then show a silly smile upon receiving a response.

She had said that no one could escape her charm!

Ah, this damn irresistible charm~

Ruan Mingfu’s confidence was restored after being hit by the dog man and her dispirited look improved considerably.

But it lasted only half a day.

Ruan Mingfu lay on her bed, her eyes devoid of light.

Like before, she was assigned to pull weeds today. She had never known that some weeds could be so hard to pull. Soon, her palms were red and she developed several blisters in the afternoon.

More importantly, the team leader wouldn’t let her take a break!

The key point was that she didn’t earn many work points, but she was exhausted.

It felt so unfair.

It seemed she needed to manage both men and her career.

However, the current era didn’t allow private transactions, and as a high-born lady with skills in horseback riding and flower arranging, it was hard to find a suitable opportunity right away.

A knock on the door interrupted Ruan Mingfu’s thoughts. She struggled to get out of bed. Her hand, when touching the doorknob, burned painfully, aggravating her hand blisters. Ruan Mingfu winced and then opened the door.

“Educated Youth Ruan, someone is looking for you outside.”

Zhu Hong stood outside the door.

Among the educated youth, only Zhu Hong could talk to Ruan Mingfu.

Ruan Mingfu looked toward the courtyard but saw no one. Curiously peering out, she saw Zhou Peng walking towards her.

“Are you surprised to see me?”

Although it was a question, Zhou Peng spoke with certainty.

Ruan Mingfu’s face tensed up, her body on alert. “If you know I don’t want to see you, stay away from me.”

Zhou Peng, far from being angered, instead smiled.

But his smile sent shivers down Ruan Mingfu’s spine.

“Are you sure we should be talking here?”

At this time, there were quite a few people at the educated youth camp. When they saw the two people at the door, they pricked up their ears with curiosity.

The two walked to an open but secluded corner not far away.

Ruan Mingfu’s criticism of Zhou Peng’s appearance had a hint of venting frustration, but in reality, he wasn’t unattractive. In fact, he had a striking appearance.

Due to his good family background, his skin was lighter than most men’s. He wore a pair of gold-rimmed glasses, giving him a somewhat refined air.

“Mingfu, has anyone ever told you that you’re very cute?”

A kitten just a month old is fragile and small. When faced with an invader, it dares to show its claws. However, the kitten’s resistance doesn’t scare off the enemy; instead, it only adds a bit of amusement for the formidable hunter.

In Zhou Peng’s eyes, Ruan Mingfu was that kitten.

**