Once the siblings left, the village head’s wife closed the door. Seeing the items on the table, she said, “Old man, should we accept these things?”

The village head looked at the items on the table, thought for a moment, and said, “Yes, let’s accept them. We should keep an eye on them more closely from now on.”

The village head’s wife sighed and said, “They are just two poor kids. Building two rooms will cost at least a hundred or so. Can they really come up with that much money?”

The village head glanced at his wife but did not speak. He remembered when the siblings first arrived; Xu Ning, who was 15, still looked a bit like her age, while Xu An appeared to be only eight or nine, though the slip said he was 13. From their clothing and luggage, it didn’t seem like they had come from the city because they couldn’t get enough food; it was clear that something had happened at home and they had been sent to the countryside for refuge. Since they received money from the army every month, they likely had enough to build a house.

Today, at the meeting, the township had mentioned that a new batch of educated youths would be arriving soon. With Xu Ning and Xu An moving out, there would be more room at the youth station, so it should be able to accommodate everyone.

The village head saw his wife had finished tidying up the items and said, “Go to bed early. Tomorrow, I will speak to the skilled builders and ask them to get Xu Ning’s house done before the autumn harvest.” With that, he went inside.

In a small courtyard in Chengnan County, Zhao Jianshe had just entered his home while pushing his bicycle when he smelled a delicious meat aroma coming from the kitchen. He parked the bike and headed towards the kitchen. Su Hongmei had just served the dishes from the pot when she saw Zhao Jianshe come in and said, “Hurry up and wash your hands. Dinner will be ready soon.” Zhao Jianshe replied with a smile, “Did you manage to get some meat today?” He then took a basin and went outside to wash his hands.

Su Hongmei set the dishes on the table, and Zhao Jianshe came in. He asked, “Has our son gone to bed?” Su Hongmei replied, “He didn’t take a nap at noon, so I steamed an egg for him in the afternoon. He ate it and went to sleep.”

As Zhao Jianshe sat down and picked up his chopsticks, Su Hongmei mentioned Xu Ning’s visit and also brought up the injury Xu Ning had sustained.

Zhao Jianshe said, “My brother called last time and told me that his teacher’s children are coming to our county to work in the countryside. He asked me to find a reliable place for them. If they come by, he wants me to help if I can. Did Xu Ning say anything about how she got hurt?”

Su Hongmei replied, “I asked her, and she said she got hurt when she bumped into the well edge while fetching water. When I asked if she was okay, she said it was nothing, just coming around to get acquainted with the place.” Zhao Jianshe nodded and said, “I’ll ask for a day off tomorrow and go to Yushu Village the day after.”

As Xu Ning left the village head’s house, she thought that Zhao Jianshe must have learned about her visit today. If everything went as expected, he should come by soon; otherwise, there would be no need for him to visit in the future, regardless of the circumstances.

After leaving the village head’s house, the siblings headed towards the youth station. Xu An excitedly said, “Sister, we can really build our own house now!” Xu Ning patted his head and said, “Yes! Once our house is built, we’ll each have our own room. I’ll make sure to cook delicious meals for you every day.” Xu An’s eyes lit up with excitement upon hearing this.

Back at the youth camp, the others had already gone to bed. The siblings on the other hand went to the kitchen to boil water and took a shower before heading to their respective rooms to rest.

The next morning at five o’clock, Xu Ning got up. Since the others usually woke up at six to cook, she wanted to get the meals ready before the they were up.

She went to the self-cultivated field and saw that two tomatoes had ripened, so she picked them, planning to make tomato dumpling soup.

Once she had finished preparing the meal and cleaned the pot, Xu Ning and Xu An, along with three other youths, got up. It was their turn to cook today, and seeing that Xu Ning had already prepared the meal, the three of them quickly started their own tasks.

The kitchen was small, so Xu Ning and Xu An moved the dining table outside into the courtyard. They set out two big bowls of dumpling soup and one egg per person.

Just as they had set the meal out and hadn’t started eating yet, Lin Qiuhua came out the door. Seeing the siblings eating in the courtyard, she glanced at the bowls and then walked towards the self-cultivated land. Shortly after, she returned and pointed at Xu Ning’s bowl, asking angrily, “Did you pick those tomatoes?”

Xu Ning, slowly placing the peeled egg into Xu An’s bowl, replied, “Yes, I picked them. What about it?”

Lin Qiuhua, fuming, said, “Those tomatoes were mine. Why did you pick them?”

Xu Ning retorted, “Aren’t the vegetables from the self-cultivated land for the youth station? Why should it be only yours? Are you so used to eating alone that you can’t stand not getting any once?”

Lin Qiuhua, in a rage, said, “Who’s eating alone? I planted those tomatoes, and I even got the seedlings from my aunt in the village.”

Xu Ning responded, “You planted them, but I watered them. Why should you get to eat them while we just watch? Is it because you’re shameless or because you’re ugly?” Just as Xu Ning finished speaking, a muffled sound of laughter was heard from the kitchen, followed by silence, indicating someone had stifled a laugh.

Xu An, standing by, added, “The vegetables in the self-cultivated land were watered by Brother Chen, Brother Sun, Brother Ge, and my sister. You two are just freeloaders.”

Lin Qiuhua, pointing at the siblings, turned pale with anger.

Xu Ning continued, “What about the eggplants, green beans, and peppers? We grew those too. Why don’t you complain about not having those? How thick-skinned can you be? Go wash your face and see if you can make it thinner.”

Before Xu Ning could finish, Lin Qiuhua let out an angry cry and lunged at her. Xu Ning, fearing that Lin Qiuhua might knock over her meal, pushed her away forcefully. Lin Qiuhua fell awkwardly to the ground with a loud ripping sound, and her scream ceased as she scrambled back into the house. The siblings exchanged a glance and, stifling their laughter, bowed their heads and continued eating. The kitchen fell silent once more.

After finishing their meal and clearing the table, the village head and a middle-aged man arrived. Xu Ning and Xu An recognized the man as Chen Hongjun, a well-known skilled worker in the village who was often sought out for building projects. The siblings hurriedly greeted them, “Uncle Village Head, Uncle Hongjun.”

The three male educated youths also came out of the kitchen to greet the village head, who nodded in acknowledgment.

Xu An ran to the kitchen to fetch the boiled water that his sister had prepared, intending to offer it to the two men, but the village head stopped him, saying, “You’ve just eaten, so you’re not thirsty. First, measure your self-cultivated land and let Uncle Hongjun take a look at the empty space. You two should discuss how to build it.” He then addressed the three lads, “You all should come along too. I’m worried about marking out the land properly, so make a note of it.” The three educated youths followed as they headed towards the self-cultivated land.

The village head told Xu Ning, “Your youth station has one mu and four fen of land. Ideally, each of you seven young intellectuals should get two fen of self-cultivated land. But at a meeting yesterday, the township leaders said that another batch of educated youths will be coming to Yushu Village soon. Therefore, we can’t allocate the land like that. We can only give one fen of self-cultivated land to each of you siblings.”

Xu Ning nodded in response. According to the original storyline, there would be two more batches of educated youths coming to Yushu Village before the end of the year, and in the coming years, there would be large numbers of them sent to the countryside. Yushu Village would likely see its share.

When they reached the end near the Daqing Mountain, the village head marked off the two fen of land for the siblings. This land would be theirs.

The village head noticed that there were only a few bean pods left and that the bean plants were nearly dry. He said to Xu Ning, “There aren’t many vegetables left here. Pull them out, clear the land, and plant the cabbage as soon as possible.” Xu Ning nodded in agreement.

With the land allocation sorted, the three male young intellectuals returned to eat. Chen Hongjun examined the empty space and asked Xu Ning, “Xu Ning, how many rooms do you plan to build?”

Xu Ning replied, “Uncle Hongjun, I want to build two rooms. My brother is growing up, so I want to give him his own room. Do you think there’s enough space for two rooms here?”

Chen Hongjun looked around and measured the dimensions, then said, “Two rooms will be fine. We can also build a shed on the right side for storing firewood, and you can add a toilet in the corner on the left side of the self-cultivated land.” Xu Ning was pleased with Chen Hongjun’s professional assessment and the efficient use of space. She nodded and said, “Thank you, Uncle Hongjun. You’ve thought of everything. I appreciate it and will rely on you to handle it.”

She then asked the village head, “Uncle, do you think I can put a small door here? It would make fetching water more convenient.” The location was half the distance compared to the front of the youth station, and it would be very convenient for the original owner’s parents who had been relocated to a cow shed.

The village head had no objections and nodded in agreement.

Chen Hongjun asked Xu Ning when she planned to start building. Xu Ning said, “Uncle Hongjun, I’d like to get it done as soon as possible so we can move out. Do you think it can be done within these few days?”

Chen Hongjun replied, “That’s fine. I’ll go back now and gather the workers. They can start building tomorrow. Do you want me to bring the adobe bricks for you, or will you get them yourself?”

Xu Ning said, “Uncle Hongjun, please bring the adobe bricks for me. I’ll settle the payment with you later.” She then awkwardly added, “Also, I don’t have a place to cook for you all. Would eight mao per day be okay?”

Chen Hongjun laughed and said, “We’re all from the same village. It’s more convenient to eat at home. Eight mao is quite reasonable. Don’t worry; I’ll make sure you get your new house as soon as possible.”

With the housing arrangements settled, Xu Ning felt relieved. After sending off the village head and Chen Hongjun, the educated youths also went out to prepare for work.

As she turned around, she saw Lin Qiuhua glaring at her with hostility, and Li Fengjiao standing beside her, also giving her a look of enmity. Xu Ning asked, “What’s up? Do you want to fight? Let’s find a bigger space if you do; otherwise, I won’t be able to move around.”

Xu An immediately grabbed a stick and stood by Xu Ning’s side. Li Fengjiao and Lin Qiuhua’s faces darkened, and with a huff, they went off to work. Xu Ning muttered, “Little pests, I’ll make sure you don’t walk away easily.” Xu An echoed, “Don’t expect to walk away easily.”

The three male young intellectuals, suppressing their laughter, went off to work as well. Xu An prepared to head out with his basket to gather pig feed. Xu Ning asked him to wait a moment and wrapped two egg cakes in oil paper, placing them in his basket. She also put four large White Rabbit milk candies in his pocket and filled his water bottle with boiling water, telling him to drink when he got thirsty.

Having eaten breakfast early, there were still several hours before lunch, and little children often got hungry.

Xu Ning wasn’t scheduled to work yet and thought about the remaining self-cultivated land. She decided to pull up the bean plants and prepare the soil for planting cabbage. She needed to prepare plenty of vegetables, as her parents and younger brother would be coming after the autumn harvest, and she needed to ensure there was enough for five people to last through the winter. The winter here was long, and her space only had a small amount of fresh vegetables and some dried ones.

Xu Ning first soaked a handful of wood ear mushrooms from her space, planning to make chive and egg dumplings with wood ear mushrooms for lunch. She added water to the pot and took out two handfuls of mung beans from her space to simmer into mung bean soup over low heat. Then she went to the backyard to pull up the bean plants.

By the time she finished with the bean plants, the mung bean soup was also ready. She poured it into a basin and placed it in the water tank to cool, so Xu An could enjoy chilled mung bean soup when he got back. Seeing that it was still early, she continued to work on the field.

Xu Ning had just finished wrapping the dumplings when Xu An came home. His eyes brightened upon seeing the dumplings on the table. He grabbed a basin and went to wash his hands and face. When he sat down, Xu Ning served him a bowl of mung bean soup. After Xu An finished the soup, the dumplings were also ready, and she served him a large bowl.

Before Xu An had finished eating a single dumpling, he began to cry. Xu Ning hurried over and asked, “What’s wrong, Xiao An? Did you burn your mouth?” Xu An sobbed, “Sister, I miss Dad, Mom, and Brother Mo.”

Xu Ning’s own tears began to fall as she comforted him, “It’s okay. Mom and Dad will be fine.” After Xu An finished crying, Xu Ning got some more water to wipe his face, then sat him down to finish his meal. Xu An, blushing with embarrassment, buried his head in the bowl and ate heartily.

Once they finished eating, Xu Ning quickly cleaned up the kitchen as the young intellectuals were about to finish their work. Xu An, who was cutting pig feed, could return home early as long as he had gathered enough.

By the time the siblings had cleaned up, the young intellectuals had returned. Xu Ning took Xu An to the self-cultivated land at the back. Xu An grabbed a hoe and was ready to dig, but Xu Ning stopped him, saying, “It’s too hot now. Don’t dig. I’ll take care of it this afternoon.” She also showed him where they would build the house and where the toilet would be. Xu An was so excited that he hopped around on the land. Worried about him getting heatstroke, Xu Ning pulled him back to rest.

In the afternoon, when Xu An went to cut pig feed, Xu Ning gave him the water bottle filled with mung bean soup to ensure he drank plenty of water. She also packed two egg cakes for him. Xu An told Xu Ning, “Sister, I gave one of the egg cakes from this morning to Jianmin. Jianmin often shared steamed buns with me.”

Jianmin was the younger son of Uncle Dashuan and about the same age as Xu An. They worked together cutting pig feed every day and had a good relationship.

Xu Ning smiled and said, “If you want to share what I give you, you can. After you finish, come back and get more from me. Go on!” Xu An happily ran off with his basket.

After Xu An finished work, Xu Ning had already finished digging the self-cultivated land. The siblings ate the remaining half basin of dumplings from the morning and prepared to rest early, as they would start building the house the next day.