Chapter 30: Don’t Tarnish the Reputation of the Educated Youth

The brigade leader finished speaking and walked off without even glancing at Song Yue and the others.

That attitude—one could practically taste the disdain.

Chen Xue came running out and saw Song Yue, Lin He, Li Xinyue, and Zhao Zirui. He was completely stunned.

The new batch of educated youth… were all this good-looking?

Song Yue and the other three had striking features, making Liu Wei, who was more on the ordinary side, automatically invisible in Chen Xue’s eyes.

A moment later, he snapped back to reality—this was the countryside. Being good-looking out here was not only useless but could also attract unnecessary trouble.

That applied to both men and women.

And judging by their appearance, these four probably wouldn’t be much use in farm work…

No wonder the brigade leader had dumped them here and left in a hurry. Another batch of burdens. The more he looked, the more irritated he felt—best to just walk away before he got even more frustrated.

Chen Xue shook off his thoughts. “Come on in.”

As he led them into the courtyard, he introduced himself.

“Let me introduce myself first. My name is Chen Xue. Since I was the first to arrive here, I’m the person in charge of the educated youth in this area.”

“It’s still work hours right now, so the other educated youth are all out in the fields.”

“The brigade leader told me this morning that new educated youth would be arriving today, so I stayed back to wait for you instead of going to work.”

“As of now, we have four female educated youth and, including myself, four male educated youth.”

“The left side is where the male educated youth live, the right side is for the females. The middle room is the communal dining area, which also separates the two sides.”

Song Yue took in the row of dirt houses in front of her.

Including the dining hall, there were a total of five rooms.

Two rooms were assigned to the female educated youth and two to the males.

Originally, each room was meant to house three people.

But the female educated youth were fearful of staying alone, and since being the only one in a room might be seen as asking for special treatment, one of the rooms ended up accommodating four people instead.

The male educated youth, not wanting to be accused of favoritism either, also squeezed four people into one room.

That left one empty room on each side.

Now that the five of them had arrived…

The female side would remain unchanged, with one room holding exactly three.

As for Lin He and Zhao Zirui, they’d have to share with one of the senior male educated youth.

Song Yue had no particular opinion on the matter. In her past life, she had spent countless days traveling with large groups, enduring all kinds of harsh environments, including sleeping outdoors.

Compared to that, this wasn’t bad at all.

At least there was a roof over her head, right?

As long as troublemakers didn’t provoke her, she was fine with anything.

Song Yue accepted the arrangement easily.

But Li Xinyue and Liu Wei didn’t.

Liu Wei disliked having to share a room with Song Yue.

Li Xinyue, on the other hand, found everything unbearable—her delicate leather shoes were already stained with mud.

And that decrepit house… was she really expected to live in it?

For a moment, regret surged within her. She shouldn’t have been so impulsive in following Zhao Zirui to the countryside!

Liu Wei absolutely did not want to share a room with Song Yue.

Her gaze shifted, landing on the small, separate room in the far-right corner.

It wasn’t large, but it was still a room!

Liu Wei’s heart lifted with hope. “Comrade Chen, what about that room?”

It was only when Liu Wei spoke up that Chen Xue even noticed her presence.

He glanced at her. “That’s the firewood storage room. It’s used for storing wood—it’s not suitable for living.”

“The three of you will stay in the remaining room.”

Liu Wei: “…”

Li Xinyue frowned and looked at Chen Xue. “Is there another option? I don’t want to stay with them.”

Chen Xue’s expression immediately darkened.

“Comrade, this isn’t about what you want or don’t want. We came to the countryside to contribute to its development, to endure hardship—not to seek special treatment.”

“But since this is your first day, I won’t criticize you too harshly. Just remember, don’t bring up such requests again.”

“It’s getting late. You should all head inside and get settled.”

“There are still some matters to discuss, but we’ll go over them at dinner.”

With that, Chen Xue turned and left.

As he walked away, his expression grew gloomy.

Didn’t want to stay here?

Well, neither did he.

How many years had it been?

Everyone who came with him in the first batch had already integrated into the brigade.

He was the only one still holding out, desperately hoping to return to the city.

Song Yue watched his departing figure and noticed a slight hunch in his posture.

Retracting her gaze, she hoisted her bags and headed inside.

Behind her, Li Xinyue’s voice rang out, aggrieved. “Zirui, how are we supposed to live in this dump…?”

“I…”

“I don’t want to stay here…”

Tears welled up in her eyes as she clung to Zhao Zirui’s arm.

Chen Xue, having just stepped out of his room, caught sight of this scene. His anger flared instantly.

“Comrade, even if you and this male comrade are in a relationship, you still need to mind your conduct!”

“Don’t tarnish the reputation of the educated youth!”

Li Xinyue bristled with indignation and snapped back, “How am I not minding my conduct? I—”

Zhao Zirui’s heart skipped a beat. They had just arrived; they couldn’t afford to offend the person in charge.

Hurriedly, he cut her off. “Xinyue, stop.”

Li Xinyue stared at him in shock.

Zhao Zirui turned to Chen Xue and apologized. “Comrade Chen, we were in the wrong. We’ll be more mindful.”

Li Xinyue was dumbfounded.

What did he mean, “in the wrong”?

They were dating!

Holding hands, linking arms—wasn’t that completely normal? No one in Beijing had ever said anything about it!

Why was it suddenly “wrong” here?

Lin He, watching from the side, chuckled mockingly.

“I told you not to follow along, but you wouldn’t listen. Regret it now?”

“I…” Overwhelmed with frustration, Li Xinyue burst into tears. “I want to go back! I want to go back!”

…

Inside the room, Song Yue heard Li Xinyue’s cries and chuckled.

In this era, once you were sent to the countryside, returning wasn’t so easy.

Even if she wanted to go back, the earliest she could do so would be in 1976.

More than a year to go.

She’d just have to endure.

Song Yue turned her attention to the room in front of her.

Hmm.

Aside from a large communal sleeping platform, there was nothing else.

Oh.

Except for dust and cobwebs.

Setting her things down, she turned to get a broom. First, she’d sweep the place clean and get rid of the cobwebs.

As she stepped out, she saw Liu Wei bringing in her belongings.

Their gazes met in midair.

Liu Wei forced a smile, but it looked worse than crying.

Song Yue’s voice was flat. “If you can’t smile properly, don’t force it. It looks fake.”

Liu Wei: “…”

Song Yue turned away. Outside, Li Xinyue was still crying while Zhao Zirui coaxed her.

Lin He had probably already gone back to his room.

Chen Xue stood nearby, watching them coldly.

Song Yue spoke up, “Comrade Chen, where’s the broom? I’d like to borrow one.”

Chen Xue glanced at her. “I’ll get it for you.”

Song Yue nodded. “Thank you, Comrade Chen.”

He handed her the broom. “I don’t think I caught your name?”

Taking the broom, she replied, “Song Yue. ‘Song’ as in poetry, ‘Yue’ as in moon.”

Chen Xue’s eyes crinkled as he smiled. “Got it, Comrade Song.”

This female comrade was good-looking and seemed frail.

Yet she was the most capable one among them.

Chen Xue’s first impression of Song Yue: favorable.

Liu Wei suddenly stepped forward. “Comrade Chen, I’m Liu Wei—‘Liu’ as in common, ‘Wei’ as in the rose.”