Chapter 21 – Only Your Second Brother Is Worthy of Comrade Yu

“Exactly!”

“No, no.” Grandma Lu immediately waved her hand in disapproval. “Comrade Yu just treated your mother’s illness. She’s done us a favor—we can’t repay kindness with betrayal.”

“What—how is this betrayal?” Lu Yunyang was unconvinced. “I mean, I’m tall, good-looking, one of the best in our brigade. I can even tally work points, and most importantly, I’ve never felt this way about any girl before.”

“Even so, it’s not happening. If you ask me, your second brother would be more suitable.” The old lady spoke her true thoughts. “It’s a pity. Such a good girl, and your second brother doesn’t have the fortune to be with her.”

“Second Brother likes men. I heard it just now while I was outside. Mom, Grandma, don’t underestimate me. What if she likes someone like me? I promise I’ll work hard and make myself better and better.”

Grandma Lu and Lu Shi couldn’t argue back anymore.

“Well then, sometimes matters like this do come down to fate. Who knows, maybe she really will like you.”

Lu Yunyang was overjoyed. “Thanks, Mom. Thanks, Grandma. I’ll definitely work hard to be worthy of her—uh, what’s her name again?”

“Her name is Jingjing. Her surname is Yu.”

“Alright. I’ll work hard to be worthy of Comrade Yu.”

Yu Jingjing stepped out of the Lu household carrying a half-basket of tomatoes and cucumbers. Since she and Zhao Yuan wouldn’t be able to finish all of it, she stored some in her space.

As soon as she entered the educated youth compound, she saw Gong Fanrui sitting in the courtyard with a sullen expression. Ignoring her, she walked straight in to find Zhao Yuan and gave her the tomatoes and cucumbers.

“Jingjing, where’d you get these? Did you trade with a local?” Zhao Yuan asked as she reached for her pocket to get money.

Yu Jingjing shook her head. “Grandma Lu gave them to me, not a trade.”

Upon hearing this, Gong Fanrui, already unsettled, lost all composure. It seemed the brigade leader’s family fully trusted Yu Jingjing now.

She walked over to Yu Jingjing and forced a smile. “I saw you just came back. I wanted to ask—how’s Aunt Lu doing?”

“We’ve only just started treatment. It’s too early to see any real improvement. It’ll take some time.”

Gong Fanrui’s eyes lit up with thinly veiled delight.

“But if you used Western medicine, the results would be immediate. Without signs of progress, who knows if there will ever be any?”

Yu Jingjing rolled her eyes. “Whether there will be progress is my responsibility. It has nothing to do with you, Comrade Gong. No need to worry so much.”

“I’m just afraid you might delay her condition.”

“But Aunt Lu prefers me to treat her.”

Gong Fanrui didn’t argue further. Just because Yu Jingjing hadn’t shown results yet didn’t mean she could actually cure Aunt Lu. For all she knew, Yu might even make things worse.

In her mind, Yu Jingjing’s so-called medical skills were just nonsense—putting on a show, feeling pulses, and tricking people.

The Western medicine she studied was the real science of healing.

Yu Jingjing gave Chen Wei two tomatoes. Zhou Guifang was lying quietly on the kang (heated brick bed), looking completely uninterested in interacting, so Yu Jingjing didn’t approach her.

Chen Wei explained to Yu Jingjing, “Guifang’s just been in a bad mood lately. She’s not really that cold. She might feel better in a while.”

Yu Jingjing didn’t press to find out what had happened to Zhou Guifang—after all, they weren’t that close.

Not long after she returned to her dorm, someone called from outside, “Comrade Yu! Is Comrade Yu here?”

She stepped outside and saw a rural woman in her fifties. Yu Jingjing approached and asked, “Auntie, is there something you need from me?”

The woman’s eyes lit up at the sight of her. “You—you’re Comrade Yu? So pretty!”

Yu Jingjing’s expression turned cold. “Auntie, what exactly do you want?”

“I’m the local matchmaker—everyone calls me Aunt Bao. Since I’m here, of course I’m here to talk matchmaking. Do you know who I want to introduce to you? My son! He’s very picky, but yesterday we heard you helped a sow give birth, and you’re even prettier than the rumors! So I brought my son to meet you.”

“My son is waiting outside. Come on out and meet him. He’ll definitely like you. Just look at him—so handsome! Let’s go, just a quick look!”

Yu Jingjing sneered. So she had to chase after a man now? And the other side was so confident about his own worth?

“No need. I’m still young, and I just got here. I don’t plan on finding a partner. You all can go back.”

“What? You don’t want a partner? That’s because you haven’t seen someone you like yet. Let me tell you, my son’s top-tier! Come with me.”

“I said I’m not looking, so there’s no need to see anyone.”

“Then… when will you start looking?”

“I don’t know. Maybe in three, four, five, six, seven, or eighty years.”

If she said she never intended to marry, the woman likely wouldn’t believe her and would just keep pestering.

She had already made up her mind—she would never look for a partner in this life. Though this era wasn’t as open as the future, and staying unmarried invited gossip, ridicule, or even harassment from hooligans…

But she truly didn’t see the need to get married. Besides, she had her space. Why should she fear hooligans?

In her previous life, she died before even reaching thirty, before she could contribute much to the field of medicine she loved. In this life, she would fulfill her unfinished dreams—pursuing what she loved and what was worth doing.

As for what others wanted to say, let them. As long as she didn’t care, those words couldn’t hurt her.

“What? That long? Will my son even wait that long?” Aunt Bao asked.

“Whether he can wait or not is your problem.”

Aunt Bao’s expression darkened. “What if you’re lying? What if you say you’re not looking now, but then turn around and start dating someone else?”

Yu Jingjing was speechless. “And what if I am? Who do you think you are? Whether I date or not, when and with whom, is none of your business.”

“So you admit you’re lying to me!” Aunt Bao’s face twisted with rage. “Hmph! My son showing interest in you is your fortune. I’m warning you—don’t be ungrateful! You’re just some outsider…”

Slap!

Yu Jingjing smacked her across the face, grabbed her collar, and dragged her out.

Aunt Bao shrieked, “Look! Comrade Yu hit me! She’s trying to kill me!”

Jiang Wan saw this and rushed to report it. “Comrade Fang, did you see what she did to a local? Our relationship with the villagers is already tense, and now it’ll be worse. Ugh, she keeps causing trouble—I don’t even dare say anything anymore.”

“I’ll have a word with her,” Fang Yuhao agreed.

Aunt Bao’s son, Bao Zhuangzhuang, was waiting outside. She yelled at him, “Did you see what she did to your mother? Teach that little tramp a lesson!”

Slap slap slap!

Yu Jingjing gave Aunt Bao a few more slaps. “Got a unique taste, huh? Like getting slapped? I can give you a few more if you’re into that.”

Bao Zhuangzhuang clenched his fists angrily. “You hit my mom—I’ll make you pay!”

He lunged forward, but at that moment, his mother turned her head suddenly, and their faces smashed together. Yu Jingjing kicked Aunt Bao in the waist, sending her hefty body crashing right onto her son.

Bao Zhuangzhuang pushed his mother off. “Aaah!”

“Toothaches are caused by having teeth. No teeth, no pain,” Yu Jingjing quipped.

Right after she spoke, two of Bao Zhuangzhuang’s front teeth were missing. His lips hung over his face like a sausage.

Having seen Yu Jingjing’s terrifying strength, he didn’t dare charge again and fled with his mother.

Several educated youths stood there dumbfounded, jaws nearly dropping. They were all stunned by Yu Jingjing’s combat prowess.

She looked delicate on the outside, but her physical strength was astonishing. She could handle both women and men without breaking a sweat.

But Fang Yuhao wasn’t happy. He stepped up and said critically, “Comrade Yu, do you even realize what you just did? It’s one thing to exchange harsh words, but you also hit a villager.”

“They deserved it.”

“But doing so damages our reputation with the locals. I’m afraid they’ll start making things difficult for us.”

“If they do, they’ll come for me, not you.”

“But word will spread, and people will think it’s all of us. You’re giving all the educated youths a bad name.”

Jiang Wan watched smugly. She didn’t have to lift a finger—others were doing the work of reprimanding Yu Jingjing for her.

Yu Jingjing already didn’t think much of this so-called leader. She coolly said, “Comrade Fang, what authority are you using to lecture me right now?”

“As the leader of the educated youth compound, of course.”

“Did you hear that old woman cursing at me just now? Did you see her telling her son to beat me?”

“I…” Fang Yuhao had seen it all.

Yu Jingjing continued, “Even if you didn’t see it then, you know about it now, right? And if you did see it, then as the leader here, shouldn’t you be standing up for the wronged youth and teaching them a lesson? It’s not too late. Go to their house and discipline them. It’ll set a good example and show that you’re taking responsibility. Well? Comrade Fang?”

Fang Yuhao was instantly at a loss for words. He felt deeply ashamed because he couldn’t refute her.

“I’m sorry, Comrade Yu. I didn’t think things through. I shouldn’t have criticized you. You weren’t in the wrong. I apologize.”

He bowed to Yu Jingjing, his face flushed red, and returned to the dormitory.

Chen Wei was increasingly disappointed in him. He was becoming less and less like the man she once knew.