Chapter 22 : Choosing a Room

After the Captain left, Li Zhengyang said to the four people. “Hello, comrades. I am Li Zhengyang, the person in charge of the educated youth site. This educated youth yard is the residence arranged by the team for us educated youth.”

Then he pointed to the old blue brick and tile house and said, “This old house is free to live in. Except for the main hall and the kitchen, which are public areas, there are four rooms two for male educated youth and two for female educated youth. They all sleep on large bunk beds.”

Then he pointed to a new blue brick and tile house and said, “This row of houses was funded and built by the entire team. There are a total of ten rooms. They are collectively owned and all single rooms that can be rented. The rent for one room is 24 yuan a year. You all should move your luggage into the yard first, then go see the rooms, and then choose the room you want to live in.”

Several people looked at the rooms for the male and female educated youth. The four rooms were the same size. Each house had large bunk beds piled with bedding, leaving some empty spaces.

“The house for the female educated youth is full, but this one can accommodate two more people. The wardrobes and boxes inside were exchanged by them at the brigade. The male educated youth can accommodate three more people. There are three more houses that need to be rented. You can choose by yourselves,” Li Zhengyang explained to them.

“Okay, go and choose your own rooms. After putting away your luggage, go to the brigade to collect your subsidized food. By the way, hand in your household registration book to the brigade leader so he can confirm your food allocation tomorrow.”

“You all go and do your own things. I will prepare a welcome banquet for you this evening. Remember to come and eat together.” After finishing speaking, Li Zhengyang walked into the kitchen to prepare lunch.

Nangong Ruochen took Yun Siying directly to the new houses. Seven of the doors were locked, and the doors of the remaining three houses were unlocked. It seemed that no educated youth had moved in yet.

“What do you think of this house?” Nangong Ruochen put down his luggage and pointed to the room next to his.

“I’ll go in and take a look first.” Yun Siying also put down her luggage and walked into the room. The room was about 25 square meters in size, with windows on the front and back walls, and a 2.6-meter-wide by 2.6-meter-long kang (heated brick bed). The corners were full of spider webs, but fortunately, the light was good and the room was dry, so she could have her own independent space.

“Not bad, this will do.” Yun Siying walked around the room and confirmed.

“Okay, put your luggage in my room first. Let’s go to the brigade headquarters to rent a room, and then see what furniture you need so we can buy it all together,” Nangong Ruochen said.

“Thank you, thank you for your trouble.” Yun Siying put her luggage in his room and looked at the furnishings. Although the place was small, it was fully equipped, very warm, and felt like home.

A large straw mat divided the room into two areas in the middle. In the inner room was a 2-meter-wide by 2.6-meter-long kang, on which sat a kang cabinet and a kang table. There was a desk and a chair on the left, and a wardrobe on the right. On top of the wardrobe was a mahogany box, and next to the wardrobe was a square cabinet.

Against the outer wall was a stove, with a cupboard, a basin rack, a small eight-immortal table, and two stools.

“Nangong Ruochen, do you cook by yourself?” Yun Siying did not expect that he could make the room so lively, creating a big contrast.

“Yeah, but there are two more people living with me.” This was the first time Nangong Ruochen had brought a female comrade into his room. When Yun Siying looked around, she felt a little nervous, and her earlobes flushed slightly. Hearing her question, he hummed softly.

“I didn’t expect you to actually know how to cook.” Yun Siying looked at Nangong Ruochen with curiosity, her eyes filled with inquisitiveness.

“I’ve been picky about food since I was a child, and later I learned cooking from a chef whose ancestors served as imperial chefs, so my cooking skills are pretty decent. Plus, when I cook for myself, I can occasionally prepare a nice little meal.” Seeing the curiosity in her eyes, Nangong Ruochen quickly explained.

“Tsk tsk, I really didn’t know you had such impressive cooking skills. By the way, I really like the way your room is arranged. I’ll base the layout of my room on yours. You can help me pick out furniture. I’m not short on money.” Yun Siying was too tired today and didn’t feel like doing anything herself.

“Alright, leave it all to me!” Nangong Ruochen agreed readily. Yun Siying’s trust in him made him feel inexplicably happy.

“By the way, the older educated youth are organizing a welcome banquet for you this evening, mainly to introduce everyone to one another.” Nangong Ruochen looked at Yun Siying with a trace of concern in his eyes.

“Then I’ll bring a pound of bacon to add a dish for everyone!” Yun Siying felt embarrassed to eat for free. Food was still precious during this time. While it wasn’t as scarce as it was during the end of the world, supplies were still limited.

“That’s fine. But don’t do things like this too often in the future. There are 20 or 30 people living in the Youth Courtyard, and everyone has their own little thoughts.” Nangong Ruochen smiled. He hadn’t expected Siying to be so thoughtful, but still felt the need to remind her.

“Thanks for the reminder.” Yun Siying felt a warmth in her heart at his words. After living through the end of the world, she understood well the greed of people and the importance of not flaunting wealth.

The two locked the door and went to find Li Zhengyang. Yun Siying handed him a pound of bacon and said, “Comrade Li, take this bacon and cook it together, add a dish for everyone this evening.”

Li Zhengyang saw the brightly colored, marbled bacon and couldn’t help but swallow. He accepted it with excitement, feeling that this educated youth was really generous. Then he asked, “Thank you! What’s your name?”

“My name is Yun Siying.” Yun Siying realized that he didn’t know her name yet.

Li Zhengyang scratched his head and said, “Thank you, Comrade Yun. We haven’t had meat in a long time. Today, we’ll enjoy some thanks to your generosity.”

When they walked to the front of the courtyard, Yun Siying looked at the precious tractor with a bit of longing, but held herself back. She got onto the carriage, and Nangong Ruochen started the tractor and drove out of the educated youth courtyard.

In the vehicle, Nangong Ruochen felt unsettled. He didn’t know what Siying had gone through with the Shu family. She went to the countryside to repay their kindness for raising her, published an announcement in the newspaper to sever ties, and even changed her last name. It seemed he would need to write a letter to ask his friends to look into what exactly had happened with the Shu family.

What had made Siying leave so decisively and choose to stay away from Beijing?

At the same time, Shu Ruxue and Shen Subai had also chosen single rooms. But just as they were about to pay, they realized all the money in their bags was gone. The two of them panicked and immediately began searching through their luggage.

They searched everything, but couldn’t find any money. The two, who were staying in neighboring rooms, came out at the same time. When they saw each other, they both said at once.

“Ruxue, my money is missing!” / “Brother Subai, my money is missing!”

“Yours is gone too?” they said in unison, their voices several pitches higher.