Chapter 56 : Confession

“Comrade Yun, you misunderstood. I’m not such a bad person. To be honest, I was moved the first time I saw you, and I want to date you with marriage in mind,” the man said anxiously, no longer confident and certain as he had been before.

“No is the best answer. I’m still young and don’t want to date. Besides, you’re not my type. Please leave quickly and don’t bother me here,” Yun Siying replied firmly and kept walking forward.

Chang Huaxing frowned at her attitude, feeling a bit upset. He thought that since he had a stable job in the county, many female comrades in the surrounding brigades would want to marry him.

“Comrade Yun, you’re an orphan sent to the countryside, and you have a large amount of money on you. Several shady characters in the village have already set their sights on you. You’re in a dangerous situation right now. I have a job in the county town with a steady monthly salary. Marrying me is your best choice. After marrying me, you won’t have to toil in the fields for work points every day. Just give me a few strong sons, and we can live peacefully together,” Chang Huaxing said, clearly attracted to Yun Siying’s looks and money, imagining a comfortable life after marriage.

Yun Siying felt ashamed hearing him mention having a few strong sons, obviously favoring boys over girls. “No, I can live better on my own,” she said firmly.

Looking at the delicate and tender Yun Siying, he thought of those educated youths who had married villagers because they couldn’t bear the hardships of fieldwork or feared harassment from unsavory villagers.

He wanted to see how long she could last. “Then I won’t bother you anymore, Comrade Yun,” he said coldly and left quickly.

After handing in the pig grass, Yun Siying checked her watch. It was only nine in the morning still early so she went back to the fields to pick more pig grass. Using her psychic ability, she found several lush patches of pig grass and picked another full basket in less than an hour.

The scorekeeper was surprised to see her returning to hand in more pig grass so soon. To prevent cheating, he emptied the basket to check again. Seeing the basket full of fresh green pig grass, he smiled and said, “Comrade Yun, I didn’t expect you to be so good at picking pig grass.”

“I was just lucky. I found a place where the pig grass grows well, so I was a bit faster,” Yun Siying smiled, though she rolled her eyes inwardly. After the scorekeeper gave her four work points, she returned the tools and headed back.

Seeing that Nangong Ruochen’s door was still locked, she took out the key he had given her during dinner one day. He had said, “Take this key. Sometimes the three of us can’t come back on time, so I’ll need you to help with cooking.”

She took out the hare she had caught yesterday and the vegetables Aunt Cuifen had given her last night, opened Nangong Ruochen’s cupboard to find rice, and started cooking lunch.

At the fields, it was almost eleven o’clock, and Nangong Ruochen hadn’t come down the mountain yet. Although the two men were reclaiming wasteland, they were a little anxious. They often went up the mountain during the year they were sent to the countryside and also kept an eye on the villagers’ every move.

Han Yuecheng kept glancing toward the forest but still didn’t see Nangong Ruochen. He whispered, “Banghua, do you think Nangong encountered any danger?”

“The boss is very skilled. There shouldn’t be any danger. Don’t worry,” Chen Banghua said, looking down at the soil as he tried to reassure his friend. He was worried about Nangong’s safety as well.

As they talked, someone came down the mountain. They glanced over and saw it wasn’t Nangong Ruochen but a villager carrying a basket of dry firewood. The two didn’t pay much attention to him.

After the man had been out of sight for a while, Nangong Ruochen appeared at the entrance of the forest. They were about to greet him when they received a subtle signal from their leader. Chen Banghua spoke up, “Nangong, did you catch any today? We haven’t had meat in a long time.”

“We didn’t go up into the mountains today, so we didn’t run into any animal. It’s almost time to get off work, I need to head back and make lunch,” Nangong Ruochen replied with a regretful look. He picked up his hoe and left quickly, worried that Siying would go hungry if he was late.

“Wait a second. We’re planning to get off work early today too, so we can put in more effort this afternoon,” Chen Banghua said. He glanced at the leader, suspecting he had discovered something.

The three of them instinctively moved closer, and Han Yuecheng asked in a low voice, “Boss, did you find anything today?”

“I’m not sure yet, just some suspicions. Keep an eye on Li Gang in the village from now on,” Nangong Ruochen whispered to the two brothers.

“Got it.”

The three returned to the Youth League Courtyard and saw Siying busy inside. Seeing her there filled Nangong Ruochen with a sense of contentment, and he walked quickly into the room.

“You’re all back from work. I just finished cooking. Go wash your hands, we’re about to eat!” Yun Siying said as she looked at the three men entering one after another, feeling like the space had suddenly become much smaller.

“Siying, thank you for all your hard work. The food smells amazing, it’s making us drool,” Han Yuecheng said, his eyes lighting up at the sight of the pot of dry-spiced rabbit meat and the big bowl of cabbage and vermicelli soup on the table.

“Then eat more,” Siying said. People who cook naturally love to be complimented on their food. She then turned to Nangong Ruochen and added, “I used the rice in your cabinet today.”

“That’s fine. Rice is meant to be eaten. If you like rice, I’ll buy more next time,” Nangong Ruochen replied casually. As long as Siying enjoyed it, he didn’t mind.

“No need. I’ll be cooking on my own in a few days. Go wash your hands, I’ll go serve the rice now.” Yun Siying shooed them away, she was already quite hungry.

The four of them happily ate the hearty meal, but the rest of the Youth League members were not so lucky. Oil and meat were scarce. If they wanted to eat meat, they had to wait for the New Year, when the village would slaughter pigs.

Now, they could smell the aroma of meat every day, but couldn’t eat any themselves. They could only drool as they chewed on dry, rough, tasteless steamed buns. Discontent began to spread among them.

“Ruxue called today,” Tang Lingxue said with a troubled expression as she looked at the three men who had just come home.

“Is Ruxue okay?” Shu Guofeng asked worriedly. Her money had been stolen not long after she arrived in the countryside, and he didn’t even know if she had enough to eat.

“Ruxue fell in the fields at noon and knocked out her two front teeth. Then, in the evening, a tile hit her and broke her arm. I asked if you’d sent her money, she went to the post office today, but there was no remittance slip for her. She has no money for medical treatment now,” Tang Lingxue said, her heart aching. Her eyes turned red, and tears streamed down her face, soaking her clothes.

“Is someone deliberately causing her trouble?” Shu Guofeng wondered. Why did it seem like everything was going wrong for her since she went to the countryside?

“Ruxue didn’t say anything. I plan to go to the place where she’s stationed tomorrow and take care of her for a while,” Tang Lingxue said. She didn’t have a job anyway, so she had plenty of free time.

“Mom, I’ll go with you tomorrow. I just happen to have a 15-day vacation,” Shu Chengzhi said. Hearing that his sister was hurt deeply worried him, he wished he could fly to her side right away.

“Alright then. You and our son can go together,” Shu Guofeng decided.