Chapter 28

In the blink of an eye, He Xianqiu had already spent over a month in Qinggang Brigade.

During this time, she either went to class or had her meals at Grandpa Zhong’s house. She had even gone to the commune and bought several jin of pork, which she brought to Grandpa Zhong’s home. So for a few days, she had her dinners there.

The other educated youths at the compound were puzzled—why did she always leave right after dinner? He Xianqiu calmly and casually explained that the dorm was too stuffy, so she went out for a walk.

Sure enough, they bought her excuse, nodding in understanding.

Since the others had gone out to work, He Xianqiu stayed at the compound. It was the weekend and there were no classes, so she simply wandered around aimlessly.

Suddenly, someone outside the compound called her name. She walked out to check.

It was a young postman on a bicycle with an olive green satchel slung across his chest.

He Xianqiu asked, “Hello, I’m He Xianqiu.”

The postman blushed when he saw such a pretty woman coming toward him. He stared at her for a few seconds, scratched his head, and said awkwardly, “Hello, Comrade He. There’s a letter for you, and also a parcel. But the package is too large, so you’ll need to go pick it up yourself.”

As he spoke, he handed the letter to her. How could anyone be so pretty? he thought, She’s absolutely stunning. His vocabulary failed him—he could only come up with a few phrases to express how amazed he was.

He Xianqiu took the letter and thanked him. The postman, though reluctant to leave, still turned to go—his job came first. He walked away with lingering glances; this was the most beautiful person he’d seen at the commune.

He Xianqiu clutched the letter and rushed back to the dorm, joyful and excited.

Once inside, she couldn’t wait and tore it open, then sat on her bed to read.

The letter was full of family news and expressions of concern. They said they missed her terribly, and they worried that she might not be eating well in the countryside or couldn’t buy the things she usually liked, so they had sent her a parcel.

The package included five tins of powdered milk, five boxes of chocolate, preserved fruits, three dresses, and two pairs of little leather shoes. They also mentioned that they had tucked some money and ration coupons inside.

Thinking of the family far away in the capital—even though she hadn’t met them in person—He Xianqiu felt an inexplicable closeness.

Reading their caring words filled her heart with warmth, like a current of heat flowing in.

However, Old Chen, who usually drove the ox cart, happened to be off today. Without the ox cart, He Xianqiu had no idea how to retrieve her parcel from the commune. This made her worry.

She didn’t know anyone in the brigade who could lend her a bicycle—and even if she did, she couldn’t ride one.

Plus, Old Chen’s trips to the commune weren’t on a fixed schedule. And she only had weekends off, so she didn’t know when she’d get the chance to collect her package.

At this point, the only person in the brigade she was really familiar with came to mind—none other than the “villain” classmate, Ji Chen Zhou.

It seemed her only option was to ask him for help.

So He Xianqiu decided to try her luck and see if Ji Chen Zhou was at Grandpa Zhong’s place. He usually went there, so maybe she’d get lucky and catch him.

After freshening up, He Xianqiu set out in the direction of Grandpa Zhong’s house. Since she was alone, she chose to take the main road.

The small trail was too deserted. If something happened, there’d be no one to call for help. On the main road, she’d feel safer with others around.

As she walked quickly along the wide dirt road, she passed a few young village wives.

When they saw her, they called out.

“Comrade He, where are you off to?”

He Xianqiu paused and smiled politely. “I’m going to Dr. Zhong’s to get some medicine.”

“Oh, I see.”

These village wives couldn’t help but feel sour. He Xianqiu worked as a teacher at the village school and had weekends off, while they had to toil in the fields every day. Jealousy seeped into their words.

“Truly envious of Comrade He—working as a teacher and still earning full work points. Meanwhile, we’re killing ourselves for just a few.”

“Exactly. And she’s so pretty too. The moment she shows up, all the young men’s eyes are glued to her.”

He Xianqiu heard their passive-aggressive remarks and kept her smile. “What can I say? I passed the exam, so now I have to teach.”

That shut them up. They were momentarily speechless, choking on her polite jab and unable to come up with a retort.

He Xianqiu added politely, “If there’s nothing else, I’ll get going.”

The women forced smiles. “Of course, don’t let us hold you up.”

After she walked away, their smiles dropped immediately.

“Pfft, she just has the face of a vixen.”

“Probably became a teacher just because of that pretty face. If I looked like that…”

Just then, Ji Chen Zhou appeared. His face was expressionless as he said, “Cut the nonsense. That’s slander. And besides, none of you will ever be as pretty as her.”

The women’s faces flushed red with both embarrassment and shock. Who would have thought Ji Lao Si, who rarely spoke, would actually defend someone like that?

Ji Chen Zhou had seen He Xianqiu from afar but didn’t greet her because of the others around.

Only after she walked off did he come over—just in time to hear their gossip, which made him frown deeply.

After reprimanding them, Ji Chen Zhou quickly caught up with He Xianqiu, keeping several meters of distance between them.

He Xianqiu had no idea what had happened behind her. She was in a hurry and soon arrived at Grandpa Zhong’s house.

She knocked on the door. When Grandpa Zhong opened it, she greeted him. “Hello, Grandpa Zhong.” Then she asked, “Is Ji Chen Zhou here? I have something I need his help with.”

Just as Grandpa Zhong was about to shake his head and say no, he saw someone walking up behind her. He pointed. “He’s right behind you.”

He Xianqiu turned and saw Ji Chen Zhou walking toward the house.

She hadn’t expected the person she was looking for to be right behind her.

When she saw him, her eyes lit up. She jogged over to meet him.

“Classmate Ji, I need your help.”

Ji Chen Zhou looked down at her and asked, “What is it?”

He Xianqiu looked up and said, “My family sent me a package. It’s at the commune, but I don’t have a bike. Do you know anyone who has one I could rent for a bit? I’ll pay for it.”

She wasn’t familiar enough with anyone else to ask. Ji Chen Zhou was her only option.

As she looked up at him, she realized something—he’d grown taller.

He’d already been a head taller than her, but now she only reached his shoulder. He must’ve grown a few centimeters.

Ji Chen Zhou was lean but tall, with pale skin. He looked like a gentle scholar. Even though he worked outside under the sun every day, he never seemed to tan.

He Xianqiu was deeply envious. When she worked in the fields, she constantly worried about getting dark, wrapping herself up so only her eyes showed.

Yet he didn’t even bother with sun protection and still stayed so fair. It was unfair.

Ji Chen Zhou thought for a moment and said, “Wait here. I’ll go borrow one.”

Hearing that he could borrow a bike, He Xianqiu lit up with joy and nodded like a pecking chick. “Okay, I’ll wait right here.”

Ji Chen Zhou gave her a small smile, then left.

Grandpa Zhong invited her inside to wait. Ji Chen Zhou wouldn’t be back for a while, so it was better than standing.

He Xianqiu agreed—it made sense. Standing would just be tiring, so she went in.

She sat down, and Grandpa Zhong, smiling, went into the kitchen and made her a bowl of sweet water.

She thanked him and took a sip. Realizing it was sugar water, her first reaction was guilt—this was too extravagant.

After all, Grandpa Zhong didn’t live comfortably. He’d been sent down to the countryside and, though he didn’t have to live in a cowshed thanks to being a doctor, his situation wasn’t great. He dared not keep anything valuable in the house for fear of being raided by villagers.

Ji Chen Zhou had told her how, in the early years, some precious white flour they had managed to save had been taken right from their house by someone who claimed that “bad elements didn’t deserve to eat good food.”

It had enraged Grandpa Zhong, but there was nothing he could do. He’d had to stand by and watch the precious flour get stolen.

So later, he got smart—if he had anything good to eat, he’d eat it right away instead of saving it.

Since Grandpa Zhong had been labeled a “bad element,” both He Xianqiu and Ji Chen Zhou always visited his home in secret.

When He Xianqiu learned about what he’d gone through, she felt both angry and heartbroken.

There was no hope of justice, so he had to live under constant judgment and suspicion, treading carefully every day.

Seeing that Grandpa Zhong had made her sugar water now, she quickly said, “Grandpa Zhong, this is too generous. Keep your sugar for yourself.”

He didn’t have it easy. If he ever got to eat something good, it was usually thanks to Ji Chen Zhou’s hunting or the food He Xianqiu brought from the commune.

But Grandpa Zhong just shook his head. “Drink it. I don’t lack a little sugar. I just wanted to give a young girl something sweet.”

He knew she was being considerate of him, but he treated her like half a granddaughter. He didn’t have much to offer, but he could still share a little sweetness.

After all, he knew exactly how good this little girl was to him. Whenever she had food, she thought of him first. That made his heart feel warm and at peace.

He Xianqiu could only nod at his words. But in her heart, she thought: There are so many goodies in my parcel—I can definitely share some with Grandpa Zhong.

After all, this old man might be proud and aloof, but she knew he treated her like his own.