Chapter 35

After He Xianqiu left, the others were still talking about Zhao Yaling and Chen Changping.

“Are those two idiots? They got so much from Comrade He, and they still didn’t try to please her?”

“Exactly. Did you see how arrogant Chen Changping was just now? Now he’s acting like a total coward.”

“Yeah, he’s always had that haughty look like everyone’s beneath him. Tch. What a joke.”

Yang Shuhua had now realized she’d been used—like a gun pointed and fired by someone else—and she’d been the one jumping the hardest.

It turned out Zhao Yaling was the one who didn’t like He Xianqiu, jealous of her, so she stirred up all the trouble. And she, with her hot temper, had played right into it.

So after He Xianqiu left, she stormed over and started hitting Zhao Yaling.

“You bitch! You used me like a pawn! If I don’t beat you up, it won’t make up for my humiliation!”

She grabbed Zhao Yaling’s hair and yanked it hard. Zhao Yaling screamed in pain, her scalp burning.

“Ahhh! Let go of me! Let go!”

The rest of the educated youth had been gossiping, pointing fingers, but none of them expected Yang Shuhua to just charge over and grab Zhao Yaling by the hair.

They stood there stunned, unable to react.

Zhao Yaling, seeing everyone watching like it was a show, panicked and cried out, “Changping, help me!”

Chen Changping was still caught up in mourning the loss of the watch and hadn’t reacted yet. When he heard Zhao Yaling calling him, he finally snapped out of it and rushed over to help.

But watching the two of them tussle together, he had no idea how to break them apart and just stood there helplessly.

“Changping, hurry! My scalp hurts so bad!” Zhao Yaling pleaded, her voice pitiful.

Moved by her tone, Chen Changping stepped in and tried to pry Yang Shuhua’s hand off her.

But Yang Shuhua yelped as he touched her arm. “Chen Changping, let go of me! Or I’ll beat you too! You disgusting pair!”

Back in the dormitory, He Xianqiu heard the commotion and walked out. She spotted the scene and stopped at the door, not daring to get too close, but thoroughly enjoying the spectacle.

She saw Chen Changping trying to pull Yang Shuhua off Zhao Yaling, only for Yang Shuhua to turn and claw Chen Changping’s face. Then she grabbed his hair too.

He Xianqiu was amazed—Yang Shuhua was fighting two people at once, with ease!

Watching these three, who had always been against her, now attacking each other like wild dogs, He Xianqiu was delighted. She even felt like clapping but knew better than to provoke them—otherwise, they’d turn on her next.

The fight dragged on so long, she even went back into the dorm to grab some candy and watched like she was at a play.

Zhao Yaling and Chen Changping’s hair was a mess, their faces scratched red. They looked like a pair of lunatic lovers. A perfect match.

Eventually, Zhao Yaling got angry too and started scratching Yang Shuhua’s face, forcing her to let go of Chen Changping. Now it was a full-on catfight between the girls.

Chen Changping didn’t dare step in again.

Zhao Yaling turned to the others and pleaded, “Stop just watching! Help pull us apart!”

Reluctantly, some of the others stepped in to break it up—but even they got caught up and hit.

He Xianqiu was amazed. Hair pulling, face scratching, punching, kicking—this was intense.

After a good ten minutes, they were finally separated. The two girls stared daggers at each other.

Seeing it was over, He Xianqiu quickly slipped back into the dormitory. As their common enemy, now was the time to vanish.

Once the noise died down, she headed back out to wash up—she was covered in dust.

After heating some water in the kitchen, she took a quick bath and then looked for something to read. She found a few newspapers and classic novels, then lay in bed reading.

Soon the others returned from dinner. Seeing He Xianqiu reading, one of them asked, “Comrade He, what are you reading?”

She looked up. It was Sun Xiaoyan. “Just the newspaper,” she replied flatly.

Sun Xiaoyan gave an awkward smile, “Oh, I see.”

He Xianqiu didn’t say more. Sun Xiaoyan pressed her lips together awkwardly. If He Xianqiu weren’t rich, she wouldn’t even try to be friendly.

But He Xianqiu remembered what she’d done before and had no intention of being nice. A cold reply was already generous.

And she wasn’t going to let people like that latch onto her—what a headache that would be.

There was still a bit of light outside, but not enough to read comfortably. So she turned on her flashlight and continued reading.

Back in the city, she’d never even glanced at the daily paper. But now that there were no electronics, even a newspaper was entertaining.

Only when someone’s bored enough do they start reading things they never used to care about.

She was reading intently when she heard someone walk in, loudly and with anger. She looked up—it was Yang Shuhua.

Her face was scratched up, hair messy.

Yang Shuhua caught her gaze and glared before walking away.

She hated that someone she disliked looked pristine, while she looked a mess. But she also knew—He Xianqiu hadn’t done anything wrong to her.

Still, she hated her. Because He Xianqiu was beautiful, elegant, and made her feel like a toad beside a swan.

He Xianqiu, seeing her glare, didn’t care at all. In fact, she found it amusing.

After Yang Shuhua left, she kept reading. Once she finished the newspapers, she packed them away in her trunk.

Then she sat on the bed and saw Zhao Yaling enter.

Her face was scratched all over, hair tangled, and bruises on her neck. A real mess.

He Xianqiu felt no sympathy. She just wanted to laugh. Serves her right.

And looking like that, there was no way she could pull off that pitiful, innocent act anymore. Not with the guys, not even with Chen Changping. She looked too tragic.

He Xianqiu’s lips curled upward.

She always treated attractive people well—but no matter how pretty Zhao Yaling was, her drama and scheming ruined it.

Every time she stirred trouble, she clearly targeted He Xianqiu. No way was she ever going to feel sympathy for someone like that.

Even though she barely glanced up, Zhao Yaling locked eyes with her.

Seeing He Xianqiu’s faint smile, she felt her liver ache—and her heart, thinking of the watch she had to give up.

But after the fight, she didn’t want more trouble. She just gave her a glare and returned to her bed.

Everyone seemed tired from the brawl. The dorm was unusually quiet, everyone lying down to rest.

He Xianqiu turned off her flashlight and got ready to sleep.

She had class the next day, though only in the morning. In the afternoon, she could go to the commune to send the items she needed to mail to the capital.

—

In the morning, the sky had brightened and the sun was slowly rising.

He Xianqiu was woken by the light filtering through the window. She stretched and started changing clothes under her blanket.

Even though it was all girls in the dorm, she wasn’t the type to change openly.

Today she wore a new skirt that had just arrived from the capital. She washed it the day before, and now it was dry.

It was a soft lavender knee-length dress, trimmed with lace at the sleeves. She paired it with light-colored leather shoes and white mid-calf socks.

She braided part of her hair and let the rest fall naturally.

The lavender dress made her fair skin glow, her face looked like a blooming peach blossom, and her eyes sparkled like spring water—absolutely stunning.

She used a small mirror to check her look. Though it couldn’t show her full outfit, she was confident.

The style was simple and elegant, but not plain—because she had striking features and vivid beauty that elevated the look.

Once she was ready, He Xianqiu grabbed a few notebooks and headed to school.

The morning air was fresh with the scent of grass, and she saw dew clinging to vibrant green leaves.

On her way to school, she passed by people heading out to work in the fields.

When they saw her, their eyes were filled with admiration. They couldn’t help but keep glancing back at her.