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Chen Li’s thick black brows furrowed.
“You came all the way here and didn’t bring extra money?”
Li Haitang looked aggrieved and innocent.
“My mom already gave me half of our family’s savings.”
Chen Li couldn’t help but compare the Li family to the Lin family in his mind.
Clearly, the home of a village Party secretary was nothing compared to that of a university professor in Nancheng.
He, Chen Li, wasn’t someone who lived off women—but at the moment, he couldn’t afford to support one either.
He could barely support himself.
Seeing his expression, Li Haitang quickly asked,
“Brother Li, what’s wrong?”
Chen Li replied flatly,
“Nothing. I’ll leave my duffel bag with you for now. Once I find a place to rent, I’ll come back to get it.”
Li Haitang volunteered eagerly,
“I’ll come with you to find a place! Two people are better than one. We’ll definitely find something soon.”
They seemed to forget that all housing was government-owned at the time—private rentals were illegal on paper.
Even if someone was willing to risk renting out a place, the rent would be unaffordable for the two of them.
What’s more, Li Haitang had grown up in a spacious countryside house. She couldn’t stand the cramped conditions in the city. Any place she liked, Chen Li couldn’t even afford one month’s rent.
After searching all day, they still couldn’t find anything suitable. Tensions began to rise between them.
Li Haitang pouted in frustration,
“Brother Li, why do you keep picking tiny rooms for us?”
“Those places are smaller than our kitchen back home!”
Chen Li held back his anger.
“City land is expensive! How can you compare it to the countryside?”
“Even senior officials only get a small apartment!”
Li Haitang sniffled,
“We’re not married yet, but we should at least rent a place with two bedrooms and a living room, right?”
She looked at Chen Li expectantly. She had come to Nancheng specifically to marry him—her introduction letter even listed the reason as “marrying a fiancé in the city.”
When her father gave up a spot for her to attend a worker-peasant-soldier school, he had made Chen Li promise to marry her in the future.
If not for that Lin Ting woman, they would have already been married by now.
Chen Li touched his empty pocket without thinking. He also wanted a big apartment—but he had no money.
Instead of being understanding, Li Haitang kept pushing for a larger place.
His heart sank. He didn’t even know what to feel anymore.
“It’s getting late. I have work tomorrow. Let’s just stay at the guesthouse for now.”
Li Haitang blushed,
“Are we staying together tonight?”
Chen Li wanted to—but the guesthouse had rules.
A man and woman could only stay in the same room if they presented a marriage certificate.
Since they weren’t married, they’d have to stay in separate rooms.
Chen Li had no choice but to pay for two rooms, thinking to himself:
“I’ve got to find a way to get more money, or we’ll both starve to death soon.”
Lin Ting never expected that before she even left for the countryside, Chen Li would disgust her one last time.
He actually came to borrow money.
“Lin Ting, I know how it feels to love and not be loved in return.”
“I know you hate me because you loved me too deeply.”
“But, considering how much you once loved me, could you lend me some money?”
Lin Ting couldn’t hold back—she straight-up gagged.
“Which sewer didn’t close its lid properly and let you crawl out to disgust people again?”
Chen Li said coldly,
“This is your last chance to do something nice for me. Once you miss this opportunity, it’s gone for good.”
Lin Ting didn’t say a word—she just grabbed the broom next to her and started beating him!
“A crooked sapling needs pruning, and a shameless man needs a beating!”
“You want me to treat you nicely? Do you even have a shred of shame?”
She remembered how badly he had tricked her in her past life. Her hits were fierce and relentless—each strike landed solidly.
Chen Li couldn’t bear the pain and ran off in panic.
“You’ll regret this, you crazy woman!”
He suddenly wondered—could it be that not marrying her had gotten her sent down to the countryside?
Is that why she hates me so much?
On the other side, Lin Ting wiped off the sweat after beating him and felt amazing.
Now she had to prepare for her departure.
Lin’s mom made a bunch of meat buns for her to eat on the road. The rest of the family would leave for the countryside a few days later.
Lin Ting leaned on her mom’s shoulder like a spoiled child:
“Mom, could you make some flatbreads for me to take, too?”
“Of course.”
Lin’s mom didn’t know if she’d get another chance to make flatbread for her daughter, so she decided to let her eat her fill this time.
Lin Ting secretly stored a whole tray of flatbread and meat buns into her space. She also filled her military canteen with malted milk so she could enjoy a sweet drink on the train.
The Lin family watched her leave with heavy hearts.
Lin Ting carried a blue-and-white striped nylon bag to the youth relocation office.
The bag looked large, but there wasn’t much inside—most of her things were stored in her secret space.
She thought to herself:
“If I didn’t have this space, I wouldn’t even know how to carry all this stuff!”
When she arrived at the office, it was already packed with people.
Lin Ting’s eyes widened.
“So many people are being sent down?”
“I’m not going!”
“I won’t go to the countryside!”
There was a crowd gathered, and Lin Ting stood on tiptoe, but couldn’t see who was making a scene.
She overheard some whispers nearby:
“Someone before got out of going by throwing a fit—they were even assigned a city job.”
“It’s all luck. If everyone did that, how could they organize the transfers?”
Lin Ting clicked her tongue.
“You can get out of it by throwing a tantrum?”
But based on what she knew of the youth office, that rarely worked—in fact, it was more likely to get you sent somewhere even worse.
She wasn’t interested in other people’s drama and went off to find a quieter place to wait.
That’s when she noticed a young woman squatting by the roadside and crying, clutching her luggage.
Clearly another youth about to be sent down.
Lin Ting could hear her sobs from far away.
At this point, everyone knew going to the countryside wasn’t good. Some might not even have enough to eat.
So crying wasn’t unusual, and Lin Ting paid it no mind as she found a spot to squat and wait.
Just then, a young man rode up on a bicycle and rushed to the crying girl.
Lin Ting glanced over and froze.
Wasn’t that Yu Bai, the guy from the meat processing plant?
He didn’t seem to recognize her.
She looked away, but her ears perked up:
“Yu Mo, I’m sorry. I couldn’t protect you.”
“It’s not your fault, Brother.”
“I didn’t get into high school, and the family can’t afford to find me a job. I have no choice but to go.”
Yu Bai pulled out a handful of coins from his pocket.
“This is everything I’ve saved. Take it.”
“Keep it, Brother. You’ll need it to find a wife someday. And with me gone, be careful of your stepmom.”
“Dad listens to her too much. Don’t let her make your life hard.”