Chapter 27: Going to the Farm to Pick Tea Leaves

“Jian Zhiqing cried and begged my brother Gangzi to give her a ride back, and he actually charged her a dime, hahaha…”

“Oh my! How could your brother even say that?” Wen Lin was utterly shocked.

“My brother Gangzi has always been goal-oriented since childhood. He doesn’t worry about a vague future, only fights for a clear present.”

“Your brother is truly a man. He wants to pursue Jian Yueshi, and when he sees she isn’t interested, he turns cold and ruthless!”

“It’s not exactly ruthlessness. My brother is stubborn on the outside but soft on the inside. Even though he charged Jian Zhiqing a dime, he still gave her a ride back.”

Zhong Qingfeng, carrying a bucket of water in one hand, moved quickly. Seeing Wen Lin lagging behind, he didn’t wait. Since he knew the layout of the cave dwellings, he placed the water next to the stove and hopped on his bike to leave.

Wen Lin wanted to see Jian Yueshi’s embarrassing reaction, but as she reached their cave dwelling, she heard Xia Tiantian’s angry voice.

“Yueshi! You ate all the good food at the state-run restaurant, and you only brought me one stick of fried dough?”

“You said it! That peasant is unbelievable—he actually made me pay for my own meal and then charged me a dime for giving me a ride back.”

“A dime could buy two sticks of fried dough! That peasant is really too much! Yueshi, tomorrow you just ignore him!”

Hearing that she had to pay for her own meal, Xia Tiantian didn’t dare blame Jian Yueshi and secretly felt relieved that she hadn’t gone along.

“Tiantian, go heat some water for me to bathe. Sitting in the car these past few days has exhausted me,” Jian Yueshi said tiredly.

Wen Lin laughed to herself. Jian Yueshi, that stubbornly prideful girl, would never admit to her little sidekick that she wasn’t ignoring others out of her own choice—others simply didn’t want to pay attention to her!

Excited, Wen Lin returned to her own cave and saw Ye Siran already asleep. She had to suppress her excitement and quietly climbed onto the kang. Yet she was too thrilled to fall asleep.

In fact, Ye Siran hadn’t slept either. After Wen Lin turned off the light, she quietly pulled up her quilt and slipped into the comfort of the large bed in her space. She slept until dawn.

In the villa’s large kitchen, the medicinal ingredients and clay pots from her previous life were still there, though electricity and natural gas couldn’t be used. Luckily, she had stocked plenty of honeycomb coal in her space, which came in handy now.

She prepared a medicinal meal to nourish her body and a bowl of plain congee for Wen Lin.

With everything ready, she practiced her exercises, then fed the pigs and chickens using her mind and weeded the fields.

Afterward, she enjoyed a relaxing bath in the spiritual spring. The upgraded water now had a bone-and-flesh cleansing effect.

Eating the cake she baked herself and drinking the medicinal broth made from the spiritual spring water, Ye Siran felt full of energy.

Wen Lin had stayed up late the night before and slept soundly in the morning. After Ye Siran finished breakfast, she served the plain congee in a bowl and fried an egg.

She then walked over to the large kang and shook Wen Lin awake. “Wen Lin, get up for breakfast. We’ll start work soon.”

Sleepily, Wen Lin closed her eyes and asked, “It smells so good! Ranran, why are you up so early?”

“I’m used to going to bed early and rising early. Hurry and wash up and eat breakfast; I’ve already finished,” Ye Siran said softly.

In her flustered hurry, Wen Lin didn’t even notice the stove and pot were cold. She drank the congee and ate the fragrant fried egg, her face full of happiness.

Once they finished tidying up and locking the door, they saw other young educated villagers hurriedly leaving their cave dwellings.

“Ye Zhiqing, Wen Zhiqing, good morning,” the youth team leader Yu Bingkun stopped to greet them.

“Good morning, Team Leader Yu. Good morning, everyone,” Wen Lin cheerfully replied.

“Two of the newcomers haven’t gotten up yet, which is unacceptable. An Zhiqing, go wake them,” Yu Bingkun instructed An Tao.

An Tao, a youth from Qing City, was the kind-hearted type who regretted sharing his food with everyone the previous day.

When the group arrived at the grain-drying yard, many villagers had already gathered, and the loudspeaker in the trees announced clearly:

“Comrades, please listen. The busy rice-planting season has passed, and the double-harvest period has not yet arrived.

There are three options today: one, continue weeding in the fields; two, repair the waterways to ensure irrigation during the double-harvest season.

Repairing waterways is much harder, yielding ten work points per day; weeding is relatively easy, yielding six work points per day.

The last option is to go to the May First Farm outside the village to pick tea leaves. Picking tea leaves is the easiest, but work points depend on how much each person picks.”

Most men chose to repair waterways. Most women chose weeding. No one chose to pick tea leaves, as it couldn’t be slacked off and the farm administrators were all stern.

Villagers registered with their production team leaders; the young educated villagers registered with team leader Yu Bingkun.

“Team Leader Yu, my name is Ye Siran. I want to pick tea leaves,” Ye Siran was the first to choose to go to the farm.

“Ye Zhiqing, picking tea leaves isn’t easy either. It depends on your personal ability. Weeding… will give more work points,” Yu Bingkun tried to warn her that weeding allowed for slacking off, while tea-picking was entirely on one’s own, but he couldn’t say it outright.

“Team Leader Yu, I’ve decided to pick tea leaves. I’m new here and know nothing about farm work. I can’t hold anyone back,” Ye Siran said righteously. Her goal was to infiltrate the farm and find her grandparents.

She hadn’t even needed to make an excuse—the very first day she could enter. She wouldn’t hesitate.

Even someone as calm as her after forty-eight years felt some visible emotion now.

Seeing Yu Bingkun record her name, a genuine smile appeared on her face.

An Tao, seeing her smile like a crescent moon with dimples on her cheeks, thought she looked exceptionally beautiful.

He remembered the heaviness in her eyes when they had exchanged glances last night—so dim and burdened it pained him. Nothing could penetrate them.

Now seeing her radiant smile, his mind went blank. “Team Leader Yu, please note that An Tao will also pick tea leaves,” he said impulsively.

“Team Leader Yu, my name is Wen Lin. I want to pick tea leaves too,” Wen Lin said, trusting only Ye Siran.

Jian Yueshi still wore a puff-sleeve dress. She followed behind An Tao, and only after everyone else had chosen, did she leisurely adjust her dress.

After smoothing her hair and ensuring she looked presentable, she walked over to Yu Bingkun. Using what she thought was the softest, most seductive voice, she said, “Team Leader Yu~ may I choose not to work?”

Yu Bingkun glanced at Jian Yueshi and remained unimpressed—after all, Ye Siran was more beautiful and less affected.

He said coldly, “Since it’s the slack season, you can choose not to work without losing work points. During busy season, work points will be deducted.”

“Deduct work points? We haven’t even received any yet, how can you deduct them?” Xia Tiantian loudly asked.

She received Jian Yueshi’s subtle eye signal: if Jian Yueshi didn’t want to speak, she would speak for her.