Chen Xu weighed the basket in his hand, it was light, “No need, I’ll help you deliver it.”

He turned around, put the basket down by the pile of grass, and was surprised to see the two large piles of cut grass. Wen Nan had cut so much grass in just one morning.

Chen Xu was about to add more grass, but as soon as his hand touched the pile, a soft, warm hand grabbed his wrist. The woman’s palm was hot and slightly damp, her fingertips pressing against his wrist bone. The unfamiliar touch made Chen Xu stiffen, and then a crisp, sweet voice came from beside his ear, “Brother, there are burrs in here, be careful not to prick your hand.”

Wen Nan released Chen Xu’s wrist and carefully peeled back the top layer of grass, revealing the burrs underneath.

Burrs were extremely prickly; even a light touch caused a stinging pain.

Chen Xu looked at Wen Nan, who was putting the burrs aside, and guessed her intentions. He hadn’t expected her to be so thoughtful. He picked up a large pile of grass and pressed it into the basket. Wen Nan patted the dirt off her hands, stood up, and looked over. The man had strong hands; he pressed down, and the already tightly packed grass sank a bit.

Wen Nan blinked in surprise.

How strong was he?

Chen Xu filled the basket to the brim, put it on his shoulder, and said to Wen Nan, “Go back for lunch first; I’ll be back after I deliver the grass.”

“I’ll go with you.”

Wen Nan wasn’t that brazen. Zhao Xiaomai helped with the work, Chen Xu helped deliver the grass, and she was the one who benefited. The thought made her feel embarrassed.

Seeing her insistence, Chen Xu didn’t say anything more.

The temperature difference between morning and evening was significant these days; it was very hot at noon. Wen Nan used one hand as a fan to cool her face, watching the man in front of her walk briskly with the heavy basket on his back. She quickened her pace to catch up with him, and they ran into Zhao Xiaomai on the way back.

Zhao Xiaomai blinked in shock when she saw Chief Chen carrying the basket. This was the first time she had ever seen Chief Chen do manual labor.

Wen Nan stopped and asked, “How many more baskets of pigweed do you have?”

Zhao Xiaomai said, “One more basket.” She turned her head and looked at Chief Chen’s back, enviously saying to Wen Nan, “Chief Chen is really good to his younger sister.”

Unlike her.

At home, her father didn’t care for her, her mother didn’t love her, and her brother thought she was a burden. Her maternal grandmother’s family didn’t like her either.

Wen Nan knew Zhao Xiaomai was thinking about her own situation, so she didn’t say much. After chatting with Xiaomai for a few words, she ran to catch up with Chen Xu. On the way, they met Lin Meizhen returning. She had been planning to taunt Wen Nan, but when she saw Chief Chen beside her, she held back. She was afraid of provoking Wen Nan in front of Chief Chen; what if Chief Chen retaliated against her family’s Lao Kang?

If Lao Kang’s position changed, she would be the first to suffer.

Lin Meizhen was angry, but she still greeted Chen Xu with a smile, “Chief Chen.”

She hadn’t expected Chief Chen to be so considerate of his cousin, even personally helping her deliver the grass.

Chen Xu only nodded coldly and walked away. Wen Nan jogged behind him, turning her head to give Lin Meizhen, who was glaring at her angrily, a provocative smile, her eyes curved, her dimples captivating.

She flicked her braid and ran to catch up with Chen Xu.

Lin Meizhen gritted her teeth in anger!

This little vixen! If she weren’t Chief Chen’s cousin, she would have slapped her!

The distance from the cutting area to the cattle farm wasn’t far. When Wen Nan arrived, she finally saw the cattle farm of this era. It wasn’t like the neatly arranged buildings of the new century, but a large open space enclosed by wooden walls, with thatched roofs. There were more than ten cows in the cattle farm, including two dairy cows. Besides the grass she and Lin Meizhen had cut, there were two middle-aged men in black jackets and rolled-up trousers and cloth shoes mixing grass scraps for the cows.

On the way back to the family quarters yesterday, Zhao Xiaomai told her about the Xinghua Village livestock farm.

The Hongxing Commune had seven teams, the largest of which was Xinghua Village. Before the army moved here, Xinghua Village wasn’t this big. After the army moved in, the closest village, Xinghua Village, began to expand greatly. Across the river was the family quarters. Both the population and the economy were larger than before, so when there was any good news in the county, Xinghua Village was the first to be considered.

Xinghua Village also had the highest grain and livestock yields in Fenglin County. They handed these over to the commune, which then reported them to the county for statistics. Then the city leaders issued documents to the county level, and finally supplied them to the army. In the end, the grain and livestock produced by Xinghua Village came back around to them.

There was a straw shed outside the cattle farm, with an old long table and a stool underneath.

The person recording work points was a middle-aged man. When he saw a man and a woman walking over, the man in military uniform carrying a basket, and the woman with delicate skin and clean, beautiful clothes without a single patch, exactly as Director Liu had described. Director Liu had specifically instructed him that if this woman didn’t bring back much grass at noon, she shouldn’t come back in the afternoon.

He recognized the man; he was Chief Chen from the first regiment of the army.

Several older women in Xinghua Village wanted to marry their daughters to the Chen brothers. Hey, neither of the brothers wanted to, preferring to remain single. Yesterday, news spread in Xinghua Village that Chief Chen’s cousin had come. No need to guess, the delicate girl beside him was her.

Chen Xu put the basket on the ground. The middle-aged man stood up, reached out to pick up the basket to weigh it, but couldn’t lift it, almost hurting his waist.

His face flushed, and he grabbed the basket with both hands and tried to lift it.

Wow, it was incredibly heavy.

How could Chief Chen carry it as if it weighed nothing?

The middle-aged man smiled, “Chief Chen, are you delivering grass for your sister?”

Chen Xu nodded, “Yes.” He asked, “Where do I dump the grass?”

The middle-aged man pointed to a large trough not far away, “Just dump it in there.”

Normally, he would do this himself, but this basket of grass was so heavy. Chen Xu took it from him, dumped it into the trough, and went back to the cutting area with Wen Nan.

From afar, Wen Nan saw Lin Meizhen constantly shaking her hands, shaking them for a while then blowing on her fingers, grimacing in pain.

No need to guess, Lin Meizhen must have touched her grass.

Serves her right to get pricked.

Chen Xu also saw this. Thinking of the soft hands that had grabbed his wrist earlier, he still felt as if his wrist had been pricked by burrs.

When they reached the pile of grass, before Chen Xu put down the basket, Wen Nan bent down first, peeled back the top layer of grass, and took out the burrs hidden underneath.

Lin Meizhen, who was grimacing in pain beside them: …

This woman, how many tricks does she have up her sleeve?!

She had been planning to take some of Wen Nan’s grass while Wen Nan and Chief Chen were away, to let Director Liu know that Wen Nan couldn’t do the work and get her replaced. She hadn’t expected that she had put a layer of burrs under the grass, causing her fingers to be pricked when she reached for it, and Chief Chen’s cousin even gave her a fake smile, feigning concern and asking, “What’s wrong with your hand?”

Lin Meizhen: …

She saw that Chief Chen was almost done packing the grass, gritted her teeth, and swallowed her anger, “Nothing!”

Chen Xu glanced at Wen Nan, who was stuffing grass into the basket. Her face was flushed red from the effort. After stuffing one pile, she picked up another and continued. Chen Xu saw the scratches and two small blisters on her palms, clearly the hands of someone who had never done manual labor. After the grass was packed, he carried the basket and walked beside Wen Nan, “If you can’t handle it, don’t come tomorrow.”

Lin Meizhen wasn’t someone who would be easily deterred.

Today she stole Wen Nan’s grass; tomorrow, she might do something else. This was always a hidden danger for Wen Nan.

She came here to find a partner through her brother. If something happened, he and Grandma wouldn’t be able to explain it to anyone.

Wen Nan shook her head, “It’s okay, I can still do it.”

She glanced at Lin Meizhen, who was still packing grass, walked to Chen Xu’s side, and looked up at the man. His collar and back were covered in sweat, wetting his clothes. His handsome face had sharp lines, his cheekbones moved slightly, the strap of the basket on his shoulder. Seeming to sense her gaze, the man looked down at her.

Their eyes met unexpectedly. Chen Xu frowned, “Are you really sure you can?”

Then, the man’s gaze fell on her hands hanging by her sides.

Wen Nan raised her hands and looked at them. Her left palm had three scratches, one deeper than the others, with a few drops of blood mixed with sweat, burning and aching. Two small blisters had formed where her right hand held the sickle, and her fingers ached when pressed. The sun was scorching hot, and her neck and face felt like they were burning.

Indeed, she was a little overwhelmed.

But remembering Zhao Xiaomai coming to help her in the morning, saying she didn’t want Director Liu to fire her, and thinking back to her ‘spiritedness’ in front of Chief Chen last night, she casually waved her hand and said, “I can do it. Director Liu said this temporary job won’t last long.”

Chen Xu didn’t persuade her further. After delivering the grass, they returned to the family quarters. Grandma Chen had made noodles for lunch. Seeing the wounds on Wen Nan’s hands, she told her not to go back. Wen Nan insisted on going, Grandma Chen sighed and went to the kitchen to serve them food.

Wen Nan squatted by the well, rolled up her sleeves, and washed her face. The well water was icy, and her hands felt quite comfortable in it.

After washing her face and neck, she also washed her arms. When she stood up, she saw Chen Xu, who had already washed his face and was sitting at the table eating. The man’s legs were spread apart, his knees against the corners of the table. He ate quickly. Wen Nan walked over and sat opposite him, also picking up her chopsticks to eat. Grandma Chen smiled, “It’s really strange. Others get tanned in the sun, but your skin is still the same, fair and rosy.”

Wen Nan smiled, “I don’t get much sun.”

Actually, the original owner was fair-skinned and didn’t often get sun. Even if she did, she wouldn’t tan; a faint blush would simply appear under her skin. After resting in the shade, the blush on her face faded.