Chapter 11: A Clear Sign of a Spendthrift Woman

Upon exiting the train station, the family quickly found the young man who had come to pick them up and take them to the Shi Nuanzi Brigade.

He was a slender young man driving a donkey cart.

The cart wasn’t that large, with just a few simple benches placed on top. Even a normal person would find it shaky when riding.

The Fu family loaded their luggage into the cart. Worried that Jiang Yuman wouldn’t be able to sit steadily, they spread out around her.

Fu Jingchen intentionally held his hand out in front of her, making it easier for her to hold on.

Looking at the thin cart boards, Fu Wangshan felt a bit anxious. He asked the young man driving, “Comrade, when will we reach the Shi Nuanzi Brigade?”

The young man replied, “It’ll take about half an hour by donkey cart.”

Fu Haitang’s face turned pale. “What? So long?” If she had to endure half an hour of jolting on this donkey cart, her whole body would probably fall apart.

The young man grinned. “The Shi Nuanzi Brigade is considered to have good conditions in the area. How close is it to the Red Flag Commune? For other villages to get to the Commune, it takes at least an hour.”

He could tell by their appearance that this family wasn’t ordinary. City folk were always fussy. The conditions in the Shi Nuanzi Brigade were already quite good.

Fu Haitang pouted, with unspoken grievances.

Jiang Yuman, however, asked, “Comrade, can we leave now?”

“Wait a bit longer. Some people haven’t arrived yet.”

As if summoned by his words, several pieces of luggage were thrown onto the cart.

As the cart boards shook, a woman’s voice, laced with disdain, rang out, “So many people crammed into one cart? How will we all fit?”

The voice sounded familiar. Jiang Yuman subconsciously glanced towards the source of the sound and saw a familiar face.

It was Zhou Yun, the busybody who had been sitting across from her on the train.

Jiang Yuman did not expected to run into her like this. She had thought they were just random passengers on the train.

She hadn’t expected that they were also a family being sent down to the countryside, and that they would even end up in the same brigade.

Seeing Jiang Yuman and her husband, Zhou Yun also froze for a moment. Then, she rolled her eyes, hugged her child, and reluctantly got on the cart.

Because she was unhappy, she made a big fuss getting on, causing the cart boards to shake.

The young man driving the cart exclaimed, “Goodness! Can you be a little gentler? You’ll break our village’s donkey cart!”

Zhou Yun mumbled, “There’s only so much space. We’re a family too. They’re sitting so wide, we have to squeeze in. Don’t think we’re going to move.”

While complaining, she didn’t dare be too arrogant. She got on with her child, her mother-in-law, and her husband. Taking a bench, they sat in the back.

Seeing Fu Jingchen put his arm around Jiang Yuman, Zhou Yun’s eyes almost rolled into the sky.

The young man just ignored her mumbling. When everyone was settled, he drove the donkey cart towards the Shi Nuanzi Brigade.

The donkey cart wasn’t that smooth as a car. It swayed as it went.

Fortunately, there weren’t many hills. After half an hour, the group finally reached the Shi Nuanzi Brigade.

The Shi Nuanzi Brigade wasn’t deep in the mountains. The road was relatively flat. It was autumn, and the fields were a sea of golden yellow.

The villagers who were busy harvesting in the fields saw the donkey cart approaching and greeted them warmly. “Zhenjiang, did the Brigade Leader send you to pick someone up again?”

City folk being sent down to the countryside had become commonplace, so the villagers were used to it.

Yao Zhenjiang smiled, “Yes, Uncle. I just picked someone up from the train station.”

“Your father is really something. He doesn’t go pick them up himself. He always sends you…”

Hearing this, Jiang Yuman subconsciously looked at the young man driving the cart.

Zhenjiang? Yao Zhenjiang?

He was the third brother of the book’s female lead, Yao Simeng—the laziest member of the family.

According to the book, Yao Zhenjiang should have been working in the fields right now. But instead, he was taking a break to pick people up.

Nearby, Zhou Yun, who hadn’t shown a pleasant expression through the entire journey, recognized Yao Zhenjiang as the brigade leader’s son and secretly regretted not having befriended him earlier.

Soon, the donkey cart stopped at the educated youth point.

The Shi Nuanzi Brigade’s educated youth point was a large courtyard with several houses, including two brick-and-tile houses.

Jiang Yuman knew this was the Yao family’s home. In the original book, the brigade leader’s family lived in the educated youth point, allowing Yao Simeng to frequently see Fu Jingchen.

Zhou Yun, who was unaware of this, saw the brick-and-tile houses and for some unknown reason, her eyes lit up.

Before she could ask anything, a man with a square face emerged from one of the brick-and-tile houses.

Yao Zhenjiang called out “Dad,” and everyone realized that this was Yao Anguo, the brigade leader of Shi Nuanzi.

Yao Anguo briefly chatted with everyone before getting down to business:

“Our brigade’s educated youth point only has two houses left, one on each side. You can each take one.”

“The educated youths are all in the fields and haven’t returned yet. Let me briefly explain. The houses don’t have separate stoves. If you want to build one, you can do it yourselves.”

“The brigade will provide subsidized food. I’ll have someone deliver it to you tonight. If you need anything, you can come to me. My house is right here.”

Yao Anguo have received a notice and knew that the Fu family had some connections, so he tried to make things easier for them.

“Thank you, Brigade Leader,” The family members quickly said.

“You’re welcome. You’ve all been traveling all day. Go back and rest, unpack, and get ready. You’ll start working tomorrow morning.”

After speaking, Yao Anguo turned and went back into his house.

The two families didn’t waste any time. While the educated youths were still out in the fields, they moved their luggage into the houses assigned by the brigade leader.

The Fu family’s house had only two rooms, but one was large enough to be divided into two.

There was also a small, collapsed room to the right, which could be used later.

Because it hadn’t been lived in for a long time, there were cobwebs and dust, and some broken furniture that needed to be removed.

Fu Jingchen and Fu Wangshan were strong, so they did most of the work. Fu’s Mother and Fu Haitang helped clean and organize.

Jiang Yuman wanted to help, but Fu’s Mother quickly stopped her. “You’re heavily pregnant. It’s not convenient for you to do anything. Just sit outside and rest.”

Coming from Beijing to such a remote countryside, the family’s spirits were being held up by Jiang Yuman.

Jiang Yuman said, “Mom, I can help with small things.”

She had been drinking spiritual spring water on the train. Whether it was psychological or not, she felt much lighter.

However, the water was special, and she didn’t dare give it to her family. She would only add it to their food when cooking.

Feeling better, she wanted to help with whatever she could.

“Don’t even do small things. Just sit outside. There’s a lot of dust inside,” Fu Wangshan also said.

Fu Haitang, tired from the long journey, didn’t say anything.

Fu Jingchen’s attitude was more direct. He wiped clean a bench and placed it outside the house.

Seeing her family’s concern, Jiang Yuman gave up on helping and sat outside to wait.

Across the way, Zhou Yun’s family was bustling with activity.

Although Zhou Yun wasn’t a good person, she was quick and efficient, wiping tables, sweeping the floor, and helping to move luggage.

Her in-laws moved slowly, helping while also keeping an eye on their grandson.

Seeing Jiang Yuman resting outside, Zhou Yun gave a disdainful expression and turned to complain to her in-laws and husband:

“What a useless show-off. Even in the countryside, she doesn’t do anything. She still thinks she’s a young missy from the city?”

Zhou Yun’s mother-in-law, surnamed Cai, squinted at Jiang Yuman and sneered:

“Look at her pretentious appearance. She’s clearly a spendthrift woman who doesn’t know how to manage a household.”