Chapter 16 – Who Gave You the Courage

“Alright, stop bragging.”

Zhou Ye cut him off and turned to Jiang Manman.

“What’s wrong? You want to go gather pigweed?”

Jiang Manman smiled and shook her head.

“I don’t mind gathering pigweed either.”

She mainly felt that farming had no technical depth and didn’t help her much with weight loss.

But if she gathered pigweed, she’d have more time to exercise.

“You think gathering pigweed is something anyone can just decide to do?”

Zhou Ye had barely finished speaking when Jiang Manman replied:

“What if I said I can treat pigs’ illnesses?”

“What?”

Jiang Manman shrugged.

“You heard me right. I think I probably can.”

Zhou Ye exchanged a glance with Ge Mazi, who looked her up and down, clearly skeptical.

“I say, you female educated youth—are you just talking nonsense to get the pigweed job?

Treating pigs requires a veterinary certificate. The old man who lived in your compound before had both a barefoot doctor certificate and a vet license.

He was the one who used to treat them. Shame he’s gone.”

Jiang Manman rolled her eyes at him.

“So if I say I can treat pigs, none of you believe me?

Forget it, pretend I never said anything.”

Zhou Ye looked at her suspiciously, thinking: trying to treat a dying pig like a live one—if she fails, he’d have no choice but to put that sow down.

Just then, someone ran in.

“Brother Ye! Brother Ye! We found Vet Shen!”

Zhou Ye was stunned, then immediately delighted. He grabbed a steamed bun and said as he walked:

“Let’s go take a look!”

Watching them run off, Jiang Manman clicked her tongue. Looks like there’s no chance for her now. She might as well keep eating her bun.

“Manman, you really know how to treat pigs?”

Jiang Manman shrugged.

“I’ve learned a bit before. Thought I might be able to help, but looks like they don’t need me.”

Hearing this, Tang Xiaomin nodded.

“Didn’t expect them to have a pig farm here. I wonder how many pigs they’re raising.

Ah, whatever. We’ve still got work this afternoon. I heard Aunt Liu used to always slack off, but today working with you, she actually earned two more work points.”

Jiang Manman was speechless. She had thought she was assigned a diligent aunt to guide her, but this?

In the afternoon, Aunt Liu looked at her like she had a lot to say but kept it in.

She couldn’t exactly say, “Slow down, little educated youth,” could she? That’d just earn her a scolding.

“You don’t look like someone who does hard labor often, but you sure work fast.”

Jiang Manman smiled.

“Isn’t it because I’m too fat? I figured if I work more, maybe I’ll lose some weight. So, Auntie, let’s keep going this afternoon!”

Hearing that, Aunt Liu shivered. She could only force a smile and watch as Manman dug pit after pit, slowly becoming a black speck in the distance.

Then that speck returned, came to the furrow beside her, and asked:

“Auntie, why aren’t you sowing seeds?”

“I—I’m sowing, sowing now!”

She had no choice but to continue. Looking at the others who chatted and laughed while one dug and the other sowed, their work was already done.

But for her, it became solo labor. When she looked back, Manman had already finished her row of pits!

Then the little educated youth ran off and disappeared. Aunt Liu felt utterly bitter—she wanted to switch partners.

But she couldn’t. She had no valid reason. Wait—she could say Jiang Manman had no sense of teamwork!

Then she shook her head, but when she saw those neatly dug pits, her eyes lit up—an excuse!

Jiang Manman had no idea she was about to be reassigned after just one day on the job. She was currently heading up the mountain with her basket, and with one swing of her machete, she killed a rabbit.

Coincidentally, Qian Duoyu, also carrying a pigweed basket, spotted her again!

Qian Duoyu stared, mouth agape, his eyes shining as he looked at Jiang Manman.

“Comrade Jiang, your aim is seriously something else!

Yesterday a chicken, today a rabbit—your life is really going well.

With your aim being this good, how about you trade me that rabbit? I’ll give you vegetables from the field in exchange.

You guys just got here and haven’t planted much in your private plot. Give me the rabbit and you can pick whatever you want from my vegetable patch.”

Jiang Manman looked him up and down.

“Comrade, who gave you the courage?”

He froze at the question.

Then he realized—it probably wasn’t meant to be a compliment.

“Comrade Jiang, if you don’t want to trade, just say so. No need for that kind of talk.”

“Oh, so you can understand me. I thought maybe you couldn’t.”

With that, Jiang Manman put away the rabbit and turned to leave, ignoring him. Who knows where this guy came from.

Wandering further in the mountains, she found a nest of wild eggs—about eight.

She didn’t know if one chicken had laid them over eight days or if a few chickens had shared the nest. Either way, she took all the eggs and left the nest behind.

She memorized the location, planning to return in a few days after she finished the eggs.

Back home, she closed the door and entered her space to continue exercising.

As dinner time approached, she cleaned and chopped the rabbit—tonight, spicy rabbit stew!

Ah, even though she’s dieting, she couldn’t treat herself too poorly.

Well, maybe she’d just eat one rabbit leg and give the rest to Tang Xiaomin. Watching her eat would be just as satisfying.

Hmm, now she understood why some people loved watching mukbangs.

Usually, there were two types of people: those who had no appetite, and those on a diet who couldn’t eat—so they watched others eat instead.

That evening, Tang Xiaomin returned, and the smell of spicy rabbit stew had her stomach growling.

Jiang Manman ate half a rabbit leg and stopped, watching Tang Xiaomin eat.

“Manman, why are you staring at me?”

Jiang Manman beamed.

“I just love watching you eat!”

“Pfft!”

Tang Xiaomin burst into laughter, rolling her eyes at her.

“Just eat already.”

“I’m done. Look at how fat I am—I’m dieting. You eat for me. Watching you eat is enough.”

Hearing this, Tang Xiaomin tilted her head to look at her.

“So you’re fattening me up like a pig, huh?”

How could she admit that?

“No, no! I swear!”

In the yard next door, Zhou Ye came back utterly exhausted. He hadn’t even planned to eat—maybe just chew on a coarse bun.

But the spicy aroma kept wafting into his nose, making his stomach rumble with hunger.

Truly, it’s easy to go from luxury to frugality, but the reverse is tough.

A few good meals, and his cravings were fully awakened, now rioting in his belly.

He swallowed hard and looked toward the two female educated youths across the fence.

No need to guess—it had to be the chubby girl who cooked it. No wonder she was fat—food that tasty couldn’t possibly be eaten in moderation.

“Ahem, Comrade Jiang, what are you eating tonight?”

“Spicy rabbit stew. One yuan a portion—want one?”

Zhou Ye couldn’t help but laugh at that. He pulled out a one-yuan bill and handed it over.

Looking at a bowl of white rice and a bowl of spicy rabbit, he thought:

Totally worth the money. But if this keeps up, all the money he earns this year might end up in Jiang Manman’s pocket.

He sat in the yard eating. Just as he finished his last bite, Ge Mazi showed up right on cue.

“Brother Ye, something’s wrong!”