Chapter 13: Ride in the Same Car

Soon, they arrived at the county seat. Wen Jiajia didn’t have time to care about benefactors.

The car stopped, and Wen Jiajia stood up tremblingly, holding onto the pole. She secretly tilted her head to look at the straw mat and quietly breathed a sigh of relief when she saw there was no red blood.

She held a kettle in one hand and a straw mat in the other, waiting for everyone near the back of the car to get out before she slowly walked to the back.

It’s good to get on the car; she stepped on the sand and got on.

It’s hard to get out of the car. Normally, she could jump directly, but today she really couldn’t.

Wen Jiajia hesitated for a moment, ready to slide out of the car. She threw the straw mat to the ground, then grasped the pole, preparing to sit down.

“Want help?”

Wen Jiajia raised her eyes; it was Wei Dai.

Wen Jiajia nodded, and Wei Dai stretched out his arm, meaning she could hold his arm and jump down.

“……”

Isn’t she afraid to jump?

She can’t jump.

However, Wen Jiajia didn’t hesitate. She sat down directly, supported his arm with one hand, propped the other hand on the board, and slid her legs to the ground.

“Thank you, Comrade Wei.” Wen Jiajia picked up the kettle and said.

Wei Dai helped her pick up the straw mat on the ground and handed it to her. “You’re welcome, Comrade Wen.”

Wen Jiajia brushed aside her messy hair and said incredulously, “No, you can recognize me here?”

Her hair was messed up like this.

As she spoke, she ripped off the head rope, tied a ponytail again, and said to Wei Dai, “Thank you again, this time and last time.” Her pockets were empty for the time being, so she could only say thank you.

Then she took the straw mat, threw it under the tree on the side, and walked in the direction of the supply and marketing cooperative.

She thought they would part ways. Who knew that Jiajia would take a shortcut, Wei Dai would walk fast, and the two would meet again in the supply and marketing cooperative.

Wen Jiajia looked at the oncoming person and suddenly felt that this county town was strangely small.

Wei Dai was also surprised. Seeing the girl opposite with round eyes, he couldn’t help but look at her twice.

The face is quite white.

In fact, he recognized her not long after he got in the car. After all, he remembered that day deeply. He also had a nightmare for half the night that night; it was hard to forget.

The two entered the supply and marketing cooperative at the same time. Wen Jiajia, with the memory of the original owner, went straight to the place where the menstrual belt was.

To buy a menstrual belt, you need a menstrual belt coupon.

The original owner of this coupon is not lacking. After all, she lives in the city, and she can still get a coupon like this on the street every year. Her adoptive parents disdain to take it from her.

But the original owner didn’t have much. The original owner exchanged all the saved menstrual coupons for her rural classmates, so Wen Jiajia only had three “one” coupons in her hand at the moment.

Wen Jiajia didn’t stay any longer and bought them all out ruthlessly.

Additionally, she bought a few rolls of paper and decided to burn the bamboo chips in the latrine basket when she got home.

If she’s not free to eat meat, can she at least be free to use paper?

Finally, she saw a casserole and bought one.

Having a casserole can free up a lot of her time. At least she won’t need to stare at the pot while making porridge and soup in the future.

She wanted to make one herself but then thought it was too naïve. The casserole is no better than an earthen stove, and there’s no kiln for her to use here.

Wen Jiajia clutched the wallet on her chest, only to feel that not only her stomach hurt at the moment but even her kidneys were faintly aching.

However, it is terrible to be poor, and her friend’s wealth makes her even sadder.

Although Wei Dai was not a friend, when she witnessed him easily lift a bicycle, her pH level plummeted.

“Congratulations.” Wen Jiajia was so envious. When will she have a bicycle? Then she could come to the county seat every day.

Wei Dai turned his head sideways, and when he saw that it was Wen Jiajia, he smiled and quipped, “Thank you?”

Wen Jiajia’s expression froze, and she pointed to the counter next to her. “Why don’t I buy you two catties of candy to thank you properly?”

Wei Dai pushed the bike out of the door. “That’s not necessary. Buying a bike is your first joy, and I have nothing to return, so let’s just call it even.”

Then he asked her, “Shall I take you back? The fertilizer won’t come so quickly, and the students probably won’t leave until the evening.”

Wen Jiajia was really a little moved.

She was starting to hurt, not as much as yesterday, but it was still uncomfortable.

It would be too hard to wait until the evening. If she didn’t wait, she would have to walk back by herself, and she was afraid she might faint and die on the way.

Wen Jiajia thought for less than two seconds and decisively got into Wei Dai’s car. As for whether he was a shocking pit or divorced with two children, all those conjectures were thrown behind her.

Whatever, life is more important.

It was almost ten o’clock, and the sun was gradually blazing, making people dizzy, as if the water in their bodies had been dried up, leaving them feeling crispy all over.

Wen Jiajia held the kettle and the supplies she had just bought in one hand and grabbed the hem of Wei Dai’s clothes with the other.

Passing by the state-run hotel, Wei Dai parked.

“I need to buy something,” he said, looking down at her hand on his side.

Wen Jiajia let go and got off the bike.

Wei Dai parked the bike, but was taken aback by Wen Jiajia’s face.

“Hey, are you okay?” he asked.

Wen Jiajia put the kettle in the back seat, leaned on it, and shook her head. “I’m fine.”

“You don’t look fine,” Wei Dai said, walking briskly into the hotel. He soon came out with a package and two packs of oiled paper bags.

“Let’s eat first.” He handed one of the oiled paper bags to Wen Jiajia. “Your face is as white as paper. If you didn’t eat this morning, it might be low blood sugar.”

Wen Jiajia didn’t want to eat very much and even felt a bit nauseous. Even though the buns in the oiled paper bag looked white and soft, they couldn’t arouse her appetite at the moment.

“Eat, you’re welcome, or I’ll have to take you to the hospital again.” He stuffed the bag directly into Wen Jiajia’s arms. “Why don’t you go inside and sit down to eat? There’s hot water in there.”

Wen Jiajia took a bite of the bun, chewed it a few times, swallowed, and shook her head. “Let’s go back quickly.”

Wei Dai respected her wishes and rode out of the city.

Passing by the big tree, he picked up the straw mat that Wen Jiajia had thrown there, put it on the back seat of the bicycle, and then let Wen Jiajia sit on it.

The autumn harvest was approaching, and the rice on both sides of the road was turning golden.

The road was quiet, and occasionally, farmers could be seen working in the fields nearby.

Wen Jiajia took a bite of the bun and chewed it a few times. One more bite and a few more chews.

The bun had a thin skin and a large filling. When she quickly bit into the meat, the flesh full of oil and water was a great temptation to this body, and it seemed like the abdominal pain had been relieved a little.

The bike rode very fast, and because Wei Dai was in the way, the wind only blew past her ears. The wind was whistling, the cicadas were chirping, and her tears were falling down.

Falling on her clothes, they left circles of water marks.

It was so sad. After living here for a few days, this bun turned out to be the best food she had ever tasted.

—

Near noon, the team members went home from work in groups.

Tian Junxia didn’t go to work today. It was the honeysuckle season recently, so she needed to spare a day to pick it.

In the countryside, almost everyone could identify several herbs, and almost every household stored some herbs.

The local climate was hot and humid, making it easy to catch fire. Eating even a little baked food could cause mouth sores, so honeysuckle was the most common herb in every household.

She needed to pick enough to last a year in one day, and she had to pull some honeysuckle vines back.

Honeysuckle vine is also called honeysuckle vine, and its effect of clearing heat and reducing fire is not inferior to that of the stamen. It can also be boiled with mung beans during the autumn harvest a few days later, which can effectively avoid heat stroke.

Tian Junxia had gained a lot today, and she thought that after it was dried, she could give a part to her niece who worked in the city. Her niece always said that she was prone to acne, and that must be because she was too hot.

Drying bamboo shoots every day, how could it not be hot?

Just thinking about it, Tian Junxia, who was on the hillside, saw a bicycle coming towards the village in the distance.

“Is the village party secretary going out today?” she muttered.

Only the branch secretary in the village had a bicycle, which was second-hand, but it was enough to make everyone envious. After all, the price of a bike could build two or three rooms, or a brick and cement house, and the house was more important in comparison.

She looked out from afar, then descended the mountain.

“Why don’t you get off here?” Wen Jiajia said. The bicycle had already passed the commune and was about to reach the Fuyang brigade.

Wei Dai didn’t hear clearly. “What?”

Wen Jiajia shouted, “I said, you can just park here. I’ll walk back.”

Wei Dai said, “It’s not far; these few steps won’t hurt.”

Saying that, he increased his speed and soon arrived at the Fuyang Brigade.

After passing through a small bamboo forest and passing by a fork in the road, they saw a woman standing in the mountain pass in front of them.

It was Tian Junxia.

Wen Jiajia closed her eyes, exhaled, and poked him with the hand that grabbed the hem of his clothes. “You’re finished, I’m finished.” It wasn’t good to be seen by anyone, but it was seen by Aunt Tian. It’s not okay now; Aunt Tian will definitely come to the door again.

“Shhhh.”

Tian Junxia, who was not far away, witnessed the movements of the two with her own eyes, and there were smiles in the corners of her eyes.

Tut-tut, isn’t this Wen San and Wei Dai.

Wei Dai continued to ride forward, and Okita Junxia nodded. “Aunt Xia.” The two were not related, but his father and Tian Junxia were playmates of the same generation in the same village, and he had to call her aunt according to the rules.

Wen Jiajia forced out a smile and greeted, “Aunt Tian.”

Tian Junxia slapped her thigh with an “oops.” “Tut-tut, where did you come back from? You two are quite destined.” As she spoke, she circled around from left to right.

Wen Jiajia covered her head to avoid her gaze and wished Aunt Tian would stop mentioning the word “fate.” Her head hurt more than her stomach.

She secretly poked Wei Dai in the back again, suggesting that he should leave quickly.

Wei Dai instantly straightened his back and said hurriedly, “Aunt Xia, you get busy first. We’ll talk later.”

After saying that, he rode forward quickly.

Watching the two of them leave, Tian Junxia tried to recall when the two had started getting along. Yesterday, Wen San refused.

Soon, they arrived at Wen’s house.

Wen Jiajia got off the bike, took the straw mat, and stood with her back to Wei Dai. “Thank you, thank you for the third time.” She handed him the bun along with a dime.

She had only eaten one bun from the oil-paper bag.

Wei Dai didn’t accept it and turned the bike around. “You go home and rest. Just invite me to dinner when you have time.”

Her face was too pale, and Wei Dai actually guessed some of the reason. But since she seemed shy, he didn’t ask.

He left quickly, and Wen Jiajia looked down at the bun, thinking about giving him the money the next time she saw him.

She sighed inwardly: Please, still eat. I don’t even have half a catty of food stamps on me now, and I’m afraid I’ll have to wait until after the reform to invite you to eat.

Exhaling slowly, she turned around and went home. Her back ached as if it had been slashed with a knife, and she wanted to lie down.

—

Village.

Tian Junxia was still there, and when she saw Wei Dai, she waved her hand and motioned for him to stop.

“Is there anything else, Aunt Xia?” Wei Dai asked.

Tian Junxia got straight to the point. “I’ll just say that you two are suitable. Yesterday, I wanted to arrange a meeting, but Jiajia was still unwilling. It turns out that it had already… You’re playing underground work, why are you still hiding good things?”

Wei Dai was stunned for a moment and hurriedly explained, “Aunt Xia, things are not what you think. Wen Jiajia wasn’t feeling well. I went to the county seat to buy a bike today and just gave her a ride when we met.”

“Huh! What are you hiding from your aunt?” she teased, having seen the interaction between the two just now. “It’s okay for you to do this. If you end up together, it’ll save you from wearing out a pair of shoes for the matchmaker.”

Wei Dai: ?

It didn’t make sense, did it?

Also, listening to Aunt Xia, was she talking about himself and Wen Jiajia?

Then Wen Jiajia was still unwilling.