Chapter 002

After entering the kitchen, Chu Xia put the dishes away in the cupboard.

Since she had heard Han Ting say there’d be a meeting, she stayed put and didn’t leave.

Lin Xiaohan, after dropping off his sack, also stayed, now sitting at the table staring blankly ahead, waiting.

Chu Xia had no connection with him, so she didn’t sit at his table. Instead, she circled around to the back of the stove and sat down there.

Barely a few seconds later, Han Ting lifted the curtain and walked in with his sack.

His eyes swept across the room and briefly landed on Chu Xia behind the stove.

Chu Xia didn’t look back, but she could feel his gaze.

Nerves taut, she fixed her eyes on the ash in the stove, trying her best to blend into the background like she was invisible.

Han Ting walked over to set his sack against the wall.

Just as he straightened up and seemed ready to head her way, Chaozi and Guogai walked in, also carrying sacks.

With their entrance, the previously quiet room suddenly came alive.

Chaozi dropped his sack and commented, “The weather’s suddenly changed—feels like it’s going to rain.”

Guogai laid his sack beside Chaozi’s and added, “Didn’t the locals say it’s Jingzhe today? From now on, we’ll get more rain—and thunder too.”

With Chaozi and Guogai chatting, Han Ting didn’t head toward Chu Xia anymore. He stayed by their side, sat at the nearby table, and started making idle conversation as they waited for the rest to arrive.

Chaozi and Guogai had been Han Ting’s tag-alongs since childhood, and even after graduating and heading to the countryside, they still followed him everywhere. The three of them were all loud, slick, and full of bluster—always stirring up trouble wherever they went.

After a few rounds of banter, the rest of the group gradually arrived.

Everyone tossed out casual comments as they came in, making the atmosphere even livelier.

The kitchen, aside from the stove, cupboards, and jars, had three old, square wooden tables.

Chu Xia sat behind the stove. The remaining four girls shared a table, while the boys all crowded around Han Ting’s. Those who couldn’t squeeze in didn’t even bother heading toward Lin Xiaohan’s table, choosing instead to squat somewhere randomly.

Once everyone had arrived and taken a seat, Han Ting started the meeting.

“As you all saw,” he said, “the brigade has given us our food rations. Starting tomorrow, we’ll be cooking for ourselves.”

Everyone already knew this was coming and had been looking forward to it.

Li Qiao, the liveliest among the girls, chimed in, “Thank goodness we’re finally cooking for ourselves. At least we get to decide what to eat. I haven’t had a proper meal even once eating with the locals this whole time.”

Others joined in.

“Same here.”

Of course, they still needed to figure out how to organize their cooking arrangements, especially with twelve people.

After the chatter died down, Han Ting continued, “Here’s my suggestion—no need to rack our brains. Let’s just copy how the educated youth at the Shazhuang Brigade do it. What do you all think?”

They were among the latest batch of educated youth sent to the countryside.

Not long after arriving, the brigade leader had taken them to tour the neighboring Shazhuang Brigade’s excellent youth settlement and encouraged them to learn from it.

The educated youth at Shazhuang had been in the countryside for several years already.

They lived communally—sharing everything, earning work points together, eating meals together, raising chickens, ducks, and pigs, planting vegetables, and running side businesses. They lived so well it wasn’t much different from the local villagers.

Following the model of the Shazhuang brigade, it naturally meant that the twelve of them would live together as a group.

Since they were already living under the same roof, pooling resources and living communally seemed only logical. No one raised objections, and voices of agreement chimed in one after another: “Sounds good.”

Seeing that everyone was on board, Han Ting was about to continue.

But before he could speak again, Lin Xiaohan suddenly cut in, “I won’t be joining. I’ll live on my own.”

The group had been quite enthusiastic about forming a collective, and the atmosphere in the kitchen had been lively. But Lin Xiaohan’s words instantly cooled the room.

Of course, no one was particularly surprised. That was just the kind of person Lin Xiaohan was. If he had wanted to join in, that would’ve been the real surprise.

Truthfully, no one really wanted to include him anyway. No one looked forward to sharing a better life with his aloof, arrogant face. So when he opted out himself, it was a relief.

Han Ting wasn’t surprised either—and was quite happy to have Lin Xiaohan out of the picture. He looked directly at him and said, “Alright, then. You’ll live on your own. I’ll have Chaozi divide your share of the rations later.”

While the others were processing Lin Xiaohan’s statement, Chu Xia had been quietly watching him.

Among the twelve of them, she had the weakest presence. She always followed Han Ting’s arrangements without ever expressing her own thoughts, and naturally, no one ever bothered to ask.

But this moment—this time—she did have her own thoughts.

According to the contents of the novel in her mind, after Lin Xiaohan left, the remaining eleven lived together. Among them, she was the one who got the short end of the stick.

She was diligent and down-to-earth, good at chores and cooking, and treated Han Ting’s word as law. Because she never fought for anything and always took on responsibilities silently, over time, everything fell on her shoulders.

At first, people praised her for being capable. But as she did more, they took her efforts for granted. Eventually, they even criticized her if something wasn’t done well enough. And if she missed a task, she was nagged and pushed to do it.

In the novel, she had pitied Lin Xiaohan for living alone—thinking he was lonely, pitiable, and that even sweet treats must’ve tasted bitter to him. That his solitary life was nothing compared to their lively, cheerful group.

But now, in retrospect, his life had actually been much easier and more comfortable than anyone else’s.

Their so-called warmth and camaraderie had come at her expense—the expense of a thoughtless, identity-less tool.

Chu Xia thought: There’s no way I’m going to live like the version of me in that novel.

She would rather live like Lin Xiaohan than be the version of herself in that story.

This was her first time expressing an opinion that disrupted the group and dampened the mood, and she couldn’t help but feel nervous.

Clenching her fingers, she lowered her head, took a few deep breaths, and finally, as if she had made up her mind, said, “I won’t be joining either. I want to live on my own.”

The moment she said it, everyone in the room froze, all turning to look at her in unison.

That Lin Xiaohan wanted to live alone wasn’t surprising—they even welcomed it. But that Chu Xia would say the same? That was beyond shocking—and deeply unwelcome.

Li Qiao was the first to laugh, looking at her as she said, “Chu Xia, come on, don’t joke like that.”

Chu Xia slowly opened her eyes, still looking down. “I’m not joking. I’m serious.”

Han Ting’s eyes darkened with confusion.

He had already found it strange when she ran off earlier that evening after taking the noodles from him. He had wanted to follow her, but the brigade leader had called him to help carry grain.

After returning from the granary, she clearly saw him in the courtyard but pretended not to. And now she was saying she wanted to live alone, just like Lin Xiaohan. That only deepened his suspicion.

Looking at her, Han Ting finally spoke: “Stop messing around. How can I let you live alone and be at ease?”

Now that the dam of nonconformity had been broken, it was easier for Chu Xia to keep going.

She pressed her lips together and raised her head, intending to firmly state her stance. But when her eyes met Han Ting’s, the words stuck in her throat and refused to come out.

She began to panic inside.

The more anxious she got, the more it felt like some invisible force was choking her voice.

Han Ting, seeing her stay silent, continued, “It’s not easy living alone—especially for a girl like you. Who’ll look after you? Just listen to your brother, alright? Don’t copy everything and everyone.”

At that moment, Lin Xiaohan, who was still seated at the table, let out a cold chuckle.

His laughter silenced the room even further.

Hearing him, Chu Xia turned her gaze toward him again.

With that same arrogant and smug face, Lin Xiaohan spoke in his signature cutting tone, “Then do me a favor and get your people in line. I really don’t want some idiot tagging along copying me. Bad luck.”

Han Ting’s face darkened instantly. He slammed his hand on the table and stood up.

Chaozi and Guogai—who always backed Han Ting without missing a beat—immediately followed suit, pounding the table and rising behind him, surrounding Lin Xiaohan with full force.

Lin Xiaohan didn’t flinch. He even crossed his arms casually and stared Han Ting down.

Chaozi spat on the floor behind him and snapped, “What, you don’t feel right unless you get beat up once a day?”

Lin Xiaohan glanced at him, then turned his gaze back to Han Ting.

The tension in the room was thick enough to cut with a knife. No one dared to speak—except Li Qiao, who stood up and forced a smile, tugging at Han Ting and the others to sit down. “Don’t be impulsive, come on, calm down.”

Li Qiao wasn’t exactly trying to be the peacemaker out of kindness.

She simply knew how cunning Lin Xiaohan could be. If a fight broke out, the ones who’d end up suffering would be Han Ting, Chaozi, and Guogai. They’d already gotten into trouble with the commune’s public security group for incidents like this in the past.

Even though Lin Xiaohan wasn’t well-liked among the educated youth, he was viewed by the brigade’s leadership as the most capable and praiseworthy of all twelve of them.

In the half month since arriving in the countryside, Lin Xiaohan was frequently praised by the brigade—almost every few days.

In contrast, Han Ting, though warmhearted, chivalrous, humorous, and free-spirited, was extremely popular among the educated youth at the settlement but constantly gave the brigade leaders headaches.

Over the past half month, he had been repeatedly criticized and “educated” by the brigade.

So whenever a conflict broke out between the two, the brigade leaders would always take Lin Xiaohan’s side.

In the end, it was always Han Ting who suffered. After all, in the eyes of the brigade leaders, he and his friends were the troublemakers, while Lin Xiaohan was the model of a progressive youth.

The reason the brigade leaders favored Lin Xiaohan so much was precisely because of his cunning and duplicity.

He acted like two different people—one in front of them, and another in front of the brigade leaders. Around them, he was arrogant, mean-spirited, selfish, and petty; but in front of the brigade leaders, he was impeccable.

They were all just seventeen or eighteen years old, fresh out of middle school—still full of youthful recklessness and naivety. They did things on impulse, often lazy, and mistakes were common.