Chapter 22.1 

If Bai Yin had truly thrown away that bag of apples, Zhao Pingtao, being a foodie, would have felt a pang of regret.

Those big, red apples looked so delicious! If she didn’t want them, she could have sold them to him—anything would have been better than tossing them away.

Ye Huan was also curious, and she joined Zhao Pingtao in watching Bai Yin. Bai Yin’s expression darkened slightly. “I have nothing to do with Feng Shengli. I don’t want anything from him.”

Zhao Pingtao was a little confused. “So… did you throw them away or not?”

Bai Yin didn’t want to dwell on the apple incident, fearing Zhao Pingtao would press further. She quickly changed the subject, asking Ye Huan, “Is Ye Yongzhen really your aunt?”

Ye Huan nodded.

“Did you know your aunt was here before you came to the farm?”

Ye Huan didn’t hide the truth, knowing it would come out eventually. “No, we only recognized each other this morning. I just found out she’s my aunt.”

She then briefly recounted the circumstances of their reunion to Bai Yin and Zhao Pingtao.

Zhao Pingtao was stunned, but Bai Yin couldn’t help but feel envious. “You’re so lucky! You’ve already made such a good connection on your first day here.”

Ye Yongzhen was no ordinary woman. Though her husband didn’t work at the farm, he was a high-ranking officer in the military—a political instructor. Every leader on the farm gave him face, and if Ye Yongzhen wanted, she could practically rule the place. That’s why Wang Guiying didn’t dare argue with her, even when Ye Yongzhen threatened to hit her. Wang Guiying didn’t utter a peep.

With Ye Yongzhen protecting Ye Huan, who would dare make things difficult for her on the farm? Good opportunities would undoubtedly favor Ye Huan, and she might even get recommended to the Worker-Peasant-Soldier University before the gaokao (national college entrance exam) was reinstated.

What incredible luck!

It was only natural for Bai Yin to feel envious. Who wouldn’t be?

Zhao Pingtao also envied Ye Huan’s good fortune, but his envy stemmed from a different reason than Bai Yin’s. “Does this mean you’ll get to eat at Aunt Ye’s house more often now?”

As a true foodie, Zhao Pingtao’s eyes lit up at the mention of food.

At the Youth Settlement, the youths took turns cooking in pairs. Some, like Gao Qinggui and Lian Yanmei, were decent cooks, making relatively tasty meals. Others, like Zhao Pingtao himself, were culinary disasters, producing food fit only for pigs.

It wasn’t that he deliberately made his food taste so awful. He had to eat it himself, after all, and naturally wanted it to be delicious. But he simply lacked the talent. Despite his best efforts to improve, the results still resembled pig slop.

Han Qianglei once said he’d rather starve than eat his cooking.

Han Qianglei wasn’t much better himself. They were two peas in a pod, neither one fit to criticize the other.

Even the best cooks, like Gao Qinggui and Lian Yanmei, couldn’t make a feast out of thin air. They rarely saw a speck of meat all year. Even if Peng Zu himself were resurrected, he couldn’t conjure up culinary miracles from nothing.

But things were different at Ye Yongzhen’s house. Her husband, He Shiqiang, was a political instructor in the army, earning a substantial monthly allowance. Combined with Ye Yongzhen’s own wages, the couple had at least a hundred yuan a month. To put it simply, they ate far more meat in a year than the rest of them.

He had overheard Ye Yongzhen inviting Ye Huan over for dinner tomorrow, promising to make her braised pork.

Zhao Pingtao swallowed hard. “Last month, I went to the town restaurant and ordered a plate of braised pork. So fragrant! The less you eat it, the more you crave it. The more you eat, the more you want. I even dreamed of gnawing on a pig’s leg. I thought if I went to the pigsty and got a whiff of that stench, I’d stop craving it. But when I saw those two fat pigs, I not only wanted braised pork but also pork stew with vermicelli.”

“Sun Maocai wouldn’t let me look anymore, saying the pigs got scared seeing my hungry eyes and wouldn’t gain weight. Nonsense! It’s clearly because he’s not feeding them well. Aunt Yuxiu says Sun Maocai’s lazy—that’s why he can’t find a wife. Last time, Aunt Liu introduced him to someone, but the girl thought he was too lazy and didn’t like him. Sun Maocai still had the nerve to say he didn’t like her…”

True to his reputation as the know-it-all of the compound, Zhao Pingtao could talk about the entire farm without stopping. Ye Huan and Bai Yin didn’t even need to chime in—he carried the conversation all the way back.

It was Lian Yanmei’s turn to cook that day. She came out to gather firewood and saw the three of them returning together, with Zhao Pingtao carrying a flowerpot filled with withered branches. Mistaking it for firewood, she asked, “Where did you find that firewood? Why bring the whole pot back too?”

Zhao Pingtao: “…It’s not firewood. It’s a flower Ye Huan brought back to grow.”

Lian Yanmei: “…” It’s so dead, what’s there to grow?

Afraid of upsetting Ye Huan, she quickly added, “Anything planted in spring grows easily. Even a twig can sprout roots. Who knows, it might actually survive.”

Xu Aixiang muttered, “She’s not working hard enough. Let her hoe two acres of land and see if she still has the energy for such nonsense.”

Just then, Bai Yin walked past them but ignored Xu Aixiang and went straight into her room.

Xu Aixiang curled her lip. “What’s she pretending to be?”

The whole farm was buzzing with the news that Bai Yin had thrown away the apples Feng Shengli gave her. Everyone thought it was such a waste, considering how precious apples were these days.

She didn’t throw them away! Xu Aixiang thought. I moved into Bai Yin’s room yesterday, and the first thing I smelled was apples. The scent is still lingering in the air.

Though she couldn’t find where Bai Yin had hidden the apples, Xu Aixiang was certain they hadn’t been discarded. Otherwise, the room wouldn’t still smell of apples.

Hiding them and then claiming she threw them away? What’s with this holier-than-thou act? As if anyone doesn’t know what she’s really like.

…….

While dinner was still cooking, Ye Huan slipped out for a while.

Willow trees lined the pond, and she snapped off some branches. Back at the compound, she filled half a basin with water, crushed the branches, and soaked them in it. The water would make an excellent rooting solution, perfect for nurturing plants.

By the time she finished, dinner was ready.

It was much like her first day at the farm—sorghum rice with pickled vegetables.

As they were eating, someone called out from outside, “Bai Yin!”

It was Feng Shengli. Everyone in the courtyard turned to look at Bai Yin.

Bai Yin didn’t move. Seeing she wasn’t coming out, Feng Shengli entered himself. Noticing everyone was eating, he greeted them, “Still eating, huh? Bai Yin, come out for a moment. I need to talk to you.”

Bai Yin remained motionless, so Feng Shengli planted himself in front of her, making it clear he wouldn’t leave until she came with him.

Everyone else kept their heads down, shoveling food into their mouths as if they hadn’t heard a thing.

The truth was, Bai Yin had always been aloof and solitary. Though they lived in the same courtyard, no one really knew her well.

Moreover, Feng Shengli’s father was the logistics director. A careless word could easily offend him.

So, while people might gossip behind her back, no one dared speak up directly.

Everyone strained their ears to listen.

Feng Shengli stood nearby, staring intently. Bai Yin couldn’t ignore him, so she reluctantly set down her bowl and followed him outside with a stiff expression.

Gao Qinggui whispered to Lian Yanmei, “Even if you’re trying to play hard to get, this is ridiculous. Enough is enough.”

She had never liked Bai Yin.

If Bai Yin truly wanted to be with Feng Shengli, she should openly accept his advances, date him properly, and marry him if things progressed.

If she didn’t like him, she should reject him outright and let him move on.

But Bai Yin was doing neither. She accepted Feng Shengli’s gifts but never gave him a straight answer, keeping him in a state of ambiguous hope.

Just yesterday, she had accepted his apples. Today, she publicly declared they had no relationship.

Then why did you take his apples?

Others might not know, but Gao Qinggui shared a room with Bai Yin. She knew Bai Yin hadn’t thrown them out. Yesterday, she even saw Bai Yin holding a large apple, quickly hiding it when Gao Qinggui entered. The room still smelled of apples.

Where did those apples come from if not from Feng Shengli? And she had the nerve to say she threw them away.

Good thing it wasn’t Xu Aixiang who saw, or the news would’ve spread across the farm by now.

Lian Yanmei had her own opinions about Bai Yin but, as the team leader, she couldn’t gossip—it wasn’t good for unity. She didn’t respond to Gao Qinggui, just said, “Hurry up and eat. We’ve got work this afternoon.”

…….

Bai Yin followed Feng Shengli out of the courtyard.

Feng Shengli immediately apologized. “I had no idea my mother would go see you. If I’d known, I would have stopped her. I’m so sorry for the trouble she caused.”

Bai Yin cut him off. “We’re not right for each other. Please don’t come looking for me again. I’ll repay you for everything you’ve given me. I don’t have the money right now, but I’ll give you every penny as soon as I do.”

Feng Shengli assumed Bai Yin was still angry with his mother and was just saying things in the heat of the moment. He tried to placate her. “Don’t be mad, Bai Yin. I’ve already scolded my mother. She was just confused for a moment and regrets it now. She promised me she’ll never bother you again.”

Bai Yin scoffed inwardly.

She knew exactly what kind of person Wang Guiying was—her promises were worth less than air.

Wang Guiying acted one way in front of Feng Shengli and another behind his back. In her previous life, Wang Guiying had repeatedly set traps for Bai Yin. When Bai Yin complained, Feng Shengli accused her of wronging his mother, insisting Wang Guiying treated her well.

Even without Wang Guiying, Bai Yin would never marry Feng Shengli again. She refused to fall into the same pit twice.

“I told you we’re not a good match,” Bai Yin said. “With your qualities, you’re bound to find someone better.”

A particular face flashed through her mind as she continued, “Someone beautiful, with reliable family connections, and a kind personality—your mother would be absolutely thrilled.”

Feng Shengli had only pursued her because of her looks. If someone even more beautiful could capture his attention, wouldn’t that solve everything?

Ye Huan was the first person who came to mind.

Though she hated to admit it, Ye Huan was undeniably more beautiful than her. Moreover, Ye Huan’s aunt was Ye Yongzhen, whose husband was a political instructor in the military. With Wang Guiying’s snobbish nature, she would be absolutely delighted to have Ye Huan as her daughter-in-law.

Even if Ye Huan looked down on Feng Shengli and rejected him, Feng Shengli and Wang Guiying wouldn’t dare retaliate. They wouldn’t dare offend Ye Yongzhen; they were too busy trying to curry favor with her.

So even if Feng Shengli abandoned Bai Yin for Ye Huan, Ye Huan wouldn’t suffer any consequences. If she didn’t like Feng Shengli, she could simply reject him.

Unlike Bai Yin, who had offended Feng Shengli and Wang Guiying and was now constantly being targeted, with no good opportunities ever coming her way again.

Bai Yin tried to subtly persuade Feng Shengli to find someone else, but he stubbornly refused.

He knew exactly who she was talking about: Ye Huan, the newcomer at their compound.

After all, Ye Huan was the only one on the entire farm who was considered more beautiful than Bai Yin.

Individually, Bai Yin’s features might have been more refined than Ye Huan’s. But when combined, Bai Yin lacked the striking, enduring beauty that Ye Huan possessed.

Plus, Ye Huan was fairer, and as the saying goes, “A fair complexion adds three points of charm.” That alone widened the gap between them.

Put them side by side, and everyone would say Ye Huan was prettier.

That morning, when he argued with his mother, she had compared Bai Yin to Ye Huan, scolding him: “That new girl, Ye Huan, is way better than Bai Yin. She’s prettier, has a better personality, and her aunt is Ye Yongzhen. She’s better in every way. How could you be so blind to fall for Bai Yin? That vixen has a thousand tricks up her sleeve and always looks like everyone owes her money. She’s bad luck, nothing but trouble!”

Yet he was smitten with Bai Yin. The more she rejected him, the more obsessed he became. He refused to believe he couldn’t win her over.

“I only have eyes for you,” he insisted. “I don’t care about anyone else. I know you like me too, it’s just you don’t get along with my mother. Don’t worry, after we’re married, we’ll move out and live separately. I promise you won’t suffer a single moment of hardship!”

No matter what Bai Yin said, Feng Shengli stubbornly insisted he was only interested in her. No matter how good the other women’s prospects were, he couldn’t care less.

Xu Aixiang had already strolled past twice, her gossipy nature guaranteeing news of their meeting would spread across the farm by afternoon.

If Wang Guiying heard about it, she’d undoubtedly find another excuse to make trouble for Bai Yin.

Hadn’t she embarrassed herself enough this morning?

Bai Yin didn’t want to get entangled with Feng Shengli any further. Gritting her teeth, she delivered a harsh ultimatum: “I don’t like you at all. Don’t come looking for me again. If you do, I’ll report you to the police for indecent behavior.”

With that, she turned to leave.

Feng Shengli had showered her with flattery, only to be met with Bai Yin’s cold declaration: “I don’t like you at all.”

And now she threatened to report him to the police for indecent behavior!

Having been pampered since childhood, he had never humbled himself before anyone like this. His anger flared instantly, his voice rising eight octaves: “You’ve eaten my food and used my things! Now you’re saying you don’t like me? So you’ve been playing me all along? Let me tell you, you won’t get away with this! Feng Shengli isn’t someone you can toy with!”

Bai Yin trembled with fury. “Every single time, I tried to refuse those things, but you forced them into my hands!”

“Forced them on you, and you just took them? If you really didn’t want them, you could have returned them. Take yesterday’s apples, for example—did you really throw them into the pond? Show me where you threw them, and I’ll dive in to retrieve them. If I find them, I’ll kowtow to you in front of everyone and call you ‘Grandma’!”

With that, Feng Shengli grabbed Bai Yin’s arm and tried to drag her toward the pond.

Bai Yin’s face paled. She wouldn’t dare go near the pond with him. Not only had she not thrown away the bag of apples, but she still had it in her handbag—and she’d even secretly eaten one.

If she hadn’t eaten that apple, she would have pulled the bag out and flung it in Feng Shengli’s face.

Seeing Bai Yin’s refusal to go with him, Feng Shengli immediately knew he’d guessed right. She hadn’t thrown away the apples at all.

He smirked triumphantly. “Still claiming you threw them away? Who do you think you’re fooling? As if I don’t know you! You just wanted to squeeze some extra out of me, and you won’t even admit it.”

Bai Yin retorted, “I’m not arguing about the past anymore. Just calculate the total amount, including yesterday’s apples. I’ll pay you every last cent—not a penny less!”

“I don’t want your money!” Feng Shengli snapped. “If you’re so capable, return everything I ever gave you, exactly as it was. Return it all, and we’ll call it even!”

Everything he had given her—the things she used, the food she ate—had been consumed or used up. How could she possibly return them in their original condition?

He’s just being deliberately difficult!

Bai Yin trembled with anger, yet she was powerless against Feng Shengli.

The two struggled at the entrance of the Zhiqing quarters, drawing the attention of everyone inside, who crowded at the courtyard gate to watch.

Feng Shengli’s eyes fell on Ye Huan, her skin fair and radiant, her eyes sparkling—even more beautiful than Bai Yin. But so what? He was determined to win Bai Yin over. She might look down on him and refuse to be with him, but he was going to marry her no matter what!

The entire farm knew he was pursuing Bai Yin. If he failed, where would he save face?

Lian Yanmei couldn’t bear to watch any longer. She stepped forward to mediate. “Everyone’s heated right now. Let’s all calm down. Feng Shengli, why don’t you go home for now? We can talk later.”

She glanced at Zhao Pingtao and the others, signaling them to drag Feng Shengli away.

Zhao Pingtao and Han Qianglei grabbed Feng Shengli by the arms and dragged him away, kicking and screaming.

Even as he was being dragged off, Feng Shengli shouted, “I’ll be back tomorrow! You can’t hide from me—I’ll find you no matter where you go! Just try me!”

He was like a stubborn plaster, impossible to shake off.

Xu Aixiang and Gao Qinggui watched with a hint of schadenfreude. Xu Aixiang even called out loudly, “Dinner’s ready! The food’s getting cold!”

Bai Yin’s face darkened. She abandoned her meal and retreated to her room without a word.

Gao Qinggui curled her lip, thinking, Serves her right. You can’t take gifts without strings attached. What did she think Feng Shengli’s gifts came with?

When Feng Shengli first started giving Bai Yin gifts, Gao Qinggui had kindly hinted that she shouldn’t accept them so easily.

Having been at the farm longer, she knew what kind of person Feng Shengli was.

Plus, a young woman accepting gifts without clear intentions could ruin her reputation—unless she genuinely wanted to marry him.

But Bai Yin had completely ignored her warnings. She probably thought Gao Qinggui was just jealous that Feng Shengli gave gifts to her and not to Gao Qinggui.

After that, Gao Qinggui stopped trying to advise Bai Yin. She wasn’t her mother, after all!

…..

Meanwhile, Ye Huan watched the drama unfold, unaware that she’d been dragged into their mess.

She’d only read a bit of the story and didn’t fully grasp what was going on between them. It just seemed like a lot of trouble.

If dating was this much hassle, she’d rather not bother and focus on growing her flowers.

Flowers were a joy to look at; dating just seemed like a headache.