Chapter 44: Considering Moving

Jiang Pan Yu was in high spirits, her face beaming with a smile that was infectious and uplifting.

Recently, thanks to adequate nutrition, Jiang Pan Yu had blossomed a bit. She had grown taller, her skin had become fairer, and her features had become more defined. Upon closer inspection, one would realize that Jiang Pan Yu was actually not inferior to Tan Yanlu.

However, Jiang Pan Yu was used to being unkempt, which could also be understood as her not having a love interest and thus not bothering to dress up.

Moreover, with the cold weather, she liked to wrap herself tightly from head to neck with a large scarf, making it even harder for people to see her true appearance.

If it weren’t for Tan Yanlu living and moving around with her, Tan Yanlu wouldn’t have discovered that Jiang Pan Yu was a person of potential.

Since Jiang Pan Yu was so low-key, Tan Yanlu wasn’t the type to gossip and spread others’ privacy.

So in everyone’s impression, Jiang Pan Yu was still that ordinary little girl, and the only thing that might be memorable about her was probably her mouth!

Because of a few hooligans, a lot of time was wasted, and by the time the Educated Youth arrived in town, it was already noon.

Everyone in town had their own errands to run. They had planned to go to the bathhouse for a scrub, but since time was running short, they each went their separate ways to attend to their own matters.

They just agreed to meet at the intersection at four in the afternoon and then return together.

Jiang Pan Yu and Tan Yanlu discussed and decided to stick to their original plan. Tan Yanlu would first go to send a letter, then to the bathhouse for a bath, and then to the supply and marketing cooperative to buy some things. If there was still time, they would stroll around.

The bathhouses in the north had no partitions; everyone was exposed to each other. Jiang Pan Yu and Tan Yanlu, being southern girls, were somewhat embarrassed and shy when they first encountered such a bold scene.

But they had to follow local customs, so they hesitantly took off their clothes and entered the bathhouse, had a good wash, scrubbed themselves clean from head to toe, changed into clean clothes, and only left the bathhouse after their hair had dried.

After that, they went to the supply and marketing cooperative to purchase some daily necessities. Jiang Pan Yu, with the various vouchers and small change rewarded by the Gossip System, didn’t hold back.

They bought some cloth, thread, toothpaste, brown sugar, snow cream, and clam oil.

Although she didn’t need these things because of the Gossip System’s rewards, she couldn’t just produce them out of thin air, so she had to buy some to cover up.

Tan Yanlu was no exception. Besides daily necessities, she also went to the grain station to buy grain, filling her backpack to the brim before stopping.

After finishing their errands, it was already quite late. They had originally planned to have a meal at the state-run restaurant, but they were afraid of missing the group’s meeting time.

So they each bought two steamed buns at the state-run store and then went to wait by the roadside. It wasn’t that they didn’t want to buy meat; they had miscalculated today and forgotten to bring their lunch boxes. Nowadays, there were no fast food containers, and if you wanted to take food away, you had to bring your own lunch box.

Without lunch boxes, the only thing they could take away was steamed buns. Both of them couldn’t help but regretfully think that the next time they came to town, they must have a good meal at the state-run restaurant.

In the northern province, winter days grew dark quickly, and by around three o’clock, the sky began to darken.

After everyone gathered and returned to Lianshan Village, it was only a little past five, but the sky was already completely dark.

After a day of rest, everyone resumed their work routines, and Jiang Pan Yu noticed that Lian Xiuran seemed to have some issues with her. It wasn’t just her imagination.

Lian Xiuran was usually a very well-mannered person, always speaking with a warm, spring-like smile that gave off an air of grace and charm.

Having been in the countryside for so long, Jiang Pan Yu had never heard of Lian Xiuran having any disputes or conflicts with anyone. At least in terms of interpersonal skills, Lian Xiuran had a high emotional intelligence.

But recently, whenever Jiang Pan Yu stood with Tan Yanlu, Lian Xiuran would be all smiles and warmth toward Tan Yanlu, but when it came to Jiang Pan Yu, his face would turn cold, devoid of any trace of a smile.

The difference in treatment was glaringly obvious. Jiang Pan Yu looked at herself in the mirror. Her health had improved somewhat, and her face was gradually filling out.

Her newly grown hair was much darker, no longer dry and yellowish as before.

Her facial features weren’t bad at all; she just lacked proper care. She still couldn’t compare to Tan Yanlu, but she wasn’t ugly by any means!

She couldn’t figure out what Lian Xiuran’s problem was. Could it be that he resented her for always being around Tan Yanlu, leaving him no opportunity to court her, and that’s why he was giving her the cold shoulder?

Jiang Pan Yu couldn’t understand the reason, but the truth was quite simple.

Lian Xiuran just felt that with Jiang Pan Yu constantly by Tan Yanlu’s side, he had no chance to pursue her. In short, he saw Jiang Pan Yu as an unwelcome third wheel.

Fortunately, Jiang Pan Yu didn’t know Lian Xiuran’s thoughts. If she did, she would have laughed at him. How dare he look down on her? Tan Yanlu had shed tears for her!

Lian Xiuran wasn’t even Tan Yanlu’s boyfriend yet, just a nobody. He could wait until he actually held Tan Yanlu’s hand before he started giving her the cold shoulder!

The winter days were much more leisurely. Although they still had to twist hemp ropes every day, it wasn’t mandatory work, so Jiang Pan Yu now had time to focus on making clothes and shoes for herself.

Her sewing skills were something she had picked up during summer and winter breaks in her previous life, working part-time in small factories. Although she didn’t have a sewing machine, she could still sew by hand, albeit much slower.

As for making shoes, that was something her grandmother had taught her in her previous life. The old lady loved making her own shoes, and young Jiang Pan Yu had learned from her. Thankfully, she hadn’t lost that skill, and now it was coming in handy.

Tan Yanlu, on the other hand, wasn’t cut out for such things. She didn’t have the knack for these crafts and begged Jiang Pan Yu to teach her.

Jiang Pan Yu naturally agreed, and thus began a bumpy teaching journey. Tan Yanlu seemed to have no talent in this area.

After several days of learning, she still couldn’t make a single piece of clothing and had even poked several holes in her fingers.

In the end, Tan Yanlu had to give up and asked Jiang Pan Yu to make clothes for her.

As Jiang Pan Yu worked on the clothes, she began to ponder whether she should move out.

Living at the Educated Youth residence had its pros and cons. The advantage was that heavy physical labor was shared among everyone, and tasks were assigned, so once you finished your part, you could rest.

However, the downside was the almost complete lack of privacy. With so many people around and everyone having different personalities, minor conflicts at the Educated Youth residence were a daily occurrence. Except during sleep, the days were always bustling and rarely quiet.

Jiang Pan Yu couldn’t openly use many of the items from her space. She had to sneakily consume nutritional candies, fearing that others would notice her always having sweets and become suspicious. To avoid this, she had to dissolve the candies in water and drink them.

But she didn’t like these sneaky little actions herself. Moreover, the Body Tempering Art that the system had rewarded her with last time remained unused because she couldn’t find a suitable reason to bring it out or a proper place to practice it. This situation was quite frustrating for her.