Chapter 41: The New Educated Youth’s Package and Daily Life

The next day, as Ming Dai headed to work, she noticed Fang Rou was absent. A sister-in-law from the Luo family had returned the awl to her.

After hearing some idle gossip, she learned that the postman had mentioned their packages had arrived and needed to be picked up.

No one paid much attention at first, but when Fang Rou and Qi Zhijun returned in the afternoon, their arrival set off a whirlwind of gossip throughout the village.

The reason? They had brought back a cartload of packages.

An aunt passing by, eager to share the news, exclaimed, “The packages—big and small—add up to over thirty! I heard they haven’t even finished unloading and are going back for more tomorrow!”

“And there’s a bicycle too, sent all the way from Beijing! The postage alone could have bought another bicycle!”

“I think there’s even a sewing machine! I saw one just like it in the commune before!”

“Wow! If that’s true, it would be the first bicycle and sewing machine in our entire village!”

“That’s nothing! That Qi Zhiqing has a radio! Do you know what a radio is? It’s a little box where tons of people live inside, chatting, telling stories, and gossiping every day!”

“Ah, is that real? People really live in it?”

“Stop talking nonsense. That tiny box can’t fit anyone, how could it fit so many people?”

“Then what’s going on with it, if it can talk?”

“I don’t know, I’m off to work. Stop chatting with me!”

…

Ming Dai wasn’t aware of all this. She was following Zhou Sinian in the mountains, hunting for wild chickens.

She was craving chicken soup, and Zhou Sinian’s medicinal recipe needed chicken. Although Ming Dai’s space had fresh chicken, she still preferred wild chicken.

When they reached the mountain, Zhou Sinian suddenly changed his demeanor. If he hadn’t been right next to her, Ming Dai felt like she might not have noticed his presence at all.

It was truly miraculous. He must be a martial arts prodigy!

Zhou Sinian had no idea that Ming Dai had already associated him with characters from martial arts novels in her mind. He led her toward the area where they had previously spotted wild chickens.

After walking along the mountain path for a while, Zhou Sinian suddenly pulled her down and lowered her body.

He pointed ahead, toward a basin, where a group of wild chickens were scratching the ground!

Oh my goodness! Ming Dai excitedly bit her hand.

They looked so beautiful; they must taste amazing!

Before Zhou Sinian could make a move, Ming Dai immediately captured the whole group of chickens. There were even a few chicks with newly grown feathers, which she decided to keep as backup food.

When they reached the spot, Ming Dai noticed chicken nests and eggs on the ground.

Using her space’s treasure-hunting ability, she checked and, sure enough, she could tell the difference between fertilized eggs and regular ones.

She left the fertilized eggs in the nest and sent them to the chicken group in the backyard. She collected all the regular eggs and stored them in the warehouse for later use.

“Let’s keep going!”

Zhou Sinian had mentioned that there were plenty of wild chickens in the mountains, so there was no need to worry about them becoming extinct.

After that, they caught two more chicken nests, which they placed in the backyard.

With the chickens caught, Ming Dai felt content. They planned to come back next time to hunt rabbits.

Compared to wild chickens, the rabbits in Wild Boar Ridge were truly abundant.

Suddenly, Ming Dai remembered that the place was called Wild Boar Ridge—did that mean there were wild boars here?!

Zhou Sinian nodded. Of course!

Ming Dai’s first reaction was fear, but her second reaction was excitement!

She wondered, was wild boar meat tasty?

On the way back, Ming Dai started searching for decayed wood in the mountains.

It wasn’t for firewood, but to look for wood ear mushrooms.

As she walked and searched, it didn’t take long before she found over a dozen decayed logs covered in wood ears.

She placed them all along the exterior wall of the villa, letting them grow freely so that she could harvest them regularly in the future.

With the chicks now taken care of and the warehouse stocked with mushrooms, it was time for a small chicken and mushroom stew!

That evening, Ming Dai indulged herself by killing four chickens.

Two were used to make chicken and mushroom stew, one was used for chicken soup, and the last one was made into a medicinal stew.

However, Ming Dai’s chicken-raising plan had been ruined. The wild chickens were quite aggressive, and the chickens they ate that day had been the result of a wild battle between three flocks.

Now, Zhou Sinian was outside killing chickens. Ming Dai planned to kill all the chickens and store them in the warehouse, taking them out whenever they wanted to eat.

Considering the tense atmosphere in the front yard, they made and ate their dinner in the space.

Ming Dai even used the rice cooker to make a pot of rice.

Chicken and mushroom stew had to be paired with rice!

Wild chickens were much tougher than domestic ones, but their meat was lean, full of flavor, and perfect for two people with strong teeth. It was no problem at all!

In fact, after getting used to the factory-raised chickens in her past life, Ming Dai found she preferred these wild chickens.

The chicken soup was especially fragrant. It wasn’t greasy and tasted refreshing, with the added herbs like angelica, red dates, and astragalus root, which helped with energy and blood nourishment—ideal for both of them.

As they ate the chicken soup with rice, it felt like their souls were nourished by the delicious food.

When it came time to take medicine, Zhou Sinian noticeably cooperated more than usual.

After a bath, they each had their own hot water bottle to warm the bed. This life—no god could ask for better!

To avoid being caught, Ming Dai no longer used the electric heating pad. Instead, she used rubber hot water bottles.

Zhou Sinian even asked Ming Dai to make a matching strap for his hot water bottle, creating an adorable, soft pink set.

Zhou Sinian’s room was no longer as empty as it had been before.

Not only had he added a kang cabinet and a kang table, but the windows were also fitted with glass and blackout curtains.

On the floor, there was a shoe rack, and in the corner, a cabinet stood with a mirror placed on top.

The quilt on his bed still had an old outer layer, but the inside had been replaced with new cotton—soft, fluffy, and as comfortable as sleeping on clouds.

Ming Dai had made the quilt longer for him, so he no longer had to curl up while sleeping.

For the first time, he was sleeping in pajamas, and it felt like his head wasn’t aching anymore!

At that moment, he lay under the covers, reading a comic book. The emergency lamp cast a soft glow, gentle on the eyes.

It felt as if he were living in heaven.

In the front yard of the educated youth quarters, Fang Rou looked at the newly arranged room and nodded in satisfaction.

She had divided one room into two. The outer room had become a very small kitchen where she could only cook.

The inner room had the biggest feature: the kang. Fang Rou used a sheer curtain to create a private space above the kang.

The pink curtain, when drawn, created a youthful and dreamy atmosphere, though it didn’t quite match the dark ceiling.

She lacked experience with daily life, and since she was heating the kang every day, combined with the new kitchen, the pink curtain would likely change color in less than a week.

But that was something to deal with later. For now, she was very satisfied.

She had set up the kang table and cabinet, and even placed a dressing table on the floor, covered with bottles and jars.

In the corner, there was a wardrobe packed with the new clothes she had sent over.

Next to the wardrobe was a sewing machine, looking brand new and shining brightly.

Closer to the outer room, there was a table with two chairs and a cupboard, which was fully stocked.

A beaded curtain separated the inner and outer rooms.

The new educated youths were all envious when they visited her room, especially Liu Yan, who secretly wished she could move in.

Fang Rou directly took out a receipt from the brigade leader. She had rented the room for 20 yuan a year and had even arranged the kang herself. If Liu Yan wanted to move in, she would have to share all the costs.

Liu Yan immediately became speechless.

Meanwhile, in the other room, Qi Zhijun was also delighted. He hadn’t expected his mother to treat him so well—not only had she sent him a bicycle, but she had also sent a radio.

Back in the capital, he had never received such special treatment. It turned out that coming to the countryside was the right decision!

Little did he know that at that very moment, his mother was regretting her decision. She shouldn’t have let her rivalry with Fang Rou’s mother push her into spending so much money to send him a bicycle and a radio.

Qi Zhijun had no idea that the cost of these items would be deducted from his future subsidies. At the moment, he was still grinning ear to ear, completely carefree.

As time went on, the new educated youths became more united.

They cooked in Fang Rou’s kitchen and ate at Qi Zhijun’s table.

Sure enough, Fang Rou’s pink curtain didn’t last a week before it had to be taken down, but there was nothing she could do about it.

She truly didn’t know how to cook. In her past life, her family-in-law had often criticized her, and now, she wanted to learn. However, the food she made was so bad that even the dogs wouldn’t eat it. With no other choice, she had to collaborate with the new educated youths to share meals.

However, privately, she could cook a lot of small dishes on a small stove. Later, since Qi Zhijun had a bicycle, the two of them frequently went out to eat at restaurants, which caused quite a stir in the village.

Soon, everyone’s attention shifted to Fang Rou and Qi Zhijun, and the focus on Ming Dai and Zhou Sinian gradually faded.