Chapter 18: Her Man

Zhan Nan Hui stood for a while, his brow furrowing involuntarily.

This was the first time he ever worried about someone else!

Yi An’an had stayed up all night again. The next morning, before Xinhua Bookstore even opened, she was already waiting nearby.

Though the bookstore hadn’t opened yet, people had started lining up during the night to buy the book.

This time, Yi An’an didn’t even need to shout to sell the books—some students who had bought it the day before were already recommending it to their friends.

“Are you sure this book isn’t fake?” someone questioned while students gathered around Yi An’an’s stall.

“At first, we were worried too, so we bought one copy and compared it with the one brought from Shanghai. Aside from the paper quality and typesetting being different, the content is exactly the same—no doubt about it!” another student who had already bought a copy chimed in.

This student seemed to be influential among them. Once he spoke, the others were persuaded and began pulling out money to buy it. The earlier they got the book, the earlier they could begin reviewing, which meant a better chance at scoring well.

“You’re not waiting for the bookstore to open?” someone asked hesitantly.

“We’ve been lining up for days and haven’t gotten a single copy. If we keep waiting, the college entrance exams will be over! I’m done waiting—I’ve bought my copy and I’m heading home to study!” one student said as he ran off with the book.

Yi An’an quickly seized the opportunity and shouted, “Only the last 50 copies left today—just 50! If you’re even one step late, you’ll lose a whole day of studying. One day less means a few points lost. And just one point could be the difference between making it and being left behind with a stadium full of others. Think—what matters more, ten yuan or your future?”

Her words struck a chord. Those still hesitating rushed to pay, and soon all 200 books were sold out!

Yi An’an let out a sigh of relief, left instructions with her partners, and headed home with the 2,000 yuan she had earned overnight.

Zhan Nan Hui was still at home. He needed this book to study, too.

There was only one bus back to the village in the evening, but now that Yi An’an had money, she was more generous. She paid the printing factory’s driver to take her home—a one-hour trip for fifteen yuan.

The driver, surnamed Zhao, was in his early twenties. He wore white cotton gloves, a blue cotton uniform, and blue trousers. He had a clean, cropped haircut and looked quite energetic, though his speech and mannerisms were a bit greasy and artificially mature.

At first, Driver Zhao was reluctant, but tempted by the fifteen yuan, he agreed and took her home under the pretext of delivering goods.

Zhan Nan Hui, after feeding the pigs and tidying up, was about to leave.

In the four years he had lived in the countryside, he rarely went out. But today, he had to find Yi An’an—he was afraid something might’ve happened to her.

Just as he was locking his shed door, he heard a commotion from the village. Looking up, he saw children surrounding a small truck, shouting excitedly. Many villagers came out to watch as well. After all, small trucks like that were usually only seen in state-owned enterprises in town—rarely in the countryside.

The small truck stopped right in front of Zhan Nan Hui.

The passenger door opened, and a woman jumped down. She wore a red sweater with traditional coin patterns, black pants, and small leather shoes. Her dark hair flew up in the breeze, accentuating her fair, delicate face—it was hard to look away.

Soon, the driver’s door opened, and a young man got out. Though his face was tanned, his gloves were bright white. Just those gloves alone made the women in the village, who had never seen such things before, scream in excitement.

“Look at those white gloves—oh my, I’ve never seen this before!” someone exclaimed.

“This driver must be doing better than the supply cooperative clerks. He must make sixty to seventy yuan a month!”

“Sixty to seventy? That’s just base pay. He can make dozens more just doing odd jobs. And gas—it’s all money. My cousin works as a driver in the meat factory and earns one to two hundred yuan a month!”

“So much? Looks like Yi An’an has found herself a new man!”

“Exactly! I always thought that Zhan Nan Hui was just an excuse. Yi An’an didn’t want Yan Dapao, and with no other options, she used that ‘bad element’ to cover for herself. I even saw that ‘bad element’ standing at the village entrance last evening, looking out—seems like he really believed it!”

“Don’t talk nonsense—they’ve already gotten a marriage certificate!”

“So what? Can’t they still get divorced? Between a white-gloved driver and a bad element, who would you pick?”

…

The woman who had just gotten off the truck was Yi An’an. She was about to invite Driver Zhao in for a drink when she heard the gossipy voices in the village and frowned slightly.

Zhao Yan smirked slightly. He was used to scenes like this and felt a strange sense of superiority. Glancing at Yi An’an, he had to admit—her looks stood out even among the surrounding villages. He smiled, ran a hand through his hair, and said in a deliberately suave tone, “Comrade Yi, who would you choose?”

Yi An’an looked up at the greasy Zhao Yan. She turned back to the truck, took a military satchel from the passenger seat, pulled out two eggs, and walked over to Zhan Nan Hui. She placed the eggs in his hands, gently traced the sharp lines of his face with her fingers, and said softly:

“Why do you look thinner? Worried I haven’t been eating properly? Here, eat an egg to recover some strength.”

When her warm fingers touched his forehead, Zhan Nan Hui felt as if someone had struck his pressure point—he stiffened immediately. The woman in front of him smiled sweetly, her slender wrist pale and smooth, her fingers delicate like orchids, her nails pink like flower petals, softly caressing his face… and his lips…

The irritation that had been gnawing at his chest suddenly disappeared. Looking into her smiling eyes, he asked quietly, “Where did you go?”

“I had something to deal with, but I’m back now, aren’t I?” Yi An’an replied. Her actions clearly said: she wasn’t interested in some driver with a stable job and white gloves—she already had someone.

Zhao Yan looked a bit awkward. He mumbled, “Then I’ll be going?”

“No need to stay. Drive safe!” Yi An’an said with a smile.

Zhao Yan nodded and drove away.

“Oh wow, he’s leaving just like that?” the village women were in disbelief.

Yi An’an ignored them. She only had eyes for her man.

The village children and women, curious about Zhao Yan’s white gloves and iron rice bowl, all chased after the truck.

Yi An’an let out a breath of relief. Just as she was about to take her hand off the man’s face, she realized it felt unusually hot.

Startled, she touched his forehead again. “Are you sick?”

“No…” Zhan Nan Hui said in a low voice, but he wasn’t entirely sure himself. He could feel his body temperature rising, a burning heat starting from his chest and spreading…

That strange feeling from the night before… was hitting him again—in broad daylight!

Zhan Nan Hui instinctively swallowed, eyes evasive…