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Wen Chunlan shivered all over. Guiltily, she quickly pulled her hands back and turned around with forced calm,
“Comrade Lin, what nonsense are you spouting?”
“When did I ever pull out your rice seedlings?”
Everyone turned their heads toward the noise, only to see that in the section Lin Ting was working on, several seedlings were floating on the surface.
Lin Ting pointed at them and said coldly,
“You pulled up all of these.”
Wen Chunlan insisted,
“Who saw me do it?”
“Maybe it’s just your poor planting technique—you didn’t secure them well and they floated up.”
People might question Lin Ting’s cooking, but no one could deny she was a skilled farmer.
Lin Ting remained calm.
“I planted this entire row. Why is it only the section near you that’s floating?”
“If you didn’t pull them, who did?”
“Besides, I saw you do it with my own eyes.”
It’s normal for a few seedlings to float, but when it happens concentrated in one area, it becomes suspicious.
Yuan Xiang’e came over to inspect and slowly said,
“Comrade Lin’s seedlings are all planted very steadily. The spacing between each plant is precise—almost as if she used a ruler. They’re uniform in size too.”
“Even the seedlings she planted earlier—when she was just starting out—didn’t fall over. Yet now the newer, more practiced rows are the ones floating? That doesn’t make sense.”
The brigade leader and secretary Cheng Aimin walked over, both wearing stern expressions. After listening to Yuan’s explanation, they turned to Wen Chunlan.
The brigade leader asked sharply:
“Comrade Wen, how do you explain this?”
Wen Chunlan stubbornly denied it.
“Brigade leader, I’ve been wronged!”
“Yes, I had some disagreements with Comrade Lin before, but that’s no reason for her to falsely accuse me!”
She wasn’t stupid—how could she admit to something like this?
Just then, Zhong Shuhe’s voice came from behind—like a ghostly whisper from the depths of hell:
“Oh? You mean the disagreement about how you demanded we newbies give you a share of our meat yesterday?”
“Wow, you’re really petty to still be holding a grudge over that, huh?”
“We didn’t even take it to heart.”
Everyone nearby gasped.
What?! Wen Chunlan asked the new girls to give her their meat?
That’s basically robbery!
Wen Chunlan had always appeared quiet and refined. Who knew she was this kind of person behind the scenes?
She could feel everyone’s judgmental stares. Her heart sank—something was going seriously wrong!
“Zhong Shuhe! What nonsense are you talking about?!”
“When did I ever demand meat from you?!”
“I was just trying to teach you the spirit of sharing. Eating alone won’t make you grow fat!”
Zhong Shuhe looked innocent.
“But we weren’t eating alone.”
“We were three people eating together.”
“And who says I don’t know how to share?”
“Just yesterday, I shared the sausages I brought from home with my two besties.”
“As for why I didn’t share them with you old educated youths—don’t you know the answer to that yourself?”
Zhong Shuhe let it all out:
“We newbies had just arrived, and you said if we wanted to use your big pot and vegetables from your private plot, we’d have to cook for nine people every day.”
“It was our first time in the countryside—we hadn’t even used your stoves yet! Just thinking about cooking for nine people was overwhelming!”
“Thank goodness Lin brought her own small pot. That’s the only reason we decided to eat separately.”
She explained clearly why they chose not to eat with the older educated youths—just to stop others from spreading gossip behind their backs.
The older educated youths nearby all looked sour. The way the villagers were now looking at them was full of judgment, as if to say:
“So you were bullying the newcomers after all!”
Jiang Yanmei muttered quietly,
“Zhong Shuhe’s mouth… she could ruin our reputation with just a few words.”
“Better stay away from her in the future.”
And that Comrade Lin—even scarier. She actually dared to strike back!
The brigade leader already knew a bit about what had happened between the old and new educated youths, since the newcomers had borrowed firewood and vegetables from his home the previous day.
He had promised Old Zhou to secretly look after Lin Ting.
Now seemed like the perfect opportunity to teach these lazy veterans a lesson!
After thinking it over, he barked:
“Comrade Wen, and all you old educated youths—follow me!”
As the other old educated youths realized they were being dragged into this, they shot Wen Chunlan death stares.
Troublemaker! Look what you’ve dragged us into!
Once the crowd dispersed, the brigade leader declared:
“Comrade Wen deliberately sabotaged the results of collective labor and damaged production. This behavior is serious.”
“Verbal warning. And a punishment: you’ll haul manure for three days!”
Everyone could be assigned to carry manure—but it was filthy, exhausting work. People avoided it if they could.
Wen Chunlan panicked.
“Brigade leader, I was framed!”
“How can you believe some newcomer over the word of a veteran you’ve known for years?!”
Black lines appeared on the brigade leader’s forehead as he snapped:
“Those newcomers work hard and efficiently.”
“You so-called veterans—all you do is laze around and play games. And now you’re even causing trouble behind my back!”
“Three days of manure duty is light—you should be hauling it for a whole week!”
Wen Chunlan’s eyes widened in shock. She hadn’t expected that saying a few extra words would get her four more days of punishment!
She was too scared to argue again, worried she’d be punished even more.
The other old educated youths didn’t even dare to breathe loudly.
No one wanted to be sent to haul manure.
But the brigade leader wasn’t finished.
“You people left your families and came here, yet you don’t even know how to support each other.”
“On their first day, you tried to intimidate the newcomers and demanded they cook for you? Where’s your conscience?!”
“The big iron pot in your dorm was supplied with coupons from me! Did I ask you to cook for me?”
“And the vegetables from the private plot were grown by your predecessors. Newcomers are allowed to use them by default—yet you suddenly claim they owe you labor for eating a little?”
“No wonder none of you have ever managed to return to the city—there’s a reason for that!”
“Reflect on your actions! Tomorrow, I want each of you to write a 1,000-word self-criticism and read it in public. Understood?”
The old educated youths had grievances but didn’t dare voice them.
All they could do was respond meekly:
“Understood.”
Lin Ting and Zhong Shuhe exchanged glances, victorious smiles on their faces.
If you give in once, they’ll walk all over you. We’re not putting up with that.
As the group dispersed, Wen Chunlan suddenly rushed toward Lin Ting’s direction.
Lin Ting sensed her approach. She stood calmly, unmoving, and waited until Wen Chunlan was almost upon her—then sidestepped with agility.
A sharp scream followed:
“Ahhh!”
Wen Chunlan tumbled head-first into a nearby irrigation ditch, arms and legs flailing in the air. Her position was awkward and hilariously ridiculous.
Lin Ting reached out, pretending to help her up—but actually pushed her head further into the water.
With a smile, she whispered:
“This is what happens when you mess with me. Better remember it next time.”