Chapter 10.2

The two of them stared wide-eyed in disbelief, but no matter how hard they stared, the empty plate cruelly reminded them that the meat had been taken.

A nearby aunt, noticing Meng Yinyin and Yu Xiaoyu standing awkwardly from a distance, with faces full of helplessness, laughed and shared her wisdom.

“Ah, this is how we eat at a feast here. You have to be quick with your hands and eyes, or else you won’t get anything!”

After all, it was May or June, not quite time for slaughtering the pigs for the year, and the preserved meats from the beginning of the year were almost gone. This was the time when everyone craved meat.

So, people were naturally a little too fast when it came to grabbing food.

Meng Yinyin and Yu Xiaoyu just wanted to cry.

The problem was, they also craved the meat, and they had come all the way to the feast, shamelessly hoping to enjoy it. But who would have thought that they wouldn’t even get a single slice of meat?

They exchanged a look, and despite their disappointment, they could only accept the reality.

In the end, they sadly ate the vegetarian dishes on the table, and their movements unconsciously sped up.

After all, seeing the others eat so quickly, if they didn’t hurry, they’d probably end up without any vegetables either.

All in all, this meal was one where the two of them ate without tasting the food, feeling none of the joy they had before coming.

When the feast ended, just as Meng Yinyin and Yu Xiaoyu were about to leave, Jiang Guihua walked over with an unwilling expression and called out to Meng Yinyin.

“Educated Youth Meng, my in-law asked me to tell you that she was too busy today to talk to you. She said next time, if you’re free, you can come to town to visit her. She works at the textile factory in town, her name is Zhao Shufen. Just go find her.”

Meng Yinyin looked up in confusion, then remembered that in the morning, the groom’s mother, Mother Wang, had mentioned something to her, saying she would talk to her after lunch.

However, back then, although Meng Yinyin had agreed, she didn’t think much of it. Before the meal, she had seen Mother Wang and the others leaving with the wedding procession to head back to town, and she had secretly felt relieved.

After all, she had only met Mother Wang once and had no idea what she wanted to talk to her about.

Who knew, even though they had left, Mother Wang had specially sent Jiang Guihua to pass on the message.

Meng Yinyin thought to herself that they were not related at all, so why should he look for her? Besides, the town was so far away, she was too lazy to go.

But she simply said, “Oh, okay,” to acknowledge it.

Seeing that she didn’t take the matter seriously, Jiang Guihua felt that Meng Yinyin was really ungrateful. The Wang family was willing to associate with her because they thought highly of her. At the same time, she couldn’t help but feel secretly happy. This girl was really short-sighted. She didn’t know how to seize such a good opportunity. It seemed that she was really stupid.

But regardless of how Meng Yinyin felt, Jiang Guihua had delivered the message, and if Meng Yinyin didn’t go, she’d be happy about it.

Jiang Guihua quickly turned and left, while Yu Xiaoyu, curious, asked Meng Yinyin what Jiang Guihua had meant.

Meng Yinyin, equally confused, explained the conversation with Mother Wang from earlier.

Like Meng Yinyin, Yu Xiaoyu had no idea that the Wang family still had an unmarried second son. After thinking for a while, she could only guess that Mother Wang, noticing how good-looking Meng Yinyin was, might want to get closer to her.

By this time, most of the other guests had already left, and Meng Yinyin and Yu Xiaoyu decided to head back to the Educated Youth point.

However, just as they were about to leave Lu Dashan’s yard, Meng Yinyin suddenly stopped and, with a mysterious expression, told Yu Xiaoyu.

“Xiaoyu, wait for me under the big tree ahead. I’m going to grab something!”

Yu Xiaoyu responded with an “Oh,” not thinking much of it. She assumed Meng Yinyin had forgotten something at Lu Dashan’s house. She was about to offer to go back with her, but before she could speak, Meng Yinyin had already darted into the neighboring yard.

Yu Xiaoyu: “?”

Wait, where was she going?

Meng Yinyin’s destination was, of course, Lu Chen’s house. She hadn’t forgotten that she had left some dried meat there.

Earlier during the meal, she had intended to tell Lu Chen, but after looking around, she couldn’t find him. She wasn’t sure if she had missed him in the crowd or if he had finished eating and gone back early.

Now, since she happened to be passing by, she decided to go directly to pick it up.

Perhaps because the local customs in Nanjiao Brigade were simple, people didn’t usually close their doors during the day. So, Meng Yinyin had no trouble pushing open the gate and entering Lu Chen’s yard.

As soon as she entered, she saw Lu Chen sitting on a small bench in the main room, holding a bowl and eating.

Meng Yinyin was stunned, thinking that Lu Chen had just returned from the neighboring yard after not having enough to eat. But then she noticed the faint white smoke rising from the stove in the corner of the yard, indicating that someone had just cooked.

The meal at the neighboring house had ended only recently. No matter how fast Lu Chen was, it was impossible for him to have cooked a full meal in such a short amount of time.

So, he hadn’t been at the neighboring house for the meal at all? Or perhaps he had started cooking before the meal began?

Suddenly, it dawned on Meng Yinyin, and she quickly realized the truth.

She remembered how Jiang Guihua had looked at Lu Chen with disdain earlier. She now understood—Lu Chen had deliberately avoided staying in the neighboring house during the wedding, not wanting to disrupt the ceremony or make anyone uncomfortable. After helping set up everything at the neighboring house, he had quietly left and gone to eat alone at his own home.

Just thinking about it made Meng Yinyin angry.

On one hand, she was furious with Jiang Guihua and Lu Dashan. They only told Lu Chen to work but didn’t even realize he hadn’t stayed to eat. On the other hand, she was upset with Lu Chen for being so considerate, thinking of others, and deliberately avoiding them.

How could this person be so troublesome?

Meng Yinyin couldn’t help but glare at Lu Chen.

Lu Chen noticed her gaze and looked up. When he saw her, he paused for a moment before quickly reacting.

He put down his bowl and quickly said to her, “Wait a moment.”

Then he turned and went into the inner room.

He knew Meng Yinyin was there to get the jerky.

Outside the yard, Yu Xiaoyu, initially curious about which house Meng Yinyin had entered, casually glanced toward the courtyard. When she saw a familiar figure, she was shocked.

Lu Chen!

Realizing Meng Yinyin had come to find Lu Chen, Yu Xiaoyu froze, calling out anxiously, “Yinyin!”

Her tone was so urgent, as if Meng Yinyin had walked into a trap.

Meng Yinyin turned around, about to explain, but when she saw Lu Chen had come out, she simply waved at Yu Xiaoyu, then looked back at Lu Chen.

As she turned back, Lu Chen noticed Yu Xiaoyu outside the yard.

He recognized her as one of the educated youth from the brigade and saw the tense, worried expression on her face.

Lowering his eyes, Lu Chen silently handed the jerky back to Meng Yinyin and said quietly, “Your friend is waiting for you.”

Implying that she should go out quickly.

Meng Yinyin still had a lot to say to him, but she knew Yu Xiaoyu was waiting, so she could only take the jerky with a straight face, glancing at Lu Chen.

He kept his head lowered, so she couldn’t see his expression. Finally, Meng Yinyin sighed, puffing up her cheeks, and said,

“Forget it. I’ll talk to you tomorrow. I’m leaving!”

Since she had already decided to consider Lu Chen, she had to pay attention to things like this.

For example, in situations like today, she would need to talk to him and tell him not to be so kind, there was no need to go out of his way!

Kindness is a good virtue, but when you’re too accommodating to others, it’s yourself who ends up losing out.

It seemed like she really needed to explain this to Lu Chen!

In the end, Meng Yinyin could only give Lu Chen one last deep look, take the jerky, and leave.

What she didn’t know was that Lu Chen had chosen to eat at home, not just because he was too lazy to deal with others’ gazes, but also because he thought the food at the feast next door wasn’t as good as his own cooking. The key point was that they were eating as a big group, sharing one plate of meat, while he could have an entire basin of meat to himself.

So he didn’t care about the meal next door at all.

Unfortunately, when Meng Yinyin arrived, she only saw his empty bowl, not the mound of meat he had before, or else she might have been envious enough to cry.

Outside the yard.

When Yu Xiaoyu saw Meng Yinyin finally come out, she hurriedly grabbed her hand and led her away from Lu Chen’s doorstep.

Only when they were a good distance from Lu Chen’s house did she nervously ask Meng Yinyin what she had gone to see Lu Chen for.

Meng Yinyin, seeing her concern, casually opened her hand to show Yu Xiaoyu.

When Yu Xiaoyu saw the jerky in Meng Yinyin’s hand, she was stunned.

“Where did this jerky come from?”

“Lu Chen gave it to me,” Meng Yinyin said, generously breaking off half of it for Yu Xiaoyu. She then explained seriously, “Xiaoyu, Lu Chen is actually a really good person. His temper is much better than you think. He seems like someone who would bully others, but actually, he’s the one who gets bullied!”

Huh? What does that mean?

Yu Xiaoyu was confused again.

Seeing her expression, Meng Yinyin indignantly recounted how Jiang Guihua would complain about Lu Chen while shamelessly telling him what to do, and then even didn’t leave him any food.

Yu Xiaoyu couldn’t believe it after hearing this. What Meng Yinyin said was starting to overturn everything she thought she knew.

“Anyway, Lu Chen is actually really miserable and pitiful. You should stop looking at him like that in the future. He will definitely feel uncomfortable if he sees it…”

As she spoke, Meng Yinyin couldn’t hold back and finally popped a piece of jerky into her mouth, then shoved one into Yu Xiaoyu’s hand.

Like Meng Yinyin, Yu Xiaoyu hadn’t had meat in a long time, and she couldn’t resist chewing the jerky the moment it hit her mouth.

Then she let out a heartfelt sigh.

It was so delicious!

But as she continued eating, she gradually realized that the jerky was from Lu Chen, and her expression turned a little embarrassed.

Now that she thought about it, Lu Chen really hadn’t done anything wrong. She had made the same mistake as everyone else—judging him by his appearance.

That wasn’t right.

Realizing her mistake, she quickly apologized, “I won’t do that again.”

Meng Yinyin smiled when she saw this.

“It’s fine. I know you just didn’t understand him, but he’s really a good person.”

Yu Xiaoyu looked at Meng Yinyin’s smile, feeling like she had something she wanted to say but couldn’t.

Why did it feel like Meng Yinyin cared so much about Lu Chen?

Was she overthinking it?

But after thinking it over, Yu Xiaoyu decided that Meng Yinyin was probably just being kind, so she didn’t bring it up again. The two of them continued walking toward the educated youth point, savoring the jerky.

As they passed the village entrance, they suddenly saw a jeep driving up. Meng Yinyin and Yu Xiaoyu both stopped curiously and exchanged a glance.

There’s actually a car coming here?

Could it be someone important from the brigade?

While they were surprised, two soldiers wearing military uniforms got out of the jeep. One of them walked to the back seat, opened the door, bent down, and carried someone out of the back seat.

After the soldier carrying the person on his back took a few steps forward, Meng Yinyin and Yu Xiaoyu finally saw the person on his back.

It was a man who appeared handsome but had a slightly pale complexion.

The man’s upper body was lying across the soldier’s shoulder, while his legs hung limply beneath, looking as though they were broken.

Who was this person?

°.✩┈┈∘*┈˃̶୨୧˂̶┈*∘┈┈✩.°

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