That afternoon, Lu Qingyuan and Chunhong went to look for bamboo shoots. They were busy digging around the base of the bamboo stalks when they suddenly heard a faint, sorrowful sobbing sound.

Both of them froze in place.

“Qingyuan,” Chunhong, who was afraid of certain things, trembled as she moved closer to Lu Qingyuan. “Did you hear that?”

Her voice was barely above a whisper, as if she were afraid of disturbing something unseen.

Lu Qingyuan, however, wasn’t scared because the livestream had started earlier and, through the livestream positioned on Chunhong’s head, she saw that the person hiding in the forest and crying was Zheng Xiaoxin.

【Why is she crying?】

【I just read the latest text update. She’s crying because that guy surnamed Chen scolded her for bullying Zhao Zhiyi.】

Lu Qingyuan gently reassured her friend. “I heard it too, but it sounds like a person.”

“Don’t—don’t try to comfort me.” Chunhong’s face was pale as she gripped Lu Qingyuan’s wrist. Her voice trembled in sync with the sobbing.

“You don’t know… Several people were buried in this bamboo grove long ago. Over time, their graves became smaller and smaller, and since no one came to pay respects, they turned into little mounds. People like us, who don’t know any better, would just assume they were regular dirt mounds!”

Lu Qingyuan’s hands were covered in mud, so she couldn’t hug her. Instead, she leaned over and pressed her cheek against Chunhong’s cold face. “You don’t believe me? I recognized the voice. It sounds like Zheng Xiaoxin.”

【Aww, Xiao Qingyuan taking the initiative to comfort Chunhong is so cute!】

【Qingyuan’s ears are so sharp, but Chunhong’s reaction is hilarious!】

【LOL, look at Chunhong—her legs are shaking while she squats!】

“Wait, Zheng Xiaoxin?” Chunhong’s teeth were chattering. Thinking about what had happened in the fields that morning, she swallowed nervously. “Could it be… she lost the fight with Zhao Zhiyi and decided to end it all?”

Lu Qingyuan: ……

【???】

【Zheng Xiaoxin: Hey! Look me in the eyes when you say that!】

【Some people are alive, yet in certain mouths, they are already dead.】

Lu Qingyuan nearly laughed at the barrage of comments. She held it in and gently pulled Chunhong up, signaling for her to follow her eastward.

Although Chunhong was scared, she still got up and followed her friend.

After walking for two minutes, they saw Zheng Xiaoxin crouched behind a patch of grass, dressed in a cyan-colored spring jacket made of Dacron, crying softly.

“Who’s there?”

Hearing footsteps, Zheng Xiaoxin turned around in fright and shouted.

“It’s me, Lu Qingyuan.”

“And me, Chunhong.”

When she saw that it was really a living person, Chunhong breathed a sigh of relief and her face returned to its usual rosy color.

She was naturally outgoing.

Noticing Zheng Xiaoxin’s red, swollen eyes and pitiful appearance, she couldn’t help but try to comfort her.

“Losing a fight is no big deal, but why cry about it? You have such a pretty face, but now your eyes are all swollen. That’s not a good look.”

Hearing the compliment, Zheng Xiaoxin felt a little awkward. She turned her head away and sniffled. “It’s not about losing the fight. I’m crying for another reason.”

Chunhong squatted beside her. “No matter the reason, you shouldn’t hide and cry. You should fight back!”

【Well said!】

【I never expected Chunhong, who’s always focused on romance, to come up with such solid advice!】

【But honestly, the way they’re squatting together makes it look like they’re… you know.】

【LOL, true! One looks constipated from crying, the other looks like she’s trying to comfort her while feeling relieved herself.】

Lu Qingyuan shut her eyes. She couldn’t look at the comments anymore, afraid she might burst out laughing.

But since they were all squatting down to talk, she felt weird standing there. So, she set down her bamboo basket and sat on it.

Her father’s woven basket was sturdy. At only about ninety pounds, she had no problem sitting on it.

Meanwhile, Zheng Xiaoxin shook her head. “I can’t fight back… it’s all my fault.”

“What do you mean? Tell us. We’re very good at keeping secrets. Holding everything in will only make you feel worse.”

Chunhong encouraged her and even gestured for Lu Qingyuan to back her up.

Lu Qingyuan nodded and added dryly, “Yeah, we’re very good at keeping secrets.”

Maybe Chunhong’s words struck a chord with her, because Zheng Xiaoxin took out a handkerchief, wiped her face, and shifted her numb legs.

【Looks like her legs have gone numb.】

Golden text flashed across the screen.

Lu Qingyuan also thought it looked like that.

She didn’t dare to laugh and quickly averted her gaze.

“Alright… I’ll tell you,” Zheng Xiaoxin said hesitantly. “I… I like someone. I really, really like him. We grew up together, childhood sweethearts.”

As she spoke, tears welled up in her eyes again.

“When we played house as kids, I was always his bride. But now that we’ve grown up, he doesn’t like me anymore. He likes someone else… wuwuwu…”

She cried bitterly, tears and snot flowing down her face.

Chunhong and Lu Qingyuan exchanged glances. Just as they were about to step forward to comfort her, Zheng Xiaoxin wiped her face, blew her nose, and continued.

“But he’s miserable too because the person he likes doesn’t even see him. No matter what I do, he always thinks I’m causing trouble on purpose.”

“Setting aside our childhood friendship, how could he think of me that way? Am I really such a vicious girl? Wuuu wuuu wuuu…”

Chunhong seemed to be deep in thought. “So, your childhood friend likes Educated Youth Zhao, but Educated Youth Zhao doesn’t like him. Today, you and Educated Youth Zhao got into a fight over something else, but your childhood friend thinks you started it, so he secretly cursed at you?”

“…It’s not Educated Youth Zhao. Don’t guess randomly.”

【Suddenly, Zheng Xiaoxin doesn’t seem so bad.】

【Yeah, at least she didn’t badmouth Zhao Zhiyi.】

【It’s all the damn man’s fault!】

“Alright, not Educated Youth Zhao,” Lu Qingyuan nodded. “Educated Youth Zheng, it’s painful to like someone who doesn’t like you. If his heart already belongs to someone else, it’s even more painful.”

“Exactly. No matter what you do, as long as it affects the person he likes, he will think you’re doing it on purpose.”

Chunhong added, “There are so many men in the world. Just find someone else to like.”

【…Chunhong, you should sit this one out. That’s not something you should be saying.】

【Yeah, back then, you fell in love at first sight and were dead set on marrying him. Even when your mother saw that he didn’t like you, you insisted that you could warm his cold heart.】

【But Chunhong probably didn’t know that the man already had someone in his heart, right?】

【She really didn’t. That man was secretly dating his first love, who was later married off by her family. After she became a widow, they got back together in secret.】

Lu Qingyuan pursed her lips when she saw the barrage of comments.

“Do you have someone you like?” Zheng Xiaoxin suddenly asked.

“No.” Chunhong shook her head.

“No wonder you can say that.” Zheng Xiaoxin wiped away her tears. “I can’t control my heart. I just like him.”

“Then why don’t you confess to him?” Chunhong thought for a moment. “If you confess multiple times and he rejects you every time, the pain and tears in your heart will gradually fade with each rejection.”

“When you hear him reject you again, but you don’t feel anything and there are no more tears, that means you’ve finally let go.”

Zheng Xiaoxin opened her mouth in surprise and stared at her. “Will that really work?”

“…What if she gets scolded badly after just one confession?” Lu Qingyuan asked.

“If one time is enough to make her give up, that would be perfect,” Chunhong said seriously. “If his heart was empty, I’d believe you could warm it up, but he already has someone in his heart, Educated Youth Zheng.”

“For example, if you already like someone, and a guy you’ve known since childhood suddenly confesses to you, would you accept him?”

“Of course not!”

Zheng Xiaoxin blurted out without hesitation.

Then, she saw both Lu Qingyuan and Chunhong staring at her.

【At this moment, silence speaks louder than words.】

Zheng Xiaoxin’s tears were still on her face. After a long pause, she pursed her lips and said, “I get it now.”

Lu Qingyuan: ?? Get what??

“Good girl, stop hurting yourself,” Chunhong said cheerfully. If her hands weren’t covered in mud, she would have patted her on the back. “Girls should live brightly and happily.”

“Mm.” Zheng Xiaoxin smiled. “Thank you, both of you.”

For a moment, when they questioned her, she suddenly realized that if someone she didn’t like kept pestering her, no matter how long they had known each other, she would still find them annoying—even repulsive.

“I’m glad you figured it out. Are you heading back to work? If not, come dig for spring bamboo shoots with us!”

Chunhong extended an enthusiastic invitation.

“No, I’ll go back to work.” Zheng Xiaoxin got up. “Next time I have free time, I’ll come hang out with you.”

“Alright.” Lu Qingyuan nodded and told her where she lived. Chunhong also shared her address.

Zheng Xiaoxin had a sharp memory and immediately knew where both of them lived.

Before leaving, she suddenly leaned closer to Lu Qingyuan and said, “You’re really pretty. Do you have someone you like? My older brother is a great guy.”

Lu Qingyuan was startled, then chuckled. “I have a partner.”

“Yeah, and they fell in love at first sight!” Chunhong cackled beside her.

【Hahaha, little bald head!】

【Hahaha, stop calling him that! He already has a layer of fuzz growing back!】

【I’m going to check the novel updates to see what the fuzzy-headed man has been up to lately.】

【Me too!】

Shortly after Zheng Xiaoxin left, the livestream ended, and the fan count increased by 28.

Lu Qingyuan and Chunhong continued searching for bamboo shoots.

But they had only gathered a few when it started raining.

The two had no choice but to part ways and hurry home.

On the way back, Lu Qingyuan ran into Father Lu and the others. Lu Qingming plopped a straw hat onto her head.

“Big Brother, why are you wearing a straw hat?”

It was cloudy today.

“Didn’t Dad say this morning that it might rain?”

“Oh, right.”

Seeing the rain get heavier, Lu Qingyuan couldn’t help but admire her father. “Dad, you’re amazing at reading the weather.”

“Of course. That’s an old farmer’s skill.”

Lu Qingtian grinned, praising their father.

Father Lu, walking ahead, smiled. “You all need to learn how to read the sky. You’re grown now. You can’t rely on me forever.”

“Got it!”

By the time they reached home, they saw Lu Qingguo sitting in front of Mother Lu, his face red with embarrassment.

Second Uncle Lu and his wife immediately stepped forward to ask about the matchmaking.

Mother Lu beamed. “His fifth aunt just came back and said they got along well. The young lady is a bit shy, but she’s willing to spend more time with Qingguo. This match is as good as settled!”