Time flew by, and it was already December. Two light snowfalls had passed in between. Xu Ning, apart from fetching water, hardly left the house. The two children stayed indoors reading picture books and practicing writing, while she spent her time reading and sewing clothes.

Today, Xu Ning planned to make a trip into town to take some things out from her space. Yesterday, when she went to the village to grind flour, she overheard some villagers saying that heavy snow was expected in the next few days. Once it snowed, the mountain roads would be closed. Many villagers were already heading into town to stock up on supplies before the snow came.

After finishing breakfast, Xu Ning put on her coat, got on her bicycle, and set off. As she reached the entrance of the village, she saw Old Chen driving his ox cart toward town as well. The cart was mostly occupied by people from the educated youth center. Most of the villagers preferred to walk, as walking not only kept them warm in the cold weather but also saved a few pennies that could be spent on buying candy for their children.

Xu Ning pedaled swiftly past them on her bicycle. Wei Lanlan, sitting on the ox cart, wanted to call out to her, but before she could open her mouth, Xu Ning had already passed by in a blur. Lin Qiuhua, sitting beside her, sneered and said, “Trying to cozy up to her, huh? Do you think she even cares about you?”

Wei Lanlan responded, “I’m not trying to cozy up to anyone. It’s just normal interaction. I’m not like some people who only think about taking advantage of others, bullying them because they’re younger, skimping on their food, and forcing two little kids to build a house and live on their own.”

The other educated youths on the cart exchanged confused glances. They had no idea about this situation; they only knew that the siblings who lived in the house at the back didn’t really interact with the people from the educated youth camp.

Lin Qiuhua, embarrassed and angry, snapped, “Who are you talking about? Who skimped on their food? Who forced them to build a house? It was their decision to move out!”

Wei Lanlan shot her a mocking look and said, “I didn’t name anyone. Why are you feeling guilty? You know exactly what you did.”

After that, she ignored Lin Qiuhua and turned to Yang Xiaomei, who was sitting beside her. Laughing, she said, “Hey, did you see how fast Xu Zhiqing was pedaling her bike? Those little legs of hers barely reach the pedals, but she sure can ride fast!”

Yang Xiaomei burst out laughing, remembering how Xu Ning had wiggled her hips while pedaling.

Xu Ning had no idea about the argument happening on the ox cart, and even if she had known, she wouldn’t have cared much. She had already arrived at the supply and marketing cooperative, which was particularly crowded that day. Without greeting Su Hongying, she quickly bought what she needed and left.

On her way back, her hands were freezing stiff from the cold. Xu Ning decided she wouldn’t be heading into town again anytime soon. As she neared the house, she took the items she had prepared out of her space.

Inside, Xu An and Xu Mo were sitting on the heated kang, roasting pine nuts. The moment Xu Ning walked in, Xu Mo cheerfully called out, “Sis, come quick! Second Brother and I shelled all these pine nuts for you. We’ve been waiting for you to come back and eat them!”

Xu Ning looked at the plate of neatly shelled pine nuts on the kang and immediately felt a warm surge in her heart, forgetting the cold. She took off her shoes and sat on the kang. Xu An handed her a cup of hot water to warm her hands.

In the afternoon, Jianmin, Da Lin, and Er Dan came over to play with Xu An. Xu Ning gave each of them two candies before leaving them to their own devices. Lately, whenever she had free time, she would take out her old junior high and high school textbooks to review. Even though she had attended a prestigious university back in her original life, she realized there were still seven or eight years before the national college entrance exams here, and she was worried she might forget everything if she didn’t study.

The kids spent the whole afternoon playing and roughhousing on the kang. When it was time for them to leave, Xu An came over to Xu Ning and said, “Sis, Jianmin and the others said it’s going to snow soon, and they’re worried they won’t be able to come over to play. They want to borrow a few of our picture books to take home.”

Xu Ning smiled and patted his head, saying, “Little An, those picture books were bought for you and Little Mo. Since Jianmin and the others are your friends, you can lend the books to them without asking me.”

Xu An beamed and nodded. “Thanks, Sis!” He then ran off to tell Jianmin and the others, excitedly saying that his sister had agreed and even told him he could decide for himself. The room soon filled with the cheerful laughter of the children.