Xu Ning returned home, fuming. She parked her bicycle and sorted through the items she had bought, planning to take some to the cattle shed later that evening.

Glancing at the time, she realized it was still a bit early to start cooking. She took out the letter from Lu Xiaotang and read it again. Ever since she received his telegram, there had been no news from him.

She wondered what mission he had been assigned and if he was in any danger. Sighing, she placed the letter back into her storage space.

Over four thousand kilometers away, at the border near Yushu Village, Lu Xiaotang had been in the primitive forest with a few of his subordinates and a select group of elite soldiers from the local forces for two days and two nights.

Lu Xiaotang had been urgently summoned back to military school and sent to the border to carry out a top-secret mission: to escort Professor Chen, a scientist returning to the motherland.

The journey home for Professor Chen had been fraught with challenges, and the team tasked with escorting him ultimately decided to take the route through the primitive forest back to China.

When gunfire erupted, Lu Xiaotang immediately grabbed his binoculars and looked toward the source of the noise. A small team was covering a bespectacled man and a seven- or eight-year-old boy, with a dozen camouflage-clad old soldiers following closely behind them.

Lu Xiaotang put away the binoculars and spoke to the man hiding behind a nearby tree. “Captain Gu, the target has appeared. You’re local and familiar with the routes here. You’ll need to cover Professor Chen’s exit while I take care of the rear.”

Gu Ling glanced at him and replied in a low voice, “The terrain here is quite complex, and those mercenaries are desperate. You all need to be very careful.”

Lu Xiaotang nodded in agreement and said, “Captain Gu, I’ll be extra cautious. Please ensure Professor Chen’s safe return to the country.”

After saying this, he signaled to his subordinates, who immediately snapped to attention, preparing for battle.

Gu Ling led his men to assist Professor Chen, confirming the code with the team escorting him before preparing to head back.

Meanwhile, Lu Xiaotang and his men readied themselves for a confrontation with the pursuers behind them.

Among those escorting Professor Chen was one who appeared to be their leader. He turned to Lu Xiaotang and warned, “Those guys behind us are all highly skilled and accurate with their guns. We’ve lost most of our brothers to them, so you need to be extremely cautious.”

Lu Xiaotang nodded and said, “You all hurry and escort Professor Chen out. Our troops are waiting outside to assist.”

Once Gu Ling had taken Professor Chen away, Lu Xiaotang turned to his subordinates and spoke in a serious tone, “Not a single one of you is allowed to fall behind. Understood?”

The men saluted and then concealed themselves, preparing for combat.

When Xu An returned, he was holding a letter. Xu Ning tossed the half-cut cabbage aside and took the letter from his hands. She glanced at the address and felt a bit disappointed when she saw it was sent by Lu Xiaoran. Nevertheless, she opened the letter, which informed her that she had given birth to a baby boy.

Xu Ning felt genuinely happy for her and handed the letter back to Xu An, asking him to take it along with some items to the cattle shed that evening.

Later that night, Xu An returned from the cattle shed with Xu Mo and told Xu Ning, “Sister, Aunt Lu asked you to help buy some cotton in the village. She wants to make two cotton outfits for Sister Xiaoran’s baby. She gave me money, but I didn’t take it. I told her that the money Big Brother Lu sent hasn’t been used up yet.”

Xu Ning nodded and replied, “I understand. I’ll go to the village tomorrow to ask around and see who has extra cotton.”

Xu Ning smiled at Xu Mo and said, “Oh, look who’s here! The jade-faced little tiger has come today. I haven’t seen you around these past few days. What have you been up to at home?”

Xu Mo sighed and replied, “What else can I do? I’ve been chatting with the elders, talking about life, and being filial. I went to the village with Grandpa Qi today. My brothers complain that I never have time to play with them. I feel like I can’t keep up with everything going on each day.”

Xu Ning looked at the young and wise Xu Mo and chuckled, “The jade-faced little tiger is so well-behaved and filial. Come here, sister will get you some treats.”

As Xu Mo sat on the kang eating pastries, he said, “Sister, I heard Grandpa Chen say today that he’s going to the township tomorrow to pick up some educated youth. Three more are coming this time.”

Upon hearing this, Xu Ning recalled that the book mentioned after the autumn harvest in 1972, Gu Wenping’s female classmate would come to the countryside, and she was the female supporting character who appeared most often in the story. It seemed that the educated youth center was about to become lively again.

Xu Ning asked, “Xiao Mo, has Lin Miao from the educated youth center spoken to you at all recently?”

Xu Mo finished his snack and replied, “No, ever since the last few times I asked her for candy and steamed buns, she’s ignored me. Now, when she sees me, she just avoids me.”

Xu Ning thought for a moment and cautioned, “Xiao Mo, from now on, keep your distance from Liu Fang at the educated youth camp. Don’t confront her openly, and avoid being alone with her, understand? She has a wicked heart.”

Xiao Mo looked puzzled and asked, “Sister, if we’re not supposed to confront her openly, then why did you hit her last time?”

Xu Ning ruffled his hair and replied, “Xiao Mo, I’m different from you. Here, both she and I are educated youth. I’m stronger than her, so she wouldn’t dare to challenge me.

But your situation is sensitive, and you’re still young. If she bullies you, you’ll have to endure it, and our parents can’t intervene easily.”

Xiao Mo nodded obediently and said, “Sister, I understand. I’ll be careful from now on.”

Seeing him so well-behaved, Xu Ning comforted him, “Xiao Mo, even if you can’t take her on yourself, you can always tell me. I’ll help you deal with her. Remember last time when I turned her into a pig’s head?”

Thinking of the way she had looked after that encounter made all three of them laugh.

After finishing breakfast, Xu Ning went out to buy cotton. Aunt Dashuan’s daughter-in-law was about to give birth, and the cotton they planted this year was only enough for their own use. Aunt Si didn’t plant any cotton this year either, so she went to San Nai’s house in the village to buy a few pounds. She planned to put it together with the cloth she had bought yesterday to deliver it that evening.

After having lunch, the sky turned overcast, and the wind picked up, making it look like it was going to snow. Noticing that there wasn’t much water left in the water tank, Xu Ning prepared to fetch a few buckets to fill it up.

As she headed out, she saw Old Chen driving a bullock cart into the educated youth camp. Three educated youth were sitting on the cart—two men and one woman—and there were several large bags of luggage on top. It seemed that among the three educated youth arriving this time, at least one came from a well-off family.

Xu Ning didn’t approach; she simply continued on her way to fetch water and returned home.

When Xu An came back from school, it had started to snow lightly. Seeing his sister busy in the kitchen, he put down his backpack and helped to start the fire.

He added some firewood to the stove and said, “Sister, on my way home from school, I ran into Uncle Dashuan and Uncle Si, who were pulling a cart back from the city. They were so happy to see me and said they wanted to thank you.”

Xu Ning then informed him about Su Hongying’s plans to buy cabbage and radishes.

After dinner, as the snow continued to fall heavier, Xu Ning said to Xu An, “Xiao An, I bought the cotton today. Could you take it over to Aunt Lu? Also, pick up Xiao Mo while you’re at it. With the snow coming down, not many people are out, so let him stay here and play for a few days. I’ll make some good food to nourish him.”

Xu An nodded and took the bundled cotton and cloth to the cattle shed.