Chapter 17 – Sheng Yanchuan, Who Lives Off His Face

As the sun dipped lower in the sky, casting long shadows over the fields, everyone continued to labor with their backs to the sky and faces to the soil.

The end-of-work horn finally blared, and Nan Qiao stood up, supporting her sore back.

Looking over at Shen Nian not far away, she grinned and said, “The glorious and noble labor has come to an end!”

“You’ve got so much energy,” Shen Nian laughed as she looked at the cheerful Nan Qiao.

“Well, what choice do I have? We still have to work anyway. Whether you’re happy or not, the day still passes, right?”

With that, the two of them headed off to return their tools and have their work points recorded.

Each of them had earned six work points for the day—a great result for their first time working in the fields. Both Nan Qiao and Shen Nian were visibly proud. If they kept this up, they might even be able to send some food and money back home by the end of the year. This was their very first income—something truly precious.

While registering their work points, Shen Nian couldn’t help but laugh when she saw that Dong Jiayan and her group had only earned two points each.

Once they were outside the workpoint office, Shen Nian leaned in and whispered to Nan Qiao, “Qiao Qiao, did you see how many points Dong Jiayan and the others got? Just two for the whole day! Even little kids gathering firewood could earn more than that.”

“They were probably too busy gossiping…” Nan Qiao also hadn’t expected those girls to accomplish so little. It wasn’t like their families were wealthy—how were they planning to survive at this rate?

Still, that was none of her business. She had her own life to worry about.

Rather than fret over them, she’d better start thinking about what they would eat tonight…

After logging their points, Nan Qiao and Shen Nian strolled back home.

The roads were full of aunties and uncles rushing home with hurried steps.

Occasionally, a few folks with more free time sat chatting on stone stools in front of their gates. As the two girls passed by, one elder aunt called out to them.

“Girls, you’re the ones staying at Auntie Xiumei’s place, right?” The woman called out to Nan Qiao.

“Yes, Auntie. The housing for the educated youth hasn’t been built yet, so we’re temporarily staying in Auntie Xiumei’s old house,” Nan Qiao politely replied.

“You’re not eating at her place?” the auntie asked again, clearly not ready to let them go just yet.

“No, we cook for ourselves.”

“Oh my, such a pretty girl, and she can cook too. She’d be a good match for Xiumei’s youngest son—though I’m not sure if that boy can fix his wild ways,” the auntie sighed as she looked Nan Qiao up and down.

Nan Qiao immediately understood who she was talking about. If there was one thing village aunties loved more than gossip, it was matchmaking!

Sure enough, it didn’t take more than a few sentences before she got paired with Sheng Yanchuan again.

With the whole Su Mu situation from this afternoon still unresolved, the last thing she needed was more rumors. She quickly responded, “Auntie, I’m still young. Marriage is a long way off.”

Before the auntie could say more, Nan Qiao added, “Auntie, we’ll head home now. We’ve still got to cook.”

She flashed a small smile, grabbed Shen Nian, and hurried off.

As they walked away, Nan Qiao muttered, “These village aunties are really something. They don’t work but love gossiping all day. It’s like they’re on a mission to pair every young man and woman in the village!”

“Well, they’ve got nothing better to do. Now that work’s over, their daughters-in-law are cooking dinner—they’ve got time to kill. Honestly, someone should find them something useful to do so they stop spreading nonsense…” Shen Nian grumbled, clearly annoyed.

There were old ladies like that in her alley back home too. Not only did they gossip about everyone’s business, but they loved to exaggerate. So irritating!

Seeing Shen Nian’s indignant face, Nan Qiao raised an eyebrow. “Sounds like our dear Nian Nian has been burned by them before?”

Shen Nian lightly punched her arm and replied, “It’s not that bad… I just really don’t like it. There was an older girl in my neighborhood once—because of gossip spread by those aunties, her reputation was ruined. She ended up marrying a widower, and her whole life was wrecked.”

Shen Nian got more upset the more she spoke. Nan Qiao frowned slightly at her story.

Gossip might seem harmless, but when it destroyed someone’s entire life, it stopped being a joke.

She didn’t care much about what these aunties said, but given the era she was living in, she knew she had to tread carefully.

The two girls fell into a thoughtful silence.

Nan Qiao, deep in thought, didn’t notice someone in front of her and accidentally bumped into them.

She instinctively stepped back and stumbled, nearly falling.

The person she bumped into grabbed her arm, steadying her, then quickly let go like he’d been burned.

Nan Qiao looked up and saw that it was Sheng Yanchuan.

Sure, she had been distracted—but wasn’t he also walking right in the middle of the road? Couldn’t he see her?

Even though she was irritated, she still apologized politely for not watching where she was going.

“Sorry, I was thinking about something just now.”

Shen Nian, noticing Sheng Yanchuan seemed to want to say something, and seeing they were already at the courtyard gate where there weren’t many people around, said, “You two talk—I’ll go inside and start the fire.”

She was realizing she was really enjoying the whole fire-starting thing these days.

Once Shen Nian went inside, Sheng Yanchuan finally opened his mouth. “What were you thinking about?”

“Huh?” Nan Qiao was caught off guard. Who actually asked someone that so directly?

Seeing she didn’t answer, he asked again, “You weren’t looking at the road—what were you thinking about? That canteen?”

His gaze shifted from her face down to the canteen in her arms, his tone low and probing.

Nan Qiao glanced down at the canteen, puzzled by his behavior, but still answered, “No… just thinking about other things.”

Hearing her denial, Sheng Yanchuan’s tone softened. “If you don’t have any special feelings for him, I can return the canteen for you. After all, going to the male educated youths’ dorm just to give back a canteen isn’t exactly appropriate—for your sake.”

His low, husky voice brushed past her ear.

It was deep and magnetic. With his head slightly lowered, his handsome, serious features were now fixed right on her.

Nan Qiao was momentarily dazed. She had to admit, compared to Su Mu, Sheng Yanchuan’s face was more her type. If he were wearing a suit, he’d be the perfect suave scoundrel!

Seeing her dumbfounded stare, Sheng Yanchuan suddenly realized how he should deal with this girl…

For the first time, he thought: Maybe this face of mine is actually useful.

So, he deliberately lowered his voice and spoke with a lingering, almost flirtatious gentleness, “Let me return it for you, alright?”

With his stunning face and enticing tone, Nan Qiao felt like her ears were about to get pregnant! She didn’t even process what he was saying—she just instinctively nodded.

Seeing this, Sheng Yanchuan gave a subtle smirk, reached into her arms for the canteen, and placed a small tin of ointment into her hand before saying—

“This ointment is very effective for sunburn. Apply it before bed tonight, and you’ll be fine tomorrow.”

Hearing that, Nan Qiao obediently nodded.

Seeing the girl’s compliant expression, Sheng Yanchuan felt a warmth in his heart, and the smile on his face grew even brighter. Glancing up at the darkening sky, he said, “You should go inside. I’ll head off first.”

Nan Qiao dazedly walked into the courtyard, and it wasn’t until she was inside that she snapped back to her senses.

Looking down at her now-empty arms where she used to hold the canteen, she finally realized what had just happened.

That man… was seducing her just now??

And she… actually fell for it??

Once again, Nan Qiao felt embarrassed for being such a shallow fool.

She’d come to realize that whether it was the original host or herself, both were absolute suckers for good looks. As soon as they saw a handsome face, they were completely defenseless…

But she refused to admit she was boy-crazy. No, this was the natural human pursuit of beauty — totally normal behavior!

To be fair, him taking the canteen also saved her a chore.

Wait — no, that’s not right!

Nan Qiao suddenly halted her steps.

She couldn’t return it herself, but Sheng Yanchuan could just go over and return it for her??? How was she supposed to explain that if anyone found out?!

She was speechless.

Turning her head to look around, Sheng Yanchuan was already long gone. It was too late to chase him, so she could only let it go.

Still, she silently vowed that next time, she had to seize the upper hand and never let him mock her again!

When Nan Qiao returned to the courtyard, Shen Nian had already lit the fire and was waiting obediently for her.

As soon as she saw Nan Qiao come in, Shen Nian eagerly ran up and asked with gossip gleaming in her eyes, “What did Brother Sheng want from you?”

Nan Qiao didn’t want anyone to know how she’d just been played like a fool, so she half-truthed her way through it. “He gave me a small tin of ointment. I guess Aunt Xiumei somehow found out I got sunburned and asked him to bring it to me.”

She showed Shen Nian the little tin in her hand as she spoke.

Shen Nian looked a little disappointed—she’d thought there was going to be some juicy gossip.

“It was probably when I went to borrow a straw hat from Aunt Xiumei at noon. She wanted to give me medicine then, but I turned it down. Maybe she got worried later and had Brother Sheng bring it over.”

“That makes sense,” Shen Nian agreed.

Nan Qiao was a little disappointed herself. She had initially thought Sheng Yanchuan had feelings for her, which was why he was being so attentive. Turns out, it was just Aunt Xiumei being kind. Looks like she was overthinking things again.

Nan Qiao reached up to touch her own soft, smooth cheeks, and narcissistically wondered… maybe this face was just too beautiful—it made people afraid to get close!

“Anyway, now that you’re back, Qiao Qiao, the fire’s ready. What are we cooking for dinner?”

That snapped Nan Qiao out of her musings. No time for vanity—dinner had to be sorted.

“How about we make some vegetarian dumplings? Cabbage, glass noodles, and egg filling. We can make a lot, and there’ll be enough left for lunch tomorrow.”

“Sounds good! But… do you know how to make dough?” Shen Nian asked worriedly.

“Relax, I’ll do the dough. You start soaking the glass noodles and wash the cabbage.”

Shen Nian nodded and got to work: soaking the noodles, boiling some water, and then washing and chopping vegetables.

Meanwhile, Nan Qiao grabbed a basin from the kitchen and started kneading dough.

Before transmigrating, she’d loved noodles and was especially skilled at making dough.

While the girls busied themselves with cooking…

Sheng Yanchuan was in a very good mood, carrying the canteen as he strolled over to the male educated youth’s courtyard.

It was dinner time, and the courtyard was just as lively as the girls’ place.

Sheng Yanchuan stood at the gate for a while, but he didn’t see Su Mu. So, he called out to the nearest male youth.

“Wang Feng, where’s that new guy in the green shirt?”

Wang Feng looked over and, seeing Sheng Yanchuan, responded warmly, “Oh, it’s Yanchuan! The one in the green shirt should be Su Mu. He’s the only one who always wears that color.”

Sheng Yanchuan had a good reputation in the village, and though he was a native, he treated the educated youths with unexpected politeness, unlike the usual rough villagers.

They’d even chatted a few times while riding his tractor into town, so there was some rapport. Seeing him now was a pleasant surprise.

“Yeah, that’s him. Where is he? Could you call him for me?” Sheng Yanchuan asked.

Wang Feng peeked into the house but didn’t see him. He called out to the kitchen, “Li Zhuoran, do you know where Su Mu is?”

Right on cue, Li Zhuoran’s voice came from the kitchen, “Feng-ge, I think Su Mu went to the backyard to fetch water. He should be back soon.”

Li Zhuoran stepped out of the kitchen just in time to spot Sheng Yanchuan at the gate, holding a familiar canteen. Though surprised, he instantly understood the situation.

He couldn’t help but find it amusing.

Man, this guy works fast.

Before he could say anything, Wang Feng’s voice rang out again: “Hey, speak of the devil—Su Mu, Yanchuan’s looking for you!”

“Looking for me?” Su Mu spotted Sheng Yanchuan at the gate. He knew who he was, but why was he looking for him?

As Su Mu walked over, he suddenly paused mid-step.

Why was his canteen in Sheng Yanchuan’s hand?

Li Zhuoran, now standing at the kitchen door, decided not to leave. He wanted to watch the drama unfold.

After all, the confrontation between romantic rivals was always exciting. This was a rare spectacle—how could he miss it? But how exactly did Sheng Yanchuan get the canteen from Nan Qiao…?

Sheng Yanchuan didn’t care one bit about being watched. In fact, when he noticed Zhuoran leaning on the doorframe with no intention of leaving, he even shot him a provocative look.

Then he turned back to Su Mu, his grin laced with roguish charm.

Compared to the lanky Su Mu, Sheng Yanchuan’s build looked much sturdier. Standing side by side, Su Mu seemed noticeably thin.

The moment Su Mu recognized the canteen, his brows furrowed and his expression turned stormy.

“You’re Su Mu, right? Here, take this,” Sheng Yanchuan said casually and tossed the canteen at him without caring whether Su Mu was happy to see it or not.

Su Mu caught it—the weight of it confirmed that Nan Qiao hadn’t taken a single sip.

His expression darkened even more.

“Where did you get this canteen?”

“Wherever you gave it, that’s where I got it,” Sheng Yanchuan replied, giving Su Mu a once-over as if he couldn’t understand how someone could ask such a dumb question…