Chapter 35: Four People, Four Bicycles

The meal had ended, but each person walked away with their own thoughts.

Surprisingly, Dong Jiayan and Wang Yuman didn’t pick a fight with Nan Qiao this time, which made Nan Qiao raise her brows a little. Based on their usual behavior—and considering her current closeness with Sheng Yanchuan—Nan Qiao didn’t believe Dong Jiayan could hold her tongue without a reason.

Maybe she was feeling particularly slighted by Su Mu today? Nan Qiao couldn’t think of any other explanation.

In truth, Dong Jiayan had indeed exercised a lot of restraint throughout the meal.

Especially watching the ambiguous interactions between Sheng Yanchuan and Nan Qiao, she was itching to expose them and shatter the fragile illusion between the two—to crush any hope Su Mu still held.

But when she saw the way Su Mu looked at Sheng Yanchuan, she decided to hold back. Exposing the relationship to disillusion Su Mu wasn’t the problem—it just couldn’t be traced back to her.

It had taken a whole week of pestering and soft talk to finally regain a sliver of Su Mu’s sympathy, enough for him to treat her like a fellow hometown comrade. If she stirred up more drama with Nan Qiao, Su Mu would definitely side with Nan Qiao and oppose her.

At that point, she’d have no room to maneuver. She couldn’t let that happen. Absolutely not.

As for Nan Qiao and Sheng Yanchuan…

Dong Jiayan thought of the two and sneered inwardly. Watching them interact, it was clear they were mutually interested, and it was only a matter of time before they made their relationship official. Still, she never imagined that the always-proud Nan Qiao would fall for someone like that…

Rough, uncultured, unrefined—aside from his looks, the man had nothing going for him. Nan Qiao’s taste had really taken a nosedive… Dong Jiayan grumbled to herself as she watched the two exchanging food.

After a while, when she saw that Shen Nian and Sheng Yanchuan had finished eating, Nan Qiao pulled out a lunchbox from her bag and packed up the leftover chicken and mushroom stew. Since the portions today were quite large and Sheng Yanchuan had also piled food into her bowl nonstop, she hadn’t eaten much of her own dish. Taking the leftovers home for dinner was just right.

“Where are you two going afterward?” Nan Qiao asked Shen Nian and Sheng Yanchuan beside her.

“I’ve got nothing planned. Wherever you want to go, I’ll go with you,” Sheng Yanchuan said in a low voice.

“I don’t really have anywhere in mind, but I’ve never been to the black market. Why don’t you take me there?” Nan Qiao asked with a mischievous gleam in her eye.

“Go… go to the black market? That’s not safe at all…” Sheng Yanchuan stiffened at her words, his voice faltering.

“Just want to take a look.”

“Let’s go somewhere else. What’s there to see at the black market? If you want to buy something, we can go to the supply and marketing cooperative instead.”

Hearing his flustered tone, Nan Qiao couldn’t help but chuckle to herself.

“Fine, we don’t have to go. I’m not planning to buy anything anyway. I just want to head back early this afternoon.”

“Got something to do at home?” Sheng Yanchuan suddenly remembered her conversation earlier with Bai Kaixuan.

“I called my big brother this morning. He said he’s going to submit a request for leave to come visit me. So I want to prepare some long-lasting food he can take back with him. He’s saved up all his money and coupons for me, eating at the military canteen—he won’t go hungry, but he doesn’t eat well either…”

The more she talked, the more her heart ached for her older brother.

“What are you planning to make? Is there anything I can help with?” Seeing how much she cared for her brother, Sheng Yanchuan also wanted to do something for her.

Nan Qiao thought for a moment. “I’m planning to make some canned meat and jerky. I’ve already bought the meat, so there’s not much help needed.”

She actually had a lot of ready-made canned food and jerky in her space, but she still wanted to make some by hand for her brother. After all, food made by Chef Nan tasted better, used higher quality ingredients, and had no preservatives.

“Alright. If I’m free later, I’ll go back with you.”

“You’re not driving the tractor to take the others back to the village?” Nan Qiao asked in surprise.

“It was Huzi who drove it today. I had other things to do, so I didn’t drive.”

Nan Qiao nodded, then turned to Shen Nian. “I’m planning to head back soon. Are you staying to wander around more?”

“Me? I’ve already bought everything I need, but…” She suddenly turned to Sheng Yanchuan, “Brother Sheng, did you manage to find out about the bicycle? Are there any for women? I went to the supply store this morning and they were out of women’s models.”

“There are. You want it today?” Sheng Yanchuan asked.

“Really? Yes! That’d be great, if it’s convenient for you.” Shen Nian looked surprised—she thought it’d take much longer.

“Sure. Two hundred yuan. No coupons needed,” Sheng Yanchuan replied after a moment. He wasn’t charging Shen Nian extra.

“Perfect, perfect!” Shen Nian said as she reached into her pocket for the money, only for Nan Qiao to stop her. “Wait till we’re outside.”

If she took out the money now, there’d be too much to explain.

“You’re buying a bike too? Can you count me in…?” Li Zhuoran poked his head over and asked in a whisper.

Shen Nian: …

Sheng Yanchuan: …

Nan Qiao: …

“Well, you heard it all already. Wouldn’t be right not to include you…” Nan Qiao said helplessly.

“You want a bike too?” Shen Nian asked.

“Do I need a coupon? If not, I’d like to buy one. How much?”

Sheng Yanchuan and Nan Qiao exchanged a look, both a little exasperated. They were a group of sent-down youths, and within such a short time, they’d already bought three bikes. That was a bit too flashy…

“There’s a Phoenix brand for 220 yuan. No coupons needed,” Sheng Yanchuan said bluntly, not the least bit ashamed about charging him an extra twenty yuan.

“I’ll take it! But I’ll need to pay you later—I didn’t bring that much cash today. Is that okay?” Li Zhuoran replied without hesitation. After all, he didn’t have a bike coupon, and going to the black market himself was unsafe and uncertain. Bikes weren’t available every day either. And honestly, even with 220 yuan, he might not be able to get one elsewhere.

“Sure,” Sheng Yanchuan nodded, not worried about being stiffed.

Seeing that everyone was on board, Nan Qiao said, “Then let’s go pick up the bikes first. We’ll head back together afterward.”

But inwardly, she was thinking: buying from the black market boss, huh? What a turn of events.

“Alright, let’s go then,” Li Zhuoran said.

“Okay,” Nan Qiao agreed, and the four of them got up to leave.

Su Mu saw them getting ready to go and quickly followed, worried he’d be left behind.

“Nan Qiao, where are you all going? Want to go together? It’s safer in a group.”

Nan Qiao frowned. “That won’t be necessary. It’s broad daylight—what’s unsafe about that? We’ve got things to do, so we won’t go together.”

With that, the four of them briskly got up and walked out the door, not sparing the others a single glance.

Sheng Yanchuan had also ridden a bicycle to town today. Since his job with the transportation team was in town, he couldn’t exactly ride a tractor every day. So he was one of the rare few in the village who owned a bike.

Four people, two bicycles.

Sheng Yanchuan brought Li Zhuoran, while Nan Qiao took Shen Nian. Each pair followed behind him toward their destination.

To be honest, Sheng Yanchuan originally wanted to bring Nan Qiao, but when she shot him a warning glance, he immediately gave up and obediently rode with Li Zhuoran the whole way.

They arrived at a quiet alley where few people passed by. Sheng Yanchuan got off his bike and said to the others, “Wait here for a bit. I’ll go fetch the bikes—it’s not convenient for so many people to come.”

Li Zhuoran and Shen Nian understood and waited patiently in the alley. Nan Qiao was no exception and replied with a quick “okay” before standing quietly.

Her eyes swept over the surroundings with a glimmer of cunning—this wasn’t far from Second Master’s courtyard…

It wasn’t long before Sheng Yanchuan returned, pushing two bicycles out of the alley.

Shen Nian and Li Zhuoran ran up excitedly, each claiming their own brand-new red bicycle and Phoenix-brand bicycle.

“Wow, Brother Sheng, this is amazing! It looks so good!” Shen Nian cheered and eagerly mounted the bike for a test ride. But just a couple of pedals in, she seemed to remember something and started reaching into her pocket for money, only to be stopped by Sheng Yanchuan.

“Give it to me when we get back—too many eyes around.”

Shen Nian nodded and didn’t press the matter.

Li Zhuoran was also clearly thrilled as he took his bike, though not as visibly enthusiastic as Shen Nian.

The group rode their bikes back to the village, becoming a striking and picturesque scene.

“That Sheng family boy, how did he end up hanging out with those city youth?” one auntie near the village entrance muttered as she watched them ride past.

“Just look at that boy and girl riding together. I bet he’s fallen for one of those female zhiqing. Aren’t two of them staying in his family’s old courtyard?”

“He may have fallen for them, but who knows if they feel the same? Look, they haven’t even been here long and already bought bikes. Clearly their families aren’t short on money. Would they really fall for some countryside guy like him?”

“Well, it’s hard to say. That Sheng boy isn’t bad. He earns a decent wage each month.”

“Who knows? If he can do it, maybe I can marry my son to one of those zhiqing too. He’s not bad either.”

The first auntie fell silent at that and rolled her eyes. As if! Does she even know what kind of son she has? Skinny as a twig, never eats or drinks well. He only weighs 200 pounds because all he does is eat—doesn’t lift a finger. His elderly parents and older siblings have to work the fields to feed him. Even the poorest village girls don’t want him, and she’s dreaming about marrying off to a city girl? Keep dreaming…

The older woman saw the other had fallen silent and scoffed, no longer bothering to argue.

At a fork in the road, the four riders came to a stop.

“You guys go ahead. I’ll bring the money to your yard later,” Li Zhuoran said to Sheng Yanchuan and the others before heading off toward the zhiqing courtyard.

When he returned, several of the older zhiqing spotted him riding a shiny new bike and immediately gathered around, their faces filled with envy and curiosity.

“Zhuoran, you bought a bike? That must’ve cost a pretty penny, huh?”

“It wasn’t bad. I just happened to find one. Figured it’d be handy for trips to town,” Li Zhuoran replied as he parked the bike and went inside to fetch the money.

“Looks great—brand new! Really easy on the eyes,” one male zhiqing said as he walked around the bike in awe.

“Zhiqing Li, can I borrow your bike for a spin? I’ve never ridden one this new before,” said another male zhiqing with a greasy grin, clearly someone who wasn’t very likable.

As Li Zhuoran came out of his room with the money, he heard the comment. That Zhou Bo was always shamelessly trying to take advantage of others. Li Zhuoran usually didn’t engage with him, and now he didn’t even bother replying.

He lifted the bike stand and said flatly, “The ones at the supply co-op are all brand new—why don’t you go ride one of those?”

Then he turned toward Wang Feng and said, “Brother Feng, I’m heading over to Shen Nian’s place. We bought the bikes together, and she couldn’t carry everything, so I’m helping her take some stuff back.”

He patted the cloth bag strapped to the back of his bike as he spoke.

“Alright, go ahead,” Wang Feng nodded.

Once Wang Feng responded, Li Zhuoran mounted his bike and rode off, leaving the shameless zhiqing standing there, awkward and embarrassed.

“Tch… it’s just a bicycle. Acting so high and mighty. What, does he think I can’t afford one? If it weren’t getting late, I’d go to town right now and buy one myself!” Zhou Bo grumbled indignantly.

Wang Feng scoffed. “Yeah, right. Always talking nonsense. You really think you can afford one? Who are you kidding?”

Zhou Bo was choked up by that, his face unwilling, but he didn’t dare lash out at Wang Feng.

He could only stand there, teeth clenched, glaring at Wang Feng’s back. Don’t be fooled by his normally easy-going manner—when it came down to it, Wang Feng didn’t pull punches. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have remained the zhiqing leader for so many years.

Seeing that one conversation had cleared the yard of everyone else, Zhou Bo muttered unhappily and stormed back into his room.

Meanwhile, Li Zhuoran arrived at Nan Qiao’s courtyard on his bike.

Sheng Yanchuan was already inside, helping out with Taohua.

That afternoon, Nan Qiao planned to make some mushroom pork sauce, spicy beef sauce, pork jerky, and chicken jerky.

As soon as she entered the yard, she began washing and preparing the ingredients.

She had just pulled out the pork and mushrooms when Sheng Yanchuan arrived with Taohua, who immediately asked what he could help with.

Since he was already here, Nan Qiao put him to work washing mushrooms and bamboo shoots.

Glancing at Taohua and Sheng Yanchuan, Nan Qiao thought to herself—looks like she wouldn’t be able to make beef sauce today. Cows were vital labor animals in the village, and strictly protected. It’d be hard to explain where she got beef, even if it came from her space. She’d have to make it another time, in secret.

So in the courtyard, Sheng Yanchuan washed mushrooms and bamboo shoots, Nan Qiao diced pork into small cubes, Shen Nian cut the pork and chicken into strips, and Taohua bustled about, fanning and fetching water for them. The whole yard buzzed with lively activity.

When Li Zhuoran arrived, he saw everyone hard at work. As he handed the money to Sheng Yanchuan, he asked, “Nan Qiao, what are you all making?”

“Some pork sauces. My brother’s coming soon, so I’m making some for him to take back. I’ll mail a few home too, and the rest we’ll just keep to eat with our meals.”

“Tsk, how extravagant! But… could I maybe buy two jars from you when it’s done?”

Nan Qiao grinned. “Not for sale—but if you help out this afternoon, I’ll give you two jars as a thank-you.”

“No problem! Just tell me what to do,” Li Zhuoran eagerly rolled up his sleeves and went to wash his hands, ready to pitch in.

Nan Qiao looked around and said, “Then help me dice the pork. I’ll go prep the spices. Just cut it into pieces this size.”

She picked up one of the cubed pork chunks from the cutting board to show him.

The pork belly she’d chosen had just the right balance of fat and lean meat—great for a flavorful, non-greasy result.

“Got it. Hand it over,” Li Zhuoran replied cheerfully, settling into the seat Nan Qiao vacated and getting to work dicing.

Seeing he had some decent skills, Nan Qiao headed to the kitchen to prepare the seasonings.