Chapter 24: Discovery of a Large Amount of Money Stolen

Nangong Ruochen easily hoisted a bag of corn onto his shoulder and lifted the two bags of wheat and rice with his other hand. He turned to look at Yun Siying and asked, “Can you carry the rest?” The luggage from earlier wasn’t light, so he asked with some uncertainty.

“I can manage this.” Yun Siying picked up the bag of potatoes and sweet potatoes. The two of them left the warehouse and found a spot to place the food. Then she turned back and said to Zhang Youliang, “Uncle Zhang, I still need some furniture. I heard the brigade has some, can I trade for it?”

“Of course! I’ll take you to the warehouse to choose,” Zhang Youliang said happily. He hadn’t expected to earn even more income through Yun Siying.

He opened the door to the warehouse, which was filled with all kinds of furniture kang cabinets, kang tables, desks, wardrobes, cupboards, storage boxes, cabinets, basin stands, as well as zong mats (handmade palm mats made from natural palm tree bark), wooden barrels, wooden basins, straw hats, and more.

Yun Siying looked over everything, then turned to Nangong Ruochen and said, “Well, I’m not short on money. You help me pick.”

Nangong Ruochen smiled gently and said, “Alright, leave it to me!”

He was quite experienced and quickly selected the items they needed: one straw mat, a kang cabinet, a kang table, a desk, a chair, a cupboard, a wardrobe, a wooden box, an Eight Immortals table with 60 cm sides, a basin stand, two wooden barrels, a bathtub, a broom, and a straw hat.

“That’s all. Uncle Zhang, can you calculate how much it all costs?” Nangong Ruochen asked.

Looking at the pile of furniture, Zhang Youliang silently marveled Yun Siying really had money. In their village, only newlywed brides would buy so much furniture.

He happily worked the abacus. After a burst of clicking, he smiled and said, “Altogether, 81 yuan. We won’t count the broom, it’s a gift.”

Yun Siying took out another 81 yuan and handed it to Zhang Youliang with a smile. “Uncle Zhang, with so many things, could we use the brigade’s tractor to transport them back to the youth point?”

“No problem. Let Nangong drive it,” Zhang Youliang said kindly. Seeing how familiar the two were, he didn’t worry that Nangong Ruochen would refuse.

“Don’t worry, Uncle Zhang, I’ll definitely help Yun Siying get all the furniture back to the youth point,” Nangong Ruochen agreed cheerfully.

He drove the tractor to the warehouse entrance. He and Zhang Youliang loaded all the furniture onto it, as well as the food. The tractor bed was full, but it fit everything perfectly.

“Alright, go get your room set up. You new educated youths still get one day off tomorrow. If you need anything else, you can go to the county town the supplies there are more complete. The day after tomorrow, you’ll join the other members in the fields to earn work points,” said Zhang Youliang, slightly surprised by how capable and composed the pale, delicate-looking Yun Siying was.

Yun Siying got into the driver’s seat and said to Nangong Ruochen, “Get in. Keep an eye on my furniture and make sure nothing falls off.”

Nangong Ruochen looked at her confident expression, climbed onto the tractor, and stood firm. Once he was ready, Yun Siying began operating the tractor with practiced ease. Watching from the side, Zhang Youliang was startled, he had been about to shout to stop her, but then the tractor rumbled to life and rolled forward smoothly and steadily.

Just as the tractor reached the gate and he was about to greet the team captain, he saw Shu Ruxue rushing into brigade headquarters like a gust of wind in the snow.

Yun Siying saw the anxiety and desperation on Shu Ruxue’s face and immediately guessed the reason. She turned to Nangong Ruochen and said, “Let’s go watch the drama before we leave.” She stopped the tractor and looked at Shu Ruxue with interest.

Nangong Ruochen noticed the curious expression on her face. Although he usually disliked getting involved in drama, he still looked at Shu Ruxue along with Yun Siying.

“Uncle Captain, I want to borrow the team’s bicycle to go to the county,” Shu Ruxue said in a choked voice, her eyes slightly red, tears clinging to her lashes.

“What’s wrong, Yinyin girl?” the captain asked, concerned for the young woman who had grown up in the brigade.

“Uncle Captain, the money I brought was stolen on the train. I need to go to the police station to report it,” Shu Ruxue said anxiously. Losing that much money made her heart ache in a way that was hard to describe.

“How much did you bring?” The captain’s expression turned anxious when he heard the money was stolen. He felt sorry for her.

“My parents gave me one thousand yuan, and it’s all gone,” Shu Ruxue sobbed. Tears rolled down her cheeks like a string of pearls breaking free, dripping onto her shirt.

“How could you be so careless, child? That’s a whole thousand yuan!” the captain exclaimed in distress. He quickly pulled the key from his waist and handed it to Shu Ruxue. “The bicycle’s over there, go and come back quickly.”

He thought to himself how reckless it was for her to bring such a large amount of money to the countryside. Now that it was stolen, it was a real pity. Money stolen on the train was unlikely to be recovered.

Most families in the village couldn’t even save twenty yuan a year. Many were still in debt to the brigade, let alone able to save money.

In the countryside, twenty or thirty yuan was enough to get married. A thousand yuan, how many brides could that afford? He couldn’t believe this girl had been so careless with her money.

Just then, Shen Subai arrived at the brigade headquarters and overheard Shu Ruxue saying that her one thousand yuan had been stolen. Although it wasn’t as much as he had lost, it was still a significant sum. Seeing Shu Ruxue about to leave on the bicycle, he called out, “Ruxue, wait! I’ll go with you.”

The captain asked in confusion, “Shen Subai, your money was stolen too?”

“Yes,” Shen Subai replied, his mood downcast.

“How much?” the captain asked urgently.

“One thousand five hundred yuan,” Shen Subai answered after a moment of silence.

“You should’ve done what Yun Siying did and mailed it instead!” the captain said in frustration. These young people were so careless, daring to carry so much cash on themselves.

Both of them lowered their heads further, full of regret. Who would have thought that thieves on the train would be so rampant?

Yun Siying watched their hurried figures as they left, a sly smile curling on her lips. Nangong Ruochen happened to catch sight of it. That smile, like a rose with thorns was both warm and dangerous. His heart skipped a beat, and he quickly turned his eyes away.

Soon after, Lin Zikang arrived. With his sharp eyes, he spotted the two of them and walked over to the tractor. “Comrade Yun, where did you get this furniture?”

“The brigade had it. Just ask Accountant Zhang to trade for some,” Yun Siying replied openly. After all, they had all come to the same brigade, it was fate. But whether they would cross paths again in the future, only time would tell.