After several days by train, Ye Zhaoyu and Ling Yunjue finally arrived at their destination, the educated youth compound.

Ling Yunjue's two underlings were assigned to two other small villages.

Hongshen Village is a small village deep in the mountains, with only 45 households.

The village is more than three hours away from the commune, and it takes most of the day to get to the county town. There is only one chartered bus passing by each day.

The nearest village is more than an hour away.

The village was extremely poor. I heard that everyone made a little money by selling mountain products.

Most of the villagers moved out of the mountains because other villages were unwilling to accept them, so a piece of land was allocated to build a new village.

The team leader was someone sent from above to manage the area.

The village is mainly inhabited by three major surnames: Su, Niu, and Zhang.

Su Aiguo returned here to buy mountain products. It is said that he was introduced by the Su family patriarch, who said that Su Aiguo was a member of the Su family who had gone out to make a fortune. Now that he has become successful outside, he wants to help his fellow villagers get rich.

On the way back to the village, Ling Yunjue and the brigade leader had gathered most of the information about the village.

Every time Su Aiguo comes here, he stays for two days before leaving. The mountain produce he collects is only worth about 20 yuan, which is not even enough to cover the travel expenses. It would be better to send it back to Beijing at fixed times, which would save him money and time.

After all, it takes time to come to the village, and the road is difficult to travel. No one would believe that there's nothing going on behind one's back.

"Are you very cold?" Ling Yunjue asked, looking at Ye Zhaoyu who was sitting there shivering.

"Yeah, I didn't expect it to be this cold. I didn't bring enough clothes," Ye Zhaoyu nodded.

"Wear my coat first! I'll go to the county town tomorrow to see if there's any cotton. I'll add some cotton to your coat then, making it thicker so you won't be cold." Ling Yunjue took out his military overcoat from his luggage and draped it securely over Ye Zhaoyu, making arrangements for what to do next.

"Thank you," Ye Zhaoyu said.

"Don't mention it. I like you and I'm helping you. Just accept it, it makes me happy." Ling Yunjue patted Ye Zhaoyu's head.

"As expected, the young lady is just a young lady. She can't do anything except seduce men." Zhang Meifeng was extremely jealous, her face full of sarcasm.

“It’s better than trying to seduce men and not getting a single glance from them,” Ye Zhaoyu retorted immediately.

It's just jealousy, she'll do it.

"You... no wonder you were dumped by a man, you probably cheated on him, that's why you were divorced." Zhang Meifeng was very angry and told Ye Zhaoyu about her divorce.

Everyone knows what happened on the train: Ling Yunjue severed ties with his family, sold his job, and chased after a divorced young woman to the countryside.

The story spread throughout the educated youth carriage.

Zhang Meifeng was one of the people who came together and was also assigned to Zhujia Village.

Zhang Meifeng broke up with the person she liked before she went to the countryside, precisely because she was going to work there.

The person she likes doesn't want to go to the countryside with her, and he's not even as handsome as Ling Yunjue.

Why is it that Ye Zhaoyu, a divorced woman, can win the deep affection of a handsome man, while she, a virgin, is unloved?

Seeing Ling Yunjue's care and consideration for Ye Zhaoyu along the way.

Zhang Meifeng shamelessly fell for him; she wanted to snatch him away. Such a good man should be a good match for a virgin like her.

Only she deserves such a good man.

"Comrade Zhang, you keep talking about abandoning and divorcing. What? The great man said that marriage is free. What does freedom of marriage mean? It means that I can get married if I want to, and I can get divorced if I want to. There is no such thing as one abandoning the other. Are you trying to deny that what the great man said is wrong?" Ye Zhaoyu was tired and didn't want to argue with Zhang Meifeng anymore. She didn't want to slap a big label on her.

“I didn’t, I…” Zhang Meifeng didn’t know how to refute it.

"You didn't? You didn't have anything? My ex-husband and I divorced amicably. You're saying I was abandoned? Are you hiding under my bed every day, eavesdropping on how my ex-husband and I live? That's how you know so much about my family. You're making such a good point. You don't have some kind of secret fetish, like peeping at other people's... you know?" Ye Zhaoyu continued.

“That’s not right. I haven’t seen you in the family compound. How do you know so much about me? Could you be an enemy agent? Otherwise, how do you know about my situation in the Southern Military Region? Comrade Zhang, this is terrible. You’ve just reached into the Southern Military Region.”

"No, I don't know. I just heard you got divorced, that's all I know," Zhang Meifeng retorted repeatedly, not daring to say anything more, and kept her distance from Ye Zhaoyu.

How did she know that Ye Zhaoyu's ex-husband was a soldier?

When the older educated youth heard that Ye Zhaoyu was divorced, and that it was a divorce from a military marriage, they knew that this person had a story.

She was probably abandoned by her family, so they sent her to the countryside to fend for herself.

Otherwise, why would they have sent her to this poor and remote village to work as an educated youth in the countryside?

He lost interest in her.

Ye Zhaoyu and Ling Yunjue were very high-profile when they went to the countryside, and they also showed their affection in a very high-profile way at the educated youth compound.

Those in the shadows had far fewer suspicions about them.

After Ling Yunjue made arrangements for Ye Zhaoyu, he went to the brigade leader's house to rent a house.

The brigade leader was a retired veteran with a sharp mind. In order to increase the village's income, he built a row of houses in the village and rented them out to educated youth who had been sent to the countryside for 10 yuan a year.

Ling Yunjue rented two rooms and paid 20 yuan.

After choosing two adjacent houses, Ling Yunjue began cleaning, and Ye Zhaoyu prepared to help.

It seems like they're doing more harm than good.

I wanted to help wipe the table, but I ended up getting my sleeves wet. I wanted to sweep the floor, but the dust just kept piling up. I wanted to help make the bed, but the bed just got messier and messier.

"Why don't you sit down? I can do it myself," Ling Yunjue suggested, looking at the messy blankets.

"Okay, I'm pretty good at other things, but I'm not very good at housework," Ye Zhaoyu explained, embarrassed.

When she goes out, someone helps her pack all her things, and someone brings her meals.

When no one helps her, she can still solve everything by spending money.

At worst, we'll just stay in hotels and eat at hotels; apart from being a bit expensive, everything else is fine.

“I believe that. Your hands are for surgery, not for housework.” Ling Yunjue believed what Ye Zhaoyu said.

"Yes, I can do more than just surgery to save lives. I can also fight, make medicine, and even stab people. There are many things I can do," Ye Zhaoyu nodded affirmatively.

The only difference is that what she knows is different from what others know.

"Yes, look how many things you can do, all of them important. I can handle the small chores like housework." Ling Yunjue quickly made the bed and arranged the blankets, while trying to cheer Ye Zhaoyu up.

"Comrade Ling, one of your good qualities is that you know how to give people plenty of emotional support." Ye Zhaoyu admitted that she was very happy to be coaxed.

"Not at all, you're telling the truth, and you really are very outstanding." Ling Yunjue didn't expect Ye Zhaoyu to be so easily satisfied.