"Comrade Chang Hua, are you saying that none of us are human?" Captain Qian looked at Chang Hua with a serious expression.

The villagers outside glared angrily at Chang Hua. She came in and immediately said they weren't human. Who would be happy about that? Many families weren't even as well-off as the educated youth settlement, so everyone was an animal, except her. She was the only human who couldn't live in such a house.

"Why can't you build the houses a little better?" Chang Hua said unhappily.

“Our village has these conditions. If your family is well-off, then you should go back!” Captain Qian couldn’t be happier for such a troublemaker to get rid of. With such a troublemaker around, he would live a few years less.

Chang Hua was speechless after Captain Qian's words. If she could go back, why would she need to go to the countryside? Those who can go to the countryside must have some connections at home, and they definitely can't go back in a short time.

Captain Qian then called out all the newly arrived educated youth and said to them, "You all received subsidies when you signed up to go to the countryside. If you don't want to live in the dormitory, you can pay for your own houses, even the thatched huts like the ones next door. I'm giving you a choice now: build a house or not?"

The newcomers looked at each other, but no one spoke.

"Alright, since none of you want to build houses, it means you all want to live in dormitories. Since you've chosen to live in dormitories, don't make trouble over housing anymore, or don't blame me for being impolite. You can rest tomorrow, get your things ready, and the day after tomorrow you'll set off with the old educated youth to work. Come to the brigade headquarters to collect your grain in a little while."

After finishing his speech, Captain Qian put his hands behind his back and left.

If her family had connections or she could find a job on her own, she wouldn't have needed to go to the countryside. But after going to the countryside, she couldn't recognize her own identity and still wanted to be like she was at home. She really thought that everyone outside was her parents and would spoil her like her parents did.

Children really need to be properly educated from a young age. If they are spoiled like this, they will eventually become a troublemaker.

Chang Hua felt extremely embarrassed as she listened to the villagers pointing and whispering about her outside the door. She stomped her foot angrily, turned around, and went into the girls' dormitory, while the others followed.

Although they disliked the accommodation, they had no choice but to stay there. Some of them couldn't cook, and even though they had built houses outside, no one cooked for them.

Some people don't have much money with them and are reluctant to build houses. They feel it's better to keep the money for themselves, since they can't take the houses with them and they'll only benefit others in the end.

Upon arriving at the dormitory, even though some people were reluctant, they still had to pack their things. After all, it was already evening when they arrived, and it would soon be dark. They were also quite tired and needed to rest.

"What are your names?" Zuo Qiuyi asked.

Now that she's a veteran educated youth, she can exercise her 'leadership' rights and assign tasks to the newcomers.

“My name is Chang Hua,” said the female educated youth who had no emotional intelligence and dared to openly look down on the educated youth settlement.

"My name is Shao Qiaoyun." Although Shao Qiaoyun's clothes had no patches, they were washed so much that they were almost white, indicating that her family was not well-off.

"My name is Feng Xintong." Feng Xintong, wearing small leather shoes, said in a somewhat arrogant tone. It wasn't that she didn't want to build a house, but her mother taught her that when she came to the countryside, she should be like everyone else and not be too high-profile, so as not to cause trouble for herself.

Zuo Qiuyi felt jealous when she looked at Feng Xintong's clothes. The air of a rich person was obvious at a glance. Why was it that Feng Xintong, who was so well-off, could wear such nice clothes even when she went to the countryside?

Wang Xinru sat on her bunk, leaning against the wall, not paying attention to the conversation, but seriously flipping through the books draped over her lap.

She saw many books for studying at Wenxi's house, and later went to the bookstore in the county town to buy books as well. Wenxi never forgot to study while she was in the countryside, and she was waiting for the right opportunity. Naturally, she couldn't fall behind.

Although she didn't know if reading would be useful, it would be good for passing the time. After all, everyone at the educated youth settlement had their own thoughts, and she dared not get too close to them.

Feng Xintong gestured with her chin toward Wang Xinru, "Hey, you reading a book, what's your name?"

"Wang Xinru." Wang Xinru didn't want to say a single unnecessary word.

As soon as Feng Xintong entered the door, she saw Wang Xinru's appearance. She originally thought that she was quite good-looking and that when she came to the countryside, a bunch of unsophisticated peasants would fawn over her and coax her. She did not expect that Wang Xinru was so much prettier than her, and a strong sense of jealousy rose in her heart.

Why is it that even when she comes to the countryside, someone still steals her thunder?

"Wang Xinru, what are you reading? Hasn't the college entrance examination been suspended for many years?" Feng Xintong asked, puzzled.

"Oh, it's because I want to become a teacher at the commune primary school, so I'm studying in advance and preparing to try my best to pass the exam next time I want to become a teacher at the commune primary school." Wang Xinru pouted. Anyone can talk nonsense.

Nowadays, jobs are all filled by one person per position, and many positions are already filled internally. It's not something outsiders can just get. Wang Xinru was just looking for an excuse to read books!

Otherwise, people might think she knows something!

"When will the commune primary school recruit teachers?" Feng Xintong asked tentatively.

"I don't know," Wang Xinru shook her head.

Feng Xintong pursed her lips. She wondered when they would hire teachers, and that starting to read books now would be a waste of time.

"Why are there so few people at the educated youth settlement? Is something wrong? Can you tell me?" Chang Hua asked curiously.

"There are quite a few of us educated youth at our settlement, more than twenty in total. However, many of us have rented houses outside. Gu Huai'an, Li Jianguo, Lu Mingxiu, and Xu Mengying live together; Tian Shengnan, Song Lan, and Zhou Bai live together; Wen Xi, Shen Jiaojiao, and Jiang Yue live together; and Cheng Yu, Gu Xiangbei, and Jiang Mo live in the thatched hut next door. Those three are also teachers at the brigade's primary school! Wu Guoqiang and Wang Caiyun live in another thatched hut. They are married."

"There's also Liang Zhaodi. She married Lu Xiaoyun, one of the former educated youth. Her husband had an accident, and now she lives alone. Her house is quite spacious. If you're interested, you can talk to Liang Zhaodi. Then there's Chu Wan'er and Xu Huaying, who are married to people in the village and don't live in the educated youth settlement, so there seem to be quite few people here," Zuo Qiuyi said.

"Isn't Xu Mengying a woman? How come she lives with three men?" Feng Xintong asked with a gossipy look on her face.

“Xu Mengying and Gu Huai’an were childhood sweethearts. They got married, so Xu Mengying moved in with Gu Huai’an.” Zuo Qiuyi spoke with a proud look on her face, as if knowing these things was something to be proud of. “If you want to live with a man, you can find a man to marry.”