The morning breeze was slightly chilly, and a long line formed in front of the farm tool shed. Ruan Xianxian stood outside the line, coughing and gagging as she covered her throat.

The squad leader walked by and asked, "What's wrong? Got a feather stuck?"

Ruan Xianxian bent over, covered her throat, stretched her neck and walked back and forth, and finally... spat out a mouthful of phlegm.

She pointed to the phlegm she had spat out on the yellow earth and said to the man cheerfully, "I spat it out, you can eat it."

The team member who was just advised to throw up his breakfast was so scared that he turned around and ran away. Damn it, is he sick or what? How disgusting!

But he had only taken two steps when the back of his collar was suddenly grabbed forcefully, the scenery in front of him rushed backward, and when he came to a stop, there was that spit under his feet.

His face turned ashen, and he was about to break free of his restraints when Ruan Xianxian circled around to his front, grabbed the man's wildly flailing arm, and forcefully twisted it.

The sinister voice reached the ears of everyone nearby, "Eat! Why aren't you eating? Are you worried it's not salty enough?"

The man knew he wasn't some woman like Li Dazui or Ma Dajiao. If he provoked her directly and pushed her hard, would the female educated youth, who was a head shorter than him, be able to fight back?

As a result, he clutched his throbbing arm and let out a pig-like wail, "My arm, my arm is broken! Someone help me!"

This displeased Ruan Xianxian. "I said the city gate tower, what are you talking about? It's not like you lost a tooth just because your arm is broken. Hurry up, or your phlegm will get cold."

Everyone: ...

They all took a step back; they couldn't afford to mess with them, they really couldn't afford to mess with them.

Just then, the captain and the accountant walked over quickly. As expected, they saw the troublemaker in the crowd. After finding out what happened, he waved and quickly took the person to the clinic.

Amidst the deafening wails, Ruan Xianxian coldly observed. To personally take them back? Absolutely not. Her life motto was: kill, but don't bury.

She looked up, her smile pure and innocent, her gaze, unlike that of a normal person, swept around, and any team members whose eyes met hers quickly looked away.

"Who else, who else can make me vomit up what I've eaten?"

Shen Meihua was pushed forward, and everyone knew that she had an unusual relationship with Ruan Zhiqing.

She was loud and uninhibited, getting straight to the point with her high-pitched voice.

"Ruan! They all say you were the one who persuaded us to buy those three lumps of iron?"

"Um?"

"I heard they're opening some kind of oil pressing factory. Can I join them? Don't let your aunt's lack of skill in the fields fool you; she's a whiz at home and in the fields. Look how well she takes care of the men in the house."

Looking at her, Ruan Xianxian stroked her chin and said playfully, "Okay! I'll include you."

The two started chatting as if no one else was around.

Everyone was speechless. What a mess, no one could be relied on. Hu Bin stepped forward and coughed lightly.

"Just to chime in, our brigade doesn't need that thing. Could we return that lump of iron?"

"Are you sure?" Ruan Xianxian turned her gaze to him. For some reason, every time Hu Bin met those pure yet unfathomable almond eyes, he always had a chilling feeling.

Xiang Hongjun glanced at the sky and interjected at the opportune moment, "The educated youth Ruan and the others go back, the team members go to work first, and we will have a meeting at the threshing ground tonight to decide whether to keep or discard the machines."

Listening carefully to the underlying meaning, and knowing that the metal lump could be returned, the team members, who were already easily swayed by rumors and lacked discernment, felt much more at ease.

Some people are also interested in discussing what the iron lump is actually used for, and whether it can really extract oil.

Various speculations and curiosities filled the fields and villages. The old village chief and others' expressions changed. The villagers seemed to think that as long as the debts were settled, the brigade leader would not be held responsible.

This is not the outcome that Hu Bin and the others wanted.

At noon, after work, the Hu family members gathered together and chattered amongst themselves. The old village chief made the final decision and looked to his subordinate, Ye Guo.

"Xiao Ye, take leave this afternoon and go to the county's revolutionary base office to ask Comrade Red Armband to come to our village. Tell him that you suspect someone is making money through improper means."

Please have Comrade Red Armband investigate.

"This..." Ye Guo was unwilling. Anyone who was alive didn't want to have anything to do with the red armbands. Everyone knew that even if you weren't guilty, you would be skinned alive once you entered that place.

He stammered, trying to find a reason: "Ruan Xianxian dared to take out the money in public, which proves that she can withstand investigation. Won't we be inviting trouble upon ourselves?"

Hu Bin sneered, "Red armbands? Who are those people? No matter how proper someone is, they can become improper in their hands. You go ahead."

Having no other choice, Ye Guo asked Hong Jun for leave. The brigade leader gave him a deep look, a gaze that seemed to see through everything, making Ye Guo almost stumble as he walked out of the brigade office.

...

Just as Ruan Xianxian was blatantly shirking his duties, lying on the kang (a heated brick bed) with his legs crossed and counting money, a strange wind blew from Pingtou Brigade to the commune, and then to the county town.

It sparked a revolution that left some deeply regretful and others with a changed destiny.

In the evening, Chen Zhaodi, who had just woken up from a nap, was yawning and lured to the kitchen by the aroma.

Sure enough, "Noodle Head" was tinkering with new noodle dishes again, but upon closer inspection, it wasn't noodles this time.

When a large bowl of hot and sour noodles was served, even Chen Zhaodi, who doesn't eat spicy food, swallowed hard.

Ruan Xianxian slurped up noodles while exhaling hot air, pointing to the large pot in the kitchen.

"There are plenty of ingredients. Whoever wants to eat can cook the noodles themselves. Just put the noodles back on my plate when you're done."

The three of them have always adhered to the principle of not taking advantage of each other, and even for something as small as sweet potato noodles, Ruan Xianxian would insist on doing so with a clear conscience.

If she refuses to pay today and tomorrow, and this happens repeatedly, it becomes a burden for Zhao Di, who is unable to repay.

For the healthy development of Youyi, the ingredients are there; individuals should act according to their own capacity.

As they were talking, Chu Li, who had finished work, and Mu Xia, who had smelled the aroma, came out. Having already lost weight to 150 pounds, she seemed to have shed some burden and was no longer obsessed with rapid weight loss in a short period of time.

He rushed over and hugged Ruan Xianxian: "Darling, I want to die for this."

Ruan Xianxian pouted her oily little lips, "Want a kiss?"

Mu Xia: ……

Get away from me, you foul-mouthed jerk!

In the end, the task of cooking the noodles still fell to Chu Li, who dutifully rolled up his white shirt sleeves and picked up the soup ladle with one hand.

Despite living in the mortal world, his eyes and brows were shrouded in a layer of coldness.

Mu Xia's gaze remained fixed.

Ruan Xianxian leaned closer and asked, "Doesn't it look like a perfect home? I really want to take it home with me?"

"You little brat!" Caught peeking, Mu Xia blushed deeply.

After dinner, the five of them sat in the backyard doing their own thing. Ruan Xianxian tied a grasshopper's leg with a rope and let the little grasshopper hop around in her palm.

Although no one spoke, the atmosphere was warm and pleasant.

She suddenly felt that not going back to the city and waiting for Miyano to return, living like this for the rest of her life, would be quite nice.

The idea only lasted a moment before she quickly rejected it.

The fact that she had a good time in the countryside was due to the accumulation and existence of her three generations. For 99% of educated youth, going to the countryside was a torment.

The endless farm work, the constant hunger for coarse grains, and the seemingly endless days are enough to destroy a person's spirit.

A crackling, static-filled sound came through the brigade's loudspeaker, followed moments later by the brigade leader's voice:

"A meeting is being held at the threshing ground. All team members are to be notified to attend the meeting at the threshing ground. Each family must send at least one representative."