"Why not? He wets his pants during the day and the bed at night. I heard that his father and grandfather both had this problem. Their mother ran away early after giving birth to the two brothers."

Ye Guo and Ye Gen's biological mother did indeed run away with someone in their early years. It's unclear whether it was because his father wet his pants. With a stepmother came a stepfather, otherwise the two brothers wouldn't have both ended up in the countryside.

The three sat down on the long wooden bench in the courtyard, and Aunt Meihua slapped her thigh, "Isn't it that thing that's broken?"

“It’s not broken! It’s natural, it’s hereditary!” Ruan Xianxian retorted.

The two men huddled together, heads touching, and engaged in a passionate discussion about whether "that thing" was inherently bad.

"When you mention this, I remember that the lame man at the east end of the village wanted to marry his daughter to that man surnamed Ye. Isn't that ruining the child?"

No, no! I have to go to the cripple's house with Chrysanthemum and talk to him.

Aunt Meihua, who was almost at the gate of the courtyard, suddenly remembered something and turned back to say, "You educated youth Ruan! You've come to exchange furniture, right? My husband is in the backyard. Come and pick out whatever you want."

He left behind that sentence and rushed off in a hurry, even more eagerly than when he was collecting his rations.

"Uncle!" A man in a t-shirt sat on a stool in the backyard, planing wood. After hearing Ruan Xianxian's purpose, he grinned and pointed to the warehouse.

"There are cabinets and other things inside. You can choose whatever you want. After you're done, Xiaozhuang will deliver it to your home."

Xiao Zhuang is the couple's son. He inherited his father's traits and is a down-to-earth and hardworking person.

Upon arriving at the so-called warehouse, Ruan Xianxian selected a kang cabinet, a kang table, a small wardrobe, two high stools, and a small table.

That room is only so big; it can't hold any more.

"Why don't we get a wooden tub?" Mu Xia suggested. "It would be more convenient for taking a bath."

Imagine, snow is falling heavily outside, and she's enjoying wine and a bath in her warm little house... Ruan Xianxian's eyes lit up, "Girl, it has to be you!"

After telling Uncle Zhang what he wanted, he wrote it all down. Except for the wooden buckets, all the goods were ready and promised to be delivered before dark.

Nowadays, most people use bathtubs to shower; very few people use bath buckets anymore, as they waste hot water.

The man, nicknamed "Wood" and whose full name is Zhang Musen, clicked his tongue. Ruan Xianxian then asked him how much he wanted, and he visibly hesitated for a moment.

His wife said the new educated youth had a lot of money and coupons, so it was okay to ask for more. But he didn't know anything about this, and with a sheepish grin, he quoted an honest price:

"8 pieces."

Mu Xia's eyes were worth it. Why did she spend ten yuan to buy the same thing?

Still indignant as she left the Zhang family, Ruan Xianxian looked smug. "Now you know why I sent Aunt Meihua away, right?"

I'm already being nice by not taking advantage of others, and you still want to take advantage of me?

Mu Xia was speechless and decided to make up for the money by getting it back from Shen Meihua.

The two then went to Ma Dajiao's house. Her grandmother had a family-inherited weaving skill, which was completely wasted on making baskets and brooms.

The old man smiled kindly, "Big Foot was called away by Plum Blossom, I don't know where she went."

He reached out and took the basket that Ruan Xianxian had picked out. He examined it carefully, feeling the position of the straps. "If we sew floral fabric onto these two straps, it will not only look nice, but it also won't wear out the clothes."

Let's also grab a broom for cleaning the heated kang (a traditional heated brick bed); it'll make cleaning that kang easier.

Straw mats provide protection from the wind in winter and keep out mosquitoes and flies in summer.

Take two bamboo baskets too. Another rain will help the mushrooms grow in the mountains, and these baskets are essential for drying mushrooms and vegetables.

Every time the old woman said something, Ruan Xianxian nodded, thinking that this was useful and that was useful too.

Ruan Xianxian and Mu Xia, their hands full of bags, looked at each other and gave a wry smile. "We were tricked into buying a bunch of stuff again without even realizing it."

Last time I came, I was served by this family's daughter-in-law, whose attitude was basically, "Buy it or don't, it's up to you." That grandmother really knows how to talk.

Mu Xia tossed the newly purchased items in her hands.

Ruan Xianxian knew that she was referring to Ma Dajiao.

To be honest, the women who can act so domineeringly in this village all live well, either because their maternal families are powerful or their husbands' families are capable.

"Let's go back! I've sent all the pots and pans from home; they should be at the post office by now."

Just then, a dark-skinned messenger on a bicycle stopped at the entrance of the educated youth settlement and shouted at the top of his lungs:

"Is Ruan Xianxian, the former educated youth, here? There's a letter for you."

The two quickened their pace and saw Jiang Wenli, who was about to go to work, walk up to the messenger and extend a hand. "Comrade! Ruan, the educated youth, has gone out. Give me the letter, and I'll deliver it for you!"

The mail carrier didn't think much of it; it was common for a fellow educated youth to help protect mail. Just as he was about to hand the letter over, a small hand suddenly reached out and snatched it away.

He sighed and turned around, only to meet Ruan Xianxian's ambiguous smile. "It's common sense that letters should be delivered to the recipient."

My grandfather is a brigade commander. What if this important information falls into the hands of someone with ulterior motives... Comrade, will you bear the consequences?

The mail carrier initially didn't pay much attention, but when he saw Jiang Wenli, who had a bright and sunny smile, he looked bewildered and even thought that the woman was being a bit too demanding.

Upon learning that her grandfather was a brigade commander, her attitude immediately became serious, and she promised that such a mistake would not be repeated.

In their past life, the Jiang brothers often secretly read her letters under the guise of collecting them. They could tell from the words in the letters that she was not well-liked at home, so they listed her as a target to be manipulated.

If she weren't wary of Chu Li, who would care about her, she probably would have taken drastic measures long ago.

After riding a short distance, the mail carrier remembered something, stopped his bike, and said, "Ruan Xianxian, right? There are a few large packages for you at the post office. I'd like to pick them up as soon as possible."

After the messenger left, Jiang Wenli stood awkwardly in front of Ruan Xianxian, "I... I didn't know your letter was so important."

A glint of light flashed in his lowered eyes. Grandpa was actually a brigade commander in the military region? It's such a pity I can't get my hands on such a beautiful person.

Ruan Xianxian clicked her tongue and said bluntly, "Now you know? Stay away from me and my letter from now on, or you might get your hands chopped off if you reach too far!"

"She went too far! Comrade Wenli was clearly trying to be kind." The twins both had the surname Jiang, and to distinguish them, everyone addressed them as either Wenming or Comrade Wenli.

Liu Xiatian was filled with righteous indignation.

Besides Chu Li, Jiang Wenli was the most outstanding in appearance among the educated youth. I heard that his father was a factory cadre and his mother was a deputy director, and his family was very well-off.

Even if she couldn't reach Chu Li's level, she would still be happy with Jiang Wenli.

Her sweet, coquettish voice, coupled with her indignant attitude on his behalf, made Jiang Wenli's face turn from gloomy to cloudy. He feigned shyness and asked, "Want to...want to work together?"

"Okay!" Liu Xiatian agreed without hesitation.

Seeing the two chatting and laughing as they walked away side by side, Ruan Xianxian cursed them as idiots.

As soon as the work horn sounded, people began to work in the fields one after another. Ye Guo found Wenrou, who was in the same group, and leaned closer to ask:

"Have you made arrangements for the laundry?"

Just as Wenrou was about to nod, three middle-aged women stood out from behind the tree and pointed at where the two of them were.

"That's him, he wets the bed and his pants too."

"Where? Your crotch isn't wet."

"You're all wrong! I clearly heard he's a scoundrel!"