In An Moxue's group of educated youth, the rice harvest was not as good as on the first day, especially for these new educated youth.

On the first day, everyone's enthusiasm was like waves of golden rice, but on the second day, they were like puppets on strings, with all their joints aching, numb, and swollen. Even bending over was difficult, so their movements were very slow.

The youth team leader, Xu Guoqing, came over and said, "Keep it up!" The scorekeeper came over and said, "No, you'll have to lose work points." The village chief came over and said, "If you can't do it, you'll have to go back a little later and work an extra hour or two. You have to finish the task."

Those who hadn't finished their tasks continued working until they were done. This was especially true for the new educated youth, who really didn't know how to do this kind of work. An Moxue completed the minimum requirement of four work points for the new female educated youth within the allotted time. She then told the scorekeeper that she had passed and quickly left, afraid that if she was too slow, someone would hold her back and she wouldn't be able to leave.

On the way back, I saw some children using small iron hooks to fish out things from small holes on the paddy field ridges. They caught a loach with each hook, and it was a big loach. Many children were picking up rice ears while looking for loach holes and then catching the loaches.

Some were carrying two or three frogs, each one quite fat. When asked, they said the frogs were edible, but unfortunately, they didn't know how to cook them—they just wanted to eat them!

An Moxue's mood soured at the thought of having to cook when she got back. She could have slacked off at work, but now she had to do the same when she got home for dinner. Damn Wu Sicheng, doesn't he know he might fall into someone else's house? Seriously.

When An Moxue returned home, filled with resentment, Wu Sicheng was picking green beans. Seeing An Moxue return, he hurriedly said, "Comrade An Moxue, do you think this rice is enough for the two of us? If it is, we should light a fire and make some green bean stew with meat. I saw there was a lot of meat in the oil jar, so I took out two pieces of stewed green beans. Is this okay?"

"Sure, there are still some salted goose eggs in that jar. We can boil a few and make some cucumber salad. Can you do that? If not, I'll cook."

"Okay, go take a shower. If I could light the fire before you came back, the food would be ready by now."

“Okay.” An Moxue didn’t stand on ceremony.

An Moxue was originally in a bad mood because she was going home and couldn't have a big meal, but now that there was food available, she could make do.

During dinner, An Moxue asked Wu Sicheng, "Do you know how to handle frogs and loaches?"

"What's wrong? Do you want some?"

"Today I saw some kids using hooks to catch loaches, and the frogs were caught in the rice paddies. If you know how to prepare them, I'll try to get some to eat tomorrow."

"Bring it back and I'll cook it for you."

"Is the autumn harvest very tiring? Can you handle it?"

"It's alright, I can keep going."

"Shouldn't educated youth live in educated youth settlements? Why are you living alone? And in such a remote place."

“There were too many people and too much trouble at the educated youth settlement, so I moved out. There are fewer people here, it’s quiet, and there’s less trouble.”

"But it's too dangerous for a girl like you to live alone!"

"It's alright, I'm not afraid. I specifically chose this place. Those educated youth who wanted to cause me trouble or take advantage of me would have to think twice about whether it was worth coming here. It's so far away, it saves them the trouble. By the way, how are you today?"

"It's alright, much better than yesterday."

"really."

"Comrade An Moxue."

"Um?"

"Can I call you Mo Xue from now on?"

"Can."

After finishing the meal, Wu Sicheng took the initiative to clear the table.

An Moxue was hanging up the curtains when Wu Sicheng hesitated but finally asked the question that had been bothering him, "Moxue, where did you get those two dogs?"

"I found it."

"You found them! You're so kind. They're two little ones. They'll eat a lot of food when they grow up. But it's good for you, a girl, to raise them. When they're older, they can guard the house and protect you. If you train them well, they can even protect you."

"I didn't think that much about it. I just felt sorry for them because their mother died right after they were born. If I hadn't brought them back, they wouldn't have survived either. I had a soft heart and have been raising them ever since."

Do you know they are wolves?

Seeing his cautious manner when he asked the question, An Moxue smiled and said, "Of course I know, I picked it up, of course I know."

"You knew they were wolves, yet you still kept them as pets. Weren't you afraid?"

"No way, what does it matter? There are people who raise tigers and snakes, what's the big deal if I raise two wolves?"

"You're really brave. If you train your wolf properly, you'll be much safer in the mountains in the future. Just be careful when you get a little older."

"I know that too. I'm not going to talk to you anymore. I'm going to sleep. I'm tired and sleepy." An Moxue fell asleep instantly, her even breathing filling the air within two minutes of lying in bed.

Wu Sicheng lay on the kang, unable to sleep, thinking about the mission. He couldn't concentrate on his thoughts anymore. The girl's even breathing reached his ears and was amplified. He smiled wryly, thinking, "Does this girl trust me, or is she just carefree? How come she doesn't put any guard up against me at all?"

Unable to sleep, and unable to concentrate on the mission, I turned to face the girl, my mind and eyes filled with her. She must be very well-off, with all the food, clothes, and other necessities she has; she must be deliberately keeping a low profile.

This is the first time I've seen someone not wearing glasses, and they're such big glasses that they cover half their face. They must be trying to cover their whole face, otherwise they wouldn't have taken them off as soon as they got home.

You put so much oil in the cooking. Yesterday, there was a layer of oil floating on the steamed egg custard, and the chicken was also covered in oil.

They're incredibly generous with the food they take out. Who keeps that much meat in their oil jar? That's a huge oil jar, it must contain a lot of oil.

...

Early in the morning, An Moxue opened her suitcase, took out a large handful of orange-flavored fruit candies, stuffed them into her pocket, and left.

When he got home in the evening, he seemed to be in a very good mood. In his left hand, there was a string of loaches strung together with straw, each one bigger than the last, probably twenty or thirty of them, and more than ten frogs. In his right hand, there was a lunchbox.

As she entered the courtyard and walked towards the house, she called out in a low voice, "Wu Sicheng, we're having these two dishes today. You tidy up, I'll cook. I'm going to take a shower first, will you be ready by the time I'm done?"

Wu Sicheng stood in the shadows of the kitchen: "If you can clean up the loach, you can clean up the frog too."

"That's fine then."

When An Moxue came out of the shower, the loach had already been cleaned and was ready to be cooked. Wu Sicheng was skinning the frog. He took a dagger and made a few quick cuts on the frog's body, then pulled a few times, and the skin was off quickly and well.

An Moxue watched intently, her eyes filled with "Wow, amazing!" Wu Sicheng was amused by her expression and chuckled softly.

"Hurry up, it's ready to go in the pot!" An Moxue said, annoyed and embarrassed. She scooped half a spoonful of oil into the pot, then added scallions, ginger, soybean paste, and loach. With a sizzle, Wu Sicheng felt that the world was peaceful and full of the warmth of everyday life!

An Moxue's hunger grew even stronger from the smell, and she unconsciously sped up her cooking, adding salt, sugar, vinegar, soy sauce, broth, and then covering the pot.

She went inside and came out a minute later carrying an enamel mug of malted milk powder. She sat on a small stool in front of the stove, the flickering smoke reflecting off her beautiful face. Wu Sicheng's heart was pounding, thump-thump-thump... There was no one more beautiful than the person in front of him.

Some people meet unexpectedly; some things begin unexpectedly; some loves become unforgettable unexpectedly.

Even when you were still by my side, I began to miss you, because I knew I was about to leave! There will never be anyone like you, who makes me smile and feel a gentle upturn of the corners of my mouth, and who makes me want to stay by your side when I see you frown.

On this day, Wu Sicheng planted a seed of love for An Moxue in his heart, waiting for An Moxue to give him the chance to take root and sprout.