Jiang Tao followed Song Ze at a distance, using the vegetation as cover to avoid revealing himself.
Seeing that Song Ze had stopped in front of a girl, he quickly hid behind a big tree and peeked out half of his head.
Then he saw something that shocked him: Song Ze gave the bag of beef jerky to the girl.
Jiang Tao's eyes almost popped out of their sockets. Was this really Song Ze? Could a sharp-tongued man like him be so nice to a girl?
Jiang Tao instantly felt sorry for Qin Jiajia. Everyone at the educated youth settlement could see that Qin Jiajia liked Song Ze, so he didn't believe Song Ze couldn't see it.
I heard that Qin Jiajia and Song Ze grew up together, but Song Ze is still very cold towards Qin Jiajia.
Jiang Tao originally thought that Song Ze was cold by nature and treated everyone like that, but now he saw Song Ze fawning over a girl.
Jiang Tao suddenly realized why Song Ze had been so happy yesterday—he had a girlfriend!
Feeling that he had discovered the truth, Jiang Tao quietly left again.
He's having such a hard time. While others are happily dating, he gets subjected to all the PDA and still has to rush back to work.
Xia Qingqing blinked as she looked at the package Song Ze handed her: "What's this?"
Song Ze gestured for her to open it and take a look. Xia Qingqing unwrapped the kraft paper and her eyes lit up instantly: "Wow, it's actually beef jerky!"
She picked up a piece and popped it into her mouth, munching on it with relish. As she ate, she asked curiously, "Song Ze, where did you get this? Beef must be hard to come by."
Song Ze watched Xia Qingqing intently eating the beef jerky and replied softly, "My aunt sent it to me; she made it herself."
Upon hearing this, Xia Qingqing glanced at Song Ze with envy, wishing she had an aunt just like him.
This beef jerky was very chewy; one piece would last Xia Qingqing a long time. She took another piece and then gave the rest to Song Ze.
"This beef jerky is so delicious! Your aunt is really good at making it."
Song Ze blocked the brown paper bag that Xia Qingqing handed him, a smile flashing in his eyes: "I knew you would like it, so I'll give it all to you. I don't like this."
This bag of beef jerky was actually what Song Ze got when he went to the county to pick up a package last time. He originally wanted to give it to Xia Qingqing, but the two of them had a cold war those few days and he didn't have time to give it to her.
Sure enough, after resolving their cold war yesterday, Song Ze eagerly delivered it to Xia Qingqing.
"I'm so sorry," Xia Qingqing said, but her actions betrayed her words as she hugged the beef jerky back to her chest.
Xia Qingqing thought to herself that she couldn't just freeload off Song Ze every day. She had to give him something in return. Friendships need to be reciprocal for them to last.
On the other side, Jiang Tao rushed back to the field, only to be met with a sharp look from his brother.
"Where have you been, you little brat? You disappeared first thing in the morning," Jiang Hai said, his tone tinged with a hint of anger.
Jiang Tao looked at his angry brother and hesitated to speak.
Jiang Hai watched him silently, and the air fell silent for a moment.
Jiang Tao chuckled and said, "Well, I just wandered around."
"Stop joking around. Do you think you're here for a picnic? You've been in the countryside for two years. What place in the village haven't you seen? Hurry up and tell the truth," Jiang Hai said with a straight face, not believing Jiang Tao's nonsense at all.
To put it bluntly, Jiang Tao could tell what kind of shit the other person was going to take the moment he bent over.
Jiang Tao got sprayed in the face with his brother's spittle and nervously rubbed his hands together: "Then I'll tell you, but don't scold me."
"Hurry up and speak, stop dawdling, or we won't finish the work."
Urged by Jiang Hai, Jiang Tao honestly recounted what had happened, gesturing as he spoke.
"No way?" Jiang Hai's mouth dropped open in an "o" shape when he heard that Song Ze was dating someone.
“It’s absolutely true, brother. You must be surprised too. No wonder he was so happy yesterday. Turns out he found someone. Song Ze is so devoted to Comrade Qin.” Jiang Tao had barely finished accusing Song Ze when his brother hit him.
He covered his head in confusion and looked at Jiang Hai: "Brother, why did you suddenly hit me?"
"How dare you ask? You actually dared to stalk someone! I'm being lenient by not killing you!" Jiang Hai looked at the 'good-for-nothing' in front of him with anger.
"Oh dear, I didn't do it on purpose. It's just dating, what's there to hide? It's like nobody else has one," Jiang Tao muttered to himself.
Neither of the two brothers noticed that Liu Xiaoying, who was working diligently with her head down not far away, had overheard their entire conversation.
Originally, Liu Xiaoying ignored the two whispering. It was not uncommon for Jiang Hai to teach Jiang Tao a lesson at the educated youth settlement; it happened every now and then.
However, when Jiang Tao started gossiping about Song Ze, he subconsciously raised his voice, which piqued Liu Xiaoying's interest, as she couldn't hear them clearly before.
Using the motions of working, they carefully moved in that direction little by little until they found a spot where they could hear the two talking.
The two brothers, engrossed in their conversation, had no idea that Liu Xiaoying, who appeared to be working diligently, was actually eavesdropping.
After hearing the gossip, Liu Xiaoying thought of Qin Jiajia, who was still sleeping in at the educated youth settlement, and silently mourned for her for three seconds.
Liu Xiaoying had long guessed that Qin Jiajia's feelings would go unrequited. After all, Song Ze had never given Qin Jiajia a response in all this time; it was all one-sided on Qin Jiajia's part.
Although the two are just friends, Liu Xiaoying still decided to tell Qin Jiajia about this big matter, reminding her that she couldn't just eat the food and pastries for free.
After finishing work at noon, Liu Xiaoying went straight to her room and, sure enough, saw Qin Jiajia reading comic books on the bed. She couldn't help but feel a pang of sadness; different people have different fates.
"Jiajia, I have something to tell you," Liu Xiaoying said, snatching the comic book from Qin Jiajia's hand.
Qin Jiajia turned over and sat up: "What's going on? Why are you being so mysterious?"
"Song Ze has a girlfriend."
These words struck Qin Jiajia like a thunderbolt, shattering her into pieces: "What are you talking about? This is absolutely impossible."
"Oh, it's true. Would I lie to you about something like this?" Liu Xiaoying looked at Qin Jiajia seriously, forcing Qin Jiajia to face the truth.
Qin Jiajia's eyes immediately reddened: "Where did you find out?"
“I overheard Jiang Tao saying this; he saw it with his own eyes, so it can’t be wrong.”
"No, I have to go find Song Ze and ask him clearly," Qin Jiajia said, trying to get out of bed, but Liu Xiaoying pressed her down.
"Jiajia, wake up! Do you think asking will change anything?"
Qin Jiajia ignored Liu Xiaoying's words and shook off her hand. She insisted on hearing Song Ze's words with her own ears.
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