She wandered around the store again, and with a handful of grain coupons in her hand, she bought several kilograms of enriched flour.
They say this flour is of the highest quality and makes the best noodles.
Xue Fu also bought two kilograms of rice.
Why only buy two pounds? Because she couldn't carry the things in her hands anymore.
Moreover, she had no idea what kind of flour or rice she was dealing with.
She had no idea how much rice a person should eat in one meal.
As she was thinking about what else she needed to buy, she suddenly remembered: matches!
She then asked the clerk next to her, who pointed out the location to her.
Xue Fu went over and bought a dozen.
She doesn't know when she'll learn how to light a fire and make firewood, so she can buy more to keep on hand!
After checking again to make sure nothing was missing, Xue Fu put all the things she bought into the bucket and carried it out by the handle.
The bucket was heavy, and it hurt my palms a little from squeezing it.
The oxcart was parked on the edge of town, a few hundred meters away.
Xue Fu gritted her teeth and tried her best to move it out.
After walking about ten meters, Xue Fu's palms were so sore that she stopped to rest.
A red line appeared on her palm from the pressure, and Xue Fu blew on it tenderly.
She thought that her hands would develop calluses in a while.
Previously, Cheng Pei-pei told her that as long as calluses formed on her hands, she wouldn't experience hand pain when doing things like carrying things or pulling weeds.
Xue Fu knew that made sense, but she didn't want calluses on her hands.
She is indeed pretentious and delicate.
After feeling a little wronged for a while, once her palms didn't hurt so much, Xue Fu prepared to continue moving things.
However, when she looked up to find a direction, she found that the figure standing at the alley entrance looked so familiar.
A profile flashed past my eyes.
Seeing that the man was about to disappear into the alley after exchanging a few words with the person next to him, Xue Fu blurted out in a moment of panic, "Hey! Gu Chong!"
Call out his name.
Gu Chong had collected a lot of mountain products a couple of days ago.
But he didn't have time to go to the county town these past few days, so he planned to visit the black market in the town.
Gu Chong had already communicated with the person guarding the entrance to the black market and paid the entrance fee. Just as he was about to go in, he heard someone calling his name.
His expression turned serious. He glanced at the person at the door and noticed that the person's expression had indeed changed. The person looked at him with suspicion and caution, afraid that Gu Chong's presence would attract those red armbands.
Gu Chong shook his head, then turned around to see who it was.
The result was a surprised and relaxed smile.
The girl stood on the side of the street, with a bucket at her feet, its contents piled high.
When Xue Fu noticed that he had turned around after hearing the sound, she immediately waved to him enthusiastically, as if she had seen a savior.
Gu Chong closed his eyelids and let out a silent sigh.
He stood there staring at her for several seconds before making a decision, and reluctantly started walking towards her.
I heard her say yesterday that she was coming to town, and then we ran into each other.
Gu Chong had no idea what kind of fate this was.
He looked down at the things at her feet and asked, "Have you bought everything?"
Gu Chong carried a bamboo basket on his back. He was tall, so the basket was carried high, and Xue Fu couldn't see what he had bought.
Moreover, the contents of his basket were shrouded in mystery, covered by a black cloth, completely concealed, except for a small corner protruding near his back.
Xue Fu first hummed in agreement, then asked him in return, "Have you finished buying your things?"
She looked at him, and Gu Chong felt that her eyes were so bright, her sparkling pupils like clear glass beads.
That expectant look makes it look even more like a rabbit.
Gu Chong figured out what she was thinking.
He looked down and saw her fair hands, with traces of red on her palms.
He said, "Wait here for me."
Before leaving, Gu Chong was still a little worried, so he frowned and emphasized again: "Don't wander around, just wait where you are."
Xue Fu nodded obediently: "Mmm!"
She saw Gu Chong return in the direction he had come from, entering that unremarkable alley.
She didn't know what he was going to do, but she had a vague guess in her mind.
She waited there listlessly for a while.
Gu Chong came back from another direction.
Xue Fu noticed that the basket he was carrying on his back was empty, and the black cloth covering it had been taken away.
Xue Fu pretended to be nonchalant and lingered her gaze on him for a while, looking him over naturally.
However, her acting was poor, and she couldn't hide the surprise in her fox-like eyes at all. Gu Chong saw this clearly and changed the subject.
"Do you want to go back?"
Before Xue Fu could even ask him for help, Gu Chong, ever the quick-witted man, picked up the bucket she had placed on the ground.
She carried the heavy bucket of water as if it were nothing in his hands, it was incredibly light.
Xue Fu: "Let's go!"
The two walked side by side toward where the oxcart was parked.
On the way, Gu Chong had already mentally prepared himself for being questioned by Xue Fu.
He was indeed very "suspicious" just now.
However, Xue Fu didn't bring up this topic at all along the way. She only asked, "Did you walk here today?"
He wasn't on the oxcart this morning.
Gu Chong hummed in agreement.
Then I heard Xue Fu sigh.
Seeing that she gave him a thumbs up, he said, "You're awesome."
"It would take an hour to walk there!"
Gu Chong cleared his throat and replied in a deep voice, "More or less."
Xue Fu was quite talkative; she asked again, "Did you also take leave?"
Gu Chong: "Yes."
Xue Fu chuckled: "I also took leave to come."
The oxcarts returning home wouldn't set off for another fifteen minutes, and when they arrived, there was no one on the oxcarts.
Xue Fu sat in the most secure spot inside. Gu Chong placed the bucket of water next to her feet and then sat down opposite her.
His empty bamboo basket was placed next to his knees, and it was easy to see at a glance.
Xue Fu pursed her lips and didn't ask any further questions.
However, she still had something to ask Gu Chong.
So Xue Fu moved to a different spot, getting closer to Gu Chong.
Seeing her lean closer, Gu Chong frowned imperceptibly, wanting to create distance, but it seemed too deliberate.
When he saw that she was still a foot away from him, he quickly asked, "What's wrong?"
Xue Fu actually wanted to whisper something to him.
He spoke directly, and the oxcart driver was smoking his pipe in the shade of a tree. Xue Fu also asked directly.
"Gu Chong, I know that in other villages, some educated youth eat at the homes of their fellow villagers, although our village doesn't have that yet..."
As Xue Fu spoke, she touched the tip of her nose: "But do you know which family in our village we can share meals with?"
She wanted to go out for dinner as soon as possible.
"Hmm?" Gu Chong turned his head to meet her gaze, his face showing an expression Xue Fu couldn't decipher. He asked in a deep voice, "What's wrong?"
Gu Chong quietly observed Xue Fu's braids and saw that she showed no unusual expression. It seemed that she simply wanted to understand the situation of sharing a room, rather than the situation he had just thought, where she was being ostracized, targeted, or bullied by the educated youth group.
Xue Fu scratched her braid and explained, "I'm not very good at cooking, and I don't earn many work points."
She pursed her lips: "I have food ration coupons, but I don't know how to cook."
The educated youth settlement was a communal dining community. If she shared her meager food with them, Xue Fu wouldn't be able to feed so many people.
If special treatment were given to educated youth at the educated youth settlement, it would be difficult to calculate.
After all, the water and firewood used were collectively owned.
Eating and cooking should be done at off-peak times.
It's very troublesome.
After much thought, Xue Fu concluded that it would be most convenient to find villagers to eat with.
"You want to team up with someone?" Gu Chong exposed her true intentions.
Xue Fu hummed in agreement, then asked him, "Do you have any recommendations?"
Xue Fu actually wanted to ask more directly, "Do you know which family is better off? Which family in the village usually eats better?"
Or, could she go to Gu Chong's house for dinner?
But in the end, Xue Fu was too embarrassed to ask.
Gu Chong looked at her with his eyes half-closed; her small face looked somewhat conflicted.
He thought, she really is naive.
Thinking this, Gu Chong kindly reminded her, "Don't flaunt your wealth."
The village wasn't as warm and simple as she had imagined.
Evil exists everywhere in the world.
Some people just hide it better.
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