In the stillness of the night, Xie Yuyao, wrapped in her blanket, felt a sharp pain in her heart, and tears soaked her pillow.
Under the same starry sky, Zhao Honghui also kept his candle burning all night, his eyes open until dawn.
As dawn slowly drew back the curtain of night, morning descended upon the world.
Xie Yuyao quietly got out of bed. Since she couldn't sleep, she might as well take advantage of the quiet of the early morning to go out for a walk and clear her head.
I got dressed, washed up, went through the courtyard gate, and pushed open the bolt on the main gate.
The door had just been opened when she fell into a warm and strong embrace.
"Yao Yao..." the man called her name softly, his fingers gently stroking her hair.
Zhao Honghui pondered the matter all night, but still couldn't bring himself to end their relationship.
As the first rays of sunlight awaken the sleeping earth, he quietly gets up and goes to wait outside the educated youth compound.
Xie Yuyao, nestled in his arms, was shocked. Had he agreed?
No, that's impossible.
She immediately dismissed the idea, so he was just playing the victim card to get her to compromise?
Thinking of this, she patted Zhao Honghui's arm, signaling him to let go.
Zhao Honghui released his arm, gently took her hand, and pleaded in his eyes: "Yaoyao, please give me some time. I will make you believe that even if my parents live with me, I will never let you suffer the slightest grievance!"
As expected!
Even though she had expected it, Xie Yuyao still felt a pang of pain and disappointment.
She pulled her hand away from the man's and smiled sadly, "You've already wronged me by asking me to give up my obsession."
"Yaoyao!" Zhao Honghui hugged Xie Yuyao tightly again, as if he wanted to crush her and embed her into his body. "I don't want to be separated from you!"
I felt heartache, regret, and melancholy, but ultimately reason prevailed.
Xie Yuyao closed her eyes, no longer yearning for his warmth and tenderness, and suppressed all her reluctance in her heart.
She pushed Zhao Honghui away and said coldly, "Let's stop here. Rather than growing tired of each other in the future, it's better to end things cleanly and part ways amicably."
Seeing how easily she controlled her emotions, Zhao Honghui found it hard to accept and questioned, "How could you bear to do that?"
"So what if I can't bear to part with it? Knowing there's a cliff ahead, am I not allowed to rein in my horse?"
Looking at the girl in front of him, who was so clear-headed that she was almost cold, Zhao Honghui would have doubted whether she had ever liked him if it weren't for his own unwavering resolve.
"Go back." With that, Xie Yuyao turned away resolutely.
He stood there, watching her disappear from sight little by little, his eyes bloodshot, his heart feeling as if it had been struck by something heavy, the pain making it hard to breathe.
Xie Yuyao forgot how she got back to the kang (heated brick bed). It was only when she got up and washed up with the other educated youth that she realized she had already washed up once.
During the day, she seemed to have lost all her energy, unable to muster any enthusiasm for anything.
Even the rabbit falling into the trap and the lawnmower's picnic party couldn't cheer her up.
Zhao Chunling handed her a roasted rabbit leg. "Yuyao, I've never seen you so down before. What happened?"
She, who was always spoiled, also liked Xie Yuyao very much. She thought Xie Yuyao was optimistic, generous, easy to talk to, and could even help everyone eat meat and make money. There was no other person like her.
"It's nothing, this rabbit meat looks good, I'll try it." Xie Yuyao had no appetite, so to change the subject, she picked up a rabbit leg and started gnawing on it.
Seeing that she was unwilling to talk, Zhao Chunling winked at Yang Shumei. The latter shrugged, indicating that she couldn't do anything about it either.
Yang Shumei had already heard Xie Yuyao talk about the breakup, and didn't know how to comfort her.
Although she also felt that Yuyao's ideas were too peculiar, as a woman herself, she could understand them.
If Zhao Honghui were not the eldest son in the family, there wouldn't be such a big disagreement. Unfortunately, fate is not on their side, and it's unknown whether they can overcome this obstacle.
In the afternoon, Zhao Jianbin brought the money from selling deer pelts. Xie Yuyao decided to include him in the money and divide it equally among everyone.
The grass-cutting team's excitement at receiving their share of the money lasted for two days, and Zhao Chunling's raw astragalus root was also dried.
After finishing work in the evening, Xie Yuyao took a small portion each of the prepared cooked and raw astragalus, and with Zhao Chunling leading the way, went to Zhao Dayong's house with Yang Shumei.
"We're here, it's just ahead."
Xie Yuyao looked at the somewhat dilapidated building with its courtyard gate tightly closed, and was slightly surprised:
Isn't it quite lucrative to work in the black market?
"Zhao Dayong, are you home?" Zhao Chunling shouted.
Who is it?
The voice of an elderly person could be heard, accompanied by occasional coughing.
"It's me, Zhao Chunling!"
Grandma Dayong walked in unsteadily, and when she opened the door, she saw three beautiful young women. "Dayong isn't here. What do you want with him?"
Did he say when he would be back?
"He didn't say. If you're not in a hurry, I'll have him come back and find you."
Grandma Dayong, who rarely leaves her home, has never met Xie Yuyao and Yang Shumei. She guesses they are educated youth sent to the countryside, but she doesn't know how they know her grandson.
Zhao Chunling was at a loss and asked Xie Yuyao what to do.
"Please have the elderly person pass it on directly."
After hearing Xie Yuyao's words, Zhao Chunling gave the medicinal herbs to Dayong's grandmother and asked her to deliver them to Zhao Dayong.
"What is this? What should I give it to Dayong?"
Xie Yuyao looked at the old man who was squinting warily and lied, "These are some medicinal herbs. We heard that Brother Dayong often goes to the county town, so we asked him to deliver them to a relative of mine. We already told him the details last time."
Whether the old man believed it or not, he reached out and took the bag, then closed the door and refused further greetings.
"I'll leave it to Dayong. You guys go back first."
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