"What's wrong with Yanchen?" Luo Jingyan stood up from the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed), and she suddenly had a bad feeling.
"He's fine, but he has some minor issues and can't come. He was worried that waiting for him would interfere with your other plans, so he asked me to tell you."
Luo Jingyan felt that Zhao Jun was intentionally hiding something from her.
"What exactly happened to Yanchen? Tell me."
"It's really nothing."
"The more you say that, the more something is wrong. If you don't want to say anything, I'll go and see for myself."
She grabbed her scarf and hat to go out, and Zhao Jun finally told the truth, "He was injured while saving someone. I just came back from there, and he told me not to tell you."
"He's injured?" No wonder he promised to come back to see her yesterday, but he hasn't shown up yet. "What happened? How did he get injured? Where is he hurt?"
"Today, Xue, a educated youth, participated in the village's rescue operation just like us. He was originally in a group with another villager to rescue two elderly people in a dilapidated house. However, his teammate, seeing that the roof beam was about to collapse, ran out first in fear. Xue, for the safety of the two elderly people, stood in front of them and was hit by the collapsing beam. He probably broke his bones and is currently at the educated youth station."
"I'll go take a look."
Luo Jingyan was a little flustered for a moment, then suddenly remembered that Xue Yanchen was injured and the roads were blocked by heavy snow, so she couldn't take him to the hospital. She should bring some spiritual spring water for him to drink.
So she first sent Zhao Jun away: "Zhao Zhiqing, thank you for telling me this news. I'll go see Yanchen in a little while."
"Oh, okay."
After Zhao Jun left, Luo Jingyan went into her spatial dimension, used spiritual spring water, rice, and red dates to cook a bowl of porridge, put it in a thermal container, and took it to the Forward Brigade.
After arriving at the educated youth settlement of Qianjin Brigade, she did not rush into the men's dormitory. Considering the difference between men and women, she stood at the door and asked for permission from the people inside. "I am Xue's boyfriend. I heard that he was injured and I want to go in to see him."
Although it was broad daylight, some of the male educated youth were afraid of the cold and stayed in bed.
Even in broad daylight, when they are in bed, they are still wearing clothes.
Some of the people got out of bed, while others stayed in. One of the more respected male educated youths came to the door and said, "As long as you don't mind, we have no problem with it."
Luo Jingyan then went inside.
Several male educated youths had met Xue Yanchen before when Luo Jingyan visited her, but this was the first time they had met her in person so closely, and they all envied Xue Yanchen for finding such a beautiful partner.
Luo Jingyan ignored the chaotic gazes, but Xue Yanchen and a few others cast cold glances at her, and the male educated youths dared not stare at Luo Jingyan anymore.
The dormitory wasn't very big; a large communal bed took up almost half the space. The male educated youth who had agreed to let Luo Jingyan in earlier, in order not to disturb her and Xue Yanchen's conversation, called on the other educated youth to go out for a snowball fight. However, only four of them went out; the other two refused to go out because they thought it was too cold and stayed in bed.
Because he had been hit on the back, Xue Yanchen couldn't lie down and was now lying face down on the kang (a heated brick bed): "It's snowing so heavily and it's so cold outside, why did you come here? Did Zhao Jun tell you about me?"
He had already told that guy not to tell Luo Jingyan about this, so as not to worry her, but he still couldn't keep the secret.
Luo Jingyan said, "Don't blame Zhao Jun. You said you would come to see me yesterday, but I waited for you for a long time today and you didn't come, so I came to find you. How is your injury? Is it serious?"
"It's alright. The village doctor here has already treated the external injuries. I know my own body; it's not serious."
Luo Jingyan couldn't figure out exactly how serious his statement about it not being serious meant.
What might be a serious injury to someone else is just a minor inconvenience to him.
She opened the lunchbox. "I cooked you some porridge. It's still warm. You can have some."
She opened the lid of the porridge box, and the porridge inside was still steaming. Xue Yanchen's arm was still strong, but because there were other people present, he didn't want Luo Jingyan to feed him, so he took the lunchbox and drank it himself.
Luo Jingyan took a stool and sat on the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed) watching him drink porridge. She really wanted to ask him about the badge, but the two male educated youths refused to leave. The badge might be a very important secret, and with outsiders present, it was inconvenient for her to discuss it with Xue Yanchen here.
Perhaps feeling guilty, the two male educated youths smiled sheepishly. One of them wrapped himself tightly in the quilt and said to Xue Yanchen and Luo Jingyan, "Educated youth Xue, I'm sorry, it's really too cold outside, and I have a bit of a cold. I'm sorry for disturbing your time together. Please don't mind."
"No, how could we mind? We were afraid of disturbing you," Luo Jingyan said apologetically. After all, they were the hosts and she was the guest, and they were sick. Neither she nor Xue Yanchen had any reason or right to kick them out.
The other one said, "I... I'm just afraid of the cold. Um, I'm going to sleep now, I won't disturb you anymore."
After saying that, he lay down and closed his eyes.
Luo Jingyan didn't expect to get a chance to be alone with Xue Yanchen today. Not long after, the other educated youth who had gone out also returned, so she had no choice but to prepare to leave: "You get some rest, I'll come see you again tomorrow."
"Okay, be careful on the road."
"Don't worry, I will."
After returning home, Luo Jingyan went to the cowshed to check on her mother. Because of the heavy snow blocking the road, her father and grandmother Zhang had not yet returned. She stayed in the cowshed that night to keep her mother company.
They had agreed the day before that Luo Jingyan would come here for dinner today, so Luo's mother didn't cook too early, afraid that if she cooked too early, the food would get cold by the time Luo Jingyan arrived, and reheated food wouldn't taste good. She planned to cook it when her daughter came over.
She took out a piece of cured pork that she had pickled before the New Year, and soaked some wood ear mushrooms that Luo Jingyan had brought over before, preparing to make stir-fried wood ear mushrooms with cured pork.
After dark, Luo Jingyan arrived at the cowshed. Luo's mother was going to cook, but her cooking wasn't as good as Luo Jingyan's, so she said, "Jingyan, you cook, I'll tend the fire."
The mother and daughter cooked corn porridge, heated up cornbread, and then stir-fried wood ear mushrooms with cured meat. That was it.
They served the food and sat facing each other on either side of the square table to eat.
After observing her daughter for the past two days, Luo's mother seemed to sense that something was on her mind. She noticed that Luo Jingyan was less talkative and less cheerful than before, and she frowned, wondering what had happened to her daughter.
"Jingyan, what's wrong? You seem a little unhappy. Is something the matter? Tell me."
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