Li Zeyan looked at the farmland on both sides of the country road, a lush green expanse with endless mountains in the background.
Seeing the educated youth compound in the distance, Old Man Yang still told him about the place.
“Look over there, there’s a row of houses that’s the educated youth compound. The front houses the male educated youth, and the inner houses are the female educated youth.”
Li Zeyan saw another courtyard not far from the educated youth compound and pointed it out, asking a question.
Old Yang knew which courtyard he was referring to, so he said, "This courtyard was built for Song Yining, a former educated youth, by her family. The brigade said that if the educated youth didn't want to live in the educated youth compound, they should build their own houses, and the houses would belong to the brigade when they returned to the city."
I knew the countryside was poor, but when I actually arrived at the educated youth compound and saw the large kang (heated brick bed) where several people lived, I felt uneasy.
There was also a slight smell of sweat mixed in, which made him feel uncomfortable instantly. How could anyone sleep like that?
Looking at the man lying on the kang (a heated brick bed), there was a faint sour and unpleasant smell of medicine emanating from him.
She still greeted the man lying down, "Hello, I'm a new educated youth, Li Zeyan, please give me your guidance."
Bai Haoyu could tell from the accent that this guy was a local from Beijing, and judging from his clothes, his family was well-off.
"Hello, Bai Haoyu, you're from Beijing. Judging from your accent, you're from Beijing."
"Yes. I'll go out for a bit. Could you please watch my luggage for me?"
He came out with a look of disgust, seeing his luggage still piled up at the door.
He could only call out to Uncle Yang, who had brought him there, "Uncle, how do I get to the brigade headquarters? I'm here, so I'll go and report to the brigade leader first."
Old Yang then drove the oxcart to the brigade headquarters. Seeing that there were people at the headquarters, he pointed out the place and told him to wait outside.
When they went in and knocked on the door, the people saw they were strangers. "Hello, may I ask who you are?"
"Hello, I am Li Zeyan, a newly arrived educated youth in the countryside. I'm here to report for duty."
When the group heard that he was a newly arrived educated youth, they understood immediately; just by looking at his clothes, they could tell he was a young master from some noble family.
Leather shoes, white shirt, belt – these are items that most people can't afford.
Having formed a new perspective on the newly arrived male educated youth, Yang Chunlin quickly invited him to sit down and explained the situation in the village.
Li Zeyan still looked at the brigade leader and the others with a worried expression. "Uncle Captain, I learned from Uncle Yang, who drives the oxcart, that we educated youth can build our own houses. So I'll build the house next to the educated youth compound. I just need a kitchen and a woodshed. Is that okay?"
Yang Chunlin knew that the male educated youth came from a well-off family, so he immediately agreed.
"Alright, let me tell you anyway. You educated youth can build houses, but you only have the right to live in them. The land still belongs to our village. That makes no sense!"
The price differs depending on whether you're building a brick house or a mud-brick house.
"It's pointless, thank you Uncle Village Chief. How much would it cost to build the same materials as the one next to the educated youth compound?"
When Yang Chunlin built a house for Song Yining, it cost 100 yuan. The house had two rooms. Yang Chunlin said to Li Zeyan, "Song Yining's house cost 100 yuan. You only have one room, so it should cost about 80 yuan."
After seeing that Li Zeyan had no objection, he added, "You'll have to pay for the kang (heated brick bed) and stove inside separately; that's on a separate basis."
Without saying a word, Li Zeyan took out 10 ten-yuan bills and gave them to Yang Chunlin. "Uncle, please take these and help me set up the kang (heated brick bed) and stove inside. Is this enough?"
"That's enough, there's still a little left. We'll make up the difference later."
"Okay, if you need more, just let me know. Could you please help me find a place to stay during this time? The room is too cramped. I can pay the rent. Thank you."
Yang Chunlin had no choice but to think for a moment and then said, "Then you can stay at my house for a while. The rent will be waived, and the village will provide you with 50 jin of grain as a ration, which will be deducted from your work points."
"Okay, thank you, Uncle."
"Alright, then hurry up and get ready,"
Uncle Yang saw the village chief and the others come out and greet them. He was about to drive the oxcart back when he heard, "Brother Yang, please help Li Zhiqing take his luggage to my house. I'll be going back in a bit. Thank you for your help."
Upon hearing this, Old Man Yang exclaimed, "Okay!" The two then hurried towards the educated youth settlement. Once there, they quickly retrieved their belongings and headed towards Village Chief Yang's house.
Bai Haoyu, who worked at the educated youth shop, looked at the new educated youth with disdain.
This made him even more uncomfortable. They were both from the capital, but the difference between them was not small.
Looking at the clothes other people like and then at myself creates a stark contrast, making me feel panicked.
The original group of educated youths were all from all over the country, but he was the only one from Beijing. Now that he had Li, another educated youth, as a comparison, he no longer felt superior.
Bai Haoyu, who was lying on the kang, immediately got up and stopped sleeping. He smelled a pungent odor and realized what Li Zhiqing had been complaining about.
Even he himself was disgusted with himself; he smelled sour and foul all over. Bai Haoyu couldn't help but feel nauseous.
I got up and didn't stay in bed. I went to the kitchen and quickly filled a basin with water to wash myself because I smelled awful.
In no time, the water tank was completely used up, and a lot of firewood was also used.
When Lian Aihong came back from work and started cooking, she saw a yard full of clothes hanging out to dry, and noticed that Bai Haoyu had just finished tidying up.
He thought to himself, "This person finally realized something after all these days. He even knows to do his own laundry."
Yu Cheng said that he couldn't stand the smell in their room, which shows how bad it smelled.
Hao Yujie entered the kitchen to wash his hands and cook, but when he saw that there was no water in the water tank, he immediately exclaimed in surprise.
"Bai Zhiqing, you're not going to use the water from the vat to wash clothes, are you? What are we going to cook with tonight?"
Bai Haoyu didn't care when he heard this, "Then you should hurry up and fetch water now, there's still time."
Hao Yujie wanted to throw a bucket of water on him as soon as he heard this. How could this person be like this? Such a stubborn jerk.
She hadn't cooked yet, and was about to finish work without cooking, seeing Bai Haoyu's nonchalant attitude.
Enraged, Hao Yujie threw both of their clothes on the ground. Looking at Bai Haoyu, she was trembling and didn't know what to do.
He grabbed a broom and swung it at Hao Yujie, who immediately ran into the field.
They kept shouting, "The educated youth Bai hit someone! The educated youth Bai hit someone! The educated youth Bai hit someone!"
Hao Yujie was physically stronger than Bai Haoyu, so he reached the ground effortlessly.
Bai Haoyu was hot-headed at this moment, and he was so angry with Hao Yujie that he thought, "If I don't teach this bitch a lesson today, I'm not Bai."
"Hao Yujie, you dare to run away? You've spilled my clothes on the ground. Go back and wash them for me right now, and that'll be the end of it."
“Dream on, you know? This guy used up a whole tank of water, not a single drop, and he also used up a lot of firewood. I asked him to fetch some water, and you know he didn’t say anything.”
Everyone looked at Hao Yujie, waiting for him to say what he would say next.
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