Xu Xinghe saw this and had already made up her mind.
Wang Lili was deliberately trying to prevent her from fitting in.
She didn't go looking for trouble; instead, she silently walked to the edge of the kang (a heated brick bed) near the door, opened her bundle, and began to organize her things.
After she finished doing everything, she turned around and her eyes met Wang Lili's.
The other person had delicate features, but their eyes were somewhat cold, lacking any kindness and instead conveying an indescribable sense of rejection.
"Li Juan, you're from northern Hebei. Is it this cold there in winter too?" Zhao Xiaoyan finally took advantage of the moment when Wang Lili was folding clothes to sidle up to Xu Xinghe and asked in a low voice, her eyes full of curiosity.
Just as Xu Xinghe was about to answer, Wang Lili walked over with a cotton-padded coat, deliberately raising her voice, "Xiaoyan, look at my cotton-padded coat, the stitches are so tight! My mother said the cotton is freshly fluffed, it's especially warm. Try mine on and see if it fits?"
As she spoke, she put the cotton-padded coat on Zhao Xiaoyan, abruptly interrupting their conversation.
Zhao Xiaoyan reluctantly accepted it, then turned back and gave Xu Xinghe an apologetic look.
Xu Xinghe gently shook her head, indicating that she was fine.
She wasn't really there to go to the countryside, so she didn't need to care about the other person at all.
Wang Lili's hostility seemed inexplicable, and Xu Xinghe couldn't understand it.
But she only thought about it for a moment and immediately put it down.
Who cares? Let it be.
The three of them packed their things. It was completely dark outside the window. The educated youth settlement was quiet, with only the occasional bark of a dog in the distance.
The deputy captain had previously said that there was little lighting at night in the forest farm, and that everyone should get some rest as they would be reporting to the forest farm the next day.
"Let's go to sleep quickly, we have to get up early tomorrow." Zhao Xiaoyan yawned, took off her coat and crawled into bed, not forgetting to tell Xu Xinghe, "Li Juan, if you get cold tonight, just tell me, we'll huddle together to keep warm."
Xu Xinghe softly replied with a thank you and then lay down in her own bed.
Although the straw was thin, it was warm enough to be laid out under a quilt.
Wang Lili lay on the innermost kang (heated brick bed), her back to them, motionless, as if she had been asleep for a long time. However, Xu Xinghe could sense that her breathing was not steady, indicating that she was still awake and might even be secretly watching her movements.
In the darkness, Xu Xinghe opened her eyes and shifted her gaze from Wang Lili to Zhao Xiaoyan.
At first glance, she seems to have a cheerful and warm-hearted personality. She tried to talk to me several times, but Wang Lili interrupted her each time. However, she still remembered to ask me if I was cold.
Perhaps Zhao Xiaoyan will be a worthwhile friend to make in this educated youth settlement in the future, at least getting along with her won't be so tiring.
Xu Xinghe closed her eyes and went through Li Juan's identity information in her mind again. Only after confirming that nothing was missing did she gradually relax.
Tomorrow I'll be officially meeting the people at the forest farm. I don't know if I'll be able to meet the team leader named Zhang Qiang, or what else I'll encounter.
She took a deep breath and told herself that no matter what happened, she had to stay calm, complete the mission, and return safely!
The nights at the educated youth settlement were exceptionally quiet, with only the steady breathing of the three people echoing in the small room.
The next morning, just as dawn was breaking, the rooster at the educated youth settlement crowed.
Xu Xinghe rubbed her eyes and sat up. She saw Zhao Xiaoyan already folding the quilt, while Wang Lili stood at the door with her arms crossed, looking rather unpleasant, as if she had been waiting impatiently for a long time.
"Hurry up and pack your things. The deputy captain said we need to report to the forestry office early today. The brigade leader is coming back today," Zhao Xiaoyan urged as she folded the blankets.
Xu Xinghe quickly went out to wash up and get ready. The three of them followed the other new educated youth toward the forest farm office.
In May, the mornings in Dongmeng are still cool, dewdrops hang on the grass by the roadside, and the air is filled with the scent of grass and earth.
The forestry station office was a brick and tile building. A number of people were already standing in the open space in front of the door. Among them was a man in gray clothes who looked to be in his forties. He was talking to the old educated youth with a gentle smile on his face. He looked like an easy person to get along with.
"That's Captain Zhang!" The male educated youth next to him quietly pointed at the man.
Xu Xinghe was somewhat surprised. This was Zhang Qiang?
He looked too kind; the wrinkles at the corners of his eyes conveyed gentleness. He spoke in a slow tone and would pat the old educated youth on the shoulder from time to time, reminding them to be careful while working. He didn't look like a hidden spy chief at all.
If Xu Xinghe hadn't known his true identity beforehand, he would never have associated this good cadre with a spy.
"All the newly arrived educated youth, come over here." Zhang Qiang saw them, smiled and waved, his voice loud but not harsh, "I am Zhang Qiang, the head of the forest farm. I went to other forest farms yesterday to coordinate work and didn't come to pick you up. I'm sorry to have troubled the deputy head."
The new educated youth quickly gathered around and handed over their ID cards one by one.
Zhang Qiang took the documents, carefully examined them, then looked up at everyone. When his gaze landed on Xu Xinghe, he asked gently, "Your name is Li Juan? Are you from northern Hebei?"
Xu Xinghe quickly lowered her head, pretending to be shy, and said, "Yes."
Zhang Qiang's gaze swept over her face, he nodded, and said nothing more.
After reviewing everyone's documents, Zhang Qiang put them in a drawer. "I'll keep the documents for now. I'll process your registration for the forest farm later. Don't worry, they won't get lost. It's May now, and there's a lot of work at the forest farm. I'll assign you tasks. The older educated youth can mentor the new comrades and look after each other."
He cleared his throat and began assigning tasks, “The men are physically strong, so they will follow the older educated youth to the wasteland in the east to clear the land, removing stones and weeds. They will then plant poplar saplings. The women are more meticulous, so some will go to the nursery to select and cultivate seedlings, while others will go to the warehouse to organize farm tools and seeds. Two more will stay in the kitchen to help prepare lunch for everyone.”
At this point, Zhang Qiang looked at the female educated youth, "Li Juan, you look so frail, why don't you go to the nursery to cultivate seedlings? That work is relatively light. Zhao Xiaoyan, Wang Lili, how about you two go to the warehouse to organize farm tools?"
Xu Xinghe nodded, "Thank you, Captain Zhang."
Upon hearing the allocation results, Wang Lili's face instantly darkened. She glanced at Xu Xinghe with dissatisfaction, her eyes filled with jealousy and resentment.
She originally thought she would be assigned the seedling cultivation work, but unexpectedly, Xu Xinghe took advantage of her.
Wang Lili didn't say anything, but tugged at Zhao Xiaoyan's arm and said stiffly, "Xiaoyan, let's go to the warehouse."
Zhao Xiaoyan glanced at Xu Xinghe, wanting to say something, but was pulled away by Wang Lili, and could only turn back to give her a helpless look.
Xu Xinghe followed the old educated youth in charge of the nursery towards the nursery, still thinking about Zhang Qiang's matter.
As soon as they arrived at the entrance of the nursery, they saw Jiang Linchuan and other male educated youth clearing stones on the wasteland not far away.
The two men were working right next to each other, separated only by a clump of low bushes.
Jiang Linchuan also saw her, gave her a slight nod, and continued with his work.
He worked quickly and soon finished cleaning his assigned area. He put down his hoe and walked towards the nursery.
But as soon as he reached the edge of the nursery, an old educated youth came over and said to Xu Xinghe with a smile, "Comrade Li Juan, you're new here and may not be familiar with seedling cultivation yet. Let me help you. Let's finish quickly so we can take a break."
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