As she got closer, Xu Nuo could see that his eyes were bloodshot, indicating that he hadn't slept all night.
She frowned slightly, reached out and grabbed his sleeve as they walked toward the rooftop.
The large iron gate on the top floor was pushed open, and the slightly damp air outside rushed into my nose.
The next second, she was tightly embraced.
He buried his face in her neck, as if murmuring, "Nuonuo."
Xu Nuo was already puzzled that Li Xian had stayed downstairs all night, but seeing him like this now surprised her even more. She struggled and looked at him: "Li Xian, what's wrong with you?"
She leaned forward and was pulled into his arms again.
"Nuonuo".
Xu Nuo replied softly, "Hmm?"
She asked again, "Li Xian, what's wrong? Did something happen?"
Her soft words slowly dispelled the pent-up frustration that had been building up in his heart all night, but they also intensified his anxiety. He released her, pressed his forehead against hers, and whispered, "Nuonuo, wherever you go from now on, I'll go with you, okay?"
Xu Nuo frowned, reached out and pinched his cheek, her eyes wide open, her sweet voice tinged with amusement: "Li Xian, you didn't stay downstairs at my house all night because you were jealous, did you?"
Li Xian's face was usually expressionless, but now it was distorted by her gripping, and only her reflection could be seen in his deep, pool-like eyes.
His silence was an admission.
She released his face and poked his arm, both angry and amused, as if she wanted to poke a hole in it before she stopped.
He didn't stop her, letting her do whatever she wanted. In the end, Xu Nuo got tired of poking him and let him go.
She leaned against her.
"You big idiot."
Li Xian reached out and hugged the person tightly.
“Nie Wenkai is Su Zhao’s friend. I ran into him yesterday when I went to the Su family to deliver herbal tea.”
Li Xian remained silent with a blank expression. Xu Nu pouted and continued, "Uncle Su thought it was too much trouble for me to deliver it, so he asked me to come back with him. Next time, he can come to my house directly to pick it up."
Hearing this, Li Xian frowned, looking very disapproving: "No way."
Xu Nuo looked up and glared at him: "Why not? Do you expect me to deliver it all the way over there?"
Li Xian shook his head and, under her angry glare, said, "I'll deliver it for you."
She frowned with worry: "How can you deliver it for me? What will you say when people ask who you are?"
These words struck a nerve with Li Xian. His eyes filled with resentment, and he gritted his teeth. "Nuonuo, the announcement about my parents' matter will be released soon."
Xu Nuo was overjoyed: "Really? A letter came from your maternal grandparents' house?"
Li Xian nodded.
"That's great. Now you don't have to carry the label of 'Five Black Categories' anymore, and the villagers won't dare to talk badly about you behind your back."
Thinking of those people from Luxian Village, Xu Nuo still felt a bit resentful. She hugged Li Xian tightly and wanted to jump up happily: "That's great, that's great!"
Seeing her so happy, Li Xian's eyes also lit up with a smile. He had kept this relationship a secret because he was afraid that his identity would bring shame to her. Now that the stain on his reputation had been removed, it would no longer have any negative impact on her.
Thinking of this, his voice trembled with joy, and he rarely showed a childlike smile: "From now on, we can tell others that we're a couple..."
"no."
Li Xian's smile froze, and he slowly looked down at her.
Xu Nuo was unyielding on this matter, shaking her head: "No, we can't let anyone else know."
Seeing her staring at him, Li Xian forced a smile that looked more like a grimace: "Why?"
She lowered her head, avoiding his gaze, and said, "It's still early, isn't it? I haven't even started university yet. If my parents find out now, they'll definitely be angry."
Seeing that he didn't speak, Xu Nuo leaned into his arms, looked up at him and smiled, her voice very soft: "Li Xian, my dad is very fierce. He would beat me to death if he found out. Can I let everyone know after I graduate from university?"
To be precise, it's not necessary to wait until she graduates from university. As long as she's certain that the story won't follow the plot and that Li Xian won't actually fall in love with Xu Yan like in the book, that's enough.
"Um?"
Xu Nuo tugged at his clothes and shook him.
Li Xian placed his hand on her forehead, gently stroking it, and conceded, "Okay."
Having received his assurance, Xu Nuo smiled happily. Remembering what Xu Yan had said yesterday, she asked him, "My sister said yesterday that you came to the black market to do business?"
Li Xian paused for a moment, then nodded: "Yes."
"What's wrong?"
He had been involved in the black market for many years. Although he disdained lying and deceiving people, it wasn't that he couldn't bring himself to say it. However, when he looked into her clear, big eyes, he felt his throat tighten.
"Liu, Liu Chun."
"Liu Chun?" Xu Nuo didn't recognize the person and tilted her head in confusion.
Li Xian swallowed hard, his Adam's apple bobbing slowly and heavily.
"There's a problem with the goods he has."
"I see," Xu Nuo nodded. "So he asked you for help?"
He nodded, his voice very soft: "Yes, I'll go help."
Xu Nuo didn't care about the black market anyway, so she didn't press the matter further. The conversation quickly turned to Xu Jinhong's family. Perhaps because the house would soon be quiet, she smiled rather gleefully, resting her chin on his chest as she said, "I don't know what happened, but my uncle came back yesterday covered in injuries, and he's lost two of his fingers."
Girls are afraid of bloody things, and Xu Nuo had witnessed it with her own eyes. Thinking about it made her feel a little scared. Li Xian quickly put his arm around her and gently stroked her cheek.
"Then my uncle insisted on going back to Baici Village. My grandma couldn't bear to part with him, so she's taking him back today."
Li Xian didn't seem surprised. The fear in her eyes disappeared, and he casually hummed in agreement.
Xu Nuo stuck her head out and listened intently. Li Xian looked at her strangely: "What's wrong?"
Xu Nuo said, "I'll try to hear if I can hear them moving out."
Li Xian pulled her back and pinched the tip of her nose: "It's too far away, you can't hear me."
Indeed, she couldn't hear anything. All Xu Nuo could hear were the two people's shallow breathing, the occasional bird chirping, and at most, a very faint noise outside.
They couldn't hear Xu Guihua's sobbing below at all.
As difficult as Xu Guihua was, she struggled all night and started crying and pleading with Xu Jinan again early in the morning.
Xue Ping got up early and was sitting at the table eating porridge.
With a face that bears a four or five-point resemblance to Xu Nuo, she doesn't look like she's almost forty years old at all. Her skin is smooth, her black hair is lustrous, and even her ordinary street office uniform doesn't look bad on her.
Guo Ailian was both envious and jealous. She mimicked Xu Guihua's manner and wiped her eyes, saying, "Sister-in-law, I've been married into this family for over ten years, and my life has been miserable. My husband is a good-for-nothing, and now he's injured and is in this state. I'm afraid he won't amount to anything in the future. Unlike my second brother, who is young, promising, and treats you well."
Xue Ping took a sip of porridge and put some pickled vegetables in her mouth. She thought that she had woken her daughter up too early and hadn't had time to let her eat breakfast before going out. However, her daughter was never one to suffer, so she guessed that her daughter had already gone to buy breakfast.
Thinking of her beloved daughter, Xue Ping felt a little better and had the patience to listen to Guo Ailian's grand performance. Guo Ailian was getting impatient seeing that Xue Ping hadn't said a word despite her talking so much. Just then, Xu Guihua, who was standing nearby, also mentioned this topic. Xu Jin'an said indifferently, "Half of the seven hundred yuan that my brother borrowed earlier belonged to Xue Ping. Now, every time I get my salary, I have to hand over all my money to her. I don't have a single penny."
Xu Guihua said in a low voice, exasperated, "How could you let her do this? You're the head of the household; all the money should be yours. Why should it be given to her?"
Guo Ailian didn't hear what Xu Jinan said. She took a deep breath, preparing to continue playing the victim with Xue Ping, but Xue Ping put down her bowl and stood up. Guo Ailian asked curiously, "Where are you going?"
"I'm going to work."
Guo Ailian asked in surprise, "Didn't my second brother say he wasn't going to work today?"
"That's because he took leave, but I have to go to work."
Xu Guihua, who was standing nearby, was getting anxious. Before she could say anything, Xue Ping had already gone into the room to get her bag and said, "No, I'll be late for clocking in. I'm leaving now."
The person really did leave.
Now Xu Guihua and Guo Ailian followed Xu Jin'an, crying and sobbing. They complained about how hard it would be to go back to Baici Village and how badly Xu Jinhong was injured. Xu Jin'an checked the time and said, "Mom, we have to take a tractor to get to Baici Village. I asked Old Chen from the fertilizer factory upstairs last night, and he said the tractor leaves at midnight. Do you think we should pack our things? If it gets too late, you'll probably have to walk."
Xu Guihua was startled and pushed Guo Ailian: "Go pack your things quickly, and remember to bring the quilts and bedding."
She looked at Xu Jinan and said with dissatisfaction, "No one has lived in Baici Village for so many years, so we must be lacking in everything. We need to take the bedding and blankets with us, otherwise what will we use when we get there?"
Xu Jinan didn't say anything. Anyway, that's all there was at home, so he let Xu Guihua take whatever she wanted.
Who knew that Guo Ailian actually wanted the cotton quilt in Xu Nuo's room.
Xu Jinan said without hesitation, "No, take everything from your room, but don't touch Nuonuo's things."
Xu Guihua was already furious. After haggling for a long time without getting the money, she shouted, "Why can't I touch it? She uses so many blankets by herself, what's wrong with me taking two?"
Xu Nuo was indeed a delicate person and couldn't sleep on a hard bed, so Xu Jin'an gave her a soft cotton quilt to put underneath. Once, Xu Jiangjiang opened Xu Nuo's door and was seen by Guo Ailian. She had long coveted that soft and warm quilt, and now that the person was leaving, she didn't care about her reputation and shamelessly asked Xu Jin'an for it.
Who knew Xu Jinan would refuse so decisively.
Guo Ailian gestured to Xu Guihua with her eyes: "Uncle, I just want a quilt. My Jiangjiang is still young, how can he live without a quilt? My mother and I asked you for money but you wouldn't lend it to us, and now you won't even give us a quilt. Do you even care about my mother?"
Who is Xu Jin'an? He's a minor leader, after all. He's not a fool. He used to let Xu Guihua and Xu Jinhong get away with things out of family ties and turn a blind eye. Now that he's had a sudden epiphany and understands everything, dealing with Guo Ailian is just a matter of a word.
Xu Jinan sat back down on the sofa and did some calculations with Guo Ailian: "I've been working for over twenty years. My family doesn't even have quilts, let alone a single vegetable leaf. Tell me, sister-in-law, how many people in this world are like me?"
Guo Ailian was not allowed to retort to Xu Jin'an, and immediately said awkwardly, "Well, Uncle, aren't we family?"
Xu Jinan sneered: "Don't forget, when Mother made me leave home, she said she didn't consider me family. It was because you were pregnant with our son and didn't have money to buy nutritional supplements that you came to me. I didn't say a word and gave you a month's salary, thirty-one yuan. Did I say a word?"
Xu Guihua stood to the side, her chest heaving, but she felt no remorse whatsoever. She was just thinking that if she had known her second son would be so successful, she would never have said those things. Now that Xu Jin'an was trying to use those words against her, even if she went to the village entrance to lie down and cry, no one would say a bad word about Xu Jin'an.
Xu Guihua wasn't unaware that she had gone too far; she simply didn't care and was indifferent, which made her fearless.
Xu Jinan wasn't really a fool; he just cherished the family bond and tolerated things, which led him to where he is today.
Seeing that Xu Guihua was also silent, Guo Ailian turned her head and went back to her room to pack her things.
...
Since the beginning of summer, the nights in Luxian Village are not particularly hot and humid, but the days are already quite sunny.
Today, the production team was going to plant sweet potatoes. A group of people spent half the day turning over the soil. The villagers who were used to farm work were fine, but the educated youth who had come to the countryside were all exhausted.
Planting sweet potatoes requires manpower, so Xu Yan also had to come and turn the soil.
She wiped away her sweat, feeling slightly sleepy.
I secretly read for half the night last night, and now I'm finding it hard to keep up with the work.
Fortunately, she and Luo Chen were assigned the very edge of the plot of land, which happened to be adjacent to each other. When no one was looking, Luo Chen turned the hoe a long way towards hers, turning over almost half of the soil for her.
Are you tired?
A bowl of water was handed to Xu Yan. He looked around and saw that everyone was busy working and no one was paying attention to the corner of the winnowing basket. He took the bowl and drank a sip.
"I stayed up late reading yesterday and I'm a little sleepy."
Luo Chen said, "You can stand here, stop working, I'll rummage through your things more."
Xu Yan shook her head and lowered her voice: "No, if we come any closer, everyone will notice."
Luo Chen didn't care: "So what if they found out?"
Upon hearing this, both of them blushed slightly. Xu Yan coughed and said, "By the way, I ran into Brother Li yesterday. He almost had an accident while delivering goods."
Luo Chen was startled and looked up at her: "A cop?"
Xu Yan nodded: "He asked me to come back and remind you to think it over carefully. Maybe we shouldn't do this. After all, selling grain and pastries is doing quite well, isn't it? I always feel that selling yellow goods is too dangerous."
Luo Chen smiled and wiped his head with a handkerchief: "It's okay, the police will catch us anyway, so what's the difference what we sell?"
The same risk yields vastly different rewards.
Seeing the worry on Xu Yan's face, Luo Chen was about to say something when he suddenly heard someone calling him. He quickly put down his hoe and ran over.
After a while, he ran back with a strange expression. Xu Yan asked curiously, "What's wrong? What happened?"
Luo Chen whispered, "The village secretary said my application to return home has been approved."
Xu Nuo's worst fears came true.
In the original book, of the educated youth who applied to return to their hometowns, only Luo Chen was approved.
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