What Fu Baoer didn't expect was that Xu Shuzhen really went to the border province.
Chen Zhifang gave her a letter of introduction without asking why or when she would come back. He believed that Xu Shuzhen was not a reckless girl and must have her reasons for doing so.
Chen Zhifang also lent Xu Shuzhen money and tickets. He knew that in recent years, in order to allow some poor students in the surrounding villages to go to school, Xu Shuzhen contributed all her own money to pay tuition, buy stationery, and buy books and food for the children out of her own pocket. She probably didn't even have the money for a ticket to the border province.
Xu Shuzhen did not say much to thank her. She would come back. No matter what the outcome, she would return to this simple mountain village and dedicate her life to the education here.
The border province was very far away, and Xu Shuzhen had to change from an ox cart to a car, and from a car to a train. By the time she arrived at the border province, she had lost a lot of weight. The unfamiliar climate and water caused her to vomit and have diarrhea, and her face was yellow.
Xu Shuzhen never thought that she would learn to ride a horse in such a situation. It took her ten full days to find the place where her boyfriend Zhou Nan was working in the countryside.
Before she could stand firmly, Xu Shuzhen ran to the side and vomited. The wind from the border province was carrying yellow sand, and a lot of sand got into Xu Shuzhen's mouth. She had been traveling a lot these past few days and felt like she was living a life worse than death. For a moment, she actually thought that it would be okay to forgive Zhou Nan.
"Are you okay?" Guli patted Xu Shuzhen's shoulder. "Drink some water, you'll feel better."
Xu Shuzhen thanked her and took the water from Guli. The girl from the border province in front of her, although her skin was a little dark, her facial features were surprisingly delicate and her smile was also very bright. Xu Shuzhen thought of Zhou Nan's letter. Could it be her?
"Excuse me, why are you coming here?" Guli was a little confused. She hadn't heard that there were any new educated youth coming.
Xu Shuzhen took in the surroundings: the yellow sand, the camels, the sheep, the locals, all dressed differently from her, gathered in groups of two or three, looking at her. She composed herself and spoke slowly, "Zhou Nan, I'm looking for Zhou Nan. He's working in the Third Production Brigade of Zeya Commune."
After Xu Shuzhen said this, she did not receive any response. She looked up and saw that many people had fallen silent because of her words. The girl who had just given her water also looked stunned.
"Are you here to see Brother Zhou Nan?" Guli vaguely guessed who the woman in front of her was.
Xu Shuzhen stated her purpose, but didn't mention that she was Zhou Nan's girlfriend. She thought it would be better to give both of them some face. "Excuse me, where is Zhou Nan?"
Guli didn't say anything. The villagers around her spoke in a dialect that Xu Shuzhen couldn't understand, which made her a little impatient.
Before Xu Shuzhen could ask again, Guli suddenly turned around and said, "Come with me."
Xu Shuzhen thought she would see her lover whom she hadn't seen for ten years, and she was ready to question him. But unexpectedly, Guli took her through rows of houses and poplar trees and came straight to a small sand slope.
"Our place is called the 'Sea of Death.' When Brother Zhou and his friends arrived, they were just like you, not used to our lifestyle," Guli said with a smile in her eyes. "But it didn't take long for Brother Zhou to get used to it. He no longer complained about sand filling his mouth whenever he spoke, and he no longer worried about the drought and water shortage. He learned from us locals, digging wells to store water, wrapping food in sand, and slowly simmering it..."
As Guli told the story, the lives of Zhou Nan and his friends gradually formed a picture in Xu Shuzhen's eyes. Yes, Zhou Nan has strong adaptability, so how could he be easily defeated by these difficulties?
"Brother Zhou said that this place is part of the ancient Silk Road, mysterious and magnificent. Look over there," Guli pointed to a row of houses. "Those are the houses that Brother Zhou and his team built after they arrived. They're the first primary school here. Over there, there are the trees they planted..."
Xu Shuzhen looked up and saw that the place Guli pointed to was actually home to only a few scattered houses, and the trees were in groups of three or two, short and thin. Apart from that, there was yellow sand all over the sky. From a distance, the desert seemed endless, and the setting sun fell from the horizon, illuminating the sea of sand with golden light.
It was spectacular, Zhou Nan had described it this way in a letter he had sent her before, but Xu Shuzhen felt that it was not even one-tenth as spectacular as the scenery before her.
But why did they bring this beautiful girl from the border province here? Xu Shuzhen suddenly had a bad feeling in her heart.
"You are Sister Xu Shuzhen, right?" Guli said confidently.
Xu Shuzhen opened her eyes wide in surprise: "You...you recognize me?"
"I didn't recognize you. It was Brother Zhou Nan who often mentioned you to us." Guli took Xu Shuzhen's hand and said, "After Brother Zhou died, his ashes were scattered in this desert. He wanted to stay on this magical land for the rest of his life..."
Xu Shuzhen could not hear what Guli said next. She opened her hands, trying to catch the sand in the wind, as if she could feel the warmth of her lover. But the wind told her that her lover had disappeared. They took him into the depths of the desert, and he disappeared into every corner along with the yellow sand.
Xu Shuzhen burst into tears helplessly, and Guli watched silently, watching this girl who Zhou Nan had been thinking about before his death, travel thousands of miles to the border province to seek a result for her.
Zhou Nan died of cancer. Before his death, he wrote letters to Xu Shuzhen for a long time, tearing them up and writing again, writing and tearing them up again, and finally sent only one letter. He didn't want to see his lover sad, nor did he want his lover to wait for him all the time.
So he made up a love lie. The "she" in the letter was fabricated. When Zhou Nan was writing, he was still thinking that there were girls like her everywhere in the border province, so it should be okay to borrow one. How could a proud person like Shuzhen allow herself to be inferior to others? She would definitely be so angry after seeing the letter that she would not want to pay attention to him.
Unexpectedly, Xu Shuzhen only wanted to get the result in person. Guli recalled Zhou Nan's appearance. He was not the tallest or most handsome among the educated youth, but he was always the most eye-catching because he loved to laugh, and his smile was as beautiful as the sunset.
This girl who has always been loved by Zhou Nan is really happy.
In the next few days, Guli accompanied Xu Shuzhen and visited the places where Zhou Nan had been. Xu Shuzhen taught a class at school with the theme of dedication. Guli looked at Xu Shuzhen, who was confident, bright and graceful on the podium, and suddenly understood why Zhou Nan liked her.
They are the same kind of people, sticking to their hearts in the fields they love.
"Do you want to stay here and complete Brother Zhou's career?" Guli heard herself ask this.
"No, Zhou Nan's career is complete. I don't need to continue it," Xu Shuzhen's eyes sparkled. "I also have things I want to do. Zhou Nan will accompany me in heaven to persevere."
When Xu Shuzhen returned to Qingshan Village, she brought back a jar of yellow sand. Many years later, Fu Baoer still felt admiration for Xu Shuzhen when she recalled her. She never married in her life and always stayed in the education field, cultivating batches of outstanding students for China.
I heard that when she was dying, she had only one wish, which was to be scattered between heaven and earth along with this jar of yellow sand.
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