Chapter 21: Courtesy
Lu Donglin instinctively covered his butt and ran away, not even doing his homework. How could something as torturous as homework compare to the beautiful young intellectual? Hum╯^╰
When Lu Dongping went over, Wen Wan was waiting in the yard for Lu Minghai to approve her application.
Before he could speak, Lu Donglin, the brat, rushed over and said, "Sister Wenwan, why are you looking for my uncle?"
"Approve the slip, then go to the accountant to get rations."
As he said that, Lu Minghai came out of the room and handed her the approval slip. Before she could take it, Lu Dongping reached out and snatched it away.
"One hundred kilograms?" Lu Dongping raised his eyebrows. "You can do it, little educated youth. Can you carry one hundred kilograms of food?"
Wenwan:——
She turned around and thanked Lu Minghai before reaching out to Lu Dongping for the approval slip: "You care about me! Give me the approval slip." She really couldn't carry it, so she ignored it. But now that she had the approval slip and the food was ready, she could figure out a way out!
Lu Dongping was shameless. He didn't care whether there were elders present or not. He just raised the note in his hand high. Wen Wan jumped several times but failed to get the note back.
Lu Minghai coughed lightly and said, "Dongping, you're already an adult, and you're still bullying a little girl? Hurry up and give her the approval slip. It's getting late. If you're free, you can take her to Accountant Liu's house. I think she might not be able to find the place."
Lu Dongping curled his lips and said, "Look, this is my real uncle."
"Okay, Chun'e and my mother are cooking now. I have nothing to do, so I'll take her there." After saying that, he called Wen Wan: "Why are you fighting with me for this note? Come on, I'll take you to Accountant Liu." After saying that, he gave the note directly to Wen Wan and walked towards the road below.
Lu Donglin cried out: "I'm going too, brother, wait for me."
"Donglin!" He had only taken two steps when Lu Minghai called out, "Where are you going? Have you finished your homework?"
Lu Donglin slammed on the brakes, rolled his eyes, and turned around: "Uncle, I have to go and see my brother, lest he do something stupid again. If I don't help him, when will he be able to bring the young educated youth back?"
Lu Minghai remained silent for once. By the time Lu Donglin realized what was happening, his father, Lu Mingjiang, was already standing behind him. He reached out and grabbed his ear. "Lu Donglin, what did you just say? Tell me again. Who is your brother trying to kidnap?"
Lu Dongping didn't know that he had been exposed, and took Wen Wan towards Liu Chaoxing's house.
Liu Chaoxing's home is very close to the educated youth site. There is a small hill behind it, and the Liu family is halfway up the hill.
Lu Dongping accommodated Wen Wan's pace and asked her as they walked, "Hey, young educated youth, have you figured out how to get the rations back?"
Wen Wan's eyes sparkled as she reached out to grab his clothes: "Can you help me get it back?"
Lu Dongping turned his head and looked at her: "Okay!"
Wen Wan suddenly became happy, but before she could even say thank you, she heard him ask again, "What's in it for me if I help you get the food back?"
Wen Wan puffed out her cheeks and said, "It's no use. If you don't want to help, forget it. I can do it bit by bit. I can finish it by making a few more trips."
Lu Dongping: ——Why is it so difficult to appease the young educated youth?
Liu Chaoxing is forty-two years old this year. Like most farmers here, he is not very tall, but he has a severe hunchback. He is the only one of his generation in the team who has finished elementary school, so he became the accountant of the production team.
Wen Wan met an acquaintance at Liu's house, Hu Xiujuan, who was in charge of the warehouse.
Lu Dongping was talking to Liu Zhaoxing. She greeted Hu Xiujuan and then went over and called out, "Accountant Liu, I'm here to buy some food."
Lu Dongping sensitively grasped the word "buy" and turned to look at her: "Buy food?"
Wen Wan nodded. "I don't want to borrow money. I can only earn work points based on how much work I do. If I have to borrow food from now until next year, I'll probably have to pay the team back for the rations next winter."
What he said was the truth, but Lu Dongping had never seen such a lavish purchase of grain.
Liu Zhaoxing confirmed: "Are you really buying it? No IOU required?"
Wen Wan answered firmly: "Buy it, don't worry, I won't default on my debt. I'll pay you with both money and grain."
Liu Chaoxing went into the house, took the account book and walked out to the yard.
Wen Wan couldn't figure out the situation.
Lu Dongping called out to her, "Let's go!"
"Where are you going?" Wen Wan followed.
"Go to the warehouse and weigh the grain for you."
Wen Wan was stunned for a moment, then followed him, screaming in her heart, "Lu Dongping, what a liar! His warehouse is right next to the educated youth camp. How can he not move a hundred kilograms of grain back? I thought the grain was taken directly from Accountant Liu's house!"
Lu Minghai approved 100 kilograms of grain according to her wishes. She took the money and bought 100 kilograms of corn and more than 20 kilograms of sweet potatoes based on the price of the grain.
She didn't have any sacks or anything like that, so she could only borrow a basket from the team.
Lu Dongping ran twice and easily delivered her food and put it directly into the house.
"It's too late today. Let's do it another day. No, tomorrow. I'll ask my mother to get two sacks and help you grind the corn on the millstone and pack it up."
If he hadn't said it, Wen Wan wouldn't have remembered that the whole corn kernels had to be ground before they could be put into the pot. She nodded hurriedly, "Okay, okay, thank you!"
Lu Dongping chuckled twice, took two steps towards her, and leaned over to look at her: "How do you thank me?"
Wen Wan subconsciously stepped back a little and said, "How do you want to thank me?" She was really just saying it casually. Why did she take it so seriously? How shameless!
Lu Dongping stood up straight and smiled: "I haven't thought about it yet. I'll tell you another day when I think about it."
After saying that, he glanced around and felt that the atmosphere at the educated youth's site was a bit subtle. He didn't look at it for long. He just glanced at the educated youth's room and went out, not wanting to stay any longer.
Wen Wan thanked him again sincerely.
Lu Dongping didn't tease her this time and waved his hand: "It's a simple matter. Let's go eat and rest early. Close the doors and windows. I think the weather is about to change."
Wen Wan nodded, stood there and watched him leave before returning to the room. She looked at the corn placed against the wall beside the bed and smiled, knowing that she also had food to eat.
There were only three of them at dinner. No one knew where Zhu Feng went, and Wen Wan didn't ask.
After dinner, she told Wang Jianmao and Liu Changqing about the food rations: "A total of 100 kilograms of corn and 20 kilograms of sweet potatoes. How much do we need to provide every day?"
Wang Jianmao thought about her appetite and said, "Half a pound!" Then he glanced at Liu Changqing and said, "What do you think?"
Liu Changqing was washing the pot there and replied, "I have no objection." With Wen Wan's appetite, she could not even finish a bowl of rice for two meals a day. Half a pound was too much. They were taking advantage of her.
After washing the pot, it was completely dark outside. Liu Changqing said, "You will cook tomorrow. Comrade Wen Wan, get up early too. I'll take you to the big mill and teach you how to grind it. The corn needs to be ground before it can be cooked."
Wen Wan agreed and said, "She had never seen a millstone before!"
I had just washed up and gone to bed when Zhu Feng's voice came from outside. He was holding two bags, which weighed about 40 to 50 kilograms in total. They were the rations he had borrowed.
The food was ready, but because of this incident, the relationship between the few people was not so harmonious. However, this had nothing to do with Wen Wan. After a peaceful sleep, she was woken up by Liu Changqing at daybreak.
It was frost outside, but she felt it was even colder than when it frosted. She wrapped herself up like a ball in autumn clothes, fleece clothes, sweaters, cotton-padded jackets, and protective clothes, and finally felt a little better in cotton shoes.
After she finished, Liu Changqing came into the house to help her take the grain out of the basket and carry it to the public mill on the other side of the dam with a shoulder pole.
"I still have to go to work. Grind this half first. I'll do it for you to watch. After I push it a few times, you try it. I guarantee you won't feel the cold anymore."
Wen Wan nodded hurriedly, watching him use a wooden ladle to scoop the corn from the basket. There was a hole on the millstone with a few sticks stuck into it. Liu Changqing explained to her, "The sticks block it, so it goes down slower, and the corn that comes out is thinner."
While Liu Changqing was talking to her, his hands were busy. He placed the grinding bar on the millstone and demonstrated to Wen Wan how to do it. One end of the bar should be placed on the side of the millstone, and the other end should be placed on the waist. Then, with a little effort, move forward, circle after circle.
Wen Wan watched him from the side and thought he was doing it very easily. She couldn't help but want to try it: "I'll do it, I'll do it. I think I can do it."
Liu Changqing smiled. People who don't smile often look particularly beautiful when a smile appears in their eyes. Unfortunately, Wen Wan was concentrating on the grind at the moment and didn't notice it.
Taking the millstone from Liu Changqing, she pushed it once, but it didn't budge. Then she tried again, exerting a lot of force, and it finally moved. But she also realized it wasn't as effortless as Liu Changqing's. Pushing the millstone was incredibly strenuous! And most importantly, spinning in circles like this made her not only tired but also dizzy. After a while, her legs started to unsteady.
Liu Changqing stood by and watched. He felt something was wrong and stepped forward to grab her and asked, "What's wrong with you?"
Wen Wan gasped for breath, and before she could say anything, she heard a cold voice from not far away: "What are you doing?"
Lu Dongping was so angry when he saw the two people in front of the millstone that he felt like his heart and lungs were about to explode.
Yesterday, when he got home from here, he was scolded by his father. He talked his lips so hard that they were worn out. It took a lot of persuasion to convince the old couple. He didn't sleep for half the night, thinking about how to pursue her. If he wanted to coax her back, he must be good to her, care about her, take care of her, and help her. He thought that he would have to work harder when he went to work in the morning, including Wen Wan's share. Then he thought about the young educated youth who had just received their food. The corn was still in individual grains, and it had to be ground before it could be put into the pot. Once the food was in the pot, it was better to go and help her grind the grain as soon as possible. With Wen Wan's small body, she might not be able to push the stone mill in the wheat field, so he got up early and ran over here. As soon as he arrived, he saw Wen Wan and the male educated youth named Liu there. The male educated youth grabbed her shoulders and pulled her hand.
Damn it, you deserve to be punished!
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