Shen Shuyi's eyes widened as he watched him land steadily in front of the tree downhill, and he began to climb the tree without saying a word.
He exerted force in his arms, veins bulged, and his whole body became extremely flexible.
Lu Huai successfully got the hat, went back up the slope and walked in front of Shen Shuyi, lowered his head, handed the hat to her and walked back to get the things, without saying a word to her.
Shen Shuyi looked at his sweaty back and saw that he continued to follow her. Her heart suddenly warmed up and she unconsciously slowed down her pace to get closer to Lu Huai.
Lu Huai paused, looked up at her again, and the corners of his lips curled up slightly.
When he met Shen Shu's eyes that turned back meaningfully, he pursed his lips, lowered his head and continued walking.
Chen Shuyi was in a very good mood and walked much more cheerfully. Suddenly, she heard a rustling sound. Fearing that there was a snake, she picked up a wooden stick and walked forward carefully.
Unexpectedly, she actually saw a snake. She was so scared that she stopped in her tracks.
Suddenly, she heard strong footsteps behind her. She knew that Lu Huai had been following her. She relaxed a little and was no longer afraid.
Lu Huai silently quickened his pace and walked to the front to clear the way. He didn't slow down until the snake was driven away, then he let Shen Shuyi walk in front.
The two passed each other and he still didn't say a word.
Shen Shuyi walked in front, listening to the rhythmic footsteps, with a smile on his face.
After walking for another ten minutes, she finally saw the six-meter-tall old hawthorn tree that the system had pointed her to. It was bright red and particularly pleasing to the eye.
She took the bamboo basket off her back, put on gloves, picked up the scissors and prepared to pick hawthorns.
Lu Huai quickly stepped forward and blocked her way. "I'll do it."
Shen Shuyi took the initiative to talk to him, “Are you finally willing to talk to me?”
Lu Huai took the scissors from her hand. He was so nervous that he didn't know what to say. He raised his head and reminded her, "It's getting late. It will be evening when we go down the mountain after picking hawthorns."
After saying that, he nimbly climbed up the hawthorn tree and began to cut hawthorns.
Lu Huai worked quickly. In less than half an hour, he had filled a bamboo basket and then filled his own backpack before coming down.
Shen Shuyi took his hawthorn and said sincerely: “Thank you.”
Lu Huai said nothing, carried a bamboo basket of hawthorns and went down the mountain first, but he did not walk fast to make sure the people behind him could keep up.
Shen Shuyi looked at his broad back, took out two washed pears from the space, and quickly chased after him.
"Here, washed." She took a bite and handed one over.
Lu Huai was surprised when he saw the pear she handed over. He didn’t expect Shen Shuyi to be willing to pay attention to him.
"Here you go."
Lu Huai took the pear and looked at her. "I'll get the pheasant ready after we get down the mountain and have Yingzi bring it to you."
When he got down to the foot of the mountain, Shen Shuyi didn't expect to run into Chen Mazi, who had been beaten up by Lu Huai before.
Chen Mazi's eyes were vicious. When he saw Lu Huai's tall figure, he took a few steps back unconsciously and stopped talking, not daring to say a word.
…
In the kitchen of the educated youth camp.
It was Shen Shuyi's turn to cook. She chopped Lu Huai into pieces and took out the cleaned chicken. She washed it again and saw that the meat was firm and plump.
The chestnuts she had picked earlier had not been used up yet, so she took out a few handfuls, boiled them in water, and then scooped them out for later use.
Her cooking skills are pretty good, thanks to the ancient farming and food drama she starred in before. In order to make her performance more realistic, she went to a culinary school for three months of training.
Onions, ginger, garlic, star anise and chili peppers were stir-fried in an iron pan. The aroma immediately spread and attracted many educated youth who were already eating.
They looked over one by one, gazing at the graceful figure busy in front of the stove from neither too close nor too far away.
“What is Shen Zhiqing cooking? It smells so good.”
“It smells like meat.”
"The girl from the Lu family came over. I saw she was carrying a basket of chicken."
"Isn't his family very poor? And he has meat to give away?"
"I heard that Shen Zhiqing cured Grandma Lu, so he came here with chicken to repay his kindness."
"Do you think Shen Zhiqing is really having an affair with Lu Huai?"
"Shut up now, have you forgotten how Cheng Zhiqing was beaten so badly that his face was swollen and black and blue?" Dong Lanzhen, who had just returned from picking wild vegetables outside, glared at them and said, "If you have nothing to do, just eat and get off work."
"Eating can't shut your mouth."
The aroma of meat coming from the kitchen became stronger and stronger. Shen Shuyi used a spatula to flip the fried chicken and put it into the water. After the chicken was covered, he added chestnuts and covered the pot.
Turn down the fire on the earthen stove and let the chicken absorb the salty flavor of the sweet chestnuts.
Finally, remove the sauce from the pan and the chicken will have a shiny luster and emit a rich chestnut meat aroma.
Everyone outside the kitchen was tempted to eat, but their status as intellectuals did not allow them to go over and beg for food.
Wang Chuzhe was among them. He was chewing on the steamed bun in his hand, his mind full of the contents of the letter he received from home. His father was imprisoned, which meant that he could no longer go to the state-owned restaurant to satisfy his cravings as often as before, which meant that he had to rely on earning work points to make a living.
He glanced in the direction of the kitchen. If Shen Shuyi had anything good in the past, she would have given it to him first, and the fragrant chicken would have been delivered to him.
The chestnut roast chicken is also good to eat with steamed buns. Wang Chuzhe regretted why he listened to Cheng Wanqin's words and misunderstood and alienated Shen Shuyi.
Chen Shuyi cleaned up the kitchen, and then sent a bowl of chicken to Dong Lanzhen, "It's courtesy to return the favor. I made some chicken today and I'll give it to you to try and see if it tastes good."
Dong Lanzhen quickly rejected the offer, "You have to be polite to me for such worthless wild vegetables."
Shen Shuyi smiled and said, “The gift is small but the sentiment is great. I am very grateful that you spoke for me and believed in me. If you want to treat me as a friend, just accept it.”
Dong Lanzhen took the chicken and glared at her with a smile.
"Okay, don't be so polite next time."
Others envy Dong Lanzhen. If they had known earlier, they wouldn't have been so nagging and would have made good friends with Shen Shuyi...
Chen Shuyi looked straight ahead as he put a large portion of roasted chestnut chicken and rice into a bamboo basket, covered it with a piece of cloth, and went out with the basket on his shoulder. The chicken was naturally for the Lu family.
After Lu Huai came down from the mountain, he processed the pheasant and gave it to Yingzi to send to the educated youth site. He then hurriedly took a few steamed buns and went to work in the fields with a hoe.
When he came back after finishing his work, he went to the kitchen and found a big bowl of chicken and white rice. His heart was pounding.
Yingzi and her grandmother had already eaten. When she saw her eldest brother coming back, she said, "Brother, this chicken was sent by Xiaoyi. Grandma and I have already eaten it, and there is one portion left for you."
"Sister Xiaoyi is so nice. I will pick some more wild vegetables to send to the educated youth camp tomorrow!"
Lu Huai didn't hear much of Yingzi's words. He lowered his head and ate the food in the bowl in silence.
The chestnuts are soft, sweet and fragrant, and the stewed chicken is permeated with the flavor of chestnuts. The meat has a rich flavor that goes well with rice.
Lu Huai ate in silence, but he was thinking about Shen Zhiqing.
…
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