After settling down the house with what needed to be added and arranged, Zhou Jiao returned to school accompanied by Zhang Guoqing, and the couple separated again to work hard for the future.
This time, Zhou Jiao was accompanied by 20 students from her class and 30 from other classes. Accompanied by several professors and two tutors, the 50th student from the Department of Electrical Engineering, Miao Zhenggenhong, boarded a train bound for Jiangcheng City. After a brief stop there, they transferred to another train for their destination, Lingnan City.
Because Zhang Guoqing was absent due to his military training, Yi Jiefang naturally took charge of their class. This worried Yi Jiefang to death, as he felt he would be better off staying in Beijing.
Returning to his hometown, his base, wasn't as rosy as he'd imagined. This internship was at the grassroots level, so there wasn't much chance for him to reign supreme. Especially without his best friends, it felt even more boring.
Inside the car, Yi Jiefang took advantage of no one's attention and complained in a low voice: "Sister, you are not kind. Why didn't you inform your big brother Yi in advance?"
Zhou Jiao felt a pang of pain in her teeth when she heard this. She rolled her eyes at him. "Big Brother Yi?"
"You're such a fool. You think going to the grassroots is an autumn outing? You'll be exhausted! Forget it, let's not talk about this sad thing anymore. No one can persuade me now, I'll cut ties with that guy when I get home."
Zhou Jiao covered her mouth and laughed. And they even cut ties! When I left school, who was it that urged me to bring local fruit to Zhang Guoqing? It was definitely her best friend who had pledged her love to him.
Yi Jiefang lazily slumped in his seat, tempting her, "You'll have a few days off after your internship. I'll take you back to my hometown. The scenery there is amazing, and there's so much fruit you can eat it as a meal. Do you know what Feizixiao is?"
Zhou Jiao knew, of course, and nodded at him. Even her little Ping An knew the line, "A horse gallops through the dusty streets, and the concubine smiles. No one knows it's the lychees coming."
"Yes, it's lychees. Every household in my hometown has fruit trees. Even if we don't have fresh ones, we'll have dried ones. They're sweet when used to make soup, and they taste better than any sweet water. What do you think? Come with me and stay for a while before returning to Beijing. Let's make Xiaowu get so anxious that he gets angry before we go back."
Shen Yunshi beside him laughed evilly, "You're dead! Bribe me!"
Yi Jiefang rolled his eyes at him and said, "Go ahead and file a complaint. I'll never admit it, but what good will it do you?"
"No, just take us with you. At most, we can all cover the shift together! What else can Xiaowu do?"
Zhou Jiao rolled her eyes at them, "You forgot that Xiao Wu is the father of my child. We are in the same group!"
Shen Yunshi patted his chest exaggeratedly, "It's over, it's over. How could I keep forgetting the bench that our classmate Zhou Jiao threw out in anger for her blue face?"
Before, the topic they were talking about was avoiding outsiders, but this time Shen Yunshi couldn't control his actions and voice, and the students around him who heard it burst into laughter.
The main reason is that the impression Zhou Jiao gives people is too contrasting.
Leaving school young, looking outward, there is always a boiling passion in my heart. With so many classmates accompanying her, Zhou Jiao is not lonely on the road.
As they neared Jiangcheng, they learned they were late and would have to catch the next train. Everyone smiled knowingly. Several students who were locals in Jiangcheng were pushed aside and urged to share their local sights and taboos.
Several teachers came over to remind everyone to pack their bags first, but they overheard and didn't try to stop them. This was a big deal. Everyone just kept pulling those students away.
Seeing that time was running out, a female student from another class took the initiative and asked everyone what "going down the river" meant. It was said that these two words were most commonly heard among the people of Jiangcheng.
As soon as this funny female student finished speaking, various versions of speculation appeared in the carriage.
Later, a male student stood up and gave the correct answer.
It turns out that in Jiangcheng, "going down the river" means a lot, and outsiders who come here without paying attention often make jokes. This is true, and it is like this everywhere.
For example, every morning before 6:30, sanitation workers would pull a large bucket of manure on a cart and collect it from residential areas, shaking a bell and shouting, "Go to the river." When locals heard these two words, they knew the manure collectors had arrived.
For example, before the establishment of the commune, merchants from neighboring provinces and the province often arrived in Jiangcheng City in wooden boats, and used wooden oars to transport agricultural and sideline products such as white radish, cabbage, sweet potato, lotus root, lotus pods and water chestnuts to both sides of the river mouth. After the boat docked, the boat owner would go ashore and shout: Go to the river to catch water chestnuts, lotus pods and fresh lotus roots.
If outsiders are not familiar with this, they will probably be scared.
Emptying the toilet is called "going into the river" and this "going into the river" is two different concepts. Chinese characters are indeed profound and have deep meanings, which made everyone laugh.
Not to mention the use of two words, some accents can also cause a lot of misunderstandings. For example, the famous jokes in the past life, about sleeping and dumplings, touching and steamed buns, six cents and gangsters.
Listening to the wild laughter in the car, Zhou Jiao couldn't help but think that if Zhang Guoqing was there, he would probably have to give emergency treatment to a group of people. This was the only thing that could make them so angry.
As a foodie, Qiao Na didn't care about "going down the river." She was thinking about what the other person had just said: "Every year in late summer and early autumn, water chestnuts and lotus pods are on the market in large quantities. At this time, we can hear these shouts every day where we live."
"Is it still available? Can I buy some? If so, I'd like to buy some and send some home." The girl was still hiding something, not daring to admit her desire. Buying it and sending it back to her family or enjoying it alone was a serious matter. It wasn't impossible that she'd be labeled a traitor one day.
The boy from before laughed and said, "We have older water chestnuts. The rice from these water chestnuts is more starchy and tastier. It used to be only a few cents a pound, but now it's more than ten cents."
"Can we ask the teacher to allow us to go out with you guys later?"
"Quick, everyone, gather together and buy more for food."
Zhou Jiao watched the discussion with a smile, thinking that if she left later, it wouldn't attract attention. This was a good topic.
After getting off the train, a group of students, led by the professor, checked into a guesthouse near the station. The large bunk beds gave off a foul odor: lingering foot odor, sweat, and a hint of mold. If you got close to the wooden planks, you'd definitely find fleas and lice.
No one offered any opinions, and of course no one dared to speak up.
Considering that they would have to stay here overnight and could get on the bus tomorrow afternoon, except for a few local students who asked their teachers for permission to return to the team on time, the rest were also eager to leave.
It's not about money, shopping doesn't cost anything. Moreover, this city has so many stories, young people always want to go out to pay homage to the martyrs and remember history.
After a heated debate, the students finally won the right to go out with the counselors. Zhou Jiao then went to visit the elders with a prepared excuse.
Unfortunately, Counselor Wu looked at her and shook his head in disagreement. "You're kidding!" He couldn't bear the responsibility if something happened to such a beautiful girl in a strange place.
Don't think that simply filling in her file that both parents are soldiers. Looking at the protective attitude of the children of cadres from the eight major colleges and universities towards Zhou Jiao, he is not blind!
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
