The village chief came to his senses and said, "Comrade An, as the head of the village, is it too much for your Huang family to be beaten?"
"certainly."
"Since you've presented compelling evidence proving the Huang family deserves to be punished, I think we should let this matter drop, especially the case involving the educated youth's emails. The police still have to put in the effort to investigate! If we trouble the police with something we can handle ourselves, wouldn't that just increase their burden? Don't you agree?"
“I also think the village chief makes sense.”
"Then Comrade An, please get some rest. We won't disturb you any longer."
"Thank you for your trouble, Village Chief. Please take care."
None of the educated youth moved or spoke; they all stared at An Moxue.
Only when she calculated that the village chief should have gone far enough did Chu Dongmei whisper to An Moxue, "Moxue, how come you won so many awards but didn't tell me? You're amazing!"
"I don't know either! I just accidentally got so much. No need to be so quiet, the village chief must be far away by now."
The educated youth immediately started talking.
Several people asked An Moxue curiously, "Comrade An, how long have you been in the countryside?"
An Moxue looked at her and said, "I went to the countryside this August. Please don't think I'm so great. I was kidnapped by bandits on my second day in the countryside when I went to the county to buy things. If I hadn't been skilled in martial arts, an ordinary person would have been finished. I even got my neck slashed! Every certificate I received was earned with my life. Being safe and sound is more important than anything else."
"You're amazing! You're a role model for us all!"
"Yes! Amazing!"
"Yes, we should learn from you!"
"No, if I encountered this situation and had the ability to help, how could I stand idly by? The education I received from childhood does not allow me to back down, and I believe that if others were in the same situation, they would make the same choice as me."
"Comrade An, could you tell me what it was like when you went to the countryside?"
"Well, it's not much different. We all have to work, whether it's going to work or not. In the village I'm in, there are basic work points. Only by completing the basic work points can we get a share of the rations. Also, in my village, the educated youth work in their own small teams. The tasks are assigned to each individual. If you want to slack off, there's no way you can do it."
"Ah! That's even worse than what we've been through!"
"No! The brigade's cadres are all very upright. As long as you don't make a mistake, everyone is treated equally."
"That's much better than what we've achieved."
Seeing that everyone's questions were endless, Chu Dongmei said, "Everyone, let's disperse! My friend set off yesterday and didn't get a good night's rest last night."
Upon hearing this, the educated youth didn't dare to ask any more questions and had no choice but to disperse.
The two returned to the room, washed their feet, brushed their teeth and washed their faces. They sat on the kang (a heated brick bed) and talked quietly until the lights were turned off. After getting into bed, An Moxue was still a little unaccustomed to it. She was used to being alone and carefree, and now, even sleeping in a crowded place was really uncomfortable.
......
The next day, just as dawn was breaking, An Moxue woke up Chu Dongmei.
The two found a wide, flat spot, where An Moxue began practicing her boxing techniques, while Chu Dongmei practiced military boxing nearby.
Chu Dongmei watched An Moxue's every move with its own rhythm and envy.
After the two finished their morning exercise, Chu Dongmei looked at An Moxue, whose breathing was even, while she herself was panting heavily, and asked, "Moxue, your exercise is different from mine!"
"Yes, it's a family martial arts technique."
"I've never seen you use it before!"
"I didn't practice properly before, but I started practicing seriously after my parents passed away."
"Wow! That's not the kind of martial arts prodigy."
"Yes, Uncle Li said that Gu Jia and I are suited to practice martial arts."
"I wasted the past ten years or so. Otherwise, I might have a friend who is a martial arts master."
An Moxue smiled and said, "I'm considered an expert now, so protecting you won't be a problem."
"Have you been getting up this early for the past few months?"
"no."
"That's good, that's good!"
"It's earlier than that; in the summer, we get up at 4:30."
"What? My God! No wonder you've improved so quickly, and you still have to keep up with work."
"So, young man, keep up the good work! I believe in you." He then patted Chu Dongmei on the shoulder.
Chu Dongmei looked at her and thought to herself, if her parents hadn't had that accident, she would have been the envy of everyone; now, it seems she has become the object of everyone's admiration, just in a different way.
In the morning, as the police deepened their investigation into the case, they discovered that Accountant Huang had not only stolen the educated youth's mail but also the village's property. The thing the village chief least expected still happened: the town government sent three staff members to specifically investigate the village's accounts. Now even the village's cadres were being investigated, and the fact that the scorekeeper had given his own people extra points for favoritism also spread.
The villagers were unusually active that day, and even the story of An Moxue beating Huang Lao Er's family spread, along with the news of her receiving so many awards.
An Moxue was honored to become one of the three hottest news stories in Peach Blossom Village. At the same time, many young people went to the educated youth settlement to see her, but they were all disappointed.
Chu Dongmei got a letter of introduction from the village chief in the morning, and the two of them went to the county early.
"Dongmei, do you have any local specialties here?"
"I hadn't been paying much attention. Why don't we go shopping together? We can buy whatever looks interesting! You can buy as much as you want, and I'll pay for the tickets!"
"I have tickets too. If you see something you want to buy but I don't have a ticket for, then I'll take yours."
"OK."
And so, the two sisters got off the bus and arrived in the county town.
"Come on, Mo Xue, let me treat you to breakfast."
When they arrived at the restaurant, the two of them ordered fried dough sticks, fried pancakes, soy milk, and tofu pudding.
While eating breakfast, Chu Dongmei complained, "It feels like I've been living like a savage for the past few months. Today I'm finally back in modern society. The food at the educated youth station is awful. My dad keeps telling me to integrate into the collective and not to be special. He should be the one eating what I'm eating."
"Uncle Chu's intentions were good, but he probably didn't expect the food the educated youth would cook to be so bad. I think you could get a small stove that can burn both firewood and coal, so it's convenient to cook something you want to eat occasionally. Otherwise, how can your health be good if you eat this kind of food too often? It's not like we can't afford to eat. There's no need to ruin your health for the sake of so-called integration into the collective. It's not worth it. Besides, we're at the age where we need nutrition to grow. If our health deteriorates now, it will affect us for the rest of our lives. It's not worth it."
"There's nothing we can do; they always put the country and the collective first. But I think your suggestion is good. I'll take a look later, and if they have any, I'll buy one, and also a small pot."
"Hmm, if you don't have enough industrial vouchers, I have some here."
"After we finish eating, we'll go shopping. I'm going to go on a big shopping spree today!" he said with a hearty expression.
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