Chapter Twenty-Two: The Female Educated Youth Blocking the Door
"With your small frame, you wouldn't even be enough for a wild boar to swallow whole."
Upon hearing this, Hu Zi wrapped his arms around Lin Baozhu's waist, tilted his little face up, and grinned, "Auntie is the best! She can kill a wild boar with one punch! Now Auntie is begging meat for me, and when you're old and can't beg anymore, I'll beg meat for you every day. Everyone says I'm like Auntie. Don't look at me now, skinny like a monkey. As the saying goes, a boy changes a lot as he grows up. In the future, he'll not only be handsome, but also strong enough to lift stones!"
After speaking, she proudly puffed out her flat little chest, but her eyes kept stealing glances at Lin Baozhu's reaction, like a little animal waiting to be praised.
"Then you'd better eat well, because your aunt will be looking forward to eating the meat you beat in the future."
"Don't worry, as long as I have something to eat, I won't let my little aunt go hungry."
"OK……"
After dressing the two children in patched coarse cloth clothes, Lin Baozhu took out an oil paper package from beside the stove and gave each of them half a soft white flour pancake. She grabbed her military water bottle, slung her wicker basket over her shoulder, and stepped out the door when she saw Qin Haifeng being blocked by someone under the old locust tree outside the fence. The woman blocking his way was none other than Gong, the educated youth who had mocked Zhao Xiaoyu and Bi Yuntao at the foot of the mountain yesterday.
The early autumn sun was blazing. Gong Meng, wearing a polyester floral shirt with a fashionable bow at the collar, twisted her handkerchief and said in a high-pitched voice, "Brother Qin, I heard you were injured? Everyone in the village says Lin Baozhu saved you. She really knows how to pat herself on the back. Just say the word, and I'll go and clear things up for you. Lin Baozhu not only stole your credit, but she also took the wild boar that should have been yours and even sold it for a lot of money."
Qin Haifeng's brows furrowed, his military green jacket bleached white by the sun, and bandages wrapped around his exposed forearms. He took a half-step back to create some distance, his voice as cold as ice: "Gong Zhiqing, why does your mouth smell worse than my grandmother's foot binding cloth? Do you need to stir up trouble here? Aren't you just jealous that Baozhu got her share of the wild boar meat and trying to use my name to get an advantage?"
“Brother Qin, I didn’t mean it…” Gong Meng’s eyes reddened, tears welled up in her eyes, and her gaze toward Qin Haifeng was full of grievance.
"If you're not familiar with me, then don't block my way." Qin Haifeng turned to leave, but she took another step forward and blocked his way.
Lin Baozhu leaned against the door frame, watching with great interest. She had thought this veteran was a quiet type, but she hadn't expected him to be so witty when he started arguing.
There was also this educated youth surnamed Gong. Although she didn't know her well, she had heard of her.
This educated youth, relying on his family's good conditions, managed to get red bricks and cement through connections when he went to the countryside. He built two bright and spacious tile-roofed houses at the east end of the village, which was the first in the village where all the houses were made of adobe, making many men in the village envious.
But she was arrogant and indifferent to everyone, except for Qin Haifeng's mother, Shi Hanqiao, who showed her concern and care—now it seems that she had long been eyeing the position of Qin's daughter-in-law.
To be honest, it's hard not to like Qin Haifeng's physique and appearance.
Qin Tong
Zhi, I... I'm only thinking of you. Lin Baozhu is lazy and good-for-nothing, otherwise why would Bi Yuntao break off the engagement with her? You're being too considerate of her; what if she becomes clingy to you...?
“Gong Zhiqing, it’s not good to talk badly about people behind their backs.”
Lin Baozhu walked over slowly, bent down and picked up a pebble the size of a fist. With a slight squeeze of her knuckles, the stone cracked into several pieces with a "crack". She patted the dust off her hands and smiled, revealing two small tiger teeth: "Next time, say it in front of me, so I can teach you how to behave."
Gong Meng was so frightened that she took a half step back, her plastic sandals twisting in the mud. She forced herself to speak, "Am I wrong? It was clearly Brother Qin who was injured while saving you, yet you ate the wild boar all by yourself. If you can do it, why can't I?" As she spoke, she quickly glanced at Qin Haifeng, as if she had found a backer, and her previous embarrassment immediately dissipated.
Qin Haifeng glanced at Lin Baozhu, strode towards her, and stopped in front of her. He turned to Gong Meng, his tone even colder than before: "What nonsense are you spouting? Baozhu hunted that wild boar. Does that mean the spoils belong to you instead of her? You educated youth can't even earn five work points a day, but you're good at causing trouble. Mind your own business and don't stretch your arms too far."
When he turned to look at Lin Baozhu, his tone softened considerably: "Baozhu, don't listen to her nonsense. I don't know her well. I came to bring you some things today, and she stopped me as soon as I got here. She insisted on giving me a handful of wild grass that even pigs wouldn't eat, and said that she would pick more for me after I finished eating it."
He's seriously ill. He's a human being, not a sheep. Not to mention that none of Gong Mengcai's grass is edible, he wouldn't dare eat even the grass that's palatable. It would be troublesome if he got entangled with it!
Ever since he retired due to injury, he has occasionally run into widows and divorced women with children, seemingly trying to be friendly, but he knows exactly what they're up to.
His boss had told him long ago that the money should be handed over to his wife so that the family could last. He shouldn't do whatever he wanted just because he had money, or he would end up hurting himself and others.
So, apart from sending home thirty yuan every month without fail, he has saved all his allowances and bonuses over the years, intending to give them all to his wife in the future.
Lin Baozhu glanced at the foxtail grass clutched in Gong Meng's hand and couldn't help but laugh out loud: "I didn't expect Qin Tong..."
"He was so popular that even after retiring, people still fawn over him."
One sentence made Qin Haifeng's eyes widen, his face turn red, and even his voice rise two decibels.
"This is a huge injustice. I've never even held a woman's hand since I was born. If I hadn't clearly stated that I like women, my superiors would have thought that I'd developed psychological problems from spending too much time in the military and started liking men."
Lin Baozhu was amused by his anxious appearance. She stood on tiptoe and patted his head comfortingly, laughing, "Alright, alright, I won't tease you anymore. You're running around before your injury has healed. Aren't you afraid of tearing your wound open?"
Wow...
The soldier with his hair all puffed up is actually quite cute, especially with that tuft of hair sticking up on his head. It feels really nice to rub it.
Qin Haifeng felt the warmth from above his head and straightened his back abruptly. His ears turned bright red, almost bleeding, but he didn't flinch. After Lin Baozhu withdrew her hand, he stammered, "I applied the ointment the army brought back, and I feel much better. By the way, to thank you for saving me, I came here today to bring you some things. I didn't know what you liked to eat, so I brought a little of everything."
He handed over the bamboo basket on his back, and Lin Baozhu took it and weighed it in her hand; it was heavy. Lifting the blue cloth, she saw that inside there was a pound of White Rabbit milk candy, two cans of yellow peaches, malt extract, and a piece of steamed rice cake wrapped in oil paper. At the bottom was a piece of red date cake that was still steaming, and the sweet aroma mixed with the smell of date paste wafted into her nose.
Gong Meng stood to the side, her eyes wide with disbelief, and her heart ached.
These things were hard to buy even with ration coupons at the supply and marketing cooperative, yet Qin Haifeng gave them all to Lin Baozhu! She bit her lip and leaned forward, saying, "Brother Qin, I..."
Qin Haifeng turned around and saw her, looking surprised: "Why haven't you left yet?"
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