After renting a house, the group boarded an oxcart and left the county town.
Passing by a state-run restaurant, Cheng Bodong stopped the donkey cart, went inside and bought ten large meat buns, and also packed two meat dishes, braised pork and braised pork hock.
After loading the items into the donkey cart, Cheng Bodong went to the nearby department store and bought some gifts.
After all, one shouldn't visit someone empty-handed. I was in a hurry to go back to my hometown and didn't have time to buy anything in Beijing, so I had to find a place to stock up when I got back.
The donkey cart swayed and rocked as it moved. Cheng Baidong peeled a lollipop and put it into Wang Lele's mouth. Wang Lele held the candy in his mouth, his happy eyes narrowing into crescent shapes.
When they arrived at Chengzhuang Village, it was lunchtime. From the moment they entered the village, people kept greeting Cheng Baidong.
The donkey cart was forced to stop, and Cheng Baidong got off and addressed people according to their seniority.
"Brother Fuqiang, just got back from the fields?"
"Third Grandfather, how are you feeling?"
As he spoke, he took out a pack of cigarettes he had just bought from the department store in the county town, tore open the packaging, and poured out several cigarettes from the ground to offer to the villagers.
As they were exchanging pleasantries, a surprised female voice suddenly came from behind them.
"Cheng Baidong?!"
"You're back!!"
Cheng Baidong turned around, and the one who spoke was a female educated youth with short hair that reached her ears.
When the female educated youth saw Cheng Baidong turn around and look at her, she nervously tugged at the corner of her clothes, smiled at him, and asked, "Didn't Fang Qiao and the child come back with you?"
Cheng Baidong frowned slightly and asked, "Who are you?"
"I...I'm Liu Qing." Liu Qing awkwardly forced a smile and said, "You don't remember? Back then we..."
Cheng Baidong interrupted her, his tone indifferent: "Oh, I don't quite remember. Liu... Liu Qing, right? Is there something you wanted to see me about?"
Staring at Cheng Baidong with indifferent eyes, Liu Qing felt that all her thoughts were laid bare under those eyes.
Liu Qing admitted that she did call out to Cheng Baidong with ulterior motives.
She knew she was being foolish and would be looked down upon by others, but what if she was wrong?
What if Cheng Baidong is interested in her?
Fang Qiao has had three children; she must have become a haggard housewife by now, right?
Liu Qing thought maliciously.
Men are all fickle and easily bored. Once they get tired of home-cooked meals, which man wouldn't want to try something new and exciting?
Although she is not young anymore, she still looks much younger than a haggard woman who has had three children and whose figure has seriously deteriorated.
Liu Qing knew that her thoughts were shameless, but after ten years in the countryside, she had gone from a vibrant young girl to an old maid no one cared about.
The despair of not being able to return to the city, and the heavy labor day after day, year after year, had long since crushed her initial pride and self-esteem.
She began to regret being picky about Cheng Baidong when they went on a blind date, and she resented Cheng Baidong for falling in love with someone else so quickly. She also hated Fang Qiaoming for knowing that Cheng Baidong was her blind date and still marrying him.
She always fantasized that if it weren't for Fang Qiao, she would have been the one who followed Cheng Baidong back to the city to live a good life.
So she began to imagine replacing Fang Qiao in her dreams, and made countless assumptions in her mind.
But when they opened their eyes, they were still faced with the hardship of working in the fields.
Dreams and reality are always opposites, which made Liu Qing's mentality increasingly unbalanced.
An endless malice tormented her awake every sleepless night, leaving her unable to obtain what she desired or get through it.
Indeed, resuming the college entrance examination is an opportunity.
But family members know their own affairs.
She has been working in the countryside for ten years, and in those ten years she has hardly touched a book. The knowledge she learned in high school has long been forgotten.
They say that even last-minute cramming can make things shine, but when she opened her textbook, she could barely understand the questions.
At this point, it's simply unrealistic to expect her to return to the city through the college entrance exam with only a month of review time.
Therefore, when Liu Qing saw Cheng Baidong reappear in Chengzhuang Village after a long absence, she inevitably had wicked thoughts.
Even knowing that breaking up someone else's family would make her a slut, she didn't care. As long as she could return to the city, she was happy to do it.
She didn't want to farm this lousy land in the countryside for even a day longer!
"Well, nothing much. I was just surprised to see you in my hometown at this time, so I came over to say hello."
Under Cheng Baidong's scrutinizing gaze, Liu Qing awkwardly raised her hand to tidy her not-too-messy hair.
She blinked nervously, deliberately curving her lips into a smile, and asked in a high-pitched, coquettish voice, "Cheng Bodong, it's not a holiday or anything, how come you have time to come back to your hometown?"
Liu Qing's coquettish and silly behavior was very deliberate; anyone with a discerning eye could tell at a glance that her real intentions were not what they seemed.
Cheng Baidong didn't say anything, but just gave a light sneer.
This soft snort jolted Liu Qing, who was lost in her own imagination, back to reality.
Turning around, I realized that everyone around me was looking at me with a mocking, amusement-seeing gaze.
And I am nothing more than a clown.
Even Cheng Baidong didn't give him a second glance.
Liu Qing's face flushed instantly. She was so ashamed and indignant that she turned and left.
Wang Qiuju called out to her, "Liu Zhiqing, wait a minute."
Liu Qing stopped and turned around, annoyed. "Why did you call me?"
Wang Qiuju: "Nothing much, I just wanted to ask how your revision is going? Are you confident about taking the college entrance exam? Are you sure you can pass?"
"None of your business!" Liu Qing reacted strongly, like a mouse whose tail had been stepped on.
"Although it's none of my business, can't I ask out of kindness? We're working partners in the same production team, and I'm concerned about your situation."
Wang Qiuju deliberately said, "After all, I heard that quite a few junior high school students have also registered for this year's college entrance examination, so I wanted to ask you if you are confident that you can outperform others. It would be too embarrassing if you couldn't outperform them in the end!"
"Where did you hear that from?" Liu Qing's expression changed slightly, and she said sharply, "A mere junior high school student dares to show off his knowledge and take the college entrance examination? It's shameful! It's just a publicity stunt!"
"What's wrong with junior high school students? Don't junior high school students deserve to have knowledge?" Wang Qiuju retorted to Liu Qing with righteous indignation.
A shadow crossed Liu Qing's eyes, and she said irritably, "I didn't say that."
Wang Qiuju raised an eyebrow knowingly: "Liu Zhiqing, why are you reacting so strongly to the fact that junior high school students can take the college entrance examination? Something's not right~"
Liu Qing panicked for a moment: "I didn't."
Wang Qiuju: "And you don't seem surprised at all that junior high school students can take the college entrance examination?"
"I don't understand what you're saying."
Liu Qing pretended to be calm and turned to leave.
Wang Qiuju shouted at her, "Hey! You educated youth wouldn't be afraid that you can't pass the college entrance exam as well as the junior high school students in our village, so you deliberately lied to us and said that junior high school students can't register for the exam, would you?"
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