There were several exercise books on the table, filled with notes. Zhang Xiaofeng was eager to read, so he stood in front of the table and started reading.
Before Cheng Yaoyao could answer, there was a knock on the door. Xie Zhao, who had just taken a watermelon out of the well and cut it into pieces, was standing at the door.
Cheng Yaoyao ran over to take the plate and smiled sweetly at Xie Zhao. Han Yin smiled and said, "Sorry, Yaoyao, please lend it to us for a while."
"I have to pay it back." Xie Zhao answered seriously.
Han Yin was stunned for a moment, then burst into laughter.
"What are you laughing at?" Cheng Yaoyao's face was a little hot. He closed the door and called Zhang Xiaofeng: "I'm lending you this book to take back and read it, okay? Don't be so anxious. Eat the melon first."
Zhang Xiaofeng's eyes were still glued to the book, but Han Yin snatched them away and closed them. Then he looked away. People of this generation had a strong "hunger" for knowledge, which people of later generations could not understand.
The three washed their hands and picked up the watermelon to eat. The flesh of the watermelon was bright red and juicy. The watermelon in the well water was colder than iced water, sweet and refreshing.
After eating the melon, Zhang Xiaofeng couldn't wait to start reading. There were many books and notes on the desk. I'm afraid that even if all the books in the village were put together, there wouldn't be as many as on this desk.
A few kittens chased each other into the house. Han Yin squatted on the ground and played happily. Cheng Yaoyao pushed her over and said, "You should also read a book seriously. Ask Zhang Xiaofeng to help you with your studies."
Han Yin said with a headache: "I am exhausted from working every day, how can I have the heart to study!"
Zhang Xiaofeng was particularly attentive and sensitive to study: "You have been reviewing at home recently? Have you heard any news from Shanghai?"
"I don't know either. This book was sent from Shanghai." Cheng Yaoyao deliberately hesitated, revealing a look that said "you guys have to keep it secret." "These are just rumors, don't spread them around."
Zhang Xiaofeng nodded quickly, and Han Yin also became serious: "Is it true...?"
Cheng Yaoyao smiled but didn't answer. Zhang Xiaofeng said, "Whether it's true or not, since there's news in Shanghai, it won't be wrong for us to prepare in advance. Han Yin, did you review the questions I wrote for you last time?"
Han Yin laughed dryly: "Aren't you too tired these days..."
She looked stubborn and indifferent, which made Zhang Xiaofeng angry enough. She said, "When we first came to the countryside, our slogan was to stay in the countryside for life. You don't study hard. Do you want to marry a farmer?"
Han Yin's expression changed.
Cheng Yaoyao added fuel to the fire, "Didn't Aunt Jinhua always urge you to marry someone, saying that a good family has chosen you? Why don't you go and have a look tomorrow?"
Since the beginning of summer, working in the fields has become increasingly arduous. Every day when you come back from the fields, you will be sunburned and have no place to take a shower. For the female educated youth, it is particularly hard and unbearable.
Several female educated youth could not stand the hard life and got married after being arranged by Aunt Jinhua. Some married to good families in the city, while others married to rich families in the village. I don't know how their life was after marriage, but at least they were freed from labor.
Sometimes when Han Yin was exhausted, she would joke that she might as well get married, but she was too proud to be willing to stay in the countryside and be a village woman for the rest of her life.
Han Yin said decisively: "Give me the book!"
It's a pity that Han Yin put down her books for so long that she was even lazier than Cheng Yaoyao when reviewing. Zhang Xiaofeng tested her on a few questions and found that her basics were a mess.
Cheng Yaoyao took out his and Xie Zhao's study plans. There are four compulsory subjects in the college entrance examination: Chinese, mathematics, English, and politics. For science students, there is an additional test of physics and chemistry, and for arts students, there is an additional test of geography and history.
Han Yin naturally chose liberal arts. Cheng Yaoyao made her memorize and learn the most basic parts. Zhang Xiaofeng was responsible for tutoring her in mathematics.
After just one afternoon, the two were so tired that their mouths were dry, and they managed to help Han Yin learn a few basic math problems.
Han Yin then realized that her foundation was too poor. It would be too late to cram at the last minute, so she couldn't help but become serious.
Zhang Xiaofeng borrowed two exercise books, planning to return them to Cheng Yaoyao after copying them at home. Cheng Yaoyao gave her a stack of white paper and a pencil: "Xie Zhao brought these when he went to the city, and I brought a copy for you too."
Zhang Xiaofeng accepted it solemnly. There was no need to express her gratitude, as she had memorized it all. She said, "When I have thoroughly understood this exercise book, I will review it with you two."
Cheng Yaoyao was surprised: "I don't need it, right?"
Zhang Xiaofeng said sternly: "No! You must learn together!"
Cheng Yaoyao once again felt the pain of ingratitude.
From that day on, Zhang Xiaofeng really brought Han Yin to Xie's house whenever he had time, and asked Cheng Yaoyao to review with him.
Cheng Yaoyao had already learned all of this, and was forced to review it again with Zhang Xiaofeng. She solemnly told the whole family: "Don't open the door when you see Zhang Xiaofeng."
Grandma Xie patted her happily. What Grandma Xie liked most was Zhang Xiaofeng's hardworking and upright spirit. Every time they came home, Grandma Xie would specially cook some delicious dishes for them to replenish their energy.
Xie Fei also liked Zhang Xiaofeng, not to mention being so nervous that she was already scratching the door when she heard Zhang Xiaofeng's footsteps.
Only Xie Zhao smiled and ruffled Cheng Yaoyao's hair, coaxing her: "Do you want to eat watermelon?"
Cheng Yaoyao snorted: "I want to dig it out and eat it!"
This year, there was a bumper harvest of watermelons, peaches and plums. The brigade distributed 50 kilograms of watermelons to every household. Xie Zhao also paid for 50 kilograms, which were piled up in the cool sundries room. Every day, they were thrown into the well to soak, and when they were ready to eat, they were picked out one, cold as ice.
Xie Zhao picked up a large watermelon with green skin and patterns, and cut it into two halves with one cut. He hung one half back into the well, and put two spoons on the other half and brought it over.
The night breeze was blowing, and the sky was full of stars. The two of them sat in the yard, enjoying the cool breeze and eating watermelon. The cat and the dog were chasing each other around.
Xie Zhao scooped up a piece of watermelon flesh and put it to Cheng Yaoyao's mouth. Cheng Yaoyao bit it in one gulp, his face puffed up like a hamster.
"Eat slowly." Xie Zhao wiped the watermelon juice from her lips.
Cheng Yaoyao swallowed it and said, "There are watermelon seeds."
Xie Zhao carefully picked out the watermelon seeds and fed her mouthful by mouthful.
Cheng Yaoyao stretched out her snow-white legs, half leaning on a bamboo chair, half-closed her eyes waiting to be served, like a coquettish pet cat. Several kittens clung to her skirt and climbed up, meowing.
Jianjian and Kunkun also raised their heads and jumped up and down like springs. Xie Zhao scooped two spoonfuls and fed each of them a piece.
The kittens couldn’t eat because they haven’t been weaned yet, so they could only watch with grievance.
The smallest orange cub is now the fattest one. He crawled to Cheng Yaoyao's chest and nestled in it, stepping on him with his two paws and calling in a baby voice.
Cheng Yaoyao tilted his eyes and rubbed its little head: "Are your paws dirty?"
The little kitten tugged at the tie on Cheng Yaoyao's collar, revealing a piece of snow-white skin.
Xie Zhao's eyes darkened. He grabbed the little orange and put it on the ground, and also pulled Cheng Yaoyao's collar.
Cheng Yaoyao slapped him on the back of his hand: "You're a hooligan!"
Xie Zhao: “…”
The little orange cat was put on the ground and cried. The cat bit its head and licked it carefully. The soft and yellow orange cat was wet and its fur was tufted here and there. It turned into a little mouse.
Cheng Yaoyao was so happy that he bent down and reached out to pick it up, but then withdrew his hand in disgust: "It's sticky!"
Xie Zhao grabbed her wrist and wiped it with a wet towel. Cheng Yaoyao's wrist was white and her fingertips were slender. She wiped each of them, and her nails were powdered like crystal, with the sweetness of watermelon and the coolness of water vapor.
"Do you want to eat?"
"I don't want to eat anymore." Cheng Yaoyao shook his head, "You eat it."
Xie Zhao was eating the remaining watermelon. Cheng Yaoyao came over and lay on Xie Zhao's back, smelling the refreshing soap scent on his body and humming coquettishly.
Xie Zhao occasionally fed her a spoonful of watermelon: "Are you sleepy?"
"I'm not sleepy. I still have to help grandma feed silkworms." Cheng Yaoyao rubbed against Xie Zhao's neck.
The stubble on Xie Zhao's neck pricked her cheeks and made them tingle. She said, "Your hair has grown too long. I'll cut it for you tomorrow."
"Okay." Xie Zhao threw away the watermelon rind, washed his hands and came back.
Cheng Yaoyao stood on the bamboo chair and jumped lightly onto his back. Xie Zhao carried her on his back and went to the back room.
The back room was cleared out, and it was bright and clean inside, with a few large sieves for raising silkworms. Every night, you could hear the rustling sound of silkworms eating mulberry leaves, like a drizzle on a summer night.
Xie Zhao learned that the price of silk in Suzhou and Hangzhou was high in the past two years, so he suggested that the brigade raise silkworms. Grandma Xie was the most enthusiastic about raising things, and since she couldn't raise pigs, she also raised silkworms.
Unfortunately, Grandma Xie was not good at raising silkworms, and she killed several of them. It was only when Cheng Yaoyao secretly sprinkled some spiritual spring water on the mulberry leaves when she was not paying attention that he was able to raise this group of silkworms.
Raising silkworms is a tiring job, and they have to be fed at night. Xie Zhao was afraid that his grandmother would fall when she got up at night, so he helped feed the silkworms himself.
The silkworms had grown to the length of little fingers, wriggling whitely on a pile of transparent leaf stalks.
Xie Zhao cleaned up the remaining leaf stems, swept the silkworm sand into a small box, picked up the dried mulberry leaves and spread them evenly on the basket. Soon the room was filled with rustling sounds.
Xie Zhao wiped his hands and looked at Cheng Yaoyao hiding at the door. He couldn't help but smile: "Don't be afraid."
"I'm not afraid, I just feel a little disgusted." Cheng Yaoyao hid behind Xie Zhao. Those silkworm babies looked really scary...
Xie Zhao said: "It will be fine when it turns into a moth."
"That's even more disgusting!" Cheng Yaoyao collapsed after imagining it, "Will those moths fly around everywhere?"
Xie Zhao said: "No, the doors and windows are closed, so it can't fly out."
As Xie Zhao spoke, he picked up the two kittens that had sneaked in, threw them out, and closed the doors and windows.
These little cats followed me around every day and didn't learn their lesson. They made a mess of the vegetable garden. If we didn't keep an eye on the food at home, it would be ruined. These silkworms are my grandmother's treasures. If a few little guys sneaked in, I don't know what would happen to them.
Cheng Yaoyao wanted to prevent these silkworms from turning into moths, but unfortunately, things did not go as he wished. The silkworm babies grew stronger day by day, and finally one day, some spider-web-like silk appeared on the edge of the basket.
Grandma Xie was overjoyed and urged Xie Zhao to weave a dozen bundles of grass and put the silkworm babies on them to spin silk and make a cocoon.
The silk that the baby silkworm spits out wraps itself in the middle, turning into a snow-white and golden cocoon. It is oval in shape and looks quite cute.
Grandma Xie was very happy and looked after the silkworms all day long, putting the kittens second.
The silkworms raised by the brigade have also formed cocoons.
The female educated youth and the girls in the village were assigned to cook raw silk. Zhang Xiaofeng and Han Yin were extremely helpless. They were already busy, and now they were even busier.
Xie Zhao contacted the brigade privately and replaced them with easier tasks - handling silkworms and registration.
Even so, the two of them had no time to come to Xie's house anymore. Grandma Xie was always thinking about them, and whenever she cooked something delicious, she would often ask Cheng Yaoyao to bring it to them to nourish their bodies.
That day, Cheng Yaoyao took Sun Sun to the warehouse with a lunch box. Sun Sun ran around all the way, digging a hole, picking up a small branch and holding it in his mouth like a treasure.
I saw Aunt Jinhua and Liu Minxia walking towards me.
"Hey, isn't this the educated youth Cheng?" Aunt Jinhua shouted at the top of her voice as soon as she saw Cheng Yaoyao.
Cheng Yaoyao raised his eyebrows.
Aunt Jinhua came up smiling, and suddenly Kunkun dropped the small branch, jumped up and barked at Aunt Jinhua.
It is no longer a one-month-old puppy, but a three-month-old puppy. One of its soft ears is always erected, and it looks a bit like its mother.
Aunt Jinhua was startled and stood a little further away, staring at the lunch box in Cheng Yaoyao's hand with a deadly look: "What delicious food is this? Is it for the educated youth Zhang and Han?"
Cheng Yaoyao put away the lunch box, as if it would get dirty if Aunt Jinhua looked at it for even a second.
Auntie Jinhua smiled in a sinister way and said, "Hey, Auntie doesn't want you to pay!"
Cheng Yaoyao didn't comment. This Jinhua lady had been enemies with Xie Zhao since she proposed marriage to him. Later, she always came to Xie's house to eat and drink for free. After Cheng Yaoyao gave her a few harsh looks, she stopped coming.
Cheng Yaoyao glanced at Liu Minxia standing at the side. Liu Minxia was wearing a brand new light red plaid blouse, which was a rare sight, and it looked a little out of place against her tanned skin, but she had a shy smile on her face.
Auntie Jinhua found her sense of existence and said loudly, "Tsk, it's getting late. Liu Zhiqing and I have things to do. We'll leave first!"
The villagers nearby heard this and laughed, "Auntie Jinhua is acting as a matchmaker for the educated youth Liu?"
When Liu Minxia heard this, she lowered her head. Aunt Jinhua scolded the man, "Don't talk nonsense when it's not even done yet! When are Cheng Zhiqing and Xie Zhao going to get married? Aunt Jinhua is still waiting for your wedding!"
Cheng Yaoyao sneered when he heard this: "Auntie, why is your face scratched? Did you have a fight?"
Auntie Jinhua quickly covered her face and said with a wry smile, "Auntie and Mr. Liu have something else to do. I'm leaving first, leaving first!"
Cheng Yaoyao won a great victory and led Sun Sun away. When she arrived at the warehouse, Han Yin and Zhang Xiaofeng were already having lunch.
Cheng Yaoyao told them about meeting Liu Minxia and Aunt Jinhua on the road.
Han Yin cracked an egg while saying, "I know about this. Aunt Jinhua is not a good person. She introduced a man to a girl in the village, saying he was a worker. After they got married, we found out that the man was a temporary worker who helped unload goods in the factory. His family was extremely poor, and all the four major pieces of furniture used for the wedding were borrowed! Yesterday, the girl's family blocked Aunt Jinhua and beat her up."
Zhang Xiaofeng frowned and said, "Then I have to tell Liu Minxia about this!"
Han Yin snorted, "Come on, the whole village knows about this. She won't be grateful to you if you tell her about it. She might even think you're nosy."
Zhang Xiaofeng said, "That's something I have to remind you of. After all, we are educated youth who came here together. It's her business whether she listens or not. Yaoyao, what do you think?"
Cheng Yaoyao said indifferently: "Just say whatever you want to say. Eat the eggs while they're hot. Also, have the pickled mustard greens and pork shreds. We just fried them at noon."
Han Yin happily picked up a piece of dough with chopsticks and put it on the mixed noodle bun and ate it: "It's so delicious when fried with pork fat!"
It whimpered and barked, and put its little paws together and kowtowed hard, looking very greedy.
Han Yin couldn't help but break off some egg yolk and give it to Hunhun. Hunhun drooled and turned her head away.
Cheng Yaoyao took it and passed it to Xunxun, who swallowed it with his tongue and kept licking his lips.
"It's amazing. It eats whatever you feed it."
Cheng Yaoyao said proudly: "Of course not, you guys eat it, it's already full at home, it's just greedy."
After a while, Liu Minxia came back.
Zhang Xiaofeng immediately put down his hat and went to talk to her. Han Yin approached Cheng Yaoyao and said, "Just wait and see, you'll be embarrassed."
Sure enough, Zhang Xiaofeng came back after a while, looking unhappy. Facing Han Yin's "I knew it would be like this" look, he said helplessly: "She said I can't stand seeing her doing well."
"You still don't believe me!" Han Yin stuffed the lunch box to Zhang Xiaofeng, "Eat quickly, then you can read a book."
During the one-hour lunch break, they were all busy reading. Other female educated youth walked by them and said jokingly, "We are going to pick mulberries. Do you want to join us? Be careful not to damage your eyesight if you keep reading all day."
Cheng Yaoyao retorted: "You eat mulberries all day long, be careful not to upset your stomach."
Zhang Xiaofeng smiled good-naturedly: "You guys go ahead, we'll take a rest."
The female educated youth hindered Cheng Yaoyao and walked away with a pout on their lips, leaving behind the word "nerd" in the wind.
As soon as they left, Han Yin couldn't help but sigh, "They laugh at us like this every day. If the college entrance examination is not restored, will we really be like fools?"
"Don't be discouraged! Even if the college entrance examination is not resumed, you can't fall behind in your studies." Zhang Xiaofeng said, with some worry in his eyes.
Cheng Yaoyao encouraged them: "It's never a bad thing to be prepared for a rainy day."
Even so, Han Yin still couldn't help wanting to be lazy. After all, the summer days were long and hot, and it was too easy to get sleepy. Instead of studying, Han Yin would rather take a nap or go out to pick mulberries.
Cheng Yaoyao really wanted to grab her shoulders and yell, "The college entrance examination is coming soon! You better hold on tighter!"
Cheng Yaoyao had no choice but to go to the warehouse frequently to bring them food and supervise Han Yin to study hard. Xie Zhao had to drive a tractor into the city frequently recently, so she happened to be killing time in the warehouse and helped them with their work.
The round silkworms are white and gold. Cheng Yaoyao separated the silkworms of different colors and threw them into the two baskets in front of him.
There were more and more silkworms in the basket. When the golden and white silkworms filled the basket, Xie Zhao would come to take her home.
The setting sun was rich in color, the evening breeze was soft and fragrant, Cheng Yaoyao and Xie Zhao walked side by side, with the puppy following behind them.
She held a lunch box of silkworm pupae and said, "Let's go home and fry them."
"good."
"Salt or pepper?"
"pepper."
"What else do you want to eat?"
“Fried chicken.”
"That's troublesome! You have to help me light the fire."
"good."
"Woof! Woof!"
As they collected more and more silkworms, they started to cook several large pots in the warehouse.
The silkworm cocoon is put into a boiling water pot and boiled. A large wooden stick is used to press the cocoon continuously, and the glue inside the cocoon will be boiled out. Raw silk that has not been processed in this step is very cheap, and the processed silk can be sold at a higher price.
The cooked silkworm cocoon will become transparent and the silk will spread out. Pick a thread and slowly pull it out.
A thread emerges from the cooked translucent silkworm cocoon, which is then wound around a wooden stick and the machine rotates. One silkworm cocoon can produce a thousand-meter-long thread.
This is a very tedious and patient job. The summer afternoon sun is bright, the girls working are drowsy, and the warehouse is quiet and silent.
Cheng Yaoyao had fallen asleep long ago, resting his head on his white wrist. Zhang Xiaofeng was reading a book while winding silk, and Han Yin was drowsy. In the corner, Liu Minxia's cheeks were rosy, and her eyes and eyebrows were full of spring.
The warehouse door was pushed open with a clang.
Several male educated youth rushed in, scaring the girls into jumping up.
"Did you listen to the radio? The college entrance examination has been resumed!"
A single stone caused a thousand waves. The female educated youth jumped up one after another, "Really?"
"That's what the radio said!"
“When will the college entrance examination be resumed?!”
Han Yin and Zhang Xiaofeng were even more excited. Zhang Xiaofeng said to the young man, "Tell me! What did the radio say?"
The young man had obviously run all the way here. He took a long breath before saying, "The radio said that the college entrance examination has been resumed! Workers and farmers, senior high school graduates, veterans, current senior high school students, and our educated youth who went to work in the countryside can all take the exam!"
After a brief silence, a scream tore off the roof: "Long live!"
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