Hearing this from behind the car, Lu Ronghui quietly peeked out and saw that it was indeed Zhou Han.
He walked alone on the road, very alert, constantly watching the movements on both sides, looking very furtive.
There was a fork in the road ahead, and they were going in the opposite direction from Zhou Han. Song Qing took one last look and then turned the car around.
"Does Zhou Han have friends here?"
They chatted for a while after Aunt Tian finished work before leaving, as the educated youth rarely left the village unless they had other things to do.
Because they just arrived and it's getting late, they might encounter wild animals on their way back if they come too late.
The wild animals here are no joke.
"I haven't heard of him knowing anyone here."
Zhou Han's purpose was clear, and he did not hesitate at all when he passed the fork in the road.
Song Qing treated the incident as a minor episode and soon changed the subject, but Lu Ronghui took it to heart. She didn't believe that Zhou Han had no purpose in running away at this time.
The team leader forcefully assigned Bai Rongjun four work points' worth of tasks. She barely did anything this morning, and the tears she shed in the fields this afternoon almost flooded the land.
Besides the educated youth, there were also young women and women in the fields nearby. Everyone secretly rolled their eyes.
Who is more valuable than whom? Everyone does this much work in one afternoon, and she even took half a day off in the morning.
Everyone else can do it, but she can't.
It has to be this kind of frail girl who can break your heart the moment she sheds a tear. As soon as she cries, even the stern and impartial brigade leader will only ask her to do 4 work points.
They wronged the brigade leader. He wished Bai Rongjun could earn 10 work points, but he was afraid that if he pushed her too hard, something might happen and the higher-ups would remove him from his position as brigade leader.
Managing these educated youths is a delicate balance; too harsh and they become resentful and uncooperative, too lenient and they become indifferent.
No wonder those brigades were unwilling to accept educated youth; in just a few days, several strands of his hair turned white.
Because Bai Rongjun set an example, many new educated youth followed her lead and, if pushed, could work up to 8 centimeters, but they stopped after working up to 6 centimeters.
"Auntie, auntie, look! There's a bird's nest in the tree."
As soon as they got home, An'an pulled Lu Ronghui to the tree and excitedly pointed out the bird's nest in the tree to her aunt. The birds had only been there a short time, and the nest was still in its infancy.
Aside from reading at home and attending meetings, Song Qing spent the rest of the past few days hoeing the ground in the yard.
She asked Aunt Tian to bring her some vegetable seeds so she could plant them once the land was cleared.
"Sister-in-law, what are you planning to plant in the yard?"
Song Qing wasn't in a hurry. She hoeed a patch on the east side and tilled a little on the west side of the yard. It looked like a dog had chewed on it. Lu Yang came back in the afternoon and helped her continue. So far, they've only finished half of the land.
"We'll plant some lettuce, tomatoes, and cucumbers. We haven't decided on anything else yet. Anyway, we have enough land, so we'll plant a little bit of everything."
An'an took off her shoes and walked around in the turned soil, occasionally sticking her bottom out to dig for earthworms.
"Mom, I want to raise earthworms for the goslings to eat." Her uncle told her that goslings would grow faster if they ate earthworms.
Aunt Tian planned to let the goslings stay with the adult goose until their feathers grew out before giving them to An'an, otherwise the goslings would easily freeze to death in this weather without the adult goose to take care of them.
"You can keep them, but only in the field. If you bring them into the house, Mom will throw you both back into the field!"
An'an was amused by Song Qing and giggled in the field. After playing by herself for a while, she wanted to pull her aunt over.
"Go play with her, I'll cook."
They brought back some fish, and also a lot of prickly ash shoots.
Song Qing soaked the fish, grabbed a handful of wild thorn shoots, and went out. She wanted to share the fresh and tender vegetables with a few of her neighbors.
Fangjie and Zhao Qin had never eaten this dish before. After asking for the detailed recipe, they brought back a handful of dried fruit and salted dates for Song Qing. Chen Yuehong, who lived next door, used to eat it often. She excitedly asked Song Qing where she picked them and said she wanted to go pick some in a few days.
“It’s on the mountain behind us. I picked it in Yanghe Village. You should be worried if you go up the mountain by yourself.”
Lu Ronghui picked up a hoe and stared blankly at the uneven ground, the firewood piled in the corner not far away, and the woodworking tools and unfinished wooden boxes placed on the ground next to her.
This courtyard in Northeast China, a place that never existed in my previous life, must be the home my older brother wanted.
Every corner of the yard bears traces of their lives. In this corner of the wall, a wooden frame has already been placed before the ground has even been dug up, which is probably where the sister-in-law wants to grow these cucumbers.
She saw their plans for life in this courtyard.
Lu Ronghui couldn't quite articulate her true feelings; she felt both happy for her elder brother and deeply uneasy, as if the courtyard was exactly as her brother had imagined.
She's been back for so long and still hasn't been able to resolve the question in her heart: why did her sister-in-law suddenly seem like a completely different person?
She stayed in Northeast China, and her relationship with her older brother improved. This change was so sudden that Lu Ronghui wondered if she was dreaming.
Is it because she hated Bai Rongjun and the Bai family so much, and felt sorry for her elder brother, that she had this dream?
"Auntie, what are you thinking about? Come and see the earthworms I dug up."
An An's voice pulled Lu Ronghui back to reality; a deep pink earthworm was constantly curling up on her palm.
Even though Lu Ronghui thought she had become much bolder, she still took a step back when she saw this scene.
"Aunt?"
Song Qing was pushing open the door and walking home, carrying the return gifts everyone had given her. She gasped when she saw the earthworm in her daughter's hand.
"Lu Suian?!"
Lu Yang had just stepped outside his yard when he heard his wife's shrill voice filled with disbelief. He immediately ran inside.
"Throw it out!"
An'an thought Song Qing was talking about earthworms and looked at Lu Yang with confusion, wondering why he would throw earthworms away. Unexpectedly, Song Qing glared at Lu Yang.
"Throw your daughter out!"
Lu Yang was both amused and exasperated, and could only coax his daughter to throw away the earthworm. Lu Ronghui also didn't want to see An'an's hands, so she quickly ran to help Song Qing pick vegetables.
----
"Are you blind? Why did you hit me?"
Liu Ruo was already exhausted and dizzy after working in the fields all day. After returning home and eating, she quickly grabbed her toiletries and prepared to take a shower.
As a result, her hand accidentally bumped into an old educated youth, who then pointed his finger at her nose.
"Are you blind? You're always suspicious of this and that in the dorm. I think your eyes are just for show, they're useless!"
"I only accidentally bumped into you and I've already apologized. Besides, who would I suspect in the dorm?"
Liu Ruo was also furious. Her watch had gone missing, and she was the victim, but as a result, the other people in the dormitory started targeting her.
"Who knows if your watch is really missing or just pretended to be missing? And if it's missing, how easy is it to find it again?"
You didn't do this on purpose, did you?
Liu Ruo was spoiled by her family at home, and she had been feeling stifled enough these past few days, so she couldn't take it anymore.
Why would I deliberately say that my watch is missing?
I'm so confused. I'm the one who lost my thing, why are you targeting me? Did you take it?
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