Under the old locust tree at the entrance of the village.
A girl with two pigtails, about fifteen or sixteen years old, was pacing anxiously back and forth, standing on tiptoe from time to time to look at the other side of the ridge of the field.
It was Fu Zhawei's younger sister, Fu Qingqing.
On normal days, Fu Zhawei would have arrived by this time, but today he waited and waited but there was no sign of him, which made him feel a little worried.
Just when she was about to stamp her feet in anxiety, she finally saw a familiar tall figure carrying a hoe, walking slowly towards her from another fork in the road.
Fu Qingqing's eyes lit up, and she quickly went to meet him, her tone tinged with complaint: "Brother! You're finally back! Where did you go? Why are you back from there?"
She pointed to the direction where Fu Zhawei came. That was the responsibility field given to the newly arrived educated youth. It was separated from the land that Fu Zhawei was responsible for by several fields.
Fu Zhewei stopped in his tracks. In the dim light, it was impossible to see the expression on his face. All he could hear was his usual concise reply: "Just passing by."
"Just passing by?" Fu Qingqing curled her lips and muttered softly, "How can you pass by and end up on the opposite side? Brother, the range of your passing is too wide, isn't it?"
She was puzzled, but when she saw her brother returning safely, she finally felt relieved.
She raised her head and looked carefully at Fu Zhewei's expression. Although the light was not good, she seemed to catch a glimpse of something unusual.
Fu Qingqing rolled her eyes and asked tentatively, "Brother, you... seem to be in a good mood today?"
Fu Zhewei paused, turned his head, and glanced at her calmly: "No."
"You do!" Fu Qingqing immediately retorted, her tone firm, "Don't try to hide it from me! The corners of your mouth clearly...seemed to be slightly tilted upwards! Even if it was only for a moment, I saw it!"
Fu Zhawei's lip lines tightened instantly.
He frowned, his tone showing a hint of impatience: "Nonsense."
"I'm not talking nonsense!" Fu Qingqing pouted unconvincedly. "I'm your biological sister. How can I not see whether you're happy or not? Come on, is there any good news? Did you find some money? Or... did you meet someone?"
She deliberately dragged out the last few words and looked at Fu Zhewei with sparkling eyes.
Fu Zhewei seemed to be a little impatient with her question and said, "I don't want to bother with you."
After saying that, he no longer paid attention to Fu Qingqing's further questions, picked up the hoe, and walked straight home with his long legs.
"Brother!" Fu Qingqing hurriedly trotted after him and tugged at his sleeve, "Don't be so fast! I'm telling you something serious!"
Seeing that Fu Zhawei ignored her, Fu Qingqing had to change the subject: "Brother, Mom gave me two cloth coupons a few days ago, and I want to buy some cloth to make a new dress. Are you free this weekend? Can you accompany me to the supply and marketing cooperative in town?"
Fu Zhawei didn't even turn his head, his voice was crisp and clear, without the slightest hesitation: "No time."
"Ah? Why don't you have time?" Fu Qingqing was a little disappointed. "Aren't we supposed to rest on weekends?"
Fu Zhawei didn't pause, leaving her with only a brief response: "Something happened."
Fu Qingqing looked at her brother's back as he walked further and further away, and couldn't help but stamp her feet.
Humph! Miser!
He seemed to be in a good mood just now, so how come he doesn't have time when you ask him to go to town with her?
Something? What could be more important than shopping for new clothes with my sister?
*
In the blink of an eye, it's the weekend.
The educated youth camp welcomed a rare day off. No one was working, and the whole yard was filled with a lazy atmosphere.
Early in the morning, just as the sky was getting light, there was a knock on Lin Jianxue's door.
"Jianxue, are you up?" Zhou Mei's voice came from outside the door.
Lin Jianxue had just finished washing up and was combing her hair. Upon hearing this, she raised her voice and said, "Get up. The door is not locked. Come in."
Zhou Mei pushed the door open and came in, holding an enamel pot in her hand. It seemed that she had just woken up.
She looked around and saw that Lin Jianxue had packed up, so she smiled and asked, "Jianxue, it's a day off today. Do you want to go shopping in town with me?"
Lin Jianxue put down the comb, turned around, and shook her head: "No, I have an appointment today, maybe next time."
"A date?" Zhou Mei's eyes lit up when she heard that. She took a few steps closer and said with a hint of teasing, "Oh, our beautiful Lin has only been here a few days, and she already has a date? Who is she with? Could it be... a date?"
She deliberately dragged out the ending of the word and blinked ambiguously. After spending the past few days together, she also realized that although Lin Jianxue's personality was a bit cold, she was not difficult to get along with. It was still okay to joke around occasionally.
Lin Jianxue felt somewhat helpless at her teasing, but she wasn't angry either. She simply explained calmly, "What are you thinking? I have a high school classmate who also works at this farm. We've been in touch before. I made an appointment with him to go to town together to buy some daily necessities, and by the way... I'm planning to visit his parents at his house."
"High school classmate?" Zhou Mei was stunned for a moment, then suddenly realized, "Oh, so that's it... That's a coincidence."
When Zhou Mei heard her say that her old classmate and his family were all here, she understood what was going on.
Zhou Mei sighed: "Then you two are really destined to meet each other here as high school classmates."
Upon hearing this, Lin Jianxue just smiled and didn't respond.
Is it fate? She fought for it herself.
*
Lin Jianxue carefully tucked the last strand of hair behind her ear and looked at herself in the only small round mirror in the dormitory.
The mirror reflected a young face with bright eyes and white teeth, and skin that was delicate and fair from living in the city for a long time.
Carrying a military green canvas bag, Lin Jianxue closed the door and walked out of the courtyard of the educated youth point with brisk steps.
The air in the early morning has the unique chill of Heilongjiang Province, but it is also exceptionally fresh.
The sky was turning pale, and the village was still shrouded in tranquility. Only the occasional crowing of chickens and barking of dogs broke the pre-dawn silence.
She had something on her mind, and her pace quickened involuntarily, her eyes fixed on the old locust tree at the entrance of the village.
Sure enough, a slender figure stood quietly under the locust tree.
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