People who eat melon are in 70 - Chapter 42

Jiang Yutao furrowed her brows: [This small world can still save itself?]

The Melon-Eating System replied: [Of course, not every small world can just watch its citizens perish.]

The small world of Su Zhengtang and Xia Heyu is one such case. After experiencing a collapse, it came up with a solution—bringing Su Zhengtang together with his original wife from his past life. This way, it prevents Xia Heyu from marrying Su Zhengtang, and thus avoids a series of tragedies that would follow.

[So if Su Zhengtang is with Zhao Yonglan, can it really prevent the collapse of the small world?]

The Melon-Eating System had already calculated it: [No, it cannot. Su Zhengtang, who has awakened the memories of his past life, is no longer the pure Su Zhengtang. He now has memories from his future life, and his unprecedented self-confidence. Excessive confidence in a man is never a good thing.]

The Melon-Eating System continued: [According to my system’s simulations, even if Zhao Yonglan and Su Zhengtang are together, it won’t stop the collapse of the small world. Su Zhengtang will inevitably cheat. Zhao Yonglan, as someone forcibly pulled in to take the blow, will speed up the collapse of the world if she makes any extreme actions.]

Jiang Yutao understood. From what she knew of Zhao Yonglan, if she found out her man was messing around, it would be normal for her to do something extreme out of anger: [So how can we stop the collapse of the small world?]

The Melon-Eating System: [Stop Zhao Yonglan and Su Zhengtang from being together. As for whether the awakened Su Zhengtang will end up with Xia Heyu, that’s no longer our concern.]

[So if those two are together, won’t the small world collapse? After all, they are the main characters.]

[No, now that Su Zhengtang’s consciousness has awakened, when facing the reborn Xia Heyu, they will only mutually restrain each other. Their influence on the world consciousness will not be that significant.]

Jiang Yutao didn’t say anything, but turned her gaze toward Zhao Yonglan.

Su Zhengtang’s craftsmanship was still good. He had made a pear blossom hairpin, which was Zhao Yonglan’s favorite flower. The hairpin was polished very smoothly.

Zhao Yonglan didn’t accept it. Even though she was sometimes foolish and liked to take small advantages, she knew it wasn’t right to accept money or gifts from someone she wasn’t familiar with.

“I accept your apology, but the gift is unnecessary,” Zhao Yonglan said. Even if she wasn’t the sharpest, she knew what it meant for a man to give such a personal gift like a hairpin.

If she had accepted it, rumors would probably start spreading that Zhao Yonglan and Su Zhengtang were in a relationship. She didn’t know when, but Zhao Yonglan had started becoming more clear-headed.

Su Zhengtang was not a good match for her. Leaving aside the man himself, just thinking of Zhu Yuemei made her shudder. She couldn’t outsmart her, nor could she defeat her in a fight. She still vividly remembered the time she was pinned to the ground and beaten by her. Was there any hope if she married into the Su family?

She’d probably be eaten up, leaving nothing behind.

After saying that, Zhao Yonglan took Li Yunying’s arm and walked away. When they entered the youth point, Zhao Yonglan, almost instinctively, turned her head back. Su Zhengtang was still standing there.

Once they were in the dormitory, the more Zhao Yonglan thought about it, the more something felt off. “Huihui, have you ever told anyone that I like pear blossoms?”

Zhang Huihui, who was taking off her coat, was momentarily stunned. “No, I haven’t said anything.”

Previously, Zhang Huihui had wanted to distance herself from Zhao Yonglan, but now their relationship was a little better. However, for no reason, why would she go outside and say something like that?

“Well, that’s strange. I’ve never told anyone that I like pear blossoms. So how did Su Zhengtang know? Could it be a coincidence?” It could be explained as a coincidence, but Su Zhengtang’s behavior earlier still made Zhao Yonglan feel uneasy. It seemed like he was certain she would accept the hairpin.

Zhao Yonglan thought for a while but couldn’t figure it out, so she decided not to think about it anymore. She had already accepted the fact that she wasn’t very clever, so when she couldn’t understand something, she might as well let it go.

Jiang Yutao boiled some hot water to do the laundry. After her strength had increased, wringing out clothes was no longer a bothersome task. A quick twist and squeeze, and most of the water was out; a couple more twists, and it was almost as good as a washing machine spin.

This was truly a must-have skill for household chores!

After seeing it once, Gu Nianwei was amazed. Every time it was time to wash thick clothes, she would bribe Jiang Yutao with something—sometimes food, sometimes other useful items.

On the day of the Double Ninth Festival in early September, the weather was excellent. Everyone changed into their best clothes, packed their money and tickets, locked up the youth station, and headed to the commune.

As with yesterday, they encountered Su Zhengtang on their way out. Judging by his outfit, he was also heading to the county town.

Further along the road, they ran into a newly dressed Xia Heyu. When they reached the village entrance, they met Lin Jianzhong, who was carrying three children.

In the two books, it could be said that all the main characters were gathered.

Jiang Yutao had a bad premonition that a battle was about to take place.

Xu Dazui and the others were also heading to the commune that day. Wasn’t it the harvest season? Every household had already gathered their crops from their personal plots. Xu Dazui was carrying ten pounds of soybeans to the commune, Fourth Aunt Aunt Jiang was carrying several pounds of peanuts and a basket of eggs, while Aunt Zhang didn’t have anything to sell, just a basket.

When the three of them saw Jiang Yutao, they paused and waited for her. Jiang Yutao quickly caught up with them, and the melon-eating group was now complete.

As the current wife of the brigade leader, Xu Dazui was especially well-informed: “The commune leaders said the year’s harvest is good, and on the 19th, they’re inviting people to perform opera for two days at the commune.”

September 19th is the birthday of Guanyin Bodhisattva, and this area of the Jujube Township has traditionally celebrated the day. The custom, passed down through centuries, has now become a local tradition.

Fourth Aunt Jiang,, who loved to join in on such events, said, “The commune hasn’t invited anyone to perform opera in the past two years, right? This year, I must go and join in the fun.”

Aunt Zhang didn’t speak, but such a lively event was certainly not going to happen without her. She asked Jiang Yutao, “Are you going?”

Jiang Yutao glanced at Gu Nianwei and the others. “I’m not sure yet. We’ll decide when the time comes. If we go, I’ll join you.”

“Alright then, we’ll bring you back the same way we take you there,” Xu Dazui promised.

As they were talking, they walked ahead, and behind them, the sound of bells began to ring. Everyone turned around to look and saw Xu the accountant riding his bike, with his oldest granddaughter heading to the commune.

She was still wearing the same red cotton jacket, laughing brightly as she sat on the bike.

Xu Dazui clicked his tongue. “The Old Xu family sure dotes on that Baozhu; they’ve spoiled her to the bone. Look at all the young girls in the village—who’s as spoiled as Xu Baozhu? People used to say Zhu Yuemei’s family favored Su Yang, but compared to Xu Baozhu, that’s nothing.”

Xu Dazui wasn’t bitter; he just couldn’t stand it. I mean, she’s just a rural girl, fifteen or sixteen years old and still doesn’t know anything. Not only does she not work the fields, but she doesn’t even do any housework. “I heard she lets her little sister, Manqiu, wash her underwear for her. She’s spoiled more than a city girl.”

Even the young educated youths knew how to wash their own undergarments.

“Well, Baozhu is lucky. If she were my daughter, I’d spoil her the same way. Have you ever heard of a baby being born, and then it rained, with a rainbow hanging over her house?” Fourth Aunt Jiang was talking about a famous local miracle.

Fifteen years ago, in 1959, droughts were happening everywhere across the country, from spring to autumn, without a single drop of rain. The wheat was almost ripe, but still, no rain came.

At that time, Xu Baozhu was born. On the day she was born, the sky was filled with brilliant sunset rays, and soon after, a torrential downpour came. The rain lasted for a whole day and night, soaking the land thoroughly. After the rain stopped, a rainbow lingered in the Xu family’s sky for a whole hour.

What was even stranger was that the rain only fell on Liushu Valley. That year, the entire commune suffered a poor harvest, but Liushu Village had a bountiful year. From then on, the weather in Liushu Village remained perfect.

The Xu family grew better and better each day, especially Xu Baozhu’s parents—one worked at the county’s water conservancy office, the other at the agricultural science station. A few years ago, they were still temporary workers, but now they had permanent positions.

Several of her uncles and aunts were doing well too, and over the years, the Xu family had become the richest household in Liushu Valley.

When Fourth Aunt Jiang talked about Xu Baozhu, she couldn’t stop: “Xu Baozhu is so lucky! While everyone else was up the mountain, she was always the one who found the best and the most. Once, she was just standing there when a wild boar charged straight into the tree behind her. And rabbits and wild chickens, don’t even get me started!”

Hearing this, Jiang Yutao and the others couldn’t help but click their tongues. Jiang Yutao asked, “Is it really that amazing? Why didn’t you mention it before?”

“Now we’re breaking the ‘Four Olds’ and abolishing feudal ideas, right? Who would dare to talk about that? A few years ago, a fortune-teller from Linjiadian was reported for practicing feudal superstition. Now the grass on her grave is already tall,” they replied. No matter what, they couldn’t let anyone outside of Liushu Village know about Xu Baozhu’s situation.

“You just need to know about this, but don’t spread it around,” Xu Dazui said seriously, warning Jiang Yutao and the others. “We’re telling you this because we consider you as our own.”

“Don’t worry, we’re good at keeping secrets,” Jiang Yutao assured them.

Fourth Aunt Jiang’s storytelling wasn’t over yet: “Speaking of Xu Baozhu, we have to mention her twin sister, Xu Manqiu. If Xu Baozhu is the lucky one, then Xu Manqiu is a well-known disaster. I’ve lived this long, and I’ve never seen someone so unlucky.”

“She can trip over flat ground, choke while drinking water, almost died once when a peanut got stuck in her windpipe. When she went up the mountain with her sister, whatever Xu Baozhu wanted, she got, while she was always getting bitten by animals. Let’s just say this: one sister is full of luck, and the other is completely unlucky.”

“The Xu family loves Xu Baozhu so much, and they despise Xu Manqiu just as much.”

“You can see this just from their names. One is a precious gem, the other is ‘Manqiu,’ meaning ‘autumn is full,’ the extra one who came after everything was already done.”

Jiang Yutao suddenly understood. “Oh, no wonder I’ve never seen Xu Baozhu before.” It was strange; she had been in the village for so long, but she had never come across Xu Baozhu.

Xu Manqiu, on the other hand, was often seen, but the girl mostly worked quietly and never said much.

Xu Dazui sighed as she spoke, “Her parents have taken her back to the city. She only comes back to the village during school. The Xu family really spoils this little lucky star. Every season, she gets new clothes and shoes. Since she was little, I’ve never seen her wear old clothes. As for Manqiu, poor thing, she grew up in the village. I don’t think she’s been to the city more than ten times over the years. She wears clothes that others have discarded. Xu Baozhu is so domineering—she won’t wear her clothes, but she can’t bear to give them to Xu Manqiu. Such a shame.”

Aunt Zhang whispered from the side, “We’ve been talking privately, wondering if Xu Baozhu is too domineering. Maybe she took all of Xu Manqiu’s luck in the womb, and that’s why she’s so unlucky.”

The gossip about the two sisters continued as they arrived at the commune.

The ninth of September was also a holiday, the first one after the autumn harvest, and many people from the commune had gathered to join in the festivities.

Stalls along the street were filled with farmers selling their own grown produce. In those days, in some less strictly managed areas, farmers were allowed to buy, sell, and exchange things they grew themselves.

Jiang Yutao and the others headed straight to the post office.

Outside, Jiang Yutao saw Fu Shaohua behind the counter. Today, he wasn’t delivering letters or newspapers to the villages.

Gu Niangwei pulled Jiang Yutao toward the counter where Fu Shaohua was.

Fu Shaohua was busy, but noticing someone approaching, he looked up and saw Jiang Yutao. “Comrade Jiang, you’re here?”

Jiang Yutao smiled and nodded, taking out the letter she wrote to Ying Zhaorong. “I’m here to mail a letter.”

Mailing letters didn’t require entering the main hall; the mailbox outside could be used.

Fu Shaohua had grown used to it. Since he started working at the post office, he had become accustomed to the fact that many young women came to the counter to send letters when they knew he was there.

If anyone else came, Fu Shaohua wouldn’t even spare a smile, let alone a friendly expression. But with Jiang Yutao, he couldn’t bring himself to act cold.

He smiled and said, “Just leave it here.”

Jiang Yutao smiled and handed him the letter. She wanted to say a few more words, but Fu Shaohua was called away by a woman in her forties. As he walked away, he turned and smiled apologetically at Jiang Yutao, and she had no choice but to let it go.

As soon as Jiang Yutao left, Fu Shaohua’s previously warm expression immediately turned icy. His face was now cold as ice. “Sister Zhang, why did you call me over?”

Sister Zhang was a long-time employee at the post office, usually in charge of organizing documents. However, whenever Fu Shaohua was around, she would always pass the work onto him.

Fu Shaohua didn’t mind doing the work, but recently, Sister Zhang had been becoming more and more unreasonable.

Sister Zhang watched the backs of Jiang Yutao and her friend leaving, her expression not looking too good. She forced a smile and said, “It’s nothing important, just wanted to ask if you’ve finished organizing the materials I asked you to do this morning. The director will want to review them soon.”

Before Fu Shaohua could respond, she continued, “Xiao Fu, have you thought about the matter I mentioned before? You’ve seen my niece, she’s good-looking and well-educated. She’s working at a primary school now, and my brother said he might transfer her to the county in two years. She’s seen you and is very satisfied with you. What about you? What are your thoughts?”

From the moment Sister Zhang saw Fu Shaohua at the post office, she had taken a liking to him. She even had her niece meet him, and her niece liked him too. She was just waiting for Fu Shaohua to give the green light.

Sister Zhang was very confident. Her family was one of the most influential in the commune, her brother was the second in command, and many people wanted to arrange a match for her niece. Little Fu’s family might have some background, but didn’t they say, “A present official is better than a former one?” She didn’t believe Fu Shaohua wouldn’t be tempted.

But Fu Shaohua really wasn’t tempted.

He came from a good family, was good-looking, and had seen countless beautiful girls growing up. Sister Zhang was plain, and her niece’s appearance was so ordinary that she would be lost in a crowd.

“I’m not interested.” Fu Shaohua’s voice was as cold as his expression when he wasn’t smiling.

Sister Zhang’s already stiff smile became even more strained. She had promised her family that this would work out, but if Fu Shaohua didn’t agree, how was she going to explain it to them?

“Xiao Fu, you really need to think carefully. My older brother is the second-in-command of our commune. If you get together with my niece, there are plenty of benefits. She likes you, and that’s your fortune. You…”

Sister Zhang’s words became quieter under Fu Shaohua’s mocking gaze. Fu Shaohua said, “You can ask Zhang Liangsheng. I’m not dating his daughter—what’s he going to do about it?”

After speaking, Fu Shaohua left. As he reached the counter, he casually took Jiang Yutao’s letter with him.

Sister Zhang was unscrupulous, and since he had already angered her, there was no telling if she would tear up the letter later. It was safer for him to take it with him.

Fu Shaohua lived in the dormitory behind the post office, one room to himself. The window had curtains, and the room was dimly lit. There wasn’t much furniture—just a bed, a desk, and a chair. The bed had military green sheets, and the quilt was neatly folded into small blocks at the head of the bed.

He stood in the room for a while, put Jiang Yutao’s letter in the drawer, adjusted his clothes, and then left.

Life wasn’t easy for the educated youth, and their food situation wasn’t great. Since they were at the commune, Fu Shaohua guessed they would probably go to the state-run restaurant for lunch.

…

Jiang Yutao and Gu Niangwei went to the supply and marketing cooperative. They squeezed through the crowd for a while and bought snow flower cream, snacks, sugar cubes, fabric, and cotton. Seeing some wool, Jiang Yutao also bought a few pounds to take home.

Gu Niangwei saw this and decided to buy some as well. She didn’t know how to knit sweaters but had always wanted to learn. However, she never managed to stick with it because she didn’t have a companion. Now, with Jiang Yutao also planning to knit, they could learn together.

After they came out of the supply and marketing cooperative, Zhao Yonglan and the others hadn’t come out yet, so the two leaned against the large pillar at the entrance and chatted.

Jiang Yutao suddenly had a craving for chicken soup. “Weiwei, do you want some chicken soup? If you do, let’s ask Aunt Jiang if she has any chickens to sell. I remember she used to raise quite a few.”

According to the rules, each family was allowed to raise two chickens, but there were always ways around things, and Aunt Jiang had raised quite a few. If asked, she would say her family had split, and since she had three sons, each of them could have two chickens. Together, it wouldn’t be unreasonable to have that many.

Jiang Yutao didn’t mention it earlier, but as soon as she did, Gu Niangwei also wanted some. “Alright, you ask her. It’s best if it’s an old hen. We can stew it in the hallway, and by the afternoon, we can eat it. That’s the most delicious.”

As they spoke, they could already taste the deliciousness, saliva almost dripping.

The soup from an old hen is especially fragrant. Just a few slices of ginger and a small piece of green onion in the stew makes it incredibly flavorful.

As soon as they decided, they acted on it. Aunt Jiang’s stall was right across from the supply and marketing cooperative, and she had already sold her eggs to the cooperative. They were three cents each. Now, for farmers to get cash, selling eggs was one of their few ways to do so.

Because of this, eggs were often referred to as “chicken butt banks.”

When Jiang Yutao and the others arrived, Aunt Jiang wasn’t watching her stall but was busy chatting with people from another village, her words flying. Xu Dazui and Aunt Zhang were listening attentively.

For rural women like them, these markets were great opportunities to exchange information.

Right now, Aunt Jiang and the others were discussing the situation in the village behind them, Xiaolianggou. It was about a cruel mother-in-law tormenting her daughter-in-law.

This wasn’t a rare occurrence, but what made it unusual was that this particular mother-in-law, unlike others, tormented her daughter-in-law because she thought the daughter-in-law had taken her son away from her.

“This woman was a widow when she was young and had two sons. The older one married early, but she couldn’t get along with his wife. We all used to think it was her daughter-in-law’s fault because she was quite fierce.”

“After the autumn harvest, when the younger son married, everyone finally understood what was going on.”

“This widow was very close to her son. When the young couple slept at night, she would take the blanket and go to sleep on the heated bed. If they didn’t want her to, she would cry. The young couple would finally get some alone time, and just when they started, she’d shout, worried that her son would be tired.”

“The younger son wasn’t someone easy to deal with. When he got really angry, he couldn’t take it anymore and started talking to others. That’s when everyone found out about it.” The person telling the story laughed mockingly as they spoke.

Aunt Jiang listened with great interest and said, “She doesn’t think of her two sons as her men, does she?”

“Who knows? Even if she does treat her sons like her men, she wouldn’t dare to talk about it outside, right?”

At this point, the conversation shifted. They moved on to discussing other families.

“Do you know that old Zhu from our village?”

“Old Zhu who married Zhang Xiaohua from my mother’s village?” Aunt Zhang didn’t care if she was familiar with the person, she just jumped into the conversation.

“Yes, that’s him. Zhang Xiaohua passed away a few years ago, right? He didn’t remarry. But the night before last, he was caught with Zhu Laer’s wife from our village. Not only did Zhu Laer beat him up, but he also extorted five yuan from him.”

Aunt Jiang exclaimed, “Five yuan?! Was it gold-plated? Isn’t Zhu Laer’s wife already messing around with someone else? She’s not much better than our Liu widow. And still, she’s worth five yuan?”

“You don’t understand. Over the years, Zhu Laer has made a lot of money thanks to his wife. Now that she’s getting older and can’t find anyone else, she finally catches hold of someone. She has to squeeze him for everything he’s got!”

“Old Zhu had to pay, huh?”

“Of course, he had to! You remember Zhao Chunhua’s incident from your village, right? When Zhu Laer’s wife insists that Old Zhu was the one who forced her, and Zhu Laer testifies, do you think Old Zhu won’t end up at the farm? He has grandchildren and children now. If he doesn’t want to go to a labor camp, he’ll just pay up.”

“Men, they can’t control themselves, and that’s what happens. They deserve it,” Aunt Jiang said with contempt.

The woman who had been gossiping shared most of what she knew, and now it was Aunt Jiang’s turn to speak.

She had plenty of material—stories about Zhao Chunhua, Zhu Yuemei, and Su Yang’s young wife, Xia Heyu.

These were all the things the woman wanted to know. After hearing the inside gossip she was curious about, someone called for her, and she left feeling very satisfied. Aunt Jiang and the others had their gossip session and were content.

The things they learned on the street today would be enough to talk about for a while when they returned to the village.

Jiang Yutao took the opportunity to explain why she was looking for Aunt Jiang. Aunt Jiang immediately slapped her palm and said, “You’ve come to the right person. I happen to have a hen that’s not laying eggs. It’s been two years now, and I was thinking of keeping it until the New Year to eat. But you know, the more you keep a hen that doesn’t lay eggs, the thinner it gets. I’m afraid by the time the New Year comes, it’ll just be a pile of bones.”

“Let’s eat it now, then. It’s not a holiday, so it’s hard to justify it,” she said with a touch of guilt. Having gone through hard times, Aunt Jiang felt it was a bit sinful to be eating such good food without a reason.

Selling it to Jiang Yutao was just right for her. “I’ll catch it for you tonight when I get home. Do you know how to kill a chicken? If not, I’ll do it for you and send it over.”

“That would be best. We’re good at eating meat, but killing a chicken is a bit difficult for us,” Jiang Yutao replied. Wang Shanxi and the others knew how, but they didn’t always bring them along when they had meat, which felt a little awkward.

“Alright.”

Finally, Zhao Yonglan and the others came out, and they left.

They headed straight to the state-run restaurant.

Once seated, everyone discussed and ordered the dishes. As the waiter walked away with the order, Fu Shaohua entered.

Wang Shanxi saw him first, and since they were all familiar with each other, she waved at him. Fu Shaohua walked over to them.

“Comrade Fu, you’re here for a meal too?” Wang Shanxi greeted him warmly, and Zhao Rongguang quickly stood up to offer him a seat. It was a coincidence that he sat directly across from Jiang Yutao.

As soon as Jiang Yutao looked up, she saw him.

“Yes, the head chef in our canteen is on leave, and there’s no place to cook in my dorm, so I had to come here to eat,” Fu Shaohua explained as he glanced at Jiang Yutao. Seeing her look at him again, then quickly trying to act nonchalant and continue chatting with the others, he couldn’t help but smile.

Although they had only met a few times, Fu Shaohua knew that he had developed a bit of an interest in this Jiang Yutao.

But if asked why he developed such feelings, Fu Shaohua couldn’t really explain. All he knew was that when he first saw Jiang Yutao, the awe in her eyes when she looked at him was so striking. When she asked for his name, the admiration in her gaze was so pure, with no hint of possessiveness, only genuine appreciation.

In the following encounters, Jiang Yutao continued to approach him to speak, her eyes bright and her expression excited.

The feeling was strange, something Fu Shaohua had never experienced before. He suddenly remembered a moment from his childhood when his grandmother had taken him out to play. They happened upon a corner where a beautiful cluster of purple hibiscus flowers grew. His grandmother was so pleased, and she visited the flowers every day.

He had asked his grandmother why she didn’t dig them up to take home since she loved them so much. His grandmother had replied that some things are meant to be appreciated without needing to possess them. Just seeing them every day was enough.

The way Jiang Yutao looked at him felt very much the same as his grandmother’s affection for those flowers.

This undoubtedly left Fu Shaohua feeling somewhat frustrated. But amid that frustration, his interest in Jiang Yutao grew stronger. He especially wanted to know what it would feel like if Jiang Yutao looked at him with a sense of possessiveness.

The more he thought about it, the more it gnawed at him.

Fu Shaohua’s upbringing had taught him that if he wanted something, he needed to make an effort. If he wanted Jiang Yutao to develop feelings for him, then he had to first invest something himself. Otherwise, what difference would he have from a scoundrel?

“Comrade Wang Shanxi, have you all ordered?” Fu Shaohua asked Wang Shanxi. He had decided to build a good relationship with her, so that future interactions with Jiang Yutao would come more naturally.

Fu Shaohua ordered a serving of dumplings, the same as Jiang Yutao, filled with beef and green onions. He also ordered a large bowl of lamb offal soup to share with everyone. “The head chef here is a Hui Muslim, and his lamb soup is exceptional. He makes so much every day, but it’s never enough to sell.”

Wang Shanxi chimed in, “Yes, I’ve heard about it before, but every time we come, we never manage to get any.”

As she spoke, the lamb offal soup was brought to the table. The small pieces of lamb offal, along with cilantro and chopped green onions, floated in the large bowl of broth, filling the air with a delicious aroma.

Fu Shaohua invited everyone to join him in having some.

Jiang Yutao also served herself a bowl. At the right moment, Fu Shaohua asked, “How does it taste?”

He directed the question at everyone, but his eyes were on Jiang Yutao. Jiang Yutao replied, “It’s good, fresh without any strong gamey taste. The combination of green onions, cilantro, and the spicy kick of pepper makes it really flavorful.”

Fu Shaohua smiled, “Drink more.”

Jiang Yutao’s meal arrived quickly. She had ordered braised fish and steamed rice. Each of the others had ordered something different. They all gathered around the table, sharing dishes with each other. It was a lively and enjoyable meal.

After they finished eating, Fu Shaohua and the other male intellectual youths had already stopped using the title “Comrade” and began calling each other by their names. Wang Shanxi even invited Fu Shaohua to hang out at the youth commune.

Fu Shaohua agreed.

The group parted ways at the entrance of the state-run restaurant, with Fu Shaohua smiling as he watched the backs of Jiang Yutao and the others fade into the distance.

The market hadn’t dispersed yet, and there were still many people around. Jiang Yutao and the others wandered through the crowd. Suddenly, Zhao Yonglan nudged Jiang Yutao’s elbow, “Look, isn’t that Su Yang?”

This immediately caught everyone’s attention. Jiang Yutao and the others followed Zhao Yonglan’s pointing finger and saw Su Yang walking down the street with a well-dressed young woman. The two of them were quite intimate, occasionally exchanging smiles.

Zhang Huihui exclaimed, “Su Yang sure has guts, acting so openly on a day like this.”

Su Yang noticed that they were looking at him and turned around. He didn’t even change his expression upon seeing Jiang Yutao and the other intellectual youths. The young woman also saw them. Her gaze lingered on the group of female intellectual youths for a moment before she smiled and asked, “Do you know them?”

“They’re the young intellectuals from our village,” Su Yang replied.

The young woman nodded, “Let’s go, I need to head back to the county this afternoon. Su Yang, don’t forget what you promised me.”

“Don’t worry.” As the two of them turned to leave, suddenly, an unexpected event occurred. Xia Heyu appeared out of nowhere and charged at Su Yang. Before anyone could react, Xia Heyu slapped the young woman beside Su Yang.

The young woman’s face instantly swelled, and she covered her face, saying, “Xia Heyu, what’s your problem?”

Xia Heyu glared at her, her eyes burning with fury. In her previous life, it was this woman who had inserted herself between her and Su Yang for two whole years, causing her unbearable pain. After being reborn, Xia Heyu had been focused on dealing with Su Zhengtang and had no time to deal with Tang Xiaoqing and Su Yang.

Now, facing her again, all the new grievances and old grudges resurfaced: “Tang Xiaoqing, I treated you like my best friend, and behind my back, you’re out shopping with my man. Do you think that’s fair to me?”

Tang Xiaoqing slapped her back: “You can’t even keep an eye on your own man, so what are you starting trouble with me for? If you’ve got a problem, look after him. And by the way, there’s nothing between me and your man. I just asked him for a favor, and he’s just walking me out. How am I in the wrong?”

The two women started fighting in the street, and the passersby all stopped and gathered around, creating a circle around Su Yang and the two women.

Xia Heyu didn’t hold back in her attack, and Tang Xiaoqing returned the slap with full force. Xia Heyu was hit so hard her head tilted to the side. She tried to retaliate, but Su Yang grabbed her wrist.

“Xia Heyu, how long are you planning to make a scene?” Su Yang looked at her with disgust. Xia Heyu’s recent actions had ruined Su Yang’s reputation and destroyed the little good impression he had left of her.

Su Yang’s actions reminded Xia Heyu of the scene from her past life when she first discovered that he had someone else outside their relationship. This made it difficult for her to distinguish between reality and illusion. Anger clouded her mind as she shouted, “Su Yang, do you even care about me? I gave up everything to marry you, and you’re doing this to me—do you think this is fair to me?”

Tears streamed down Xia Heyu’s face. She had truly loved Su Yang. In her previous life, her parents had high expectations for her. When she was in middle school, her parents found out that she and Su Zhengtang were in a relationship. However, before they could take any action, she had already broken up with him.

In high school, Xia Heyu learned from her middle school mistakes and was especially careful about her relationship with Su Yang.

Right after high school, she planned to marry Su Yang, but her parents were furious. Her father strongly opposed it, and she went on a hunger strike for two days before her father finally agreed.

Xia Heyu harbored deep resentment toward Su Yang. She didn’t understand why, after giving up so much for him, he still went outside and found someone else.

Su Yang shook off Xia Heyu’s wrist. “How have I wronged you? The day before our wedding, you made a scene at my house, wanting a divorce. And then what did you do? You never helped with anything at home, no matter how busy you were, but you always found time to hang around my younger uncle’s house, sending all the food over there.”

“Did you give up everything for me? No, you gave up everything for my younger uncle, didn’t you? Xia Heyu, what right do you have to say anything to me? Everything I’m doing now is just a response to what you started. You did it on the first, and I’m doing it on the fifteenth.”

“I’ve been married to you for over a month now. Have I even touched you once?” Su Yang’s anger grew as he spoke, and he glanced around at the crowd, raising his voice, “Tell me, everyone, I married a wife, and this wife doesn’t stay at home. She runs off to other men’s houses, doesn’t even sleep with me. Don’t I have the right to divorce her?”

The men in the crowd immediately sympathized with him and responded loudly, “You have the right, of course.”

“Honestly, your judgment in women is terrible. Why marry such a promiscuous woman? The sooner you divorce, the easier it’ll be.”

With the support of the men, Xia Heyu’s face grew increasingly darker, while Su Yang stood taller, his posture straighter.

Among the crowd, Jiang Yutao clicked her tongue in amazement. “Xia Heyu is so stupid. Everything she’s done in the village is no secret. She has no right to tell Su Yang whether he can take another woman out shopping. It’s completely unfounded. Look at all these people, has anyone said anything to defend her?”

The world is inherently unfair to women, and once Su Yang spoke those words, all the blame fell on Xia Heyu.

Gu Nianwei said, “Isn’t that right? In this situation, the best thing for her to do would be to act like she didn’t see anything, then wait for Su Yang to go home and use today’s incident to negotiate with him. At that point, divorce would be easy, wouldn’t it? But by making such a scene, look at how many people are defending her. The men only heard that she didn’t let him touch her after they got married and kept running off to other men’s houses. They don’t even remember the part about Su Yang taking a woman shopping.”

Gu Nianwei had always known Xia Heyu was stupid, but she never expected her to be this foolish. She really had no brains. But then again, it made sense. If she were smart, she wouldn’t have caused a scene about divorce right after the wedding, spreading it all over town, and then constantly running to her ex-boyfriend’s house.

Now, in Liushu Village, any family with a daughter uses Xia Heyu as a negative example.

Zhao Yonglan also felt speechless. She couldn’t understand at all what Xia Heyu was thinking. To this day, she still couldn’t figure out why Xia Heyu had targeted her.

Xia Heyu stood there with a pale face, her mouth opening and closing, but she couldn’t say a word. Jiang Yutao, watching from the side, felt anxious for her.

From Xia Heyu, Jiang Yutao learned one thing: being reborn doesn’t make you smarter.

The frustration Su Yang had felt for the past month was finally released, and he felt completely at ease. “Didn’t you always want a divorce? My mom stopped us from doing it, saying that you were too young and didn’t understand. Now I’ve figured it out—if someone’s heart isn’t with you, you can’t keep them no matter how hard you try. I’ve done everything a husband should do, but still can’t win your heart. So, let’s get a divorce. I’ll grant your wish.”

Su Yang had some affection for Xia Heyu, but more than that, he enjoyed the pleasure of taking her away from Su Zhentang.

Over the years, every time he passed by where Su Zhentang had taken on apprentices with Xia Heyu, the sense of superiority, excitement, and satisfaction that surged from within him fascinated Su Yang.

Su Yang and Su Zhentang were the same age. Since school, Su Yang had always competed against Su Zhentang on his own. His family had always told Su Zhentang that he was the younger uncle and should take care of his older nephew, Su Yang.

Su Zhentang had been very obedient as a child, and he had taken the advice to heart, taking good care of his older nephew. There was a time when Su Yang and Su Zhentang really got along well, but everything changed once they started school.

Su Zhentang was smart. With the same teachers and textbooks, his academic performance was always better than Su Yang’s.

From first grade onward, the most common thing Su Yang heard was: “You’re still uncle and nephew. Look at Su Zhentang, then look at you. Why can’t you study as hard as he does?”

Every time Su Yang heard this, he felt hatred rise from deep within.

Aren’t you my younger uncle? Isn’t it said that you should let me have the upper hand? Why can’t you let me excel in studies?

And as for Xia Heyu, she was the one I knew first, we spoke first—how did she become your girlfriend?

Su Yang was extremely unwilling. Taking Xia Heyu away from Su Zhentang was the happiest thing he had ever done over the years.

But that joy was gone now. What remained was only anger. His wife was still obsessed with her ex, and for any man, how could that not be an immense humiliation?

Xia Heyu had made him famous in Liushu Village, but today, he was going to make her famous throughout the entire commune!