Early in the morning, when the first wake-up bell rang, Li Ruolan and the others gradually got up and lined up to fetch water, wash their faces, and brush their teeth.
Today, the older youths were still cooking. Since it was the new youths’ first day of work, they would be too tired to prepare lunch when they returned.
For the first two days, the older youths took turns cooking. From the third day, Zhou Shengnan and Zheng Fanghua would start participating, and the new youths would also begin taking turns.
Breakfast was very simple—one pancake and a bowl of millet porridge each. Li Ruolan had struggled to finish a pancake yesterday, and her throat still felt sore.
Taking advantage of a moment when no one was looking, she placed the pancake into her storage space, grabbed a plain steamed bun, and swallowed it in a few bites. She also put two boiled eggs into her pocket.
Deng Minghao did the same. He really could not get used to the coarse pancake.
After breakfast, it was time to work. The new youths, including Li Ruolan, put on straw hats and gloves, wore their old clothes brought from home, carried water bottles, and went to the fields with the older youths.
Li Ruolan and Deng Minghao’s water bottles contained spirit spring water, which could refresh them when they grew tired.
When they arrived at the fields with the older youths, they also saw the local villagers. Deng Minghao and Li Ruolan greeted the women they had met yesterday.
“Look, these are the two new youths we met yesterday. They’re a couple. Both are good, open, and easy to get along with.”
“The man is tall and capable. The girl is thin but has a pleasant smile.”
“I’d say the prettiest of the new youths are those two girls.”
Among the new youths, the most attractive were Qin Wan and Guo Xiaoya. They had healthy figures, were tall, and had fair skin, making them naturally stand out.
Li Ruolan had often gone hungry at home. Even though she had been drinking spirit spring water for just over ten days, she was still thin and somewhat anemic, though her foundation was better than most.
The new youths felt uneasy under the villagers’ scrutiny. Fortunately, the brigade leader arrived and immediately assigned the work.
Li Ruolan was paired with the round-faced woman from yesterday, named Zhao Guihua, commonly called Aunt Guihua. Li Ruolan followed everyone in addressing her this way.
“Aunt Guihua, I’m really lucky to be with you. You have to teach me well,” Li Ruolan said, smiling as she approached.
Aunt Guihua teased, “Don’t worry. If you don’t know something, just ask. I promised little Deng yesterday, so I’ll take good care of you.”
Their group had six people. Besides Li Ruolan and Aunt Guihua, there were two other women about Li Ruolan’s age who had just married. One was named Wang Xiumei, and the other Yang Dan.
Li Ruolan quickly became familiar with them, addressing them as aunts and sisters. Their group had a very friendly atmosphere.
It was now August, the critical stage for corn growth. The corn grew vigorously, and the weeds were abundant.
To prevent the weeds from stealing nutrients from the corn, they needed to weed the fields. Li Ruolan’s task today was weeding.
Weeding required no special skills. Aunt Guihua only explained the precautions, and Li Ruolan could get to work.
At first, the work was exhausting, but she drank a few sips of spirit spring water during breaks and continued weeding.
Her speed was moderate. She followed slightly behind Aunt Guihua and the others, keeping pace.
During this time, Li Ruolan heard shouting not far away, but the corn had grown tall, so she couldn’t see where it was happening.
“It’s definitely a new youth. They couldn’t handle the work and went to ask the brigade leader for a different assignment,” said Aunt Cuihua, a neighbor of Aunt Guihua.
Another woman nearby, Aunt Wangsi, explained, “On the first day, new youths always cause a scene like this. We’re used to it.”
Li Ruolan wiped her sweat and smiled. “We’ve never worked in the fields before. Some people can’t handle it, and even I’m exhausted.”
Wang Xiumei laughed. “You’re much better than the other new girls. We’ve been doing this work for a long time, and it’s not easy for you to keep up.”
“Exactly! Among the new youths today, except for you and the other Li youth from yesterday, you’re different from the rest. You look like you’re used to working at home,” Yang Dan added.
Most new female youths needed more than ten days of training to adapt to fieldwork.
On their first ration distribution, many had too little to eat. Hunger forced them to work harder, and gradually they could earn enough for themselves.
“New female youths usually earn three or four work points on their first day. Male youths get five or six points.”
“After working for some time, work points gradually increase. Female youths earning six or seven points a day can support themselves. Male youths need seven or eight points to get by.”
Li Ruolan curiously asked, “How many points do you earn each day?”
Wang Xiumei pointed at herself and Yang Dan. “We earn about seven points. Aunt Guihua and the others are capable, they get eight or nine. During the busy season, some aunts can earn ten or even twelve points a day.”
Li Ruolan admired Aunt Guihua and the others. “No wonder you aunts are so skilled. Even better than us young ones. The old really are more experienced.”
The aunts were pleased by Li Ruolan’s praise, smiling widely.
Knowing Wang Xiumei and the others’ daily work points, Li Ruolan decided to work steadily and inconspicuously. She and Deng Minghao did not rely on work points for survival.
During weeding, Li Ruolan followed Wang Xiumei and Yang Dan. When they sped up, she sped up. When they slowed, she slowed. This allowed her to work in bursts with breaks, making the work much easier.
Her ability to keep pace was likely due to the spirit spring water gradually improving her physical condition.