Jiang Wanwan’s little face flushed with frustration—this person was insatiable!
Su Mengyao sneered, “A hundred yuan is a lot? I helped you plan, pushed someone into trouble, got beaten, got locked up—aren’t those worth a hundred? I’m no one’s servant. If I do things, it’s for money. But this time, the plan will be even harsher!”
“Harsher? What plan?”
Jiang Wanwan perked up with curiosity. “Will it get that wretch killed in one go?”
“If nothing goes wrong, her innocence will be gone!”
“Really?”
“Absolutely!”
Jiang Wanwan fell silent. Should she risk another 100 yuan?
Su Mengyao gave her a sidelong glance, then went back to swatting mosquitoes. Whether to proceed or not was up to Jiang Wanwan—after all, there was risk involved.
After some thought, Jiang Wanwan agreed. She hated Tang Zhirou so much, sending her to the countryside to do farm work in this godforsaken place!
The two of them began scheming in the room. Jiang Wanwan listened with excitement—she could definitely ruin Tang Zhirou. Hahaha! Xiao Heng could only be Jiang Wanwan’s man!
Tang Zhirou, meanwhile, was thinking about what other schemes Jiang Wanwan might pull. Jiang Wanwan wasn’t dangerous on her own, but the Su Mengyao with her was ruthless!
Maybe she should let Xiao Heng be hers early on?
Originally, she wanted him to marry some village old bachelor, but Xiao Heng arrived and locked the scumbag couple. She’d play her games slowly and destroy them in time.
We’ll see!
“Oi!”
Not paying attention for a moment, several big mosquitoes bit her arm. Never mind scheming—swatting them was urgent.
Huo Nanting had caught two rabbits today. He checked with the boys’ dorm—Xiao Heng had bought one, leaving the other for the little master.
Back inside, Zhang Weiping asked, “Huo Zhīqīng, how many rabbits today?”
“Two. Sold one, left the other for tomorrow. One yuan per person—want some?”
“Eat.”
Zhang Weiping had saved over three yuan recently, so he splurged another one.
“Lan Zhiqing doesn’t need to pay—she already bought food.”
Huo Nanting placed the rabbit in the corner, then took some thorny fruits from his pocket and set them on the table. “Help yourself if you want.”
“Thanks.”
Zhang Weiping didn’t touch them—he’d tried them before and didn’t like them.
Huo Nanting went to Lan Xingyu’s bed. “Lan Zhiqing, I brought the thorny fruits.”
Lan Xingyu had just come out of her space—luckily, he hadn’t lifted the curtain, which would have been awkward to explain.
“Give it here.”
She lifted the curtain and handed over five cents.
Huo Nanting placed the fruits on the paper, took her money, stared at her for a moment, then closed the curtain.
He went to wash up and get in bed—no eels tonight. The little master didn’t eat them, so there was no point. Better to read more, just in case the college entrance exams returned—he’d need to give it his all.
The next morning, sunlight streamed through the window. Lan Xingyu woke up.
No need to give Zhou Daju an infusion today—she tossed a piece of bread and a bottle of water and left her be. The anti-inflammatory medicine had been given last night.
She lay in bed, waiting for the two men to wake before getting up—didn’t want to see them waving wooden rifles.
After breakfast, they went to work, pulling weeds. A patch of peanut soil still had weeds left after several days—so exhausting!
At noon, Huo Nanting picked more small sweet potatoes for Lan Xingyu and cooked rabbit meat for her.
Lan Xingyu didn’t mind rabbit meat—ate heartily.
Zhang Weiping’s mouth watered too. “Huo Zhīqīng, Lan Zhiqing, once I save some more money, I’ll go to town, buy meat, and steam buns for you.”
Huo Nanting: “I’ll pay.”
Lan Xingyu of course didn’t need to pay again.
Things were going well among the three. Huo Nanting wasn’t in a lustful mood today—he wanted to “boil the frog slowly.” Speaking of frogs, he asked, “You don’t eat eels—what about loaches or snails? Bird meat? Snake meat? Anything you want to eat?”
Lan Xingyu shook her head disdainfully: “No.”
Zhang Weiping said, “I’ll eat those.”
Huo Nanting glanced at him silently, then picked at his own food, thinking.
Zhang Weiping blinked—why that look at me?
Huo Nanting continued, “What about bee larvae? Mushrooms?”
It was mushroom season, but there’d be more after rain.
Lan Xingyu said lightly, “Mushrooms are okay.”
Huo Nanting exhaled—his little master was picky, but he enjoyed it. As long as she was happy, he’d climb a ladder to pluck stars from the sky for her.
They talked about mushroom picking. Lan Xingyu agreed to go up the mountain—Huo Nanting was thrilled. He would take her behind the “Desire Rock” to feel the wind.
The next day, Lan Xingyu carried a bag of White Rabbit candies to Village Chief Liu to ask for leave and get an introduction letter. She needed to go to the city to deposit money, sell grain on the black market, and most importantly, deal with Zhou Daju.
Seeing the candies, Village Chief Liu issued the letter without hesitation—they were good for his grandson anyway.
Lan Xingyu cycled to town, then took a bus to De City.
She brought a white cloth to place on the seat. A nearby woman gave her a curious look but said nothing—just liked cleanliness.
The road twisted and turned, but the lush mountains outside were beautiful. Lan Xingyu enjoyed the view, smoking a small cigarette, feeling relaxed.
Arriving in the city, she looked for a suitable alley to dump Zhou Daju—giving her no chance to fight back.
She decided the busy area outside the department store was ideal. Taking the bus there, she circled the building, found a side alley next to it, and waited.
Leaning against the wall, she smoked until no one passed, then dropped Zhou Daju and ran. Soon, she disappeared without a trace.
Zhou Daju lay on the ground, wearing only underwear, unconscious.
“Ah! Who’s so indecent!”
A scream rang out. Zhou Daju felt her eyelids heavy, couldn’t open them.
When she did, a sheet covered her, with a few Red Guards standing in front. Scared, she tried to speak, but her throat hurt.
“Take her away! Absolutely indecent, damaging morals!”
Two women pulled her up and dragged her off.
When they reached a location, she clawed and tried to speak but couldn’t. When asked to write, she couldn’t—she hadn’t learned.
She was locked up. Normally, this would mean she’d be sent to be “re-educated,” but they needed to investigate first. With the times backward, even if her family reported her, it took forever for the case to reach the city—and it wasn’t under the Red Guards’ jurisdiction.
So Zhou Daju was sent to raise pigs. She wanted to escape but had no money—so she stayed. (That’s another story.)
Lan Xingyu intended for her to receive education—whether that would happen, she didn’t know.
No more hesitation; if needed, she could always run.
She first went to the bank, deposited 2,000 yuan—money from the nostalgic store, probably not counterfeit, went in easily.
Then she opened another account, deposited 3,000 yuan, got the passbook.
A third bank, another 3,000, passbook secured.
At noon, she ate at a state-run restaurant, ordering braised pork that appeared often in books—curious if it was as good as written.