For example, the brown sugar Zhu Pingjuan had asked her to buy, the toothpaste she wanted for herself, as well as pork and white flour—none of those were available at the supply cooperative.
Fortunately, Wen Ranran managed to get all the necessities she urgently needed. She bought a large iron cooking pot, a pair of rubber shoes for Lu Shi’an, and new bowls and chopsticks for meals.
In addition, she purchased three jin of eggs, an aluminum lunch box, two tins of clam-shell face cream, a box of shampoo paste, and after some thought, a jin of fruit candies.
Wen Ranran felt she hadn’t bought much at all. The main problem was that the store carried too few varieties of goods. She had money but nowhere to spend it. It was nothing like the convenience of modern times.
The sales clerk, however, was astonished.
These days, people usually had to save money for a long time—or collect ration coupons for a long time—before they could buy anything substantial.
Most families probably wouldn’t purchase as much in several years as Wen Ranran had bought in a single trip. This beautiful young woman was certainly spending generously.
Many of the coupons she used were military coupons. The clerk couldn’t help wondering whether she had a brother in the army or was married to a soldier.
Wen Ranran had no idea what the clerk was thinking.
Looking at the pile of goods, she grabbed a handful of candies and offered them to the clerk.
“Comrade, I can’t carry all this by myself. Could you help me move everything over there? My boyfriend will be coming later, and it’ll save some time when he gets here…”
As the saying went, courtesy never hurts.
The sales clerk was naturally warmhearted, and there weren’t many customers at the moment. Faced with a request from such a pretty young woman, she found it impossible to refuse.
“Sure, I’ll give you a hand. Where do you want to move them?”
Taking the candy, she stepped out from behind the counter and helped Wen Ranran carry everything to a large tree beside the road.
Wen Ranran thanked her repeatedly, wiped the sweat from her forehead, and settled down to wait for Lu Shi’an.
The shade beneath the tree gradually shrank.
Since she didn’t own a watch, she had no idea how much time had passed. By the time she had counted more than two hundred leaves on the tree, she thought she heard the sound of a bicycle approaching and quickly opened her eyes.
Unfortunately, it wasn’t Lu Shi’an.
It was a passerby coming from the opposite direction.
Wen Ranran sighed and was about to resume counting leaves when the cyclist came closer and she suddenly realized she knew him—the police officer she had met in the county town.
When Gong Guodong saw Wen Ranran, he was equally excited.
He immediately stopped his bicycle and got off.
“Comrade, what a coincidence. We meet again.”
What a coincidence indeed.
Gong Guodong had come to the countryside to investigate a case. Having only recently been transferred to the county, he was still unfamiliar with the area and had been asking for directions along the way.
With the farming season in full swing, there were few people on the roads. He had gotten lost several times. After finally getting directions to Qingshui Brigade from an elderly woman, he unexpectedly ran into the young woman who had stolen his heart at first sight.
His spirits soared.
People always said that relationships depended on fate.
Ever since their brief encounter at the tea stall that day, the image of the young woman holding a cat had repeatedly appeared in his mind.
She had looked so beautiful and vivid, like a painting.
Gong Guodong knew this was what people called love at first sight.
He had tried every method he could think of to find out who she was, but he hadn’t even managed to learn her surname.
He had begun to think they simply weren’t meant to be.
Just when he was about to give up, fate had suddenly smiled upon him.
Determined not to miss this opportunity, he glanced at the pile of goods Wen Ranran had bought and immediately said,
“I’m heading to Qingshui Brigade. If it’s on your way, I can give you a ride.”
Qingshui Brigade?
The moment she heard those words, Wen Ranran perked up.
A hint of curiosity entered her gaze as she looked at him.
But she quickly figured it out.
A police officer coming to Qingshui Brigade was probably investigating Jiang Yue’s case.
His timing was excellent. The brigade leader and everyone else had been worried sick about Jiang Yue’s whereabouts.
After some thought, Wen Ranran decided Lu Shi’an might not arrive anytime soon. A police officer was someone she could trust, and accepting his help would certainly be convenient.
Besides, there was only one road between here and Qingshui Brigade. If Lu Shi’an came, he would spot them along the way.
She smiled at Gong Guodong.
“Officer, what a coincidence. My name is Wen Ranran. I’m an educated youth from Qingshui Brigade. If it’s not too much trouble, I’ll leave these things in your care.”
“Not at all, not at all. I’m not familiar with this area anyway and could use someone to guide me.”
Gong Guodong was tall and strong.
He quickly loaded all of Wen Ranran’s purchases onto the bicycle.
The iron pot, eggs, and bowls—anything fragile—were secured to the rear rack, while smaller items hung from the handlebars.
Gong Guodong pushed the bicycle while Wen Ranran walked beside him.
Aside from the sound of footsteps and the clicking chain of the bicycle wheels, the journey was silent.
Looking at Wen Ranran’s gentle and beautiful profile, Gong Guodong desperately searched for something to say.
“Oh, right. I don’t think I’ve properly introduced myself. My surname is Gong, Gong Guodong. I’m a newly transferred police officer. Educated Youth Wen, we’ve met twice already. Seems we’re pretty fated to meet, haha.”
Wen Ranran gave him a strange look.
The officer had seemed sharp and capable when arresting people that day. Why did he seem a little foolish in everyday life?
Still, he had helped her, so she answered patiently.
“It does seem we’re fated to meet. Comrade Gong, what brings you to Qingshui Brigade? If you’re looking for the brigade leader, you may have to wait. He went to the commune for a meeting and won’t be back until this afternoon.”
Gong Guodong instinctively raised a hand to wave it off and say it was no problem, but the load hanging from the handlebars was too heavy.
The moment he loosened one hand, the bicycle started wobbling.
He hurriedly grabbed the handlebar again.
The sight was so comical that Wen Ranran couldn’t help laughing.
This police officer really did seem a bit slow-witted, yet he was remarkably professional at work.
Perhaps this was what people meant by “great wisdom appearing foolish.”
Gong Guodong had been feeling embarrassed, but when he saw Wen Ranran smile, he was instantly captivated.
If they had met twice already, surely fate was guiding them together.
His own conditions weren’t bad, were they?
He wondered whether Educated Youth Wen might look favorably upon him…
Just then, Lu Shi’an came riding his bicycle from the brigade.
With his excellent eyesight, he spotted them from far away.
His girlfriend was walking side by side with a man in uniform.
And the look in that man’s eyes—admiring, fascinated, utterly captivated—was exactly the same look Lu Shi’an himself had worn when he first met Ranran.
He pedaled harder.
A moment later, he braked sharply, stopping directly in front of them.
His gaze swept over Gong Guodong first.
Height, build, appearance.
All of them still fell short of his own.
“Ranran, I’m late.”
The moment Wen Ranran saw him, her eyes lit up.
Then she immediately complained,
“What took you so long? I bought so many things—I was exhausted waiting.”
It was the kind of tone one only used with someone truly close.
Gong Guodong’s heart instantly leaped into his throat.