Su Lei carried Su Wan on the bicycle and quickly arrived at the commune, riding along the commune road.
As they passed the hospital, Su Wan saw a woman hitting a man as they hurried out. She anxiously scolded him, “You’re really something! I wrapped the money carefully in cloth, and you still lost it? That was our son’s life-saving money! Life-saving money!”
The bicycle quickly passed the two people, but the man’s voice could still faintly be heard, filled with tears and regret. “I kept it safely, really! I don’t know how it fell! How did it fall?”
The bicycle continued forward, and soon their voices could no longer be heard.
Su Wan felt sorry for the couple and hoped whoever picked it up would hand it over to the police.
Once they left the commune, the road turned into a dirt road.
The bicycle moved along the uneven path.
Su Wan focused all her attention on staying seated on the bicycle so she wouldn’t get thrown off.
In her heart, Su Wan complained that her brother’s riding skills were really not as good as Han Rui’s. Even on dirt roads, Han Rui could ride very steadily.
“Su Wan.” Su Lei’s voice suddenly rang out.
Su Wan was startled and quickly looked up. Had she accidentally said that out loud?
“You see that person ahead? Isn’t that one of the educated youths from our village?” Su Lei asked.
Su Wan patted her chest in relief. She thought he had somehow known what she was thinking.
Hearing it was an educated youth, Su Wan leaned forward to look. It was indeed Liu Rongrong.
Su Wan replied, “Yes, she’s one of the educated youths from our village. Her name is Liu Rongrong.”
Su Wan didn’t think much of it and was just about to look away when she suddenly saw Liu Rongrong jog forward and pick up a bundle.
Seeing the bundle, Su Wan immediately thought of the couple from earlier.
“Wrapped carefully in cloth.” That was exactly what the man had said.
Su Wan quickly patted Su Lei’s back and told him to stop. “Brother, stop quickly.”
After getting off the bicycle, Su Wan quietly said to Su Lei, “Brother, look at the bundle Liu Rongrong picked up ahead. Could it belong to the couple outside the hospital?”
Su Lei looked over and saw Liu Rongrong placing the bundle into her own bag.
“Whether it belongs to them or not, it should still be returned to its owner. From the way she’s acting, it seems like she plans to keep it for herself. That won’t do.”
Su Wan nodded. Seeing Liu Rongrong about to leave, she called out, “Educated Youth Liu.”
Liu Rongrong’s body stiffened, and she froze in place.
Su Wan ran over and spoke to Liu Rongrong’s back. “Educated Youth Liu, did you pick up something just now?”
Liu Rongrong had no choice but to turn around. Smiling stiffly, she stammered, “N-no, I didn’t.”
Su Wan smiled at her and said quietly, “We both saw it.” Su Lei nodded beside her.
“Educated Youth Liu, were you planning to bring it to the police station? We can go with you.”
At this point, what else could Liu Rongrong say? Though she was furious and anxious inside, she could only nod on the surface. “Yes, I was planning to take it to the police station. But there’s no need for you to come with me. I can go myself.”
Su Wan smiled brightly. “How could that work? Educated Youth Liu just came to the countryside and isn’t familiar with our commune yet. We should accompany you.”
After speaking, Su Wan took the lead and walked ahead. After a few steps, she looked back at Liu Rongrong in confusion, as if asking why she still was not moving.
Liu Rongrong helplessly followed behind unwillingly.
Su Lei pushed the bicycle and followed after them.
When they arrived at the police station, Su Wan immediately saw the same couple. The man was speaking with a police officer while the woman stood nearby wiping away tears.
A young police officer saw Su Wan enter and came over to ask what was going on.
Once Liu Rongrong came in, Su Wan told the officer, “Officer, an educated youth from our village picked something up and came to hand it over.”
Under everyone’s gaze, Liu Rongrong had no choice but to take the bundle out of her bag. She told the officer, “I picked this up on the road. I don’t know what’s inside.”
The young officer took the bundle and opened a corner. Seeing that it was money, he quickly wrapped it back up.
He walked over to another officer and quietly said a few words.
The officer looked over here, then glanced at the couple.
He called the couple over, asked them a few questions, and then handed the bundle back to them.
The woman hugged the bundle and cried tears of joy. The man was also very emotional and repeatedly thanked the police officer while shaking his hand.
The officer waved his hand and pointed toward Su Wan’s group of three. “They’re the ones who found it. You should thank them properly.”
Hearing this, the couple hurried over and continuously thanked Su Wan and the others.
Su Wan stepped back and let Liu Rongrong stand in front. “You should thank her. She’s the one who picked it up.”
Hearing this, they immediately began thanking Liu Rongrong repeatedly.
“Comrade, you’re truly a good person! You saved our whole family!”
“Comrade, thank you so much…”
Liu Rongrong stood there stiffly. Inside, she hated this situation to death, but she could only force a smile and say, “It’s nothing, really. No need to thank me. It’s what I should do.”
The slightly older police officer walked over and smiled at Liu Rongrong. “Educated Youth Comrade, your honesty in returning lost money is admirable. You’re truly an excellent example, worthy of being a young person supporting rural development.”
He added, “We’ll report this to the commune. At that time, Comrade Liu will receive an award certificate so everyone can learn from your spirit.”
By the time they came out, Liu Rongrong’s smile had practically frozen on her face.
Su Wan congratulated her. “Congratulations, Educated Youth Liu. You’re the first model educated youth in our commune. This is a great honor.”
Su Wan glanced at Liu Rongrong’s dark expression and asked in confusion, “Aren’t you happy? This is wonderful news!”
Hearing this, Liu Rongrong could only force a slight smile. “Of course I’m happy. It’s almost noon now, so I’ll head back first.” After speaking, she quickly walked away.
Watching Liu Rongrong’s retreating figure, Su Lei frowned and said, “That educated youth’s character doesn’t seem very good. She originally had no intention of turning in that bundle, did she?”
Su Wan murmured, “Looks like this trip was specifically for the money.”
Su Lei did not hear clearly and turned his head in confusion. “What?”
“Nothing. I said we should head back too.”
Sitting on the back seat, Su Wan thought to herself that things had already deviated from the plot of the book. Liu Rongrong would definitely become suspicious. For the next period of time, she should stay careful and avoid getting too close to Liu Rongrong so she wouldn’t notice anything unusual.
Just as Su Wan expected, the furious Liu Rongrong gradually realized while walking back that this event had never happened in the book.
Could Su Wan also be someone who had transmigrated into the book? Or was this simply the butterfly effect caused by her own actions?
Then they would see whether Su Wan would suddenly die from a fever just like in the book. If she didn’t…
Over the next few days, Su Wan mostly stayed at home.
Meanwhile, Liu Rongrong still had to work in the fields during the daytime, leaving her with no chance to probe or test Su Wan.