Lin Peiru froze for a moment.
She walked up to him and shook the medicine jar in front of his eyes. “The medicine—this one. The one you left at my door.”
Huo Yunshen finally lifted his eyelids, glancing at her lightly, his expression completely unchanged.
“Don’t pin everything on me,” he said coldly.
“I don’t know anything about medicine.”
His tone was as cold as ice, as if it truly had nothing to do with him.
But inside, he was quietly uneasy.
How did this woman know it was him? He had clearly placed it at her door before dawn, carefully and quietly, and no one had seen him.
Lin Peiru was completely confused by his stubborn denial.
She blinked. “This medicine… really wasn’t you who left it?”
Huo Yunshen’s face remained expressionless. “No.”
“It has nothing to do with me.”
Now Lin Peiru was completely lost.
After thinking it through, she realized that the only people who knew about her blisters were herself—and Huo Yunqiao.
Could it be…
Just then, Huo Yunqiao walked into the kitchen carrying a basin of washed vegetables.
“Peiru sister, brother, good morning!”
With growing suspicion, Lin Peiru immediately went up to her.
“Yunqiao, was the medicine jar at my door placed by you?”
Huo Yunqiao’s eyes flickered noticeably, and she instinctively glanced at her brother.
Huo Yunshen was still lowering his head to tend the fire, as if nothing in the kitchen concerned him.
After biting her lip, Huo Yunqiao finally nodded.
“Yes… it was me.”
“I was afraid the medicine you brought from the city wouldn’t be enough. This one… this one is very good for treating broken skin.”
At that moment, the flame of hope that had just lit up in Lin Peiru’s heart was instantly doused.
So… she had been overthinking it.
A huge wave of disappointment washed over her, leaving her deflated like a punctured balloon.
She forced out a smile that looked worse than crying. “Thank you, Yunqiao. You’re really kind.”
Seeing her dejected expression, Huo Yunqiao felt guilty but couldn’t expose her brother, so she quickly changed the subject.
“Ah, don’t mention it! Let’s hurry and eat breakfast—I’m starving!”
Lin Peiru weakly responded, “Mm,” completely losing her energy.
She silently walked to the stove, picked up bowls, and began serving breakfast.
One bowl, then another.
Throughout the entire process, she didn’t look at Huo Yunshen even once.
The firelight in the stove flickered, reflecting Huo Yunshen’s expressionless face. No one knew what he was thinking.
Breakfast passed in complete silence.
Lin Peiru ate without taste, the disappointment in her chest tightening like tangled vines, making it hard for her to breathe.
After finishing, she put down her bowl and chopsticks.
“I’m done eating. Auntie, Yunqiao, and… Comrade Yunshen, I’ll go to the village head’s house now. I need to start work today.”
She nodded to them and turned to leave the kitchen.
Her steps looked slightly unsteady.
Huo Yunqiao watched her go, frowning in worry.
After Lin Peiru’s figure disappeared completely, she immediately turned to her brother.
Grabbing the sleeve of his rough cloth shirt, she whispered urgently and angrily, “Brother!”
Huo Yunshen was cleaning up the dishes. He paused but didn’t respond.
“Don’t play dumb!” Huo Yunqiao said. “That medicine—you stayed up half the night making it, under the moonlight, just for Peiru sister!”
“Why did you make me say it was mine?”
Huo Yunshen finally looked up, his face stern.
“You’re just a girl. What do you know?”
“She’s not married, I don’t have a partner. If I secretly give her something in the middle of the night, what would people think?”
His voice was low and serious.
“If this gets out, how will she ever live in this village?”
“It would ruin her reputation!”
Huo Yunqiao was stunned.
She had only thought about Peiru being happy—she hadn’t considered this at all.
Right… in this era, if a man and a woman privately exchange gifts, people would definitely assume they were in a relationship…
And if not, she might even be labeled as improper.
Her eyes lit up suddenly. “Ohhh—I get it now!”
She looked at her brother with admiration.
“Brother, you’re really a good person!”
“You’re so good to Peiru sister!”
Huo Yunshen’s ears turned slightly red at the praise. He pressed his lips together and said nothing.
But as he cleaned up, his mind kept drifting back to Lin Peiru’s face that morning.
Her bright, sparkling eyes when she first entered the kitchen.
And how they dimmed instantly when he denied everything—how lost she had looked.
Did she… really expect that the medicine was from him?
Could it be that she—
The thought barely formed before his heart jolted.
He almost wanted to slap himself.
Wake up, he told himself sharply.
What was he even thinking?
Lin Peiru was a city girl—fair-skinned, beautiful, educated, carrying an elegance he had never seen before.
And what was he?
A poor rural man with a sick mother, a younger sister, and nothing to his name except strength.
How could someone like her possibly look at him?
He shook his head hard, trying to drive the thought away.
Stop thinking nonsense.
They were not people from the same world.
Meanwhile, Lin Peiru had already arrived at the village head’s house, carrying her heavy mood with her.
The village head’s home was a spacious brick courtyard. Corn was drying in the yard, and a group of young people were gathered—some standing, some squatting. A few female comrades sat on small stools chatting and laughing.
They were all dressed in patched clothing, but there was an air of education and refinement about them that set them apart from the villagers.
These must be the other educated youths who had come down to the countryside.
Lin Peiru took a deep breath, suppressing her disappointment, and put on a bright, radiant smile again.
She stepped to the gate and called out clearly, “Excuse me, is the village head here?”
The conversation in the yard stopped instantly.
All eyes turned toward her at once.
Lin Peiru wore a clean white shirt. Though simple, it made her skin look fair and luminous, as if she were glowing.
Her face carried a smile, her eyes curved like clear springs—bright and pure.
Compared to the dusty, sun-tanned group of educated youths, she looked completely different, almost out of place.
A man who looked to be about twenty-seven or twenty-eight stood up. His face carried a knowing expression.
“You must be the new educated youth,” he said. “Uncle Li told us to wait here and get to know you.”
Then he smiled brightly.
“By the way, we’re all the ones who arrived earlier.”
Lin Peiru walked in gracefully, her smile warm and sincere.
“Hello everyone, my name is Lin Peiru. I’m the new educated youth. Please take care of me in the future.”