Wu Buqiang glared at the girl in annoyance, but the people who had thrown up in his vehicle irritated him even more.
A bunch of pampered city girls and boys—what did they think they’d be doing out here?
A bunch of troublemakers.
What could the ones who’d thrown up do? They had no choice but to accept their lot and wipe up all their vomit.
Even though their hands were freezing like popsicles, they still had to keep scrubbing.
What else could they do? They were the ones who’d thrown up, so they were in the wrong!
The ones with cloths had it easy; they could use them to clean up. Those without had to use their own clothes.
Good grief, how could they have thrown up something that smelled so awful? That stench was seriously freaking unbearable!
It was making their heads spin!
Yao Lili was sobbing uncontrollably. Hearing her made Wu Buqiang even angrier, and he couldn’t stop himself from swearing. “What the hell are you crying for? You’ve got some nerve crying here! I haven’t even cried yet! Get the hell out of here, all of you! A bunch of ungrateful little shits!”
Just then, a man in a blue padded jacket covered in patches came running over.
A pipe for smoking dry tobacco was tucked into his waistband.
“Old Wu, you’ve really had your hands full!”
Wu Buqiang gave Yao Lili and the others a cold look, then said to the man before him, “All right. Since you’re here, I’ll leave this troublesome bunch to you.”
Wu Aijun took in the bedraggled group and couldn’t help frowning.
Damn, what was that smell?
Why did it stink so badly?
What had they been doing?
Had they shit in their pants?
That couldn’t be right. They were grown adults, and even the village’s three-year-olds were potty-trained.
But the people had more sense than he did: they’d already backed away several steps.
“Welcome to Qingshan Brigade. I’m Brigade Leader Wu Aijun of Qingshan Brigade. I’ll take you to the Educated Youth Compound now. If you need anything in the future, you can come straight to me!”
The dejected educated youths had long since lost their initial enthusiasm.
After the long journey and the humiliation they’d just endured, their original determination to support the country and help build up the countryside had all but vanished.
Reeking of sour vomit, they trudged after Wu Aijun with miserable faces.
Qingshan Brigade was quite large, with one adobe house after another, though they varied in size.
There weren’t many people outside, probably because the weather was so cold.
Wu Aijun took out his tobacco pipe, packed it with dry tobacco, lit it, and took a couple of puffs.
Pointing to the houses at the foot of the mountain, he said, “The Educated Youth Compound is over there.”
The people following behind Wu Aijun were listless and down in the dumps. He didn’t like having them here, but there was nothing he could do. Who could change the country’s decision?
*Sigh!*
Just look at them—more people who wouldn’t be able to work!
Their grain was going to suffer again!
They already didn’t have enough to eat, and now they had to share with these educated youths who couldn’t lift a thing or shoulder a load. It was so frustrating!
They soon reached the Educated Youth Compound.
Wu Aijun knocked on the gate, and a man came to open it almost at once.
“Brigade leader, what brings you here?”
“Little Liu, these are the new educated youths who’ve just arrived in our brigade. See to their arrangements.”
Liu Dong looked at the men and women behind Wu Aijun. He wasn’t happy about them, but didn’t dare show it.
Composing himself, he smiled at Wu Aijun.
“Of course, Brigade Leader. You’ve worked hard.”
Wu Aijun hadn’t wanted to deal with the Educated Youth Compound in the first place. After bringing them here, he headed straight back.
Before leaving, though, he glanced at Li Wenjing twice.
In the end, he said nothing. He walked away, puffing on his tobacco pipe.
In weather like this, standing outside for too long could freeze a person to death.
After Liu Dong watched Wu Aijun leave, he wasn’t exactly warm toward the newcomers, but he still wore a smile.
“Now that we’ve all ended up here, I suppose it means we were destined to meet. From now on, we’re one family.”
“Who’s family with them?”
A woman who was under five feet three, thin and dark-complexioned, and wearing a gray, lightly padded jacket with several patches, spoke up irritably.
She glanced at them, then turned and went straight back inside.
Seeing the awkward atmosphere, Liu Dong hurried to smooth things over.
“Don’t mind her. Comrade Wang Fen hasn’t been feeling well lately, so she’s been a bit moody. Sometimes she says things that don’t sound very nice, but she’s not a bad person—she just has a bit of a temper. Don’t stand out here, everyone. Come inside; it’s freezing!”
Liu Dong went on and on, but Li Wenjing was busy wondering whether she should visit her biological parents’ home. She hadn’t heard a word he said.
Besides, after spending so long on the train, she felt filthy all over. Should she wash up before going to meet her family?
She had no idea what her biological parents’ home was like. Did they have any children? Should she prepare gifts for them?
Would they welcome her back?
Once she returned, would they treat her the way Li Jianguo and Wang Jinju treated Li Yuerong?
Lost in thought, Li Wenjing followed everyone inside. She stared at the communal kang bed and hadn’t yet taken it in when Wang Fen—the woman with the bad temper—tossed something she was holding onto it.
She continued to spew abuse. “You stink like you crawled out of a latrine, and you still have the nerve to stay here? Where do you get the cheek? If I were you, I’d buy a block of tofu and bash my brains in!”
Dong Xia glared resentfully at Li Wenjing, who was standing in the corner. She thought everything was Li Wenjing’s fault.
If it weren’t for Li Wenjing, how could she have ended up looking so disheveled and humiliated?
Li Wenjing didn’t want to deal with her. She picked up her luggage, intending to find somewhere to put it and get on with what she needed to do.
Wang Fen, who’d been cursing up a storm, stood up and blocked Li Wenjing’s way, glaring at her.
“You can stay here if you want, sure. I’m in charge of this room, and everyone who lives here has to pay me five yuan. Of course, I’m not keeping the money for myself. It’s all for fixing up this room. Pay up!”
With that, she held out her hand to Li Wenjing.
Li Wenjing looked around the room. It was only about fifteen square meters. The walls were covered with newspaper. Apart from the large kang bed, there was only a very old table in the corner for storing things.
There was nothing on the table except a few old newspapers, covered in a layer of dust. It was obvious nobody had cleaned the place in a long time.
At Wang Fen’s words, Dong Xia’s eyes darted around. Who knew what kind of scheme she was cooking up now?
Then she gritted her teeth, took five yuan from her pocket, and handed it to Wang Fen.
“Educated Youth Wang, this is my share. I hope you’ll look after me from now on!”
Wang Fen took the money and put it in her pocket, then nodded at Dong Xia in satisfaction.