“Xiao Ning, why bother getting angry with them?” Hua Zi sighed.
After getting along yesterday, and with his father also saying that Ning Yuan was a good girl who knew how to repay kindness, he was starting to see her as a younger sister and tried to persuade her.
But Ning Yuan just smiled, unconcerned, and picked up the carrying pole again. “It’s fine, Hua Zi Ge. I can’t be bothered to get entangled with them.”
These people haggled over a few work points day in and day out, but the country would be opening up completely soon.
As long as you were clever and hardworking, you wouldn’t starve to death!
Not mixing with Tang Zhenzhen’s little clique, she was actually happy to have less grief. At least she didn’t have to constantly be on guard against that woman’s malicious schemes.
Hua Zi arranged for Ning Yuan to work with the villagers. Remembering his father’s instructions, he privately asked the villagers he was close with to look after Ning Yuan a little more.
Most of the villagers, seeing that Ning Yuan had actually married a Reform Through Labor Element, felt that this Little Educated Youth was both stupid and pitiful, so they were willing to watch over her a bit more.
Ning Yuan actually found it much more comfortable than working in the Educated Youth Team. Although her body was tired, her mind was at ease.
When they finished work for the day, Hua Zi’s wife, Man Hua, stuffed a few large steamed buns and some freshly pickled sour long beans into her hands, and also picked two handfuls of tender green vegetables for her.
It was a small gift in return for the bottle of liquor and the sugar.
Ning Yuan was quite happy. After a tiring day in the fields, she was too lazy to go catch fish. She simply stir-fried the vegetables and sour long beans and made do with the steamed buns and sweet potato congee for dinner.
Rong Zhaonan, as usual, was responsible for washing the dishes, tidying up, and cleaning. He didn’t complain about the lack of meat or fish in the meal and ate quietly.
That night, Ning Yuan washed up and continued to read her book as usual, waiting for Rong Zhaonan to go to sleep first before she went to bed last.
But when it started to rain in the middle of the night, Ning Yuan groggily sat up, only to find… she was alone in the bed again.
Her heart sank. She stared at the bed in a daze. Rong Zhaonan had vanished without a sound again.
There were still no traces of him leaving. Ning Yuan lay in bed for a long time, determined to find out what on earth Rong Zhaonan was up to.
After all, her housemate being so mysterious and sneaky really made her uneasy.
So, the next evening before bed, she deliberately ate only a little bit of rice and then chugged a large glass of water before sleeping.
As expected, she couldn’t sleep soundly like this. She was drowsy for the first half of the night, her stomach growling.
Until…
A cool breeze suddenly blew across her face.
Ning Yuan jolted, instantly wide awake.
She whipped her head around and, sure enough, saw that the spot beside her was empty. But in the moonlight, she saw the window next to her quietly closing.
The shadow of a tall figure was cast on the window paper. Who could it be but Rong Zhaonan!
Ning Yuan held her breath nervously, waiting to see him close the window. He then pulled a long, thin iron wire from the window crack, and the window latch clicked shut from the inside.
So, Rong Zhaonan didn’t use the door; he used the window, and he could even make it look like the window was closed from the inside.
A chill ran down Ning Yuan’s spine. If this man were a thief or an assassin, he wouldn’t even leave a clue. No one would ever be able to catch him, right?
She quietly peeked through the window crack to see the direction Rong Zhaonan had gone. She quickly got up, dressed, locked the door, and followed him out.
What on earth was this man doing, sneaking out in the middle of the night every day? He could at least give her a heads-up!
Those Red Armbands and the people who were out to get him were watching him so closely. What if they conducted a surprise check in the middle of the night? How would she explain it?
She, his wife-in-name, would be dragged down with him. After so many days of anxiety, Ning Yuan couldn’t stand it anymore.
She decided to follow him and investigate for herself.
Fortunately, Rong Zhaonan didn’t disappear at once.
She knew Rong Zhaonan was a very vigilant person, so she didn’t dare to follow too closely, only trailing the tall, silent figure from a distance.
But he was agile, moving through the mountain forest paths as if they were empty, and she had to run desperately just to barely keep from losing him.
After following for about an hour, Rong Zhaonan suddenly stopped and shot a cold glance in her direction.
Ning Yuan jolted in fright and quickly ducked down.
When she got up again, she found—damn it, he was gone?!
Ning Yuan was stunned. She would never dare to go up the mountain alone at night. What was she supposed to do now?
It was eerily quiet all around. Under the hazy moonlight, the forest was cold, dark, and gloomy, with only the chirping of insects, the calls of night birds, and the strange cries of some unknown beasts.
Panic instantly welged up in her heart. She looked left and right but saw no sign of Rong Zhaonan.
She had lost him!
Only then did Ning Yuan begin to realize what a foolish thing she had done—she, an Educated Youth who had never been up the mountain at night, had tailed someone and gotten herself lost in Da Qingshan at night!
She really hadn’t thought things through!
Fear made her call out in a low voice, “Rong Zhaonan… Rong Zhaonan…”
But only the silent night and the eerie howls of some unknown wild animal answered her.
No, she had to get down the mountain! This was the seventies; the ecosystem was thriving. She remembered the village elders saying that besides snakes, Da Qingshan also had bears, jackals, and even wolves!
Ning Yuan frantically turned around and started heading back.
But after walking for more than ten minutes, she realized she seemed to be lost!
Ning Yuan’s eyes turned red with panic. She pinched her thigh hard, forcing herself to calm down.
No, I can’t cry, I can’t panic!
Panicking and running around blindly would make it easy to get injured and lose stamina. If I fall into a pit or off a cliff, or startle a wild animal, it’s over!
She took a few deep breaths, trying hard to recall how she used to get down the mountain when she came up to cut firewood during the day, and where the village was located in the mountains, as she slowly felt her way down.
The sky was obscured by the forest canopy, so she couldn’t see the Big Dipper, but the side of the tree trunks with more moss was north.
The village was to the south of Da Qingshan.
Using the little knowledge she had about telling direction, Ning Yuan felt the tree trunks and picked up a branch to use as a walking stick.
She stumbled cautiously forward, praying silently that she wouldn’t encounter any snakes or wild beasts.
After walking for nearly half an hour, she still hadn’t seen a single light from the village.
Ning Yuan couldn’t help it anymore. Her eyes reddened, and she wiped away her tears, gripping the branch tightly as she continued to slowly feel her way forward.
She had just been reborn with great difficulty; she absolutely could not lose her life here! She had to find the place where the villagers often went to cut firewood!
But this time, after only a few steps, she suddenly felt her stick touch something soft.
Then, that thing instantly let out a strange squeal: “Oink oink…”
Immediately after, a huge black shadow suddenly stood up and made a “huffing” sound at her.
By the moonlight, Ning Yuan’s eyes widened. She saw clearly that what was baring its teeth at her not far away was a—wild boar with ferocious tusks!
The wild boar looked enormous, almost two to three hundred catties, and was angrily baring its teeth and snorting at her.
And the soft thing her stick had accidentally touched just now was a few little piglets!
Damn it! Ning Yuan’s pupils contracted.
Even black bears weren’t as aggressive and ferocious as wild boars, which were also incredibly strong. If it rammed her or bit her, her bones would break, and she would be dead!
The key was that there wasn’t just one wild boar. This was a whole sounder, with four or five other large boars with vicious glints in their eyes and sharp tusks!
Ning Yuan’s legs went weak, and she slowly backed away.
Seeing the lead boar’s eyes, glowing green in the night, staring at her as it lowered its head, she instinctively knew it was about to charge!
The moment the wild boar charged violently towards her, Ning Yuan screamed, turned, and ran desperately up the mountain!
At least she remembered that when a wild boar is chasing you, you can’t run downhill. You can’t outrun it, and you’re more likely to panic, lose your footing, and fall to your death!
Ning Yuan listened to the howls of the beasts and the sound of trees being snapped behind her as she ran for her life.
The night wind whistled past her ears. She ran so hard her heart felt like it was about to leap out of her chest, and her lungs ached.
Adrenaline pumped through her veins, and she suddenly remembered—right, climb a tree! She had to climb a big tree that the wild boar couldn’t knock down!
Ning Yuan dashed towards a large tree with a thick trunk. Without daring to look back, she scrambled up with her hands and feet.
The moment she grabbed the lowest branch and pulled herself up, tucking in her feet, the tree trunk shook violently—
A wild boar had rammed into it with all its might.
“Ah—!” She scrambled higher, curling her body up with all her strength.
The enraged beasts continued to ram the tree frantically. Ning Yuan was almost shaken off; she clung to the trunk for dear life with all her might.
She refused to die here!
The next moment—
“Swoosh! Swoosh! Swoosh!” With a few sharp sounds, something came whistling through the air.
Ning Yuan suddenly felt the force of the boars hitting the tree lessen. She subconsciously looked down and saw several arrows deeply embedded in the backs of the large boars.
The thick smell of blood filled the air.
The injured beasts grew even more furious. They lowered their heads, aimed their sharp tusks at the tall figure who had shot the arrows, and charged like launched cannonballs.
The tall, agile black figure did not dodge. He crouched, deftly drew his bow, then with a flip of his hands, produced two knives.
With a flash of the blades, he charged into the pack of beasts like a sharp arrow.
The shadow’s hands rose and fell coolly with the knives, a dance of flashing blades, blood, and the roars of wild beasts.