At the table, only Shen Jingyao was eating with full concentration. Mmm, the braised pork was truly fragrant.
She never used to like braised pork before, but people in this era lacked oily foods, so just seeing meat made her salivate uncontrollably.
After the meal, Xu Zhiyi took the initiative to clean up the dishes and utensils, with Shen Jingyao following behind to help her.
Shen’s father and Shen Jingzhou tidied up the living room table, while Mother Shen, having worked hard cooking, sat aside to rest.
Once everything was put in order, the whole family sat neatly in the living room, clearly indicating there was something to discuss.
Shen’s father took sip after sip of tea from his cup, rehearsing his words over and over in his mind, yet he couldn’t bring himself to speak.
Shen Jingyao, who had been waiting for him to start, felt somewhat exasperated, but she understood his internal struggle.
Forget it, she would speak first. “Dad, I’ve decided to go to the countryside.” She dropped a bombshell on them.
“What?” Mother Shen, Shen Jingzhou, and Xu Zhiyi all looked at her in shock.
Only Shen’s father maintained a calm expression. “Yao Yao, can you tell us why?”
Of course, Shen Jingyao couldn’t say she was going to find A Yan. “Dad, I know it’s hard to find work in the city now, and no one is willing to sell their positions. Besides, I don’t want to get married, so I’ve chosen to go to the countryside.”
After saying this, she smiled playfully. “I believe you and Mom will definitely prepare everything for me. I’ll take good care of myself once I’m in the countryside.”
“Moreover, going to the countryside to receive education from the poor and lower-middle peasants is an honorable thing.”
She certainly wouldn’t suffer in the countryside—with A Yan there and her Space, she would live quite comfortably.
“Ah,” Shen’s father sighed. It was his incompetence; he had sought help today too, but there was no room for reversal in this matter.
His daughter being so understanding and considerate made his heart ache deeply.
“Alright, then go to the countryside. Don’t worry, we’ll prepare all the supplies you need for the countryside.”
“But…” Mother Shen still wanted to say something, but when she saw Shen’s father’s look, she knew the matter was settled.
Shen Jingzhou and Xu Zhiyi exchanged glances, filled with helplessness.
After washing up outside, Shen Jingyao returned to her room and closed the door.
She slipped into the house inside her Space. Having sweated profusely from her fever in the morning, she felt sticky and uncomfortable.
She first went to the master bedroom to take a shower and dried her hair before coming out.
Sitting at the desk, she flipped through the original owner’s books.
She tested it out: mentally commanding the book to be stored, she waved her hand, and the book disappeared, reappearing in the study of the Large Flat.
With another wave of her hand, the book returned exactly as it was.
Her body still tired easily. Yawning, she went to bed and fell asleep.
She dreamed again. In the dream, A Yan was wearing clothes characteristic of this era, standing on a field ridge and smiling at her.
“Yao Yao, I’m waiting for you.”
Meanwhile, thousands of miles away in Liaoning Province, a man sleeping on a kang woke up startled from his dream.
“Yao Yao!” Zhou Muyan sat up, wiping the sweat from his face, his expression still brimming with ecstasy.
Five years—she had never once appeared in his dreams.
Now he had finally dreamed of Yao Yao again. She was wearing a Bulaji and said she was coming to find him.
Zhou Muyan pressed a hand to his pounding heart, feeling a premonition deep inside: he would see Yao Yao very soon.
The next day, since the decision to go to the countryside had been made, Mother Shen took Shen Jingyao to the Subdistrict Office to register.
“Those who voluntarily choose to go to the countryside have the right to prioritize their choice of rural destination,” the staff member said, offering them some consolation.
Mother Shen looked over the available locations, thinking she could place Yao Yao in the countryside near Su City so they could look after her regularly.
However, the available options were either the remote Northwest or the three Northeastern provinces—neither of which were ideal places.
The Northwest had too much wind and sand; it wouldn’t suit Yao Yao, a young girl. Although the Northeast was rich in grain and resources, it was far too cold.
As Shen Jingyao looked at these options, a voice inside her told her to choose Liaoning Province—A Yan was there.
In the end, she listened to that inner voice and chose to go to Liaoning.
Mother Shen observed that, for now, Liaoning was the best among the choices, at least it wasn’t as cold as Jilin or Heilongjiang.
After registering, they incidentally received a fifty-yuan subsidy for going to the countryside.
That evening, in the Shen family living room.
Shen’s father and the others all knew that Shen Jingyao was going to the countryside in Liaoning Province, with only five days left before departure.
Shen’s father instructed Mother Shen to make sure their daughter had everything she needed prepared.
Mother Shen nodded; of course she knew.
She already felt guilty about her daughter going to such a distant place, so she was determined to get everything ready for her.
The next day, since Shen Jingyao had just recovered from an illness, Mother Shen let her rest at home.
She went alone to the Department Store to purchase the supplies needed for her daughter’s rural life.
Mother Shen had previously worked at the Department Store and maintained contact with some old colleagues.
Among them, Wu Fengxia from the fabric counter was the one she interacted with the most, for two reasons.
First, they had always gotten along well, and second, Wu Fengxia’s husband happened to be a worker at the Steel Factory, working under Shen Guorong.
So, every time Mother Shen visited the Department Store, Wu Fengxia greeted her with great enthusiasm.
As soon as Wu Fengxia saw Mother Shen approaching, she hurried out from behind the counter to meet her. “Yunxiu, what brings you here today?”
Mother Shen held her hand and said, “It’s because my Yao Yao is going to the countryside. I wanted to come and get some things for her.”
Wu Fengxia had heard about this from her husband and felt sorry for Shen Jingyao as well.
Shen Jingyao was pretty, quiet, and very likable.
“I heard from my Old Li. With the current policy, there’s no way around it. We parents can only do our best to prepare for her.”
Wu Fengxia’s eldest son had also gone to the countryside, so she understood how Mother Shen felt.
“Yes,” Mother Shen replied, having come to terms with the situation over the past couple of days.
Wu Fengxia glanced around and whispered, “Yunxiu, we just got a batch of flawed fabric that doesn’t require ration tickets. Are you interested?”
“Really?” Mother Shen was delighted. Of course she was interested—what a stroke of luck!
She had brought all the fabric tickets the family had saved, but if she could get fabric without using tickets, she had to take advantage of it.
“Really, wait for me a moment. I’ll take you there.”
Wu Fengxia went to the counter to inform her colleague, then took Mother Shen to the warehouse.
Mother Shen reached out and touched the white fabric with red dots. This would be perfect for making blouses for her daughter and daughter-in-law; the color suited young people.
In the end, Mother Shen selected a piece of the white fabric with red dots and a piece of blue coarse cloth.
She also went back to the counter and bought a piece of plaid woolen fabric to make a coat for her daughter.
After buying the fabric, she went to other counters to purchase soap, laundry detergent, toothpaste, toothbrush, enamel mug, lunch box, snow cream, shoes, socks, milk candies, fruit candies, malt extract, biscuits, and more.
In the end, she returned home only after spending nearly all the money and ration coupons she had.