Zhong Yi was already thinking that if she continued interacting with Zhou Shu, sooner or later, she would inevitably fall for him.
Or rather, with Zhou Shu’s handsome appearance, impressive family background, and such thoughtful, attentive nature, there was probably no woman who could resist his charm once she discovered all his good qualities.
And when it came down to it, she was only human, after all.
“It’s about time. I really have to go now. If I get the chance, I’ll write to you. I hope you’ll write back, too.”
Zhou Shu had actually wanted to bring up the matter of submitting a marriage application, but time was too tight. Besides, he hadn’t discussed it with his parents yet. He would make other arrangements after returning to his military unit and give the two of them some time to get to know each other better.
After speaking, he glanced at Zhong Yi once more, picked up his travel bag, and quickly walked away.
At the entrance to the village, Zhou Shouye had just arrived on his tractor. When he saw Zhou Shu approaching, he couldn’t resist teasing him.
“By my calculations, you should’ve arrived at the village entrance before me and waited here. How come you’re even later than I am?”
After all, as the village chief, he knew the village roads and distances like the back of his hand.
Zhou Shu didn’t want to invite unnecessary questions, so he simply replied, “I went to see someone.”
His nephew only returned home once every few years, so Zhou Shouye didn’t think anything of it in terms of romance. After all, Zhou Shu had only been back for two days. How could he have already found a girl he liked?
“Alright, then. Let’s get going.”
Zhou Shu climbed onto the tractor’s trailer. Accompanied by the familiar putt-putt-putt of the engine, they drove out of the village.
Zhong Yi was still standing at the doorway. Only when the wind blew against her face did the burning heat in her cheeks finally subside.
She rubbed her cheeks and turned back into the house.
Zhong Huilan had gone out to sell tofu, and Zhong Shu had gone to the Miao family’s house and hadn’t returned yet. Her younger sister, Zhong Wan, was attending high school in the county town, leaving Zhong Yi home alone.
According to her original plan, Zhong Yi had intended to take a shower and then catch up on some sleep. Zhong Huilan had thought the same, telling her daughter to stay home and get some proper rest.
Originally, Zhong Yi had planned to wait and see what Zhou Shu would do next. But now, things had suddenly changed, and Zhou Shu was returning to his military unit.
And somehow, Zhong Yi suddenly didn’t feel sleepy anymore.
She put the slip of paper with Zhou Shu’s contact information back into the drawer, grabbed the cloth bag hanging on the wall, slung it over her shoulder, locked the door, and headed out.
The Zhong family owned a bicycle and a tricycle. Zhong Shu had taken the bicycle, while the tricycle was Zhong Huilan’s tool for selling tofu.
Zhong Yi needed to go to the county town, but without a bicycle, getting there would be inconvenient.
She changed direction and headed straight for the village chief’s house.
Zhou Yue happened to be home. Although she didn’t know exactly what had happened between her cousin Zhou Shu and Zhong Yi, Zhou Shu had asked her to look out for Zhong Yi. Naturally, she was willing to do as he asked.
The reason Zhou Yue was so willing to listen to Zhou Shu was that she had always kept a secret hidden in her heart.
When she was sixteen, a severe landslide had occurred in the county area. She had been buried beneath the mud and rocks when a young People’s Liberation Army soldier discovered her. He had encouraged her to hold on while frantically digging through the earth until he managed to rescue her.
By then, she had almost given up hope. Still, she had asked him for his name. At first, he refused to tell her, but she clung to his hand and wouldn’t let go. Eventually, the soldier finally told her his name.
Unfortunately, she had been barely conscious at the time and could only remember that his surname was Lu.
Ever since then, she had repeatedly asked her cousin Zhou Shu, who served in the military, to help her find that man. Even she didn’t know exactly what she intended to do once she found him. She simply wanted to find the person who had saved her life.
That was why she and Zhou Shu had always stayed in touch.
It was also why Zhou Shu had immediately thought of asking this cousin for help.
“You want to borrow a bicycle? That’s easy. It’s right in the courtyard. Just take it!” The Zhou family was relatively well-off, and Zhou Yue wasn’t stingy. After hearing Zhong Yi explain why she needed it, she agreed without the slightest hesitation.
“Thank you!”
Zhong Yi expressed her gratitude. This really wasn’t the time to stand on ceremony, so she got on the bicycle and left immediately.
It took about forty minutes to cycle from Laotianwan Village to the county town. Ever since Liang Feng had been assigned to work at the county hospital, the original Zhong Yi had wanted to visit him there. However, Liang Feng had always refused to let her come. Since the original owner was still worried about him, she had secretly visited him a few times.
Zhong Yi remembered the route, so getting there now was fairly easy.
Meng Lina’s mother was the deputy director of the pediatrics department at the county hospital. However, Meng Lina herself was neither a doctor nor a nurse. She worked in the accounting department.
Of course, Zhong Yi knew this not because Liang Feng had told the original owner. He had never mentioned his plans to climb the social ladder by getting close to a wealthier family. Instead, Zhong Yi had learned about it from the plot of the novel she had read.
She hurried to the county hospital, parked the bicycle nearby, climbed the steps, and strode inside.
The accounting department was easy enough to find, although Zhong Yi couldn’t enter the office directly.
She asked someone to pass along a message, claiming that Meng, the accountant, had helped her in the past and that she had come specifically to express her gratitude.
Before long, a young woman walked out of the office.
She wore a pink dress and a pair of white leather shoes. Her hair had been permed into curls. Her features weren’t particularly striking, and her skin was even somewhat dark, but she knew how to dress herself and looked quite fashionable.
“You were looking for me? I don’t think I know you.” Meng Lina studied the unfamiliar young woman, unable to recall ever meeting her.
To make sure she hadn’t mistaken the person, Zhong Yi emphasized, “You’re Accountant Meng, right?”
Meng Lina’s expression remained indifferent. “Yes, that’s me. My colleague said you were looking for me. What do you want?”
Zhong Yi spoke urgently. “Good, I haven’t got the wrong person. You’re Doctor Liang’s girlfriend, right? He and I are from the same village.”
Quite a few people at the hospital already knew that Meng Lina and Liang Feng were dating. After all, they were often seen together, and they frequently went to the cafeteria to eat lunch as a couple.
It would have been difficult for anyone not to notice.
Meng Lina frowned. Although she liked Liang Feng and felt that he was quite good at pleasing her, deep down, she looked down on his humble family background.
She had even told Liang Feng that she absolutely would not allow his poor relatives from the countryside to come and take advantage of their family’s connections.
“If you’re trying to borrow money from me or use Liang Feng’s connections to get something done, you’ve come to the wrong person. You should leave.”
Her words carried the unmistakable superiority of a city dweller who looked down on people from the countryside.
Zhong Yi didn’t get angry. Seeing Meng Lina turn to leave, she hurriedly called after her.
“That’s not it! Something happened to Liang Feng. His family said that after he returned home yesterday, he went out in the dark to catch rice-field eels because he wanted to bring some back for his girlfriend to eat. But when he returned, he started talking nonsense. Nobody knows whether he was possessed by something or what happened to him. He seems to have lost his mind, and yet he keeps calling your name!”
“The village elders say he might not survive this ordeal. Since he’s so worried about you, they asked me to come to the city and bring you back to see him. Whatever happens, you should at least see him one last time.”
As for the rice-field eels, Zhong Yi wasn’t making anything up. When Liang Feng had returned to the village before, he really had gone around asking people to help him find some. Since he didn’t know how to catch them himself, he had asked the original owner to do it for him. But the original owner had been too afraid to touch those slippery creatures, so she had ended up paying for someone else to buy them instead.
Now that Zhong Yi thought about it, Liang Feng probably hadn’t wanted the eels for himself at all. Most of them had likely ended up in the stomach of this city girl, Meng Lina.
The original owner had truly been a complete sucker.
When Liang Feng returned to the countryside this time, he had indeed promised to bring some eels back for Meng Lina. She had initially been somewhat skeptical, but now she believed Zhong Yi’s story about eighty percent.
“Are you telling the truth?”
“Why would I lie to you?”
As she spoke, Zhong Yi reached out, grabbed Meng Lina, and urged her along.
“Come on, hurry!”
Meng Lina was still in a daze. By the time she came to her senses, Zhong Yi had already dragged her all the way to the hospital entrance.
Zhong Yi had ridden her bicycle there and didn’t bother looking for another one for Meng Lina. Instead, she simply told Meng Lina to sit on the back seat while she pedaled.
“But I haven’t asked for leave yet!”
“Why are you still worrying about taking leave? Your boyfriend is practically on his deathbed!”
Without caring whether Meng Lina agreed or not, Zhong Yi climbed onto the bicycle, started pedaling furiously, and sped off.