Cheng Ning was usually composed, so it was the first time her roommates had seen her react so strongly.
Min Ran patted her back, but Cheng Ning waved her hand and said, “Don’t talk nonsense. If he hears, he’ll be furious. Didn’t you see the way he glared at me earlier? He thinks I’m troublesome. But though he looks fierce, he’s actually righteous and has a strong sense of responsibility. His family asked him to look after me, so he can’t just ignore me. That’s all there is to it.”
If not for that overwhelming sense of duty, he wouldn’t have gone down to the countryside with her. If not for that overwhelming sense of duty, he wouldn’t have been struck by floodwaters and rocks during the mountain torrent, choosing to save others instead of himself, and ending up with a crippled arm.
“So that’s how it is.” Wang Xiaojuan rubbed her chin and laughed. “Still, I wonder what kind of girl he’d ever like. You don’t know—when Han Dongyuan first arrived, plenty of female educated youths tried to get close to him. But within three days, they all ran off scared. Truly, his face is both his blessing and his curse—handsome, but too cold.”
Cheng Ning: “……”
Thinking of Han Dongyuan’s lonely life in her previous lifetime, she didn’t want to linger on the topic. She quickly changed the subject.
She asked, “That Zhou Xiong—what exactly did he do? Everyone seems both wary and disgusted by him.”
“That man,” Wang Xiaojuan curled her lip in disdain, “is always running to Widow Miao’s house, and he loves flirting with other girls too. Years ago, before any educated youths came here, he seduced a village girl who had lost her parents and was raised by her uncle. She wanted to marry him wholeheartedly. But when the educated youths arrived, he set his sights on a new girl. He bribed the uncle to marry off that orphan girl deep into the mountains, then spent all his time hovering around the newcomer, helping her with chores, showering her with attention.”
“At first, the villagers disliked him but also resented the girl, so no one warned her about his character. By the time she realized, it was too late… She couldn’t bear the humiliation and tried to hang herself. Though she was saved, her mind broke. Her parents took her back to the city. And once she was gone, Zhou Xiong immediately started pestering other pretty female educated youths—more than one, in fact…”
Her voice grew sharp with anger. “Men like him deserve a beating!”
Cheng Ning shivered, goosebumps rising all over. She asked, “And Widow Miao—what kind of person is she? Is she really involved with him? Since when?”
“Widow Miao?” This time Xu Dongmei spoke up. She was among the earliest batch of educated youths, arriving with the girl who later returned to the city due to her mental state. She explained, “Her husband died years ago, falling down a slope while hunting with the villagers in the snow. He left behind a blind mother, a one-year-old son, and Widow Miao herself, who was pregnant again. She’s quite good-looking, and people said she could remarry with her children. But she refused to abandon her mother-in-law. So she endured hardship with the villagers’ help. But everyone here is poor—barely able to feed themselves—how much could they really give? Zhou Xiong often went to her house, helping with chores, bringing them things… sigh…”
Xu Dongmei’s expression dimmed, her voice dropping to a whisper.
“To stay alive… it’s not easy, most of the time.” She had come down to the countryside in ’69. By now, six years had passed, and she knew the villagers well.
Widow Miao was diligent. Though her household had an elderly mother-in-law above and two young children below, no matter how difficult things became, she cared for her mother-in-law meticulously and kept her children neat and clean. Even if their clothes were patched all over, they were always tidy and well-fitted. She spoke gently and politely to everyone, her emotions steady. The educated youths all liked her. Sometimes, when they wanted to swap out a straw hat or something similar, they would help her, and they often gave her old clothes they no longer needed. She would take those apart and sew new clothes for her children. Perhaps because of her family’s situation, the brigade showed Zhou Xiong a bit more tolerance. But if he had simply married Widow Miao and lived a proper life, that would have been one thing. Instead, he kept flirting and fooling around restlessly. So while people were lenient toward him, they also grew increasingly disgusted.
“Anyway, keep your distance from him. He has his tricks—can get hold of things under the table. Don’t think it’s convenient to trade with him. Once you’re entangled, you’ll only disgust yourself.”
Cheng Ning gave a soft “mm.”
Zhou Xiong? Could this be the man Han Dongyuan killed in her previous life? She recalled Han Dongyuan’s warning: “If you dare show yourself in front of her, I’ll take your life.” Her brows furrowed. No, she had to talk to him later, tell him not to spout such ominous words. Too unlucky.
There were many educated youths, and they didn’t all cook together. Most handed over their grain and ration tickets to the brigade canteen and ate there. The canteen itself had gradually developed after the educated youths arrived.
That evening, after dinner in the canteen, Cheng Ning saw Han Dongyuan and Liao Sheng leaving. She told her roommates and hurried after them.
“Brother Dongyuan,” she called.
Not wanting outsiders to know about their complicated family situation, she had changed her form of address—calling him “Brother Dongyuan” instead of “Third Brother.”
Han Dongyuan kept walking as if he hadn’t heard. It was Liao Sheng who tugged at him, unwilling to watch him ignore her.
Catching up, Cheng Ning didn’t mind Han Dongyuan’s coldness. She smiled at Liao Sheng, then toned down her smile and said to Han Dongyuan: “Brother Dongyuan, the job you gave me—I passed it on to someone else. To thank me, that person gave me some money, ration tickets, meat tickets, and cloth coupons. When you’re free, I’ll bring them to you.”
“No need.” Han Dongyuan didn’t even lift his brows, just moved to walk away.
Cheng Ning quickly added, “And my family sent me with some food for you.”
“Keep it for yourself.” This time he walked off without pause.
Liao Sheng glanced at Han Dongyuan’s retreating back, then at Cheng Ning. But now he understood something. Han Dongyuan was annoyed by this “tagalong sister.” Yet his treatment of her wasn’t truly harsh.
If you really disliked someone, would you hand over money, ration tickets, meat coupons, cloth coupons, and food? And when Zhou Xiong tried to chat her up, hadn’t Han Dongyuan bristled protectively? Even when Liao Sheng gave her Han Dongyuan’s quilt and gloves, Han Dongyuan looked angry—but he didn’t say a word to stop it. Would he have tolerated that with any other girl? You wouldn’t see it without living down here.
As Han Dongyuan walked farther away, Liao Sheng quickly told Cheng Ning, “Ning Ning, if Dongyuan says keep it, then keep it. If anything comes up, just come find us.”
He knew Han Dongyuan disliked her, but he also knew Han Dongyuan would never abandon her. Even his way of addressing her had changed—now calling her “Ning Ning.”
Cheng Ning shivered inexplicably.
Liao Sheng finished speaking and ran after Han Dongyuan. Cheng Ning stood there, staring blankly at their departing figures.
“Chasing after him all the way here? But it looks like he doesn’t care much for you.”
Cheng Ning was startled when she suddenly heard a voice behind her.
Turning around, she saw three girls approaching—Zhao Zhi and her two roommates, Liu Lina and Jiang Shanshan, from another female educated youth dormitory.
It was Jiang Shanshan who had spoken.
After being trapped in darkness for decades, Cheng Ning felt that simply being alive was already a blessing. Doing what she wanted and what she ought to do mattered far more than reputation. She didn’t care much about gossip. Unlike ordinary young girls, she wasn’t thin-skinned, nor easily swayed by others’ moods. She looked at Jiang Shanshan and smiled: “What, am I in your way?”
She didn’t explain further. Because she worried Han Dongyuan might mind, she had never told the others about her exact relationship with him.
Even if she did explain, it wouldn’t help—since she had lived with her aunt in the Han household, her ties to Han Dongyuan were even harder to clarify.
Jiang Shanshan’s face flushed. She had once harbored thoughts about Han Dongyuan, but those had faded months ago. She simply looked down on Cheng Ning.
Liu Lina was kinder. She gave Cheng Ning a friendly smile and tugged lightly at Jiang Shanshan’s sleeve.
Jiang Shanshan snorted irritably and strode forward. As she passed Cheng Ning, she muttered: “Since you grew up in the same compound, and he never liked you all those years, chasing him here won’t change a thing—he still won’t like you.”
Cheng Ning: “……” She recalled a line from a TV drama she had watched in her previous life at the Han residence. After a pause, she said: “Jealousy really makes people look ugly.”
The original line was “Jealousy makes one ugly,” but she had put it in plainer words.
Jiang Shanshan: “……”
Liu Lina & Zhao Zhi: “……”
Jiang Shanshan’s steps faltered. She spun around, nearly jumping in outrage: “You—you, what did you say?!”
Cheng Ning shrugged: “Want me to repeat it? Don’t you have a mirror? Take a look at yourself right now and you’ll see.”
Jiang Shanshan was so furious her hair seemed to bristle. She looked ready to lunge and strike.
But just then, Cheng Ning’s roommates arrived. Min Ran immediately shielded Cheng Ning, while Wang Xiaojuan planted her hands on her hips and shouted at Jiang Shanshan: “What, did our Cheng Ning hit the nail on the head and now you’re mad out of shame? You think you can talk about others every day but no one’s allowed to talk back? Don’t think you can bully people just because you’ve got a loud voice and a sturdy build!”
Jiang Shanshan: “……” She was nearly driven mad with anger!
Liu Lina quickly grabbed her arm and urged, “Shanshan, what are you doing? If you start a fight, then you can forget about everything else.”
Liu Lina and Jiang Shanshan had grown up in the same crowded courtyard. Liu Lina was a few years older, like an elder sister from the neighborhood. So despite Jiang Shanshan’s bad temper, she had always looked after her. She knew exactly why Jiang Shanshan disliked Cheng Ning.
They had all come down to the countryside more than two years ago.
Jiang Shanshan’s pride had its reasons: she was a high school graduate, beautiful, and skilled at playing the accordion. But in this remote mountain village, day after day of backbreaking labor under the sun quickly wore down anyone’s pride. Several villagers had shown interest in her. Even Zhou Xiong had pestered her for quite some time. She rejected them all, but there weren’t any better options. Then Han Dongyuan appeared. She might not have truly liked him, but Han Dongyuan—how to put it—his temper was indeed terrible, but his looks were undeniably striking, and his presence carried a kind of magnetic force. No matter how harsh the environment, with him around, it somehow felt less unbearable.
He was too capable, too intelligent. But when someone like him appeared, only to reject her, the feeling was like clutching a piece of driftwood in desperation—only to be shoved off it again.
She gave up and yielded to reality. And now, Cheng Ning had suddenly appeared. Stirring up emotions she couldn’t quite name.
Meanwhile, the brigade had been planning to open a primary school, which would require teachers. The village only had a few people with junior high education, no high school graduates. So the choice would likely fall among the educated youths. There weren’t many high schoolers among them, and Han Dongyuan—well connected with the brigade—had already said he wouldn’t be a teacher. Jiang Shanshan believed she had the strength to compete if there was an exam. Of course, maybe strength wasn’t the only factor. So these days, she had been tightly wound, under great pressure. Especially after receiving a letter from home: her mother had given up her job to her younger brother, who was about to reach the age for a countryside assignment. That nearly cut off her path back to the city.
And at this critical moment, Cheng Ning appeared. From the same compound as Liao Sheng and Han Dongyuan, only here for a few days, yet already close with the brigade. Han Dongyuan had even kicked Zhou Xiong for her. How many times had Zhou Xiong tried to chat her up? Did Han Dongyuan ever intervene then?
Zhao Zhi had said Cheng Ning was two-faced—one way in front, another behind—showing different faces to different people. That was exactly the kind of person Jiang Shanshan despised. She was the type who couldn’t swallow her anger. So, seeing Cheng Ning chase after Han Dongyuan to talk, with all her pent-up pressure and dislike, she couldn’t help but blurt out a jab. But instead of wounding Cheng Ning, she herself was the one wounded.
Pulled back by Liu Lina, she heard her whisper again, “If you fight, then you can forget about everything.”
And that wasn’t all. From the crowd that had unknowingly gathered around, a crisp voice with a village accent rang out: “What are you all arguing about? Does Comrade Han really dislike Comrade Cheng? He gave her quilts and bedding, gloves, and even fought for her. I heard money, ration tickets, and food are all managed by Comrade Cheng. Is that what you call ‘disliking’? Comrade Jiang, has anyone ever ‘disliked’ you like that?”
Everyone: “……”