Yun Yixuan was still completely immersed in her joy when the sound of footsteps suddenly came from outside the educated youth compound. The footsteps grew closer, clearly indicating that someone was about to enter the room.
Her heart skipped a beat.
In an instant, a bag of brown sugar, a bag of white sugar, and a bag of fruit candy appeared in her hands, so quickly that it seemed like magic.
Immediately afterward, she silently commanded, “Leave the space.”
In the blink of an eye, she was standing safely inside the room.
Almost at the same moment, Li Meiling pushed open the door and walked in. Seeing Yun Yixuan inside, she asked, “Yixuan, when are we going to the brigade captain’s house?”
“Let’s go now. I came back to get a few things.”
As Yun Yixuan spoke, she raised the bags in her hands. Then she moved closer to Li Meiling and lowered her voice mysteriously.
“I brought some gifts. It’ll be easier to ask the brigade captain for a favor if we don’t go empty-handed.”
Li Meiling stared in surprise at the bulging bags in Yun Yixuan’s hands.
“That’s so much. It must have cost quite a bit, right?”
After saying that, she quickly walked over to her small cabinet, pulled a key from her pocket, and unlocked it. She carefully took out a package of pastries she had bought last time and said somewhat awkwardly, “This is all I have.”
Yun Yixuan glanced between the things in her hands and the pastries Li Meiling was holding. After thinking for a moment, she turned around and placed the white sugar inside her cabinet.
“Let’s just bring these. We’ll count them as gifts from both of us.”
Li Meiling looked at the brown sugar and fruit candy Yun Yixuan was still holding, then lowered her gaze to the pastries in her own hands.
Her cheeks reddened slightly as she said apologetically, “I still feel like I’m taking advantage of you.”
Yun Yixuan waved her hand dismissively.
“We’re going to be living together from now on. Sometimes you’ll contribute more, and sometimes I will. If we insist on calculating every little thing between us, it’ll be exhausting, and we’ll never be able to keep track of everything anyway.”
She paused before adding with a smile, “If you really feel bad about it, then whoever contributes less can just do a little more work. How about that?”
A bright smile immediately appeared on Li Meiling’s face, and she nodded vigorously.
Yun Yixuan was right.
If two people were going to live together but constantly worried about who contributed more or less, life would become exhausting.
Li Meiling silently decided that she would simply do more of the household chores in the future.
With that settled, the two quietly slipped out of the educated youth compound.
Moonlight spilled across the road like water as they followed the path toward the brigade captain’s house on the eastern side of the village.
Before long, they arrived at his home.
Yun Yixuan stepped forward and gently knocked on the old wooden gate.
“Uncle Captain, are you home?”
Not long afterward, they heard movement from inside the courtyard, followed by a woman’s voice.
“Who’s there?”
Yun Yixuan immediately recognized the voice as the brigade captain’s wife.
“Auntie, it’s us. We’re the educated youths Yun Yixuan and Li Meiling.”
As soon as she finished speaking, the gate opened.
Seeing the two young female educated youths standing outside, the captain’s wife immediately greeted them with a warm smile.
“Come in quickly. It’s freezing outside this late at night. Your Uncle Captain is home.”
The captain’s wife was a typical middle-aged rural woman with a kind face and an ever-present smile that made people instinctively feel comfortable around her.
She particularly liked the young female educated youths who had come from the cities. In her eyes, they were pretty and well-educated, though when it came to farm work, they weren’t nearly as capable or efficient as the local village girls.
Under her guidance, Yun Yixuan and Li Meiling entered the inner room.
The brigade captain was sitting there, smoking his pipe one puff after another. His brows were tightly furrowed, and he appeared to be deep in thought.
“Old man, these two educated youth comrades are here to see you.”
His wife’s voice broke the silence.
Only then did the brigade captain slowly raise his head.
His name was Wei Jianguo.
His weathered face bore deep wrinkles carved by years of hardship. He was a military veteran who had been forced to leave the army after suffering an injury to his arm. Unable to continue serving, he had returned to his village and later became the brigade captain.
There was an unmistakable air of righteousness and integrity about him that naturally inspired respect. After all, people instinctively held a certain admiration and sense of closeness toward soldiers.
Yun Yixuan gave him a sweet smile.
“Uncle Captain, I’m Yun Yixuan, and this is Li Meiling. We’re both educated youths.”
“Oh, it’s you two. Come in and sit down. Of course I remember you. You’re both educated youths from the capital.”
Wei Jianguo smiled kindly and warmly invited them to sit.
Yun Yixuan and Li Meiling sat down beside the kang bed.
Taking the opportunity, Yun Yixuan handed the two bags of gifts to the captain’s wife.
“Auntie, this is just a small gift from Meiling and me. We came to visit you and Uncle.”
The captain’s wife immediately waved her hands.
“You child! You didn’t need to bring anything just to visit us. Everyone is struggling to get enough food these days.”
As she spoke, she firmly tried to push the gifts back into Yun Yixuan’s hands.
“Auntie, please accept them. Our families sent these to us, so we didn’t spend much money on them. It’s only a small gesture. Besides, the candy is for the children.”
Yun Yixuan spoke with complete sincerity.
Hearing that the candy was meant for the children, the woman’s eyes immediately reddened.
She had three sons and one daughter.
Her daughter had married into a neighboring village and was living fairly well. Her eldest son had two sons and a daughter, while her second son had two sons. Her youngest son was serving in the army in Sichuan Province and had yet to marry.
Altogether, there were five grandchildren in the family.
It had indeed been a long time since any of them had tasted candy. If the children saw these sweets, they would surely be overjoyed.
Wei Jianguo looked seriously at Yun Yixuan and Li Meiling.
“If you two need something, just tell me directly. But I’ll make one thing clear beforehand. If you’re asking me to do anything illegal or against the rules, I absolutely won’t do it. You should take these things back.”
“Oh, Uncle, you’ve misunderstood us,” Yun Yixuan quickly replied with a smile. “We’re not that kind of people. We only came to ask whether there are any vacant houses in the village. The two of us would like to move out and live on our own.”
Hearing this, Wei Jianguo finally relaxed.
“You two brought all these things over just for something like that? You could’ve simply asked me, and I would’ve helped you find out.”
He paused for a moment before asking, “What kind of house are you looking for?”
“We don’t have many requirements. We’d just like a private courtyard, preferably with somewhere we can cook our own meals,” Yun Yixuan replied cheerfully.
Nightfall descended over the small village like a thin veil.
Wei Jianguo sat beside the kang and took his pipe from his pocket. He slowly lit it, inhaled deeply, and exhaled a cloud of smoke that drifted lazily beneath the dim yellow light.
“A private courtyard won’t be easy to find. No one in the village is particularly well-off. Finding a place that meets both of your requirements will be difficult.”
At that moment, his wife, who had been carefully sorting mushrooms nearby, suddenly looked up.
Her eyes lit up as though she had just remembered something.
“What about our third son’s house?”
Her face brightened with excitement.
“It’s been more than a year since the house was built. He’s so busy serving in the army that he hasn’t even gotten married, and he doesn’t have a girlfriend either. Why don’t you two take a look? It’s right next door.”
She continued enthusiastically, “Even if he suddenly finds someone someday, it’ll still take time for them to date, discuss marriage, and actually hold the wedding. That should give you two plenty of time to find somewhere else before he ever needs the house back.”