“Zhu Lili is always trying to take advantage of others. Could it be that Wei Hongmin gave her some kind of benefit?” Wan Lian, another female educated youth, couldn’t help but speak loudly.
She had long disliked Zhu Lili’s behavior, and now that the opportunity had presented itself, she poured out all the resentment she had been holding back.
As soon as those words left her mouth, the surrounding educated youths began whispering among themselves again. The looks they gave Zhu Lili were now filled with even more contempt.
Zhu Lili knew she had completely humiliated herself today. Her reputation was ruined.
Angry and anxious, she instantly lost all reason. Consumed by rage, she charged straight at Yun Yixuan while cursing furiously.
“How dare you spout such nonsense! I’ll tear that mouth of yours apart today!”
With her hands raised like claws, she looked like a crazed wildcat.
Yun Yixuan reacted quickly and nimbly dodged to the side, not forgetting to pull Li Meiling out of the way as well.
Unexpectedly, Zhu Lili’s foot caught hard against a fire poker lying in her path.
She pitched forward uncontrollably.
Smack!
Her face met the ground with a loud thud, leaving her sprawled flat in an embarrassing fall.
“Ooh, that must really hurt.”
Yun Yixuan pursed her lips and pretended to touch her own face sympathetically. Her exaggerated expression and tone made it obvious that she was deliberately provoking Zhu Lili.
“Pfft!”
Li Meiling burst out laughing.
Her crisp laughter shattered the tense atmosphere, and the other educated youths could no longer hold themselves back. Some covered their mouths while others doubled over with laughter.
This time, Zhu Lili had truly lost every last shred of dignity.
Sitting on the ground, she suddenly burst into loud tears. Her cries were filled with humiliation and unwillingness to accept defeat.
Seeing the situation, Cui Yinyin, the leader of the female educated youths, knew that if she didn’t step forward and say something, there would be no end to this mess.
Zhu Lili wasn’t particularly capable to begin with, yet she was always causing trouble. This time, she had created an even bigger scene than usual.
Cui Yinyin sighed helplessly and walked over. She gently helped Zhu Lili to her feet and spoke in a mild yet authoritative voice.
“All right, everyone, that’s enough. Go back to whatever you were doing. There’s nothing more to see here.”
With that, she led Zhu Lili over to sit on the kang.
Seeing that the excitement was over, the other educated youths gradually dispersed, though some continued murmuring about what had just happened.
Yun Yixuan, however, wasn’t finished.
She strode toward Zhu Lili with a faint smile on her face, but the words that came from her mouth were as cold as a blade.
“I ignored you before because I couldn’t be bothered. But if you’ve mistaken that for me being easy to bully, feel free to try me again. I’ll make sure you become so notorious throughout the entire Hongqi Weijia Village Brigade that you’ll be too ashamed to even step outside.”
Her eyes were icy as she stared directly at Zhu Lili.
The unmistakable threat in her gaze sent a shiver down Zhu Lili’s spine.
Zhu Lili glared viciously at Yun Yixuan, her eyes overflowing with resentment, but she no longer dared to make another move.
Yun Yixuan couldn’t care less about her glare.
She gave a mocking snort, turned around, and began chatting with Li Meiling.
The two leaned their heads close together and quietly discussed going back up the mountain later to gather more medicinal herbs, acting as though the earlier commotion had never happened.
The warm winter sunlight lazily spilled across the courtyard of the educated youth compound.
Li Meiling moved closer to Yun Yixuan, curiosity written all over her face.
“Yixuan, is it difficult to dig up medicinal herbs?”
Yun Yixuan looked toward the distant mountains and sighed softly.
“It is. The mountains are much colder than it is down here during winter. The wind feels like knives cutting across your face—it really hurts. And the ground is frozen solid. Even getting a hoe into the soil takes a lot of effort, so digging herbs out isn’t easy.”
As she spoke, she gestured with her hands, hoping to give Li Meiling a clearer idea of what to expect so she could prepare herself mentally.
Then, as though suddenly remembering something, Yun Yixuan leaned closer to Li Meiling. Turning slightly, she brought her lips close to Li Meiling’s ear and whispered so softly that only the two of them could hear.
“Medicinal herbs can be sold for money.”
Li Meiling’s eyes immediately widened.
She stared at Yun Yixuan in disbelief.
“Wouldn’t that be dangerous? The government doesn’t allow private trading. We could be accused of speculation and profiteering. We might even get dragged away for public criticism!”
Yun Yixuan cautiously glanced around.
The other educated youths were all occupied with their own affairs, and no one seemed to be paying attention to them.
Only then did she relax slightly and lower her voice.
“Don’t worry. It won’t be a problem. The pharmacies in town openly purchase medicinal herbs. A few years ago, traditional Chinese medicine was heavily suppressed, but the policies have changed. The country has begun supporting traditional Chinese medicine again. Because of that, pharmacies all over the country desperately need medicinal herbs. Demand is far greater than supply.”
Yun Yixuan narrowed her eyes slightly as she recalled a brief description from the original novel.
That’s right.
If she remembered correctly, this was around the time when the country began strongly supporting traditional Chinese medicine again.
“That’s great!”
Li Meiling immediately became excited, her face blossoming into a bright smile.
She shuffled even closer to Yun Yixuan, affectionately wrapped both hands around her arm, and spoke in a coaxing tone.
“I’m going with you this afternoon. You have to take me along and help me make some money, okay?”
“Don’t worry. With the relationship between us, how could I possibly forget about you?” Yun Yixuan replied with a smile, gently patting Li Meiling’s hand.
“Exactly!” Li Meiling nodded happily before suddenly remembering something. “Oh, right, Yixuan. How do you know how to recognize medicinal herbs?”
“My maternal family has practiced medicine for generations. I grew up surrounded by it, so naturally, I learned a lot from them.”
Yun Yixuan answered softly, a faint trace of pride appearing in her eyes.
“What tools do we need to bring if we’re going to gather medicinal herbs?” Li Meiling continued curiously, determined to get every detail.
Yun Yixuan tilted her head slightly and looked toward the red sun slowly descending across the horizon.
She quickly calculated how much daylight they had left and how long the trip would take.
After thinking for a moment, she calmly began listing everything they would need.
“It’s already afternoon, so we don’t have much time. We’ll need to work quickly. First, we should bring two woven sacks. They’re light and can hold plenty of herbs once we dig them up.”
She raised one finger.
“We’ll also need carrying baskets. They’ll make it easier to move around the mountain while keeping the herbs we’ve gathered secure.”
Another finger.
“And small hoes. The ground on the mountain is hard, and medicinal herbs often have deep roots. A small hoe will be our most useful tool for digging them out, so we definitely can’t forget those.”
She counted the items one by one on her fingers to make sure she hadn’t missed anything.
The sunlight fell across the side of her face, outlining her serious and focused expression.
Suddenly, Yun Yixuan remembered something else important.
“And water. We’ll be on the mountain all afternoon, and it’s cold and windy up there. We should bring hot water. When it gets unbearably cold, a few sips will warm us right up. That’s important.”
“Then let’s go!”
Li Meiling’s eyes immediately lit up with excitement.
“The sooner we start, the longer we can dig. And the more herbs we gather, the more money we can make!”
Unable to contain her eagerness, she grabbed Yun Yixuan by the arm and hurried toward the courtyard so quickly that she nearly tripped over the threshold.
The two left the room and entered the educated youth courtyard, immediately dividing the preparations between themselves.
Yun Yixuan headed straight toward a corner and skillfully picked up a carrying basket. She strapped it onto her back to make sure it was comfortable before searching for suitable woven sacks.
Meanwhile, Li Meiling shot toward the kitchen like a gust of wind.
She grabbed a large thermos and then rummaged through a pile of miscellaneous items until she found a thick piece of worn cloth.
After filling the thermos with freshly boiled water, she carefully wrapped the thick cloth around it, layer after layer.
She meticulously secured every knot, hoping the extra insulation would keep the water hot for as long as possible.
That way, even while they were high in the cold mountains, they would still have warm water to drink whenever they needed it.