“That depends on what you want to buy. The closest place is the supply and marketing cooperative in the town, but the selection there isn’t very complete. If you want more variety, you’d have to go to the county.”
“Can I send letters from the town? I want to let my family know I’m safe.”
“Yes, you can.”
Thinking about the long ox-cart ride she had taken a couple of days ago, Song Yunqiao asked, “How long does it take to get to the town from here?”
“If you walk quickly, a little over half an hour. I happen to want to buy some things too—why don’t we go together?”
“Sure.”
Song Yunqiao felt that He Suxia was a kind person who had taken good care of her these past couple of days.
When Ma Xiaoping heard that the two of them had arranged to go to town, she stopped eavesdropping and hurried over, saying she wanted to go too.
Song Yunqiao ignored her.
He Suxia couldn’t refuse outright, so she said that if Ma Xiaoping wanted to go, she could join them.
So the next day, after asking the production team leader for half a day off, the three of them went to town together.
Song Yunqiao wrote a rather heartfelt letter and mailed it to the original host’s uncle.
In truth, the letter didn’t say much—just that she had been immature before and hadn’t cherished her life, but now she realized her mistakes. Although she never directly mentioned wanting to return to the city, every line subtly expressed her longing to go back.
After mailing the letter, the three of them went to the supply and marketing cooperative.
The shop wasn’t big, and the selection wasn’t extensive, but it had basic daily necessities and some food items.
Song Yunqiao bought a thermos and some biscuits.
Seeing how freely Song Yunqiao spent money, Ma Xiaoping eagerly helped carry her things, following behind her like a lackey. She didn’t buy anything herself, because she barely had any money.
“Comrade Ma, I can carry these myself. No need to trouble you,” Song Yunqiao said.
Seeing how attentive she was, Song Yunqiao knew exactly what she was up to.
“It’s no trouble at all. Your business is my business—how could it be trouble?” Ma Xiaoping replied.
She figured that since she was carrying all these things for her, Song Yunqiao would at least give her some food later. She couldn’t take it anymore—her stomach hadn’t had any oil or richness for days.
Since she insisted, Song Yunqiao didn’t press further.
He Suxia watched everything clearly from the side.
They had only taken half a day off, so after shopping, they headed straight back without lingering in town.
Because Ma Xiaoping carried everything, Song Yunqiao didn’t feel tired at all.
Ma Xiaoping, on the other hand, had walked the whole way while carrying so much, and her arms were aching.
Back at the dormitory, Song Yunqiao put all her purchases into her trunk and locked it.
Ma Xiaoping said, “Xiao Qiao, I’m hungry—can you let me have a piece of sponge cake?”
Song Yunqiao replied coldly, “If you wanted to eat, why didn’t you buy some this morning?”
“I carried your things all the way back. Even if there’s no credit, there’s still effort, right?”
Ma Xiaoping tried again.
But Song Yunqiao wasn’t having it.
“You chose to carry those things yourself—that has nothing to do with me. If you weren’t going to buy anything, why come along in the first place?”
Ma Xiaoping hadn’t expected her to be so stingy now. “I was just being kind because you had too much to carry.”
“If it was truly kindness, then you shouldn’t be asking for something in return.”
“You—!”
Ma Xiaoping suddenly realized she couldn’t win this argument. It felt like Song Yunqiao had become a completely different person.
He Suxia had been watching the whole time and understood everything, but as an outsider, it wasn’t her place to interfere.
Being shut down like this made Ma Xiaoping finally wake up. She realized Song Yunqiao wasn’t joking—she truly wouldn’t let her freeload anymore.
Seeing Ma Xiaoping leave angrily, He Suxia asked worriedly, “Do you think she’ll hold a grudge against you?”
Knowing her concern was genuine, Song Yunqiao replied, “I’m not afraid. Let her do whatever she wants. If I gave in today, she’d ask again next time. Back in the city it wouldn’t matter, but here in the countryside, everyone is struggling.”
He Suxia felt she had a point. After interacting with Ma Xiaoping over the past couple of days, she hadn’t found her very compatible either, so she didn’t dwell on it.
A few days later, the production team leader announced that the village would begin harvesting wheat.
Life had already been hard, but in the next few days, they realized that what they had done before was nothing.
With the wheat harvest, the entire village—from young to old—worked from early morning until late at night. Everyone was busy cutting wheat and threshing it. Even children as young as a few years old went out to pick up fallen wheat ears.
This hectic period lasted for about half a month. After it ended, the production team leader gave the educated youths two days off to rest.
In the women’s dormitory
He Suxia looked at Song Yunqiao enviously. “Xiao Qiao, how come you don’t get tanned?”
They had both been working under the scorching sun, but He Suxia felt like she had gotten several shades darker.
“Maybe it’s because I take good sun protection measures,” Song Yunqiao said.
In truth, it wasn’t just that—her skin would turn red under the sun but wouldn’t tan. Also, every time she returned from work, she added a bit of spiritual spring water to her washbasin, which helped her skin recover quickly.
He Suxia sighed helplessly. “I don’t want to talk about this depressing topic anymore. Are you going to the educated youth gathering tomorrow?”
“A gathering?”
“Yes, not just the youths from our village—those from nearby villages are planning to get together. Are you going?”
“I’ll pass.”
Song Yunqiao wasn’t very interested.
“Come on, go. We still have another day off tomorrow.”
She shook her head. “I’d rather stay here and rest.”
“You really won’t go?”
He Suxia genuinely wanted her to come along, but she couldn’t force her.
Song Yunqiao nodded. “You go ahead.”
“Alright then. We might go to town for the gathering. Do you want me to buy anything for you?”
“That would be great—can you check if there’s any mail for me?”
“No problem.”
After half a month of living together, the two had grown quite close.
The next day, all the educated youths went to the gathering—except Song Yunqiao.
Knowing that An Yanyan and Gu Guanghua had gone, Song Yunqiao felt relieved she hadn’t gone. As the protagonists, those two were bound to get into all sorts of situations—though they would always resolve them in the end.
With the dormitory empty, Song Yunqiao indulged herself a little. Although there was no meat, she fried several eggs with plenty of oil—her own supply, of course.
She also took out some white rice her family had prepared and cooked herself a bowl of rice. This was the most satisfying meal she had eaten since arriving.
After eating, Song Yunqiao counted her money and ration coupons. She was definitely well-off—she still had more than fifty yuan and various coupons.
After organizing everything, she decided to go into the village to exchange for more eggs—she had used up the ones she had by frying them earlier.