After running a few laps around the educated youth compound, Luo Zhiyaoreturned to her room to wash up.
She timed it carefully and arrived at the集合 point right on time.
Today, everyone was whispering to each other, and their gazes kept drifting toward one particular spot.
Following everyone’s line of sight, she immediately saw that striking man.
She also heard the murmurs of the nearby aunts:
“Wow, that Third Young Master of the He family is really handsome. I wonder which girl will be good enough for him.”
“My niece from my maternal family is also quite pretty. I wonder if Guìhuā could take a look.”
“You’re exaggerating. I’ve seen your niece before—she’s not even as pretty as our village’s Xiaocui.”
“If you ask me, only Comrade Luo from the educated youth group is worthy of that He family boy.”
“Nonsense! Say that in front of Aunt Guìhuā and see if she doesn’t tear your mouth apart. She doesn’t like those delicate educated youth girls at all.”
Luo Zhiyaosighed helplessly. You can talk, but why drag me into it? What did I ever do to offend you?
Still, that man really stood out. Just by standing there, he drew the attention of many young women and wives, who secretly glanced at him while their faces flushed as they discussed him.
Even the other educated youths were no exception.
Luo Zhiyaocouldn’t help but complain inwardly: A man who attracts bees and butterflies.
For some reason, she felt slightly uncomfortable—but she didn’t know why.
Shaking off the messy thoughts in her head, Luo Zhiyaoreceived today’s assigned task—tilling the soil.
Tch. Is Captain Wang treating me like a man now?
Seeing that He Li and Hu Fang were also assigned to till the soil, she said nothing—everyone was the same.
Luo Zhiyaotook a hoe and headed to her assigned plot.
What a strange fate—Villainess No. 2 was right beside her. When she saw Luo Zhiyaoapproach, she shot her a fierce glare.
“Don’t expect me to help you with anything.”
“You’re alright, right?”
Li Qinghe’s eyes widened like copper bells. “What did you say?”
“Since when did I ask you to help me with anything?”
…Luo Zhiyaoindeed hadn’t said anything. Unwilling to accept this, Li Qinghe glared at her again and then went back to working the soil on her own.
For the Luo Zhiyaoof her past life, tilling soil would have been easy. But for this body in her current life, it felt like climbing to the heavens. First of all, these hands were not made for labor.
Moreover, her physical strength wasn’t great. Although she had recently started running to train her body, a few days wasn’t enough to show any real improvement.
Fine. Just work.
She put on her gloves, lifted the hoe, and began tilling the land.
The soil here wasn’t purely dirt—there were stones mixed in. As she worked, she kept digging up stones of all sizes.
These stones had to be picked out, piled separately, and then carried away and discarded.
Luo Zhiyaoworked hard, sweat dripping down her forehead in large beads.
“Comrade Luo, have some water and take a break.”
Unknowingly, Luo Zhiyaohad been working for over an hour. Compared to the other educated youths, she had already tilled quite a large area.
Seeing the concern in He Lingyun’s eyes, Luo Zhiyaoalso felt exhausted. She picked up her water bottle and drank—inside was spiritual spring water, which restored stamina very effectively.
“You should rest for a bit. I’ll move these stones out.”
Looking at the pile of stones, He Lingyun knew that if they were all placed into a basket and carried out, Luo Zhiyáo’s small frame wouldn’t be able to handle it.
Before she could refuse, He Lingyun began loading the stones into the basket himself.
“Captain He, there’s no need—I can handle it myself.”
He Lingyun glanced at her but said nothing, continuing to pick up stones and place them into the basket. He didn’t just take stones from her side—he also collected stones from nearby plots.
This way, it wasn’t just helping her, but everyone.
Seeing this, Luo Zhiyaostopped arguing. If he wanted to work, let him.
Li Qinghe, seeing this scene, immediately understood.
“Fox spirit. Always trying to seduce men.”
“Li Qinghe, what did you say?”
Ding! System mission issued: The host must touch the male lead He Lingyun’s arm within ten minutes. Reward: 1,000 points. Failure will result in a deduction of 1,000 points.
Damn it!!! This system is inhumane!
Last time she could touch him because of a wild boar chasing her—was there going to be a wild boar chasing her in the fields now?
Ten minutes—what was she supposed to do?
Luo Zhiyaoracked her brain but couldn’t think of any excuse to touch He Lingyun’s arm.
Looking at the muscles under his military-green shirt, she couldn’t help but think how strong this man looked. She wondered if, like in videos she had seen in her past life, soldiers really had eight-pack abs.
Ding! Reminder: One minute remaining. Please hurry.
Stop rushing me! I don’t know what to do! In this era, even a slight touch can be considered harassment! Can I just touch him randomly?
Luo Zhiyaoretorted angrily at the system 9981.
9981 also knew it was at fault. In this era, things were indeed different from the future—casual physical contact wasn’t acceptable.
Being accused of harassment was a serious crime.
While Luo Zhiyaowas thinking, she failed to notice the stones under her feet. She stepped on one, twisted her ankle, and her body instinctively fell to the side.
“Be careful!”
He Lingyun had been watching her the whole time. He noticed her conflicted expression and had also seen her about to step on the stone. If he had warned her, she wouldn’t have fallen.
But he didn’t.
Saving the beauty—once again—was not a bad idea.
So just as Luo Zhiyaowas about to fall, He Lingyun stepped forward and caught her.
Her hand happened to land on his arm.
Ding! Mission completed. Reward: 1,000 points.
Unbelievable. Such a high risk, just for 1,000 points. System, you really are stingy.
At this moment, Luo Zhiyáo’s ankle had swollen like a steamed bun and she couldn’t move at all.
He Lingyun helped her sit on the embankment, holding her calf with one hand and examining the swollen area with the other.
“Fortunately, it’s just a sprain. Rest well and don’t go back to the fields.”
“My task isn’t finished yet…”
“I’ll talk to Uncle Hu. With your condition, how can you work in the fields?”
Just then, He Lingyun’s mother (Wu Guìhuā) hurried over.
“Son, what happened to you?”
Then she noticed Luo Zhiyaositting nearby and immediately felt something was wrong.
“This… what happened?”
“Comrade Luo sprained her ankle. I was taking a look.”
“There’s no need for you to look! I’ll take her to the barefoot doctor myself. You go back and rest! Since you finally have leave, you should rest well!”
Wu Guìhuā wasn’t really worried about her son being tired—she was worried that Luo Zhiyaomight latch onto her son.
A delicate educated youth who couldn’t do heavy work—she absolutely would not accept her as a daughter-in-law.
She pulled He Lingyun aside and whispered, “Son, hurry back. If this Comrade Luo clings to you, it’ll be trouble.”
Although her voice was low, Luo Zhiyaostill heard it clearly.
She knew it—Aunt Wu didn’t like her. Luckily, she hadn’t agreed to anything with this man anyway.
“Mother, I have something to tell you—”
“What is it? Talk later. First, let’s get someone to take Comrade Luo to the barefoot doctor.”
At that moment, the wife of the brigade leader, Aunt Liu, also arrived.
“Oh my goodness, how did it swell up like this? Hurry, send two people to take her back to the educated youth compound. Xiaojin, go call the barefoot doctor to check on Comrade Luo at the compound!”
Xiaojin was the brigade leader’s eldest grandson, named Wang Yijin, ten years old. Hearing his grandmother’s instructions, he quickly ran off to fetch the barefoot doctor.