The Village Party Secretary took the money and returned.
Shen Zhao put the money in her pocket and said with a grin, waving her hand, "If there's anything like this in the future, find me again. The more, the better."
The Village Party Secretary and the onlookers' faces turned green.
So you plan to make money from this kind of thing?
Liu Xiu was unwilling and wanted to continue, but her old man glared her back and looked at Shen Zhao with resentment.
Shen Zhao didn't care and turned to call out to Gu Qiu and Ji Bai, "Let's go, I'm coming to your place for dinner tonight."
Gu Qiu stepped forward and took her arm, "That would be wonderful. I'll cook something delicious for you to calm your nerves. When you encounter something like this, you should fight back hard, so they never dare to bully you again..."
She spoke as she walked, making everyone's mouths twitch.
After this incident, who would dare to provoke her?
Ji Bai carried Shen Zhao's bamboo basket, cast a cold glance at the few people on the ground, and then left.
Zhou Xiaoyan's eyes flickered, and she said as if casually, "Since Educated Youth Shen is so rich, if someone marries her in the future, won't they have endless meat to eat."
The speaker meant it, and the listeners took it to heart.
For those poor bachelors, eating meat and marrying a wife were the things that moved them the most.
As soon as she finished speaking, some people were thoughtfully staring at their retreating backs.
He Jianping rubbed his tired temples, "If there's nothing else, everyone disperse. Hurry home and cook. Aren't you all hungry?"
How could they not be hungry? Everyone had worked all day.
The Village Party Secretary looked gloomily at his wife and son, then turned and left.
"You've completely offended the Village Party Secretary now. Be careful lately; he doesn't seem like a magnanimous person," Gu Qiu said with worry in her eyes.
Shen Zhao smiled, "It's okay, I'll be careful."
In her heart, however, she was contemplating how to get rid of this old scoundrel. If they had just had a conflict, she would be the prime suspect if a body was found.
She had to wait.
Ji Bai said in a low voice behind them, "You still need to be extra careful. After all, you are alone. The Tan family has lived here for generations, and there are many indirect relatives."
"As long as they don't come to provoke me, it's fine," Shen Zhao acted nonchalant.
Wen Yixun and Wang Nan walked at the end, completely unable to join the conversation.
Back at the Educated Youth Point, Shen Zhao took out the rabbit and wild chicken from the bamboo basket, "Extra meal tonight?"
Gu Qiu's eyes lit up, "Great! My cold-eaten rabbit is excellent, and it can be eaten cold too."
"Let's stew the wild chicken. I also have a piece of Chicken Blood Vine; stewing it is very nourishing."
Ji Bai took the rabbit and chicken, and said with a smile, "You do need to nourish yourself. Yi Xun and I will prepare them. You two start the fire and boil water."
Wang Nan quickly sat by the stove, "I'm not good at cooking, but I can start the fire."
Ever since she came here, she liked the job of tending the fire the most because it was warm. She wasn't very good at anything else.
With the tasks divided among them, Shen Zhao found herself idle.
No one expected her to do any work, especially since she had just fought. She should rest well.
Mainly... she didn't look like someone who would do chores.
Besides, she was the one providing the meat.
Shen Zhao really liked the atmosphere of everyone cooking and eating together, so she proactively went to help Gu Qiu wash vegetables.
The five of them chatted and laughed together.
Soon, the water boiled, and the wild chicken was plucked.
The wild rabbit could be skinned directly. Speaking of which, none of them knew how to skin it; it was Shen Zhao who did it.
Back then, her army was trapped in a valley, and their provisions ran out. They had to go up the mountain to catch prey. Rabbits were the animals they ate the most.
She was so skilled at skinning that she could do it with her eyes closed.
With the five of them, this amount of food wouldn't be enough. Gu Qiu added a dish of spicy and sour shredded potatoes and steamed rice with sweet potato.
Ji Bai and Wen Yixun took out a piece of cured meat and stir-fried it with garlic sprouts and fish mint.
Wang Nan took out two cans of oranges and poured them into a bowl for dessert.
An hour later, the spicy and flavorful aroma of cold-eaten rabbit wafted through the Educated Youth Point.
On the other side, everyone drinking thin congee with pickled vegetables silently swallowed their saliva.
These newcomers were really rich; they ate so well so often.
Zhang Chunlan muttered, "If I had known, I wouldn't have bullied them back then. If we had gotten along, maybe we could have gotten some meat dishes too."
Wang Hua nodded silently, then subtly glanced at Zhong Zheng.
Seeing him staring down, lost in thought, he couldn't help but ask, "Educated Youth Zhong, I see you're always trying to curry favor with Educated Youth Shen and Educated Youth Gu. Have you gained any benefits?"
It was better not to mention it; as soon as he spoke, Zhong Zheng's face turned ashen.
Zhou Xiaoyan had broken up with him, Shen Zhao had no chance to interact with him, and as for Gu Qiu, Wen Yixun saw everyone as a love rival and strictly guarded against any man who approached her.
Wang Nan looked delicate and loved to act spoiled, but in reality, she was as slippery as an eel. Not only did he gain no benefits from her, but he also lost a canned food.
Zhong Zheng remained silent.
Wang Hua, finding no response, also shut his mouth.
He was a foul-mouthed person who loved to stir up trouble and couldn't stand seeing anyone better off than him.
If he and Zhou Xiaoyan hadn't been dating back then, the head of the Educated Youth Point wouldn't have fallen to him; based on seniority, it should have been himself.
Zhou Xiaoyan was also greedy, holding her thin congee but unable to eat.
For these people, they had been at the Educated Youth Point for at least a year.
Their savings from when they first arrived had long been spent. If their families had good conditions, perhaps they would have sent some support from time to time.
But times were hard for everyone now, so even with support, how much could they send?
It was far from enough to eat meat regularly.
Why?
They were all educated youths, but these people could eat meat every day!
She felt indignant and looked at Shen Zhao and the others with venom in her eyes.
Shen Zhao seemed to sense something and turned to see her gaze, which she hadn't yet retracted. She raised her fist the size of a casserole pot and said, "What are you looking at? Keep looking and I'll dig your eyes out."
"You..."
Zhou Xiaoyan stood up, looking at Shen Zhao's cold eyes, and her body began to ache faintly.
The injuries from the first day she was beaten by her hadn't fully healed yet.
Hmph!
Shen Zhao turned back and ate the rabbit meat Ji Bai had served her.
Gu Qiu's rabbit meat was fragrant and spicy, very flavorful, and pleased her more than the chicken soup.
The next day
To prevent Shen Zhao from causing more trouble.
He Jianping assigned the Troublemaker Squad to gather pig grass, requiring two bamboo baskets a day, for which they would receive two Work Points.
Shen Zhao, who hadn't earned a single Work Point in three days of work,
..didn't really want to gather pig grass either.
Regardless, the group of five still carried their bamboo baskets and followed behind He Xiaoshan and the other children up the slope.
He Xiaoshan was the son of the Team Leader and the boss of this group of little ones.
Sister Shen had given him so much candy, and now it was time for him to repay her. He was extremely excited all the way.
When they reached their destination, he directly took Shen Zhao's bamboo basket, "Sister, you sit here and rest. I'll help you gather it."
With someone to help, Shen Zhao was happy to be lazy.
"Okay, be careful. I'll have some delicious food for you when we get back."
Seeing this, Wang Nan also used two candies to get a child to help her. Gu Qiu used a piece of Sachima, and someone took her bamboo basket.
The other children who didn't get a chance to help looked enviously at Ji Bai and Wen Yixun's bamboo baskets.
How could those two grown men possibly ask children to help them with their work?
Seeing this, Shen Zhao distributed two candies to each of the remaining children, "Go and work. Come find me here when you're done."
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