Li Luoyu leaned against the doorframe with her arms crossed, watching with great interest as the two old men argued across the stone table. Old Man Li on the left clutched a purple clay teapot, while Old Man Liu on the right brandished his long-stemmed pipe. As they went back and forth, the teacup and pipe bowl nearly sparked against each other.
“Grandpa Liu, step to the left—my grandpa’s about to throw his teacup!”
Startled, Old Master Liu hastily took half a step back, the sole of his shoe slamming against the windowsill behind him with a loud bang. Old Man Li shot her a glare. “You little brat, stop meddling!” Still, he couldn’t bear to smash the teapot in his hand, so he could only fling his shoe instead.
“Grandpa, what about your sweeping leg? Go for Grandpa Liu’s lower body!” Li Luoyu teased deliberately.
Old Man Li, who had trained that sweeping kick back in his cavalry days, instinctively thrust his leg forward—only to have Old Man Liu precisely block it with his own foot.
“Li stubborn mule, you think you’re still out on the grasslands lassoing horses?”
Li Luoyu fished a fruit candy out of her pocket. The soft rustling of the wrapper suddenly silenced the battlefield. The two old men stopped fighting in unison and turned their fire toward her:
“You little brat, you still remember to come home?”
“You little brat, what kind of outfit is that? Have you no awareness as a girl?”
Li Luoyu glanced down at her blue cloth shirt and worn Liberation shoes with frayed edges, almost forgetting she was currently disguised as a young man. She brushed her short bangs aside and asked curiously, “You can actually recognize me?”
Old Man Li snorted. “What, you think I’m blind?”
In truth, if she hadn’t been standing there watching with such glee, he wouldn’t have recognized her at all—and might’ve already smashed the teapot over her head.
Old Master Liu narrowed his eyes and stepped forward, carefully inspecting her outfit, even offering commentary: “Hmm, your face is still a bit too fair. Smear some soot from the stove and it’ll look right. Skin this delicate—your disguise isn’t convincing! Back when I was in the pastoral region pretending to be a shepherd, I smeared three layers of sheep dung on myself—even the lead wolf couldn’t smell a trace of human scent.”
Li Luoyu tugged at her pant leg to cover the three layers of thick insoles stuffed into her shoes. “It’s just to fool outsiders. Don’t expose me, Grandpa.”
But Old Master Liu bent down and fiddled with her shoe anyway, revealing the tightly packed height boosters inside. “Well I’ll be—five centimeters? Back when I sneaked on the commander’s tall boots in the cavalry, I didn’t have half your tricks!”
Li Luoyu: “……”
Not wanting to continue that topic, she saw the two old men had stopped arguing and smiled. “Grandpa Liu, did it work?”
Old Master Liu chuckled. “It did. But, Xiao Li, Grandpa has another task for you…”
Old Man Li, furious, pointed at her nose and scolded, “You little brat! I told you to go to the countryside, but you refused. And now look at you—sold off and still helping count the money for them!”
Li Luoyu: “???”
The courtyard wasn’t a good place for serious talk, so the three moved into the empty study. Li Luoyu pulled out a neatly wrapped pack of West Lake Longjing tea from her grandfather’s drawer, quickly brewed a pot, and said seriously, “Grandpa Liu, go ahead.”
Old Master Liu took a sip before speaking slowly, “The three people being sent down with you are all important figures to the country. One researches aircraft carriers, one specializes in agriculture, and the third is a inheritor of our nation’s traditional Chinese medicine…”
“On the surface, your identity is simply accompanying your grandfather into exile. In reality, you are a covert operative arranged by the organization. The current situation is chaotic, and their safety is critical. Your mission is to protect these pillars of the nation during this time. We old men will also work to bring them back as soon as possible.”
Li Luoyu accepted the kraft paper envelope he handed her and opened it. Inside were several documents, an ID booklet, and a handbook for the Special Operations Group.
“Special Operations Group, Li Luoyu, code number 666. Hmm, nice number—I like it.”
The Special Operations Group answered directly to the central authority and was overseen by the Commander-in-Chief of the military. It primarily handled national security, counterintelligence, and crime suppression—somewhat similar to the Ministry of State Security in later times.
It seemed the world of this novel still differed from real history. In actual history, such a unit fell under the Ministry of State Security, which wasn’t established until the early 1980s.
Over the past two days, she had also done some basic research on this world. Aside from the general historical trajectory, many of the people, specific events, and even those responsible for this massive cultural movement were completely unknown to her.
Otherwise, she could’ve tried assassinations, ambushes, poisonings—anything to set society back on the right track sooner.
“Your parents were martyrs. You were supposed to grow up under protection, but we old men failed you and dragged you into this. Your grandfather’s exile is actually a form of protection. Xiao Li, you’re a smart girl. Your skills were personally taught by your grandfather. With you there, we can all rest a bit easier.”
Li Luoyu pressed her lips together. “Is there a salary?”
She didn’t care about identities—but she wasn’t working for free.
Old Master Liu choked slightly, all the prepared persuasion stuck in his throat. “Yes. 126 yuan a month, plus meat and cloth coupons. The place you’re being sent to is Xiangyang Brigade of Hongqi Commune in Heilongjiang Province. Your pay will be issued under the ‘educated youth subsidy’ account and delivered through the commune’s post office on the 5th of each month. Just go collect it.”
He handed her another paper bag. “This is an advance for three months’ salary. Use it to buy supplies.”
Li Luoyu pouted. “So I’m basically just a middleman. My salary is their rice bag, huh? Grandpa was right—I’m just a pure sucker.”
Old Master Liu smacked her with his pipe. “You little brat! Your grandpa and I don’t care about that bit of money. But on the surface, we have to keep up appearances. And remember—protecting them means protecting the very foundation of the country.”
Clutching her head, Li Luoyu complained, “Grandpa, you’re just going to watch your granddaughter get hit?”
Old Man Li snorted. “You brought it on yourself. I told you to go to the countryside like the other educated youths—you refused. Now you insist on wading into this mess…”
Li Luoyu: “……”
Seeing the sly look in Old Master Liu’s eyes, she finally understood—she had volunteered herself into being the sucker.
She shot her grandfather a resentful look. “And who do you think I’m doing this for?”
Old Master Liu burst out laughing, tapping the lid of his teapot in a cheerful rhythm. “Good that you know you’re a sucker! Back when you were skinny and frail, barely clinging to life, I pawned my cavalry boots just to get you milk powder. Now it’s your turn to be a ‘human milk powder can’—fair deal!”
Li Luoyu sighed deeply. “So ‘cunning old fox’ really does describe people like you.”
Old Master Liu gave her another whack with the pipe. “You little brat! No respect for your elders.”
So this was a debt owed from the original body’s childhood. Fine—she’d take the job. After all, herding one sheep or a whole flock was the same thing anyway… no real difference.