Tang Yifan’s heart was stirred hard by her charming, playful look.
The frustration he had suffered from Nan Mo that afternoon vanished without a trace.
To be fair, Mo Meilin did have some looks. Otherwise, even in the novel, Wu Mingyue, despite having a space, would not have only barely won.
“No!” Lu Zhihui was the first to object.
If there was anyone in this world who understood Tang Yifan best besides Tang Yifan himself, it was Lu Zhihui, who had watched him closely since childhood.
Tang Yifan’s expression just now clearly showed he was flirting with that woman. Lu Zhihui would never allow it.
“What does it have to do with you?”
“Brother Yifan! I came to the countryside for you!” Lu Zhihui was truly aggrieved now.
“Don’t forget, we have an engagement. If you won’t listen to me, are you going to listen to her instead?” She pointed at Mo Meilin as she spoke.
Mo Meilin seemed startled by the gesture and took a few steps back. “Sorry, I… I was only making a suggestion…”
Seeing her frightened, Tang Yifan wanted to reach out and help her. He took a step forward, then felt it was not appropriate and stopped.
He turned and glared at Lu Zhihui. “Don’t spout nonsense. Who has an engagement with you?
Do you not know why I came to the countryside?
I hid from you all the way out here, and you still won’t let it go?
If you keep making trouble like this, I’ll call Uncle Lu and ask how he taught his daughter!”
“You… you…” Lu Zhihui trembled as she pointed at Tang Yifan. She stammered for a long time but could not form a complete sentence, then burst into tears and ran out.
What a show.
Nan Mo watched with lingering satisfaction, and she even looked forward to Wu Mingyue’s performance.
But Wu Mingyue now sat frozen like a quail, clearly frightened by Tang Yifan’s anger.
Nan Mo checked her watch. It was getting late, time to deliver the gifts.
She gave the other three a look, reminding them it was time to leave.
Back at the small courtyard gates, they each went inside to fetch their gifts. Before long, the four of them slipped out quietly through the back door.
Along the way, they kept discussing the night’s drama. In no time, they reached Gu Baolin’s house. They knocked lightly on the courtyard gate a few times.
Inside the yard, Gu Ran had just returned from town. He had taken off his shirt and was drawing water by the well to rinse himself off.
The well water soaked his broad shoulders. His muscle lines were smooth and defined, his waist tight, and his abs were faintly visible under the moonlight.
Hearing the knocking, he quickly dried the water droplets from his body, put his shirt back on, and buttoned it up before going to open the gate.
Nan Mo had not dared knock too loudly, afraid the neighbors would hear. Yet she also worried the sound was too soft for anyone inside to notice.
So she leaned her ear against the door, listening carefully for footsteps.
Just as she did, the gate opened.
Her forehead pressed straight into Gu Ran’s wide chest. Gu Ran stepped back. Nan Mo reacted at once and lifted her head, apologizing quickly.
When Gu Ran heard Nan Mo’s voice, he froze. So the little educated youth had been assigned to their village?
That restless feeling from the afternoon started pounding again in his chest.
He kept his voice as steady as he could. “Who are you looking for?”
“Is this the brigade leader’s house?” Nan Mo asked.
“Yes.”
“We’re looking for the brigade leader. Please tell him the newly arrived educated youths are here to see him.”
Standing outside, the four of them behaved like thieves. While speaking, they kept scanning their surroundings.
In these times, giving gifts could be either a big matter or a small one. They had to be careful.
Seeing how sneaky she looked, Gu Ran thought she was nothing like the bold person who had spoken up about treating others to a meal that afternoon, yet he found it strangely cute.
“Name.”
“Huh? Oh. Tell him my name is Nan Mo.”
She waved her hand, urging him to hurry inside and call someone.
Gu Ran raised his brows. “Oh, Nan Mo.”
Something about the way he said “Nan Mo” made her heart tremble.
She thought he was being weird. Why was he still standing there instead of going inside? Then she saw his tall figure move aside, inviting them in.
Gu Baolin’s yard was spacious. If Gu Ran had not happened to be outside, with how softly Nan Mo knocked, she could have knocked until dawn and still not gotten an answer.
Gu Ran brought the four of them into the main room. Only then did they see his face clearly.
He was around one eighty five, his skin a healthy wheat tone. His facial lines were clean and sharp, his brows and eyes cool and intense, his nose bridge high, his lips shaped beautifully, the color warm like jade. Water droplets still clung to his hair and slid down his jawline into his collar.
He was ridiculously handsome.
Nan Mo looked calm on the outside, but inside her heart was pounding wildly.
Lu Yuanyuan hid behind Nan Mo, so excited she kept poking Nan Mo with her finger.
Chen Ruonan looked away as if nothing was happening, pretending to be busy looking around.
Hu Mingliang stared at Gu Ran without blinking.
“Ahem. Wait here a moment.”
Gu Baolin came in and found the four of them showing up at night, which struck him as odd.
“Brigade leader,” the four of them greeted him with smiles, setting the gifts they brought on the table.
“What is this for?” Gu Baolin frowned, trying to refuse when he saw them bringing gifts late at night.
“Uncle Brigade leader, we don’t mean anything else. It’s just a bit of courtesy from the younger generation meeting an elder for the first time,” Nan Mo said immediately, blocking his refusal.
Lu Yuanyuan was also smooth tongued. “Yes, Uncle Brigade leader. We just arrived, and we’re young and don’t know much.
If we do anything wrong in the future, please treat us like juniors and criticize us.”
Nan Mo continued with a smile. “I even heard my dad say there isn’t a more capable brigade leader than you in all the nearby villages.
Since we’re here, we only want to follow your lead and help build Xiangyang Brigade even better.
In the future, if there’s any work suitable for us, just tell us.”
Hearing Nan Mo’s words, Gu Ran could not help curling the corner of his lips.
Work suitable for them? They did not look like people suited for hard work at all.
Nan Mo noticed his amusement and shot him a glare.
Then she turned back and smiled at Gu Baolin again. “Uncle, it’s getting late. We won’t disturb your rest.”
With that, the four of them hurried out together.
“Hey? Why did you all leave?” Gu Baolin turned and glared at his son. “Who told you to bring them in?”
“Enough. They came at night because they didn’t want to be seen. It’s not a big deal. They just want you to assign them lighter work,” Gu Ran said indifferently.
“If everyone wants light work, who’s going to do the hard work?”
“Do those people look like they can do hard work?” Gu Ran replied as he walked toward his room.
“How did the blind date go today?” Gu Baolin shouted after him.
“I didn’t go!” Gu Ran answered, then went inside, shut the door, and went straight to sleep.
“What are you yelling for?” A tall, good looking middle aged woman came out from the inner room. She was Gu Baolin’s wife, Lin Ruifang.
“Your precious son skipped the blind date again. Tell me, how many more days can he stay at home?”
“If he didn’t go, then he didn’t go. If my son wants to go, he’ll go. If he doesn’t want to, he won’t,” Lin Ruifang said with a dismissive glance.
“You’ve spoiled him!”
“Gu Baolin, are you trying to pick a fight? My son is my son, and I’ll spoil him if I want.
Besides, what kind of father nags his own son every day to find a wife? You should be ashamed of yourself!”
“If you don’t nag and I don’t nag, then he’ll be a bachelor for life!” Gu Baolin snapped and started to head outside.
Lin Ruifang was not afraid of him. She followed behind and lectured him.
“My son has the looks, the body, a father who’s the brigade leader, a mother who earns full work points, and he’s even an officer. What’s there to fear about finding a partner?”
Gu Baolin feared the neighbors might hear, so he stomped his foot and returned inside.
“He only comes back once every year or two. Who knows when he’ll be back next time? He’s already twenty three!”
“So what if he’s twenty three? If he marries the wrong one at twenty three, it’s worse than waiting until thirty to marry the right one.
Good things aren’t afraid of being late. Let him choose slowly.” She went back to her room and shut the door, just like Gu Ran.
Less than a minute later, she returned to the main room. Gu Baolin thought she had come to call him to bed.
Instead, Lin Ruifang came to collect the gifts Nan Mo and the others had left.
She took them and left, saying as she walked, “Turn off the light. Do you think electricity is free?”
Back then, Xiangyang Brigade’s grain processing factory had brought good benefits to Hongqi Town, so the town chief had rewarded Xiangyang by installing electricity and phone lines.
Fearing emergencies at night, Gu Baolin had also had a line pulled to his own home.
To save electricity, the entire house only had power in the main room.
Since no one called for him, Gu Baolin could only return to his room by himself.
When Nan Mo and the others got back to the educated youth compound, all the educated youths were still in the front yard. They did not want to join the noise. They only wanted to hurry back and catch up on sleep.