Sheng Jinhe’s eyes gradually cleared. She furrowed her brows slightly, her expression full of impatience. Anyone could tell just how bad her mood was at this moment.
She didn’t really have morning grumpiness—her line of work had exposed her to enough early mornings to kill any lingering “morning temper.”
The problem was this person’s tone, which sounded like she owed him something. More accurately, this person deserved a slap.
“You… you… how can you talk like that?”
Across several people, the girl suddenly burst into tears.
Sheng Jinhe: “…This person must be seriously ill!”
Glancing over, she felt the girl looked somewhat familiar—but definitely someone she didn’t know.
“If you’re sick, get treated. Don’t disturb me!”
Sheng Jinhe closed her eyes again, paying no attention to what others thought of her.
She wasn’t trying to hold back her temper, nor did she care about getting along with the young educated youths. She had come here for Li Zhanye.
She wasn’t like money—people disliking her didn’t matter.
“You really don’t know who I am?”
The girl, both embarrassed and angry, questioned again.
“Sit down, sister!”
“Dad said not to provoke her! You haven’t forgotten that, right?”
A male voice rang out.
Sister? Brother?
Sheng Jinhe suddenly remembered who they were!
Aren’t these just scumbag dad’s son and daughter?
She nearly forgot about them. Their father seemed quite conscientious—he’d sent them down to the countryside.
“You dare admit that? Are you sure you can handle it?”
“Your dad…”
Sheng Jinhe hesitated, unsure what to say.
“Sorry, my sister’s just exhausted and confused,” Sun Dong quickly interjected. If these people discovered they were illegitimate children and the family situation, it would be very bad.
Sheng Jinhe, on the other hand, would gain even more sympathy.
Sheng Jinhe looked up at Sun Dong.
Not bad—smarter than his sister.
“Sister, sit down!”
“Sorry, please continue resting!”
Sun Dong didn’t forget to apologize to Sheng Jinhe.
“Dongdong, why are you holding me back?!”
Sun Qiu was furious. Why her? Why did she have to go down to the countryside? Her job had already been secured!
Because of this trip, her boyfriend immediately broke up with her.
She overheard her dad saying that it was Sheng Jinhe’s request. If they didn’t go down to the countryside, their mother’s and father’s affairs would be exposed, and the whole machinery factory would know. They couldn’t stay in Beijing City.
She and Sun Dong had known about Sheng Jinhe’s existence for a long time, knew how she had lived, and even sneaked a look at her multiple times.
They resented why their mother wasn’t Sheng Jinhe’s mother. If she had been, they could have worn beautiful dresses, eaten good food, played, and lived in a big house instead of that broken courtyard.
But their mother wasn’t Sheng Jinhe’s mother—she was just brought in to give birth to sons.
So she had to be sweet, obedient, and sensible, or she’d be discarded like the eldest and second daughters.
Of course, even if she were the eldest two, she would probably have been thrown away if she wasn’t a daughter.
Her mother had said she begged her father to keep her, so she could help wash clothes and cook for her younger brother. That’s why her father kept her.
Later, she did gain some attention from her father, especially after finding a boyfriend in the railway sector—but all of that was gone! Gone!
Why? She was unwilling. She begged her father, but he didn’t even glance at her, only reminding her to take care of her brother and help him as much as possible.
And she knew that secretly, her father had given her brother plenty of money and resources, while she only had the little stipend from the educated youth program. Not a single coin from home.
So the moment she saw Sheng Jinhe on the tractor, she couldn’t control herself. She held it in for a while but eventually spoke up.
Her brother had the audacity to try to advise her? He had always been served in both city and countryside, while she suffered!
Thinking of this, her resentment toward Sun Dong grew a little.
“If you keep talking, I’ll call Dad as soon as I get off!”
Sun Dong completely lost his meekness in front of Sun Qiu. His voice was sharp and decisive, though his face remained calm.
Sun Qiu knew her brother’s true nature and realized he was really angry. She fell silent, occasionally glancing at Sheng Jinhe with eyes that were almost tangible in their malice.
“If you want to keep your eyes, don’t look this way again!”
Sheng Jinhe closed her eyes, hearing the girl beside her speak. She guessed who it was.
Glancing sideways, she met the eyes of a spirited-looking girl.
The impression was pleasant; this person seemed nice. Before Sheng Jinhe could speak, the girl continued:
“You’re quite capable—right away, you’re noticed. Hmm, and a few male educated youths too.”
Sheng Jinhe could tell she was stating facts, not mocking. With anyone else, it might have seemed like sarcasm.
This person was interesting, so she decided not to sleep.
“Tsk, aren’t you afraid I’ll get angry saying that?”
Sheng Jinhe adjusted her posture.
“Would you?”
“Nope!”
They exchanged a glance and smiled.
Both were beautiful—one bright and bold, the other heroic and spirited.
“Sheng Jinhe.”
“He Yining.”
They exchanged names and quietly started chatting.
“You’re impressive! Here to find your fiancé?”
He Yining almost couldn’t control her volume.
“No, I’m here chasing my fiancé! He still doesn’t know who I am!”
Mentioning Li Zhanye, Sheng Jinhe’s fatigue from the journey eased significantly.
“When’s your birthday? I just had mine.”
He Yining practically became Sheng Jinhe’s little fangirl.
“February. Call me Sister He!”
“Okay, I’ll call you Sister He from now on.”
“Great! My friend Hanmei doesn’t even call me sister. I didn’t expect to come here and finally get that wish.”
Sheng Jinhe thought of her friends in Beijing City.
“You’re from Beijing City too? Are you from the same courtyard?”
“Yes. And you?”
He Yining nodded.
Sheng Jinhe’s bold personality definitely wasn’t raised in an ordinary family—she had a keen eye for that.
“Machinery factory!”
“Do you know my future fiancé?”
“Why do I feel like you know him?”
Sheng Jinhe felt that in any military district courtyard in Beijing City, everyone would know Li Zhanye. Maybe He Yining even lived in the same courtyard.
“You’re… not here to chase the Li family, right?”
He Yining leaned close to Sheng Jinhe’s ear, whispering nervously.
“Hmm, you won’t reject them just because of their family, right? If you do, we can’t be friends!”
Sheng Jinhe had principles—friends or a partner, naturally the partner mattered more.
“Relax. The Li family is fine. It was the Meng family that caused trouble. I overheard it at home. But the Meng family didn’t have it easy either—they were raided in just a few days. The patriarch and eldest son were imprisoned, the others sent down!”
He Yining’s fear of the Li family wasn’t because of the relocation.