章節 3: Chapter 3: Letting Go
"I'm feeling better now; I can go down to the field today," Lu Jingqiu said as she followed her dormmate Yun Yuzhi to collect the farming tools.
She had arrived here the autumn before last, and had already spent two years in Ten-miles Village. Being an only child in her family, with both parents holding good jobs, she would have stayed in the city to work, as arranged by her parents after high school graduation, if it weren't for the unexpected.
For the sake of Gao Shu, she had secretly run off to the countryside.
What she hadn't anticipated was that within a year, Gao Shu had already found someone he liked there.
The youngest daughter of the local village chief, Xia Lin.
Gao Shu was both surprised and repelled by her arrival.
So, over these two years, Lu Jingqiu watched, with eyes wide open, as Gao Shu and Xia Lin grew closer and closer.
She found herself increasingly irked by Xia Lin, frequently putting a spoke in her wheel and often speaking ill of her at the Educated Youth Spot.
She also created many misunderstandings between the couple, but alas, how could an outsider like her compete with the village chief's daughter?
Every time she caused trouble for Xia Lin, she ended up assigned the hardest and most unpleasant tasks by the village chief, a lose-lose situation, yet she fought on determinedly.
After two years of such torment, the couple had not parted but had instead grown even closer.
Yun Yuzhi held a sickle in one hand and pulled Lu Jingqiu with the other, discreetly gesturing with her chin toward a spot not far ahead, and whispered, "I heard they're about to get married."
Only then did Lu Jingqiu look up at the two walking side by side in the distance, chatting and laughing. Even in a semi-worn blue shirt, the man couldn't conceal his dashing looks. And the woman, with her oval face and a pair of bright eyes, was so fair-skinned that even a slight pout presented an irresistibly sweet and endearing charm.
Apparently, Gao Shu liked someone petite and lovely, a pity, for she was not.
With just a glance, she lowered her head and hummed a response.
Lu Jingqiu did not realize that her inherent grace and elegance of character were akin to that of a young lady from an esteemed household of ancient times—something even Yun Yuzhi and the others envied deeply.
Unable to bear seeing her this way, Yun Yuzhi sighed and said, "Jingqiu, to be honest, Xia Lin isn't as pretty as you. We never expected Gao Shu to end up with Xia Lin.
"When you first arrived, you were fussy and complained about everything, and we didn't like it. But finding out you came for Gao Shu was quite a surprise.
"You've known him since childhood, yet he's never given you a proper look. If I were you, I'd let it go.
"Over these two years, from the way you eat and live, I can tell your family is well-off. If it doesn't work out, just have your parents pull some strings and leave this place. Why stay here and torment yourself watching them?"
Lu Jingqiu lifted her head and smiled at Yun Yuzhi, "Sister Yuzhi, thank you for your advice, I understand."
Yun Yuzhi stared at Lu Jingqiu's crescent-moon like smiling eyes, taken aback for a moment: "You..."
In the past, anyone who spoke to Lu Jingqiu like this would have seemed to her as reveling in her misfortune, making fun of her. But today... it was unexpected.
In her previous life, when Yun Yuzhi spoke like this, Lu Jingqiu's face would have soured, and she would have jerked her hand away, retorting coldly.
But having lived a lifetime, Lu Jingqiu knew that Yun Yuzhi genuinely had her best interests at heart.
At this Educated Youth Spot, there were originally four girls, excluding Li Qian, who, before the summer harvest, had a falling out with the entire spot over a university recommendation spot.
Now, only Yun Yuzhi, she, and Li Yinger were left.
If we're talking about before, she and Li Qian were closest, while Yun Yuzhi and Li Yinger got along better. Li Qian's family was rather poor, and ever since Lu Jingqiu arrived, the delicate her was unwilling to work and often gave things away in exchange for help, with Li Qian being one of them.
Later, she became her little follower. The things sent to her from home, whenever she took them to Gao Shu and he didn't accept them, she would angrily throw them aside, and most of them ended up with Li Qian.
Yun Yuzhi and Li Yinger disapproved and even warned her a few times to be careful with Li Qian.
Regrettably, Lu Jingqiu did not take it seriously. Yun Yuzhi and Li Yinger often said Lu Jingqiu was foolish with money to spare. In these times when everything was expensive, she treated it like dirt, completely unconcerned.
However, they had also taken advantage of Lu Jingqiu's generosity in their daily lives. Last winter, just before the New Year, when everyone's grain coupons had run out, and they were all digging up wild grass to eat on the nearby mountains, Lu Jingqiu generously took out the grain coupons mailed from her home and bought several kilos of coarse grains, allowing everyone to spend a slightly less hungry winter.
Of course, they also benefitted from Gao Shu's presence. Knowing that Gao Shu would not take her food, Lu Jingqiu came up with this method.
Additionally, for that spot in university, Li Qian deceived Lu Jingqiu out of ten yuan and scammed five yuan from both her and Yinger. Because of this incident, Lu Jingqiu, who originally did not get along with them, formed a united front against Li Qian, and that was when the three of them got a bit closer.
Otherwise, Yun Yuzhi would not have said those heartfelt words to Lu Jingqiu.
"Sister Yuzhi, since the night Xia Lin brought me the invitation, I've realized something. I've chased after Gao Shu for so many years, only to end up with nothing; suddenly, it seems not worth it.
You were right; I am an only child to my parents, and I didn't have to come down to the countryside. But for his sake, I rushed here heedlessly and did not move him at all. Instead, I made him think of me as a burden.
I was a bit impulsive, a bit stubborn, but I don't regret it. Since I liked him, I had to come and try. If I didn't try, how would I know the outcome?
But coming here hasn't been a loss either. In two years, I've learned a lot of things. After the summer harvest is over, I want to ask for leave to go see my parents. I miss them."
Yun Yuzhi laughed, "It's good you can think this way."
The two happily held hands and walked towards the allocated fields. Lu Jingqiu looked over the wheat fields and felt an indescribable warmth in her heart.
In her previous life in Ten-miles Village, aside from Gao Shu, she didn't care about anything else, constantly submerged in endless work, filled with dissatisfaction and complaints. There were few joyful things for her, not even a friend to speak of.
Heaven allowed her to return to this place, and now, aside from Gao Shu, everything else felt so beautiful.
Oh, right, and her mother, she had to go back.
In her previous life, she had played a disappearing act on the back mountain, which led to that incident, resulting in her missing the telegram from her father and her last chance to see her mother. Missing those were the mistakes she could least forgive herself for.
Gao Shu and Xia Lin? If you talk about them as the main male and female leads, even they didn't end up being so wonderful in the end! This lifetime, she no longer wanted to guard a man with a heart of stone. There were plenty of melons at home; instead of wasting that idle time, she'd rather sit in the courtyard and enjoy a melon instead.
Suddenly returning to thirty years ago and having to work in the fields upon arrival, plus just getting over an illness, Lu Jingqiu was truly struggling. Luckily, today wasn't her turn to cook.
These days were busy with farm work, and everyone was occupied. The cooking duties fell on Li Yinger and Li Qing, both of whom taught at the elementary school.
Seeing them return, they quickly approached Yun Yuzhi and nudged her arm, whispering, "Why isn't Gao Shu here?"
The voice was very small, fearful that Lu Jingqiu would hear.
章節 4: Chapter 4: Leave of Absence
Yun Yuzhi whispered, "I bet she's been dragged off to Captain Xia's place for a meal, she's practically the Xia Family's future daughter-in-law now." After saying this, she saw Lu Jingqiu heading inside and added, "I had a talk with Jingqiu today. Jingqiu said she's come to terms with it and won't pester Gao Shu anymore."
"Really?" Li Yinger asked in surprise, then with a note of doubt, "She's not just agreeing to please you, is she? She chased him all the way from the city to here, for two years... No, they're childhood sweethearts."
"I think this time she's truly given up. She sounded a bit heartbroken when she spoke, even mentioned missing her parents. She said she wants to go back and see them after the farm work is done, she looked so pitiful."
Li Yinger breathed a sigh of relief, "Well, she can't exactly be happy after a breakup. That day she ran out and didn't come back until midnight, must have cried for a long time, and the next day, her eyes were still severely swollen from a high fever."
Actually, Li Yinger deeply sympathized with Lu Jingqiu. After all, it was sincere for someone to chase another from the city to the countryside. She somewhat disliked Gao Shu for his coldheartedness.
Yun Yuzhi knew it too, but both were concerned about Lu Jingqiu and didn't want to say anything that might make her feel awkward, "It's good she's letting go. Gao Shu is great, but his heart and mind are filled with Xia Lin."
Lu Jingqiu had no idea about the conversation happening outside. Once back in her room, she quickly rummaged through her small trunk, which held over a hundred yuan, and some cloth coupons and grain coupons, as well as brown sugar, malted milk, and milk—gifts sent by her parents and aunt.
They were worried she might be wronged here.
If only she hadn't spent so carelessly, she thought, she might have saved quite a bit of money.
Her parents doted on their only daughter fiercely, fearing she'd melt in their mouths, or fall from their hands. They both had decent salaries and spent their earnings on their daughter.
Having just one daughter was rare for the times. It wasn't that her parents didn't want more children; her father was unable to have more after an injury from the battlefield. Gradually, her parents gave up trying. Her father had no desire for a son over a daughter and always cherished her.
Yet, she failed to be a dutiful daughter, running off to the countryside for a man. In a letter from her aunt, she learned her mother cried a whole day and night, both angry at her disobedience and worried she might be bullied in the countryside, even her tough father's eyes reddened with worry.
Her uncle and aunt, who lived in the same complex, had no daughters—only two boys—so they were quite close and also treated her like their own daughter.
Her eldest cousin joined the military, and her second cousin worked as well, with four workers in the family. Her aunt, working as a head chef in a state-owned restaurant, got plenty of tasty food and sent many treats for the last two years.
She gave a lot to Gao Shu, but sadly, he avoided her, and in the end, Li Qian got them.
Now, thinking about her goodness lining someone else's stomach, she regretted it painfully, kicking herself for being so foolish.
Lu Jingqiu tidied up her things and took out a can of malted milk and a pound of brown sugar, planning to visit Captain Xia's home in a few days to ask for leave to visit her family.
As she finished up, Yun Yuzhi and Li Yinger came in. Li Yinger saw what Lu Jingqiu was holding and thought they were meant for Gao Shu, her expression one of exasperation, "You're not going to give these to Gao Shu as a wedding gift, are you?"
Lu Jingqiu actually regretted not getting to know them sooner. Sister Yuzhi, from the capital with several siblings, had a straight-shooting personality and was one of the most senior amongst the educated youth. Lu Jingqiu and another sister had come to the countryside, and everyone called her Sister Yuzhi.
Li Yinger arrived a year earlier and lived not too far away, also coming from a well-off family and being articulate, she was hired as a teacher at a primary school within a year.
When she had first arrived, Lu Jingqiu was rather spoiled and insensitive, which offended many. Hence, the two of them hardly spoke to her, not to mention Li Qian's duplicity left them even less inclined to like her.
Had it not been for the incident a while back where Li Qian had swindled their money, they probably wouldn't have paid much attention to her.
Though they didn't get all their money back, gaining two close friends wasn't bad either.
"I won't be as blind as before," declared Lu Jingqiu confidently, "The way I, Lu Jingqiu, like someone is open and aboveboard. It's fine to pursue someone before they're married, but now that they're about to get married, I certainly won't shamelessly become the third party. I concede defeat to Gao Shu, and there's nothing shameful about that."
It had been the same in her previous life, except for the time when she found out about Gao Shu's marriage to Xia Lin and got into a fight with Xia Lin. After that, she ran up to the mountains to play missing, and then many things happened. Until their divorce, she never interfered in their marriage.
Li Yinger said, "That's right, there's no shame in that. I would look down on anyone who tries to ruin their marriage. Jingqiu, although you were a bit willful before, you still had a sense of propriety in what you did."
Lu Jingqiu smiled, somewhat embarrassed, "Thank you for being willing to be my friends, I was before..."
Yun Yuzhi quickly interrupted her with a smile, "The past is the past. Who hasn't been seventeen or eighteen and made mistakes? We all grow from ignorance, and being able to change is our greatest progress."
Li Yinger nodded, "Yeah, right, you didn't do anything wrong, don't feel bad about yourself."
Lu Jingqiu felt the same, who hadn't been young once? She hadn't done anything outrageously against heaven and morality—just badmouthed Xia Lin at the Educated Youth Spot, went up to argue with her to assert her own "sovereignty", and warned her to stay away from Gao Shu.
In front of Gao Shu, she accused Xia Lin of being too close with the riff-raff in the village.
But it was true that Xia Lin hung around with those no-goods, and she had indeed heard those slackers confessing their liking for Xia Lin.
Of course, there had been a misunderstanding between the two because of a slacker, but after that was cleared up, they were as close as anything. Now, looking back, she felt like a jumping clown, making a spectacle of herself for others' amusement.
"I've got these and was thinking of visiting Captain Xia's house to ask for leave," she said. "Do you think he would agree to let me go back at a time like this?"
Yun Yuzhi and Li Yinger also hesitated; after all, it was a busy period.
Adding to that, Captain Xia was Xia Lin's father; Captain Xia knew about the several times Li Jingqiu had argued with Xia Lin and, being someone who doted on his daughter the most, he had even assigned the toughest tasks to Li Jingqiu as a lesson.
And the whole Ten-miles Village knew she liked Gao Shu.
Xia Lin liked Gao Shu too, and her biggest worry was that Captain Xia wouldn't grant her leave because of his daughter.
Yun Yuzhi said, "Try asking first; if Captain Xia doesn't approve, then we'll think of something else."
Li Yinger suggested, "I think you should wait until the wheat harvest is over before you go. A few days won't make a difference."
Lu Jingqiu nodded and then put her things away again.
Everyone hurried to take a break now, because they'd have to work through the night soon.
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