Chapter 140: The Eye of the Storm
“Xiyue, what a coincidence, you’re here too.”
Li Xiuxiu walked over with a bright smile and greeted Ning Xiyue first. Then she turned to Ning Qingyuan, standing beside her, and said excitedly, “Second Brother Ning, you’re here as well. We meet again!”
Not a coincidence — there was only this one supply and marketing cooperative around.
Ning Xiyue gave an awkward smile. “Just here to look around.”
“I’m accompanying my sister,” Ning Qingyuan nodded and replied.
“Second Brother Ning, you’re such a good brother. My own brother won’t come with me even when I ask. It’s so infuriating.”
Li Xiuxiu was delighted, trying to find more topics to talk about. Just as she was about to say more, Liu Hongmei, who was sitting next to her, saw her getting restless. Ignoring her companion’s attempts to hold her back, she walked straight over to greet them.
“Comrade Ning, so you’ve come to the co-op too.” Liu Hongmei smiled gently, then turned to Ning Xiyue. “Hello, Sister Ning. Do you remember me? We met once at the zhiqing dormitory. It’s been a while.”
“Mhm. I’m here to accompany my sister.” Ning Qingyuan repeated what he had said to Li Xiuxiu, but this time to Liu Hongmei — just as perfunctorily.
Liu Hongmei didn’t find it perfunctory. She looked back at Ning Xiyue again.
“I remember. Hello.” Ning Xiyue still wore that awkward smile. The way Liu Hongmei called her “Sister Ning” made her toes curl with embarrassment — it sounded too much like “Lin Sister” (a reference to the tragic literary figure Lin Daiyu).
“You’re from the neighboring team, right? I’ve heard of you. You’re amazing — you even became a barefoot doctor.” Liu Hongmei gave her a thumbs up in praise.
She knew how much Ning Qingyuan valued his sister, so she wanted to build a good relationship with Ning Xiyue first. The first step was, of course, to say nice things and close the distance between them.
“Of course our Xiyue is great. Every auntie in the team praises her.” Li Xiuxiu, alarm bells ringing in her mind, quickly jumped into the conversation. “Second Brother Ning, you don’t know how much the aunties adore her. She’s the most popular zhiqing in our team.”
“Is that so? Then I’m relieved.” Ning Qingyuan liked hearing that and smiled.
Liu Hongmei glanced warily at Li Xiuxiu — a woman’s intuition told her this comrade clearly had feelings for Ning Qingyuan.
That wouldn’t do.
She continued trying to praise Ning Xiyue and finally played her trump card. Lowering her voice, she said, “I’m close with one of the shop assistants here. I can get some internal defective goods — no ration coupons needed. Do you want me to help you buy some?”
Liu Hongmei believed her offer was very tempting — most people couldn’t refuse goods that didn’t require ration tickets.
But she underestimated this brother-sister pair.
Ning Xiyue didn’t lack a few small goods.
And Ning Qingyuan was a doting brother through and through.
Her words only made him glance at her once, then he turned to look at Ning Xiyue — waiting to see if she had any interest.
If his sister wanted something, he didn’t care whether tickets were needed or not.
Li Xiuxiu, meanwhile, fell silent — having connections in the co-op was impressive, and she had nothing to say to top that. But she could still cling closer to Xiyue.
“Second Brother Ning, are you going to send Xiyue home later? Maybe we can go together.”
She cast a not-so-subtle glance at Liu Hongmei and felt secretly pleased.
“No need, we still have things to do.” Ning Qingyuan refused without hesitation.
Li Xiuxiu wasn’t embarrassed and smiled. “I see. Then I’ll head back by myself later.”
At that moment, Ning Xiyue realized that these two women trying to get close to her brother were attempting to use her as a tool — putting her right at the center of their tug-of-war.
No way. She had to get out of this. She and her brother weren’t anyone’s pawns.
“Comrade Liu, thank you for the offer, but I’m just here to browse with my brother. I don’t even know what I want to buy yet, so I won’t trouble you.”
Ning Xiyue politely declined.
Are you kidding? If she agreed, she’d be stepping right into the whirlpool herself.
And if she owed this kind of favor, it could affect her brother’s reputation. She wasn’t so desperate for a bargain that she’d trade her brother for it.
“It’s fine. If you ever need anything, you can come to me.” Liu Hongmei kept her smile warm and graceful, doing her best to show her good side.
Ning Xiyue glanced at the two still lingering nearby and decided to shoo them off. “I’ll just look around by myself. You two should go see what you want — no need to follow us.”
Both Li Xiuxiu and Liu Hongmei tactfully stepped back, wandering to another aisle to browse, though their eyes still darted toward Ning Qingyuan from time to time.
Ning Xiyue spent three mao on two jin of rock salt for pickling vegetables — there wasn’t much else worth buying. Ning Qingyuan didn’t want anything either, so the siblings prepared to leave.
Ning Xiyue politely called out, “Xiuxiu, Comrade Liu, we’re heading off now.”
Liu Hongmei waved warmly. “Alright, take care. Sister Ning, next time you visit our zhiqing dorm, come find me to hang out.”
The co-op wasn’t big — just a few steps to catch up. Li Xiuxiu, looking for any chance to interact, quickly followed, and Liu Hongmei trailed after her too. Even if she didn’t speak, she wanted to be near.
“Xiyue, you’re done shopping already?”
“Mhm, we’re leaving.” Ning Xiyue nodded and walked straight out without looking back.
It was suffocating in there — better to leave this stormy place quickly. Once they were out, she’d find a chance to talk to her brother about the situation.
Li Xiuxiu followed them out as if to see them off, and Liu Hongmei matched her step for step.
“Second Brother Ning, see you next time.”
Walking behind Ning Xiyue, Ning Qingyuan felt that something was off today. He accidentally caught the looks that Li Xiuxiu and Liu Hongmei were giving him and frowned. Then he stopped walking, turned, and faced them with a serious expression.
“Second Brother Ning, is there something you want to say?” Li Xiuxiu asked, looking at him expectantly.
“Comrade Ning, is there something wrong?” Liu Hongmei asked with a polite smile.
A flicker of surprise crossed Ning Xiyue’s eyes, and she waited quietly ahead for her brother.
After two seconds of silence, Ning Qingyuan spoke seriously:
“My friends, I’d like to ask you for a favor. Forgive me for being self-absorbed, but if anyone asks you about me, or if someone tries to introduce me to someone, please tell them my true thoughts.”
“In my heart, there’s only family, work, and study. I don’t want to date or start a family here. I’m counting on you both.”
His tone was firm, and every word was spoken with strength.
The smiles on Li Xiuxiu and Liu Hongmei’s faces disappeared after hearing that.
But Li Xiuxiu was smart — she forced a stiff smile and nodded. “Got it. I’ll remember and help you.”
Liu Hongmei, after a long pause, only uttered a faint, “Mhm.”
Ning Xiyue: Her brother’s pretty impressive!
Not only did he pick up on the situation, but he even countered with a move like that.
One-handed six points! (Meaning: perfect play — she’s impressed.)
