Chapter 326: Everyone’s Reactions
Ning Xiyue finished a few math problems in the clinic, then, seeing the time was about right, closed up and headed to the canteen for lunch.
Zhou Cheng had returned to work today, and the dishes in the canteen were his cooking. So Ning Xiyue decided to skip cooking herself and eat ready-made food. She left the buns to wrap after lunch and planned to steam them later in the evening.
Upon entering the canteen, Chen Yechu had already packed her meal and waved at her from the ticket exchange spot.
Ever since the first day the canteen opened—when Chen Yechu helped the coal-mining team accountant exchange meal tickets—she had become the canteen’s cashier, managing money and meal tickets. She no longer had to do chores inside the canteen.
She had successfully moved from a canteen helper to logistics staff—a significant upgrade. The work was much lighter, and she had more free time.
Meal tickets were now only exchanged once every two days, and the only window to exchange them was the lunch hour, from 12:00 to 13:00. Today happened to be one of those days.
Ning Xiyue thought the new youth in the hostel were lucky to arrive on a day when they could exchange tickets.
She walked over, and Chen Yechu handed her two labeled lunch boxes from under the table.
“Xiyue, these are yours and your brother’s meals. You got back early—just as I sat down, here you are.”
“I actually got back a while ago and stayed in the clinic for a bit,” Ning Xiyue smiled as she took the lunch boxes. She hadn’t left yet.
“The two jin of lean meat you wanted are already bought and salted. I left the bowl in cold water for now—take it back when you get home.”
“Really? Thanks so much!” Chen Yechu said happily.
Ning Xiyue glanced around the canteen and didn’t see the new youth from the hostel. She decided to ask Chen Yechu: “By the way, four new youth came to our hostel today—two guys and two girls. I told them about the canteen; they should come to you for meal tickets. Did you see them?”
“New youth again? I haven’t noticed any unfamiliar faces. How many have you interacted with already? Are they easy to get along with?” Chen Yechu asked curiously.
“From the first impression, they seem fine—doesn’t look like troublemakers. We’ll see more once we interact longer,” Ning Xiyue replied.
With no one exchanging tickets at the moment, and her second brother not yet back, Ning Xiyue sat on a nearby bench to chat with Chen Yechu.
“You won’t believe my luck. I was riding my bike under the big willow tree when I ran into them. The captain handed them off to me and went on to the Dahuai team. On the way back, I spent a little time with them—they all made a good impression. Each has a distinctive personality, memorable names, and they’re easy to recognize.”
Hearing this, Chen Yechu felt reassured.
“I hope nothing goes wrong later. I hope they’re all well-behaved. Our hostel has finally reached a peaceful, harmonious state, and life is good. I really like it.”
“I like life now too—it’s comfortable,” Ning Xiyue said, relaxing her features with a look of contentment.
“Little sister,” Ning Qingyuan called from the canteen entrance behind her, “dinner’s ready.”
“Coming,” Ning Xiyue replied. “Yechu, I’ll eat first—let’s talk later.”
Chen Yechu nodded, and Ning Xiyue grabbed the two lunch boxes and ran to her brother.
At their usual spots, the other youth who had finished work and came for lunch were already seated.
Ning Xiyue quickly joined them.
As she opened her lunch box, Liu Yao asked excitedly: “Xiyue, I heard new youth arrived at our hostel. The aunts said you brought them back.”
All eyes turned to Ning Xiyue, eager for details.
Wang Mengmeng asked, practically bouncing with excitement: “What happened? Tell us, tell us!”
“Yep, they arrived. But don’t just stare at me—eat first, and I’ll explain while we eat,” Ning Xiyue said.
She was a little surprised at how excited the “older youth”—those who had arrived with her batch—were at the news of newcomers.
As they ate, she briefly shared today’s events with the hostel youth, essentially repeating what she had told Chen Yechu.
Anything beyond that, regarding personal traits, they would have to find out themselves.
After hearing her story, everyone was eager to see what the new youth looked like and to learn about their temperaments.
Having transitioned from newcomers to “old hands,” this excitement was rare and made them a little giddy.
Everyone ate faster than usual.
When Ning Xiyue left the canteen, she still hadn’t seen the new youth arrive for lunch.
She wondered: “Could they have gotten lost? I haven’t seen a single one—where did they go?”
