Chapter 77: She’s Numb from It All
The heavy, stifling atmosphere in the educated youth dormitory was too much even for Liu Yao and Wang Jiandong — usually the most talkative and cheerful of the bunch.
They hurriedly packed their things and headed out to work, desperate to escape the suffocating environment.
The new educated youths were still fine — they had just arrived in Daliu Brigade, and everyone knew that no matter how things turned out, none of the coveted opportunities would land on them. Their chances were slim. The veteran educated youths didn’t even bother to look at them.
Aside from competing with the local commune members, the most competitive candidates among the educated youths were clearly people like Wu Guifang and Zhao Jianshe — those who had been working in the countryside for many years.
When Ning Xiyue was packing her things, she noticed that the harmony that once existed among the veteran educated youths was gone. Even their smiles now carried traces of guardedness.
It was obvious that everyone was eyeing that unknown quota.
She quickly finished packing and went out to work — the tense atmosphere was too much to bear.
But once she got to work, she realized that the group of gossip-loving aunties were all talking about the same thing.
During the break, Aunt Liu pulled her aside and asked,
“Little Yue, have you heard? There’s talk that our brigade might have a quota for the Worker-Peasant-Soldier University. A lot of people are saying so. I even told my boy to try for it. If he succeeds, he’ll be a university student — he could move to the city and live off government rations!”
Ning Xiyue widened her eyes while sipping her water. Wow, now the rumor had evolved into “the brigade already has a quota.” The story was getting more and more outrageous.
Aunt Zhao chimed in, sharing another bit of gossip from who-knows-where:
“Yes, I heard that too. They say the captain will pick someone who works hard, is educated, has good thinking, doesn’t cause trouble, and has contributed to the brigade.”
When Ning Xiyue heard that, she immediately guessed that this was probably a tactic deliberately spread by the captain and other leaders — a way to motivate everyone to work harder.
With conditions like these, anyone hoping to compete for the quota would definitely try to perform better in the coming days.
So cunning! she thought.
Aunt Qian asked curiously, “Xiyue, are you going to try for it?”
The four aunties stared at her, waiting for an answer.
“You’re all joking,” Ning Xiyue said with a smile. “I only hope to live a peaceful life here in Daliu Brigade. I’m not interested in anything that doesn’t belong to me. And besides, this whole thing might not even be real. I don’t want to waste my time chasing empty dreams. I’m happy just working and chatting with you aunties.”
The aunties exchanged pleased glances — one less competitor for their own children.
Aunt Zhang nodded. “True, your family is well-off. Who knows, maybe you’ll find a job in the city like some of the educated youths before and return there.”
Aunt Liu added, “I’m just saying — it’s still more fun when we’re working and chatting together.”
At that moment, Aunt Yangliu walked over, and everyone’s attention immediately shifted to her. They crowded around, asking if the news was true.
“I don’t know where you’re hearing all this,” she said, trying not to laugh at their eager faces. “But I can tell you this: everything depends on how our commune members perform.”
She raised her voice so everyone could hear:
“If the members work hard, perform well, and we pass the first-grade grain quota with our public grain this year, then we’ll have a chance at becoming an ‘Outstanding Collective.’ And if that happens, what you’re all hoping for might come true. But if we don’t work hard, forget about quotas — we’ll get nothing.”
“Got it, got it — just means we need to work hard. These young ones have plenty of strength. They’ll manage it.”
Whether it was true or not, working harder wouldn’t hurt. And maybe they’d get it.
That was the unspoken thought in every auntie’s heart.
Once the aunties dispersed, Aunt Yangliu called Ning Xiyue aside and gave her a word of advice.
“Xiyue, don’t get involved with them. This whole thing might not even happen. I don’t even know who started the rumor, but it’s spreading like it’s official. Your uncle and the others are only speculating.”
She glanced around, then whispered in Ning Xiyue’s ear: “If we really do get a quota, the selection will happen later, after everything’s official. Trying now is pointless. This is just Dawei’s way of motivating everyone to work harder.”
“Don’t worry, Auntie,” Ning Xiyue said. “I won’t get involved. I’m happy with how things are now. I don’t want anything more — I just want to live well in the present.”
She couldn’t escape the “battlefield” of competition fast enough, let alone jump into it herself. All she wanted was to stay on the sidelines and watch the drama unfold.
She had to admit, Xia Zhipeng had certainly stirred the pot — the attention and tension had been completely redirected, throwing everyone into a state of anxiety.
After work, it was Chen Yechu’s turn to cook again. Ning Xiyue thought she’d go back to the dormitory and enjoy the show, but she had barely sat down before Wu Guifang called her to the back of the house.
It was the same spot behind her small kitchen — the very place where Chen Yechu, Yu Zhiyu, and Xia Zhipeng had talked last time.
Seeing the place again, Ning Xiyue couldn’t help but roll her eyes. Why does everyone love talking here?
She silently called out to her system: “Little Turtle, check if anyone’s around.”
“Don’t worry, Host. No one’s there.”
Hearing the system’s reply, Ning Xiyue felt relieved — there weren’t too many people around.
“Xiyue, come have some wild grapes. I found a vine during work today, and there were two clusters still on it. Quick, try them — they’re sweet!” Wu Guifang said cheerfully, pulling a small bunch of wild grapes from her pocket and handing them to Ning Xiyue.
The grapes were blackish-purple and about the size of blueberries. Ning Xiyue’s mouth was already watering. She plucked two from Wu Guifang’s hand and tasted them — slightly sweet and quite delicious.
“Thank you, Sister Guifang. Was there something you wanted to talk about?”
Guifang got straight to the point, not bothering with small talk. “It’s about the Worker-Peasant-Soldier University quota. I wanted to ask what your plans are.”
Of course it was about that. And understandably so — Sister Guifang had been in the countryside for years. At twenty-four, she was the only female educated youth who had lasted this long without getting married. Some of the others had given up and married local men.
Now that there was even a glimmer of hope, of course she wanted to seize it. Ning Xiyue completely understood how she felt.
“Sister Guifang, to be honest, even if there is a quota, I’m not going to compete for it. My family is already keeping an eye out for a job for me. I’ll return to the city sooner or later. I’m not in a rush. And besides, as you know, we new educated youths probably don’t even have a chance.”
Wu Guifang knew this perfectly well. Even if Ning Xiyue did get some sort of award, she had only been here a few days. Any benefits would almost certainly go to local commune members instead.
So today, she was mainly here to gather information.
She shook her head and smiled. “I don’t mean it like that. I just wanted to know if you’ve heard anything from Aunt Yangliu. I noticed you’re close with her and thought maybe you had some inside info.”
“Sister Guifang, you’re giving me too much credit. Auntie wouldn’t tell me anything like that.”
Ning Xiyue looked her in the eye and said seriously, “But I do know this: if someone works diligently, lives honestly, and avoids causing trouble, their future won’t be bad. Everyone in the commune sees who’s doing well and who isn’t. Don’t you agree?”
“Sometimes people just need to calm down and think carefully before acting.”
That was all she could say — whether Wu Guifang took the hint was up to her.
She was only offering this advice because Wu Guifang had always treated her kindly. She didn’t want to see her lose her head over a quota that might not even exist and end up doing something foolish that would make people dislike her.
Wu Guifang carefully considered Ning Xiyue’s words, then laughed and handed her the grapes. “Alright, I understand. Thank you, Xiyue. Keep these grapes — eat them. If I find more next time, I’ll bring them for you.”
Ning Xiyue accepted them without hesitation, plucked another grape, and said with a bright smile, “They’re really delicious. I won’t be polite, then — thank you, Sister Guifang.”
She planned to plant one of the grapes in her storage space later as an experiment.
The two of them walked back toward the dormitory.
Ning Xiyue thought that would be the end of it — but then Wang Fenglan came to ask her the same question, with the same reason as Wu Guifang.
And again, they met in the same back spot.
Just as she finished giving Wang Fenglan the same stock answers, Zhao Jianshe came to ask her too.
Would it never end? Ning Xiyue felt completely numb.
She repeated the same prepared lines to each of them and sent them on their way one by one.
To avoid further trouble, she decided not to go back to the dormitory at all. Instead, she stayed in her small kitchen to inspect the stove setup. She planned to find time in the next day or two to “legally” take the pot out of her storage space and start cooking some delicious meals herself.
The surface of the stove was already dry, but she wasn’t sure about the inside. She grabbed a brick and tapped around to test it.
“It’s pretty solid. Judging by the sound, the inside should be dry too. I can light a fire now.”
Ding! [Sign-in location triggered — self-built small kitchen. Would the Host like to sign in?]
