Backup Resources: I Must Be Blind.
Sun Mei heard Zhang mention that Educated Youth Jiang looked like Second Brother Xie, and she wasn’t too pleased about it. After all, it was clear that Second Brother Xie couldn’t compare to Educated Youth Jiang, and if they looked alike, it meant that her child was the inferior one.
Moreover, Sun Mei didn’t think the two looked alike at all. She retorted, “Where do they look alike?”
“Your own mother may not see it, but outsiders can see it clearly. They really do look alike.” Seeing that Sun Mei wasn’t too happy, Zhang’s smugness subsided a bit. She secretly rejoiced and planned to mention Educated Youth Jiang more to provoke a reaction from Sun Mei.
Zhang suddenly had a revelation, as if she had discovered a coincidence. Her eyes sparkled, and she clapped her hands. “Sun Mei, I just realized something interesting. Educated Youth Jiang is the same age as your Fifth Xie.”
“Maybe they were even born in the same month.”
“And he looks like your Second Son Xie too.” Zhang added to herself in her mind: your daughter-in-law was infatuated with him before.
Zhang tried hard to suppress a smile. “It seems like there’s a special connection between him and your family, isn’t there?”
Sun Mei, who had initially felt triumphant, suddenly felt a jolt in her brain, as if a layer of mist had been suddenly dispelled. Surname Jiang, the same age as Fifth Xie, and looks similar to Second Xie…
Sun Mei’s heart raced wildly, and she suddenly had a terrible suspicion. The people from back then seemed to also have the surname Jiang. Could it be… Could it be…
It can’t be just a coincidence!
At night, when Old man Xie returned, with a white towel draped over his shoulders, sitting on the bed rubbing his legs, Sun Mei, who sat at the bedside looking troubled, whispered, “Old man Xie, today Auntie Zhang mentioned that Educated Youth Jiang looks like our second son.”
Old man Xie waved his hand near his cheek. “Is she blind? Can we country folks really look like those city folks?”
“Our second son can’t compare to that cultured Educated Youth Jiang. Educated Youth Jiang is even from a cadre family.”
Sun Mei’s heart pounded in her ears. “Think about it carefully. Doesn’t Educated Youth Jiang resemble our second son a bit?”
Old man Xie recalled, “There is a bit of resemblance, but when the two are together, they’re definitely not the same kind of people.”
“Kids from the city have a different vibe.”
“Why are you always thinking about these things?”
Sun Mei gave his elbow a slap without patience, full of disdain for this foolish old man.
After planting a seed of doubt in her heart, Sun Mei felt as if thousands of worms were crawling inside her body, longing to see Educated Youth Jiang immediately. However, Educated Youth Jiang was also in the team going to the provincial study session and had just left, so it would be at least ten days before he could return.
As the ox carts bumped along the road and arrived at the county town, they had to take a train to their destination. There were no delays along the way, and they headed straight to the train station. By the time they reached the train station, it was almost 1:00 p.m.
Their train was scheduled to depart at 2:30 p.m., so they had to have lunch at the train station.
The train station was crowded and stuffy, filled with various peculiar smells. Aside from those with young children, there were also people carrying chickens, ducks, and geese, creating a noisy atmosphere reminiscent of a bustling market.
Su Xiaoman glanced at the two chickens, wondering if they could bring them onto the train.
“It’s been many years since I last visited the train station. There hasn’t been much change…” Old Man Chen, the eldest in terms of seniority and age, began to sigh as soon as he arrived at the train station.
“You must be hungry. When I left, I made some corn buns for lunch. I can share them with you all, I have extras.” Zhang Lili took out a packet of buns from her bag. She didn’t have many, just four in total, which she had prepared before setting out.
Four buns: one for herself, one for Educated Youth Jiang, one for Old Man Chen, and there was supposed to be one for Zhao Qingqing, but Zhang Lili changed her mind.
She didn’t want to please that female educated youth.
Building good relationships with Educated Youth Jiang and Old Man Chen was enough for her.
Zhao Qingqing said, “Just these few buns for all of us? That’s not enough.”
“Do you have anything else with you?” Tang Jianqiang asked innocently. “I have two boiled eggs and a few dry biscuits, but it’s still not enough.”
In this era of food shortages, people didn’t carry much food with them, and even if they did, they might not be willing to share it with others.
Normally, everyone managed their own provisions, but Zhang Lili had already taken the initiative to bring out the buns. Others couldn’t just eat them for free, so they had to contribute some food as well. Everyone ate together.
“What would you like to eat, Xiao Man?” Xie Mingtu asked Su Xiaoman in a low voice. Both of their luggage was on him. Su Xiaoman was supposed to carry her own bag, but Xie Mingtu had already taken it upon himself to carry all the luggage.
Su Xiaoman had to let her revolutionary comrade Xie Gouzi help carry it. She noticed that although Comrade Xie seemed frighteningly thin, he was surprisingly strong. The luggage, which was very heavy for her, felt like nothing on his back, and he didn’t even seem to be out of breath while walking.
Su Xiaoman only had money and food vouchers on her now, and everything else was held by Xie Mingtu.
When Xie Mingtu asked her, Su Xiaoman was still thinking about the two chickens at the station. After all, chicken meat was very appetizing nowadays. Crossing over from a time where she got tired of eating chicken, beef, and lamb, Su Xiaoman now craved meat very much.
She wasn’t just thinking about whether she could bring the chickens onto the train in the 1970s, but also… if she couldn’t bring them onto the train, how would she deal with these chickens?
It would be great if she could handle them, of course, she was dreaming.
Chickens and ducks were precious assets.
In the future, she must raise chickens and ducks.
“I’d like something salty… I want to eat hot rice.” In such an environment, Su Xiaoman didn’t have much of an appetite, although she was very hungry. If she had to choose something to eat, of course, rice dishes would be the most delicious.
Inside the train station, there were vendors selling boxed meals. Su Xiaoman hesitated as she felt the money and meal vouchers in her pocket. She had managed to retrieve over twenty yuan earlier, although she wasn’t sure about the price of boxed meals at this time. Nevertheless, she reckoned that this money should be enough for her to buy a few boxed meals.
Closing her eyes briefly, Su Xiaoman made a decision. She intended to treat Xie Mingtu to a boxed meal. Since he had treated her to grilled rabbit last time, there had been some back and forth between them. This time, she would treat him to a boxed meal at the train station.
Finally, just as Su Xiaoman was about to say her last two words, she saw Xie Gouzi beside her nodding slightly. He placed the luggage by Su Xiaoman’s legs and muttered, “I’ll go buy it. Xiaoman, wait here.”
With that, he strode off.
Su Xiaoman looked down at the luggage by her feet and thought, “What? Xie Gouzi, do you have money?!”
As it turned out, he did. A few minutes later, Xie Mingtu returned with two boxed meals in his arms, and the aroma of cooked rice and dishes wafted from them. It was so enticing that even passers-by couldn’t help but glance back at him.
Xie Mingtu and Su Xiaoman sat on the corner of the waiting chairs, a spot Su Xiaoman had occupied earlier with her luggage. Xie Mingtu handed her one of the boxed meals.
The boxed meal was a typical one for this era, consisting of white rice with three dishes: braised pork, tomato scrambled eggs, and stir-fried shepherd’s purse.
The stir-fried shepherd’s purse, with pork belly wrapped in green peppers and onions, exuded a particularly strong aroma. The lean and fatty pork stimulated one’s appetite, with the soup glistening with oil on top.
The tomato scrambled eggs were authentically made, with the golden chicken eggs not diluted with water, presenting a fresh and beautiful colour. The red tomatoes on the side were sweet and sour, making one want to eat more rice.
A boxed meal cost five jiao and also required a meal voucher. It wasn’t considered expensive, and one could afford to order one with a bit of determination.
This meal was very appetizing, with the tangy tomatoes not only whetting one’s appetite but also tasting delicious. It was much tastier than the boxed meal combos of the future and far superior to some airplane meals that only had good looks but lacked taste.
Su Xiaoman leaned over and quietly asked Xie Mingtu about the price. He told her.
Su Xiaoman thought to herself that Xie Gouzi really must have secretly saved up some money. Despite the pressure from Sun Mei, the sharp-tongued one, he managed to hide some money. She wondered where he got this secret stash of money from?
Moreover, not only did he have hidden money, but he also had “hidden rabbit.”
Su Xiaoman couldn’t help but wonder if all the rabbits on the mountain were his backup resources. This rabbit killer…
Although Su Xiaoman didn’t know exactly how much money Xie Mingtu had hidden, in the eyes of outsiders, Xie Mingtu, who was often oppressed at home, should not have any money.
So Su Xiaoman tugged at Xie Mingtu’s sleeve. “Xie Mingtu, if anyone asks, just say that I paid for the boxed meals.”
She couldn’t let Xie Gouzi’s little money bag be exposed.
If the money came from Su Xiaoman, she had just received some money from the young intellectuals, so it wouldn’t be a problem for her to buy two boxed meals.
Of course, in the eyes of others, it would be questionable for her to be willing to treat Xie Mingtu to boxed meals.
“Okay, it’s Xiaoman’s money,” Xie Mingtu nodded, his beautiful eyes shining brightly, his tone unusually serious.
Listening to his words, Su Xiaoman felt a bit uncomfortable, as if she appeared too self-important. Clearly, it was him who provided the money, yet she was taking advantage and claiming it was hers. “Don’t get me wrong, I just…”
“No misunderstandings. It’s all Xiaoman’s money,” Xie Mingtu interrupted, his tone resolute.
Su Xiaoman: “…”
Although she felt something was off, there were still Zhao Qingqing and others around, making it inconvenient to clarify things further. Su Xiaoman could only swallow her pride and go along with it.
“I’ll cook something delicious for you when we get back in the future.”
Hearing her words, Xie Mingtu, holding the boxed meals, seemed to smile happily. His eyes were very beautiful, like two curved crescent moons when he smiled, with a hint of tenderness underneath, reflecting Su Xiaoman’s figure in his pupils.
Su Xiaoman pursed her lips. Her breathing seemed to slow down. In that moment, she suddenly had the illusion that Xie Mingtu was quite handsome.
Su Xiaoman thought to herself: “I must be blind.”
When will this smelly dog shave? It’s only because Su Xiaoman didn’t have a knife with her at the moment. Otherwise, she would definitely press him down on the waiting chair and shave off the stubble on his chin.
…When she has a knife one day, she won’t let him off the hook.
Su Xiaoman found it difficult to communicate with Xie Mingtu. It was like her antenna couldn’t pick up his signals, and sometimes she couldn’t understand what he meant.
In her opinion, Xie Mingtu was intelligent and talented but also very strange and eccentric.
Genius ideas are often unexpected, after all. Sometimes it’s hard to distinguish between genius, madness, and foolishness.
Even though he could solve math problems quickly, Su Xiaoman still felt that he was a bit slow-witted in some aspects.
In her eyes, he always seemed like a big silly dog.
Su Xiaoman and Xie Mingtu sat together to eat boxed meals. People in this era loved fatty meat, but Su Xiaoman didn’t like it too fatty, so she gave some to Xie Mingtu.
“I don’t like it too fatty. You eat the meat, and I’ll have the egg.”
“Okay.”
The aroma of the boxed meals was irresistible. Even Educated Youth Jiang, Zhao Qingqing, and several other young intellectuals pooled their money to buy boxed meals for lunch. Even Old Chen, who usually saved money, generously paid to try the boxed meals at the train station.
As a result, Zhang Lili’s four buns were left untouched by everyone except her. However, four buns were enough to satisfy her.
Tang Jianqiang, munching on biscuits, glanced at Zhang Lili. She had asked several people but hadn’t approached him.
Of course, Tang Jianqiang didn’t want the buns either.
As he ate, Tang Jianqiang’s gaze kept falling on Xie Mingtu’s head. To this young man, Xie Mingtu’s hair was more captivating than the boxed meals.
Just looking at his hair could satisfy his hunger.
Tang Jianqiang touched his own hair, imagining what he would look like with Xie Mingtu’s hairstyle.
Zhao Qingqing sat near Zhang Lili, eating boxed meals. Zhang Lili ate her buns alone, smelling the delicious aroma in the air and swallowing saliva, but she glared hatefully at Su Xiaoman.
Su Xiaoman noticed Tang Jianqiang’s gaze. She thought he was looking at the food in Xie Mingtu’s bowl, but then she realized he had been staring at Xie Mingtu’s hair?
Su Xiaoman: “…?”
What’s wrong with Xie Mingtu’s hair? He shouldn’t be bald, so it shouldn’t attract so much attention.
At half past two in the afternoon, the train departed on time. Su Xiaoman and her group boarded the train, sitting together in cramped hard seats. The overhead luggage racks were stuffed full, and their legs were surrounded by belongings.
The train compartment was small and stuffy. Every window was open, allowing in the cool autumn breeze, accompanied by the rhythmic clacking of the train tracks.
As it was midday, there wasn’t much desire for conversation. The compartment remained relatively quiet. Su Xiaoman couldn’t spot any chickens or ducks in the compartment, so she couldn’t yet determine if live animals could be brought onto the train.
Before long, drowsiness overcame her, and Su Xiaoman fell asleep. Sleeping against the seatback wasn’t comfortable on the narrow hard seats, so her body unconsciously leaned towards the warmth beside her.
Xie Mingtu tilted his head slightly, bearing the weight of the person leaning on his shoulder. He didn’t feel uncomfortable; in fact, he hoped she would get closer.
Educated Youth Jiang, seated diagonally across from them, saw Su Xiaoman leaning on Xie Mingtu’s shoulder and felt a complicated mix of emotions, a bit annoyed.
The woman’s cheeks were fair, with a hint of rosy blush, making even an eighteen-year-old girl, even without makeup, attract attention with her beauty.
She was leaning on another man’s shoulder.
*
The next morning, they arrived at their destination. They got off the train and took local “trucks” to Bai Shi Commune.
At this time, comfortable buses were rare; most vehicles traveling on rural roads were trucks. When goods needed to be transported, the rear compartment would carry the cargo, and when people needed to be transported, they would sit on top of the cargo with a simple removable canopy overhead.
Arriving at the commune, two tractors were waiting to pick them up, each driven by a different driver. One driver was in his thirties or forties, with a slightly lopsided head and a hearty laugh. He appeared amiable and greeted them warmly.
The other driver, a middle-aged man with a slightly stern face, had thick black eyebrows that resembled a knife. He had a bit of stubble under his nose and wore a stern expression that seemed to convey authority, making him less approachable.
The jovial driver jumped out of the tractor first and introduced himself, “I’m surnamed Jiang, Jiang Changjiang. Just call me Big Brother Jiang. This is Uncle Zhou from the Zhou family, Zhou Heqiang. You can call him Uncle Zhou.”
Su Xiaoman and the others exchanged introductions with them.
Uncle Zhou seemed displeased with their group and didn’t initiate much conversation. He merely grunted and gave them a stern look, making those with timid dispositions quiet down.
Everyone could tell that Uncle Zhou had a temper.
“Get on the tractor, get on, get on! I’ll take you over. Secretary has already arranged everything. Come on, each of you get into a different tractor,” urged Jiang Changjiang enthusiastically.
Once on the tractor, the friendly Jiang Changjiang explained the situation to them.
“You’re not the first group to come here to learn. There have been several batches before you. They said they were here to learn, but they didn’t put much effort into it. They were just going through the motions.”
“There was one guy before who even broke the village’s tractor.”
“Causing damage is bad enough, and now Uncle Zhou doesn’t welcome outsiders anymore…”
So, they weren’t the first ones here. Their production team had performed well, becoming a model for others and attracting many visitors for learning. With several batches of visitors, friction was inevitable, leading to some incidents and causing emotions to run high among the locals.
“After hosting you all, we won’t be accepting any more visitors this year. We’re already overwhelmed with our own village affairs; we don’t have time to entertain outsiders.”
Hearing this, Zhao Qingqing sighed quietly, “It seems we didn’t pick the right time to come.”
With emotions running high on the other side, would they still be treated well?
Educated Youth Jiang replied, “Let’s just focus on learning.”
Upon hearing this, Zhou Heqiang, who was driving, overheard and criticized, “Some city kids like to talk the talk but don’t walk the walk. I hate those kinds of people the most.”
Su Xiaoman chuckled, “Uncle, we definitely practice what we preach.”
As Su Xiaoman spoke, she felt her whole body trembling, feeling like she was on a vibrating machine. It was her first time riding on a tractor, and sitting on it felt like sitting on a massage chair. Speaking of the tractor, its tracks were somewhat like those of a tank, seemingly the king of all terrains, able to go anywhere. However…
The experience for the people sitting on it wasn’t very pleasant.
After sitting for a while, their bottoms felt numb.
– A natural meat-shaker.
Just as Zhou Heqiang was about to respond, they saw a man wearing a straw hat standing by the roadside, waving at them and calling out to Uncle Zhou. The car stopped by the roadside, and the man in the straw hat explained that their village’s tractor had broken down, and they were in a dilemma. The squad leader had asked him to find someone to repair it, and Zhou Heqiang was known to be the best at fixing tractors in the vicinity.
“The third uncle came to take a look, but they couldn’t fix it over there. Uncle Zhou, please take a look.”
“It’s not far.”
“Liangzi has sharp eyes; he happened to see you all.”
It was only at this moment that Su Xiaoman realized that Zhou Heqiang, who had a somewhat sarcastic tone, was actually good at fixing tractors. It was said that whenever there was a problem with a tractor nearby, people would come to him for repairs.
Now, hearing about the situation, since several teams helped each other out, they decided to drive over together to take a look. It would also be a chance to see what was going on there.
After driving on the dirt road for about ten minutes, they saw a yellowish tractor parked not far away under a tree, surrounded by seven or eight men.
“People are coming? Do we know these guys? Another group here to ‘learn’?”
“It’s busy here too.”
“Uncle Zhou came to help. I can’t find the problem on my side. It just keeps spinning, but the belt won’t turn…”
Zhou Heqiang got out of the car, followed by Su Xiaoman and the others.
After such a bumpy ride, Su Xiaoman’s legs were numb when she got off the car. It took her a while to regain feeling. Xie Mingtu had been waiting by her side all this time.
Zhou Heqiang had already squatted down and was inspecting the tractor with his tools.
Su Xiaoman and Xie Mingtu approached to see the situation.
Zhou Heqiang inserted the tractor’s key, and as he turned it, there was a loud bang accompanied by black smoke, as if the ground was about to be shaken apart.
“There’s no problem here…”
After checking for a while, Zhou Heqiang still couldn’t find the problem. However, there were a few places where the belt couldn’t be engaged.
“If even Uncle Zhou can’t figure it out, what do we do?”
“We’ve never encountered this situation before.”
“This is troublesome.”
Several men started to panic a bit. Their village needed the tractor for various tasks these days, and if it couldn’t be fixed, it would be even more difficult. The price of a tractor wasn’t low.
Finding someone from a distant place to fix it would also cost a lot of money.
“Don’t make noise, I’ll check this side. You, lift it up a bit,” Zhou Heqiang’s tone wasn’t good, his voice was somewhat hoarse, as if he was angry, “You guys, move aside, you’re blocking the light.”
The others didn’t know much about fixing tractors either. Upon hearing his words, they dispersed around. People like Zhao Qingqing and Tang Jianqiang had already found a comfortable place to enjoy the scenery.
These two weren’t interested in fixing tractors at all.
He Liang was still paying attention to Zhang Lili, but she ignored him and took out a water bottle from her bag to drink.
Old Chen sat directly on the grass and even borrowed a straw hat from the man with the straw hat, chatting with him about the village’s affairs.
“How many households do you have here?”
“What do you plant there, and how’s the yield?”
“Your conditions are much better than ours. Several teams have bought a lot of tractors, right?”
Su Xiaoman followed the others to the side, but suddenly she saw Xie Mingtu still standing next to the tractor. She was about to go pull him away when she heard him say, “The sound is off.”
Su Xiaoman: “What’s wrong? What do you mean the sound is off?”
“Its sound isn’t right.” Xie Mingtu pointed to the tractor on the ground.
Su Xiaoman: “…?”
What’s wrong with it? Isn’t it just rumbling?
At this moment, Zhou Heqiang, who was crouching on the ground, turned his head back and said, “Kid, can you hear that the sound is off?”
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