A cartload of bricks and tiles took Third Uncle Jin's oxcart several trips to finally finish transporting.
After all the things were unloaded at the site of the new house, Yan Xue took off her gloves and said, "Come to my place for a glass of water. Thank you for your hard work these days."
"I'm really a bit thirsty," Third Uncle Jin said without being polite to her.
The group sat down by the kang in Yan Xue and Qi Fang's house. After drinking water and having a smoke, Third Uncle Jin proposed to leave. "It's getting late. I should go back."
Yan Xue saw him off at the door and also stuffed the half - pack of cigarettes he had left into his pocket, thanking him repeatedly.
"It doesn't matter. You really picked a good time. If it were a couple of days ago during the spring sowing, even if you gave me ten packs of cigarettes, my ox wouldn't have the time," Third Uncle Jin said.
Seeing that the young girl was so sensible, Third Uncle Jin also gave her a piece of advice. "If you're going to build the house, do it quickly. If you drag it on for three or five days, you'll be lucky to have half of those bricks left."
There were quite a few places in the forest farm that needed bricks. Building a large earthen stove or making a kang, all required some bricks. But the amount needed for each thing was not large, and it wasn't worth making a special trip to the town.
If Yan Xue didn't use these bricks quickly and didn't have someone watching them, they would surely end up in someone else's house the next day.
Don't ask. If you do, they'll just say they picked them up. Who knows where they picked them up in the middle of the night.
Yan Xue understood and thanked him again for the reminder. When she returned to the inner room, there were only a few young people left. This made the strange expression on Liu Weiguo's face even more obvious.
What did it look like?
It was like when you heard a huge gossip at work but couldn't share it with others because the boss was around, and you were so frustrated that your heart and liver ached.
"Do you have something to say?" Yan Xue couldn't help asking him.
Liu Weiguo subconsciously glanced at Qi Fang. Qi Fang's expression remained unchanged. "He's dying for a wife."
Liu Weiguo was stunned. He remembered that he had also used the excuse that Qi Fang was longing for a wife before. So he simply admitted it. "Yeah, I haven't seen Zhou Wenhui for six hours."
As soon as he said this, Guo Changping stopped smoking and turned to look at him.
Guo Changping and Jin Baozhi were a traditional couple. They got married after being introduced by someone and didn't know each other well. They had no idea that young people in love these days were so clingy. They couldn't believe that someone would be so frustrated after six hours of separation.
"Then you'd better go quickly," he said to Liu Weiguo and stood up himself. "I have to go back too."
Yan Xue didn't believe what they said, but since they insisted on keeping it a secret, she guessed it was useless to ask. So she didn't ask for the time being and got up to see them off.
Just after seeing them off and before she could clean up the used mugs and the cardboard for ash, Jin Baozhi came.
This woman always looked serious, and today was no exception. As soon as she entered the door, she directly asked, "Is it because of what happened to me that you couldn't borrow a carriage?"
Although she left without asking anything at that time, she wasn't stupid. How could she not think about it when she calmed down?
Even if she didn't think about it, there were still Aunt Guo and Guo Changping in the Guo family. It hadn't been long since that incident, and they would surely think of it sooner or later.
So Yan Xue answered her seriously, "I don't know, but it should be true that the younger sister of Yu Cuiyun's younger brother's wife is moving."
Otherwise, it would be exposed as soon as someone went. The carriage belonged to the forest farm, not the Yu family. The coachman wouldn't help Yu Cuiyun keep the secret.
Hearing this, Jin Baozhi still pursed her lips, obviously annoyed and self - blaming.
Yan Xue simply made it clearer to her. "You don't have to take this to heart. The other day when I helped you, it was not only because our two families have a good relationship, but also because in terms of seniority and ability, that quota should have been yours. Moreover, even if there was no such thing, I had already had a feud with them."
Jin Baozhi looked surprised. Obviously, she was still taking care of Guo Chang'an in the hospital at that time and didn't know about it.
Yan Xue then told her about that incident. "Look, I didn't do anything, but they took away my quota in the family members' team. Today's incident is even a small thing."
Jin Baozhi didn't say anything more, but her expression was still tense. Yan Xue then asked about the grain. "Did you buy all the grain?"
Only then did Jin Baozhi remember the basket she brought. "Yes, I bought a total of twenty catties of rice and twenty catties of flour. The flour was just freshly ground."
Freshly ground flour was not easy to preserve. People in the countryside preferred to store wheat and grind it into flour when they needed it.
Yan Xue looked at it. Just like last time, although it couldn't compare with the 75 - grade flour supplied, it was similar to ordinary standard flour. "How much did it cost?"
"The rice was a bit cheaper, forty - two cents a catty. The flour was more troublesome to grind, so it was forty - three cents a catty."
Yan Xue quickly calculated. "That's eighteen yuan then."
Jin Baozhi nodded and was about to give her back two yuan when Yan Xue went into the house and took out sixteen yuan and gave it to Jin Baozhi.
Now Jin Baozhi frowned. "What are you doing?"
Yan Xue stuffed the money into her hand and said sincerely, "Sister Baozhi, affection is one thing, and things are another. Only when we don't mix affection with material things can our relationship last long, right?"
In the end, Jin Baozhi couldn't persuade Yan Xue and went back with thirty - six yuan. As soon as Aunt Guo saw her expression, she guessed, "What's wrong? Didn't you give it away?"
"Yes," Jin Baozhi replied. She didn't know whether she should be happy or not.
Aunt Guo sighed. "Most people are afraid of not getting an advantage. They think not getting an advantage is a loss. But this couple is just the opposite. They're afraid of taking advantage of others."
"It's good, isn't it?" Guo Changping said. "It's easy to get along with such people."
"It is, but it's a pity that such a good neighbor is going to move away," Aunt Guo said, a bit reluctant.
Jin Baozhi was silent for a while and then called Guo Changping. "Tomorrow, you go with me to help Sister Yan build the house."
"Even if you didn't say it, I'd go. We're all neighbors."
In those days, it was widely believed that a near neighbor is better than a distant relative. When a family had a wedding, a funeral, or needed to build a house or make a kang, neighbors would come to help for free. They didn't even expect to be paid, and the host family didn't even provide meals. After finishing the work, everyone would go back to their own homes and have their own meals. Only when the house's main beam was installed during the house - building process, which was considered a major event, would the host family provide a meal.
The work units in those days were also different from those later. The work unit had to take care of everything in the employees' families. When an employee's family member passed away, the work unit would even make a coffin.
So when Yan Xue and Qi Fang wanted to build a house, the forest farm promised to allocate wood and allow them to borrow a carriage.
Just as dawn broke the next day, Liu Weiguo came with his father, Liu Daniu, to offer their help.
Building a house was a major event. How could a few young people handle it? They still needed an experienced old man to be the master craftsman.
Yan Xue was scooping out the rice porridge. The plump grains of rice had burst open after being boiled, and there was a layer of glistening rice oil on the surface of the porridge, filling the air with its fragrance.
"Uncle, have you had breakfast?" she greeted the two of them. "If not, sit down and have some with us."
Both of them shook their heads, saying they had already eaten. But she still picked up a bowl, filled half a bowl for each of them, and gave them chopsticks.
After all, they were here to help build their house. She couldn't just let her and Qi Fang eat while the father - son pair watched.
After breakfast, Guo Changping and his wife from next door also came. Yan Xue quickly washed the bowls and carried them, along with a thermos filled with hot water, to the new house site.
These were for the workers. The new house was some distance away, and she couldn't let them go thirsty all the time.
A few days ago, Qi Fang had already discussed the scale of the house with Liu Daniu. They were going to build three rooms. The rooms on the east and west sides would be for living, and the middle one would serve as the kitchen.
Actually, for just him and Yan Xue, two rooms would have been enough. Because of this, Liu Weiguo had been teasing them a lot these days, asking if they planned to have six or seven children with so many rooms.
Qi Fang just glanced at Yan Xue at that time and said, "Yeah, let's aim to have one this year and three in two years."
Even though Yan Xue had a thick skin, she couldn't help but glare at him.
Liu Weiguo let out a series of teasing cries, "You're amazing. Teach me some tips later. I also want to have three in two years."
That might disappoint him. Qi Fang didn't even know how to push a baby stroller, let alone drive on the "high - speed" of having children.
But Qi Fang was good at pretending. A person who had never driven any kind of vehicle managed to put on an air of someone who had driven all kinds of famous sports cars. He just replied indifferently with an "um", which left Liu Weiguo stunned.
Then the two of them went aside to have a private conversation. "By the way, about that thing you asked me to keep an eye on last time..."
Seeing Liu Weiguo's somewhat lewd and gossiping expression, Yan Xue knew that it was probably not a topic suitable for children.
She didn't pay attention to the private conversation between the two men. Anyway, Qi Fang was cold - natured. He didn't even act on his legal relationship, so there was no way he would go out and have an illegal affair.
Yan Xue continued to hand bricks to Liu Daniu. "Judging from this progress, can we put up the beam tomorrow?"
After several days of work, the main frame inside the house was basically built, and there wasn't much of the outer brick wall left. Liu Daniu took the brick and laid it in place, then shoveled a spade of well - mixed mud. "Almost. If it weren't for the multi - layer wall, we should have put up the beam today."
"Then I'll go and get some vegetables tomorrow. Uncle, do you have anything you'd like to eat?"
Just as Yan Xue was handing another brick, before Liu Daniu could catch it, a voice suddenly came from behind. "Yan, have you no shame!"
Before she could react, someone gave her a push on the back, and the brick in her hand fell and hit her foot.
Yan Xue frowned slightly and endured the pain as she turned around and tilted her head. Sure enough, a palm was coming towards her face, barely missing her nose.
Yu Cuiyun was still scolding. "Have you no shame! Don't you have a man of your own? You're so eager to seduce other men. Is your man not satisfying you or what?"
Without giving anyone a chance to explain or defend, she raised her hand to hit again.
This time, Yan Xue didn't want to dodge. Her eyes darkened, and she directly reached out to grab the other woman's wrist.
In her previous life, she had been in the market and had quarreled and fought with people. She just hadn't had time to react because the incident was sudden.
Just as she touched the other woman's wrist, someone was faster than her. They grabbed Yu Cuiyun's arm and gave it a hard swing.
After all, Yu Cuiyun was a woman. Her heels stumbled on the ground, and she fell flat on her butt. She propped up with her good hand to barely steady herself.
She was furious and was about to get up and fight back, but the man stepped on the corner of her clothes.
Qi Fang bent down and looked at her. "You can try and see if I'll hit a woman." His eyes were as cold as his voice.
Jin Baozhi, who was handing bricks to Guo Changping, quickly put down what she was doing, and Liu Weiguo ran over even faster. "Are you crazy? Do you think Yan Xue would take a fancy to your man? Is it because he's old, ugly, or can't perform in bed?"
It was really well - said.
Not only Yan Xue but also Qi Fang glanced at him. Yu Cuiyun was so angry that she couldn't say a word.
Liu Weiguo deliberately pointed at Qi Fang. "Look at his face, age, and height. Which aspect of your man can compare? Isn't this like a low - level character trying to pick a fight with a high - level one?"
Yu Cuiyun opened her mouth but really couldn't say where her man was better. After a while, she regained her momentum. "Ask her! Qi Mao just drives a tractor. Is she so desperate that she can't even carry bricks by herself?"
So it was about the brick - carrying incident. Yan Xue didn't know who had told Yu Cuiyun and how the story had spread...
Jin Baozhi couldn't hold back anymore. "Stop talking nonsense. We don't need him for carrying bricks. I've already gone back to my parents' place to borrow a vehicle." She was so angry that her face turned red.
But once a person like Yu Cuiyun had made up her mind, she wouldn't listen to explanations.
There was a hint of sarcasm in Qi Fang's eyes. "If you have that much time to keep an eye on Yan Xue, why don't you keep an eye on Liang Qimao and Cheng Yuzhen? They've been together for a while."
At first, Yu Cuiyun obviously didn't understand. When she did, she was furious. "You're talking nonsense!"
The others also didn't expect him to say this suddenly and all looked at him.
Qi Fang kept stepping on the corner of Yu Cuiyun's clothes, preventing her from getting up. "Last month, Liang Qimao gave you a big bottle of Youyi Snowflake Cream. Am I right?"
"It's none of your business!" Yu Cuiyun was still struggling, but her momentum weakened for a moment, obviously because he had hit the mark.
Seeing this, Qi Fang let go of her clothes. "He bought two bottles at that time. The other one is with Cheng Yuzhen because last month was Cheng Yuzhen's birthday."
Yu Cuiyun stared with wide eyes and didn't say a word because she knew about both the snowflake cream and Cheng Yuzhen's birthday.
At that time, Cheng Yuzhen had told her that she had bought it for her own birthday. How could it be...?
Yu Cuiyun's face changed several times. Qi Fang watched and added fuel to the fire. "Cheng Yuzhen also has a pair of leather shoes..."
Before he could finish, Yu Cuiyun shouted, "Impossible! Stop spreading rumors here!" Because even she didn't have a pair of leather shoes.
Qi Fang didn't argue with her. "If you don't believe it, you can go and stake out the shed on Dongshan. You'll definitely find something."
In the Changbai Mountains, because there were often ginseng - diggers going up the mountains to look for ginseng and staying for several days, there were many simple sheds built on the mountains. These sheds could not only shelter from the wind and rain but also had food stored in them. Those who stayed overnight could eat the food but were supposed to replenish it the next time they went up the mountain.
Yu Cuiyun also knew about the shed on Dongshan. It was close to the forest farm, and she had taken shelter from the rain there with Cheng Yuzhen...
Some things couldn't stand close scrutiny. The more she thought about it, the more she felt that there were doubts everywhere. Although Yu Cuiyun kept saying that Qi Fang was talking nonsense, she no longer cared about causing trouble for Yan Xue. She just kicked something randomly and left.
This was really dramatic. She had come here aggressively to catch someone in an affair but ended up finding out about her husband and best friend...
Yan Xue looked at Qi Fang. Before she could say anything, Qi Fang seemed to know what she was going to ask. "I have a good memory. I saw the things Liang Qimao bought appear on Cheng Yuzhen."
Yan Xue had never known that a good memory could be used in this way, but she also understood some things. "Is this what Weiguo said you asked him to keep an eye on?"
"Yeah." Qi Fang replied concisely. Liu Weiguo, who had obviously been holding it in for a long time, said, "You don't know. When Qi Fang told me about it, I was really shocked. I never thought these two would be involved. Later, when I paid more attention, I found that there was really something fishy going on."
"So you didn't even go home at night and just went out to find out about this?" Liu Daniu got off the brick - laying platform and kicked his son.
"I saw them secretly meeting at night. It seemed like they even had an argument because of Yan Xue's matter."
"Because of me?" Yan Xue raised her eyebrows.
Liu Weiguo was about to say something when Qi Fang came over and supported Yan Xue's arm, frowning. "Is your foot okay?"
Only then did the others remember that Yan Xue's foot seemed to have been hit. "Yeah, are you okay?"
"I'm fine." Yan Xue moved her foot to show them, but Qi Fang still wouldn't let her work anymore and told her to go aside and rest.
At night, when she took off her shoes and socks to wash her feet, sure enough, there was a large bruise on the instep of Yan Xue's left foot. It was a wonder she could walk normally during the day.
Qi Fang's face darkened immediately. Seeing this, Yan Xue couldn't help curling her little toe in the water. "It just looks serious. Actually, it doesn't hurt much. Really."
The man lifted his eyes to look at her, said nothing, and turned around to leave.
Was he angry?
Just as Yan Xue was thinking about it, the man came back with a small stool.
Qi Fang put the stool in front of her, sat down, rolled up his sleeves, and then reached for her foot.
Yan Xue instinctively shrank back. "No need. I can..." Before she could finish speaking, she let out a soft hiss.
The man instinctively loosened his grip a bit, then looked up at her again. "Are you still being stubborn?"
Yan Xue fell silent and watched helplessly as the man washed her little foot clean, dried it with a towel, held it with one hand, and began to rub it with the heel of his palm.
To be honest, it hurt a lot, especially after a busy day outside, and her instep was swollen like a bun.
But Yan Xue gritted her teeth and didn't make a sound, only thinking in her heart, "Endure it for a little longer. It'll be okay soon."
Every time Qi Fang looked up, he could see her slightly pale face. But after a moment's hesitation, he continued. "If I don't rub it open, your foot won't get better for several days."
Yan Xue didn't say a word, afraid that she would let out a scream of pain if she opened her mouth.
Qi Fang also didn't dare to look at her anymore. Thinking that long pain was better than short pain, he simply rubbed it all out in one go.
When he finally let go of her foot, Yan Xue let out a big sigh of relief.
But before she could fully relax, she saw the man reaching for her other foot. She was so scared that she quickly reminded him, "This one wasn't hit."
"I know." Qi Fang didn't even look at her. He quickly washed and dried her foot, then stood up and directly bent down to pick her up.
As her body lifted into the air, Yan Xue instinctively grabbed the man's shirt on his shoulder. "I can walk by myself!"
Please, she just had a foot injury, not that she was disabled...
Hearing this, the man seemed to pause for a moment, then bent down again.
Yan Xue let out a sigh of relief. Just as she was about to support the stool and sit back down, the man tightened his arm around her waist with one hand and picked up her shoes beside the basin with the other.
Now, Yan Xue was carried back to the inner room in a way like a child being held.
The next morning, the instep where the congestion had been rubbed open was indeed much better. But Qi Fang still didn't let Yan Xue go back to the construction site. He only asked her to prepare the meal for the beam - raising ceremony at home.
After the beam - raising, the roof - capping, and the tiling, Qi Fang and Liu Weiguo also hung some tree bark under the eaves with wire to serve as drainage. Then the group of people came to Yan Xue's house to drink.
Because of her foot injury, Qi Fang didn't let Yan Xue drink. In the end, it was Liu Weiguo who got drunk. He kept pulling Yan Xue and calling her Wenhui. Qi Fang sent him away with a dark face.
The next day when they went to the new house to build the kang, Liu Weiguo was like a thief. As soon as he entered the door, he quietly asked Yan Xue, "Did I say anything nonsense yesterday?"
Before he could finish his sentence, Qi Fang called him away, guarding him as if he were a thief.
Yan Xue found it funny. Unexpectedly, the next day, she really witnessed a big farce.
It was unknown how Yu Cuiyun managed it, but she really caught Liang Qimao and Cheng Yuzhen having an affair, and the whole thing became known to everyone in the forest farm.
Liang Qimao's face was scratched all over, and Cheng Yuzhen's clothes were even torn to pieces. Yu Cuiyun still held Cheng Yuzhen's underpants in her previously injured hand and grabbed her hair with her good hand. "You slut! Whore! I was so good to you, but you stole my man! Do you have any shame at all!"
Her voice was so loud that a crowd gathered around in a short while.
Cheng Yuzhen obviously felt ashamed and kept covering her face with her hands, sobbing.
Liang Qimao had never been surrounded by so many people even when he got married and welcomed his bride. His face was burning hot. "Can we stop making a scene? Let's go home and talk about it..."
Yu Cuiyun spat on his face. "You still know how to be ashamed? When you were having an affair with her, why didn't you know how to be ashamed!"
Spitting on someone's face is even more insulting than scratching their face, especially in front of so many people.
Liang Qimao originally wanted to humble himself to calm the matter down, but now his anger was also aroused. "I'm having an affair? Don't you know why I'm having an affair? You're always putting on airs. Every time you open your mouth, it's either your father or your brother. What? Only the daughter of the field - team leader is a human being, and the rest of us aren't?"
Some old scores should not be dug up, because once they are, there will only be grievances everywhere.
Yu Cuiyun was too tough and domineering. Liang Qimao usually felt suffocated more often than happy when living with her.
Sure enough, as soon as he said this, Yu Cuiyun felt even more wronged. "I knew you looked down on Yongzhi, but you still refused to admit it! Without my father being the field - team leader, could you have become a tractor driver?"
Here we go again.
Almost every time they quarreled, she would bring up the matter of him becoming a tractor driver, constantly reminding him that he owed his current situation to her family.
Yu Cuiyun wasn't finished talking, but Liang Qimao had heard enough. He felt that he had lost all his face in his life today.
Liang Qimao simply turned around and left. "Fine. If you're not afraid of being ashamed, then keep making a scene here!"
How could Yu Cuiyun let him go? She let go of Cheng Yuzhen and grabbed him instead. "Don't you dare go! You have to explain it clearly to me today. Did I spread rumors or not live a proper life? Why did you have an affair with her?"
"Look at you, you're like a madwoman. How can you still say that! What kind of a decent woman are you!" Liang Qimao finally couldn't hold it back anymore.
"Am I a shrew? Is she any better!"
Yu Cuiyun was so angry that her hands were shaking. She pointed at Cheng Yuzhen who was about to sneak away. "Why don't you ask her who was behind the incident with Yan Xue back then! I thought she was being so kind, helping me deal with that Yan girl. It turned out that she was having an affair with you and wanted to deal with her on her own! I even helped her fight for the quota!"
This was really a big reversal. People were just watching the adultery - catching scene, but unexpectedly, there was more gossip.
Liang Qimao was even more stunned and instinctively said, "Impossible."
Hearing him still say it was impossible, Yu Cuiyun got even angrier. She stepped forward and grabbed Cheng Yuzhen's hair and started hitting her again. "You bitch! Stop pretending! Stop pretending!"
When Liu Weiguo and Qi Fang came back from the new house, they happened to see the whole scene. They couldn't help sighing to Yan Xue, "Captain Lin's wife is so gentle and always smiles at everyone. Who would have thought she could be so scheming. Do you think when she framed you in the family - members' team back then, was she trying to frame you or Yu Cuiyun?"
Cheng Yuzhen's move was really underhanded. Yu Cuiyun had carried the blame for several months, and no one believed it had nothing to do with her.
Liang Qimao even had a fight with her because of this. When she went to talk to Cheng Yuzhen about it, not only was she coaxed by Cheng Yuzhen in a few words, but she also encountered a black bear. Her splint had just been removed a few days ago.
As for Cheng Yuzhen, she had managed to clear herself completely and watched the joke for free.
And to think that the shed where Cheng Yuzhen and Liang Qimao carried on their affair was the same one she and Yu Cuiyun had once taken shelter in during the rain—isn’t that just downright disgusting?
It’s not just Yu Cuiyun—anyone would lose their cool over something like that.
Yan Xue glanced with amusement at Qi Fang, who was washing his hands and face in the main room. "Seems she’s not as ruthless as Qi Fang—he knows exactly where to strike to hurt the most."
"True. Beating up Yu Cuiyun and the others wouldn’t have been half as satisfying as exposing the whole thing."
Liu Weiguo couldn’t help but chuckle at the thought. "Most people would’ve just assumed Liang Qimao and Cheng Yuzhen were close because Yu Cuiyun and Cheng Yuzhen were on good terms—families being familiar and all. But he’s got a sharp memory and even sharper eyes."
Then, as if suddenly remembering something, he added, "Oh, right—back when the whole thing first came to light, I told him it was Yu Cuiyun’s doing, but he said it might not be. Could he have noticed something off even back then?"
"That early?" Yan Xue sounded surprised.
Just as she was about to ask, someone called from outside the courtyard, "Is this Comrade Qi Fang’s home? There’s a letter for you!"
Qi Fang: If I act convincing enough, no one will know I’ve never actually driven a car...
