Time Travel: My Comfortable Life After Going to the Countryside

"So dirty!"

As the whistle sounded, the train slowly slowed down and came to a stop at the Harbin station.

The three girls spoke at the same time: "Brother Xiangyang, could you help us get our luggage down?"

Liu Xiangyang took down their luggage one by one, and then tied their bedding rolls together with rope around their chests and tied them up.

The four of them, carrying their own luggage and bedding, got off the train one by one. As soon as they arrived at the platform, they were greeted by a throng of people and a cacophony of noise.

The group struggled to squeeze out of the train station and arrived at the exit. People from the local educated youth office were holding up a wooden sign at the exit, which read: "Turn left to the assembly point for educated youth sent to the countryside."

Liu Xiangyang said, "You three stay close to me, don't get lost." After saying that, he led the three of them toward the meeting point.

The four arrived at the registration point for educated youth and lined up to register. There were more than 10 people ahead of them. When Liu Xiangyang called out his name to register, a tall and thin middle-aged man wearing a dark blue police uniform walked over.

"Is this Liu Xiangyang? I'm Lu Dajun, your Uncle Wu's comrade-in-arms. Welcome to Northeast China as an educated youth. I'm here to pick you up."

"Hello Uncle Lu, I'm Liu Xiangyang. Uncle Wu already told me about this. Thank you for coming to pick me up."

He then pointed to the three women following behind and introduced them, "Uncle Lu, these three women are Xue Bingbing, Le Qi, and Yue Yao. They are also female educated youth who went to Dongsheng Village with me."

The three women also greeted Liu Xiangyang with "Hello, Uncle Lu".

Liu Xiangyang and Lu Dajun chatted for a while at the meeting point, when a staff member from the educated youth office called out: "Everyone who has arrived at Dongsheng Village is here. It's already evening, and it's not safe to travel at night. We'll make do in the waiting room tonight. We'll depart promptly at 6 a.m. tomorrow. You can go and get something to eat now. There's hot water in the waiting room. Don't wander around."

Lu Dajun said, "Xiangyang, come home for dinner tonight and rest for a bit. I'll bring you over tomorrow morning. I'll go and tell the people at the educated youth office."

Before Liu Xiangyang could refuse, Lu Dajun went to find the people in the educated youth office.

Liu Xiangyang thought for a moment and realized that he still had some things to give to Uncle Wu and Lu Dajun, so he didn't refuse. He then said to Xue Bingbing and the others, "Xue Bingbing, Le Qi, Le Yao, I have some business to attend to at my Uncle Lu's house. I'll come back to you when I'm done."

"Go ahead, you didn't sleep much on the bus. Why don't you listen to Uncle Lu and rest at his house? There are so many people here."

Upon arriving at Lu Dajun's home, Liu Xiangyang handed over the letter that Uncle Wu had written to Lu Dajun. He then took out two Peking ducks, two bottles of Erguotou (a type of Chinese liquor), and a pound of White Rabbit milk candy from his spatial storage and put them in his luggage bag. He placed them on the table and gave a few candies to Lu Dajun's two 8- or 9-year-old sons.

Lu Dajun's wife, Li Cuihua, was bringing out the heated food from the kitchen when she saw it and quickly stepped forward to stop Liu Xiangyang.

"Uncle Lu, Aunt Li, please don't refuse. This was instructed by my Uncle Wu. I may need to trouble you again in the future, so this is nothing."

"Uncle Wu and Uncle Lu are sworn brothers, and I'm also Uncle Wu's last disciple. In a way, you're like my own uncle."

"Xiangyang, since you've said that, then Uncle Lu won't stand on ceremony. Just like you said, your Uncle Wu and I are sworn brothers. From now on, you're my nephew. Come and have dinner."

Lu Dajun picked up a bottle of Erguotou, opened it, poured a glass for Liu Xiangyang, and then filled his own glass.

Lu Dajun introduced the situation of Dongsheng Village to Liu Xiangyang: "After the village was rebuilt, there are still more than 1000 people. There are three surnames. The largest surname is Zhang, which accounts for 60%. There are also Wang and Li, each with more than 200 people."

"I've already spoken to both the commune and Dongsheng Village. The village chief is Zhang Tiejun, also a veteran, a very upright person. He'll take care of you. The production team leader is Wang Lixin, and the accountant is Li Jianjun."

"Wang Lixin and Li Jianjun are usually close, and their love triangle is quite harmonious without much trouble."

"Now everyone has to work in the fields, so earning work points is a given. But don't be too straightforward. Take a break when you need to, but you still have to complete the tasks assigned to you. Don't disgrace the men."

"Uncle Lu, I understand. Come on, Uncle Lu, let me toast you."

After finishing his drinks, Liu Xiangyang bid farewell to Lu Dajun. Li Cuihua wanted him to stay, but he refused, saying that this was the first time he had met the educated youth of the brigade, and it was not good to be separated from the group for too long. He would come again next time.

At 5 a.m. the next morning, while it was still dark, the staff of the educated youth office woke everyone up with a tin megaphone.

Liu Xiangyang and the others filled their enamel cups with hot water, wet their face towels, washed their faces, and ate some food with the hot water.

When everyone was waiting until almost six o'clock, they saw a horse-drawn carriage parked by the roadside with a sign that read "Dongsheng Village Commune". Liu Xiangyang and the other educated youth who were going to Dongsheng Village were led to the carriage by an official from the educated youth office.

"Village Chief Zhang, you've finally arrived. Everyone's here, a total of 10 people, 6 men and 4 women. The roster and all the people are now yours."

Zhang Tiejun: "Officer Li, thank you. Everyone, stop dawdling. I am Zhang Tiejun, the village chief of Dongsheng Village. This is Old Wang from the village. Everyone, quickly put your luggage on the carriage. We still have more than a hundred miles to go."

Liu Xiangyang and the other 10 people put their luggage on the carriage and followed Zhang Tiejun to Dongsheng Village.

The entire route was a dirt road. Spring was approaching, and the snow had melted. Most of the educated youth had never traveled on a road that was both wet and muddy, and it was over fifty li (approximately 25 kilometers), a journey that would take four or five hours.

At first, the educated youth were asking Zhang Tiejun about news from the village and the educated youth settlement, but after more than an hour, everyone fell silent.

Liu Xiangyang's daily boxing practice has shown results; his feet are firmly planted on the ground, and thanks to his "golden finger" (a special ability), his stamina is also excellent.

At first, the girls were able to help each other walk, but after walking for more than an hour, they were all too tired to walk anymore. They rested three or four times along the way. Liu Xiangyang helped Xue Bingbing walk for a while, and then helped the Le Qi and Le Yao sisters walk for a while. They were close together and enjoyed themselves. Liu Xiangyang ignored the male educated youths.

When they arrived at Dongsheng Village, it was almost six o'clock in the evening. Liu Xiangyang was not out of breath or red in the face, but the others suffered greatly. They sat on the ground and could not get up. It was Zhang Tiejun who called the villagers to help them into the educated youth settlement.

Zhang Tiejun was very satisfied with Liu Xiangyang's performance along the way. He asked for his name and learned that Lu Dajun had put in a good word for him, which made him even more satisfied. Liu Xiangyang had connections, but he was also willing to help people. Although he only helped female educated youths, it was still clear that he was a good person.