The 1960s: The Story of a Country Girl's Journey to the City

Su Daqiang brought lunch to eat in the field, and Bao Ya packed a portion of the cooked meat into everyone's lunchbox.

When they finished work in the afternoon, the five of them ran home in a flash.

Knowing that Bao Ya had arrived, they knew there would be meat at home. Despite working hard every day and having two chickens to eat daily, the five of them still felt hungry.

"Sis, you still know to come? We're all exhausted."

The monkey started barking as soon as he entered the door. He'd done all the work he'd done in the past two weeks. Seeing Bao Ya now, he was incredibly warm and welcoming.

They've come to terms with it; the team leader doesn't require them to do a certain amount of work each day, and there are even people helping them with the work.

Grandma Su coaxed them every day and cooked them delicious food, almost to the point that she herself couldn't keep going.

If I were to actually go to a rural area where I knew no one, it would probably be even more difficult than this.

The five of them have lost all interest in going to the countryside. They plan to go back home, listen to their families, and go to work obediently.

"Hey, what happened to you five? Why are you all so dark-skinned? Don't you know how to wear straw hats while working? Ding Xiaopang, you might as well change your name to Ding Xiaohei (Black Ding)."

Bao Ya looked at the five dark-skinned people in front of her in disbelief. Could they get this dark from sunbathing?

They were all grinning at me, their teeth so white they were almost blinding.

"Oh well, it's black, so be it. Hurry up and take the meat out and eat it. I can smell it from far away."

Zhu Wang waved his hand dismissively. He didn't care about being dark-skinned or not; all he wanted to do now was feast.

"Sis, you've come to pick us up, right?"

Zhang Kangmei held the bowl and asked Bao Ya, her eyes fixed on Bao Ya while she stuffed a piece of meat into her mouth. She felt like she could fit a cow in her stomach right now.

"What, you want to go back so soon? Didn't you want to go to the countryside? It would be so much better if your dad just sent you to our brigade."

"ah? &@# &&&"

Zhang Kangmei's cheeks were bulging, and she didn't care that her mouth was full of food as she started to sort through the food, looking very anxious.

Bao Ya just smiled at her, thinking to herself, "Did working for a few days cure my love-struck mind?" Then her parents should really thank her.

Is Comrade Song Yuanchao here?

A group of people were eating in the courtyard when they heard someone calling from the gate. The voice was so gentle and soft that it gave them goosebumps.

During the summer harvest season, most workers would work until sunset before going home. It didn't matter how much Monkey and his friends worked; Su Daqiang would let them come back for meals when it was time to eat.

At this moment, only Grandma Su, Bao Ya, and the other six people were at home.

It was quite unexpected to suddenly have a young woman show up.

Upon hearing the sound, Zhang Kangmei reacted as if startled, glancing angrily at the door before turning back to look at the monkey.

The monkey turned its head away, its backside facing the door, as if it were none of its business. The remaining three watched the scene unfold with expressions of amusement.

Seeing that they didn't move, Bao Ya resignedly got up and went outside to take a look, after all, the sound was really unpleasant to listen to.

Bao Ya suddenly opened the door, startling the people at the door, who quickly took two steps back.

"Who are you, and what business do you have with Yuan Chao?"

The girl pursed her lips, looking as if she wanted to say something but hesitated.

The girl in front of me was quite pretty. She was wearing a white polyester shirt, and her two braids hung down in front of her chest. They were obviously freshly combed; someone who had worked all day wouldn't have such neat hair.

Bao Ya didn't say anything, just looked at her and waited for her to speak. Anyway, she wasn't embarrassed, but she was the one who was embarrassed.

"Who requested aid to North Korea?"

Grandma Su came out of the house and saw that Bao Ya had gone out and was silent, so she couldn't help but ask.

"A girl with a pale, white face and freckles covering her nose."

When Bao Ya heard Grandma Su ask, she turned and called out into the courtyard. But the freckled girl looked at her in disbelief, as if she had been deeply shocked.

I really can't understand how someone so beautiful could have such a nasty mouth.

However, she was indeed fair-skinned, several shades lighter than the dark-skinned people in the room. It was because of her fair skin that the freckles on her nose looked particularly striking.

"What do you need Yuan Chao for? If you have nothing to do, go back and don't keep us from eating."

Bao Ya got a general idea from her expression. The girl was unfamiliar; she wasn't from the village and must be one of the educated youth who came this year.

Why bother with the monkey? You can't see any redeeming qualities in it from any angle. He probably heard somewhere that the monkey's dad is a factory manager and came to curry favor.

"I... I have a few questions about my studies that I don't quite understand, and I'd like to ask him for help..."

"Monkeys can't read, you'd better ask someone else."

After saying that, Bao Ya didn't wait for her to say anything more and closed the door and went inside.

She dared to bring the monkey to her home because she was confident that people with normal aesthetic sense wouldn't find him attractive. Besides, the guy was only sixteen; he wasn't even an adult yet.

He was brought to the brigade to experience life, not to find a partner. If he brings a daughter-in-law back to the factory director, he'll be in deep trouble.

"Who is that girl? She looks like she came all this way."

Bao Ya picked up her bowl and continued eating.

"The educated youth in the village was named Ge Xiaomei. When we first arrived, we didn't know how to do any work, and she often made sarcastic remarks to us."

Later, when they found out we were staying at your house, they kept trying to get information out of us.

Later, for some reason, they started targeting the monkey; probably because they heard from someone that the monkey's father was the factory manager.

Zhang Kangmei looked indignant, and she couldn't stand Ge Xiaomei at all.

"That girl comes from a bad background and is very scheming. Baoya, be careful and don't get too close to her."

Grandma Su also added a reminder, lest Bao Ya not know the importance of things and be taken advantage of.

Bao Ya nodded, indicating that she understood.

This was not yet the time for mandatory rural assignments; the educated youth who had already arrived had all volunteered to go to the countryside.

Some of those who volunteered were forced to go to the countryside for refuge due to their family background. It's likely that Ge Xiaomei was in that situation.

Bao Ya plans to stay at home for two days to help her grandmother cook. With so many people in the family, cooking is quite a big undertaking.

Jiang Yuan went home after dinner; he had to go to work the next day.

Because of the limited land in Kaoshan Village, older people like Liao Chunhua and Jiang Laoshan only help out occasionally and don't need to go back to help.

The next morning, before dawn, everyone in the family went to the fields.

Zhang Kangmei and the other four go there after breakfast every day, and they are currently washing up in the yard.

Bao Ya brought the breakfast she had prepared to the table, inviting them to come and eat, and also packed the food she was going to take to the fields into two baskets.

After they finished cleaning up, just as everyone was eating, Liu Ya ran over, sobbing uncontrollably.

"Sister Baoya, Sister Baoya, my sister is about to be beaten to death by the Lü family, waaaaah..."

"What's wrong? Stop crying, tell me properly!"

Bao Ya quickly told her to sit down and slowly explain what was going on.

Bao Ya frowned as she looked at Liu Ya, whose clothes were covered in patches. It had been a year since they separated from the family. Lin Lao Er and his wife were hardworking and reliable, so why were Liu Ya's clothes even more tattered than before they separated?