Chapter 31: Words Deny, Actions Confess

After today’s farce, the youth point was thoroughly divided into factions. Lin Jingyue, Jiang Xun, and Zhou Yan formed one group, Lin Xinjian and Zhao Hua were another, and ate separately from the others; the remaining youths counted as a single faction. Yet, Xia Nan and Yang Ming hadn’t actually fallen out with Lin Jingyue either. It was complicated.

Time passed swiftly. In the blink of an eye, July arrived, and Lin Jingyue’s party had been at Qingshan Brigade nearly a month. Everyone had adapted to countryside life; whether they liked it or not, they had no choice. Ever since Lin Jingyue discovered the joy of gathering pigweed, she hadn’t gone to the fields at all.

Through her observations over this period, she confirmed that Wang Xueping had been reborn, and Lin Xinrou’s soul had been swapped. The reason she didn’t suspect Lin Xinrou of being reborn was because of Lin’s attitude toward her: not friendly, but neither hateful nor probing. If Lin Xinrou had returned from the dead, she’d be eager for revenge. Lin Xinrou’s scheme to marry Sun Zhiyuan suggested he would achieve great things in the future, meaning Lin Xinrou knew what would happen next. If she wasn’t reborn, then—she must have transmigrated into a novel.

With this certainty about the two, Lin Jingyue became cautious. She mustn’t let them notice anything unusual about her. From her observations, neither possessed any golden finger; if they discovered something strange about her, they might suspect she did. That would be troublesome.

Still, caution couldn’t interfere with her life. Lin Xinrou knew she had money, so as long as Lin Jingyue didn’t go overboard, eating well and dressing nicely wouldn’t arouse suspicion.

“Wait for me, Uncle Li, wait for me!” Lin Jingyue hurried to the village entrance, seeing the ox cart about to depart. She broke into a run, catching up from afar and performing a sprightly leap onto the cart, her eyes curved in a smile.

“Comrade Lin, off to the commune again?” Aunt Hua smiled warmly at her. Her mood had been good lately: her daughter-in-law was settled, and her son no longer watched Lin Jingyue so closely.

“Yes, Aunt Hua, you’re going too?” Lin Jingyue glanced back, realizing the ox cart was full of familiar faces: Sun Lanlan, Lin Xinrou, Li Cuihua from the brigade leader’s family, and several other aunts carrying baskets. Inside were eggs, headed to the procurement station for sale in exchange for salt.

“Just buying a few things.” Aunt Hua, having experienced Lin Jingyue’s sharp tongue, didn’t reveal her true purpose.

“Jingyue, if I’d known you were going to the commune, I’d have called for you,” Li Cuihua said with a smile.

“You nearly made me miss it.”

“No blame to you—I didn’t mention I’d be going.” It was her day off; she planned to visit town. She needed to time her trips for when she had goods to take.

“Dressed up like a peacock, little vixen.” Sun Lanlan muttered jealously.

Lin Jingyue pretended not to hear; if she had the nerve, she could say it louder.

“Sister.” Lin Xinrou nodded a greeting, keeping her distance as she spoke. Yet, the malice in her gaze was unmistakable.

Lin Jingyue ignored it as well. She disliked the stepchildren brought by her stepmother—nothing wrong with that.

Lin Xinrou didn’t feel awkward, chatting quietly with Sun Lanlan beside her. The aunts hoping for drama soon lost interest.

The ox cart wobbled its way to the commune. Lin Jingyue greeted Li Cuihua, then headed for the bus station to catch a coach to the county.

“Lin Jingyue? Is that really you?” On the coach, a girl looked at Lin Jingyue in surprise.

“Xu Qingqing?”

Wasn’t this the girl she’d met on the train? “You’re heading into town, too?”

“Yes, finally a day off—going to look around,” Xu Qingqing replied, a little wilted.

For educated youths, a trip to town for a good meal was quite normal.

“By the way, which brigade were you assigned to? I’m in Kaoshan Brigade.” Xu Qingqing grabbed Lin Jingyue’s arm, ignoring her original companion.

“Qingshan Brigade—right next to yours.”

“That’s great! If only I’d known, I’d have come to find you.”

“You can come next time.”

They chattered away, mostly Xu Qingqing talking and Lin Jingyue listening, but it was enjoyable enough. The journey felt less tedious.

When they reached the county, Xu Qingqing released her, saying, “Jingyue, I’ll visit you when I have time. See you!” With that, she pulled her companion off.

Lin Jingyue chuckled softly—a truly transparent, good-hearted girl.

After a morning ride, her stomach was rumbling; she decided to eat at the state-run restaurant first, and pack some food for later, to stash in her space and avoid cooking when she felt lazy.

It was lunchtime, and a long queue had formed at the counter. Lin Jingyue quickly joined the line.

Wearing a red plaid skirt and white blouse, her fair skin stood out among the crowd, attracting many glances.

The Lin family’s genes were indeed excellent. Her father was handsome, and her mother possessed natural beauty; it was only natural that Lin Jingyue was attractive, combining both parents’ strengths and showing signs of enhancing them further.

Truth be told, Sun Zhiyuan’s quick acceptance of Lin Xinrou must have had something to do with her being prettier than Wang Xueping.

“It’s your turn—what would you like?” The server at the window glanced at Lin Jingyue, her expression less than friendly.

Today’s blackboard listed the available dishes.

Lin Jingyue ordered briskly, “Two servings of braised pork, two pork and cabbage stew with noodles, two bowls of rice, two servings of sauerkraut pork dumplings, ten steamed buns, ten meat buns.”

She rattled off a long list. Before anyone could object, she quickly produced several lunchboxes. “Comrade, please pack the buns, dumplings, and one extra serving of braised pork and cabbage stew—I’m hosting guests tomorrow. Thank you.”

She flashed a radiant smile, her eyes clear and bright.

The server was momentarily stunned, then snapped, “What are you smiling at? Showing off your white teeth?”

Lin Jingyue… Well, she wouldn’t argue with this young woman. She handed over money and ration tickets, then found a seat.

“Com—comrade, there are no seats left—may I share your table?” Lin Jingyue, bored and resting her chin on her hand, heard someone speak.

Looking up, she saw a man around twenty, in a white shirt and blue work pants, hair meticulously tidy and a smile on his face.

She nodded, “Go ahead.”

There were indeed no other seats.

The man’s heart skipped a beat, and he smiled even brighter.

He sat across from Lin Jingyue, just about to strike up a conversation, when she lowered her eyes.

“Jiang Xun, isn’t that Comrade Lin?” Zhou Yan, just entering, immediately spotted Lin Jingyue. “Who’s that sitting across from her?”

“Could it be her boyfriend?”

Jiang Xun replied, “If you don’t need your eyes, you can donate them.”

What a question.

Zhou Yan gave a sheepish laugh. “Should we go over?”

“No—” The word wasn’t finished when Jiang Xun saw Lin Jingyue smile at the man opposite her. He abruptly changed direction and walked over.

Zhou Yan: … Mouth says no, body says yes!

“Jingyue.”

A low, melodious voice, like mountain spring water trickling over rocks, rang out—clear and pleasant.

Lin Jingyue felt a strange ripple inside. She looked up, meeting a pair of luminous eyes.