Yi Chichi thought Aunt Niu wanted to introduce someone to her and was pondering how to refuse politely.
But unexpectedly, Aunt Niu took a different path and said in a satisfied tone, "Little girls are still young, no rush. You can't learn from the educated youth in the neighboring team."
This worry was unnecessary, but she meant well.
"Okay."
Saying that, she eagerly pressed for more details.
"What happened after they were caught?"
Aunt Ma and the others were curious too and urged Aunt Niu to hurry up.
"What else could it be? The two families called it off, and they became enemies."
Yi Chichi was not satisfied, "Aunt, you're skipping the process. We want to hear the process."
There's nothing interesting in the conclusion—clearly, it was bound to falter.
But how it faltered, that piqued her interest.
"You little girl, you sure are nosy."
Aunt Niu laughed, but still narrated the story as she wished.
It's not complicated. A simple summary could be—
Mr. Huang caught her fiancé cheating red-handed, awakened an angry streak, and beat up both the educated youth and her fiancé Mr. Zhang.
The blows were a bit harsh; the educated youth ended up with a broken rib, and Mr. Zhang's younger brother was injured by her kick.
Initially in the right, Mr. Huang lost her ground, ended the engagement, and even paid a hefty sum.
And a grudge was formed.
As for how the two families will develop in the future, according to Aunt Niu, it's currently unknown.
She'll inform them with updates.
Aunt Ma, good at pinpointing the main issue, asked, "Really broken?"
"Yes, broken."
"Well, that's not very durable; how does one kick result in that?"
Yi Chichi almost choked on her spit; is it about being durable?
Men's places are extremely fragile. A kick in a fit of rage just injured but didn't cause shock or death due to extreme pain; Mr. Huang was lucky.
"Is that the end of it?"
"Not yet, the educated youth and Zhang Laoer are getting married."
"The educated youth agreed?"
It was Wang Nan speaking, and the sudden voice startled Aunt Niu and the others.
Looking back, oh my, everyone was eavesdropping with glowing eyes and ears perked up.
"How much did you hear?"
Aunt Niu's expression was slightly twisted; who would have thought, she just wanted to chat with her own group, but everyone listened in.
"We've heard what we were meant to hear."
Wang Nan's older sister, from the same group, responded with a loud voice, "Auntie, don't stop, continue."
"The educated youth agreed to marry themselves."
"What?"
Her response caused a stir among the crowd, leaving them dumbfounded.
Aunt Ma couldn't understand, "What's the educated youth going for, taking a broken man for what? For decoration?"
Yi Chichi raised an eyebrow. What else could it be for—survival.
The educated youth had no choice.
Regardless of the cause, the fact that she was caught with a guy who had a girlfriend on-site was undeniable.
Just this alone, given the current social environment and atmosphere, could be her undoing.
Getting married was a way out.
If that educated youth was smart enough, patient enough, and managed well, she might turn her way out into a flowery path with the reform and opening up.
Provided she is smart enough to last until then.
If she can't, it's all for nothing.
Indeed, one must be cautious about gender conduct issues in this era.
Or else, a single misstep could lead to a thousand regrets.
Reflecting on the stories her uncles spoke of back in the original world, Yi Chichi reminded herself again, until she has the power to change the order and set the rules, stay low-key.
"Can't say what it's for, but they've registered the marriage anyway."
"The Huang Family didn't make a fuss?"
"No point making a fuss without a cause."
They've already broken someone; what else is there to make a fuss over?
Originally a union of two families, but now what? Somebody's broken, plus there's a grudge.
Aunt Ma spat, "Zhang Laoer is no good. Already had a partner and still messed around. Deserved to be broken too."
Saying so, she warned Yi Chichi and her friends again, "I'm telling you, don't even think about involved men, no matter how good they seem."
Yi Chichi and the others, "..."
Why was this about them again?
Catching Wang Nan's eye, they both said in unison, don't touch.
And so, the topic ended there.
In the following time, everyone focused on their work; corn cobs were picked and transported one basket after another.
At around eleven in the morning, with arms sore, legs tired, and feeling suffocated, Yi Chichi held her slightly aching stomach and was just about to ask what time they'd finish work when the whistle blew.
Aunt Ma and the others jumped up as if electrocuted.
"Let's go, go, go, finishing work and going for lunch."
Having worked till now, they could finally stop.
Yi Chichi looked delighted and quickly followed suit merrily.
Just exiting the cornfield, she saw Wang Nan and the others waiting for her and waved when they saw her.
"Chichi, over here."
Yi Chichi hurried over, and Ge Sujuan, with a smile, asked her, "How does it feel on your first day at work?"
"Tiring."
Too tiring. Farming wasn't a long-term path; she needed to find a way to switch to something lighter.
If possible, she'd rather not work, but the environment didn't allow it.
"Sigh!"
With a deep sigh, she looked at her own hands in agony, "Feels like my hands will be wasted."
Since coming into this world, her hands hadn't touched silk thread or silk but were picking corn cobs first.
"What about you guys, tired?"
"Picking cobs is considered light work."
Hinting that this was only the beginning.
Zhou Qiuyu sniffed, almost about to cry, and asked pitifully, "When does the autumn harvest end?"
"Around late October."
Can't say for sure, but this is when it happens every year.
Yi Chichi was like struck by grief, waiting for destruction. There was still nearly a month left before the autumn harvest ended.
This life was truly unbearable.
But she didn't have the courage to give up and could only endure.
Luckily, after the harvest, they'd enter the winter break, and busyness wouldn't resume until May next year.
Looking at it this way, it wasn't so bad.
So, Yi Chichi managed to console herself.
On October 22nd, as the last basket of cobs was stored, the early morning to late night autumn harvest of Kao Shan Village officially ended.
In nearly a month's time, it was enough for her to become familiar with the village elders, aunts, uncles, and others.
The relationships at the educated youth camp were also going well, after all, she lived separately from them, fundamentally reducing the possibility of conflicts.
On the way back, Wang Nan, looking like she was alive again, said, "I want to go to the county tomorrow. Do you want to go?"
"Yes!"
Yi Chichi was the first to respond; she hadn't collected her mailed luggage yet.
Ge Sujuan and the others also agreed, while Zhou Qiuyu hesitated.
"What's there to do in the county?"
"Have a good meal and stop by the supply and marketing cooperative to see if we can buy anything."
Zhou Qiuyu thought for a bit, "I'll go too."
With laughs and chats, they made their way back to the educated youth camp. Halfway, they encountered a group of little bald boys running towards them.
The oldest was about seven or eight, and the youngest was just two or three, each one as dirty as a muddy monkey.
The youngest, unsteady on her feet, stumbled and fell with a thud right in front of Yi Chichi.
She yelped and hurriedly bent down to help her up, "Niu Niu, why are you running around with your brother again all carelessly."