Cluck~ Cluck!!!

Outside the educated youth compound, Bai Yao and Kong Wu had parted ways with Hu Yang and the others and were talking about what had just happened.

Though they were talking about how popular Hu Yang and his two companions were, what they said was all about enjoying the spectacle at the three's expense.

Next, they discussed their impressions of the veteran educated youths at the educated youth settlement.

As for the outcome, Bai Yao and Kong Wu agreed: aside from Dong Aiguo, the others all had problems of one kind or another.

"It's enough to know what the veteran educated youths are like. We won't have much to do with them in the future anyway." With that, Bai Yao changed the subject to the next day.

"We need to go to the commune tomorrow. We still don't have things like an iron pot or a thermos."

Although he could take them out directly, Kong Wu was there, and he didn't dare openly take out things too big to fit in his luggage sacks.

So a trip to the commune tomorrow was necessary.

While he was at it, he could buy a bicycle if possible. Otherwise, it took two and a half hours to get to the commune, and his legs couldn't take it.

"Then let's go together tomorrow," Kong Wu replied.

Then he thought of something and continued, "If you get tired, I'll carry you on my back again."

Bai Yao: ...

If anyone else had said that, Bai Yao would have assumed they were teasing him.

But Kong Wu had said it, which meant he genuinely meant it, and Bai Yao couldn't help blushing.

He considered himself pretty thick-skinned, but a straightforward guy throwing a straight ball really was hard to defend against.

"...Okay."

In the end, Bai Yao agreed.

He could have refused outright, but the problem was, with the road being so long, could he really walk for half a day? There was no point suffering just to save a little face.

"Once we get to the commune tomorrow, I'll treat you to a meal at the state-run restaurant," Bai Yao added.

Then the conversation returned to what they needed to buy tomorrow, and they discussed it as they walked home.

--Hey, it's me, the dividing line, back again--

The next day, as the sky was just beginning to lighten, the village rooster orchestra began its daily vocal practice.

"Cluck~ cluck!!!"

Though they were out in the spacious countryside, and the little courtyard Bai Yao rented was even on the edge of the village, that didn't stop the roosters' crowing, rising and falling in succession, from waking him.

Plug his ears and go back to sleep?

No chance. These roosters weren't like an alarm clock that only rang for a little while. They could keep crowing on and off for two hours.

So, sleep his ass.

At that moment, Bai Yao thought there might be another interpretation of "rising to dance at the rooster's crow."

For example, he could be woken early in the morning by a rooster crowing, then storm outside to kill it, and in other people's eyes, he would be performing a fine sword dance with a knife—a kitchen knife.

At that moment, Bai Yao even wanted to buy up all the roosters in the village and slaughter them.

But in the end, it was only a thought. He could only get up helplessly.

Not long after the roosters crowed, the work chants sounded too. Unlike the crowing, which made him irritable, hearing the chants filled Bai Yao with energy.

He thought this must be a memory carved into his bloodline: the memory of work chants.

Get up, make breakfast.

But when he got up, he found that Kong Wu had been awake for a long time and had even gone out and collected quite a bit of firewood.

"Good morning," Bai Yao greeted him, adding the unspoken second half in his heart: You energetic young man.

"Morning," Kong Wu replied, then went back to sorting the pile of firewood.

Bai Yao smiled at the sight, drew some water to wash up, and began preparing breakfast.

He wasn't planning anything complicated for breakfast: some rice soup and a few pan-fried buns made with white flour and the wild greens growing rampant in the courtyard would be enough.

Of course, he planned to have the system make it for him, so he found a random excuse to send Kong Wu out for a walk.

Estimating the time, Bai Yao then prepared to cook.

After he provided the raw ingredients, the system charged just one fen for processing.

Looking at the great big basin full of rice soup and the two large plates of pan-fried buns, Bai Yao bought some salted duck eggs and pickled vegetables from the system. This breakfast was still better than what 90 percent of the village households had.

Before long, Kong Wu returned, carrying a string of eggs he had traded for while he was out.

"Breakfast is ready," Bai Yao said.

"Mm, I could already smell it." Kong Wu handed over the eggs and caught sight of the enormous portions of breakfast.

Although he knew it would have been impossible to make so much food in such a short time with such a small iron pot, just as Bai Yao hadn't asked about the unusual things around him, he wouldn't ask either.

After washing their hands, the two sat down and began eating.

"Delicious. Bai Yao, you're such a good cook. Everything you make tastes good."

After his first bite, Kong Wu began praising him.

That was what he truly thought, and he also felt he was truly lucky to have found Bai Yao.

As for Bai Yao, even his thick skin couldn't withstand Kong Wu's straightforward praise, and he blushed.

"If it's good, eat more."

As he said it, even Bai Yao felt that today's food tasted especially delicious.

Before long, Bai Yao was full, and the rest was left to Kong Wu.

Naturally, Kong Wu wouldn't waste it. He polished off everything that remained and washed the bowls and chopsticks too.

When they were done, the two took their carrying baskets and shoulder bags and headed out.

The village ox cart didn't go to the commune every day. It only went on dates ending in three, six, or nine, just nine times a month. If something came up, there would be a few fewer trips.

At other times, anyone wanting to go to the commune had to rely on their own two legs.

And today wasn't one of those dates, so they could only walk.

By sheer coincidence, the moment they stepped outside, they saw Hu Yang and his two companions eating biscuits for breakfast.

After the group met up and asked one another, they learned they were all going to the commune, so the five set off together.

On the way, Bai Yao learned that the three were going to the commune this time mainly because they had been so preoccupied with collecting their parcels at the post office yesterday that they had forgotten to send telegrams home to say they were safe.

As for shopping, they didn't think they were particularly short of anything themselves.

So they were only going together because they were headed the same way; on the way back, they would each go their own way, since they all had different reasons for going to the commune.

The group chatted during the first half of the journey, but by the second half, Bai Yao was already on Kong Wu's back.

Hu Yang and Gu Yang's legs were aching with fatigue too, but they could only rely on themselves to keep going.

Because Bai Yao and Kong Wu had quite a lot to buy, Bai Yao decided the two of them should go on ahead.

"We'll go ahead first. We have quite a lot to buy and need to spend more time looking around, so we won't wait for you."

After he said that and waved, Kong Wu couldn't wait to quicken his pace and leave.

How could five people compare with just the two of them?

Bai Yao couldn't stay idle either, so he started talking to Kong Wu about his plans for the vegetable patch outside the little courtyard.

"Let's buy some meat today. When we get back and you clear out the vegetable patch, set the wild greens aside. Tonight, the two of us can use the greens and meat to make steamed buns, so we won't have to spend time cooking when we go to work tomorrow."

"After we get back, we also need to visit the village chief's house and trade for some vegetable seeds. I have watermelon and muskmelon seeds too. We'll plant them all, and then we won't have to worry about having no vegetables or melons to eat."

Kong Wu had no objections to Bai Yao's plans. He even enjoyed them a little.

See? The two of them were the ones living like a family.