Rest Assured, Pay Up

This program was produced by Tomato Listening. Episode 13: Rest assured, pay up!

Then he turned to Zhou Nan and said, "Educated Youth Zhou, get to know everyone yourselves. If there's anything you don't understand, ask Wang Yang. Educated Youth Wang is one of the old hands and basically manages the Educated Youth Dormitory. I've got things to do, so I'll be off."

Zhou Nan nodded and watched the village chief leave.

Wang Yang happened to be sitting idly in the yard. Seeing the newcomer, he hurriedly got up to greet him. "Hello, I'm Wang Yang—the Yang from sunshine. Come on, I'll help you with your luggage. Let's put it away inside first."

Zhou Nan thanked her repeatedly, and the two went inside together.

Wang Xiaomei and the others had just gotten the stove going. Wang Yang called out to them and asked them to make an extra portion, so Zhou Nan would not go without lunch.

Since he had not arrived with the others, Zhou Nan naturally drew more attention. Yet he did not seem flustered in the slightest. Instead, he introduced himself to everyone with modesty and courtesy. He was from the ancient city and had taken a different train from Lin Yuzhu and the others, so he had arrived a day late.

Hearing Zhou Nan's voice, Lin Yuzhu's ears twitched. As someone obsessed with voices, that clear, jade-like voice was devastating. When Zhou Nan spoke to someone, it was like a breeze brushing past their ears and dispelling the afternoon heat.

Lin Yuzhu thought to herself, No wonder he captivated so many readers as the second male lead.

The biggest argument in the novel's comment section had been whether the female lead should choose the male lead or the second male lead. The comments from those on Team Male Lead Two, defending him against injustice, went on and on for pages.

Lin Yuzhu had read far too many novels, so she could not remember every plot perfectly.

But now that she had seen Zhou Nan, quite a few details came back to her. She remembered that the second male lead had not been particularly outstanding in the countryside, though he had feelings for the female lead.

Later on, all three characters in the novel got into universities in Beijing, and that was when their entanglement began.

The author really did dote on the female lead, her own darling daughter. The second male lead loved her but could not have her, and in the end, he remained unmarried for life.

That broke the fans' hearts. They denounced the author for him every day and practically wanted to mail her razor blades.

Still, that showed just how deeply rooted the second male lead's feelings for the female lead were.

Lin Yuzhu looked at the second male lead's height of over six feet, his well-proportioned features, and could not stop admiring him. He matched her tastes in every way, but he was probably someone else's dog.

Since she knew how the plot would unfold, she naturally would not develop any other thoughts about Zhou Nan. Once the novelty wore off, she stopped staring at him so openly.

After she looked away, Zhou Nan let out a slight breath of relief. For some reason, he had felt as though he were being examined on a chopping block just then. The key was that there had been a hint of teasing in her eyes, and he could not make sense of it.

When everyone gathered around the table to eat, Wang Xiaomei and Zhao Xianglan kept stealing glances at Zhou Nan. The former looked mostly curious, while the latter's expression was more difficult to read. Her shyness was practically spreading across her face.

Perhaps because he noticed that the female lead, Li Xiangwan, had glanced at Zhou Nan a couple of times, Li Xiangbei kept a frosty face throughout the meal. It was unknown whether Li Xiangwan noticed his jealousy. Maybe she had not yet realized the male lead's feelings. In any case, she ate and drank as usual, completely at ease.

From a reader's perspective, Lin Yuzhu naturally saw that the male lead was panicking inside, filled with a crushing sense of crisis.

Who said men did not have intuition?

Lin Yuzhu's gaze shifted back and forth between the male lead and the second male lead. If the male lead arrived any later, he might not even have had a chance to come out on top.

For people of their era, the second male lead was simply more aggressive. If the male lead had not gotten there first and shown the female lead such clear, attentive care, hitting her right in the heart, he would probably have been done for.

Still, with all their different thoughts, the meal was quite a feast for the eyes.

Setting everything else aside, just looking at the male lead, female lead, and second male lead—three stunning people—made the food seem more appetizing.

Lin Yuzhu thought that if the second male lead were a little more talkative, it would be even better. If he told stories now and then, that would be perfect. And if the food tasted better, it would be even, even, even more perfect.

Speaking of food, after finishing the meal, Lin Yuzhu's stomach was burning. She had no idea how many chilies Wang Xiaomei had added.

After the meal, Lin Yuzhu drank plenty of water. Everything still felt spicy. In her previous life, she had been able to eat spicy food, but the original owner of this body had never eaten it growing up. Suddenly eating something so spicy was more than her body could handle.

Wang Xiaomei was a girl from the south. Back in her hometown, people mainly ate spicy food. Without chilies in a dish, it was as though she did not know how to cook.

Today, she had specifically picked some small hot peppers from the vegetable garden so the new Educated Youths could taste her cooking.

But the newcomers were not from places where people could handle spicy food, so they were destined to disappoint her.

After working all morning, Zhang Yanqiu's mood had plunged into an abyss. She could see no hope and felt so dejected that she nearly did not want to live.

The more she washed dishes, the more irritated she became. Her mouth and stomach burned, and her heart burned even more fiercely.

Once she had finished washing up and returned to the room, she said to Wang Xiaomei, "Can we stop putting chilies in our food? I've never eaten spicy food since I was little."

There was inevitably a hint of venting in her tone.

Wang Xiaomei was sitting on the edge of the kang bed, admiring herself in a mirror. Hearing Zhang Yanqiu's tone, she raised an eyebrow and immediately snapped, "Then don't eat it if you can't handle salty and spicy food! Do you have a grandmother making your meals every day? If I'm the one cooking, there'll be chilies."

After glaring at her, she muttered, "You think two little chilies are too spicy? Why are you so troublesome? So delicate!"

Zhang Yanqiu was so angry that her eyes widened. Neither woman was willing to give in as they glared at each other, looking ready to start fighting at the slightest disagreement.

Lin Yuzhu looked from one to the other. Since this matter concerned her too, she asked Zhao Xianglan beside her, "Have you always eaten this spicy?"

Zhao Xianglan looked helpless. "I didn't eat spicy food either, but I was forced into becoming someone who can't live without it."

Perhaps out of concern for Wang Xiaomei's feelings, she did not say it too bluntly. But the helplessness in her words made it clear just how stubborn Wang Xiaomei was about chilies. Once someone got used to spicy food, it was very possible they could not change back.

Seeing that the older Educated Youths did not seem to mind the heat, they had probably grown accustomed to it.

That meant there would likely be disagreements over meals between the new and old Educated Youths.

Li Xiangwan had not eaten spicy food in either of her lives. She could not even get used to cornmeal buns, much less dishes with a strong chili kick. She suggested, "How about we make an extra non-spicy dish from now on?"

Wang Xiaomei said disdainfully, "We can barely keep up with the farm work. Who has the energy to make another dish? Why not just dream about it? Dream of pulling chilies—China Central Television, huh?"

Lin Yuzhu spoke in a joking tone. She had not meant it seriously. For some reason, she just wanted to retort against Wang Xiaomei, perhaps because she could not stand her arrogant manner. Then she felt that was a little unfair, so she added, "Rest assured, pay up."

Wang Xiaomei was speechless. Naturally, the argument reached no conclusion. Everyone parted on bad terms and returned to their kang beds for an afternoon nap.

Lin Yuzhu thought that communal living truly was not something worth fantasizing about. The village chief had said Zhou Nan could rest for a day and start work the next day, but Zhou Nan felt embarrassed to be the only one resting at the Educated Youth Dormitory, so he decided to work alongside everyone.

Of this batch of new Educated Youths, the Small Team Leader of Group One had already claimed two of them. Lin Yuzhu and Zhang Yanqiu were later assigned to separate teams.

Now that Zhou Nan had arrived, the Small Team Leader of Group Two knew it was impossible for Group One to take him, and Group Three's temperament made them even less likely to accept him.

Fortunately, he was a male comrade, so Zhou Nan was assigned to Group Two.

Seeing that he had been assigned to her group, Zhao Xianglan's delight was obvious. A sharp-eyed auntie noticed it and pulled another woman over to look. The gossip in their eyes could not be hidden at all. With Zhou Nan's looks, he had stunned the village's women, and the aunties' fervent attention toward him far surpassed what they had shown the other new Educated Youths.

That afternoon at work, Lin Yuzhu took on the role of supervisor. Since they did not want her slacking off, everyone might as well work hard together.

"Ladies, you've nearly scattered sunflower seed shells all over the ground. Shouldn't you get to work?"

"Hongjun's family and Wang Lao'er's family, if you keep chatting, I'll deduct your work points!"

The Small Team Leader shouted from several meters away.

"Hey, auntie, if you keep pulling there, you'll pull out the seedlings. It's time to move somewhere else."

"Daxiang's family, are your eyes going blurry with age? You can't even tell grass roots from seedlings? If you pull out the seedlings, I'll definitely deduct your work points."

For a time, Lin Yuzhu and the Small Team Leader of Group Three could be seen crisscrossing through the fields. Members of the other teams watched with great amusement.

Zhou Nan looked in confusion at Lin Yuzhu, who was bouncing around through the forest. She really was not what she appeared to be. She looked soft, sweet, and innocent, but now... he could not think of any words to describe her.

Logically speaking, acting so lively upon first arriving was not a good thing. After thinking about it for a moment, Zhou Nan went back to work. Having experienced so much, he was no longer the sort of person who meddled in other people's affairs.

When work ended that afternoon and the points were calculated, nearly everyone in Group Three had completed their tasks. Even the lowest-scoring person received seven work points.

Lin Yuzhu rubbed her nose. The Small Team Leader of Group Three glared at her irritably. His mouth had gone dry that afternoon; he had practically used up decades' worth of words in a single day. Yet he could not help wondering: although this Educated Youth Lin had offended quite a few people, those old women had actually worked properly all afternoon.

Thinking about it, it did not feel so bad. The two aunties who had always complained were miserable now. Not only had they worked all afternoon, they had also been blamed by plenty of team members, who said they should not have run their mouths. No one knew who had supported them when they had gone to complain in the first place.

Now that the commotion had started, they hurriedly grabbed Lin Yuzhu after work, afraid she might run away.

Aunt Wang said bitterly, "Girl, you can't go on like this."

Lin Yuzhu tilted her head, looking completely confused.