Bai Yunjiao looked fragile and innocent, while Xu Laidi stood over her, shouting with a sense of superiority. To anyone watching, it looked like Xu Laidi was clearly bullying Bai Yunjiao.
Xu Laidi was loud enough that everyone in the dormitory heard and came outside.
First to step forward was one of Bai Yunjiao’s supporters. He rushed over to shield her.
“Xu Laidi, what’s your problem? Just because you’re one of the senior members, you think you can bully people?”
Aside from Liu Linlin, several other male educated youth, including Luo Yecheng, looked at Xu Laidi with disapproval.
Xu Laidi stomped her foot in frustration. “What do you mean, bullying? I just pointed out a few things to her, that’s all.”
Meanwhile, Bai Yunjiao cried and explained for Xu Laidi: “Don’t misunderstand,” she sniffed. “Xu Laidi isn’t bullying me. Maybe I did something wrong, and she was just trying to ‘advise’ me.”
Bai Yunjiao’s supporter immediately protested, “We’re all here as educated youth, Xu Laidi. What right do you have to give ‘advice’ to Bai Yunjiao? Bai Yunjiao, you don’t need to defend her. You’re just too kind.”
Luo Yecheng joined in, saying, “Xu Laidi, don’t start trouble. Bai Yunjiao hasn’t done anything to you, so why are you insulting her?”
With so many people accusing her, Xu Laidi’s eyes started to redden. “You…all of you…”
She glared at Bai Yunjiao, who smirked smugly back at her, and Xu Laidi lost control.
“Bai Yunjiao, you shameless tramp!”
Xu Laidi raised her hand to slap her, but instead, it landed on the supporter who had stepped forward. Suddenly, chaos broke out as they struggled to keep her from lashing out again.
Meanwhile, Song Wei and her friends sat nearby, not lifting a finger to intervene. Zhao Su and Gao Le even grabbed a handful of sunflower seeds and shared them among themselves.
“Wow… Xu Laidi really went wild! She wasn’t just slapping—she actually clawed his face!” one of them commented.
“That’s Ma Qian, right?” Gao Le remarked. Ma Qian, Bai Yunjiao’s main supporter, bravely stayed in front of her, even when Xu Laidi’s nails left deep scratches across his cheek.
Song Wei glanced at the two tall men. “You guys aren’t going to step in?”
Gao Le and Zhao Su shook their heads in unison. “No way. We’d be the ones getting hit for sure.”
Just like Song Wei, they’d decided to sit this one out, preferring to avoid the risk of getting hurt.
Finally, the other men managed to restrain Xu Laidi, but everyone looked shaken and displeased. Bai Yunjiao had already backed away—she wasn’t about to risk her face in a brawl. Seeing the scratches on Ma Qian’s face, she was both grateful and secretly angry with Xu Laidi’s intensity.
As for Xu Laidi, she hadn’t come out unscathed either. Ma Qian, fed up with her behavior, had slapped her twice across the face.
“You hit me! Are you even a man?” Xu Laidi yelled.
Ma Qian shot back angrily, “Why shouldn’t I hit you? You’re nothing but a troublemaker! You think you can scratch my face and not expect me to fight back? Stop hiding behind your gender—here, we’re equal. Don’t think I’ll go easy on you just because you’re a woman!”
Xu Laidi, realizing he was genuinely furious, started to feel scared, but she also felt wronged.
“I was trying to hit Bai Yunjiao! You got in the way!” she said, indignant.
But she didn’t understand why so many men would go out of their way to protect someone like Bai Yunjiao.
“You’re all picking on me just for Bai Yunjiao!” she cried as she stormed away.
“Tsk, what a mess,” Zhao Su commented, shaking his head.
After the show ended, Song Wei and her group went back to working on the fence. When they finished, she handed each of them three ripe persimmons and some kiwis. The bright, red persimmons brought immediate smiles to their faces.
“Persimmons!” Gao Le exclaimed. He eagerly split one open and took a bite, his eyes lighting up at the sweet taste.
“These are delicious!”
“You’re spoiling us, Song Wei,” they said, thrilled with the surprise treats.
With their work and snacks done, Song Wei sent them off to bed. Afterward, she took the kiwi branches she’d brought from the mountains and carefully planted them, watering them lightly. Whether they’d grow or not would be up to fate.
Later that night, a thunderstorm rolled in, bringing heavy rain.
With the rain pouring down, there was no chance of going out to work, so everyone huddled inside, catching up on chores.
Heidan grabbed a broom to sweep out the room, while Song Wei sorted through the unripe persimmons, peeling them to make dried persimmons.
Li Juan stopped by, carrying a bundle of yarn and knitting needles. She sat down and began knitting a sweater. Curious, Song Wei leaned in to watch.
Li Juan smiled. “It gets so cold here in winter. I saved up for this yarn for a while. Isn’t it lovely?”
Song Wei nodded. “It’s beautiful, and I can’t believe you know how to make sweaters. That’s impressive!”
Song Wei herself was hopeless at fine work like knitting. Despite her gentle appearance, anything delicate was beyond her.
“Want to learn? I could show you,” Li Juan offered.
Song Wei shook her head with a grin. “Better not. I’m afraid I’d end up breaking the yarn!”
Thinking about Song Wei’s strength, Li Juan laughed and let the idea drop.
Li Juan switched the topic. “We’ll be getting our grain rations in a few days. I wonder how much I’ll get this year.”
Having been in the countryside for years, she’d gone from scraping by on three or four work points to earning five a day on average, and even as much as seven or eight during the busy season. With that, she could cover her basic food needs for the year with a little to spare.
Song Wei wasn’t as concerned. Since she’d only recently arrived, her points were still too few to exchange for rations, so she wouldn’t be getting any. But the new educated youth could buy some from the village after everyone else had received their shares.
Meanwhile, in a southern military district, soldier Song Jing was returning from training when someone called him over.
“Sergeant Song, you’ve got a package.”
He blinked in surprise. “For me?”
After confirming, he followed them to retrieve it, eyeing the enormous package with confusion. It took some effort to lift it, and he wondered who could have sent him so much.
The only family he had contact with were his father, who he despised, and his little sister.
He quickly ruled out his father, but his sister… She’d never sent him a package before—usually, she’d just write letters.
But Song Jing didn’t hold it against her. He knew that, their father and stepmother had made life tough for her. It was unlikely she’d have anything to spare to send.
Thinking it over, he finally managed to lug the package back to his quarters.
“Sergeant Song, who sent you so much stuff?”
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