Chapter 57 The First Meal in the Educated Youth Compound

Bai Nuo smiled as she looked at the person at the door, her eyes filled with a pure innocence, making her seem like the kind of girl who was easy to get along with and had a gentle temperament.

Therefore, Bai Nuo's deceptive appearance is more powerful than her fighting ability.

"Hello, Bai Zhiqing, I live in the last room at the very end of this row of small houses. My name is Qin Xuehua. I've been in the countryside for two years. Welcome to our educated youth compound."

Qin Xuehua introduced herself to Bai Nuo with a friendly smile before revealing the purpose of her visit: "I just got back from work. A few of the older educated youth discussed it and figured that since it's your first day here, you probably won't be able to cook. So, according to the old custom, a few of us older educated youth will cook a meal together to welcome you new educated youth. If you don't mind, you can come and eat with us later."

"Of course we don't mind. It's our fault for being rude. We've been so busy since we arrived that we haven't had a chance to greet you all," Bai Nuo said somewhat apologetically, appearing sensible and polite.

"That's normal. Everyone's a bit flustered on their first day. Remember to come over for lunch later. I'll go tell the other two educated youths, Chao and Sun."

"Okay, okay, thank you, Qin Zhiqing." Bai Nuo nodded with a smile, then subconsciously glanced at the opposite side of her hut and found that the door was still locked, as if no one had ever returned.

Qin Xuehua turned her head to look over and kindly introduced, "Oh, right. You haven't met the educated youth who lives across from your house yet, have you? His name is Fang Meng. He came at the end of last year. When he's not busy with farm work, he goes to the county or city to do temporary work. The brigade headquarters agreed to it. He's a pretty capable young man, but he seems to have a bad temper. However, he's quite reasonable. If you're young and happen to run into him, just don't mess with him. Don't be afraid."

Bai Nuo's eyes flickered slightly, but returned to normal when Qin Xuehua looked over. She smiled and nodded, expressing her gratitude: "Okay, thank you, Sister Xuehua. I'll remember that."

"You are welcome."

Hearing the other person call her "sister," Qin Xuehua's smile became even more genuine. This girl and Sun, who lived next door, were much better than the others living in the dormitory in front, especially the new girl who arrived today, whose expression and eyes were quite strange.

Fortunately, her family doted on her and continued to give her subsidies even after she had been in the countryside for two years. That's why she was able to move out and live alone after her single room was built at the end of last year.

As Qin Xuehua walked towards the room with the super fresh flowers, Bai Nuo glanced at the door opposite one last time, raising an eyebrow slightly, but didn't think much of it.

Bad temper?

Oh!

That's probably because he's never met someone with a worse temper than him.

Not only does she have a bad temper, she can also be unreasonable!

As darkness fell, the meals for the former educated youth in the front yard were almost ready. Bai Nuo, Chao Xianhua, and Sun Yuxi each brought some food over. Although the former educated youth had taken the initiative to treat them, they understood that in those days, it was a virtue not to eat or drink for free.

Bai Nuo took a small can of meat from the several boxes of canned goods he had swiped from Director Fei Zhu. Although it was canned meat, it was a small portion, which would add some meat flavor to everyone without being too conspicuous or sloppy.

Sun Yuxi brought out a piece of cured pork about the size of a palm and two fingers wide, just enough to add a meaty touch to the last dish that hadn't been cooked yet.

Chao Xianhua brought a can of fruit. This girl is still so honest. But since she had already brought it out, Bai Nuo and Sun Yuxi didn't let her take it back. They just said that this was the only can she brought, so she should take it out to add a dessert to everyone's meal.

In those days, every household in the countryside struggled to make ends meet, and they could only afford to eat meat a few times a year. This was especially true for the educated youth. They were not as hardworking as the people who worked in the countryside year-round, and very few of them could earn full work points. Moreover, they were on their own to support themselves, unlike the locals who had several or even a dozen family members working together.

Therefore, for the educated youth, having enough to eat meant they were doing well; it was extremely difficult to have a decent meal, unless they were like Qin Xuehua, who received monthly subsidies from their families, in which case they could live a better life.

So when they saw that there were only a few simple stir-fried vegetables, cold wild vegetables, and cornbread on the table, all with little oil and salt, none of Bai Nuo and the other two were surprised or disgusted.

In reality, very few families in the city can afford to eat meat every day; eating it once a week is considered a luxury.

"Welcome to all new comrades. I hope our educated youth family will get better and better in the future, and that we can help each other, be united and friendly, and live in harmony."

When Xie Weidong finished speaking the first paragraph, he couldn't help but glance at Bai Nuo, then at Liu Xier who was pretending to be a quail with her head down, and couldn't help but sigh in his heart.

This really is his biggest wish this year, truly!

Xie Weidong looked at the rare meat dishes on the table, a genuine smile appearing in his eyes, and even his voice carried a hint of joy.

"Today, I want to thank the three female comrades for contributing cured meat, canned meat, and canned fruit. To be honest, we haven't touched meat since after the New Year. Thanks to the three female comrades, we can have some meat before spring planting."

"That's right. The little bit of meat we were given last year was all eaten around the Lunar New Year. It's been almost three months now, and I feel like I've almost forgotten what meat tastes like."

Sitting next to Xie Wendong, a male educated youth put on a gentle smile, speaking with a touch of humor, while his eyes seemed to be casually glancing at the three newly arrived female educated youth.

"Oh right, I haven't introduced myself yet. You all should know Weidong, right? He's the elder brother and administrator of our educated youth compound." Before Xie Weidong could continue speaking, this male educated youth interrupted him, speaking in a cheerful and talkative tone.

“My name is Hu Zhiqiang, you can call me Brother Hu if you like. We’re all revolutionary comrades who fought together, so there’s no need to be so formal. Besides, I’m 23 this year and have been working in the countryside for three years. I’m quite familiar with the people and things in our brigade, so feel free to come to me if you need anything. Don’t be shy.”

Xie Weidong glanced at it indifferently, trying hard to keep his lips from moving.

We've lived on the same kang (heated brick bed) for three years. Honestly, you can't help but want to understand someone.

He suddenly felt that he didn't really want to be the administrator anymore!

On the very first day the new educated youth arrived, the administrator of the educated youth compound wanted to resign!

What followed was a series of self-introductions.

After everyone introduced themselves, we can get a basic understanding of these educated youth.

These were all young people from all over the country who had gathered here. Although the people of Qishui Brigade treated the educated youth fairly well, in their hearts, the educated youth were still outsiders. They, the educated youth, were the real group. They wanted to get to know each other so that they could unite better and live together in harmony and stability.

Of course, this is just Xie Weidong's opinion as the administrator.