Chapter 31 – Approaching Destination
After arriving here, most of the educated youth in the carriage got off the train.
Lu Xia struggled to carry two canvas bags and squeezed her way out of the train.
Looking back, she saw that Gu Xiangnan was not only carrying his own luggage but also helping Su Man. Jiang Junmo was also struggling to make his way down, seeming less energetic than her.
Finally managing to get off, Lu Xia felt like she had almost lost half of her life.
As soon as they got off the train, they heard people nearby calling out to the educated youth.
It wasn’t until Lu Xia and the others approached that they found out that they were sent by various villages and towns to pick them up.
She quickly found the person from Shayuan Town and saw that Gu Xiangnan and Su Man had also arrived.
But when she turned around, she saw Jiang Junmo with a pale face, looking a bit alarming.
Gu Xiangnan noticed and worriedly asked, “Comrade Jiang, are you okay?”
Jiang Junmo’s face was covered in cold sweat, but he still shook his head. “I’m fine.”
Gu Xiangnan nodded and helped put everyone’s luggage onto the tractor that had come to pick them up.
There were quite a few educated youth coming this time, with more than thirty from their town alone. It took two tractors to transport everyone along with their luggage.
The road back wasn’t easy, almost entirely mountainous. The person driving the tractor said that they had buses in their area, but the departure times were fixed. The bus would leave the town at six in the morning and leave the county at five in the evening.
The road was a dirt road, and the tractor kicked up dust as it moved along.
Lu Xia regretted not bringing a mask and could only cover her nose with her hand.
Looking at Su Man, she had made a makeshift mask out of a handkerchief, but it didn’t seem to be very effective, and she ended up with a dusty face too.
The tractor drove for almost two hours before finally reaching the town. Lu Xia felt sore all over after getting off. The tractor was too bumpy.
Looking at Jiang Junmo, he was swaying as he walked, looking even more frightening.
But at this point, they hadn’t reached their final destination yet.
People were waiting for them in the town, as they would be assigned to different villages.
Lu Xia, Su Man, Gu Xiangnan, Jiang Junmo, and another girl named Zhuang Hongmei and a boy named Li Yi were assigned to Dayingshan Village.
A young man in his twenties came to pick them up. He told them to put their luggage on the bullock cart and then walk behind him.
Great, now they didn’t even have a cart to ride in.
Lu Xia could accept it; she was still feeling sore from sitting on the train. Walking would do her good.
But the girl named Zhuang Hongmei couldn’t accept it. She spoke up, “There’s still room on the cart. Why aren’t we allowed to ride?”
The young man who came to pick them up was named Li Hongjun. He immediately frowned at her words.
“Can’t you see how much luggage you all brought? It’s already heavy. Do you want to exhaust the ox to death by getting on as well? Our village only has this one ox, and we need it for farming!”
Zhuang Hongmei sneered, “What’s more important, the ox or the people?”
“Of course, the ox is more important,” Li Hongjun replied matter-of-factly. “The ox can turn over the land and grow food. Can you?”
He glanced at Zhuang Hongmei, his eyes filled with ridicule.
In his heart, he looked down on these educated youth even more. If it weren’t for the village chief’s request, he wouldn’t have wanted to come and pick them up. These educated youth couldn’t carry anything, and they kept asking for this and that, wasting resources. With the time they wasted, he could have earned several work points.
After saying that, he ignored them and simply urged the ox to move faster with a whip.
Now Lu Xia and the others were struggling to keep up from behind.
Especially Jiang Junmo, who was walking unsteadily and seemed like he could fall at any moment.
Perhaps because they were both cannon fodder characters, Lu Xia felt a sense of empathy for him and worriedly asked, “Are you okay?”
Jiang Junmo’s lips were pale at this point. He heard her question and weakly nodded. “…I’m fine.”
But with his current condition, he definitely didn’t look fine.
*
Chapter 32 – The Educated Youth Spot
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Even the others turned back to look at Jiang Junmo with concern when they heard the sound.
Gu Xiangnan, seeing the situation, took the initiative to step forward and propose to Li Hongjun, “Can he ride on the cart? He’s really uncomfortable and can’t walk fast. We can’t let him delay everyone.”
Li Hongjun glanced at Jiang Junmo and saw that he was indeed in distress. This time he didn’t refuse and nodded, “Then get on. We need to hurry back. We might be able to make it in time for the afternoon shift.”
Gu Xiangnan helped Jiang Junmo onto the cart, and Jiang Junmo probably couldn’t walk anymore, so he didn’t refuse. “Thank you!”
Seeing his weakness, Li Hongjun furrowed his brow and said a few more words, “We have a clinic in our village. You can go there after you arrive and get yourself checked.”
Jiang Junmo nodded, “Alright, thank you.”
Once he was seated, Li Hongjun didn’t delay any longer and continued leading them on the journey.
However, although he wanted to walk faster, the educated youth from the city had never walked such long distances before, so they couldn’t move quickly at all. Especially Zhuang Hongmei, who complained while walking and even resorted to being stubborn and refusing to walk.
Lu Xia glanced at her and then at Su Man, who was slightly irritated but still persevering. She sighed.
This Zhuang Hongmei had a plotline in the book too. She was Su Man’s fellow villager and also a cannon fodder supporting character. Although her ending wasn’t great, at least she was alive.
Ah, but she couldn’t remember this Li Yi. He was probably an insignificant character.
Because of the delay caused by the educated youth, what should have been a twenty-minute journey took forty minutes. They had already missed the work time.
Li Hongjun’s face was completely black, and when they arrived at the village brigade headquarters, he simply threw them out and drove the ox away.
Only Lu Xia and the others were left at the entrance of the brigade headquarters, not knowing what to do…
It was already past 2 o’clock in the afternoon, the hottest time of the day. The sun was shining down on them as they walked, their faces turning red, covered in sweat.
Just as they were about to go into the brigade headquarters to ask, they suddenly saw a middle-aged man in his forties running over.
Seeing them, he smiled and said, “You’re the new educated youth, right? I’m the village chief here. Your files arrived a few days ago, and we have already arranged your accommodations. Come with me, I’ll take you to the educated youth spot.”
So the group of them carried their luggage and followed the village chief. Along the way, Gu Xiangnan still helped Su Man with her luggage, and although Jiang Junmo had recovered somewhat, he still had little strength. Li Yi helped carry his luggage, while Lu Xia carried her own.
Only Zhuang Hongmei was left carrying her luggage without anyone to help. Feeling wronged, she looked at Su Man, who had empty hands, and thought for a moment before saying, “Manman, can you help me carry this?”
Su Man immediately refused, “I had someone help me carry mine.”
Zhuang Hongmei was at a loss for words. Just as she was about to speak again, the village chief said, “Just leave it for now. You can carry it later. The educated youth spot is not far from here, and we’ll arrive soon. It won’t get lost if you leave it here.”
Although he said that, everyone still didn’t want to leave their luggage behind and decided to bring it all at once.
The village chief didn’t say anything more and took the opportunity to introduce himself on the way. His name was Li Changfu, and he was closely related to Li Hongjun, who had come to pick them up.
He briefly explained the situation in the village and the situation of the educated youth.
There were currently twelve educated youth remaining in the village, with many having returned to the city, been transferred elsewhere, or moved away after getting married. The remaining ones were just the ones they were with.
There were five girls and seven boys.
Currently, each group had a leader, one for the boys and one for the girls. If they had any issues, they could approach them first, and if they couldn’t handle it, they could come to him.
After a few more brief remarks, they soon arrived at the educated youth spot.
Thanks for the chapter (-ㅂ-)/ ♥ ♥ ♥