Era: Starting with the struggle to refuse being taken advantage of

Chapter 20 Borrowing Books
"Xia Zhiqing, I have something I'd like to ask you for help with. I don't know if you'd be willing."

"This matter is very simple; it's just about borrowing books."

"I see you read a lot, so I imagine you must have many books around you. Could you lend me some of the books you're not reading right now?"

The person who suddenly appeared was naturally Wang Chengpeng. After being interrupted by Shen Wei, he remembered another important matter, which was borrowing books.

Although seven educated youths came to Wangjia Village, Wang Chengpeng's only target for borrowing books was Xia Mingyue.

After all, Xia Mingyue had many books and was diligent and eager to learn, which was known throughout Wangjia Village.

As it turns out, Xia Mingyue's efforts were not in vain. In the first year after the resumption of the college entrance examination, she was admitted to university with the highest score in Shanghe City, and her future can be described as limitless.

Xia Mingyue glanced at Wang Chengpeng in surprise. She never expected that Wang Chengpeng would take the initiative to approach her because of this kind of thing.

After hesitating for a moment, Xia Mingyue nodded vigorously and said, "Okay, I can lend you the book, but only one at a time."

There may not be many diligent and studious people, but they certainly do exist.

Under these circumstances, it is perfectly reasonable for Wang Chengpeng to borrow books from Xia Mingyue.

In addition, Wang Chengpeng had just earned a reputation for remaining unmoved by temptation the night before, and Xia Mingyue herself was not a super narcissist, so she did not have the strange idea that Wang Chengpeng had ulterior motives for coming to borrow books from her.

As for why only one book could be borrowed at a time, it was because Xia Mingyue did not trust Wang Chengpeng.

There must be a demon in the abnormal situation.

She wasn't a newcomer to Wangjia Village, yet Wang Chengpeng only came to borrow books from her at this time, so she naturally had to be careful.

Moreover, in this era of limited time, a book containing a wealth of knowledge is more than enough for Wang Chengpeng to study for a long time, which is more than sufficient.

One book? This clearly doesn't meet Wang Chengpeng's requirements.

However, considering that he was the one asking for a favor, Wang Chengpeng happily agreed, saying:
"Thank you."

"Xia Zhiqing, I will cherish the book you lent me."

"Please don't mind if there are any troubles in the future, Xia Zhiqing."

Xia Mingyue had no idea that Wang Chengpeng's words about "a lot of trouble" meant he really had a lot of trouble. She thought it was just Wang Chengpeng being polite, and immediately smiled and said:
"It was nothing, Comrade Wang, there's no need to be so polite."

"Ever since I came to Wangjia Village, you have taken good care of me. It is my honor to be able to help you."

Xia Mingyue's words were not just polite talk; Wang Chengpeng had indeed helped her a lot back then.

Sending educated youth to the countryside was not an easy experience, especially when they first arrived. Some educated youth couldn't bear it and even hid under the covers and cried.

As a member of the same group, Wang Chengpeng took good care of these educated youths, and they remembered this.

Having finally found an opportunity to repay her kindness, Xia Mingyue naturally felt obligated to do so.

After agreeing to meet Xia Mingyue to pick up the book after work, Wang Chengpeng returned to the big tree where he had been standing.

Even if it's for Xia Mingyue's own good, he, who is about to get married, shouldn't have too much contact with her.

After working for a while, Wang Chengpeng soon saw a familiar figure. Who else could it be but his younger sister, Wang Meiyan?
As expected, she must have come to deliver the food.

Sure enough, Wang Chengpeng soon found a small basket in Wang Meiyan's hand, which probably contained his lunch for the day.

There were no fancy lunchboxes; a few porcelain bowls were Wang Chengpeng's lunch for the day.

Thanks to some leftover food from last night, Wang Chengpeng's lunch today was unexpectedly plentiful.

The stir-fried carrot shreds and pork slices, in particular, looked incredibly appetizing. Wang Meiyan looked at Wang Chengpeng expectantly and said, "Brother, the food is here, hurry up and eat."

Although Wang Chengpeng was starving and thirsty because he hadn't eaten breakfast, he forced himself to eat and picked up the only plate of meat, walking towards where Xia Mingyue was.

The other party had just agreed to lend me the book, so it was only right that I return the favor.

Moreover, after eating the side dishes I gave her, Xia Mingyue would have no way to refuse my requests to borrow books multiple times in the future.

The food for educated youth was not good; in fact, it was worse than that for ordinary villagers.

If it weren't for the occasional help from their families, these educated youths would probably have been starving and emaciated long ago.

After all, when it comes to earning work points, they are nowhere near as good as the native villagers.

That's why, even for their most important meal, lunch, they only ate a few cornbread buns.

I had some cold water with me for lunch today.

Wang Chengpeng placed the stir-fried carrot shreds and pork slices in front of Xia Mingyue and said directly:
"Xia, thank you for agreeing to lend me the books to study."

"I just happened to bring some extra food from home for lunch today, so I'll give this dish to you as a thank you gift."

Without waiting for Xia Mingyue to refuse, Wang Chengpeng got up and returned to Wang Meiyan's side, happily eating his lunch.

Wang Meiyan would have to wait until I finished lunch to take my things back and pack them, so I had to finish quickly.

On the other side, seeing the carrot shreds and stir-fried meat slices that had suddenly appeared in front of her, Xia Mingyue immediately prepared to return them.

Borrowing books was just a small favor for her, so how could she possibly accept the dishes that Wang Chengpeng offered as a gift?

But the moment she picked up the bowl of food, a pleasant aroma seemed to find an outlet, launching a frenzied assault on her nostrils, making her mouth water.

Moreover, the dishes coated in oil, especially the thick slices, immediately caught Xia Mingyue's eye.

"Gurgle, gurgle," came the sound of her stomach protesting, and Xia Mingyue suddenly found the steamed bun in her hand unappetizing.

"Mingyue, please, leave this dish here."

"I haven't seen such delicious food in a long time, let alone eating it."

An Qiuyun was also tempted and immediately expressed her opinion, saying:
"If you feel you can't accept something for nothing, and are embarrassed to accept it, how about I pay for the dish myself?"

"Here's two cents. Consider it my payment for this dish. Comrade Wang definitely won't lose out."

Swallowing hard, Xia Mingyue ultimately couldn't resist the temptation and chose to keep the dish.

However, she refused An Qiuyun's money and decided to pay the two cents for the groceries herself.

They each took half and immediately began to enjoy the steamed buns with gusto.

It must be said that, with a high level of proficiency, Wang Chengpeng's cooking skills are quite good.

Even after being repeatedly heated, stir-fried carrot shreds and pork slices are still incredibly delicious.

The large, tempting slices of meat were so enticing that the two of them held them in their mouths, reluctant to swallow them.

Well, those two cents were definitely worth it!
The same thought popped into both women's minds at the same time.

(End of this chapter)