Rebirth in 1972: Redemption in Changbai Mountain

"Zhou Rui, my good buddy, your idea of ​​splitting up the cooking was absolutely right. It turns out there really was a thief in our educated youth compound."

Ma Jun, that scoundrel, often steals grain from the yard and hides it for himself. No wonder we never had enough to eat before.

Ever since you suggested splitting up, Qiuyue and I have been able to eat our fill. Later, when Chen Zhejiang and the others arrived, they still didn't have enough to eat.

Chen Zhejiang is such a clever man; he secretly investigated this matter without telling any of us. Today, he finally discovered it: Ma Jun took food from their shared rations and hid it in a cave outside.

Enraged, they grabbed Ma Jun and beat him severely. If it weren't for the fact that several men were surrounding him, I would have kicked him a couple of times myself.

As Yang Ping spoke, her expression was filled with disgust and hatred. It was this Ma Jun who had caused her and Lin Qiuyue to go hungry every month-end.

"Then, what's the deal with Meng Huaiyuan? Isn't he also a victim? Why is he protecting Ma Jun?"

Yang Ping said with some disdain, "What else could it be? He doesn't want to lose face, of course. Under the nose of the educated youth team leader, no problem has been discovered for months."

If outsiders knew, they'd all praise their captain for his brilliant and courageous leadership! He'd rather starve himself than let a big rat get too fat.

Yang Ping spoke in a sarcastic tone, displaying the art of manipulating women in later generations; it seems she was truly disgusted.

"This Meng Huaiyuan doesn't seem very smart."

"Oh, how so?" Yang Ping's interest was piqued by Zhou Rui's casual remark.

Seeing Yang Ping's wide-eyed, questioning look, Zhou Rui had no choice but to continue, "If he wants to suppress this matter, he should join Chen Zhejiang and the others in giving Ma Jun a good beating."

After they've vented their anger, we can talk to them about how this shouldn't get out, as it would damage the reputation of the entire educated youth compound. That should be enough.

He's trying to smooth things over and act as a peacemaker. Not only are Chen Zhejiang and the others unhappy, but you guys are too, right?

"Of course, I wish I could rush over and beat him to death." Yang Ping waved her fist.

"That's settled then. He's offended all the educated youth in your compound over this matter, and now he's going to see the village chief. This can't be kept secret anymore. I think it won't just be the village chief coming."

"You mean a lot of people will be coming to the village later?" Yang Ping asked, looking surprised.

Zhou Rui nodded: "Everyone's bored in the dead of winter, but you've got some excitement to watch, haven't you? The educated youth compound will be the biggest stage in the village soon, with everyone gathered around, pointing and commenting on it."

"Like, like that day at your uncle's house?" Yang Ping said, a look of fear on her face.

Yang Ping was happy watching others have fun. But the thought of it happening to her, with all eyes on the educated youth, sent chills down her spine.

Yang Ping's mind went completely blank at that moment; her usually imaginative mind couldn't come up with a single solution.

"Then, then, what should we do?"

"Get out of here, and this matter will have nothing to do with you. This whole thing started in the male educated youth dormitory, it has nothing to do with you girls' dormitory."

Furthermore, if you're not present, people won't associate male and female educated youth when they chat, and you'll be less likely to be implicated in future gossip about this matter.

"Good Zhou Rui, your brain is so smart, you are simply my Zhuge Liang and his youngest son."

Yang Ping slapped Zhou Rui on the left shoulder, making him wince. His injury hadn't even healed yet, and Yang Ping's slap almost cracked it open; she was such a crazy girl.

"Sleeping Dragon and Phoenix Chick"? You've been watching too many theatrical excerpts.

Seeing that Zhou Rui was in pain from the slap, Yang Ping couldn't help but look at her own palm. Was it really that powerful? She had witnessed Zhou Rui wrestling with a black bear.

"I'm leaving now. You can handle the rest yourselves."

Zhou Rui turned and left. His home on the edge of the village and the educated youth compound would soon become the focus of attention, and he needed to hurry out and catch some toads.

Otherwise, too many people will come later, asking him for information, and they might also take the opportunity to visit his home or something.

He didn't want too many villagers to visit his house, as it would expose a lot of things. His family's situation was best kept to himself; only a few close friends needed to know, there was no need to make it public knowledge. Maintaining a certain degree of mystery in the village was advantageous to him.

Fortunately, Zhou Ping quickly called Liu Ping'an and Liu Shunli over. Zhou Rui put Xiao Niangao and An'an into the sled on the bed, and stuffed Maoqiu and the other dogs in as well.

Once the gate was locked, Mao Mao was left in the yard to guard the house, and then the mule was driven out.

If any villagers want to enter his yard, Mao Mao will just stand there. With his height of about one meter and weight of over 100 kilograms, no one will dare to come in.

Zhou Ping and his two companions walked in front, while Zhou Rui led the large mule behind them, passing the educated youth compound and heading into the mountains.

"Zhou Rui, where are you going?" A melodious, soft Wu dialect voice rang out.

Zhou Rui looked over and saw that Chen Zhejiang and his men had gotten tired of beating him and had tied Ma Jun up in the yard, cursing him from time to time.

Yang Ping and the others huddled together, whispering amongst themselves, away from the male educated youth. Lin Qiuyue, who was facing the outside of the compound, saw Zhou Rui and his group trying to sneak away and immediately called Zhou Rui back.

"Oh, I was so bored at home today, so I took Pingwa and the others to catch toads upstream of Jiaolong Creek."

"Zhou Rui, wait for us, we'll go with you." Yang Ping's mind worked quickly, and she took over the conversation almost as soon as Zhou Rui finished speaking.

She was just discussing with Lin Qiuyue, Yu Sitian, and He Wei where to hide when Zhou Rui immediately gave her an excuse.

Moreover, those forest frogs were absolutely delicious; she hadn't forgotten them ever since she'd had them last time. This time, thanks to Zhou Rui again, she could not only enjoy good food but also avoid this trouble—a win-win situation.

As for feeling embarrassed, Yang Ping said she wasn't. She's thick-skinned; at most, she'd do a little more work and, incidentally, help her good friend Lin Qiuyue find a husband, then she'd stay at Lin Qiuyue's house and live a life of luxury.

"Alright then, hurry up." Zhou Rui nodded in agreement.

Since he already had so many little ones with him, whether he was herding one sheep or a flock, Zhou Rui felt no pressure.

Zhou Rui thought he would have to wait a while, since girls in later generations never went out without dressing up.

Unexpectedly, Lin Qiuyue and her group were incredibly fast; they simply went into the dormitory, grabbed a hat and a scarf, and came out. Their speed was so impressive that even Zhou Rui, a man, was impressed.

"Let's go, hurry up. If the captain comes, it'll be hard to leave. He'll definitely want us to testify or something."

Lin Qiuyue grabbed Zhou Rui's sleeve with her two slender fingers and urged him urgently, as if this educated youth compound was a powder keg and that if they didn't leave soon, they would all be affected.

Because Lin Qiuyue spoke in a very low voice, she had to get very close to Zhou Rui. Zhou Rui smelled a warm, pleasant fragrance, but he couldn't quite place it.

Zhou Rui nodded, and a soft leather whip cracked across the mule's rump. Giddy up...

After a while, when only the shadows of Zhou Rui and his group remained in the distance, Meng Huaiyuan and Zhao Youzhi hurriedly arrived at the educated youth compound.

Besides militia captain Zhao Changshan and accountant Zhou Shumin, a group of bored villagers who had caught wind of the situation also came along. They figured the longer it went on, the larger the group would grow, until they completely surrounded the educated youth compound.