The poor girl from the 1970s was forced to kiss by the damp educated youth.

The person who actually stole the money bought candy; there were candy crumbs on the corners of their mouth.

The person who hadn't stolen the money had their leg broken and a bruised handprint on their face. They lay on the cold ground for a long time, and no one offered a word of concern.

Even those present who disliked Chen Zhi couldn't help but feel pity for her at this moment.

"The child's leg is broken. Let's take him to the town's health center first," said Captain Chen Renzheng, breaking the silence.

Chen Dexian sighed, "We need to take him to the hospital. I'll fetch the oxcart. You all prepare a cotton quilt for the child to sleep on, and another to drape over him. It'll be cold tonight, so those accompanying him should wear more layers."

Chen Dexian stuffed the forty-seven yuan into his uncle's hand, shook his head, and said, "What kind of mess is this? A broken leg like this might not even be healed with fifty yuan."

Chen Zhi was lifted onto the oxcart by Chen Dexian, and a quilt was covered over her.

The driver was Chen Dexian, and his uncle also went along, as did Chen Zhi's mother.

After they had gone some distance, Grandpa Chen grabbed Chen Fu by the ear and dragged him home. "You little brat, you've got some nerve! You dared to steal money! I'll beat you to death!"

The rest of the Chen family also went home, closed the door, and kept the onlookers out.

"Poor Chen Zhi, she lost a leg for no reason!"

"Chen Kai was too impulsive. He should have at least asked the questions first. He just broke her leg right away. This isn't his granddaughter, she's clearly his enemy!"

"Of course she's an enemy. Chen Zhi is often beaten for trivial matters. In the summer, she wears less clothing, and I've seen that the bruises on her body have never faded."

"It's probably because she caused her father's death; Uncle Kai and Aunt Ding both blame her."

"It wasn't just Uncle Kai and Aunt Ding; their whole family looked at her like she was an enemy. Actually, I think it's not entirely Chen Zhi's fault. Chen Zhi was only a few months old at the time, and it was Liu Xiaomei who didn't have enough milk to breastfeed her. Chen Decai risked his life to go to the edge of the cliff to collect bird eggs in order to help Liu Xiaomei recover her health, and he fell off the cliff and lost his life."

Chen Zhi's mother is named Liu Xiaomei, and her father is named Chen Decai.

"It wasn't Chen Zhi who told Chen Decai to steal bird eggs; it was Chen Decai who wanted to go on his own. She's just a child who's carried this crime for over a decade; it's truly tragic."

"That's not how it works. If her mother hadn't given birth to her, Chen Decai wouldn't have gone to steal bird eggs."

.......

The town's health center has limited medical capabilities. If a family with better financial means had their leg broken, they would definitely take the child to the county hospital for treatment.

The doctor also advised Chen Zhi to go to the county for treatment, saying, "We don't have all the medicines here. We can help you set your leg, but if you get an infection, not only will you lose your leg, but you might also lose your life."

Chen Zhi looked up at her mother, but her mother looked away. She then looked at her uncle, who looked troubled. "Zhizhi, I only have forty-seven yuan."

Chen Zhi understood and said to the doctor, "Please help me set my leg."

The leg setter hurt a lot, even with the anesthesia. Chen Zhi bit her lip until it bled, but she still couldn't help but whimper a few times.

"You are a brave child," the doctor and nurse praised Chen Zhi.

Chen Zhi forced a weak smile.

After her leg was reattached, Chen Zhi needed an IV drip, and the doctor said she would have to stay in the hospital for a week.

Uncle and Chen Dexian went back first, leaving Chen's mother to take care of Chen Zhi.

The health center has no canteen, and Chen's mother has no food coupons, so they will have to go hungry tonight.

"Your uncle said he'll bring us food tomorrow," Chen's mother said dryly.

Chen Zhi remained silent and closed her eyes; she didn't want to see anyone from the Chen family right now.

That night, Chen Zhi's legs ached so much that she couldn't sleep. She thought a lot and finally made up her mind to leave the Chen family and get away from these relatives with whom she had blood ties.

Traveling is inconvenient now, and a letter of introduction is needed to go to places further away, so it's unrealistic for Chen Zhi to run away from home.

Her solution was to get married.

She will be seventeen after the New Year. In the countryside, it is not uncommon for people to get married at sixteen or seventeen. They will first hold a banquet and invite a few tables of relatives to eat, and then get a marriage certificate when they reach the appropriate age.

The immediate problem to solve is finding a marriage partner.

In Sandong Village, the Chen surname makes up the majority, followed by the Liang surname. Almost all the Chen people in Sandong Village share the same ancestor, so intermarriage is forbidden. Chen Zhi initially considered marrying a Liang man of similar age, but she quickly rejected the idea. First, she had a bad reputation in the village, and most villagers looked down on her; second, she wanted to marry someone far away, away from these "relatives."

The neighboring villages are also good, but there's one problem—she doesn't know anyone from those villages.

Chen Zhi thought about it all night in a daze, and only fell into a drowsy sleep as dawn was about to break.

Sandong Village is small, with only a few dozen households and a few hundred people. Overnight, everyone in the village knew that Chen Zhi's leg had been broken by her own grandfather, and even the educated youth settlement knew about it.

Xi Lang lived alone in a room and didn't have much contact with the other educated youth. He overheard one of them mentioning it while he was watering the vegetables.

After having breakfast, he didn't go to the river. Instead, he packed his things, carried his basket, and headed to town.

It takes an hour and a half to walk from Sandong Village to the town, and half an hour to cycle.

To date, no one in Sandong Village can afford a bicycle.

"Wait a minute, Xilang—"

Someone caught up from behind.

Xi Lang turned around and saw Zhu Yuan, who was panting heavily. Zhu Yuan was also an educated youth who had been sent to the countryside in the same year as Xi Lang. The two of them didn't usually communicate much; they exchanged fewer than ten sentences throughout the entire year.

Xi Lang looked at the other person calmly. "What is it?"

"Are you going to town?" Zhu Yuan asked.

This is the direction to leave the village.

Xi Lang hummed in agreement.

"Could you buy me a bottle of face cream?" Zhu Yuan asked, taking out a dollar from her pocket and handing it to Xi Lang.

Xi Lang took it, then turned and continued walking forward.

Only after Xi Lang had walked away did another female educated youth, Zhao Yiqing, approach from a short distance away. "You really let him buy things for you? Aren't you afraid?"

Zhu Yuan didn't take it seriously, saying, "It's just buying something for you, it's nothing."

Over the past two years, Zhu Yuan has come to know Xi Lang quite well. Although Xi Lang is strange, aloof, and doesn't talk much, he's not greedy for small gains and won't do anything bad. Zhu Yuan trusts him to help her buy something.

Zhao Yiqing: "I don't know why, but I'm afraid of him."

If it weren't for the current campaign to destroy the Four Olds, Zhao Yiqing would have asked Zhu Yuan if Xi Lang was some kind of ghost from the mountains, as he gave off a sinister feeling, like a mountain spirit or wood demon wearing human skin.

Zhu Yuan nodded, "I'm afraid of him too. Let's just stay away from him."

When Chen Zhi woke up in the morning, her stomach was growling loudly with hunger. Her stomach was growling, and so was her mother's. There were only the two of them in the ward, and neither of them spoke. The only sound in the ward was the rumbling of their stomachs.

Chen Mu didn't arrive until nine o'clock with food. He brought a pot of mixed grain porridge, a plate of stir-fried mixed fish and dried radish, and a plate of cold green salad.

"This is one day's supply. I'll continue delivering to you tomorrow morning," Chen Mu said.

Actually, the health center has a place to cook, but cooking requires buying coal, and families are reluctant to spend that money.

Chen Zhi didn't speak, and ate her meal in silence. After finishing one bowl, she handed the empty bowl to her mother, saying, "Another bowl, please."

Holding the bowl, Mrs. Chen said with difficulty, "You're eating too much now, and you won't have enough for lunch and dinner."

"I'm not full," Chen Zhi said expressionlessly.

After hesitating for a few seconds, Chen's mother could only serve Chen Zhi another half bowl, while she herself only ate half a bowl.

"Chen Zhi, you're eating too much. Mom won't have enough to eat," Chen Mu said sternly.

"But I'm not getting enough to eat." Chen Zhi stared straight into Chen Mu's eyes. "My leg was broken. If I don't get enough to eat, how will my leg heal? If you feel sorry for your mother not having enough to eat, you should go back and talk to your grandmother and ask her to cook more rice for you."

His dark eyes were devoid of any emotion, as calm as a deep mountain pool, giving off an inexplicable sense of danger.

Chen Mu looked away, unable to meet her gaze.

Chen Mu left quickly.

Mrs. Chen had finally made it to town and planned to go out for a stroll.

Chen Zhi stayed in the ward to receive an IV drip.

Xi Lang arrived at this time.

He was still dressed the same way: a straw hat, dark blue long-sleeved shirt and trousers, and cloth shoes. His slender frame and fair skin made him look less like a country laborer and more like a Taoist priest from a temple.

Chen Zhi was surprised to see him. "You're here for a medical checkup too?"

Xi Lang didn't deny it. He walked into the ward and handed Chen Zhi a lunchbox. "These are today's multigrain pancakes."

Chen Zhi was taken aback for a moment. "Did you bring this for me as well?"

It couldn't have been specially delivered to her, could it?

"Hmm. By the way." Xi Lang took a handful of White Rabbit milk candies out of his pocket and placed them on Chen Zhi's hospital bed. "Suck one if it hurts."

Chen Zhi felt like crying. This was the first time since her leg was broken that someone had asked her if she was in pain.

"Thank you." She hid the candy under her pillow before opening the lunchbox, which contained two pancakes and several large pieces of boiled carp.

"Why is there still meat?" Chen Zhi was surprised.

"I cooked too much." Xi Lang said expressionlessly as he sat down on a chair and looked out the window.

Chen Zhi didn't believe Xi Lang's words; she knew that Xi Lang had specially cooked this for her.

This was one of the few acts of kindness Chen Zhi felt; her chest felt warm, but her nose couldn't help but sting with tears.

After finishing the multigrain pancakes and fish, Chen Zhi returned the lunchbox to Xi Lang and said "thank you" again.

Xi Lang took the lunchbox. "I won't be coming tomorrow."

Chen Zhi wasn't surprised; who would come to town every day for no reason?

He added, "I'll make up for the rest when you get back to the village."

Chen Zhi: "Okay."

Xi Lang got up and walked out. Chen Zhi watched him leave. When she saw him stop at the door, she couldn't help but hold her breath and felt a little nervous.

"Chen Zhi, your leg will be fine. Take good care of yourself," Xi Lang said, his tone calm but reassuring.

Chen Zhi's anxiety from the previous night was soothed by his words. She smiled and said, "I also think I'll be fine."

You won't get infected, and you won't become crippled.

Xi Lang grunted in agreement and left.

For the next few days, Chen Mu brought meals to the hospital every day. Somehow, he mentioned it to Ding Fangfang, and the amount of food he brought each day increased.

Chen Zhi stayed in the hospital for seven days, and on the eighth day, the doctor said she could be discharged.