A young man from another world returned to his hometown.

"So... how did you get out?"

Lin Jiaqing thought for a moment, then glanced at the girls in the back seat through the rearview mirror.

"People used to tell me that girls shouldn't study, getting married is the most important thing. Everyone around me said that, and they kept repeating it until I started to believe it myself."

Lin Jiaqing smiled.

"Later, my brother gave me a chance, so I gave it a try. After trying it, I found that everything those people said was bullshit."

Two cars stopped at the village entrance. Their village was still dark at night. She turned around and looked at the girls.

"Alright, we're here. Did you have fun today?"

"happy!"

This time, the voices were much more synchronized.

"That's good."

Lin Jiaqing opened the car door.

"Remember what I said today. If you want milk tea in the future, come find me."

In the following days, Lin Jiaqing contacted the teachers at the school and, under the guise of study tours, took some girls from the village to the city several times.

Of course, the teacher also recommended a few "shamate" kids, who are unique to rural areas, to go with them. Although they dyed their hair and dressed in exaggerated styles, according to the teacher, they were actually quite good at school and studied very hard.

After dinner, Uncle Liu and his wife sat in the courtyard enjoying the cool evening air.

Inside the house, the only electric fan was whirring. The son had been playing games all day and was finally tired.

After washing the dishes, Liu Xiaohui was about to return to her small room.

As I passed through the yard, I heard her parents whispering to each other.

"That matchmaker is here again, asking about things."

"What do you want to ask?"

"Ask about the girl. She said she's graduating soon and wants to hold the wedding banquet during the summer vacation so they can get to know each other better over the next couple of years, and then officially get their marriage certificate when they reach the right age."

"Have you discussed the bride price yet?"

"We negotiated, and they said 100,000, that's all they could offer."

"One hundred thousand? Isn't that a bit too little..."

"You still think it's too little? In today's market, 100,000 is already pretty good. Besides, their family is well-off; they drive trucks..."

Liu Xiaohui leaned against the wall, looking up at the clear starry sky over the countryside.

"...Then...shall we collect the deposit first?"

"Alright, then we'll have the matchmaker come tomorrow."

Liu Xiaohui turned around, went into her room, and closed the door.

The room was the same size as my brother's, but it had very little furniture: a bed, a class schedule I wrote when I was in school, and a few celebrity posters given to me by classmates.

Next to her was a red plastic stool used as a bedside table. In her schoolbag were her textbooks and a card that Lin Jiaqing had given her a few days ago.

The card has the registration phone number for the vocational school listed, and the address is right across from the middle school; it's almost finished being built.

In fact, she had noticed the changes in the town for a long time. During school breaks, she liked to look towards the school gate from the corridor.

Liu Xiaohui took out the card and looked at it over and over again. She remembered the girls she saw by the university playground that day, and she also remembered Lin Jiaqing's appearance: confident and beautiful, with no calluses on her hands and clean skin.

Then she looked down at her hands and tucked them into her sleeves.

She hid under the covers, unable to sleep until late at night, and then she made the most outrageous decision of her life.

She pulled a fertilizer bag from under the bed and stuffed it with some of her documents, clothes, textbooks, and the more than 1,000 yuan of New Year's money she had saved up over the years.

I lay back down on the bed.

Wait, until all the voices have disappeared.

In the countryside at night, the air is stuffy and humid, and the chirping of insects echoes from the rice paddies.

Liu Xiaohui sat up in bed and opened the window.

She had never climbed out of a window before, but today, when her hand touched the windowsill, she hardly hesitated.

She carried her schoolbag and fertilizer bags on her back and set off on the road out of the village.

The moonlight was bright, like a silver ribbon stretching into the distance. The barking of dogs at night was frightening; she was afraid something might suddenly rush out. She had never known that the road at night could be so long.

Her heart was pounding, but she didn't stop.

"Tomorrow is Monday, and when classes start, I'll be staying at school. As long as I hide in the school, I won't know where I've gone. I won't go back until the vocational school starts."

As long as there is a job, there will be income, Liu Xiaohui thought.

I fantasize about what might happen when I'm studying in the future: studying in the morning, learning technical skills in the afternoon, and maybe having a few good friends to discuss things we like together.

Liu Xiaohui's steps became lighter.

But suddenly the village dogs started to get infected, and one after another they began barking wildly.

Liu Xiaohui started running, until she reached the national highway at the village entrance, where she saw flashlights being turned on in the village.

Liujia Village is a few kilometers away from Tian Village. She started running wildly on the national highway. She never knew she could run so fast.

The beam of the flashlight swayed back and forth in the village.

"Xiao Hui! Liu Xiao Hui!"

"Where did they run off to?"

"They must have headed towards the village road! Chase after them!"

Uncle Liu rushed out shirtless.

His wife followed behind, along with several relatives from next door who had been awakened by the shouts.

The beams of three or four flashlights swept back and forth in the night.

"That brat! What are you doing running around in the middle of the night!"

"Did she run off with some guy?"

They started the motorcycle.

When Liu Xiaohui reached the middle school gate, her legs were already trembling.

Her heels were blistered, and every step she took was excruciatingly painful.

The door was locked, and she gripped the iron bars and shook them vigorously.

"Security guard, open the door quickly!"

Behind her, the headlights of the motorcycle were already shining on her back.

"stop!"

It was her father's voice.

"Liu Xiaohui! You get back here right now!"

Liu Xiaohui turned around.

Under the car headlights, her face was deathly pale.

Her father reached out to grab her.

"Are you crazy! Running out in the middle of the night! Are you trying to drive me crazy?!"

"I'm not going back."

Liu Xiaohui's voice was trembling and she couldn't form sentences, but it was very loud.

"I want to study."

"Read xxx book!"

Uncle Liu had already grabbed her arm.

"You think I won't beat you to death?!"

"Alright, alright."

Her mother arrived and grabbed her daughter's other arm.

"Come back with Mom, okay? Good girl, be good, Mom won't scold you..."

"I'm not going back!"

Liu Xiaohui forcefully shook off her mother's hand.

"I don't want to get married! I want to study!"

"you!"

Uncle Liu raised his hand to slap him.

Just then.

The lights were on at the middle school security booth and in the building across the street.

Section Chief Ma, Lin Jiayao, Lin Jiaqing, Wei Changfeng, and the school's security guards walked out from both sides of the road.

Section Chief Ma stood between Liu Xiaohui and her parents.

"Old Liu."

When Uncle Liu saw that it was Section Chief Ma, his imposing manner diminished considerably, but he still remained defiant.

"Section Chief Ma, this is a family matter. My daughter ran out in the middle of the night, and it's not unreasonable for me, as her father, to say a few words to her, is it?"