Chapter 65: A Match Made in Heaven—Perfectly Flawed! Please Let Them Be Bound Forever!

On the side of the new educated youth, Qi Zhijun hesitated as he gazed at the rat meat in the rice pot. But seeing Zhang Xiaojun and Liu Daye eating with such relish beside him, he felt tempted. In the end, he picked up a piece of radish and popped it into his mouth. With a gentle bite, the rich broth flooded his tongue, awakening every taste bud.

Oh, it was delicious!

In the end, his craving overcame his fear, and he took a big bite out of a chunk of rat meat. Ming Dai, worried about bacteria, had stewed it for a long time, until even the bones were nearly dissolved; he easily cleaned the meat from half the rodent.

Oh, it was so good!

When he finished, he was still unsatisfied. He scraped the remaining radish with his rice, his eyes drifting longingly toward the mountains. If only he could catch a few himself.

Liu Yan was also eating with great joy. Even back in the capital, she rarely had the chance to eat meat—her family always saved it for her father and brothers, and she could only savor the flavor when she washed the dishes.

After this meal, everyone was beaming with happiness, forgetting all the complaints of the day’s hard labor. Instead, they felt lucky—thank goodness they had come to build the reservoir.

While they were feasting in delight, the other villagers in the shelter area were not so fortunate. They had long finished their thin, watery porridge. At the time it filled them up, but as soon as their bladders emptied, so did their bellies.

Normally, they could endure such hunger. But now, the whole camp was filled with the aroma of meat, and it was impossible to sleep with such cravings gnawing at them.

Inside the hut of Shangwan Village, Pan Box’s swollen, turned-out lips and bruised, puffy face made him look rather ghastly in the dim light. He clenched his ruined teeth around his pipe, the embers glowing and fading in the darkness.

A loud rumbling echoed from within the hut.

Pan Box suddenly stood up. “Damn it! Tomorrow we’re going to catch rats too!”

A cheer immediately erupted in the hut.

The other villages had the same idea—tomorrow, they too would go hunting for rats.

Meanwhile, Ming Dai’s side was also approached by people hoping to join their group. After discussing it with Liu Guoqiang, she decided that it would still just be the four of them, so as not to delay their work.

It was enough for the villagers to have meat to eat; she wasn’t insisting on more. Only Qi Zhijun was proving troublesome.

Ming Dai looked speechlessly at the two men standing in front of the shelter.

“Didn’t I tell you? Tomorrow it’ll still be just the four of us going. You just wait here for the food.”

Qi Zhijun’s face flushed, though thankfully it was dark. “Comrade Ming, we’re all educated youth. Going together is a sign of unity.”

Ming Dai rolled her eyes. “Comrade Qi, you’re being narrow-minded! Who says educated youth can only unite with other educated youth? We should unite with the broad masses of working people! We can’t confine ourselves to a small clique!”

That accusation was a bit heavy, and Qi Zhijun hurried to explain. “No, no, that’s not what I meant. I just feel like you’re distancing yourself from our group of educated youth!”

Ming Dai: Ha! Distancing, my foot.

“Comrade Qi, if you have a problem, you can report me to Captain Fang. After all, he’s the head of the educated youth point. Besides, I don’t think I’m distancing myself at all. Which farm work or task involving educated youth have I not participated in?”

She grinned slyly. “Actually, one person hasn’t taken part in building the reservoir. That’s truly distancing oneself from the group and shirking responsibility, don’t you think? Maybe we should report it?”

Qi Zhijun, realizing she meant Fang Rou, shook his head quickly. “No, no, of course not! Xiao Rou is working elsewhere; she’s following the organization’s arrangements, so it doesn’t count as shirking!”

Ming Dai let out a cold laugh. “Then on what grounds do you say I’m distancing myself?”

Qi Zhijun felt wronged. Of course it’s because you’re not sharing the benefits with us educated youth, but rather with the villagers! But he knew he had no solid argument and stammered, unable to form a coherent defense.

Liu Yan anxiously interjected, snapping at Ming Dai, “Comrade Ming, you’re going too far! How can you say that about Brother Jun? He’s only concerned for you, he just doesn’t want you to go astray!”

Ming Dai: Sorry, but that’s disgusting.

“What did I say about him? He was the first to accuse me of not being united! And you, what right do you have to speak for him? Or have you two started seeing each other? Oh, I saw you both heading into the grove together this morning.”

Liu Yan, embarrassed, blushed in the darkness. “No, we… we haven’t…”

The unfinished sentence left much to the imagination, and Ming Dai burst out laughing. “Oh, I see, I see.”

Qi Zhijun jumped as if his tail had been stepped on. “Don’t talk nonsense! There’s nothing between Liu Yan and me! How could I ever like her? We’re not a couple, Comrade Ming, you’re mistaken!”

His shrill voice carried not only to Ming Dai’s group but also to the nearby shelters.

Liu Yan’s bashful smile froze on her lips. She was still young, and being rejected so publicly brought her to tears. Covering her face, she ran away, crying.

Qi Zhijun realized he may have overreacted, swallowed hard, and hoarsely stressed to Ming Dai, “Comrade Ming, there’s nothing romantic between us—only pure revolutionary friendship!”

Ming Dai waved him off indifferently. “Alright, alright, I get it. There’s nothing between you, you’re both clean as snow. Now will you go? I want to sleep.”

Qi Zhijun felt exhausted. All he’d wanted was to go hunting together for some extra food, but now people thought he was having an affair with Liu Yan.

He trudged back to his shelter, inwardly filled with disgust for Liu Yan. He wasn’t oblivious—he knew she liked him. But back in the capital, there were plenty of girls like her, circling around him. Handsome and from a good family, why would he care about them?

He wanted to marry Xiao Rou! Only a good girl like her was worthy of him!

Ming Dai watched him stride off, completely unconcerned about Liu Yan, who’d run off in tears. She felt nothing but contempt.

Scumbag! A textbook scumbag!

He enjoyed the attention and care of the girls, but never openly rejected them, stringing them along with ambiguity—so disgusting!

Fortunately, after a while, Liu Yan came back on her own. She wasn’t well-liked; no one had gone after her, and in the end, she returned, scared and alone.

She was quite something herself, quickly finding a way to forgive Qi Zhijun, and instead secretly resenting Ming Dai.

If only Ming Dai had said yes, she wouldn’t have been rejected by Brother Jun in public.

It’s all her fault!

Ming Dai: Ha! Rotten pots and cracked lids—what a perfect match. Please, just tie yourselves together and be done with it!

No longer interested, Ming Dai washed up and prepared for bed.

Zhou Sinian was already under the covers, engrossed in a comic book by flashlight.

Before long, Sister Huang returned, took Ming Dai’s washbasin, filled it with hot water, and began to gossip as she washed her feet.

“Xiao Ming, do you know why Comrade Qi and Comrade Liu went into the grove this morning?”

Wow! One has to admire how quickly gossip spreads!

Ming Dai immediately settled in to listen. “What’s the reason?”