Chapter 5: Going to the Countryside

After Wang Qiuxia and Zhang Ming were taken away, an investigation began. Their affair was no secret in Wang Qiuxia’s home village; it took only a brief inquiry to confirm.

Following their public denouncement, the two were locked up in the police station. They were under investigation for poisoning the elderly Su couple and conspiring with secret agents to assassinate Su Yuanrong. These two charges alone were enough to earn them a firing squad. Su Yao stopped paying them any mind.

As for Zhang Yueyue, after she left, she sought help from Yue Zi’an. Once the Yue family learned of the crimes committed by Wang Qiuxia and Zhang Ming, they forbade Zhang Yueyue from visiting their home.

When Zhang Yueyue returned home, Su Yao was sitting at the dining table, enjoying a meal. Furious, Zhang Yueyue rushed over and swept the food off the table. "Su Yao, how can you be so heartless? She is your mother too. How can you just sit by and do nothing?"

Su Yao glanced at the food on the floor. It was the last of the family's rations; she had cooked it because she hated to see it go to waste, yet she hadn't even managed two bites before it was ruined.

"You said it yourself—she isn't just my mother. Furthermore, she harmed my grandparents and my father. Your entire happiness was built upon my suffering. Why should I save them?"

"You—you really won't save her?"

"No."

"Fine. If you won't save them, I’ll find someone who will." With that, she stomped off to the little boy’s room.

"Wait," Su Yao called out.

"What now?"

"Nothing much. Just letting you know that I’ve already sold this house. You’d better find somewhere else to stay."

"What? You sold the house? Where are we supposed to live?" Zhang Yueyue stomped her feet in a panic.

"That’s not my concern. The house is mine, and I’ll sell it whenever I please." Su Yao went back to her room to rest.

Afraid to sleep, Zhang Yueyue went straight to the Yue household to find Yue Zi’an, but the family refused to let her in. Yue Zi’an could only help her find a place to stay temporarily.

The original plan had been to head to the Great Northwest for four or five days, but the destination had changed, and she was leaving the day after next.

Su Yao tidied up Wang Qiuxia’s room, mainly to see if there was any hidden cash or ration coupons left behind. To her surprise, she found several hundred yuan—likely Zhang Ming’s secret stash.

Next, she collected the large iron pot from the kitchen along with various bowls and utensils, storing them all in her dimensional space. If possible, she hoped to cook and live independently after arriving in the countryside.

She packed up the rest of her belongings and gave them away.

At dawn, Su Yao boarded the bus. By the time she reached the train station, it was past nine. The train hadn't arrived yet, and the platform was already crowded.

Su Yao carried a leather suitcase and a bundle on her back, waiting for the train to pull in. All around her were scenes of people tearfully bidding farewell to their families; she alone stood out as an outsider.

Although she tried to convince herself not to care, she still felt a pang of sadness and missed her parents. She wondered how they were doing. Fortunately, she had an older brother, or she would truly worry about them being unable to cope.

The train chugged into the station with a rhythmic clatter. Once it stopped, Su Yao boarded and found her seat.

At first, she didn't notice it, but after sitting for a while, the stench rising toward the ceiling nearly made her vomit. She hurriedly opened the window for some fresh air.

Sighing, she realized that after being accustomed to high-speed trains and airplanes, this green-skinned train was a form of torture.

Just as Su Yao was silently complaining, the woman sitting next to her spoke up: "Hello everyone, my name is Yu Lu. I’m an educated youth heading to the Yangyang Commune in Harbin."

The woman sitting opposite also introduced herself: "We are also heading to the Yangyang Commune. My name is Zeng Yue, and this is Tian Zhixue, my partner."

Tian Zhixue frowned at this but offered no explanation.

Seeing it was her turn, Su Yao introduced herself: "I’m Su Yao. I’m heading to the same place."

"That’s great! I wonder if we’ll be assigned to the same area," Yu Lu said.

Su Yao smiled but remained silent.

At mealtime, Su Yao took out a box of dumplings she had stored in her space during her previous life. Busy with packing yesterday, she had only thought of food once she was already in bed, and since the pots were already stored away, she had simply filled her lunchbox with items from her space.

Su Yao could only manage a few bites before she felt full. The original owner had often been underfed, and her stomach had shrunk; even a small amount now felt like a feast.

Opposite her, Tian Zhixue and Zeng Yue were also eating. However, Zeng Yue’s meal was noticeably better than Tian Zhixue’s. He was eating cornmeal buns, while she had white rice and braised pork.

Zeng Yue picked up a piece of pork and offered it to him. "Zhixue-ge, try this. My mom got up early to cook it for me."

Tian Zhixue kept his lips pressed together, but the way he swallowed betrayed him. His face turned bright red, flashing a hint of irritation, yet he opened his mouth and ate the meat.

Su Yao turned her head away to avoid making them uncomfortable.

She wasn't looking, but someone else was. Yu Lu stared at the braised pork, swallowing hard. "Zeng Yue, that pork looks delicious. Your mother must be a great cook. Unlike me—my family is poor, and I’ve never even tasted braised pork."

Zeng Yue looked at the pork she was about to feed Tian Zhixue, then at the coarse-grain bun in Yu Lu’s hand, and handed the meat to Yu Lu instead.

Yu Lu grabbed it with her bare hands and ate it immediately. "Zeng Yue, your mom’s pork is so good! Could you give me two more pieces?"

Zeng Yue stared at Yu Lu in shock, unable to believe someone could be so shameless. "I'm sorry, my mom made this for me and Zhixue-ge. If you want some, you can buy some on the train."

With that, she snatched the bun from Tian Zhixue’s hand, tore it open, tucked three or four pieces of pork inside, and handed it back to him. "Eat it while it's hot, Zhixue-ge. It won't taste good if it gets cold."

Tian Zhixue held the meat-filled bun and ate it while Yu Lu continued to swallow audibly. Though the pork was delicious, his heart was heavy with unspeakable feelings.

His family was poor, and he was the second of three sons. It was often said that the eldest grandson and the youngest son were the apple of their grandparents' eyes, and that was certainly true in his case.

In his family, his father didn't care for him, and his mother didn't love him. If it weren't for the face that Zeng Yue found attractive, he suspected that if he went missing, it would take his family days to notice.

He felt a sense of gratitude toward Zeng Yue because her attention had made his family treat him with more importance. Yet, she also made him feel humiliated, leaving him unable to hold his head high in public.

"Zhixue-ge, if there's anything you want to eat, just tell me. If I don't have it, I can buy it for you," Zeng Yue said, leaning against him bashfully.

Tian Zhixue twitched the corner of his mouth and nodded.

Su Yao felt it would be best to keep her distance from these three. Zeng Yue was a hopeless romantic; anyone with eyes could see that Tian Zhixue didn’t love her—there was even a hint of disgust in his eyes. People like her would eventually pay the price.

Then there was Tian Zhixue, who was greedy and manipulative; his behavior was truly unsightly.

As for Yu Lu, she had initially seemed outgoing and lively, but now she appeared completely shameless. Such people were best avoided; once they latched onto you, it was impossible to shake them off.

It would be best to stay as far away from the three of them as possible.