Under Zhao Nuanyue's care, the two youths, Wang Yuan and Li Qiong, who were in good shape to begin with, recovered in just two or three days.
Perhaps they had grown accustomed to the labor here; Wang Yuan, Li Qiong, and Yang Guanghui gradually adapted to the workload. Among the five of them, the three girls took turns cooking. Yang Guanghui fetched water, cleaned, and handled other heavy chores. Bit by bit, they were getting used to rural life.
Zhao Nuan Yang had arrived in a new environment. Although he would sometimes space out and stare blankly at the distant scenery, he didn't show any other unsettling behavior.
This allowed Zhao Nuanyue to relax a little.
While they could manage the basics of life here, other manufactured goods were incredibly scarce. With no paper, Zhao Nuan Yang often sat on a rock by the door, using a small branch to draw mountains and rivers, flowers and birds, insects and fish, and peculiar peaks and strange stones on the ground...
Zhao Nuanyue felt guilty toward her brother. She secretly whispered to Zhao Nuan Yang, "Nuanyang, the village is too poor to buy paper. For now, let's just draw on the ground. When I get to go to the county town, I'll buy you drawing paper, brushes, and paints, okay?"
Hearing his sister's words, Zhao Nuan Yang nodded obediently. He looked at her and smiled gently. His smile was like the warm sun in the sky, full of light, washing over Zhao Nuanyue's scarred and weary heart.
Zhao Nuan Yang even reached out and gently brushed his fingers across his sister's brow, as if to smooth away the worry etched there.
"Smile!" Zhao Nuan Yang's pleasant voice uttered a single word, yet it moved Zhao Nuanyue more than a thousand could have.
This was her brother, the one she would cherish and protect for a lifetime.
Zhao Nuanyue smiled, radiant and beautiful.
Although life was hard and the future seemed bleak, as long as she had her brother, Zhao Nuanyue felt as happy as if she owned the whole world.
Then, inadvertently, Zhao Nuanyue discovered a secret about herself.
She found that she could sense any place with water. Her consciousness seemed able to merge with nearby water.
In the water, though she was just a sliver of consciousness, she could clearly see which parts of the river had more fish and which had more shrimp. That was the most basic ability. She could even stir up splashes and waves in the water.
This frightened Zhao Nuanyue a little, but she quickly came to terms with it.
'If rebirth is possible, then anything is,' she reasoned. 'I'll just consider it a superpower.'
Soon enough, she put this Special Ability to use.
The mushrooms on the mountain had all been picked, so they had to start fishing near Nianqiao Village.
Every day, the villagers had to take their boats out to fish. Each adult had to turn in twenty catties of fish to earn two work-points. Wang Yuan and Li Qiong couldn't swim a lick. On the small boats, they could only sit on the planks and sort the fish; they were no help at all in catching them.
Zhao Nuanyue helped them in secret, and they just barely managed to meet their quota each day.
Accountant Li of the village had originally wanted to give these young people a hard time, but seeing them complete their tasks every day, he couldn't find a reason to.
That evening, the public security director, Wang Dadan, arrived at Accountant Li's house with a bottle of liquor.
"Heh heh," Accountant Li said with a grin. "You never show up without a reason. What brings you here?" This Wang Dadan lived up to his name—'Dadan' meant bold. He'd dare to do anything. But Wang Dadan had a capable brother-in-law in the city, so he was naturally riding his coattails.
Wang Dadan winked and smirked mischievously. He sat down at the dinner table and said, "Madam Li, hurry up and whip up some dishes to go with the drinks."
Accountant Li's wife, Liu Lanhua, knew not to offend Wang Dadan; in fact, she had a favor to ask him soon. She chuckled and said, "Alright, brother. You just wait a bit, I'll go fry up some eggs with chives."
"You're the one who gets me!" Wang Dadan said with a lewd grin, the flesh on his face jiggling. Chives were good stuff, an aphrodisiac!
"You wretched thing, always talking nonsense," Liu Lanhua scolded with a laugh. Swaying her plump hips, she went to the kitchen to cook.
Once Liu Lanhua had left, Wang Dadan lowered his voice. "Li, have you noticed? Those three new girls in the village... each one is more delicate than the last!"
Accountant Li froze. He knew Wang Dadan had a weakness for this sort of thing and couldn't keep it in his pants. The man was full of wicked ideas.
"This is the first time young people have been sent to our village. The higher-ups are watching. You can't just mess around," Accountant Li said. "Everyone turns a blind eye to your business with Widow Qian, but these are city folk. You can't just fool around with them as you please."
Wang Dadan couldn't care less. He took a swig of liquor, the spiciness making his face twitch, but he felt great inside. "How can that Widow Qian compare to these tender young girls? Besides, I heard that some of the city folk in other villages are using all sorts of tricks to get sent back. We won't even have to lift a finger."
Accountant Li cursed silently. This Wang Dadan was a real piece of work.
He'd taken advantage of the village widow and was also carrying on with two or three of the young wives in the village. There were even rumors he was involved with women from the neighboring villages, though who knew if that was true.
But given Wang Dadan's character, those rotten affairs were probably true.
Accountant Li frowned, disapproving of Wang Dadan's plan. If this went wrong, someone could die!
"Dadan, I know you're bold, but I didn't think you were *this* bold," Accountant Li said. "These are volunteers from Jincheng City. Who knows if they have capable relatives? You'd better behave yourself."
Accountant Li's words, far from making Wang Dadan back down, only made him roar with laughter.
"Li, don't worry. If these people had capable relatives, would they have been assigned to a place like ours? They're just common folk. Go back a few decades, and they'd be servants for some rich family. What kind of powerful relatives could they possibly have?" Wang Dadan said dismissively, growing more and more pleased with himself.
"Dadan, don't let a little liquor make you lose your head," Accountant Li snapped. "If something happens, forget the village—not even your brother-in-law in the county town will be able to protect you."
Seeing Accountant Li's sanctimonious act and his refusal to budge, Wang Dadan cursed him internally. 'What's with the prim and proper act in front of me? I know all about you and Ma Po's daughter-in-law!'
But that was his secret weapon, and of course, he couldn't use it now.
"My brother-in-law said there's a factory recruitment coming up soon. Your Shanzi..." Wang Dadan trailed off, leaving the rest unsaid. The implication was obvious, and Accountant Li understood.