When She Stops Being Dramatic

The people who had snapped back to reality glanced at Chi Yun’er again and again, a bit awkwardly. "Comrade, Jiang is driving the tractor. You’ll find him if you just listen for the engine!"

The farm was built in a remote mountainous region. Though surrounded by rolling hills, it possessed a large expanse of flat, fertile land that few of the local residents had ever cultivated.

That was why the educated youths were assigned here. Combining manual labor with machinery, they had painstakingly transformed the area into what it was today. They achieved self-sufficiency early on and even had enough surplus grain to support their comrades in Mongolia.

In the countryside, being a tractor driver was an impressive and respectable job that not just anyone could handle.

Chi Yun’er thanked them and continued down the dirt road. After about ten minutes, she could faintly hear the distinctive chugging of a tractor engine.

By the time she found him, the workers in the fields had already passed the news along to Jiang Yihua.

"Jiang, your wife is here looking for you..."

"You’ve got some nerve, Jiang! When did you go and get married without telling anyone?"

"They say she’s gorgeous! And she came all this way to bring you lunch, walking slowly with her pregnant belly..."

The veins on Jiang Yihua’s forehead throbbed as he listened. "Folks, please don’t listen to rumors," he said, exasperated. "I don’t even have a girlfriend, so how could I possibly have a wife and child?"

"It’s not a rumor! She’s on her way right now. Lots of people saw her, and she’s even prettier than Mingxing on TV and in posters!"

Those words immediately brought the image of that mischievous, smudged kitten to Jiang Yihua’s mind. But considering their unfamiliar relationship, he quickly shook his head, dismissing the idea.

"It’s probably one of the female comrades who asked me to bring something back for her."

The others regretfully accepted his explanation. "Jiang isn’t getting any younger, and he’s such an outstanding man. He really should consider settling down."

"There are plenty of great young women here. We don’t have many options, but is there really no one Jiang has taken a liking to? No one he’d want to spend the rest of his life with?"

Jiang Yihua shook his head, amused. "I don’t even know what my own future holds. Since I can’t provide the stable, comfortable life a woman would want, it’s best not to even think about it for now..."

Before he could finish speaking, his eyes narrowed. He saw a woman swaying gracefully toward him, and it was really her!

’It makes sense, I suppose.’ Since he’d convinced the transport team yesterday afternoon to make a detour through the Capital City on their way back and forth, many of the nearby educated youths had given him things to take for them.

An ordinary person wouldn’t have caused such a stir, with everyone excitedly relaying the news. She hadn’t even arrived, yet the flames of gossip were already lapping at his feet. Only a timeless beauty like Chi Yun’er could have such an effect!

Jiang Yihua jumped down from the tractor, handing the controls over to someone else to finish his shift.

He pulled off his gloves and used the water from a plastic bucket hanging on the side of the tractor to quickly wash his hands, face, and neck before striding from the field ridge onto the path.

The closer they drew to each other, the faster both their hearts began to beat.

Jiang Yihua stopped about two feet away from her. His gaze was deep as he looked at her for a couple of seconds before taking the heavy bamboo basket from her arm. "Let’s talk over there," he said in a low voice.

He pointed to an old, shady tree up ahead. A few toddlers were underneath it, poking at ants.

A warm blush was already rising on Chi Yun’er’s face, and it deepened into a more vibrant crimson when she saw the beads of water rolling down the man’s face, neck, and arms.

She bit her lip. "The village secretary’s Little Hemiao told me that you asked Fourth Granny Bian to raise two hens, and that their eggs are for me, to help me regain my strength?"

Jiang Yihua’s breath caught in his throat. He choked on his own saliva, holding a fist to his mouth as he coughed for a long moment.

’I knew it!’ The village secretary’s family, from top to bottom, always looked like they wanted to give him everything they owned every time they saw him, all to express their gratitude for him saving the secretary’s life.

So how did this bizarre story about him going to their door to ask for two hens come about?

He never would have guessed, not in a million years, that Fourth Granny Bian would pull a stunt like this...

And yet, Jiang Yihua couldn’t bring himself to deny it—not when it came to saving face for the village secretary’s family, and certainly not when it came to the secret feelings he harbored in his own heart.

He smiled and nodded. "Your health is delicate, and you don’t know how to look after yourself, so I asked the village secretary’s family to keep an eye on you."

Chi Yun’er smiled and lowered her head slightly, her porcelain-white finger pointing to the bamboo basket in his hands. "I know how to show my gratitude. Brother Hua, you’ve done so much for me. I don’t have much to offer, so I’m just returning the favor with what I could. I used the river fish Little Hemiao caught to make you some lunch."

Jiang Yihua raised an eyebrow. He lifted the small cotton quilt that was wrapped tightly around the container, and the aroma of spices immediately wafted out. Inside were crispy, golden-brown fried luffa cakes, steamed river fish, a matching dipping sauce, and a jar of mung bean soup.

Out of the corner of his eye, the few little kids playing nearby suddenly became an eyesore.

For the first time in his life, he felt stingy, unwilling to share his food with anyone—not even with toddlers who didn’t know any better!