1987 My Era

Chapter 681
Picking the mushrooms was a small task; cleaning up the soil and removing the dead branches and leaves took much longer than expected. The three of them sat in the yard and didn't finish until after 1 p.m.

After washing a basket of milk mushrooms, Li Heng said to Yu Shuheng, "I'll cook lunch myself and stir-fry some cured pork."

Yu Shuheng had done a lot of exercise today and was a little hungry. "Okay, let's go."

Over the next few days, the two would occasionally go up the mountain to look for wild delicacies or to admire the beautiful scenery of the tea plantations opposite. Yu Shuheng seemed to have a special fondness for the lush, terraced tea plantations, and would often spend an entire morning there with her camera and a friend.

She sat on a rock and said with emotion, "Your village is especially suitable for retirement. I really like it."

Li Heng sat down next to her: "Forget about retirement. You get tired of seeing it all the time. Coming back to stay for ten days or half a month occasionally can keep things fresh."

Yu Shuheng glanced at him, a half-smile on her face, and said, "You're only 20 and you're already tired of the hometown that raised you. What will you do when you're 40, when all the women who are with you will have to be replaced?"

Li Heng: "..."

He argued, "You can't say that. This mountain village is located in a remote area and lacks everything. Its medical and health care, economy, culture, and infrastructure are all inadequate."

"I'm not afraid to tell you, but if you're bitten by a venomous snake while doing farm work, you might not survive. In recent years, almost every year a villager has died from snakebites. Thinking about that, do you still think this place is beautiful?"

Yu Shuheng paused, then fell silent.

August 7th, early morning.

After breakfast, Li Heng and Yu Shuheng got into the Mercedes-Benz.

Before leaving, Yu Shuheng specially took out two very valuable luxury watches from her bag as gifts for the elderly couple: "Dad, Mom, I didn't know what you liked, so I just bought some randomly. I hope you won't mind."

The watch was too valuable, and Li Jianguo and Tian Run'e felt a bit hot in their hands. But when they thought about their daughter-in-law's family background and wealth, the old couple looked at Li Heng and, seeing that their son did not object, happily accepted it.

Tian Run'e held Yu Shuheng's hand and whispered, "Shuheng, come visit us more often when you have time, and remember to keep in touch. Also, you need to hurry up and do what I'm discussing with you, while Mom is still young and can help you take care of your children."

Yu Shuheng felt bitter inside, but her face was full of smiles: "Okay, I will try my best."

The Mercedes drove away, and Yu Shuheng peeked out and waved.

The elderly couple saw them off all the way to the road, waving goodbye as they watched them leave.

Back home, Li Jianguo asked, "Did you talk to Shuheng about having a baby again?"

Tian Run'e sat on a bamboo chair and sighed, "I guess this instruction is a waste of time. This past week, I've paid special attention to how Shuheng washes her underwear and also checked the trash can. Forget about bleeding, there wasn't even a tissue in the trash can."

Li Jianguo didn't know how to respond, so he took out a cigarette, lit it, and smoked it listlessly.

Tian Run'e asked, "You said Shuheng is beautiful and has a very likable scholarly temperament. Logically speaking, she should be a smart person. What is she thinking? Why isn't she in a hurry at all?"

Li Jianguo exhaled a puff of smoke. "How could I not be anxious? I was anxious, otherwise I wouldn't have come back to my hometown with my son. You still haven't grasped the key to the problem. If you ask me, this matter can't be blamed on Shuheng; the problem probably lies with Manzai."

Tian Run'e realized what was going on, "So it seems he's still determined to marry Song Yu?"

Li Jianguo said, "That's probably true in most cases."

Tian Run'e asked, "What about Shuheng?"

Li Jianguo was speechless. Because he was also at a loss, unsure of what to do.
After a while, Tian Run'e thought of Wang Runwen and shook her head: "Shuheng still lacks courage and is too accommodating to your son, which is not necessarily a good thing."

For the first time ever, Li Jianguo defied his wife and spoke a fair word: "Shuheng hasn't even married into the family yet, and she's already so tolerant, I think that's quite good. You say she lacks backbone, but you haven't even managed to raise your own child properly, how can you blame her?"

Tian Run'e's eyes widened: "I gave birth to Manzai by myself? Who does he take after for his womanizing ways? Doesn't he come from you?"

Li Jianguo was exasperated. He thought to himself that he hadn't had any affairs with other women, yet he was always being accused of having children with such a son. He felt like he had lost out, and Run'e would scold him all the time.

....
As the car passed through Huixian County, Li Heng suddenly spoke up: "I will personally explain the matter of the child to the old couple, so don't worry."

Yu Shuheng breathed a sigh of relief and said, "Okay."

Then she asked, "Where are you getting off?"

Li Heng said, "I need to go to Shaodong. Let's go to Chengnan Park."

Yu Shuheng didn't ask much about Shaodong. She turned at the Sangesi intersection onto a rural path to pick up Wang Runwen.

She asked, "Runwen has resigned. What are your plans?"

Li Heng understood what he meant, "Let's leave it at that for now, and wait for Zijing to get pregnant first."

Upon hearing this, Yu Shuheng smiled knowingly, and her jealousy vanished instantly.

She didn't know why, but she always liked to compete with Runwen in this regard. She hoped that Li Heng would consummate their marriage first before considering Runwen.

The country road wasn't far; it was only about two or three miles to the Wang family's ancestral home. Wang Runwen had already packed his luggage and was waiting for the two of them.

Wang Runwen asked, "Are you hungry? Would you like to have lunch before you leave?"

Yu Shuheng shook her head: "I'm not hungry. Let's go to Changshi first and eat there."

After leaving his job, Wang Runwen felt much more relaxed and his personality became much more straightforward. "Okay, let's just go then."

Upon entering Shaoyang City, Li Heng got off the bus at Chengnan Park.

Wang Runwen asked, "When are you going back to Shanghai?"

Li Heng said, "It might be around the time school starts."

Wang Runwen glanced at her best friend and waved her hand, saying, "You can go now. I'll wait for you in Shanghai until September."

"Okay, sure," Li Heng replied.

It wasn't a matter of life or death; he turned and left without any hesitation.

Watching his retreating figure, Wang Runwen asked, "Did you find anything on this trip?"

Yu Shuheng said, "I changed my way of addressing it."

Wang Runwen suddenly turned his head: "Such a big harvest?"

Yu Shuheng nodded with a smile: "It's just a pity..."

Wang Runwen pressed further: "What's a pity?"

Yu Shuheng briefly explained his plans for his first child.

After listening patiently, Wang Runwen said, "I completely agree with the idea of ​​giving the first child to Chen Zijin; it would be best if it were a boy. This girl has suffered too much."

Yu Shuheng remained silent.

Wang Runwen tilted his head: "Are you feeling uncomfortable?"

Yu Shuheng sneered: "Why should I feel uncomfortable? As long as it's not Song Yu and Zhou Shihe's first child, I can accept it."

Wang Runwen thought for a moment and reminded her, "Although that's what we say now, we still need to be careful. If Song Yu or Zhou Shihe doesn't play by the rules, then things will get complicated."

Yu Shuheng said, "Song Yu wouldn't. But I can't say for sure about Zhou Shihe."

Wang Runwen asked, "You still haven't figured out the other party?"

Yu Shuheng shook her head and spoke her mind for the first time: "Don't let her young age and frail physique fool you. She rarely shows her emotions and is very shrewd. Every time I face her, I feel a strange sense of dread. I've never felt this way with anyone else."

Wang Runwen exclaimed in surprise, "That's amazing?"

Yu Shuheng said, "As the saying goes, 'Know yourself and know your enemy and you will never be defeated.' It was precisely because I was not confident in facing her alone that I chose to temporarily reach an understanding with Song Yu."

Wang Runwen clicked his tongue twice and said sarcastically, "You two are fighting over a man like you're fighting for an empress. This is not the Yu Shuheng I used to know. Good luck."

Yu Shuheng didn't seem to care. "You'll understand when you face Zhou Shihe in the future. Don't laugh at her too soon."

Wang Runwen crossed his arms and said, "What am I afraid of? I bet she and Li Heng won't get married. As long as she's not the legitimate wife of the Li family, she can't control me."

...

Chengnan Park.

When he arrived at the open area on the mountaintop with the gifts he had just bought, he immediately saw Mai Dong and Mai Sui, father and daughter, watching an old man playing the suona under a big tree.

Li Heng quietly walked over, went behind Mai Sui, and gently patted her shoulder.

Mai Sui immediately turned her head, and when she saw him, a flash of surprise crossed her eyes. She said softly, "You've come."

Hearing her daughter's voice, Maidong also looked over.

Li Heng greeted him warmly: "Uncle."

"Hey, have you had lunch yet?" Mai Donglu asked with a smile.

Li Heng shook his head, glanced at his watch, and said, "I just had breakfast not long ago, I'm not very hungry yet."

Mai Dong said, "Then let's go back to Shaodong first and talk about it later."

Li Heng said, "Okay, thank you for your trouble, Uncle."

"It's nothing, you and Suibao are classmates and friends, don't be so polite." With that, Maidong led the two of them toward where the van was parked.

The van was parked near the main entrance of the park. Li Heng opened the door and got in, then asked Mai Sui, "Are Shihe and Manning at your house?"

Mai Sui said softly, "It's too hot, so I didn't let them come. My hometown is at the foot of the mountain, surrounded by forests, bamboo groves and rivers, so it's cooler there."

Li Heng looked up at the blue sky and white clouds: "It's really hot. If I didn't have anything to do, I wouldn't want to go out in this awful weather."

Mai Sui's hometown is not in the county seat, but in the countryside, only an hour or so away from Shaoshi. The three of them chatted and laughed, and arrived quickly.

As soon as Li Heng got out of the car and went inside, he ran into Sun Manning, who was washing Zhou Shihe's hair under the osmanthus tree.

Upon seeing him, Sun Manning immediately shouted, "Hey! Rich man, you've finally arrived! If you hadn't come, the snails would have starved to death!"

Li Heng realized what was happening: "You picked up snails?"

“We picked them up. Let me tell you, there were hordes of snails in the reservoir, they were everywhere. We brought back two big buckets of them that day. Look! They’re being kept in that pond over there in clean water.” Sun Manning gestured with her lips, indicating that he should look at the pond at the base of the wall on the left.

Li Heng went over to take a look, and wow! Good heavens, at least sixty or seventy pounds of snails. The snails were not only big, but also bright in color. They were obviously high-quality snails raised in excellent water.

Sun Manning asked, "So many, are they all for making snail soup?"

Li Heng rolled his eyes: "Even if you were a pig, you couldn't finish eating it all."

Sun Manning said angrily, "Who said that? I can eat a whole pig."

After their bickering, Li Heng greeted Mai's mother and Mai's grandmother, presented them with gifts, and chatted with them for a while.

Mai Mu had already killed a rooster and said to her husband, "You cook, and I'll help you start the fire."

Mai's mother felt that her cooking skills were not as good as her husband's, and that's what she said.

Thinking that it had taken them most of the day to pick him up, Li Heng interjected, "Uncle, if you have business to attend to, go ahead and do it. I can cook."

Mai Dong smiled and shook her head: "It's nothing, business has been slow these past few days, I usually stay at home." Hearing this, Li Heng was relieved and took the ice cream Mai Sui offered him and started eating it. "You made the ice cream yourself?"

Maisui sat down next to him. "No, I bought them in town. I bought dozens at once and they're in the refrigerator."

As expected of the richest family in the village, the Mai family's house is not only an exquisite three-story house made of ceramic tiles and red bricks, but it also has all the appliances that others envy, such as air conditioners, refrigerators, and washing machines. They can be considered a local tycoon.

After Zhou Shihe finished washing her hair, she sat up from the recliner. After exchanging a silent glance with Li Heng for two seconds, she reached out and took the ice cream that Mai Sui handed her.

Sun Manning first used a dry towel to dry Zhou's hair, then plopped down opposite the three of them and asked in a low voice, "Has Teacher Yu gone back?"

You really know how to rub salt in the wound! You idiot, you have no sense of propriety at all. Be careful, or I might just throw you into the reservoir.

Li Heng took a bite of his ice cream and asked, still confused, "Huh? What did you say?"

Sun Manning leaned closer and said, "Li Heng, I have some news for you. I heard that Teacher Wang Runwen has resigned and gone with Teacher Yu."

Li Heng was speechless, feeling that this girl was testing him. "I know, I was there that day too."

Sun Manning asked, "Why did she resign when she was perfectly fine?"

Li Heng retorted, "You don't know that?"

Sun Manning said, "My dad went to the Education Bureau, our whole family moved away from No. 1 Middle School, and my mom just came back from Shanghai, how would she know?"

Li Heng replied, "The new principal and Teacher Wang didn't get along, and he often made things difficult for her, so she resigned."

Upon hearing this, Sun Manning suddenly stood up and, right under Mai Sui and Zhou Shihe's noses, grabbed Li Heng's arm and kept walking towards the bamboo forest on the right.

Forced into the bamboo grove, Li Heng couldn't help but ask, "What are you doing acting so suspiciously? Is there something you can't say to my face?"

"Tch! If I said that to your face, Shihe and Maisui might slap you twice."

Sun Manning scoffed and stopped in a secluded spot, asking, "Tell me the truth, Wang Runwen resigned because he finally saw the light and is willing to be your woman, right?"

Li Heng frowned, only then realizing that Sun Manning's series of questions earlier were entirely intentional, a deliberate trap she had set for him.

Damn it, did this idiot install surveillance cameras?

Li Heng asked calmly, "Why do you say that?"

Sun Manning glanced around cautiously again, then lowered her voice even further: "Tch! Don't play dumb. Do you really think I don't know that Wang Runwen likes you? A few years ago, everyone thought Liu Yejiang was just jealous of you, so he spread rumors that you two were secretly dating."

But I've felt something was off for a while now.

Why would a single, sexy, and beautiful woman invite such a good-looking guy to her home all the time?
She calls you during the day, she calls you in the evening, three or four times a week, and she often buys you free breakfast. During summer vacation, she even accompanied you to travel all over China. Do you really think I'm a fool? You think you can fool me with just a few words?

Li Heng stared intently at this woman, completely bewildered as to what he had done to offend her. Why was she launching an attack right from the start?
Sun Manning felt her scalp tingle under his gaze, but she still gritted her teeth and said, "I used to think that you liked Song Yu so much that Wang Runwen had no chance at all, so I didn't really expose Wang Runwen's little tricks that were trying to cover up his true intentions."

But now, I don't think you can handle Wang Runwen's voluptuous figure, which is why you finally asked about the secret you've kept hidden for three years.

Li Heng asked, "Are you calling me by my first name now?"

Sun Manning put her hands on her hips: "She's already resigned, what else am I supposed to call her by name? Aren't names meant to be called? If names aren't meant to be called, then what's the point of having a name? Am I supposed to call her 'Sexiest Secret Lover'? Or 'Li Heng's Spittoon'?"

Li Heng's eyelids twitched, and he bent down to take off one shoe.

Seeing this, Sun Manning got angry and quickly grabbed his right arm with both hands to stop him from hitting people.

Li Heng really wanted to punch her.

Sun Manning simply pounced on him, using all her strength to hold his right hand tightly, preventing him from succeeding.

He struggled and struggled, but his arms were all soft flesh, and the scene was a little awkward for a moment.

Sun Manning realized her embarrassing state and quickly took a step back, but still held on with both hands, pleading, "Please don't hit me! I'm someone who makes a living by talking. If you kill me, who will bring you happiness in the future?"

"Why would I need you to bring me happiness? I have plenty of women." Li Heng was so angry he wanted to punch her.

Sun Manning blurted out, "You have a lot of women, but they're all stunning beauties, what's the point? Aren't you tired of them? If you're tired of them, wouldn't it be better to change things up with me?"

Upon hearing this, Li Heng, seeing that his shoes couldn't hit her, simply kicked her with his right foot.

"Ouch! You kicked my butt! You actually kicked my butt! I'm going to tell Mai Sui and Zhou Shihe that you've made my butt pregnant!" Sun Manning's left butt hurt so much from the kick that she almost jumped up.

After a long pause, Li Heng took a deep breath and asked, "Have you said these things to anyone else?"

Sun Manning paused for a moment, then glared at him dismissively: "Do you think I'm stupid? If I offend you, how am I supposed to curry favor with you in the future?"

Li Heng asked, "Aren't you afraid of offending me by doing this?"

Sun Manning, looking completely unfazed, said, "You kicked my butt, and my precious baby got rubbed against my arm. What more do you want? If you're not satisfied, I'll unbutton all the buttons on my shirt, okay?"

Li Heng's lips twitched.

After staring at each other for a while, Sun Manning asked curiously, "Where did she go?"

Li Heng said, "She left Shao City and went to Tokyo with Teacher Yu."

Sun Manning asked, "Did you really accept Wang Runwen?"

Li Heng ignored him.

But then Sun Manning sighed to herself, and after a long while said in a low voice, "Actually, Wang Runwen is also a man with a tragic fate, I can understand. It's just that you're afraid you won't have a good time getting past Song Yu and Shi He in the future."

Li Heng still ignored him.

Sun Manning then asked, "Yu Shuheng agreed as well, right? If she hadn't agreed, you certainly wouldn't have dared to accept Wang Runwen, right?"

Damn it, Sun Manning is actually a smart person.

Indeed, if Yu Shuheng disagreed, Wang Runwen would automatically back down and would not even ask Li Heng for his opinion.

Despite the fierce verbal sparring between Yu Shuheng and Wang Runwen, Wang Runwen actually cares a lot about her best friend's attitude.

Wang Runwen knew the answer the moment Yu Shuheng appeared in Shao City. Because if Shuheng hadn't agreed, she wouldn't have come to No. 1 Middle School to see him.

After a while of fighting, Li Heng threw away his shoes. "About today..."

"Don't worry, I promise I'll keep it to myself," Sun Manning swore, raising her hand.

Li Heng stared at her stomach, suspiciously saying, "Why do I feel like you're not reliable at all?"

Sun Manning directly complained: "If you think your belly is unreliable, then let it get pregnant for you. Or cut it off with a knife and make a plate of stir-fried crispy belly."

Li Heng fainted, so he kicked her again.

Sun Manning bent over, clutching her calf, wincing in pain.

Seeing Li Heng deep in thought, Sun Manning seemed to know what he was worried about and said with a sneer, "You're afraid that Mai Sui and Xiao Han will find out, aren't you? Don't worry, they won't guess it anytime soon."

They're not like me. I was only able to see your affair because my home was on the same floor as Wang Runwen's.

Li Heng raised his leg.

Sun Manning immediately shut up, and in fright, she jumped to the side twice.

After lunch, the four of them started preparing to cook snails.

Li Heng found two pairs of scissors and instructed, "Manning, you and I will cut off the snail's tail. Mai Sui will use a toothbrush to clean the moss and mud off the snail's surface."

Sun Manning asked, "What can Shihe do?"

Li Heng said, "Her hands are precious. The snails she cut off are easier to handle. Let's go to the side and watch."

Zhou Shihe glanced at him, then remained silent.

Mai Sui, holding a bamboo sieve, asked, "How much are you making today?"

Li Heng glanced at his watch: "This stuff takes a bit of time. Let's make seven or eight jin first to try. If you think it's delicious, we can make more tomorrow or the day after."

While cutting and cleaning the snails, Mai Mu and Grandma came to help. Zhou Shihe also wanted to help, but Mai Sui stopped her, so she could only eat melon seeds and read books on the side, occasionally chatting with the others.

Uh, this chat does not include Li Heng.

He's been here for so long, and Miss Zhou hasn't said a single word to him; it's clear she doesn't like him much.

It took five people more than two hours to cut the snails and clean the snails.

After that, it was simple. A large iron pot was set up in the corner of the yard, and Li Heng asked Sun Manning to start the fire while he took charge of cooking.

Sun Manning was extremely frustrated and protested, "Why do I have to do all the hard and tiring work? Why should I?"

Li Hengtian shamelessly retorted, "Why should I? Don't you have any self-awareness?"

Sun Manning glanced at Mai Sui, then at Zhou Shihe, and muttered, "If I were as pretty as Sui Sui and Shihe, damn it! I'd make you drink my foot bath water every day."

Wheat Ear: "....."

Zhou Shihe: "..."

Mai's mother, who was standing nearby, laughed and asked, "Why is it that just because you're pretty, he has to drink your foot bath water?"

Sun Manning gestured with her fingers, "Auntie, you don't understand. If I were really pretty, I'd definitely be his girlfriend. Wouldn't he be completely under my thumb? I'd tell him to go east and he wouldn't dare go west. If he dared to disobey, I'd slap him across the face. Speaking of which..."

At this point, Sun Manning asked Li Heng, "By the way, have you never been beaten in your life? You're so good-looking, your parents probably wouldn't have the heart to hit you, right?"

Li Heng started heating oil in a wok: "My parents never hit me, but I was hit by others."

"Who? Who dares to beat you up? Tell me, I'll go learn from him." Sun Manning looked surprised.

Hearing the conversation between the two, Zhou Shihe, who was lying on the chair, stirred and turned over, turning her back to the person.

Mai Sui asked, "Was it in the first year of junior high?"

Mai Sui knew that he had been in fights during junior high school, and more than once.

Li Heng glanced at Miss Zhou and said, "Well, fighting in junior high school is all about winning and losing, back and forth. Hitting others and being ganged up on are commonplace."

He asked, "Spicier? Or mild?"

Mai Sui thought for a moment and said, "Mildly spicy, please. Shi He can't eat too much spicy food, and my mother also has mouth ulcers."

Sun Manning disagreed: "You're so stupid. You can make it mildly spicy first, and then make the others spicy after you've scooped out Shihe's and Aunt's."

Li Heng gave a thumbs up: "You're so smart, just make it mild, take it or leave it."

Sun Manning retorted with a middle finger: "No one has rights if they're not pretty, damn it! I quit, I'm going back to Shaoyang."

Mai Sui came over with a smile to comfort her, "He's just teasing you. He loves spicy food himself."

(End of this chapter)