The group was dressed in decent clothes; in an era where patches were considered normal, they were all wearing new clothes.

Not only were there no patches, but the materials also looked quite good. Coupled with the large bundles in their hands, it was almost obvious without much thought that these people were wealthy.

So, in a corner where the group wasn't paying attention, some people had already quietly set their sights on them.

Although Yun Shu and his group were tall and strong young men, not quite as extravagant as "a child carrying gold," every place has its own local bullies. Those in the business could tell at a glance that Yun Shu and his companions were unfamiliar faces and didn't speak with local accents, so they were just a bunch of greenhorns.

With such a blatantly obvious target right in front of them, it would be almost unrealistic to expect those thugs, thieves, and gangsters to refrain from taking action.

In other words, Lin Jingshu and Xie Yunshu did not become best friends so quickly in the original text. When she first went to the city to purchase supplies, she always went alone because of her cheat ability and did not act with Jiang Xiucheng and the others. Jiang Xiucheng and the others did not buy much, so they did not attract attention to this extent.

In addition, the group did not stay in the county town. They did not even go to the state-run restaurant for a meal. Instead, they took the morning bus directly back to Fengsheng Brigade, so no one was watching them or planning to make a move.

This time, being targeted was clearly due to the little incident that occurred when Yun Shu stopped Lin Jing Shu from bringing the letter back to the brigade, which was caused by the butterfly effect.

……

However, there is obviously a process between being targeted and taking action, so after leaving someone to continue scouting and tracking, there were far fewer eyes following Yun Shu and the others.

The group found the state-run restaurant without any problems. It was almost lunchtime, and the restaurant was almost full. Chen Ming quickly spotted a group of people who had just finished eating, and in a few strides, he took a good spot.

Yun Shu and Lin Jing Shu hurriedly followed, while Pei Wen Yuan and Jiang Xiu Cheng, who were slightly behind, turned around and glanced back as if they had sensed something, and then their eyes met each other tacitly.

If one person feels something is wrong, it might be a matter of sensitivity; if two people feel something is wrong, then there is definitely a problem.

I don't know what Pei Wenyuan's family background is like, but Jiang Xiucheng, who has experienced two assassination attempts and one kidnapping since childhood because his elders held important positions, and even trained in the army for two years, has pretty good counter-surveillance skills.

This was his trump card for survival, and he never made a mistake with it.

Therefore, the two people, who did not show any emotion on their faces, just exchanged a glance, and then became more vigilant in their hearts, thinking that they would tell Chen Ming and the others more about their situation later.

State-run restaurants are crowded and noisy, so even if someone wanted to commit a crime, they would have to consider whether others would intervene. Therefore, those people would most likely choose to act after the guests had finished lunch and left the state-run restaurant.

Chen Ming was quite skilled, and Pei Wenyuan had just said there was no need to worry about his safety. So Jiang Xiucheng felt that he only needed to consider how to ensure the safety of the two female educated youths later.

Perhaps knowing that danger wouldn't occur at this moment, Jiang Xiucheng and the others calmly started thinking about lunch.

……

State-run restaurants were very famous back then, mainly because the head chefs were skilled and used high-quality ingredients.

Braised pork belly is a must. Don't let Yun Shu's slender figure fool you; she's a true carnivore. She has to eat meat every day, even if it's not three meals a day, she can't miss a single day.

Beef noodles, meat-filled buns, meat-filled dumplings, and meat-filled wontons are served with various green vegetables as ingredients and garnishes.

Therefore, Yun Shu took the lead and ordered a braised pork and a beef potsticker.

Lin Jingshu also loves to eat. Although the group had agreed to split the cost of the meal, no one wanted to take advantage of others, so she also ordered a sweet and sour pork dish and a wonton soup.

The three male educated youths ordered three main dishes and a cold dish, but all of them unanimously chose white rice as their staple food.

Chen Ming diligently went to the window to pay the bill, and when he came back, he took the kettle on the table and poured a cup of hot water for each of them.

"The cost of each dish is about the same, which is just enough. But I heard from Chen Hua (an old educated youth) that the autumn harvest is coming in a couple of days, and it won't be easy then. So let's have a good meal this time to save our energy and make sure we have enough oil!"

Chen Ming was quick-witted and lively, but to some extent, he also became the social butterfly among them. Just like now, even though they had only met for the first time yesterday, he was already able to put his arm around the old educated youth's shoulder and call him brother.

You can also get a lot of useful information along the way.

The others nodded in agreement, and even Yun Shu, who had never done such strenuous farm work before, couldn't help but feel a little nervous.

There's no way around it; humans are just realistic creatures. Before coming here, Yun Shu was filled with longing for the era her parents lived in, but at this moment, all that remained in her heart was an undeniable tension and anxiety.

……

Subconsciously biting her lip, Yun Shu looked somewhat troubled. Chen Ming, who was standing to the side, had been paying close attention to Yun Shu's every move. Seeing her like this, he immediately realized that his words might have frightened this naive young girl.

Chen Ming quickly tried to comfort and make amends, filling in the gaps in his earlier statement.

“Hey, Yun… Xie Zhiqing, don’t worry. I asked Lin Zhiqing for you yesterday. Our brigade has tractors, so the work during the autumn harvest isn’t as heavy as in other brigades.”

"And there are also some light jobs like cutting pig feed, feeding sheep, and picking corn, although the work points aren't that many... And also, Chen Hua said the brigade headquarters is short of an announcer, and the brigade leader is looking for someone these days!"

"He told me that the last announcer was the daughter of the village's scorekeeper. She got married and moved to the city recently. After getting married, she took leave many times, which made Captain Xie very unhappy."

"She's pregnant again. I heard that her in-laws won't let her do this anymore, so they found her another job in the county town. She can go back to work after giving birth."

"Moreover, since the previous two announcers got married not long after, Captain Xie thought that he might as well find a younger girl this time, so that he wouldn't have to keep changing them later."

“I think you’re perfect for the role of Xie Zhiqing. You’re a high school graduate with some knowledge, and at only sixteen, you’re young enough. Most importantly, you have a nice voice.”

"When you go back and register with Captain Xie, we'll vote for you too. Captain Xie will definitely choose you!"

Chen Ming, eager to comfort her, rattled off a long string of words, leaving Yun Shu speechless. A single, bewildered thought lingered in her mind: "We were both sent-down youth, both newcomers to Fengsheng Brigade, how could he know so much?"

Lin Jingshu, Jiang Xiucheng, and Pei Wenyuan, who were standing nearby, also watched the two of them with amusement. Following Chen Ming's words, they took a serious look at Xie Yunshu and found that the little girl was indeed as he had said. Despite her young age, she had a scholarly air about her and looked well-behaved, which made her very likable.

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