Age: Passionate youth, starting from graduation assignment

Chapter 35

"I'm working..."

Shen Qingrui looked left and right, and after making sure no one was passing by, she said in a mosquito-like humming voice.

"So I want to spur you on."

Xu Jichang said with a serious face, and after speaking, he raised his hand again and was ready to go.

Shen Qingrui was so ashamed and angry that she ran away in a hurry.

After studying for so many years, it was the first time she heard that the word "whip" could be used in such an occasion.

Xu Jichang looked at Shen Qingrui's back shyly running away, and put away his slap in the face.

Sooner or later, he will let Shen Qingrui understand more applications of the word spur, and then it will not be just a slap.

Pour water, boil water, cook rice... and then stir-fry.

After Shen Qingrui was busy for a while, she finally made dinner for the two of them.

Stir-fried wild pork with chili, stir-fried cabbage, and steamed eggplant. There are three dishes in total, and each dish smells delicious.

After the food was served on the table, Xu Jichang took a bite out of a piece of eggplant, and then ate a piece of wild boar, feeling a little bit in his heart: this is the taste that food should have.

At least the meat smells like meat, and the vegetables taste like vegetables, unlike the pork and vegetables that are cooked and fattened by later generations.

Xu Jichang understands that there are reasons and motivations behind the ripening and fattening of later generations, but as an ordinary person, he still cares more about the taste of the food in his mouth.

At the dinner table, Shen Qingrui also ate deliciously. Today, she was on a rush and doing housework, but she was really starved.

Originally, Shen Qingrui wanted to ask Xu Jichang whether her cooking skills had improved, but once she really started eating, she couldn't care less about asking.

It wasn't until after a bowl of rice was finished that she remembered the question she wanted to ask at first: "Brother Jichang, tell me, have I improved my cooking skills today?"

When Shen Qingrui asked Xu Jichang for his opinion, she was a little nervous, her eyes were shining, and she looked very cute.

"I have made progress, I have entered the room. Give me another bowl of rice."

After Xu Jichang finished speaking, he handed out his job bowl.

"Okay, let's see how I can cook better and better in the future!"

Shen Qingrui took the rice bowl with a happy face, and gave Xu Jichang another bowl of rice.

Xu Jichang ate a little slower than the first bowl of rice this time, but he still cleaned up all the rice and vegetables.

After eating, Shen Qingrui packed up the dishes, went to the stove and began to wash the pots and dishes.

Xu Jichang, with his hands behind his back, took a walk near the door of his house to digest food, and he didn't return home until the moon rose.

At home, Shen Qingrui had already cleaned up the back room and was busy washing her feet.

Seeing Xu Jichang came back, she fetched two basins of footwashing water, sat by the bed together and soaked her feet.

The two walked a lot today, and their feet were very sore. The moment they dipped their feet into the hot water, they felt so comfortable that their souls ascended to heaven.

Xu Jichang and Shen Qingrui immersed themselves in the comfort of soaking their feet, and the surrounding air became quiet for a while, only the sound of insects could be heard outside.

Through the open window, Shen Qingrui felt the cool evening breeze, staring at the stars in the sky with her bright eyes, her expression gradually showing a bit of melancholy.

Xu Jichang noticed the change in her expression and didn't take the initiative to ask why.Many people will be like this, in a small happy moment in daily life, when the surroundings suddenly quiet down, then a faint melancholy may appear inexplicably at this time.

Let Shen Qingrui go through this faint melancholy by herself, if she can't get over it, let her ask for help by herself, there is no need to ask her now.

In the quiet night, under the dim butter lamp, the only sound left in the room was the rushing water of Shen Qingrui's left and right feet touching each other from time to time.

She traveled a lot today, and her little feet were worn red. After soaking in hot water for a while, they returned to their former whiteness and tenderness.

After Shen Qingrui stared at the moon outside the window for a while, her eyes fell on her own feet again, with a little confusion in her eyes.

"Brother Jichang, you said that we have so many classmates, some stay in the city to work, and some end up like me and jump in the queue."

"Does it mean that people like me who go to the countryside to jump in the queue are doomed to be inferior to those who stay in the city?"

"To tell you the truth, every time I think about it, I feel very uncomfortable."

While Shen Qingrui was speaking, a little foot moved out of her basin, and lightly rested on Xu Jichang's instep, rubbing her pink toe pads against his instep.

Very good...this question is...actually quite deep.

Many young people in this era are probably asking the same question at this moment.

Under the courtyard wall of the educated youth courtyard, next to the haystacks of the production team, beside the empty and deserted fields...

Countless young hearts are confused about their future, but most of them are not easy to speak out for various reasons.

After Xu Jichang thought about it, he had an answer in his heart that could answer Shen Qingrui.

However, he didn't speak immediately, but looked out the window first, and after making sure that there was no one nearby, he closed the window and solemnly gave an answer.

"Qingrui, you can change your mind. In fact, compared to your educated youths, the majority of rural youths are the truly silent majority."

"They also want to get out of the rural environment, go to a better place, and use their talents. It's just that their ancestors have lived in the countryside for generations, so everyone takes them here as a matter of course, unlike you who can get some sympathy. But in terms of living standards and chances of getting ahead, they are worse than you."

"So, let's calm down first, life here is not as good as educated youth."

"And only on the basis of peace of mind can you think about some issues rationally. For example, you can think about it. In the past few years, universities completely stopped recruiting students. Now they have begun to recruit workers, peasants and soldiers. This is a gradual adjustment."

When Xu Jichang said this, he looked at Shen Qingrui.

Although she hadn't finished speaking, the meaning was already there, and it all depended on whether she had the comprehension.

"You mean... the policy will continue to change, and the college entrance examination will be resumed in the future?"

After Shen Qingrui lowered her head and pondered for a moment, she raised her head and said in disbelief.

(End of this chapter)