Chapter 36

Ye Qingshui thought about all the tasks Xie Tingyu had made her do in her past life, running her ragged inside and out, and the anger started to bubble up in her heart.

Now didn’t seem much different from back then. But in this life—if it weren’t for the fact that Xie Tingyu was injured—would she be willing to wait on him?

Xie Tingyu didn’t quite understand why this girl, who had been soft-spoken and pleasant just a moment ago, suddenly turned on him.

He tugged at the braid in his hand and pulled her to sit down on the empty seat next to him.

The fabric dropped heavily into Ye Qingshui’s lap—three whole pieces. The shiny, brightly-colored wool serge fabric far outshone the common dacron cloth in style and quality. She ran her fingers over it and even found a piece of pure white cotton and a deep black silk.

Dacron had become popular for being light and cool, but it wasn’t expensive. Wool serge wasn’t exactly high-end either, but it was the type of material used to make school uniforms and military clothes—it cost significantly more. Black silk, serge, and white cotton…

Ye Qingshui gave it a glance. So extravagant. Buying fabric like it was free.

Xie Tingyu looked at her closely, and for the first time, his tone softened. “Shuiya, help me, will you? I don’t know how to make clothes.”

He handed her the long-sleeved blue outfit. “This is for you.”

Ye Qingshui was a little surprised. She hadn’t expected that this piece was actually bought for her. So she hadn’t been overthinking it at the department store after all.

But after feeling the fabric, she still pushed it away. “I have to feed pigs and work in the fields every day. What am I supposed to do with such nice clothes…”

Xie Tingyu’s gaze moved over her slim body—delicate and gradually growing graceful. Back in spring, she was still like a childish little girl. But now, she had the vague silhouette of a woman.

She always wore dull, worn-out clothes. Among the group of plainly but neatly dressed girls, she looked small and ordinary. When she was silent, she blended in like a shadow—grey and unnoticeable. Compared to the female educated youths from the city, she seemed like someone from a completely different world.

Young girls loved to dress up and wear new clothes—but not her.

Xie Tingyu had never seen Ye Qingshui in clothes that actually fit her. She always wore things that were either too large or too tight. She was nothing like the other girls he’d known. Even her plainness had a kind of charm to it. He couldn’t quite picture what she’d look like in something beautiful.

He said, “Then save it for when you’re not working. You should at least have one nice set of clothes tucked away—wear it next time you get in the newspaper. Shuiya, try it on and see if it fits?”

Ye Qingshui wasn’t angry anymore—seemed like he had a bit of a conscience, after all.

But she didn’t follow his suggestion to try it on. She took the fabric and said, “Thanks for the thought, but this style of clothing doesn’t suit me. I’ll return it when I go into town tomorrow and get some fabric instead. I’ll make my own clothes. What kind of clothes does your sister like?”

Xie Tingyu had thought that even if she didn’t like it, she’d at least be happy. He never imagined she’d want to return the outfit—and she even thought the fabric was for Dongmei.

The smile on Xie Tingyu’s lips slowly faded. His tone turned indifferent. “I don’t know.”

“The department store doesn’t allow returns.”

Ye Qingshui didn’t argue with him—she just smiled slightly. A guy like him probably had never lowered himself to return something in his life.

In these times, ready-made clothes in department stores were rare. Unlike later generations, there weren’t different sizes to choose from. Most ordinary people bought fabric and had clothes made by a tailor. Only those in a hurry to get married would splurge on ready-made clothes. So returns were inevitable—just gathering enough ration tickets to buy cloth took half a year. Who could afford to waste them?

Ye Qingshui didn’t bother debating. She carried the fabric over to the table and picked up a pair of scissors.

She had seen Xie Dongmei before—a typical girl from the capital. Even in these plain and simple times, she could wear a black student skirt in a trendy way. A few years later, when the aesthetic restrictions loosened, she dressed brightly and stylishly and stood out even in elite circles.

Ye Qingshui handled the scissors seriously, not even bothering with chalk marks. She just measured the fabric back and forth a few times, then cut straight into it.

In her past life, after leaving the mountains, she had worked in a textile factory in a developed city for a few years. Sometimes she was so exhausted she could make clothes with her eyes closed.

Xie Tingyu watched as she moved to the table, scissors snapping crisply. Sunlight streamed in through the window as she bent down, her twin braids falling playfully forward. The fine fuzz on them hung softly, glowing in the light like strands of flowing gold—warm, shimmering, mischievous yet serene.

Ye Qingshui’s fingertips looked pale and slender in the light, like scallions. Even her worn-out, plain clothes looked unexpectedly pleasing in that moment.

Xie Tingyu stared at her quiet figure, and somehow, his annoyance melted away. This woman really was ridiculously clueless. A while back, he had hinted she should make herself a new outfit, and she had twisted it around to think it was for Xie Dongmei.

He muttered to himself, “Shuiya, you better make it nice—make it look good.”

“Otherwise my sister won’t want it.”

“She’s about the same size as you. Just make it a bit roomier, a bit tighter at the waist, and the bust… make it bigger. But don’t make it like the clothes they put on display at the department store—those are ugly.”

Ye Qingshui felt like jabbing him in the face with the scissors. So many demands—was he even paying her?

Still, she worked meticulously. She made a student-style outfit: the cotton cloth became a fitted top with a cinched waist; the silk was used to sew a knee-length black pleated skirt.

She embroidered a simple flower on the collar using needle and thread—the white stitching reflected different shades under the sunlight.

As Xie Tingyu watched, he suddenly found himself looking forward to seeing her wear that outfit.

…

Outside, He Fang had left with a pale, darkened face after hearing Xie Tingyu’s dismissive response.

The male educated youth beside her rubbed his nose awkwardly and said, “I had something I wanted to talk to Comrade Xie about, but today doesn’t seem like a good time. I’ll come back another day.”

He said sullenly, “I thought it must be hard for Comrade Xie to pass the time while recovering, but it looks like he’s doing just fine—seems pretty happy.”

He hadn’t expected that Comrade Xie would be so bold and uninhibited when it came to dating. It completely overturned his impression of Xie Tingyu. And Xie’s taste was certainly unique—not interested in pretty, elegant girls, but rather had a thing for plain, rustic village girls.

It was eye-opening, but also somewhat disdainful.

The male educated youth had initially believed the rumors—that Xie Tingyu had been ensnared by a village woman—but from the look of things, that clearly wasn’t the case.

He Fang didn’t respond, her eyes shifting as if lost in her own thoughts.

Back at the dorm, Sun Lingyu handed He Fang a letter and urged her to go send it out.

The newspaper, which had circulated through the entire educated youth station, returned to Sun Lingyu’s hands in scattered pieces. She flipped through it and noticed a few pages were missing—the page about Ye Qingshui’s report was gone.

And over the past two days, not a word had been heard about the article. Sun Lingyu didn’t know whether to feel relieved or worried. Her thoughts were tangled. For the first time, she realized that this educated youth station actually had this kind of…

Ye Qingshui had been a hot topic for several days, but Sun Lingyu no longer joined in the conversations. She sat quietly, sulking with a book in her hands like a dog with its tail between its legs.

However, the women’s gossip gradually aligned around one possibility: “This time, it might really have been Comrade Xie who helped Ye Qingshui.”

That conclusion actually held water, and the analysis followed: “She didn’t even finish middle school, never studied physics, and doesn’t know the first thing about electric fields. That water-finding device and the circuit—it’s not something just anyone can do. Even college students might not be able to make that kind of circuit board. It takes years of experience.”

“If she had that kind of skill, factories would’ve been fighting to recruit her long ago. Why would she still be farming in the countryside?”

Zhou Tingting had already lost interest in this topic. She rolled her eyes and continued silently reading her book.

Sun Lingyu looked up and interjected, “Maybe she’s self-taught? You all don’t know her. Judging someone based on your assumptions isn’t meaningful. Quit bickering—it’s giving me a headache.”

As soon as she finished speaking, the whole dorm fell silent. Everyone looked at Sun Lingyu in surprise—she was usually the loudest one.

“Someone who’s had to attend a self-criticism meeting really does speak differently. She’s been reformed.”

“We’re just discussing things objectively.”

“Seriously, the sun must be rising in the west.”

Sun Lingyu was a bit startled herself. For the first time, she felt out of place. Not long ago, these same girls weren’t saying any of this. Yet after just a few days, the tone had shifted.

…

At the Ye household.

Ye Qingshui herself wasn’t too concerned about the newspaper article, but Xie Tingyu was.

He said, “We should keep it safe and have it framed. And you should read it aloud to Grandma and your mother.”

Ye Qingshui winced at the suggestion, especially the second part. If she read it to Grandma and Ma, the moment she finished, Grandma’s mouth would spread the news across ten surrounding villages.

Xie Tingyu said, “Why are you so shy? If you get shy this easily, how did you have the guts to argue with those female educated youth?”

He reached out and poked her cheek. It was warm and soft—his fingertips tingled just touching her.

Ye Qingshui didn’t appreciate these sneak attacks from Xie Tingyu. She slapped his hand away without hesitation. She couldn’t help thinking: Didn’t he say he was going to treat her like a sister? Is this how he treats his sister?

It felt a little too flirtatious.

“I think the article exaggerated things way too much. If people hear about it, they’ll laugh their heads off.”

Xie Tingyu was a little disappointed he didn’t get to touch her cheek properly. It was rare for Ye Qingshui to take off her face mask at noon—normally, there was no chance to get close to her face, which she always kept tightly hidden.

Girls were different from men indeed—fragrant, soft. The touch left his fingers warm and tingling, like a spark of electricity. Xie Tingyu suddenly remembered something he once read in a banned book: Women are water, men are clay; when clay meets water, it feels refreshed. He used to think that was nonsense. But now, he felt it deeply. Whenever he saw her, he wanted to get closer.

But Ye Qingshui was oddly shy.

Xie Tingyu wondered: If she’s so shy, how did she have the guts to corner me in the educated youth dormitory back then?

After lunch, Xie Tingyu did in fact solemnly take out the newspaper. Grandma and Ma pulled up their little stools and looked at him with eager eyes. Meanwhile, Ye Qingshui awkwardly washed dishes by the water tank. The sound of water couldn’t drown out his reciting voice.

Grandma and Ma clapped so enthusiastically they nearly broke their hands. Grandma said, “Keep that newspaper for me! I’m going to burn it for Shui-ya’s father to see.”

The pride in their eyes burst forth, sweeping away all the fatigue from hard labor.

Xie Tingyu said, “Then… go ahead and burn it.”

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