In the end, these outsiders who came here, although organized and disciplined, had no real foundation. On the surface, people might not do anything, but behind the scenes, they could destroy you a thousand times over.
This made Xia Xiaohui see the terror in blind love, how it muddled the mind, stripped people of their reason and judgment, and one misstep could ruin a life.
Feng Ying had been normal and well, but once she truly fell for someone, she grew anxious, making herself as frazzled as if possessed.
Xia Xiaohui sighed, and as everyone dispersed, she said to Gao Jiaxing, "Brother Gao, since you can solve the problem by yourself now, I won’t come over."
Gao Jiaxing nodded, "Okay, go back and rest in your dormitory."
After Gao Jiaxing and Zheng Xianghong left, Xia Xiaohui returned to the dormitory. By that time, Yang Xuehua was still fuming over Feng Ying. If not for her upbringing and personality, Yang Xuehua really would have wanted to fight Feng Ying.
"Wow." Feng Ying squatted on the ground and burst into tears.
However, at this time, no one sympathized with Feng Ying; even Li Shengmei, who had been troubled by her, had left angrily, leaving only Dong Meihua hesitant to approach but too afraid to move, frozen in place.
Hearing Feng Ying’s crying from outside, Xia Xiaohui said, "Sister Xuehua, don’t be angry over senseless things, it’s not worth it to upset your own body."
"Utterly unreasonable." Yang Xuehua was also fuming.
"Why bother with her? Feng Ying has changed so much she’s barely recognizable," said Wang Aihua.
Xia Xiaohui commented, "Love is truly frightening, turning rational people irrational."
Sun Yuhua said, "Don’t besmirch love. That’s just her unrequited feelings. If she hadn’t made a fuss twice to draw the attention of Secretary Li, would he even know who she is?"
When Li Shengmei returned to the He Family’s home, she was met with a vicious slap from He Hongjun, her face swelling and even her teeth bleeding, which showed how furious He Hongjun was.
"You hit me again." Li Shengmei spat out a mouthful of blood and immediately started wailing.
"Slapping you is letting you off easy. Get out; I want you gone! My He Family has no room for a woman as incompetent and problematic as you."
This time, He Hongjun was truly enraged. He had not expected Li Shengmei to dare provoke Li Zhenchuan. What a foolish woman.
"Why should I leave? This is my home too," Li Shengmei refused to go.
But that day was particularly harsh for Li Shengmei; she suffered a second beating by He Hongjun. Even with his injury, He Hongjun was still a veteran, toughened by the military and battle; Li Shengmei stood no chance.
And just then, He Xuebing had happened to leave, leaving Li Shengmei without anyone to help her. As for her mother, with no son, she lacked confidence; her position in the family relied on He Hongjun, her son-in-law, so she wouldn’t dare to displease him.
After the beating, Li Shengmei was too ashamed to go back to her parents’ house to complain; her mother would try to mediate, and there was also a crude, half-brother from her mother’s side to consider.
After dealing with Li Shengmei, He Hongjun used his crutch to make his way to Li Zhenchuan’s residence to apologize in person.
Though Feng Ying hadn’t named anyone, those with clear sight knew where she got her information and why Li Shengmei knew about it. If one thought deeper, it would lead back to He Hongjun.
This was why He Hongjun furiously beat Li Shengmei.
The next morning, as soon as Xia Xiaohui woke up, she left the dormitory and slipped into the Black Bear Cave in her space. It had been a few days since she was back, and she hadn’t visited the Black Bear.
Her arrival filled the Black Bear family with joy. They stacked game and honey in front of Xia Xiaohui. She greeted them with a smile and, as usual, poured some spring water into a pottery jar for the bear family.
Moreover, Xia Xiaohui took advantage of the area outside the Black Bear Cave to take out the vegetables from her space and lay them out to dry, planning to turn them into dry goods or pickles.
After collecting the game and honey, Xia Xiaohui returned to the production team and started work with everyone.
Yang Xuehua said, "Xia Xiao, where did you go? I didn’t see you at the cafeteria."
Xia Xiao replied, "Oh, I just walked around a bit."
"Did you eat breakfast?" Yang Xuehua asked again.
Xia Xiao replied, "Yes, I did."
During work, Xia Xiao, as usual, was assigned to the same group as Zheng Xianghong and Gao Jiaxing, who usually worked together; Gao Jiazhi followed Gao Guoqiang.
Xia Xiao mentioned casually, "Auntie, back home we’ve all started cooking for ourselves. I’m not sure what the situation is here."
Zheng Xianghong said, "Oh, is that so? Then it should be the same here soon. Secretary Li and your squad leader went to the county for a meeting today."
Gao Jiaxing was the type who was content as long as he had something to eat, but upon hearing that people might start cooking for themselves, he was very supportive.
Sure enough, when Li Zhenchuan and Gao Guoqiang returned, they announced the good news. However, to Xia Xiao’s surprise, there were those who were happy, but there were also many who were not.
"It’s good to cook for oneself, eat what your own family cooks."
"What’s so good about that? You have to do it yourself. It’s so much better to eat the communal meals, just eat when it’s time, no need for any hassle."
Opinions varied. Some were pleased; some were worried. Regardless, this was a decision from the higher-ups, and there was nothing more to say.
Old Lady Gao and Lin Xuebi were dissatisfied, "Guoqiang, what about the cafeteria in the production team?"
Gao Guoqiang replied, "If you don’t want to cook at home, you can eat at the production team’s cafeteria, but you have to provide your own grain, and if you’re going to eat, you need to let us know a day in advance. Otherwise, it’s a waste if food is cooked and not eaten."
Lin Xuebi breathed a sigh of relief. Her job at the cafeteria was easy, and she didn’t want to start working in the fields.
Though people were now allowed to cook for themselves, everyone was still somewhat unused to it, and mostly everyone still ate at the production team.
Especially for breakfast, as everyone had to get up early to work, so they ate breakfast in the cafeteria. For lunch and dinner, some ate in the cafeteria while others cooked for themselves.
In Xia Xiao’s dormitory, everyone was discussing cooking for themselves. Sun Yuhua said, "Can you cook? Anyway, I can’t."
Wang Aihua replied, "I can cook meals."
Yang Xuehua also nodded, "I used to cook with my mother."
Xia Xiao nodded to indicate she could cook too, but the thought of cooking for herself brought worries about clashing tastes and potential conflicts, which made her hesitate.
Xu Mei came to find Xia Xiao, "Xia Xiao, Yao Chunwang, Gu Weiguo, and I are going to cook for ourselves. Do you want to join us?"
"I’ll see what the people in the dormitory think and then get back to you," Xia Xiao said.
Meanwhile, Feng Ying and Dong Meihua had had a falling out with Xia Xiao and her group, so they could only eat in the cafeteria and did not join in.
Zheng Xianghong asked Xia Xiao if she wanted to eat with her family, but Xia Xiao tactfully indicated she wanted to start cooking with the people from her dormitory. Zheng Xianghong didn’t press the matter further.