Chapter 8

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Protagonist:

Lin Xiyu

"Zhang Dafen's partner has truly blind eyes."

The female cousin still couldn't let it go, grumbling indignantly: "A cadre of the Provincial Government, and can't tell good people from bad, actually took a fancy to her."

"You can know a person's face but not their heart."

Lin Xiyu agreed wholeheartedly: "Some people look respectable on the outside, but their insides are already rotten."

"You've hit the nail on the head."

The female cousin deliberately raised her voice, shouting toward the west house: "A woman like that, two-faced, marry her home and she'll make the household restless; whoever marries her will be unlucky."

With that shout, everyone in the yard heard it.

"Liu Lei, what are you saying?"

Zhang Dafen, furious, rushed out of the house, pointing at her nose and cursing: "Dare say that again, see if I don't tear your mouth to shreds."

"Come on, tear it then!"

The female cousin was just waiting for this, quickly rolled up her sleeves, wanting to fight.

"Da Fen, forget it, don't make a scene?"

Zhang Dafen's elder brother's right eyelid twitched, rushed out and kept giving her meaningful glances, pulling her back.

Inside the house, her partner's complexion was also unpleasant, eyelids lowered, silent, not knowing what he was thinking.

Zhang Dafen was afraid in her heart, dared not make a scene anymore, letting her elder brother pull her back.

"Tsk~~, if you've got guts, don't chicken out!"

The female cousin had no chance to perform again, spat toward the west house, extremely depressed.

"You two, stop standing under the tree."

Aunt Da, fearing she'd cause trouble again, shouted through the west house's curtain: "All of you go outside, help Maternal Aunt watch the telephone booth........"

"Okay."

Lin Xiyu obediently agreed, pulling the female cousin and running off like a puff of smoke.

—

Half an hour later, the negotiation between the two families finally came to an end.

The Zhang family agreed to compensate Maternal Aunt with a new clay pot, and additionally pay 10 yuan in medical expenses.

Zhang Dafen's partner left with a dark face, as if someone owed him a hundred silver dollars.

"Pfft, finally left."

The female cousin spat inside the telephone booth, clapped to celebrate, and sent off the plague god.

"This person seems to have a bad temper."

Lin Xiyu was a bit worried: "If we offended him, will he take revenge on us in the future?"

"What's there to fear?"

The female cousin rolled up her sleeves, showing her fiery spirit: "In these times, the fierce fear the stubborn, the stubborn fear the reckless; we poor common folk have nothing to fear, at worst we'll fight him to the death."

"Fight whom to the death?"

A teasing laugh came from outside the telephone booth, startling her so her heart jumped.

"Guben, why did you come?"

Lin Xiyu heard the voice, both surprised and delighted, pushed open the door, and indeed saw the familiar figure riding a bicycle.

Guben was still wearing his school uniform, a white short-sleeve T-shirt, paired with loose dark blue athletic pants, looking especially fresh and pleasing to the eye.

"Why did I come?"

Guben propped one leg on the ground, leaned forward, and gave her a thump on the head: "We agreed to contact by phone, but no one answered; I called over a dozen times and couldn't get through."

"Uh."

Lin Xiyu was embarrassed, covering her forehead and smiling sheepishly as she explained: "Sorry, something came up at home, no one was at the pavilion at noon."

"What happened?"

Guben glanced in the direction Zhang Dafen's partner left, looking thoughtful.

"This......."

Lin Xiyu stammered, too embarrassed to speak.

"Xiyu, who is he?"

The female cousin poked her head out from the door crack, her ambiguous little gaze kept glancing at the two of them.

"Classmate."

Lin Xiyu took the opportunity to change the subject: "We're in the same class; he came to find me probably about the documentary........"