Chapter 46

When Li Ye, in front of Teacher Luo, called out several classmates to leave and declared he would no longer study alone in the classroom, Xia Yue and the others thought they had misheard.

After all, Li Ye’s fierce demeanor just now didn’t look like he was willing to let things go.

【Did we... actually win?】

Watching the retreating backs of Li Ye and his group, Xia Yue couldn’t help feeling a surge of vindication.

In fact, Xia Yue had once been a diligent, studious girl; girls these days all knew how precious learning opportunities were, and to escape their monotonous fates, they pushed themselves to the limit.

But whenever she saw Li Ye, her anger would flare up uncontrollably.

Was it because Lu Jingyao?

Xia Yue herself couldn’t say.

“Finally got rid of those troublemakers.”

“Yeah, finally we can have some peace. Ever since Li Ye came to our class, nothing’s been quiet.”

“They shouldn’t even be in Class One—they should be sent to Class Two or Three.”

“........”

Jin Shengli and the others were also delighted; in their view, the entire class, under the leadership of him and Xia Yue, had defeated a small group of disruptive heretics and curbed Li Ye’s malicious attempt to drag down Class One’s collective performance.

So after Li Ye and his group had moved a little farther away, Jin Shengli led a few classmates in excited clapping and waving victory fists.

Li Ye led the seven of them across the playground, and faint applause drifted from behind.

He didn’t care, but the classmates walking with him, already uneasy, grew even more unsettled upon hearing the clapping.

“Li Ye, is this... really okay?”

The speaker was Han Xia, a girl who, like Hu Man and Li Ye, had been transferred from Class Two to Class One, and one of those who had firmly stood by Li Ye during the earlier clashes with Xia Yue’s group.

Li Ye smiled and asked: “What’s wrong with it?”

Han Xia hesitated, then said: “We didn’t do anything wrong—why are we running away? If we keep doing this, people will laugh at us, and we’ll truly become the ones who disrupt class unity.”

Li Ye glanced at Han Xia and said seriously: “Han Xia, remember this: we only unite with those worth uniting with.”

“Worth uniting with?” Han Xia stared blankly. “Just us seven? That’s too few.”

“Seven is plenty,” Li Ye affirmed. “You might feel right now that we’re a tiny minority, isolated from the group,

but someday you’ll realize that if you truly have seven close friends in your life, it’s an incredibly rare and precious thing.”

“Haha, Li Ye, you say that... ah...”

Hearing Li Ye’s words, Han Xia and the others felt their unease ease, and their hesitant steps grew lighter.

Yet one girl remained silent, head bowed, trailing far behind—ten meters away from Li Ye.

Han Xia turned back and called: “Jiang Xiaoyan, hurry up, don’t dawdle.”

The girl looked up at Li Ye, softly said “Oh,” and quickened her pace slightly.

Jiang Xiaoyan, like Li Dayong and Fu Yingjie, had originally been a top student in the repeat Class One, but always remained an outsider.

After Hu Man became the new class monitor, she noticed this quiet girl and successfully won her over with just a few test papers.

Then, the group began helping each other with homework and explaining problems, gradually realizing they got along well.

Especially after the last exam, Jiang Xiaoyan firmly believed Li Ye wasn’t Huang Shiren at all—he was a capable, kind student.

When Xia Yue once mocked Li Ye, the timid, doughy Jiang Xiaoyan actually argued back with Xia Yue’s group; though she ended up crying from Xia Yue’s scolding, she kept crying while still arguing.

That’s why Li Ye chose her as one of the seven.

But Jiang Xiaoyan was naturally timid; when Li Ye called her to leave the classroom and find another place to study, she was extremely hesitant and terrified, and only followed him after realizing staying behind would mean being targeted by Xia Yue’s group.

A quiet, honest student suddenly leaving school would naturally feel panicked.

Fu Yingjie, Hu Man, Han Xia, and the others also felt some unease and hesitation.

Perhaps only Wen Leyu had followed Li Ye without a second thought.

She hadn’t asked a single question—when Li Ye said they’d find their own place to study, she immediately started packing her bag, rushing out the door first, even faster and more determined than Li Ye.

That little girl is sharp!

【You fools have no idea how great Li Ye is.】

In the 1980s, the grain system was an extremely prestigious institution; various grain and oil shops and distribution points supported countless state employees who walked around with their chins raised.

No. 2 Grain Store was one such supply point; it was usually quiet, but when monthly quotas arrived, nearly half the city’s residents would come with their ration books to buy cheap rice, flour, oil, and salt, then head to the vegetable company for produce, stocking up on daily necessities.

So while the front storefront of No. 2 Grain Store wasn’t large, the backyard courtyard was quite spacious, housing not only large grain storage warehouses but also smaller ones for scarce goods.

Li Ye led Wen Leyu, Hu Man, and the others out of school, walked a hundred meters, and circled around to the back gate of No. 2 Grain Store. Before they could knock, they heard a burst of “Woof! Woof! Woof!”

A golden-yellow native dog lay by the gate crack, growling threateningly at Li Ye and his group, making the timid girls hesitate to approach.

But soon the gate opened, and a middle-aged man in his forties kicked the dog aside, then smiled warmly at Li Ye.

“Little Ye, why are you here today? Didn’t you say tomorrow?”

“No problem, Uncle Huang. The room’s already ready—earlier or later doesn’t matter.”

Li Ye led his classmates inside; he didn’t know the man well, only that his surname was Huang and he was the manager of No. 2 Grain Store.

After Li Zhongfa learned Li Ye had been helping others with exam questions, he gave instructions to subordinates to clear out a small storage room at No. 2 Grain Store for Li Ye to use as a study room.

Uncle Huang treated Li Ye warmly, leading him toward a door hung with a cotton curtain.

“After Director Li’s arrangement, we rushed to clean it up. The new plaster is still damp, but I’ve lit the stove—it’ll be completely dry by tomorrow.”

Sheer the curtain, push the door, enter.

A new wall had been built in the center of the small warehouse, dividing it into a large and a small room; both rooms had stoves built into them, their charcoal fires burning fiercely,

and thick warmth immediately enveloped Hu Man and the others, who had been shivering.

“Ohhh~ this is heavenly.”

Li Dayong was the first to exclaim; after enduring days of freezing classrooms and dormitories, suddenly arriving here was pure comfort.

The girls were also delighted.

Even the poorest girl loved beauty; in winter, delicate little hands turned into carrots, cracked and chapped—who would want that?

Li Ye was also satisfied; Uncle Huang was smart—the small room had a tiny heated brick bed built in, and Li Ye immediately decided to sleep there that night.

“Thanks so much, Uncle Huang. But a few friends are bringing things over soon—could you tie up the dog first?”

“Of course, of course, I’ll tie him up right away. Our unit’s different—we need someone to keep watch at night. You understand.”

As Uncle Huang was about to leave to tie the dog, the dog barked again outside.

Jin Peng and Hao Jian dragged in a handcart.

“Come on, classmates, help unload!”

Li Ye called out to Li Dayong and the others to unload: pots, pans, tables, chairs, and a whole pile of household items.

Hu Man asked curiously: “Li Ye, are you planning to cook here?”

Li Ye said: “Yes. Our study pace needs to accelerate. Going to the school cafeteria means waiting in line—every minute saved helps. A meal costs ten cents—eat as much as you want.”

“Great! You’re a rich guy and you still charge us? We thought we’d be eating off you for free!”

Han Xia, lively by nature, teased Li Ye.

Of course everyone would pay; in this era, people scrambled to pick up a penny dropped on the street—who’d deliberately take advantage of others?

But Li Ye noticed Jiang Xiaoyan lowering her head, twisting her clothes with both hands, clearly uncomfortable.

Li Ye knew why.

Speaking of Jiang Xiaoyan, Li Ye thought she was comparable to Sun Shaoping.

Every month she carried grain from home to exchange for meal tickets at the cafeteria, always waiting until the last to eat,

spending three cents on a steamed bun, eating it with pickled vegetables and boiled water she brought from home,

and by month’s end, the pickled vegetables were gone, sometimes even the boiled water was finished, leaving her to swallow dry.

Poor, stubborn, yet upright—Li Ye thought she was a very good girl.

“Clang~”

“There’s pork ribs to eat!”

Jin Peng heaved half a rack of ribs off the cart and dumped them on the table beside the stove, drawing drool from all the students.

“Look, since cooking’s time-consuming, we need someone to handle meals. We won’t pay wages, but meals are free.”

Li Ye pointed at Jiang Xiaoyan and asked: “Pork ribs with radish—Jiang Xiaoyan, can you cook that?”

“Ah... I can.”

Jiang Xiaoyan lifted her head, her eyes sparkling with joy—beautiful.