Upon seeing Gu Yu, Jiang Hongmei lost all interest in weeding. Her mind was occupied only by a desire to confront him about yesterday’s events and release the pent-up resentment in her heart.
Her eyes filled with grievance, she clutched her hands tightly and called out in a pitiable, whining tone, "Gu Yu, I have something to say to you. Could you come over here, please?"
Gu Yu’s eyelid twitched. As if he hadn’t heard her, he turned his head to the side and kept on weeding. Seeing him pretend to be oblivious, Shen Jianan couldn't help but stifle a laugh. He moved a few steps forward and turned his body the other way, keeping his back to her.
Feeling even more slighted, Jiang Hongmei couldn't help but raise her voice and shout again, "Gu Yu, I’m talking to you! Did you hear me?"
Her voice was so loud that the villagers working nearby heard her and one after another, they looked up.
"What is that Educated Youth Jiang doing? It’s bright and early and she’s not working; she’s throwing another tantrum!"
A burly man retorted, "Who knows? She acts up every single day. It’s infuriating to watch!"
His wife, intrigued, leaned over and teased him with a smile, "Hey, that’s not what you said before, is it? You said women should be like that, like... like water, what was it again?"
"Oh, stop it!"
The man impatiently turned his head away. "You remembered it wrong. I can't stand women who whine and cry all day!"
"Fine, fine, have it your way, alright?" Sensing his mood, the woman softened her tone immediately.
However, others were not so forgiving. Niu Chunhua, seeing that everyone was annoyed by her, rolled her slanted eyes, put her hands on her hips, and turned to yell toward the ridge of the field.
"Team Leader! Record Keeper! Someone here is slacking off and pestering the other educated youths, affecting everyone’s work!"
Upon hearing this, Zhao Gang and Zhao Hongjun agilely bounded over in a few swift strides. "Who? Who is slacking off and affecting the work progress?"
"Her!"
Niu Chunhua pointed at Jiang Hongmei, who had just realized what was happening and was preparing to retreat into the field. Lifting her chin, Niu said triumphantly, "It’s this woman. Everyone else is busy, but she’s standing on the ridge, yapping away at Educated Youth Gu. He’s ignoring her, but she keeps on howling like a cat in heat. It’s absolutely disgusting!"
"Ahem! Watch your language—that’s vulgar!"
Zhao Gang glared at her, then frowned as he looked at the teary-eyed Jiang Hongmei and asked, "Educated Youth Jiang, you..."
"I—I didn't! You’re all bullying me, wuu-wuu..."
Before he could finish, Jiang Hongmei covered her mouth and began to sob.
Zhao Gang was stunned. He hadn’t even said anything yet! Why was she acting so aggrieved already? Was she made of tofu? Did she shatter at the slightest touch?
"What’s this? What’s going on? Who are you crying for?"
Zhao Hongjun had a fiery temper. Seeing that the woman was already trying to dump the blame on them before they had even done anything, he was furious. He lunged forward and looked up at the person on the ridge. "You tell me clearly today: who bullied you? Who bullied you? Let me tell you, there’s a limit to how much you can falsely accuse people!"
His voice was naturally loud, and his rapid-fire questioning sounded like exploding firecrackers. It frightened Jiang Hongmei, making her feel guilty. When she glanced over and saw that Zhao Gang’s expression was also grim, she pouted and started making excuses.
"I—I wasn’t talking about the two of you. I was talking about Niu Chunhua, Zhao Hongying, Li Zhaodi, Zhao Jianguo, Gu Yu, Shen Jianan, and the others from the Educated Youth Point."
As she spoke, she pointed at the villagers who had just been criticizing her. Her eyes were filled with hatred and accusation, but she failed to notice that the people around her had all changed their expressions after hearing the list of names she rattled off.
"Jiang Hongmei, doesn't your conscience hurt when you say that?"
"Exactly, what are you spouting nonsense for? When have my husband and I ever bullied you?"
"This is really enough. Why do you have so much drama every single day?"
"How did we bully you? We haven't even brushed against you while walking, so how could we have bullied you?"
"Who knows? She’s probably got something wrong with her head!"
Seeing that not one of them would admit it, Jiang Hongmei’s eyes reddened further from the perceived injustice. Tears streamed down her face as if they cost nothing. "You were all just wronging me, saying I make a scene every day, that I don't work hard, and talking behind my back, saying bad things about me."
The crowd was almost driven mad by her words. They wondered if this woman’s brain had been soaked in water. Although Niu Chunhua’s words weren't pleasant, they were the truth, weren't they?
It was bright and early, and everyone was rushing to meet quotas. She, on the other hand, wasn't doing a lick of work and was instead standing on the ridge howling, affecting everyone else. Who wouldn't find that unlucky?
"Then did you do your work well?"
Li Jiaojiao, another educated youth, stepped forward, pulled her aside, and asked coldly, "Weren't you making a scene just now? Did everyone wrong you? Who talked bad about you behind your back? Name them!"
Li Jiaojiao pelted her with one question after another. She had had enough of this stupid woman. Not only did she lose her mind without regard for the occasion, but she also wanted to frame people. More importantly, did she not realize that while her behavior was repulsive, it was also causing trouble for all of them?
Although the educated youths had come to the countryside in response to the call, most of them had never done farm work, so they had caused quite a bit of trouble for the village after arriving.
Even though the villagers didn't like them, during the rush harvest these past few years, many of the locals would help the educated youths with their work once they finished their own.
Although they had to provide some compensation privately, it was better than the youths working themselves to death and still failing to finish their tasks. Because of this, the people at the Educated Youth Point would swallow their pride and not take things to heart as long as the grievances weren't too excessive.
Over the years, while they weren't exactly close with the villagers, they had maintained a passable relationship. But this woman had offended everyone in the village with a single sentence.
She might feel better now, but the rest of them were going to suffer for it. How were they supposed to get along with the villagers if this continued?
Thinking of this, Li Jiaojiao grew even angrier. Since Jiang Hongmei was so inconsiderate of everyone’s situation and feelings, she didn't have to be polite anymore. Otherwise, they would be the ones suffering in the future.
"Jiang Hongmei, since you feel that everyone at our Educated Youth Point is bullying you, fine. While the Team Leader and the Record Keeper are here, you can apply to move out," Li Jiaojiao said, pointing at the two men with dark expressions and shouting at her. "Our Educated Youth Point is too small to accommodate a 'great Buddha' like you."
Jiang Hongmei’s face turned pale as paper. "I don't..."
"Team Leader, Record Keeper." Li Jiaojiao didn't wait for her to retract her statement and loudly recounted the argument from last night. "Last night, Jiang Hongmei insisted that Gu Yu go fix our roof..."
As a result, she never came back. They didn't finish fixing the roof until after seven o'clock. By then, it was pitch black, and the people at the Educated Youth Point were worried that something had happened to her, so they didn't even have time to cook dinner before setting out to look for her.
They eventually found her by the river, only to realize she had come back ages ago. She had just been in a bad mood from being offended and wanted to clear her head by the river. The educated youths had been so angry they could have exploded.
Everyone was so busy they couldn't even catch their breath, yet she had not only run off with another man, but after her business was done, she didn't come back to cook, completely forgetting that it was her turn.
The kicker was that it was clearly her fault, yet she wouldn't let anyone criticize her. It was even more outrageous that she turned around and accused everyone else of being selfish, claiming they only looked for her because they didn't want to cook.
As Li Jiaojiao kept on ranting, the crowd listened in total shock. Even Gu Yu and Shen Jianan, who had been busy working, stopped to "eat the melon." They never imagined that Jiang Hongmei could be so selfish and brain-dead.
Shen Jianan, in particular, couldn't understand why the author had to write the heroine as someone with such warped values and a pea-sized brain. Weren't they afraid of being scolded?
However, no matter what, the more people Jiang Hongmei offended, the smaller the chance that "crazy man" Zhao Jianguo would end up with her. That would naturally make him and Gu Yu safer.
Just as Shen Jianan was feeling happy, his head buzzed, and he felt as if he were being held underwater—stifled and breathless. He shook his head in discomfort, and his breathing became rapid.
The scene before his eyes quickly twisted and overlapped. The next moment, a strange, loud sound like a bronze bell rang incessantly in his mind.
Shen Jianan felt his vision go black and he plunged into a strange world. Countless characters, like incantations, flooded into his mind.
His heart hammered against his ribs. Aren't these the plot points of "The Seventies: My Spicy Life with the White Lotus Heroine"?
What is going on? What does this voice want me to do?
[Plot deviation detected. Heroine is being harmed. Host, initiate rescue immediately! Initiate rescue!]
Shen Jianan’s brain spasmed with pain. He gritted his teeth in agony. What did this mean? Why did he have to save her? Why should he be the one to save the heroine?
The cold, mechanical voice seemed to sense his thoughts and rang out again out of thin air. [The host's mission is to push the plot forward, ensuring the hero and heroine end up together. You don't need to know anything else. Command received: execute immediately!]
"..."
Shen Jianan wheezed, feeling as disgusted as if he had swallowed a fly. He hated this voice to the core. To fulfill the hero and heroine’s romance, it was luring him to dig his own grave—it was truly stopping at nothing! He couldn't help but curse out loud.
"Go to hell! Why should I save Jiang Hongmei!"
[If the host does not follow the plot, you will be severely punished. You cannot bear the consequences.]
"Then bring it on! Who’s afraid of who? Anyway, I’ve already kicked the bucket in my real life; these past two days have been a bonus. I don't care if I die again."
He, Shen Jianan, would not be controlled by any person or thing.
[But you are the host now. Can you have a little professional integrity?]
The cold, mechanical voice actually sounded aggrieved, but did he care?
"I didn't volunteer to be a host in the first place!"
Shen Jianan felt his head splitting, becoming heavier and heavier. He felt as if his head were going to explode, and his mind was becoming increasingly clouded.
He quickly bit his tongue hard until he tasted the metallic tang of blood to keep his mind clearer, then retorted, "If you want a host with 'professional integrity,' why don't you send me back and swap me for someone else?"
[...The plot is already bound. It cannot be swapped.]
"Then quit your yapping!"
The young man roared in anger, then sneered at the voice, "Serves you right! Who told you to drop me into this resource-starved era without even asking?"
[...If the host does not follow the original plot, both you and Gu Yu will be punished. Even if you aren't afraid of death, you should consider him. After all, he’s been quite good to you...]
"Wrong! He was good to the original body, not me."
Shen Jianan snapped back. He noticed that every time the voice spoke, his head grew foggier. He clenched his hands into fists, his nails digging deep into his palms until he drew blood, using the pain to maintain a shred of clarity. "Besides, the poor original host is already dead, and he was killed by a system like you, which lacks any sense of morality."
The young man swore that he would not be "PUA'd" by this system or the "plot-master."
[...]
The voice had never encountered such a difficult host and, for a moment, didn't know what to do. Before it could find a solution, Shen Jianan began his tirade, raging without stopping.
"If you have a brain tumor, stay away from me. Don't hover in front of me. I don't know how you got hooked on such a morally twisted plot. You’re ruining me, the original host, and Gu Yu for the sake of two brain-dead idiots... Am I a fool? I know I'm a cannon-fodder character, yet you want me to rush to save the heroine and accelerate my own demise? Have I lost my mind?"
[... Didn't you just say you weren't afraid of death?]
"Is being afraid of death the same as being tricked into death by you?"
Shen Jianan felt his head clear up significantly after scolding it, and his breathing became easier. He felt a surge of excitement and curled his lips in a sneer, disdaining the voice.
"You can get upset because I won't listen to you, so why on earth should I listen to you and obediently go die to fulfill someone else? I’m no bodhisattva descending to earth to suffer, sacrificing the small self to achieve the great self so I can ascend!"
[But, but, if the host does not follow the plot, even if you are fine now, once the subsequent plot deviates, both you and Gu Yu will be forcibly removed from the story...]
"Pah! Why do you talk so much nonsense?"
Shen Jianan raised his voice to interrupt, gritting his teeth, "Didn't I just make it clear? Whether I die or not doesn't change anything for me. As for Gu Yu, I don't consider myself a great person, so I won't wrong myself for someone I haven't even known for two days."
[...But you are the original host now. The original host is you. Gu Yu was good to him, which means he was good to you. How can you have the heart to let him be harmed? You’ve lived long enough, so what’s the harm in making a small sacrifice?]
"Bullshit!"
Shen Jianan’s breathing quickened again, and his head grew heavy. He shook his head violently. He hadn't expected this piece of garbage to be so despicable—at this point, it was still trying to brainwash him. He exploded with rage, gritting his teeth.
"You want me to die, right? Fine! Before I die, I’ll take out the hero and heroine first. Let's see how you like that! Let's see what you can do to me!"
With that, he summoned all his strength, raised his hoe high, and shouted in his mind, "I’ll smash Jiang Hongmei’s head first, then go find Zhao Jianguo!"
Then, he threw himself recklessly toward Jiang Hongmei and Li Jiaojiao, who had fallen off the ridge and were brawling.
"I’ll kill you!!!"
Gu Yu, who was "eating the melon" on the side, saw the boy’s actions and cried out in terror.
"Jianan, don't be impulsive!!!"
Startled by the warning, the crowd regained their senses and shouted, "Educated Youth Shen! Shen Jianan, don't be impulsive!"
Jiang Hongmei, terrified, held her head and screamed for help, "Ah! Don't hit me—"
[No... static... zzz...]
Dozens of voices intertwined in Shen Jianan’s mind, creating a booming sound like a key turning in a lock, clearing his thoughts in an instant.
The next moment, the voice vanished. Countless characters appeared before his eyes, just as before, and surged into his mind.
Yet, the plot had become chaotic, vastly different from before, with many blank spaces. Unfortunately, Shen Jianan remembered nothing, only the line at the bottom of the final chapter: *The story is not over, a new chapter is about to begin.*