Transmigration: On the Gossip Front
Chapter 249 True or False First Love 49_1

Chapter 249: Chapter 249 True or False First Love 49_1

Zhou Juan now lies in her cave dwelling, feeling as if her body isn’t her own.

It’s clearly not the busy farming season, yet there are still so many things to do, she is really tired.

What she hates most is that after tending to the fields, they still have to go far to fetch water.

Every day, she can only carry enough water for one pot to drink, and to save water, she really has to ration every drop.

Otherwise, if there’s not enough water, they’ll have to fetch more. And she can’t even think about using the water that other educated youth have brought back. Once discovered, there would definitely be serious consequences.

Being scolded would be the least of it; they would also beat you and make you fetch a bucket of water from the outside.

What breaks her heart even more is that Zheng Weijian, who clearly said he would take care of her, has really disappeared at this time.

Asking him to help carry water even a little, brings all sorts of complaints. He leaves his clothes for her to wash and expects her to cook—completely washing his hands of the matter.

Zheng Weijian, without any filters, has dramatically dropped in her esteem. She remembers Zhou Lina’s words—it was only you who treated him like a treasure.

Yes, it was she who considered him a treasure. Zhou Juan truly regrets why she had to scheme against Zhou Lina. If she hadn’t, would things be different now?

She might have had the chance to register, perhaps pass the examination, and work in the steel factory.

Even if she hadn’t passed the examination and still had to be an educated youth, she wouldn’t be as destitute as she is now, nor would she have been sent to the Northwest. Maybe she would have been sent to the Northeast or the Southwest.

Even if life in the Southwest was tough, at least water wouldn’t be such an issue.

The more Zhou Juan thinks, the more she wants to cry, wanting to confide to her family, to tell them how hard it is here.

But when she actually starts to write the letter, she suddenly gives up. She still remembers that when she left her home, nobody prepared anything for her, and even less so did anyone accompany her to the train station.

If it wasn’t for the little bit of private money she had on hand and the thirty yuan the neighborhood committee gave her, she would have left with nothing, pushed out of her home.

Now, to write a letter of complaint or to cry about it is not an easy thing to do.

When she was in front of them, it was already like this, how could she expect them to remember her when she’s out of sight?

Perhaps knowing that she’s not doing well would even bring them special joy.

Yet, without expressing her grievances, the pent-up feelings inside her heart are all sorts of uncomfortable.

After thinking in circles, she finds that she can only turn to Zhou Lina; the other friends she was close with, she doesn’t even know where they have gone to be educated youth.

She also remembers on the way to the station, she met a few classmates with whom she got along quite well, but when she greeted them, they completely ignored her.

She knew then that word had spread, and that no one would want to be friends with her, afraid of being schemed against.

"Although it will invite ridicule, who wouldn’t ridicule me for writing?"

"If such an act could make Zhou Lina happy, that would be a good thing."

Zhou Juan knows that Zhou Lina is someone who easily sympathizes, admitting mistakes and sharing one’s hardships could, after a few years, soften her heart and she might offer a little support.

If it were the original host, such a move might work, but now that there’s a different ’core’, how could she be so soft-hearted?

When Zhou Lina received the letter, she was stunned, "The Southwest?"

"Who would write to me?" From the people she knew, there were only a couple who could be writing from the Southwest.

Wasn’t she supposed to hate her? Why would she write her a letter? Zhou Lina finally managed to spare a moment from a pile of data.

Zhou Xuan also didn’t understand, "I don’t get it. Want me to help you read it?"

He always felt that if Zhou Juan wrote this letter, it definitely wouldn’t be with good intentions. Even though she went to be an educated youth, that wouldn’t stop them from continuing to scheme against others.

Zhou Lina didn’t care and handed the letter directly to Zhou Xuan, "You read it and see what’s written."

"And then summarize it for me," she said.

Forget it, she didn’t expect Zhou Juan to write anything noteworthy in the letter, just an apology or perhaps bragging about how she had become Zheng Weijian’s revolutionary companion.

There was also a possibility that she was playing the sympathy card, yes, playing the sympathy card; she had heard the Zheng Family couple had given Zheng Weijian quite a hard time, not preparing much for him, though it could also be due to a lack of time.

But to think they hadn’t even seen him off at the station, that was big news indeed.

You had to understand that the couple adored their son; there was no reason they wouldn’t see him off for such a parting.

So, she felt there was a significant possibility they were trying to teach Zheng Weijian a lesson.

They hoped he would truly understand his mistake and recognize who had been good to him.

But with Zheng Weijian’s stubbornness, even if he did come to a realization, he would only resent his parents and think them cruel.

Forget it, she didn’t want to think about it anymore; after all, their days wouldn’t be easy—that was certain.

Even if they were boasting about their marriage, for Zhou Juan it meant just toiling in the fields and dealing with household chores; she couldn’t expect Zheng Weijian to help with the work.

Zhou Xuan glanced at the letter quickly, "No way, sister, Zhou Juan actually said she’s sorry."

"As expected, but don’t count on it being sincere," she replied, scribbling down numbers.

"She also says that the conditions there are tough, they even have to fetch water from far away."

Zhou Xuan knew life out there was hard, but he hadn’t expected it to be that hard, and his mouth fell open in surprise.

No surprise, Zhou Lina went on entering data into the ledger. She had been at work for over half a month, constantly reconciling figures.

Accountant Yang, who had once envied her, now looked at her with pity.

Zhou Lina knew that the accountant was probably relieved not to deal with such complicated data.

Becoming a cashier may not be the most promising career, but it certainly wasn’t as hectic.

At the very least, one could go to the bathroom without having to rush, or even manage to chat with others.

In their spare time, they could even knit, not at all burdened with busyness.

However, she didn’t have the time to care about such thoughts. The more data she processed, the greater her doubts—or rather, shock—grew within her.

At times, she wondered if Accountant Feng had casually given her these figures.

Or was it always like this? If that were the case, Zhou Lina could only marvel that the factory had managed to survive for ten years post-reform.

If a novice like her could spot irregularities, she didn’t believe for a second the old hands hadn’t noticed, but judging by their demeanor, no one seemed willing to speak up.

What to do? Zhou Lina’s mind was filled with turmoil. To keep quiet meant it was none of her concern; as a newcomer, it was normal not to understand these things.

Especially since she didn’t know who was involved and had no financial interactions with them—it was not her business.

But to truly say nothing—she might unexpectedly get implicated one day. In her position as a cost accountant, she couldn’t possibly claim ignorance.

Sigh, such worries, truly a headache.

Such behavior, Zhou Lina did not believe it could be the work of a single person or just a few; there must be numerous departments to orchestrate, and who knew how many.

It was definitely, definitely a group offense, and the positions involved must be high-ranking.

What to do? Zhou Lina felt increasingly that this matter was a hot potato, unsure about how to proceed.

Preoccupied with her own concerns, she hadn’t paid much attention to the contents of Zhou Xuan’s letter reading; after all, Zhou Juan’s days were difficult now.

Knowing that Zhou Juan was having a tough time was, to Zhou Lina, good news; nothing else mattered.