Chapter 47: Showing Your Hand

Chapter 47: Showing Your Hand

As soon as Leader Wu saw the expression on Old Zhao Si's wife's face, he knew she was hiding something important!

"What exactly is going on? Zhao Si's old lady, you’d better come clean. If you dare lie again, I’ll make sure your son Zhao Ma Zi works an extra two years on the river project!"

Sure enough, Leader Wu knew these villagers all too well.

Zhao Si's old lady was good at playing tricks and slipping by, but she had an Achilles' heel: her youngest son, Zhao Ma Zi.

Whenever Zhao Ma Zi was involved, Leader Wu could almost always make her fold like a deck of cards.

If Leader Wu had said he would punish her by making her work on the river project, Zhao Si's old lady probably wouldn’t have cared much. After all, at her age, she could just dawdle or slack off in the fields. It's not like someone was going to beat her to death, right?

But her son Zhao Ma Zi was a whole different story. After marrying into the Zhao family, she had only this one son. Of course, she doted on him excessively.

Zhao Guosheng was the son of her husband's previous wife. For years, she either hit him or scolded him, squeezing him dry and grinding him down in every possible way. If Zhao Guosheng so much as disobeyed her, she’d hit him with the 'unfilial' label, leaving his family no choice but to let her have her way.

But when it came to her own son, she wouldn’t lift a finger to hurt him and couldn’t stand seeing him suffer. It could be said that Zhao Ma Zi's transformation into the despised "tumor" of Kaoshan Village was thanks to his mother’s indulgence.

However, Zhao Si's old lady didn't think she was harming her son. No matter who in the village spoke ill of her son, she would rush to his defense, even if it meant arguing or fighting with others.

Through her mother's biased eyes, her son could do no wrong. No matter how many dirty deeds Zhao Ma Zi did, she always thought others were to blame for inciting and leading him astray. It was always someone else's fault, never her son's!

So, when Wu Yongbing mentioned adding an extra two years of punishment for Zhao Ma Zi, Zhao Si's old lady panicked and immediately spilled the beans.

"About half a year ago, when the cow had just gotten pregnant, I was busy finding a wife for my son. I didn't give the cow enough feed and fodder, and then the cow got sick. It had diarrhea and couldn't eat, and it just lay in the barn without any energy."

"I was afraid that if something happened to the cow, the team would blame me, and I would lose my job. So, I went to the old woman at Mashipo to ask around and see how to fix it."

"The old woman, I don't know who, got a local remedy for me that could increase the cow's appetite and make the calf grow strong. I mixed it into the cow's feed, and to my surprise, the cow liked it. The symptoms of illness clearly improved."

"So, for the past half year, whenever the cow didn't eat the feed, I would go to the old woman to get some of that local remedy to feed it. I probably used about four or five doses."

"I don't know if this local remedy has anything to do with what Ye Qing said about the calf being too large and causing difficult birth, but it's just a medicine to increase appetite. It shouldn't be a problem, right?"

Zhao Si's old lady's words made Ye Qing's eyelid twitch.

What kind of local remedy could increase the cow's appetite, but at the same time, the cow clearly became thinner during pregnancy, meaning it hadn’t gained much weight, and all the nutrients had gone to the calf?

This didn't sound right, and Ye Qing immediately pressed for more information:

"Do you know the specific ingredients of this local remedy? Or do you have the prescription that the old woman gave you? Can you show it to me?"

Zhao Si's old lady shook her head.

"She didn't write a prescription for me. It was pre-mixed and ground into powder, wrapped in a yellow paper package. I just added a little to the feed. There's no prescription to see."

Ye Qing felt disappointed.

She had a strong feeling that the key to the cow's difficult birth was this so-called appetite-enhancing local remedy!

But without the specific prescription, it was hard to determine the exact ingredients. She couldn't make a conclusion based on guesswork.

"But I still have a small half package of the medicine at home. If you want to see it, Ye Qing, I can go get it."

Zhao Si's old lady suddenly remembered and added.

These words immediately lit up Ye Qing's eyes, and she urgently said:

"That's simply wonderful! Go and fetch it quickly so I can have a look!"

Old Mrs. Zhao turned to head home. Wu Yongbing, afraid the old lady would cause more trouble and deliberately destroy the remaining packet of medicine at her home, decided to follow her to make sure nothing was amiss.

They returned about ten minutes later. Wu Yongbing handed over the yellow paper packet to Ye Qing.

Ye Qing quickly opened the packet to check inside.

As soon as she saw it, her brows furrowed in a frown.

Inside the medicine packet was a pile of crushed traditional Chinese herbs mixed into a powder. It looked dark and murky, and an intense herbal smell hit her as soon as she opened it, making it impossible to tell what was actually inside.

But if this were just regular Chinese medicine, why turn it into powder? Some particularly strong-smelling low-quality herbs were mixed in. This didn’t seem like a proper folk remedy at all. Instead, it looked deliberately made to cover something up, giving it a rather suspicious air.

Ye Qing pinched the powder and took a sniff. The overwhelming smell made it impossible to discern the exact ingredients. She carefully pinched a bit of the powder and dabbed it on her tongue.

The second it touched her tongue, Ye Qing's expression changed instantly.

She immediately looked up, her face serious as she looked at Wu Yongbing. "Uncle, find a way to contact the town's police station or go see Secretary Lai from the commune. There's something really wrong with this medicine!"

Wu Yongbing was stunned.

He had thought the same as Mrs. Zhao, assuming it was just a folk remedy and nothing serious. But now, seeing Ye Qing's serious expression, he realized she wasn’t joking. The thought sent a chill down his spine, and he knew something was very wrong.

"What do you mean by contacting the police station? It's just a folk remedy, what's the big deal? Why make such a fuss? How can you, an educated youth from the city, act like this? Do you really think so highly of yourself?"

Before Wu Yongbing could respond, Mrs. Zhao panicked.

She hadn’t expected Ye Qing to prepare to call the police! If the police got involved, her attempt to cover up the incident of letting a wild piglet ram into the cow would be exposed. If she were implicated, she might end up in prison!

The thought of this possibility made Mrs. Zhao lose her composure. She rushed forward, trying to snatch the medicine packet from Ye Qing.

But Ye Qing, being a person with special abilities, was far more agile than an old woman.

As soon as Mrs. Zhao charged at her, Ye Qing nimbly sidestepped several feet away.

At the same time, she swiftly shot out an acupuncture needle, which instantly caused the aggressive Mrs. Zhao to go weak in the knees and collapse to the ground, unable to move.

Wu Yongbing was startled.

He had read the report in the *Jicheng Daily* about Ye Qing's heroic act of capturing a criminal on a train, but it was just text without any visuals, so it still felt somewhat unreal. It was hard to imagine what the scene had actually been like.

But just now, Ye Qing had effortlessly neutralized the hysterical Mrs. Zhao with a single needle, right before his eyes. The visual impact on Wu Yongbing was undoubtedly immense.

At that moment, Wu Yongbing truly realized that the *Jicheng Daily* reporter's account hadn't exaggerated at all. If anything, it had been understated.

This Ye Qing was like the nemesis of the unreasonable old women in the village!

But this tendency to resort to violence at the slightest provocation—oddly enough, Wu Yongbing found it somewhat satisfying.

Noticing Wu Yongbing staring at her, Ye Qing shrugged and explained, "I didn't do anything to her. I just needled her numb point, temporarily paralyzing one of her legs so she can’t walk. She'll be fine in about half an hour."

Wu Yongbing looked at Mrs. Zhao, who was cursing and holding her leg, gradually becoming more enraged. Though he felt like laughing, he maintained a composed expression. "I'll have Wu Cong ride his bike to the commune later. You said this medicine has a problem, why involve Secretary Lai?"

Ye Qing urged seriously:

"Please divide this packet of medicine into two portions. Let’s keep one portion for our village, and have Comrade Wu Yongbing deliver the other portion to the commune. Get Secretary Lai to find a way to have the relevant units test and analyze the components of this packet of medicine!"

As she spoke, Ye Qing glanced at Zhao Si's wife and lowered her voice to add a supplementary remark to Wu Yongbing:

"I suspect this contains not only hormones but also something mixed with opium powder!"

Wu Yongbing looked bewildered, clearly not understanding much due to his limited education. He had no idea what this "opium powder" Ye Qing mentioned even was.

Ye Qing had no choice but to use a more straightforward term:

"It's opium, the same as the drug!"

This time, Wu Yongbing understood. While he had no concept of what opium powder was, the mention of opium immediately changed his expression. His face turned pale, and shock and fear appeared in his eyes. The hand holding the yellow powder trembled slightly. He couldn't believe that such a terrifying thing could appear in the village under his jurisdiction.

Realizing the severity of the situation, Wu Yongbing didn't say another word and turned to leave. He didn't even dare ask his son to handle it. He rushed home, hopped on his old 28-inch bike, and pedaled with great effort toward Red Flag Commune.

I'm not joking around here. If what Ye Qing said is really true and it contained opium components, this issue would be far too big for the commune to handle. They would need to report it to higher authorities immediately.

As soon as Wu Yongbing left, Zhao Si's wife immediately got all bossy, cursing and ordering Ye Qing to remove the needle from her leg.

Ye Qing approached Zhao Si's wife, crouched down, and looked at her.

With a smile on her face, but no warmth in her eyes, she said:

"Granny Zhao, I'm actually very easy to talk to. As long as people don't cross me, I generally don't resort to violence."

"But if someone really pisses me off, I won't hold anything back. You, for example, dared to secretly release a wild boar to harm me, which has already crossed my bottom line."

"If you know what's good for you, you'll confess in front of the whole village about causing the cow's miscarriage and apologize, seeking the forgiveness of the commune members."

"Of course, if you don't want to, I won't force you. At most, you'll have an accident—fall and break something, or become paralyzed, and spend the rest of your life in bed, so you won't be able to harm anyone anymore."

Zhao Si's wife was so angry that her face turned dark, glaring at Ye Qing with venom in her eyes:

"You dare to threaten me? Do you even know where you are? This is Kaoshan Village. How dare you, an outsider, threaten me? Do you think I can't find someone to kill you?"

Ye Qing immediately burst into laughter:

"Kill me? Oh, I'm so scared! Shall we see who's faster, the person you find to kill me, or my silver needle?"

"Anyone who tried to kill me is already six feet under. If you want to be next, bring it on!"

As she spoke, Ye Qing waved a silver needle in front of Zhao Si's wife and said coldly,

"Be smart and apologize publicly as I said. If the villagers don't think it's harsh enough, accept whatever punishment the commune cadres decide. Otherwise, you'll be waiting for that accident."

"I can guarantee that I'll paralyze you without even a scratch, unable to move or speak, barely clinging to life. If you don't believe me, feel free to try!"

"Just to mess with Meng Zhiqing, my son almost drowned. I didn’t kill him; I just let him live."

Upon hearing this, Zhao Si's wife's curses came to an abrupt halt. She looked up in disbelief, glaring at Ye Qing:

"My son almost drowned last time... was, was it you who did that?"

Ye Qing laughed, all cocky.

"I don't have any idea what you're talking about. Wasn't it your son who jumped into the river by himself and got his legs tangled in the weeds, unable to get out?"

Ye Qing denied it, but the look on her face clearly said, 'Yeah, I did it. What are you gonna do about it?'

Granny Zhao Si was about to lose it:

"You damn bitch, do you think I can't kill you!?"

Ye Qing smiled slightly, and in an instant, the needle she had been toying with flew into the old woman's body.

The next second, the old woman was rolling on the grass, writhing in agony, her body contorted. Her earlier arrogance and domineering attitude were gone, replaced by a pale, distorted face as she kneeled at Ye Qing's feet, crying and begging for mercy.

Ye Qing remained expressionless:

"I already told you, I could make you a cripple without anyone knowing. Do you believe me now?"

The old woman nodded frantically:

"Yes, yes, yes."

Ye Qing asked again: "And I also said that you need to publicly apologize and confess in front of everyone in the village. What do you have to say about that?"

The old woman immediately replied:

"Tonight, I'll confess tonight, and let the commune punish me however they want!"

That's more like it.

Ye Qing, though not entirely satisfied, crouched down and pulled the two silver needles out of the old woman.

"You'd better keep your promise and don't push your luck. If you really tick me off, I'll make sure you regret it deeply!"

As soon as the needles were removed, the pain vanished, and the old woman collapsed on the ground, drenched in sweat. Her clothes were completely soaked, inside and out, and she looked at the slim girl before her with fear and trepidation, trembling like a leaf.

Ye Qing couldn't be bothered with the old woman anymore and stood up, preparing to leave.

"Get out of here, and remember, never mess with me again. I don't like using force, but if you come looking for a beating, I won't hesitate to give you a good thrashing!"

Only when Ye Qing was far away did the old woman manage to stagger to her feet and flee as if her life was at stake.

Ye Qing walked back with a smile, planning to make some spicy rabbit head and cold rabbit stir-fry. As she passed the water mill, she saw Gu Weidong leaning against the doorframe with a piece of grass in his mouth, staring at her with a deep gaze.

Ye Qing's steps faltered, and she looked back at the grassy beach near the pigsty, unsure how much of her encounter with Zhao Si's wife Gu Weidong had seen.

"You came to pound rice? Why didn't you let Yang Dazhi or Gu Weibei do it? Your injuries haven't fully healed yet; you shouldn't be lifting heavy things."

Ye Qing could faintly hear the sound of the water mill grinding grain inside and couldn't help but remind him.

"Dazhi brought it over, and he'll come back to pick it up later. I was bored, so I came to the riverbank for a walk."

The water mill wasn't far from the pigsty, but instead of asking what had happened, Gu Weidong suddenly brought up something else:

"I have a comrade from Ludong whose grandfather worked as a laborer at a large pharmacy when he was young, specializing in the traditional method of boiling donkey-hide gelatin. I also have a comrade from northern Shaanxi, where jujubes are abundant. There are jujube trees in his family's yard. If you want, I can ask them to see if their families can help bring some over..."

Ye Qing was initially caught off guard, wondering why Gu Weidong brought this up out of the blue.

Just as she was about to refuse, a thought flashed through her mind, recalling the conversation she had with Aunt Gu the previous night.

At that time, Aunt Gu didn’t want to use her new cotton for a mattress, saying she would give her the old military quilt that Gu Weidong had used as a heated bed pad. To refuse Aunt Gu's suggestion, she made an offhand excuse about her qi and blood deficiency.

Her original body was indeed depleted, having suffered too much in the Ye family in her early years, which left her with a weak physical foundation. Her hands and feet would become cold in the winter.

However, this wasn’t really a big concern for Ye Qing. Recently, she had been using a bit of her special ability every day to gradually repair her worn-out body, and she estimated that in two or three months, she should be able to get her body back in top shape.

So, when she mentioned her qi and blood deficiency to Aunt Gu the previous day, she didn’t really take it to heart.

Her words meant little to her, but they meant something to him. She truly didn’t expect Gu Weidong to come to her just for this.

This really surprised Ye Qing.

She was about to refuse but swallowed her words. After thinking for a moment, she nodded slowly and said,

"Then I’ll have to bother you. Please ask how much these things will cost, and I’ll pay you back later."

Seeing how painful it was for Ye Qing to hand over the gold leaves and watches, Gu Weidong guessed she didn’t have much money. So, he came straight out with it,

"No need. Think of it as payment for your medical services. Didn’t you say you’d provide the medicinal bath and acupuncture? When can we start? I’ll be home recovering for a month before returning to the unit. If possible, please arrange it as soon as you can."

Ye Qing was stunned into silence.

Gu Weidong raised an eyebrow. "What? Is there a problem?"

"None."

Ye Qing replied quietly and turned to head back to the village.

"In the next few days, when I find time to collect the necessary herbs in the mountains, we can begin."

Before her time travel, she was already over thirty and had developed a thick skin. Did Gu Weidong really think a little provocation like that would throw her off? Pfft, Ye Qing wasn’t that useless. So what if he was tall and had a good figure? In her previous life, she had seen plenty of high-quality young men!

Ye Qing pouted and continued walking towards the end of the village, secretly mocking herself, refusing to admit her own ears were warming up.

When she got home, she started a fire, and soon the spicy rabbit head and dry-fried rabbit cubes were fragrantly out of the pot, attracting the old lady who had been making shoes indoors in silence.

"What delicious food are you making, girl Qing? It smells so good!"

Ye Qing grinned and quickly took a piece of rabbit meat and put it into Grandma Zou's mouth.

The old lady, being elderly, usually didn’t eat heavily flavored food, but this rabbit meat easily captured her taste buds.

"Goodness, this is really delicious. It’s rabbit meat, right? I didn’t know rabbit meat could be prepared like this. When the villagers go hunting in the mountains next time, I must ask Zhenxing and the others to help bring back more rabbits to make this!"

Hearing this, Ye Qing’s eyes lit up.

"Does the village organize hunting trips every year? When is it usually?"

The old lady smiled. "It’ll be around the twelfth lunar month when the heavy snow seals the mountain. Animals that haven’t stored enough food will come out to look for food, leaving footprints in the snow, making it easy to track them. Otherwise, where could you find those creatures hiding in the woods during normal times?"

Ye Qing became excited. She had seen scenes of hunting in the snow in various TV shows and books but had never experienced it herself. She was eager to witness it firsthand. Additionally, she didn’t know how to use a hunting gun and was somewhat interested in learning.

However, it was still late September, and the village was mainly occupied with the harvest at this time, far from the hunting season.

"It’ll be the Mid-Autumn Festival in two days. How do people usually celebrate here?" Ye Qing asked the old lady curiously.

Murong Ah Po smiled. "In the Northern Wilderness, we can't compare to your Shen City. Especially in the village, people don’t really emphasize festivals. Especially now, during this critical autumn harvest period, every household is working early and late to gather the crops. Who has time for festivals? If we can have a dinner of pork with cabbage and vermicelli, accompanied by a five-kernel moon cake, or some snacks like boiled peanuts, edamame, or hawthorn, and sit in the yard to watch the moon, that’s considered the best life."

Ye Qing immediately felt delighted. "That's easy enough. I'll get everything ready in the next few days, and we'll do it just like that. We've still got plenty of pork at home. I'll make sure to cook the pork and cabbage stew with vermicelli until it's nice and tender, soaking up all the broth, so the flavor is just right before it's served."

Being older, Zou Ah Po couldn't eat anything too tough. Hearing Ye Qing's plan, she couldn't stop grinning.

Just then, Aunt Gu showed up with some quilts and mattresses for Ye Qing. Hearing them talk about Mid-Autumn plans, she was immediately interested.

"How about our two families spend the festival together? Ye, this is your first time in the village. It'll be too quiet with just you and Ah Po for the festival. All my kids are home this year. It'll be much livelier with more people around!"

Zou Ah Po had spent past Mid-Autumns at the Gu family’s place, so she didn’t mind this year either. She even smiled and reminisced,

"Weidong hasn't been home for Mid-Autumn Festival in seven or eight years, not since he joined the army. This year, he's finally home for a while and can join us for the Mid-Autumn reunion. It's truly not easy."

Aunt Gu nodded, a mix of happiness and sadness on her face.

"Who's to say otherwise? He's home for this Mid-Autumn, but don't count on the Lunar New Year. He's definitely not coming back by then."

"Sigh, I used to hope he'd have a bright future. But now, seeing the state of his leg, I almost wish he was just an ordinary farmer, spending his life working in the fields of this village, safe and sound, which wouldn't be so bad."

Ye Qing had gotten to know Gu Zhenxing and his wife over time, and she quite liked them. So, she didn’t refuse Aunt Gu's suggestion.

She looked at the quilt and mattress Aunt Gu had brought in, her face full of surprise.

"Auntie, these are for me, right?"

Miao Cuilan smiled. "If not for you, then who else? Didn't you bring the cotton and ask me to make it for you? Uncle Zhenxing and I stayed up last night to fluff the cotton. With Xiaonan and Xiaobei back, I didn't go to work today. I sent the two of them to take my place, and I stayed home to cook and, by the way, finished the quilt and mattress for you."

"Here, take it to the wing room and try spreading it out to see if it fits."

Ye Qing was instantly filled with surprise and delight.

"Oh, I really can't trouble you like that! I’m honestly not in such a rush. If it can be done in ten days or half a month, that’s fine. How can I ask you and Uncle Zhenxing to stay up all night for me?

Miao Cuilan liked Ye Qing so much that she wanted to treat her like her own daughter. Hearing Ye Qing say that, she couldn’t help but laugh:

"You haven't been in the northeast, so you don’t know how fast the weather changes here. One day it might be a clear, crisp autumn day, and the next day it snows, and everything freezes over. If you don’t get the winter quilts ready ahead of time, when the heavy snow comes, you’ll be shivering so bad at night you’ll feel like you’ve got a fever. So if you wait ten days or half a month for this quilt, it’ll probably be too late!"

Ye Qing wasn’t very familiar with the climate here, and hearing Aunt Gu say this made her feel a bit embarrassed, so she scratched the back of her head.

I gotta say, the Gus were really thorough in their work. Ye Qing’s cotton quilt and mattress were extra soft and fluffy, and the stitching was really neat. Just holding them made you feel all warm and cozy.

Once it was laid out on the kang, Ye Qing lay down and didn’t want to get up.

If she could air out the quilt in the afternoon and let it soak up some sun, sleeping on that kang that night would be perfect.

Ye Qing was really happy with Aunt Gu’s work and went out with a smile to thank her. She even packed a plate of her cold diced rabbit, insisting that Miao Cuilan take it home to try.

As soon as she was gone, Ye Qing started getting lunch ready. She planned to stir-fry some veggies and whip up a tomato egg soup, serving it with rice for lunch.

But just as Ye Qing started to steam the rice, she heard someone shouting outside the yard. Thinking it was Wu Yongbing returning from the commune, Ye Qing rushed out, only to see a familiar military truck and the soldier driver who had met her twice before.

Seeing the man drenched in sweat and looking anxious, Ye Qing’s heart skipped a beat. Thinking something had happened with Qiao Youqing, she asked urgently:

"What’s wrong, Comrade Xiao Zhu?"

Zhu Jingang asked anxiously:

"Comrade Ye, we have a cow facing a difficult birth at our farm. I heard that a couple of days ago, your production team also had a difficult cow birth, and you helped with the delivery. Our farm leader would like to ask you to come over and take a look. Do you have time now?"

Ye Qing was stunned. She hadn’t expected that the news of her helping with the cow delivery in the village had spread as far as the neighboring Qingshan Farm.

She had seen Director Zhao from the neighboring production corps before. He seemed a bit stern, but he appeared to get along well with Qiao Youqing.

Since the person had come to her for help, Ye Qing decided to go and check things out regardless.

She gave the young driver, Xiao Zhu, a nod and said, "Just a moment, I need to see to the elderly at home."

After that, Ye Qing shouted a few times toward the neighbor's house. Aunt Gu was busy in the kitchen and, hearing Ye Qing call for her, hurried out to see what was wrong.

Ye Qing explained a few things and then said, "I'm not sure if I'll make it back in time for lunch. The food and rice are already prepared at home. I'll have to trouble you, Aunt Gu, to help with the cooking and put the food on the table for Grandma."

With that, Ye Qing went into the house, grabbed her veterinary kit, and headed out to climb into the military truck.

At that moment, Gu Weidong and Yang Dazhi returned after finishing pounding the rice. Seeing the military truck parked outside, they stopped for a moment and asked Ye Qing where she was headed.

Ye Qing replied that she was going to the neighboring farm to assist with a cow's delivery. Gu Weidong's gaze landed on Xiao Zhu, the driver, before he tossed the small bag of rice to Yang Dazhi and climbed into the back seat of the military truck.

"I'll go with you."

Ye Qing had wanted to refuse, but since she wasn’t familiar with the Qingshan Town area, having someone along in case of an emergency seemed like a good idea. So, she swallowed the words that were already on her lips.

Zhu Zhigang wasn't worried about it; his mind was occupied with the cow's difficult birth at the farm. As long as Ye Qing could help successfully deliver the calf, it didn't matter how many people went.

Moreover, since Gu Weidong was still dressed in his green military uniform, indicating he was a serviceman, Zhu Zhigang naturally felt a sense of camaraderie and even favor towards him. So, when Gu Weidong climbed onto the truck, Zhu Zhigang quickly started the engine and drove toward the village outskirts, all the while engaging in casual conversation with Gu Weidong.

"Bro, you're in the military too? Which military region or production corps are you serving in? Did you injure your leg? Is it nothing serious?"

Gu Weidong gave evasive answers where he could, but he managed to pry quite a bit of information out of Zhu Zhigang. Zhu Zhigang was probably only about twenty years old, still an inexperienced and simple-minded young man. He was no match for the experienced Gu Weidong and was outmaneuvered without even realizing it.

When they arrived at the neighboring farm, as they got off the truck, Ye Qing avoided looking directly at Gu Weidong. She had previously tested Gu Weidong with "Asian Mighty Wind," and he hadn't shown any signs of recognition.

But based on Gu Weidong's performance in the car just now, Ye Qing was now ninety percent sure that this Gu Weidong had also changed inside!

An ordinary young man in his early twenties wouldn't have such impressive and rigorous conversational skills or such deep and hidden schemes. Gu Weidong's one trick after another had completely overwhelmed the similarly-aged Zhu Zhigang.

If it weren't for the fact that Gu Weidong's eldest son was confirmed to be twenty-three years old, Ye Qing wouldn't have believed that he was the same age as Zhu Zhigang!

So Ye Qing concluded that Gu Weidong, like Wu Yueying, had likely been reborn or transmigrated.

Wu Yueying had returned about a month ago and had since undergone a drastic change in personality, proposing to break off her engagement with Gu Weidong.

At that time, Gu Weidong had been injured and hospitalized. According to the usual laws of rebirth or transmigration, the most likely time for Gu Weidong to have returned would have been the day he was shot in She Mountain and met Ye Qing.

If that were true, then in his previous life, Gu Weidong could never have had any interaction with Ye Qing, as he was rescued from the mountain in a way that didn't involve her.

This meant that Ye Qing's appearance in She Mountain had already been a variable, and her actions to save this "big brother" had never existed in Gu Weidong's original memories.

So Ye Qing realized that there was no need for her to test or hide anything because, to Gu Weidong, she had already been exposed!

Ye Qing couldn't help but curse inwardly. No wonder he had been clinging to her and remained so calm during her tests; he had sensed from the beginning that she was the same kind of person and had already prepared himself mentally to deal with her.

Ye Qing even felt that the whole scene in the car just then had been intentional on Gu Weidong's part. If he didn't want to reveal himself, he could have hidden deeper, but he deliberately showed a flaw in front of her, clearly wanting to lay his cards on the table.

Perhaps it was their earlier confrontation on the riverbank that made Gu Weidong decide he didn't want to pretend anymore and wanted to play an open hand with Ye Qing.

Ye Qing was tired of all the testing the waters and constant tension. Since both sides knew the other had changed their core, it'd be better to just lay everything out in the open. This way, they could both let go of their guard and feel much more at ease.

However, any confrontation with Gu Weidong would have to be postponed. Right now, Ye Qing's priority was to help deliver a calf at Qingshan Farm.

The army truck drove straight into the farm and headed directly to the breeding area.

The scale of Qingshan Farm was enormous. In addition to the vast stretches of farmland, there was a dedicated breeding area that spanned several acres. There were thousands of pigs about to be sent to market, hundreds of sturdy yellow cattle, several dozen cows about to give birth, and various sheep, goats, chickens, ducks, and geese everywhere.

Even though Ye Qing had been mentally prepared, she couldn't help but be amazed at the sheer size of the place.

With this many animals, they must be producing a wide variety of agricultural products, she thought. Especially upon seeing the lambs and poultry, Ye Qing's eyes lit up as she secretly wondered how she could get a few for herself.

If I could get a few young ones back home, by mid-next year, we'd be eating well. Wouldn't that be wonderful?

However, Ye Qing only dared to think about this in her mind. She didn't forget that it was still the era of the planned economy, and folks weren't allowed to just raise animals however they wanted. Even if they were allowed, there were numerous regulations regarding the quantity and type of animals they could raise.

Because of this, she decided it was best to avoid trouble and not raise any animals. She was already somewhat of a public figure and couldn't let something like this give people a reason to come after her.

When she arrived at her destination, sure enough, Zhao Jinliang, whom Ye Qing had met before, was already waiting.

As soon as he spotted Ye Qing, Zhao Jinliang hurried forward to meet her.

"Comrade Ye, please help us take a look. The cow has been in labor for several hours and hasn't been able to give birth. The technicians at the farm have tried everything."

Ye Qing nodded, too busy to introduce Gu Weidong who was following behind her. She grabbed her veterinary medical box and headed straight into the cattle shed.

The cattle shed smelled bad, and it was poorly ventilated. A wire had been strung across, with a single incandescent bulb lighting the area. The birthing area of the cow was in the brightest spot under the bulb, where a few people were gathered. They didn’t react much when they saw Ye Qing enter.

Ye Qing looked at the thin cow lying there, then at her swollen belly, and her eyelids started twitching uncontrollably again.

Indeed, the cow's pregnancy looked identical to the situation with the cow from Kaoshan Village.

Even before touching the cow, Ye Qing had already guessed the problem. The calf inside the cow was too large, making it impossible for the cow to give birth!

Seeing that the cow was wet underneath, it was clear that her water had broken. Additionally, the cow was lying listlessly on the ground, clearly too exhausted to give birth. Without wasting any more time, Ye Qing rolled up her sleeves, jumped into the pen, and grabbed her silver needle box to start inserting needles around the cow's rear, just like she had done for the cow in Kaoshan Village.

"Hey, hey, hey! What are you doing?!"

Just as Ye Qing was about to insert the needle, one of the technicians wearing glasses, who had been standing around, rushed over and angrily stopped her.

"Who are you, young girl?"