Chapter 115

Their new house didn't have a well.

For water, they had to go to the communal area to fetch it.

Summer's face was bright with joy, her lips pressed together in an attempt to hide her smile, but failing.

After waiting outside for a bit, Logan emerged from his dorm.

When Logan saw Summer's smile, as bright as sunlight, he paused for a moment.

But it was just a moment before he regained his composure and said, "Let's go, fetch some water."

"Okay." Summer replied with a smile, following Logan to the communal area.

Her steps were lighter, her whole being radiating happiness and joy.

They went back and forth several times until the water tank was full.

Then, Summer and Logan went out to the nearby woods to collect firewood and dig for wild vegetables.

It was autumn, and there were many fallen branches in the woods, perfect for burning. The wild vegetables, though not as tender as in spring, were still edible and good for feeding chickens.

Because Summer found fetching water tiring, Logan did most of the work. When it came to collecting firewood and digging wild vegetables, Summer had Logan carry the basket while she did the gathering and digging.

Logan didn't mind and carried the basket as they walked through the woods.

Summer joyfully collected branches, placing handfuls into Logan's basket.

After walking a few more steps, Logan asked, "What's happened? Why are you suddenly so happy?"

Since leaving the dorm, Summer hadn't stopped smiling.

Her actions also showed she was in an exceptionally good mood.

Summer placed another handful of branches into Logan's basket, looked at him with a smile, and said, "We've finally moved out of the communal dorm. Aren't you happy?"

Logan replied flatly, "It's alright."

It wasn't a sudden event, nothing to be particularly excited about.

When they moved from the communal dorm to the new house, Summer had shown relief and relaxation, but not this level of joy, which made him curious.

Summer was used to Logan's calm demeanor.

She continued gathering branches and asked, "Is there nothing or no one that makes you happy?"

Logan replied, "Of course there is."

Summer turned to him, curious, "Like what?"

Logan said, "For example, seeing someone I dislike have a bad day."

Summer: "..."

She forced a smile, "Is there nothing that makes you happy because you like it?"

Logan: "No."

Summer smiled again, not asking further.

Knowing Logan's personality and character, she felt she was asking the obvious.

He didn't have anything or anyone he particularly liked; his lifelong goal was to reach the top, stepping over everyone.

Summer never delved deeply into ideological conversations with Logan to avoid conflicts that could affect their relationship, so she always stopped short.

Summer continued her happy task of gathering branches. After finishing, they moved on to digging wild vegetables.

With the wild vegetables gathered, Summer and Logan, carrying their baskets, walked back to their new dormitory in the evening glow.

Though the place was different, the routine remained the same.

Back at the new dormitory, they fed the chickens, cooked, and ate.

Since it was their first meal after moving, Summer and Logan decided to celebrate with dumplings, so after feeding the chickens, they started making dumplings.

They planned to make two kinds of fillings: pork and celery, and chives and eggs.

In the last rays of the setting sun, they sat outside the kitchen door, preparing the chives and celery.

After cleaning the vegetables, they went inside, lit the oil lamp, and started making the dumplings.

Summer made the dough for the dumpling wrappers while Logan chopped the pork and vegetables for the filling.

Having lived together for so long, they had developed a mutual understanding, even if they kept a proper distance in their relationship.

Once the dumpling wrappers and filling were ready, they started making dumplings.

Since it was just the two of them, they didn't make many.

As they were about to boil the dumplings, they heard Amy's voice outside, "Mr. Tang, Mr. Lin, we're back."

Summer, holding a water ladle, was about to scoop water.

Hearing the voice, she put down the ladle and looked outside, "How did it go? Come in."

Amy and Billy entered the kitchen one after the other.

She handed over the money earned that evening and the ledger to Summer, saying, "There were no issues. Here's the money and the tickets, and the account we kept."

Summer didn't take it, instead saying, "Give it to Mr. Lin."

Amy, still a bit nervous around Logan, handed over the money and ledger quickly, then stepped back.

Logan didn't care about her nerves. He took the money and ledger and started checking the accounts.

Summer, meanwhile, scooped water into the pot and started the fire to boil water.

Logan checked the accounts and said, "Everything's in order."

Hearing this, Amy and Billy both breathed a sigh of relief.

With everything settled, they quickly said, "Mr. Tang, Mr. Lin, we'll leave you to it and head home."

Summer offered politely, "Why not stay for dinner?"

Amy shook her head quickly, "No need, we'll eat at home."

Even with neighbors, they wouldn't stay for dinner, let alone at Summer and Logan's place. Dumplings were a rare treat, and they were also afraid of Logan, finding it stressful to even breathe around him.

"Goodbye, Mr. Tang. Goodbye, Mr. Lin."

Amy and Billy left quickly after saying goodbye.

Seeing them run off, Summer joked to Logan, "You scared them away."

Logan put away the money and tickets, feigning ignorance, "Am I that scary?"

Summer nodded, "Yes, especially when you're warm and polite one moment and cold the next."

Logan looked at her, "Then why do you stick around?"

Summer mumbled, "I don't..."

Thinking to herself, she had no choice but to stick around due to circumstances.

Logan didn't continue the conversation.

Hearing the water boiling, he opened the pot and put in the pork and celery dumplings.

Once cooked, he divided them into two plates, then did the same with the chive and egg dumplings.

With the dumplings ready, Summer put out the fire, washed her hands, and got ready to eat.

She brought over two bowls of vinegar, placed them on the table, and sat down.

Before starting, Summer lifted her vinegar bowl, offering it to Logan, "Let's toast to our new place."

"?"

Logan looked at her, puzzled, "Toast with vinegar?"

Summer laughed, "Of course not, just a gesture."

Logan picked up his bowl.

Their bowls clinked together with a clear "ding."

***

That evening, feeling relaxed and happy, Summer lay in bed, rolling around a few times before settling.

Thinking back on the past months since moving to the countryside, she felt even more at ease and soon fell asleep.

Living next to the school was convenient, away from the communal dorm, and made their lives easier.

Mornings were more leisurely, allowing Summer time to read and study.

Despite her busy schedule, she still made time to review her high school materials, not wanting to forget anything.

Having developed a mutual understanding with Logan, there were no further adjustments needed in their daily life. Moving to the new dorm made life smoother, and time seemed to fly by.

As autumn deepened in November, the harvest season ended, and it was time to store food.

The village had a good harvest, and after paying the grain tax, each family received their share.

The twelve young people from the communal dorm were initially not welcomed by any production team, who didn't want to share their grain, so they were managed directly by the village.

Their grain allocation remained the same, mostly sweet potatoes and sorghum, with less corn. These were for sustenance, with some fine grain for better meals.

To store the grain for winter, Summer and Logan had dug a cellar outside their dorm.

When the village announced the distribution time, they took a cart to the granary.

After work, Leonardo, Ben, and Ken were waiting at the granary.

When Summer and Logan arrived, the other seven had already gathered around Leonardo and Ben.

Having not seen Lily and the others for over a month, Summer and Logan noticed they looked more haggard and thin.

Seeing them talking, Summer and Logan stayed back.

After a while, Leonardo raised his hand for silence and said, "Ken said you've all been doing well recently, but my word still counts. If you can't make up the work points, you'll only get half the grain. Save what you get."

This was already a concession, and they agreed.

After enduring for two months, with wild vegetables becoming scarce as the weather cooled, they knew they'd starve without the grain.

With their agreement, Leonardo started distributing the grain.

Ben had already calculated how many work points each person lacked and deducted the equivalent grain.

Leonardo distributed the grain according to Ben's calculations.

While doing so, Ken reminded them, "Winter is coming, and sweet potatoes don't keep well. Store them in a cellar or dry them into chips. Drying is better as cellars can fail. Don't waste your grain."

Having suffered for two months, Lily and the others valued grain more than ever.

After eating wild vegetable gruel for two months, they knew the importance of food and land, and had started utilizing their personal plots.

They planted winter vegetables, rapeseed, and beans along the edges.

Reluctant to learn before, these were taught by Ken.

Given the timing, Ken hadn't yet taught them how to raise pigs and chickens for extra income, which would be next spring.

After Ken's advice, they finished collecting their grain and loaded it onto the borrowed cart, heading back to the dorm.

Turning, they saw Summer and Logan.

Surprised,

 they quickly regained composure and ignored them, focusing on their cart.

Sophia was still isolated, no one helped her, so she asked Ken for assistance.

With her grain loaded, she pulled her cart past Summer and Logan, glancing at Summer quickly.

After they all left, Leonardo noticed Summer and Logan.

His expression brightened, and he waved, "Why don't you come over? The grain is ready, just take it."