Chapter 21 Entering the City

Xia Xiao did indeed want to see if Shitou could truly take her to the county town. She believed in Shitou's words, but she still had to try to find out.

Suddenly, the space slightly fluctuated, and Shitou said, "Xiaoxiao, we're here."

Xia Xiao initially wanted to go out, but she hesitated for a moment, "If I go out like this, will I appear out of thin air? What if someone sees me? That would be troublesome."

"Don't worry, you're in the public toilet, and there's no one there right now."

As soon as Shitou finished speaking, a frown fell upon Xia Xiao's face. Coming out of the space, she found herself right next to a pit latrine with a foul smell assaulting her senses. She immediately covered her nose and rushed out.

"How did you take us to the toilet? What if I had fallen into the latrine?" As soon as Xia Xiao rushed out of the public toilet and saw that there was nobody around, she whispered to Shitou.

"Xiaoxiao, you have to trust my skills. Would I dirty myself? Besides, appearing in a public toilet is the safest option."

Xia Xiao thought about it and realized that it made sense—no one was in the public toilet, and appearing here wouldn't raise suspicions.

Immediately thereafter, Xia Xiao took Shitou to stroll around the county town. However, the streets were deserted, and many shops were closed. It dawned on Xia Xiao that today was New Year's Eve; everyone had gone home early to prepare for the New Year's meal.

Xia Xiao had no choice but to return to the public toilet, enter the space, and dropped a droplet of blood for Shitou. The space fluctuated again, and they returned to the dormitory.

After being able to converse with Shitou, Xia Xiao constantly whispered to him, filled with joy due to the surprises granted by the space.

In the evening, Yang Xuehua and the others returned. They had been at the New Year's gathering until very late and only came back after dark.

"Xia Xiao, how come you're back so early?" Dong Meihua approached Xia Xiao proactively and asked with concern.

"I returned early because there was nothing else to do," Xia Xiao replied, then turned to Dong Meihua, "You and Director Li seem to be very close?"

Dong Meihua smiled, "Director Li takes good care of me." As she spoke, she added, "Zheng Xianghong takes good care of you too, right?"

Xia Xiao nodded, acknowledging the truth in that.

Then Dong Meihua apologized to Xia Xiao, "I'm sorry, Xia Xiao. Director Li rescheduled my performance to the last, so today we had to swap our performance order at the last minute."

Xia Xiao shook her head, "It's fine. I won't take it to heart."

She wouldn't hold a grudge, but neither would she joke and fool around with Dong Meihua like she used to. Moreover, it was only today that Xia Xiao realized how close Dong Meihua was to Li Shengmei, which made her slightly more cautious.

"Xia Xiao sang so beautifully today, you could become a pop star," Yang Xuehua remarked.

"Haha, Sister Xuehua, you flatter me. I couldn't possibly compare to a pop star," Xia Xiao laughed off, knowing her own skill was nowhere near that of a real singer.

"I actually think you sound better than the original singer," Yang Xuehua commented when Sun Yuhua scoffed, but she said nothing else.

"While Xia Xiao sang well, she can't quite compare with the original singer," Dong Meihua also chimed in.

Feng Ying remarked, "Each has its own merit; both sound good."

Wang Aihua nodded, "Yes, both are good."

Xia Xiao smiled slightly. She wasn't planning on becoming a pop star. While she did okay with this song, other songs might not be the same.

Their conversation continued around the events of the day as Xia Xiao lay in bed. However, she found herself thinking more about the things inside the space and fell asleep without realizing.

The next morning, everyone went out to pay New Year visits or teamed up to wander around the county town.

Since Xia Xiao had already visited the county town yesterday, she wasn't keen on going today but with Yang Xuehua and the others heading out, staying alone in the production team headquarters and playing with the space wasn't feasible. So, she joined the 'main force' into the town.

This time, more young people headed to the county town. Without bullock carts provided by the team, everyone walked.

Xia Xiao followed Yang Xuehua, while Sun Yuhua, Wang Aihua, Dong Meihua, and Feng Ying found their own groups to walk with.

Xia Xiao saw Dong Meihua and the others, along with the He family brothers, the Gao Brothers, and several other educated youth, chatting and laughing together upfront. She and Yang Xuehua didn't join them.

"Sister Xuehua, why didn't you go to college?" Xia Xiao asked.

"It's just my brother and me in my family. At least one of us had to come out; if not him, then me, so I came," Yang Xuehua replied with a smile, then asked, "What about you?"

Xia Xiao nodded, "I also simply encountered the opportunity. My elder brother is already working, and my three younger sisters are still little."

"So, it's also a kind of fate that we're all gathered here," Yang Xuehua said.

"和老師, "Sister Xuehua, both your parents are teachers. Is your brother also going to be a teacher in the future?"

Yang Xuehua shook her head, "I would like to be a teacher, but he wants to be an architectural designer."

"That's great," Xia Xiao felt that being an architectural designer was quite decent, especially with the domestic transformation in the future.

"Yes, he plans to attend college this year, and then he wants to study abroad after graduation," Yang Xuehua shared.

However, that might bring trouble for Yang Xuehua's parents if they had overseas connections, as they could be criticized.

"Sister Xuehua, do you have relatives overseas?" Xia Xiao asked.

"Yes, my aunt married an overseas Chinese."

Xia Xiao's heart sank a bit—having overseas connections and a brother planning to go abroad after college would make things tricky for Yang Xuehua's family.

Xia Xiao opened her mouth but wasn't sure what to say. She hoped at least her brother could go abroad.

And Yang Xuehua, being an educated youth in such a remote area, hopefully wouldn't be implicated.

They continued talking all the way, and Xia Xiao didn't feel as tired this time, adjusting to the journey better.

After two hours, they finally reached the county town, but it was desolate and not as lively as she had imagined.

Yang Xuehua sighed deeply, prompting Xia Xiao to ask, "What's wrong, Sister Xuehua?"

"Xuehua" Xia Xiao suddenly heard someone call out the name. Both she and Yang Xuehua turned around to see a tall and skinny young man with glasses, looking refined, approaching them.

Yang Xuehua pressed her lips together and told Xia Xiao, "Let's go."

Understanding her hint, Xia Xiao quickly followed Yang Xuehua, ignoring the young man who called from behind.