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After the May Day holiday, Hu Ruoyun received another payment from the Story Collection, and with the previous two payments, she had already accumulated three remittance slips. During this time, she had hesitated to visit the Post Office again, fearing that Mao Na might ask her something or give her a cold shoulder.
The key to Mao Na's dormitory was also brought back by Mao Jie. Mayor Mao was so busy that he completely forgot about Hu Ruoyun, the "strategist." However, during their workout sessions, Mao Jie complained, "What exactly did you talk about with my dad? Now he’s hardly ever home and only occasionally eats dinner at home... My mom says he seems lost even when he sleeps at night, hardly saying a word, as if he's thinking about something..."
Hu Ruoyun asked, "His mental state is okay, right?"
Mao Jie replied, "Aside from being busy, everything else is pretty good." He casually added, "My sister said you haven't picked up your payments for several months? Did you forget? If it goes past the deadline, you won't be able to cash it in."
Hu Ruoyun responded, "I’ll go in a couple of days."
She remembered that Mao Na always worked on Saturdays and specifically went to Gaoqiao Town Post Office on Sunday morning. To her surprise, when she entered, it was still Mao Na sitting at the counter.
Cautiously observing as she steeled herself to go in, Hu Ruoyun noticed that Mao Na didn’t seem displeased; in fact, she appeared somewhat pleased to see her. As she handed over the remittance slip, Mao Na joked, "I thought you were going to give up on this 100-plus yuan!"
Hu Ruoyun felt relieved. "How could I? I've just been a bit busy lately..."
As they chatted casually, a small door leading to the backyard opened, and a large figure squeezed through. "Na! Xiao Qiu just called and said she’s coming over this afternoon to see you. She wants to take you out for dinner tonight. Aren't you taking a day off tomorrow? She also said she’d take you to the county for some fun..."
Hu Ruoyun focused her gaze and recognized the Fat Woman she had seen that morning when leaving Mao Na's room. The Fat Woman also recognized Hu Ruoyun. "Oh! Your cousin is here?"
"Cousin?" Mao Na looked puzzled and glanced at Hu Ruoyun before realizing. "Oh, Sister Zhou! My brother came to cash his remittance slip."
Sister Zhou leaned in to look at the remittance slip. "So you’re Hu Ruoyun! Your sister often praises your talent..."
Mao Na's face turned noticeably red as she playfully scolded, "Sister! I'm busy here!"
The Fat Woman continued smiling broadly. "Alright then, you keep busy. But once you're done, make sure to dress up a bit... I haven't seen you wear that top he bought for you!"
That night when Hu Ruoyun stayed at Mao Na's dormitory, she accidentally saw Mao Na's ID card. On it was Sister Mona in her postal uniform, beaming with youthful energy; her date of birth was listed as June 28, 1973. She was only three years older than Hu Ruoyun but seemed more mature due to starting work earlier.
After hearing Sister Zhou's words, Mao Na's expression changed slightly. She glanced at Hu Ruoyun at the counter and quickly called out to Sister Zhou: "Sister Zhou, I can’t today. My aunt’s birthday is tomorrow; my cousin and I are going out this afternoon to shop for a gift. We need to celebrate her birthday tomorrow. Please tell him we’ll get in touch later."
As she spoke, she winked at Hu Ruoyun.
Sister Zhou looked at Hu Ruoyun who nodded in agreement and seemed reluctant: "Then how about you take Xiao Qiu along to your aunt's house? It would be nice for her to see him too!"
"Let’s skip it this time, Sister Zhou... We can arrange it another day," Mao Na replied.
The Fat Woman sighed in resignation. "Alright then, I’ll call him and let him know."
Watching the Fat Woman leave through the door, Mao Na’s expression turned slightly sour. “What kind of people are these? So difficult!”
After handing over more than 160 yuan to Hu Ruoyun, she suddenly asked seriously, “Xiao Hu, do you have any plans this afternoon?”
Hu Ruoyun thought for a moment and replied, "No, not at all."
Mao Na's face lit up with excitement. "Perfect! Then you can accompany me to Black Dragon Pool this afternoon to unwind."
Hu Ruoyun seemed a bit slow to react. "Just us? Is Mao Jie coming along?"
Mao Na shook her head. "He’s not coming. He spent the morning with my mom and uncle visiting my grandmother, and he won’t be back until it’s almost dark. So it’ll just be us."
Black Dragon Pool was a scenic spot in Gaoqiao Town. It used to be a state-owned forest farm in Annan County, covering several hundred acres. In the center was a natural pond that never ran dry, measuring about ten acres. Legend had it that long ago, the youngest son of the East Sea Dragon King was punished here for breaking heavenly rules.
Hu Ruoyun had visited this place before with the sports committee member Gao Jiazhuang. The towering trees created a dense canopy, making the forest dark and cool despite the bright sun outside. Since it hadn’t been artificially developed, the ground was covered in wild grass and shrubs, with only a narrow path winding its way to the pond.
In June, while people outside were sweating profusely from the heat, stepping into the forest felt refreshing. It lacked artificial embellishments but possessed a natural simplicity and beauty.
Back at school, thinking about their afternoon outing made Hu Ruoyun feel inexplicably excited.
At two o'clock in the afternoon, having skipped his nap, Hu Ruoyun dressed in clean sportswear and rode his bicycle to the back gate of the Post Office. From a distance, he spotted Mao Na wearing a white long-sleeved shirt paired with beige straight-leg trousers and half-heeled leather shoes. Her long hair was tied back in a ponytail; she didn’t look like someone heading out for an adventure.
As he approached, Hu Ruoyun handed her a bag. "Sister Mona, take this; I’ll carry you."
Mao Na looked inside the bag and found several pieces of bread, some sausages, and two bottles of sports drink. "I was just thinking of picking up some snacks on our way; you’ve already brought everything."
Hu Ruoyun hopped on his bike while Mao Na grabbed his shirt with her right hand and gracefully settled onto the back seat without letting go.
The distance from Town to Black Dragon Pool was less than four miles. Even with someone riding on the back, they arrived in under twenty minutes.
After parking their bikes, they followed the winding path deeper into the woods.
"Did Sister Zhou see you when you stayed at my place that day?" Mao Na suddenly asked.
Hu Ruoyun felt a bit embarrassed. "I meant to leave early, but I overslept."
Mao Na didn’t seem upset. "That’s our director's wife; she can be quite annoying. She kept asking me if you were my cousin from my aunt’s side or my uncle’s side..."
Hu Ruoyun teased her, "She must really care about you."
"What does that matter? She said she wanted to introduce me to someone—it's that Xiao Qiu I mentioned this morning... Oh right! He was there when you took your two female classmates out for dinner."
Hu Ruoyun recalled the young man in a suit; although he didn’t remember much about him, he complimented, "He’s the one in the suit? He looked pretty handsome."
"Handsome? Can that fill your stomach?" Mao Na suddenly sounded annoyed. "We had one meal together, and all he did was brag about his parents—how great his dad is and how amazing his mom is... but he himself is just mediocre and kind of whiny."
"So you weren’t pleased?" Hu Ruoyun asked.
"But my mom is happy about it! She says his dad is the Deputy Secretary of the County Committee, and his mom is the County Women's Federation Director." Mao Na's expression darkened.
"Well, that seems like a good match for you," Hu Ruoyun said, but for some reason, her heart ached a little.
"That's nonsense!"
Mao Na was genuinely annoyed. "What era are we in? Shouldn't marriage be about the two people involved? Why does it have to involve other factors? Besides, how long can his dad hold that position as Deputy Secretary, or his mom as a Women's Federation Director? If it weren't for our director's wife introducing us, I would have gotten rid of him long ago. He just keeps chattering on and boasting that his mom wants to buy him a car... With their salaries, can they even afford a car? That money doesn't come easily! If he were doing well on his own, even if his dad were just a farmer, I'd still think better of him."
"What does Mayor Mao think?" Hu Ruoyun slowed her pace.
"My dad said I should make my own decisions without considering other factors. If I want it, then great; if I don't, then that's fine too. I shouldn't compromise myself."
"Your dad is something!" Hu Ruoyun gave her a thumbs up. Then she added, "What do the Deputy Secretary of the County Committee and the County Women's Federation Director matter? Your dad has a long road ahead of him..."
Mao Na nodded involuntarily at Hu Ruoyun's serious tone.
The two wandered around, finally making their way through the thicket to the edge of a pond. The shore was nothing but sand and stones, and the heat from outside was nowhere to be felt here.
"I'm hungry; give me a piece of bread," Mao Na said as she found a flat stone and wiped it off with some paper before sitting down. She reached out her delicate white hand toward Hu Ruoyun, who was carrying a bag.
Hu Ruoyun took out a piece of bread, gently unwrapped it, and handed it over.
"You should eat too!" Mao Na said while putting the bread in her mouth.
"You eat; I'll take a walk nearby," Hu Ruoyun replied.
"No way! You have to keep an eye on me; I'm afraid there might be wild cats!" Mao Na scolded playfully, her eyes squinting with laughter.
"Alright, alright, I'll watch you. If there are any wild cats, I'll kick them away," Hu Ruoyun said as she sat down beside her “sister,” who was three years older than her and acting all cute. She quickly pulled out a can of energy drink and popped it open with a "crack," handing it over.
Mao Na took it with satisfaction and raised it to her mouth, taking a big gulp without caring about her image. Suddenly, she choked and bent down, coughing repeatedly.
Hu Ruoyun quickly set down her bag and gently patted her back.
After quite some time, Mao Na finally stopped coughing, breathless and slightly embarrassed as she fished out some tissue from her pocket to wipe away the tears from her face, which made Hu Ruoyun unable to help but laugh.
"Don't laugh!" Mao Na straightened up and scolded while pretending to hit her.
Hu Ruoyun turned and ran away. The two chased each other through the woods, their laughter echoing in the air.
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