Chapter 123

In the last glimmer of the sunset, Lily, Grace, and Cecilia carried a bucket of pig feed on a wooden stick to the rudimentary pigpen. They set it down, emptied the feed into the trough, and opened the pen gate.

The pigs, with their pink skin, wiggled their way out of the gate and buried their snouts into the trough, hungrily devouring the feed.

Grace sighed with relief, "I've never taken care of pigs in my life, and now here we are, taking care of both pigs and chickens."

Cecilia laughed, "We're doing a pretty good job. Better than the boys."

The three girls were meticulous in their tasks, whether it was raising pigs or chickens. Their pigs looked bigger and fatter than the other two, and their hens laid more eggs.

Hearing Cecilia's comment, Grace scoffed, "Did they really think we girls couldn't survive without them? We've proven we can do just fine on our own."

Lily added, "Exactly. If we hadn't teamed up with them at first, we wouldn't have made such a mess of things. We thought we needed them for security, but we've learned that relying on ourselves is the best way."

Cecilia sighed, "It's just a shame we learned this lesson late, after all the mistakes and troubles we've had. Have you heard the rumor? Our town might get two spots for returning to the city."

At the mention of these spots, Grace and Lily didn't look particularly happy.

Grace sighed, "Who could have predicted all the changes? We moved our household registrations to the countryside, thinking we had no chance of returning without connections. Now, we don't even consider competing for these spots. Given our performance since we moved here, even if there were three or four spots, we might stand a chance, but with only two, it's unlikely. I have no expectations."

Although she had complained the most since moving to the countryside, always talking about wanting to go home, she was realistic about their chances.

Lily and Cecilia understood the situation just as well.

But Lily wasn't discouraged. She encouraged Grace and Cecilia, "Since last year's turmoil ended, the number of spots for returning to the city has increased this year. There will be more opportunities in the future. We just need to keep up our good work. If we don't get it this time, there's always the next."

Her words made sense and encouraged Grace and Cecilia.

Grace, no longer discouraged, said quietly, "Yes, if there are more spots next time, and we keep doing well, we might get a chance. Mike and his group aren't doing as well as we are. Henry, Charlie, and Gabe have been sent to reeducation camps before; they aren't even considered. That leaves Sophia, who hasn't been performing well either. She's been relying on Henry, Charlie, and Gabe to get by, and her relationship with Henry could be a liability. She has no chance."

Lily laughed self-deprecatingly, "We're still the best of the worst."

Cecilia joined in the laughter, "Let's keep doing our best and wait for the next opportunity."

As they finished talking, their pigs had cleaned out the trough. Just then, Henry arrived with Sophia to feed their pigs.

Lily and her friends herded their pigs back into the pen, picked up the bucket, and left.

Henry and Sophia went to their pigpen to feed their pigs.

After the pigs had eaten, they herded them back into the pen but didn't return to the dormitory immediately.

They set the feed bucket in front of the pigpen and walked to the nearby riverbank, listening to the water flow as they strolled along the shore.

The news about the city return spots had reached everyone, including Henry and Sophia.

Sophia and Henry talked about their school days.

As they talked, feelings of homesickness naturally filled their hearts and voices. Talking about home led naturally to the topic of the city return spots.

Sophia looked at Henry and said, "If it's true, we should try to get one."

Henry knew how much Sophia wanted to go home. Since he returned from the reeducation camp, she had often mentioned returning to the city.

With the recent news, her homesickness had intensified.

Henry put his arm around Sophia's shoulder, comforting her, "I know you want to go home. We all do. But the decision on the spots isn't ours. It's up to the town officials."

Sophia stopped, turning to face Henry, "The spots haven't been decided yet. We can still try. I've always believed there's nothing you can't do. You're resourceful."

Despite the difficulty, she believed Henry could do it. Otherwise, she wouldn't have repeatedly dreamt of Henry holding a city return application form for her.

In the darkening night, Henry looked at Sophia's blurry face, silently taking a deep breath.

Sophia's complete trust in him made it impossible for him to say he couldn't do it. After a moment, he said, "Alright, I'll think of something."

Hearing this, Sophia felt reassured.

She hugged Henry's waist, burying her face in his chest, her voice tinged with grateful tears, "Henry, thank you for being here. Thank you so much."

Henry hugged her back, smiling, "No need to be so formal with me."

Sophia's voice was soft, "I'm not being formal. I'm grateful. If it weren't for you, I would still be living in darkness and despair. You saved me."

In the yellowing cornfield, Henry and the other boys, along with some local villagers, were harvesting corn.

The girls were not in the field today. They were shelling corn, removing the kernels.

As the sun climbed higher, the whistle for a break blew, and everyone stopped to rest.

Henry, Charlie, and Gabe followed the others to the edge of the field to drink water and take a breather.

The three of them sat a bit apart from the others.

Henry drank some water and then handed the cup to Charlie, suddenly saying, "I want to try for a city return spot. Even if we can't get two, getting one would be enough. Do you have any ideas?"

Charlie, in the middle of drinking, nearly choked. He steadied himself, finished his water, and handed the cup to Gabe, asking, "Why the sudden interest?"

Henry exhaled, "I don't mind staying here, but Sophia wants to go back."

Charlie pulled up some dry grass nearby, "What can we do? Think about how we've pissed off the town officials. They'd rather die than give us a spot."

Henry said, "That's why I'm asking for ideas."

Gabe finished drinking and said, "Isn't Sophia always unwell? I say we apply for a medical discharge."

Charlie rolled his eyes, "Unless the hospital finds a serious illness, how can we apply for that? If it were possible, we'd have done it already instead of competing for a city return spot now."