Chapter 268 (Second Update) Having studied English for over ten years…

"Growing vegetables?" The young designer hadn't reached the age of awakening his passion for gardening and didn't understand the deep-seated love that middle-aged and elderly Chinese people have for it. Hearing that Fu Cheng'an wanted to cultivate the yard to grow vegetables, he was shocked and hurriedly tried to persuade him in broken Mandarin: "Grandpa, such a beautiful house should of course be matched with a beautiful garden."

Fu Chengan chuckled. "I was just joking."

He knew, of course, that the yard was not quite right for growing vegetables, but when he saw such a large plot of land, his first thought was that it was perfect for growing vegetables.

In fact, Tang Mingli had the same idea after seeing that the house had two courtyards, one in the front and one in the back.

Hearing her father-in-law say this now, she smiled inwardly, realizing that she had reached the age where her bloodline was awakening.

She said to the designer with a serious expression, "Actually, we want to use the backyard to grow vegetables."

Tang Mingli felt that she was definitely not the only one with this idea. Once more and more people moved in, there would definitely be neighbors growing vegetables in their yards.

Farming seems to be something that Chinese people are born with, something that they awaken to as they reach a certain age.

However, the young designer couldn't understand this plot and tried to persuade Tang Mingli.

"It doesn't look good like this. We should pave the backyard, build a rockery and pond, and raise a few goldfish. It would be so pleasant to sit there, drink tea, and watch the fish. Besides, vegetables aren't expensive, and growing your own won't save you much money."

“It’s not about saving money, but rather…” Tang Mingli pondered how to explain it in a way that the other person would understand.

She never thought about growing vegetables when she was in her twenties.

I had no interest in growing vegetables, or even flowers. But when I turned thirty, I suddenly became interested.

"Everyone has their own little hobbies. Some people sing and dance, some like to grow flowers and fish, and my family likes to grow vegetables. Watching them grow from seeds to sprouting and growing brings an indescribable joy."

That's what the young designer understood.

Although he still thinks that growing vegetables is a somewhat peculiar hobby, he acknowledges that everyone has their own preferences, which he may not understand but respects.

After realizing what was happening, the designer gave Tang Mingli an OK sign.

"OK, I will think carefully about how to design this backyard into a beautiful and practical vegetable garden."

Do vegetable gardens need to be designed?

Tang Mingli thought the designer was very serious, reliable, and also very cute.

After discussing the design plan in general terms, the designer gave us a deadline to produce a preliminary design.

Tang Mingli was very much looking forward to it. She had a feeling that the house would be just what she wanted after it was renovated.

And that has proven to be true.

A week later, the renovation company provided a preliminary design plan and simple renderings.

They're all hand-drawn!!!

This shocked Tang Mingli.

At this point, regardless of their design skills, the designers' sketching abilities were truly solid.

However, after the initial shock, Tang Mingli realized that this was normal.

Computers weren't common back then, let alone CAD and other drawing software.

With the blueprints, it became clearer that some of the designs she and Fu Ci had envisioned were indeed problematic. After making adjustments based on the designer's suggestions, things improved significantly.

However, similarly, some new ideas inevitably popped up after seeing the renderings. Fortunately, the designers were very willing to make changes and didn't feel that we were nitpicking.

Before starting the renovation, Tang Mingli was worried that she would have conflicts with the renovation company.

However, after several rounds of contact, she felt that at least in the design phase, there wouldn't be any issues.

When the pay is right, people's attitudes toward work will definitely change.

Tang Mingli felt that money should be spent in this way.

Although the price is not cheap, it's a win-win situation: you feel comfortable spending money and happy making money.

After several rounds of communication, the design plan was finalized, and the next step was to start the on-site renovation.

Unfortunately, at this very moment, Fu Ci had other things to attend to.

The government wants to organize a clothing trade fair.

This time, it may be to make a name for itself, claiming to be unprecedented in scale.

Of course, it's only the second edition.

However, I could see from the promotional slogans that the government was taking this matter seriously, so I decided to decline and participate.

Tang Mingli had heard of many trade fairs in her previous life. Usually, these large-scale fairs would attract many foreigners, some to learn and others as potential customers.

Upon hearing his wife mention foreigners, Fu Ci realized something and laughed, "Your words reminded me that perhaps we should hire a translator who understands foreign languages."

"Yes, I will." Tang Mingli nodded with a faint smile.

Actually, she passed the CET-6 (College English Test Band 6), but as those who know, even non-English majors who have passed the CET-6 mostly only know basic listening, speaking, reading, and writing skills and lack communication abilities.

In the era of Madam Fu Mu, the word "translation" was almost synonymous with "translator".

How could someone of that caliber be invited so easily?

Faced with his grandmother's puzzled question, Fu Ci patiently explained to them: "Translators work in government departments, while the translators we are talking about are employed by private individuals."

Madam Fu understood, but she was still puzzled.

"You're so good at foreign languages, why don't you become a translator?"

Fu Ci smiled and said, "Everyone has their own ambitions. Our country has so many talented people; it's impossible for them all to have the same idea."

"That makes sense." Hearing this, Madam Fu understood, just like her grandson, who also gave up a top-tier job to start his own business.

So many people felt sorry for him at the time, but as it turns out, his choice wasn't wrong.

Madam Fu remarked with emotion, "Times have really changed. In the past, there were very few people in the whole country who knew foreign languages, but now there are so many talented people that they can serve private enterprises."

Tang Mingli smiled and said, "Grandma, it's been almost twenty years since the reform and opening up."

"Has it been almost twenty years?"

"Hmm." Tang Mingli calculated for her: "From 79 to 89, ten years. From 90 to 95, five years. Rounding up, it's almost twenty years."

This calculation is truly exaggerated. Old Madam Fu laughed and scolded, "It's clearly only fifteen years, but you've made it sound like almost twenty."

Tang Mingli blurted out, "Five years will pass in the blink of an eye."

I didn't think much when I said that, but I didn't expect it to evoke such deep emotions in my grandmother.

Madam Fu sighed, "Yes, five years have passed in the blink of an eye."

Fifteen years can pass in the blink of an eye.

She's old; at this age, she doesn't even dare to imagine what life will be like five years from now.

Let alone five years, I wouldn't even dare to do it for five months.

However, there was always something on Madam Fu's mind.

"Hong Kong will be returned to China in two years, right?"

Although she didn't understand why her grandmother suddenly asked about Hong Kong's return to China, Tang Mingli still replied, "Yes, Hong Kong will be returned to China in less than two years."

As she spoke, she began to paint a picture for her family, saying, "I'll take the whole family on a trip to Hong Kong then."

These words received a warm response from the whole family, except for Madam Fu, who had brought up the topic.

"I'm too old to walk anymore, so please take lots of pictures and show them to me when you get back."

Fu Yu was the first to object: "No, we agreed to go on a family trip together. How can we go without Grandma?"

"But Grandma can't walk anymore."

Fu Yu thought for a moment and then offered her idea: "We can buy a wheelchair for Grandma. Grandma can sit in the wheelchair, and we can push her around."

"You silly child."

Madam Fu was so moved that her eyes welled up with tears.

Her great-granddaughter cared for her so much, and she couldn't let the child down, so she slapped her thigh and made up her mind.

“Okay, if Grandma really can’t walk by then, she can go in a wheelchair.”

Living to see Hong Kong's return to China was a dream she and her husband had.

Since her husband couldn't do it, she would try her best to do it for him.

I'll go check on him then, so that when I need to visit him someday, I can have a good talk with him.

With this hope, it seemed that Madam Fu had found her pillar of support again.

From that day on, she stopped saying she was old all the time and stopped staying at home all day. Instead, just like when she was in Guangcheng, she would go downstairs to the garden to exercise in the morning and evening.

Seeing the changes in her mother-in-law, Fu's mother was overjoyed.

Tang Mingli failed to notice in time that although she no longer needed to worry about the renovation, she had started helping Fu Ci prepare for the trade fair.

She hadn't originally intended to help, but unfortunately, there were too few workers with exhibition experience at the moment.

Seeing her husband so overwhelmed with this matter, she couldn't bear it and offered to help.

As the saying goes, when husband and wife are of one mind, their strength can break even metal.

Fu Ci felt that although his wife had no experience, she could give him a lot of spiritual strength as long as she was by his side, so he gladly accepted her offer of help.

However, to his surprise, his wife was still incredibly capable.

Although she had never done it before, she was able to figure it out in no time.

With her joining, things went much more smoothly.

After working tirelessly for half a month, the week-long trade fair finally began.

The venue for this trade fair wasn't in the center, but perhaps because the first day was a Sunday, or because there were no tickets, or because many people were curious about what a trade fair was like, a lot of people still came despite the location.

It wouldn't be an exaggeration to describe it as a sea of ​​people.

Tang Mingli had never seen such a scene in real life; she had only heard of it.

But hearing and seeing are two different things; the feelings are completely different.

Yellow skin, white skin, black skin... black hair, blonde hair, red hair.

A diverse and bustling scene.

Although it was noisy, seeing this scene didn't bother me.

On the contrary, it gives people a sense of vitality.

So this is what the older generation meant by "that good era".

Everything was thriving, and everyone was full of hope.

Looking at the bustling crowd, Tang Mingli was completely infected by the enthusiastic atmosphere.

But she soon had no time to overthink things.

Their stall welcomed its first wave of customers, a group of foreigners.

Foreigners are warm and outgoing; they greet you as soon as they come in.

The hired translator quickly stepped forward, "Ha, ha, ha..."

Fu Ci and the other staff members were dumbfounded.

Tang Mingli guessed that she probably wanted to say hello, but was too nervous and stammered.

Seeing this, the person on the other end thought there was no way to communicate and shook their head in disappointment.

Tang Mingli was anxious; she couldn't let the big fish just leave like that.

In a moment of desperation, she forced herself to speak: "Hello, it's nice to see you here."

After saying all that, I was completely flustered.

Is that what she said? Or was she right?

I should have said "nice to meet you" instead.

Damn it.

After studying English for over a decade, the only phrase that remains in my mind is "nice to meet you."