Chapter 18 Now That We're Here
Wei Chuan rubbed his nose awkwardly and handed the things he bought to Meng Tang: "I bought a fruit box, tea, and a durian."
Meng Tang glanced at the label. The fruit box was exquisite and the tea was Pu'er. According to Wei Chuan's spending power, nothing would be cheap.
"Thank you for the money." Meng Tang reached out to take it.
Wei Chuan took it halfway and suddenly took it back: "Let me hold it for you, it's very heavy."
Xie Lingyin and Xu Heqing looked at each other, and the curves of their lips could not be hidden.
Xu Heqing coughed and said, "I'll get one for you."
Wei Chuan handed over the durian.
When Meng Tang came out, the door was half open. Four people entered one after another, and she and Wei Chuan walked side by side.
She wanted to talk to Xu Heqing, but it was obvious that she was not familiar with him and could not find a topic to start with.
Xie Lingyin is much more familiar with Xu Heqing.
Thanks to Xie Lingyin, she was always able to watch Xu Heqing up close at events.
They always host events together.
After entering the middle courtyard, Sister Fang greeted me warmly.
Wei Chuan and Xu Heqing greeted the old man, who nodded in a pretentious manner, but was actually observing them secretly.
There was a wooden table in the yard, and several people sat around it to help Sister Fang pick vegetables. Sister Fang was so scared that she took all the vegetables and went to the kitchen to work alone.
She watched for a while and found that none of them had ever worked.
Meng Tang had no choice but to cut the fruit that Wei Chuan brought and send one portion to the old man and one portion to Sister Fang.
Wei Chuan looked around curiously and exclaimed the same way Xie Lingyin did: "Your house is so big."
"Is it as big as your house?" Meng Tang asked back, "I heard there's a basketball court at home."
She also heard it from Shi Lan's gossip.
Wei Chuan: "...More or less. I just haven't lived in a house like this before, so I find it strange."
"If it's strange, just look at it more." Xu Heqing said and then asked Meng Tang: "Is it possible to visit it?"
Meng Tang nodded: "Of course."
"Xiaotang." Meng Yuchun looked at him for a while, then stood up from the recliner. "Lunch is still a while away. Come with me to the backyard. If your classmates are interested, you can come and take a look."
Wei Chuan subconsciously stood up and asked Meng Tang in a low voice: "Where are you going?"
Meng Tang looked back: "Test your homework."
Wei Chuan and his companions followed him and stepped into the north courtyard, where all they saw was wood.
After entering the main workshop, the old man handed Meng Tang a long piece of cloth and said, "Cover it."
Wei Chuan raised his eyebrows in surprise. What was this for?
Xie Lingyin had heard Meng Tang say this, and she spontaneously explained to them in a low voice, "It should be like identifying wood with a blind eye. You have to accurately tell the age, temper, and intended use of the wood."
"Is it so difficult?" Wei Chuan widened his eyes and looked at Meng Tang with some worry.
Meng Tang heard Wei Chuan's voice suddenly rise and laughed, "It's not difficult, actually. The touch, smell, weight of wood... all have mysteries."
The old man knocked on the table and signaled Meng Tang to guess the first piece of wood.
Meng Tang took it, scratched the cross section with his fingertips, then pressed on the side. After a while, he raised his lips and smiled:
"Young trees, around 23 years old, perfect for training."
"The sound is dull but crisp, without any hollowness, making it suitable for shallow carving."
Meng Tang then sniffed it, scraped off some wood chips, rubbed them to warm them, and sniffed them.
"Grandpa, at first I smelled the smell of earth and a strong hint of grass. But after a closer look, I noticed the smell of rotting leaves. It must be the trees on the shady slope."
Finally, she opened her mouth and crushed the sawdust with the tip of her tongue, saying, "It's slightly sweet followed by a hint of bitterness. The resin hasn't aged. It's from Taizhou."
"It is suitable for carving small, exquisite pieces, small animals and children, such as children playing with birds, cats and crickets, which are full of childish fun."
The old man nodded and said "hmm".
Xie Lingyin choked back the word "fuck". She had always known that Meng Tang was powerful, but this skill was too surprising.
Immediately afterwards, Meng Tang made no mistakes.
She stood in front of the desk, with a whole rack of wood behind her. The calm confidence she exuded made people feel that they were too proud to approach her.
"The last one."
Meng Tang took it, and the sour smell of loquat leaves rushed into his nose.
"Grandpa, is this fake?"
Meng Yuchun chuckled and said, "See for yourself, don't ask me."
Suddenly, Meng Tang paused, his fingernails digging into a horizontal spider-web-like crack.
She lifted the long cloth, and deep in the cracks of the wood, there were natural fine lines parallel to the wood grain.
"The skin is fake, but the bones are real," Meng Yuchun said. "The material was eaten away by insects, so I wrapped it with scrap skin. Xiaotang, can't you see that the wood is completely dead?"
Meng Tang: "...I still can't learn it well."
Meng Yuchun: "Don't be in a hurry, take your time, you are only a few years old."
Meng Tang pursed his lips, not very happy.
Meng Yuchun turned around cheerfully and asked, "What do you think of my granddaughter?"
Wei Chuan gave a thumbs up: "Awesome."
Meng Tang: “…”
The old man smiled heartily and left with his hands behind his back.
Xie Lingyin looked at Meng Tang with admiration: "From today on, you are my goddess."
"Exaggeration." Meng Tang smiled and looked up at Xu Heqing.
Xu Heqing asked with a smile, "I just passed by the front yard, and Xie Lingyin said there's a small exhibition hall there. Can I go take a look?"
Meng Tang: "Then I'll take you there?"
Xu Heqing: "Don't bother you, I'll go by myself."
"I'll go, I'll go." Xie Lingyin wisely gave her and Wei Chuan a chance to spend time together. "I'll take him to see it."
"All right."
Meng Tang looked at Xu Heqing's back, feeling very discouraged. Seeing Wei Chuan blocking his way, he asked, "Why don't you go?"
Wei Chuan came back to his senses and stumbled, "I, I'll take a look later. This place is pretty good too."
"It's all wood, what's so good about it? Let's go."
Wei Chuan said "Oh" and turned around to follow.
Arriving at the central courtyard, he caught sight of the crabapple tree in the courtyard and asked, "Is your name related to that tree?"
Meng Tang followed his gaze and nodded. "When I was born, the crabapple blossomed overnight, and the 'tang' symbol belongs to the wood element, so Grandpa decided on this name."
Wei Chuan: "That's quite fate."
Sister Fang came out of the restaurant and asked them to eat. Wei Chuan was so sweet-talking that he coaxed Sister Fang into not knowing east from west.
The old man took a secret look at him and thought that this kid was full of sweet talk.
In the afternoon, Meng Tang decided to take them for a walk nearby and told Sister Fang that they would eat out in the evening.
As soon as Xie Lingyin stepped out of the old house, her cell phone rang.
Her face became increasingly grim, and she said, "I'll be right back," and hung up the phone.
Xu Heqing frowned: "What's wrong?"
Meng Tang was so concerned that he didn't hear the intimacy in Xu Heqing's tone. Wei Chuan, the straight man, didn't notice it at all.
"Sorry, Meng Tang, I might have to go back first." Xie Lingyin's face was full of apology. "My brother hit someone when he returned home. He's in the hospital. I have to go back to check on him to prevent my parents from doing anything stupid."
Meng Tang looked at Wei Chuan: "Then you send--"
"Let me take her there." Xu Heqing said, "I'll take a taxi now."
Xu Heqing didn't give anyone a chance to refuse. He turned around and said something to the old man, asking Xie Lingyin to pack her things and get in a taxi.
Meng Tang asked blankly, "Why do I feel like something is wrong?"
Wei Chuan comforted her, "Maybe Xu Heqing really isn't familiar with you. It would be awkward to stay here rashly. Besides, he and Xie Lingyin are from the same place, and they've collaborated on many activities together. Don't be sad."
"I'm not sad." Meng Tang looked back at him, "Lingyin has something to do, so naturally someone has to send her off. If Xu Heqing really stays, I don't know what I'll do."
Wei Chuan said "Oh": "Then... can I still stay?"
Meng Tang didn't want to chase him away, so he asked him, "Do you want to go out?"
"And you?"
"I'm asking about you."
"Since I'm here."
“…Then let’s go.”
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