Chapter 76 Wanting to Improve: "Mianmian, do you want to take the college entrance exam with me...?"
Ji Yu walked to the window and put the wildflowers she was holding into the vase. "It's all because of my boss. He always complains that my reports aren't written well."
"I'm just a high school graduate, how good can my writing be?" Ji Yu's eyes were full of frustration. His days at the Municipal Bureau consisted of nothing but writing reports and attending meetings. He wanted to go out on fieldwork and handle cases.
“However…” Ji Yu’s tone changed, becoming lighter, “A new college graduate was assigned to our department today, and I’m finally free. I’ve already applied to my supervisor for a transfer to criminal investigation.”
When Ji Yu talked about what he truly loved to do, his eyes were full of focus. To be honest, the materials he had been studying recently were actually quite useful; he even felt like he had become more cultured.
Moreover, many of the things in it are the same as his own experience summarized by instinct. Especially after talking with the new college student from the police academy today, Ji Yu had an idea stirring in his mind.
Chen Mian listened quietly as Ji Yu shared his work experiences, occasionally reminiscing about his days in the army.
Ji Yu: "Actually, I could have taken the military academy entrance exam while I was in the army. If I had passed back then, I would probably still be in the army now."
But sometimes people are like that. When you're too young or lack life experience, you can't listen to other people's advice. Only when you reach a certain point will you suddenly wake up and desperately want to do something.
When Ji Yu first returned from military service, his mindset was similar to Chen Mubai's before him: he was tired of fighting and killing and had little interest in life.
So when he was asked to choose a job, he didn't put his heart into it and just randomly picked a low-level position, just getting by each day. Anyway, his family wasn't short of food.
Besides, he had already given his all in the army in previous years, so retirement wouldn't be a big deal. During his time at the police station, besides work, he spent his time going on blind dates arranged by his parents, and he was always rejected by the girls.
Until that day, he met Chen Mian, a vibrant, energetic, and generous girl. Ji Yu felt like a boring supporting character in a movie, who, after countless ordinary and repetitive days and nights, finally encountered the leading lady bestowed upon him by fate.
Chen Mian is different from the girls he has met before. She dares to love and hate, dares to fight and rush, and came to Xinjiang alone to work (Ji Yu's exclusive filter). She never complains when she is working (he is not there when Chen Mian is resting). She never wavers in her beliefs (she wants to find a son-in-law to live with her family).
Ji Yu felt that he should become more outstanding in order to be worthy of his girl.
"Mianmian, do you want to take the college entrance exam with me?" Ji Yu hinted wildly, "We can go to school together."
Chen Mian was indeed tempted. She had recently come to realize that farming also required professional knowledge, and that she could no longer use old ideas to deal with the new model. However, she thought, "We probably won't be able to go to the same school for the majors we want to study."
Ji Yu: "Okay, then I can still take you to school." The thought of going to school with Mianmian in the future was exactly what a campus romance should be like.
Seeing that Ji Yu was already fantasizing about what would happen after passing the exam, Chen Mianmian assumed that he had a basic understanding of the exam. Little did she know that Ji Yu didn't even know which universities offered adult education programs.
Chen Mian: "...Let's go to the city bookstore together this weekend to look for some information. I have to weed the fields these days and can't leave."
Ji Yu nodded obediently. He was sitting on a small stool next to Chen Mian's bed, and he was quite a big lump.
After finishing their business, he stole two kisses from his girlfriend when she wasn't looking. Only then did Ji Yu remember something else. "Where did your kitten go? I heard you picked up a very beautiful kitten and came here specifically to see it."
Chen Mianmian: "She was right at my feet when you came in."
"Oh? Really? I didn't notice, I was just looking at you."
"Then Hongmei took her to my mother's room."
"Where did Li Hongmei come from?" Ji Yu asked in confusion.
Chen Mian: "...It's okay, it's not important. I'll go get the kitten. You just wait here."
Ji Yu stood with her legs together, hands on her knees, and looked up innocently at Chen Mian, as if asking a dog, "Am I being good enough?"
"How about I go say hello to Auntie and the others?" Ji Yu wanted to get up, but Chen Mian stopped her again.
Chen Mian: "How did you get in here?" She seemed not to have heard Da Huang's barking. Usually, Da Huang would get very excited whenever it saw Ji Yu and bark incessantly.
"I'll climb over the wall," Ji Yu said matter-of-factly.
Chen Mian smiled knowingly and said that it would be better to stay put.
.
In the following days, Chen Mian and her parents were busy in the vegetable garden. That's how it is in the countryside; no matter where you go, you have to grow your own vegetables. Although this year they were growing vegetables in Xinjiang, and Lin Huijun wasn't very familiar with the soil and climate there, the eggplants and cucumbers in the garden were growing quite well.
The vegetables in the field have recently become so plentiful that we can't eat them all, and various leafy greens are still growing one after another. Chen Mian put her hands on her hips and said, "I feel like I still have to continue setting up my stall."
"Is this right? Shouldn't I be a farmer? How come I'm like a stall owner now?"
Lin Huijun said with a smile, "You shouldn't worry about these things for now. I advised you to plant less, but you refused, saying it wouldn't be enough to eat. Now that there's so much left over, it's a waste to let it rot in the ground. Just make a few more trips and earn some money."
Looking at the large pile of water spinach, spinach, and romaine lettuce in the field, Chen Mian said, "No, we can't compete by selling vegetables directly. We need to think of a way to turn these vegetables into food. But what can we make with these vegetables? Spicy hot pot?"
Lin Huijun frowned. "It's so hot, I can't eat such strong-flavored food. I just want something light."
"Something light," Chen Mian received her mother's signal, "I've got it, steamed vegetables!"
Steamed dishes are not picky about ingredients. Whether it's romaine lettuce, carrots, or even eggplant and green beans, they can all be steamed.
Simply wash and shred these ingredients, coat them with a thin layer of flour, and steam them for about ten minutes before eating.
Of course, it doesn't taste very good on its own. It needs to be eaten with a special sour and spicy dipping sauce to whet your appetite and make you want to eat more.
Moreover, steamed dishes are convenient to set up, even though the preparation is troublesome. People can buy as much as they want, and the vegetables are not heavy and do not fill you up. They can be eaten as snacks.
The only thing that troubled Chen Mian was that she had to work hard again to pedal that tricycle to the city to set up a stall. When would she be able to pay off the loan and earn enough money to buy a car?
Chen Mian silently did the math in her head. She had earned 5,000 yuan from the chili sauce, 3,000 yuan from the 10 mu of sunflowers, and 4,000 yuan from the 20 mu of corn. She had used all of that money to pay off her loan, and now she still had 12,000 yuan left to pay off, which was much faster than originally planned.
Of course, this is all thanks to her parents, who have never borrowed money from anyone in their lives. They heard that she borrowed 20,000 yuan on her own, and it was from a credit union. The monthly interest was several hundred yuan, which scared them so much that they couldn't sleep well for several days.
If Chen Mian hadn't stopped her, Lin Huijun would have used all her savings to pay off her debts.
We've digressed, let's get back to work.
Chen Yongliang made a small trailer for Dahuang that could be put around his neck, so that Dahuang could actually help transport things.
When Chen Mian was picking corn in the field, Da Huang would always come and cause trouble, picking up scattered corn cobs and running away. She was quite angry about this, feeling that Da Huang had been too naughty lately.
When they returned home after finishing their work, they found seven or eight ears of corn piled up in the yard. They realized that Da Huang had wanted to help them with the work, and that they had misunderstood him.
Chen Mian squatted down and hugged Da Huang, burying her face in his soft fur. "Woof woof, I misunderstood you. I'm a good dog. I apologize to you."
Big Yellow: "Woof! Woof woof!" Man, I forgive you.
Big Yellow is happy to help others, as long as he gets extra food at night.
Li Hongmei was pregnant, and Chen Mian dared not let her work in the fields, fearing something might happen to her. But Li Hongmei couldn't stay idle, so Chen Mian had to coax her to stay home and help out with Dahuang.
When Wu Wei arrived with his son, he saw Li Hongmei wearing a white dress with delicate embroidery on the chest and cuffs, looking very elegant. She was sitting leisurely on a swing, while Da Huang pulled the cart steadily to a stop in front of her.
"Great job!" Li Hongmei patted Dahuang's head. As soon as she took the vegetables out of the cart and put them on the ground, Dahuang couldn't wait to turn around and set off again.
Wu Wei: "Wife, I've come to pick you up and take you home." After saying that, he patted his son's shoulder, signaling him to call for help.
"Hello, Auntie." Wu Cong lowered his head, not daring to look at Li Hongmei, and greeted her softly.
Wu Wei's face was rather grim. On the way here, he had told his son several times that he should call her "Mom" and not "Auntie," but the child did just that as soon as he arrived.
He glared at Wu Cong, then smiled ingratiatingly at Li Hongmei, "Wife, don't be angry with the child, come back with me."
Li Hongmei continued swaying on the swing, not even lifting her eyelids, and said, "You know perfectly well that this has nothing to do with the child," she paused, "let him call me whatever he wants, I don't care, we're not related anyway."
Wu Wei walked behind Li Hongmei and gently massaged her shoulders. "I know this is all my mom's fault. I've already given her a serious talking-to. Next time, I promise I won't boss you around anymore. So come back with me and focus on your pregnancy, okay?"
Li Hongmei scoffed. How could she feel at ease going back? "I think the countryside is great. Once you've completed the property transfer, I'll move back to my own farm and live a more carefree life."
After hearing Li Hongmei's plan, Wu Wei gave a wry smile, turned around and squatted down at Li Hongmei's feet, looking up at her. "Wife, the name of the farm probably can't be changed for the time being. How about this, after the baby is born, I'll write the baby's name on it?"
“A child? I’m afraid it’s a boy!” Li Hongmei said angrily. “Don’t make promises you can’t keep. It’s like taking off your pants to fart, all for nothing.”
Wu Wei: "You should also try to understand my mother. She's getting old and has a deep connection to the land; she can't leave it. How about this: I'll have my mother go live on the farm so she can watch the workers work, and you can stay in the city and help me run the shop."
"As for Congcong, he still needs to go to school and continue living at home. You can manage him however you want, and no one will say anything to you."
Li Hongmei: "Really?" If she doesn't have to see that old hag anymore, she can have the farm. She can contract it herself when she has money in the future.
Thinking this, Li Hongmei's expression softened a little, and after Wu Wei coaxed her for a while, she was willing to give him a smile.
Wu Wei: "Shall we go home?"
"Alright." Li Hongmei got up and walked towards Chen Mian's room to pack her clothes. After taking a few steps, she suddenly stopped. "I remember now. Mian seems to have something to discuss with you. She said she wants to discuss something related to cooperation."
As she spoke, she couldn't help but yawn. "I can't really explain it clearly. You sit there and wait for them to come back. I'm going to go inside and take a nap."
Seeing this, Wu Wei had no choice but to wait patiently in the yard with his son, while continuing to try to persuade him.
An hour later.
"Brother Wu, when did you arrive? Why are you standing in the yard? Why don't you come in and sit down?" As soon as Chen Mian entered the yard, she saw a man's figure and thought a thief had broken into her house. She only relaxed when she saw that it was Wu Wei.
"Sister Kapok," Wu Cong greeted politely.
Chen Mian corrected him with a pained expression, "You should call me Auntie now, Congcong." It's all Hongmei's fault, making her seem so much older.
Wu Cong pursed his lips sullenly. He didn't like calling her "Auntie" because his grandmother said that all aunties were bad people.
Wu Wei smiled and tried to smooth things over: "This child was just being difficult with me today, don't take it to heart."
"Hongmei just told me you needed to talk to me. Is there anything I can help you with?"
“Oh, it’s like this,” Chen Mian put down what she was holding and started talking to Wu Wei about designing clothes. “The one Hongmei is wearing today was made by my mother. I’ll call her out so you can take a closer look.”
Wu Wei: "No need, I just saw it, it is indeed very beautiful, thank you for your trouble, Auntie."
“However,” he paused for a few seconds, his businessman’s keen sense immediately making him realize that the embroidery on this dress might be difficult to mass-produce, but if they were to go for the high-end market, they would lack a good endorsement.
Chen Mian seemed to know what he was worried about. "Come with me." She led him to Lin Huijun's workspace.
In the large room sat a sewing machine, surrounded by a pile of oddly shaped pieces of fabric, the patterns of which were identical to the dress Li Hongmei was wearing. A half-finished piece lay on the sewing machine table. Several other garments, also embroidered, hung on the wall behind her.
"This?" Wu Wei quickly understood what Chen Mian meant. "Auntie, can you teach this skill to other people?"
Chen Mian gave an affirmative answer, saying that as long as she had a few days, she could definitely teach others, provided that the person was serious and meticulous in their work.
"I think it's worth a try." Wu Wei extended an olive branch with a slightly cautious air, appearing reserved on the surface, but in reality, he was already incredibly excited.
Having sold clothes for so many years, he was well aware of the exorbitant profits in the women's clothing industry. Just wholesaling to Xinjiang had already made him a fortune. If he was lucky enough to become a link in the supply chain this time, the future profits would be even greater…
Chen Mian said modestly, "I don't know much about this kind of thing. I saw on TV a few days ago that if several people go into business together, they can start a company. Brother Wu, you are knowledgeable and experienced, could you help us make an informed decision?"
“My mother is in charge of the design and guidance, the rest will probably have to be done by you,” Chen Mian said shyly.
Wu Wei readily agreed, saying he would find someone to draft a contract as soon as he got back to finalize the matter. "As for the company name, what do you think of 'Forest Girl'?"
"Mori Girl? What does that mean?"
“Auntie’s surname is Lin, which has two wood radicals. Hongmei’s surname is Li, which also has a wood radical. Together they form the character ‘森’ (Sen). Since we make women’s clothing, we are called ‘Sen Girl’,” Wu Wei explained slowly.
Chen Mian: "Great name, let's call it that then."
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Author's note: My brain cells are limited, so please bear with this. I appreciate the author's intention, and I hope my work is successful. [heart emoji]
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