Chapter 21 My Best Friend is Back! Friend, wake up—she's just…
"Chen Mian, where are you going? Slow down, your foot is just healed..." Ji Yu put down the teapot in her hand and got up to chase after her.
Chen Mian quickly grabbed the handrail and ran downstairs. She looked around the restaurant entrance, but the figure had already disappeared.
She doubted whether she was seeing things, but she was unwilling to give up that sliver of hope. She walked along the roadside, looking at every similar figure, and then suddenly turned around, only to be filled with disappointment.
Finally, just when she was feeling somewhat disheartened, someone suddenly patted her on the shoulder excitedly from behind, "Chen Mian!"
Then he hugged her warmly. Chen Mian turned around when she heard the voice, and after seeing the other person's face, she excitedly hugged him back.
The two little girls laughed and jumped together on the street, celebrating their long-awaited reunion.
Warm sunlight filtered through the leaves, casting dappled patterns on the girl's face. A gentle breeze rustled the leaves, as if they too were singing a joyful song for their long-awaited reunion.
Ji Yu silently observed their joy. Once they had calmed down a bit, she spoke up to remind them, "The food is almost ready. Let's go in and eat and chat."
Li Cuiping then noticed that there was a handsome guy accompanying her friend. She secretly raised an eyebrow at her and smiled, "Who is this? He's so handsome..."
Chen Mian's almond-shaped eyes widened slightly as she gestured to her friend not to cause trouble. She then introduced them to each other, saying, "Ji Yu is my brother's comrade-in-arms; Li Cuiping is my best friend."
Upon hearing this, Li Cuiping immediately became serious, rubbed her right hand along the seam of her trousers, and extended it, saying, "Hello, Brother Ji!"
Since she is Mu Bai's comrade-in-arms, she must also be a soldier. Mu Bai is really resourceful; he can find someone to take care of Kapok here.
Chen Mubai, who is on a mission: I haven't even had a chance to contact Ji Yu yet!
The three of them returned to the second floor of the Populus euphratica Hotel, to the same window seats as before.
Chen Mian and Li Cuiping sat together, chattering away, sharing their experiences over the past few months.
Li Cuiping became animated as she spoke: "Our farm had so many people, from all over the country, and I even learned a lot of dialects from them..."
"The food is delicious every day, and it's filling. Look, I've gained several pounds." After saying that, she gestured for Chen Mian to pinch the fat on her stomach.
Chen Mian reached out and pinched her cheek, laughing, "Looking at your chubby cheeks, I can tell you've been eating a lot lately."
Li Cuiping nodded: "That's right, Sister Ma took good care of me..."
The cotton picking season in southern Xinjiang has just ended, and the pickers who were together have split up and gone to different farms.
She originally wanted to go with Sister Ma, but Sister Ma received news from home that her daughter-in-law had given birth to a big, healthy boy, so she rushed home to hold her grandson.
Thinking that Chen Mianmian was here, she carried her luggage back.
Li Cuiping complained, "As soon as I got off the train yesterday, I took a bus to Boss Wu's house in the west of the city, but no one answered the door no matter how long I knocked..."
"I waited in front of the door all night, and this morning someone came back and told me that you were no longer working there."
Li Cuiping was hungry and tired at the time. When she heard the news, she thought something had happened to Chen Mianmian. She was so distracted that she almost fell down.
Wu Wei was quick-witted and grabbed her, helping her inside to eat something before she recovered.
Li Cuiping exclaimed with a mixture of envy and admiration, "That Mr. Wu's house is really big! It's two stories, bigger than this restaurant!"
Ji Yu, who was quietly eating her vegetables, couldn't help but think to herself, "Two floors is big enough. Our family also has an entire farm."
Ever since Chen Mian met her good friend, she has been treating him like air. Apart from introducing his name at the beginning, she hasn't even given him a second glance. And he even paid for this meal.
Ji Yu: I don't know why I'm unhappy, but I'm just unhappy, hmph...
He stopped listening to Li Cuiping's rambling about her novel experiences, raised his left hand to prop up his head, and casually watched the sparrows flying around outside the window.
Even sparrows know to pair up, but he has to share a table with three other people when he eats a meal...
Fortunately, Chen Mian finally noticed that Ji Yuyu was somewhat silent. After thinking for a moment, she picked up her chopsticks, placed a piece of chicken in his bowl, and asked with concern, "Brother Ji, why aren't you eating?"
Ji Yuyu's mood instantly brightened. She picked up a piece of chicken and put it in her mouth, replying, "I'm eating, you guys should eat more too."
Seeing that he was alright, Chen Mian wanted to continue talking to Li Cuiping. They hadn't seen each other for so long, and the two best friends were so engrossed in their conversation that they didn't even think about eating.
Li Cuiping glanced at the two of them silently before continuing to wolf down her food. After eating here, she realized what delicious food truly meant, and she wanted to take back her claim that the farm's communal meals were the best.
Li Cuiping: If I could, I would like to eat here every day.
Seeing this, Chen Mianmian also started eating heartily. She didn't know why, but she always had a big appetite whenever she ate with Cuiping.
After Li Cuiping swallowed the last bite of the braised chicken noodles, she broke off a piece of naan bread, dipped it in the last bit of broth, and put it in her mouth. Finally, she wiped her mouth, "Burp, so full..."
Chen Mian was also stuffed, so she went over and took her friend's arm, leaning against her softly.
Chen Mianmian: "Want to work together, sis?"
Li Cuiping: "Come on."
Chen Mianmian felt a little dizzy from the meal. She slowly blinked her round almond-shaped eyes and looked at Ji Yu, who was sitting opposite her.
Ji Yu immediately understood, "I'll take you back and say hello to Ayili while I'm at it."
Chen Mianmian: "Thank you, Brother Ji!"
It was still early after dinner, and Ji Yu originally planned to drive the two of them around the city, but found that the two of them were already dozing off in the car.
Li Cuiping was exhausted, while Chen Mianmian had eaten too much and was feeling dizzy from the carbon monoxide poisoning.
Looking at Chen Mian's rosy cheeks in the rearview mirror, Ji Yu gently rolled down the car window a little and drove smoothly back to the cotton farm.
When he arrived at the destination, the two girls were still asleep. He got out of the car quietly, told Ayili about the newcomer Li Cuiping, and then went to chat with Batur.
Ayili didn't react much to the idea of having another picker; it was just a matter of adding a pair of chopsticks, and she readily agreed.
At the warehouse entrance, two grown men squatted on the ground, playing with weeds. Ji Yu and Batur met when they were just starting elementary school.
When he first arrived in Xinjiang, he was not used to the climate and could not understand Uyghur. Only Batur was willing to play with him and act as his translator.
Oh, and there's also Batur's little green plum.
Ji Yuyu: Why are there three people again? Was I superfluous back then...?
Batur, who was standing next to Ji Yu, had no idea what Ji Yu was thinking about again. He nudged him with his elbow and asked, "Hey, haven't you found a wife yet?"
Ji Yu remained silent, unwilling to answer, while Batuer continued to poke.
Ji Yu frowned slightly and said impatiently, "No."
Batur raised an eyebrow upon hearing this: "Then let me introduce you to someone. Don't say I didn't think of you when I had something good to do."
Ji Yu curled her lip in disgust: "I don't want a Uyghur girl..."
Batur: "Then a Kazakh?"
Ji Yu turned her head and pushed him. Batuer sat down on the ground, clapped his hands and laughed, "Alright, I won't tease you anymore. I know you don't like the girls here. This time it's a Han girl."
Ji Yu became interested upon hearing this and urged him to continue.
Batur then began to keep everyone in suspense: "This girl is beautiful, has a sweet personality, a lovely smile, and is very hardworking..."
Ji Yu didn't believe it. How pretty could she be? She had a sweet smile, but was she as sweet as Chen Mian?
Ji Yu: Our girls are both well-behaved and sweet.
Batur teased him, "Do you want to know who I'm talking about? You won't find this opportunity again."
Ji Yu gave the man beside her a threatening look, telling him to hurry up and finish speaking. He had to go home later and didn't have time to listen to the curly-haired guy's nonsense.
Batur suddenly uttered three words: Chen Mian.
Ji Yu was puzzled. Wasn't this about introducing new blind date partners? Why was Chen Mianmian being brought up again?
Batur said helplessly, "I told you, the Han girl I introduced to you is Chen Mian."
Ji Yu finally understood. He stood up blankly, looked down at his friend, and said bluntly, "That won't do. Chen Mian is my sister. How can we be together?"
Batur stood up and poked his head. "Friend, wake up! She's just your comrade's sister."
Ji Yu still felt it wouldn't work, so he made an excuse that he had something to do and strode back to the jeep.
Inside the car, Chen Mianmian and Li Cuiping had already woken up. They looked at each other and stretched at the same time.
Seeing that Ji Yu was not there, Chen Mian gently pushed open the car door and gestured for her friend to get out with the luggage.
Outside the car door, Ji Yu stood there blankly. When Chen Mian got off, she didn't make eye contact with her, but said that she had something to do and had to leave first.
Before leaving, he said, "I've already spoken to Ayili and the others about your friend's situation. You can all just focus on your work here."
Chen Mian instinctively felt that Ji Yu was hiding something from her, but she quickly dismissed it, as nothing was happier than being able to continue being with her good friend.
She smiled and took Li Cuiping's arm, "Come on, I'll take you to make up your bed. Let me tell you, I'm living in a tent all by myself now."
"Really? That's wonderful!" Li Cuiping exclaimed with delight upon hearing this.
When she was in southern Xinjiang, a dozen or so people would live in one tent. When she went in, there was a strong smell, and it was even worse when a group of people were snoring at night.
She never expected that the treatment in Northern Xinjiang would be so good, and the wages would be higher. She wants to stay here forever!
Chen Mian led her good friend toward her tent. As they passed the warehouse, she saw Batur smiling at her.
Chen Mian: It's inexplicable.
Batur just smiled and remained silent, keeping his achievements and fame hidden.
The sky in the distance was a clear blue, with clouds drifting slowly across it, sometimes gathering and sometimes dispersing, making them elusive.
A gentle breeze brushed past my ear, carrying the faint scent of unknown flowers from afar, elusive yet alluring, disrupting the hurried figures of passersby...
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Author's Note: Mini-Theater:
Crucian carp: My mind is a bit muddled; I must have eaten too much for lunch...
Little Cotton: I'm so happy, so very happy!
Random thoughts:
Cuiping is finally back! Applause!
PS: The male lead isn't discriminating against ethnic minorities; he just feels that the cultural differences are too great and it's hard to integrate.
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