Baiyun is still young and has a simple and straightforward personality, so it's normal that she doesn't understand these things yet.
It's good to let them spend more time together and get to know each other better. With time, they'll understand what's going on.
Guan Wenru looked down at the sleeping baby in her arms, gently tapped the child's little face with her finger, and said in a gentle voice, "That's right, Xi Mufan is steady, capable, and of good character."
If they really do get together, that would be a good thing. It's just tough on Xi Mufan; he'll have to patiently wait for our little stone to finally understand.
Guan Wanxin folded the clothes and looked at the sleeping baby, her eyes full of tenderness. "Let nature take its course. What is destined for someone will come to pass."
Guan Wenru thought of the turmoil of the past ten years. In fact, in two more years, many things will be more stable. At that time, Baiyun's family may be the first to be safe. Her parents and brother will definitely try to get her back to the city, and may even get her a place in the Workers, Peasants and Soldiers University.
The Xi Mufan family... it must have been at least ten years ago.
Thinking of this, Guan Wenru's smile faded a little.
These days, transportation is inconvenient, and there are no cell phones. If Xi Mufan and Bai Yun really got together...
There may be many difficulties.
These past ten years...sigh...
...
An hour later, Baiyun and the others had already entered the mountain.
The mountains and forests are lush with trees.
Baiyun skipped along beside Wang Dagui, bombarding him with questions, "Brother Dagui, look at that red umbrella! Isn't that the poisonous thing they say in the book? The one that makes you dance if you eat it?"
Wang Dagui looked in the direction she pointed and smiled憨厚ly, "Oh, those are too brightly colored. I can't really guarantee whether they're edible, but for our safety, we definitely can't eat them! Comrade Baiyun, look at these grayish ones under the tree roots over here, with thick stems. Those are the edible porcini mushrooms."
Baiyun nodded and quickly went over to pick some.
A moment later, she asked again with a curious look, "How did you know there were mushrooms in this forest? The hillside you took me to last time had such great wood ear mushrooms! Even Aunt Zhang and the others said they didn't know about that place!"
Wang Dagui patiently explained, "Well, it depends on the trees! Under pine and oak trees, in the cool and damp places after the first few rains, mushrooms are easy to grow. To find wood ear mushrooms, you have to look for rotten wood, especially those half-rotten broad-leaved tree stumps. They like to grow there when there is enough moisture. Those places are remote and the roads are difficult to walk on. The women usually don't go that deep when they have children."
Bai Yun looked up at Wang Dagui with admiration, blinking her big eyes, "Wow, Brother Dagui, you know so much!"
Listening to their lively conversation, especially Bai Yun's undisguised admiration for Wang Dagui, Xi Mufan pursed his lips, and that uncomfortable feeling in his heart rose again.
He was indeed less familiar with the mushrooms and wild vegetables in the mountains than Wang Dagui, which frustrated him a bit.
Baiyun then walked to a pine forest and, sure enough, saw many mushrooms sprouting up.
She squatted down excitedly, "Wow! There really are mushrooms! Brother Da Gui, can we pick these? Are there any poisonous mushrooms that look like them...?"
Before she could finish her question, Xi Mufan immediately squeezed in next to her and squatted down, almost touching her.
At the same time, he quickly looked up at Wang Dagui a few steps away, raised his voice a few decibels, and said with deliberate enthusiasm, "Comrade Dagui! I heard that you logistics personnel often go into the mountains. Are you familiar with the herbs in this area? Like that one that can stop bleeding, with serrated leaves, scientifically known as Cirsium japonicum, is it common around here?"
Wang Dagui was taken aback by Xi Mufan's sudden loud voice and question, and subconsciously replied, "Oh, I don't recognize herbs, but I have seen the ones with serrated leaves you mentioned. There are quite a few of them by the mountain roadside."
Xi Mufan immediately replied, speaking quickly, "Really? That's great! What's the exact location? The medical team uses a lot of this medicine, and I was just thinking of stocking up on more. Comrade Da Gui, could you tell me in detail?"
As he spoke, he slightly turned his body towards Wang Dagui, inadvertently "blocking" Bai Yun, who was sandwiched in the middle and about to continue asking questions about mushrooms.
Baiyun's mouth, which had just opened, closed again.
She watched as Xi Mufan kept asking Wang Dagui about herbs, unable to get a word in edgewise about mushrooms, and puffed out her cheeks in frustration.
She glared at the back of Xi Mufan's head, muttering to herself: What's wrong with this guy? Is he deliberately trying to steal the question from Brother Da Gui? So annoying!
Next time I go into the mountains, I absolutely cannot bring him along!
However, Baiyun also hoped that the medical team could have a lot of herbs.
In this way, if any commune member had a minor illness, they would have access to medicine.
So after pouting, her mood quickly changed, and she happily picked mushrooms again.
There are so many good things in the mountains!
She's going to pick a lot more today, because Grandma and her sister both love to eat them.
...
The three of them stayed in the mountains for more than two hours. As the sun was about to set, Wang Dagui finally spoke up, "Let's call it a day and come back another day. Let's head out of the mountains now."
Baiyun clapped her hands excitedly. She looked at her little basket, which was already full, and couldn't help but smile. "Great, today's harvest is really good!"
Xi Mufan didn't bring a basket, but he did carry a handful of herbs in his hand.
He then walked over to Baiyun, helped her carry her basket, and the three of them went down the mountain together.
The mushrooms Wang Dagui picked were also for Guan Wenru to nourish her body, so when they reached the fork in the road, he handed the net bag containing the mushrooms to Baiyun.
"These are all for Xiao Guan. Comrade Bai Yun, please take them back with you. I won't go into the family compound; I'll go straight back to logistics."
Before Bai Yun could even reach out, Xi Mufan took the things first, saying, "Comrade Da Gui, let's go into the mountains together again next time we have time."
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