Zhao Qingyun wanted to ask something more, but Grandma Jiang had already packed her things and came out. Xu Lai waved and said, "Drive carefully on the road."
Zhao Qingyun nodded, helped the old lady into the car, and drove towards the county.
He has a house in the county that he hasn't lived in. He had a housekeeping company clean it on his way home, so he can move in right away.
Grandma Jiang watched the interaction between the two today and knew that Xu Lai was not interested in her grandson at the moment, so she couldn't help but feel a little anxious.
"Qingyun, I think Xiaolai is perfect in every way. Don't have any reservations. I'll talk to your parents. Besides, our family doesn't care about social status. As long as you like her, everything is negotiable."
Zhao Qingyun remained silent. Just when Grandma Jiang thought he wouldn't speak, he suddenly replied, "Grandma, I don't think she's unworthy of my family background." But he was afraid Xu Lai would back down.
Grandma Jiang smiled and said, "Grandma knows you don't. If you like her, you should go after her. Xiao Lai is very popular, and it won't be your turn then."
...
As soon as the weather cleared up, construction workers came to the neighbor's house. Zhao Qingyun would come to supervise the work once a day after get off work. Every time Xu Lai saw him running back and forth, she would offer, "How about this, I'll keep an eye on things for you every day, so you don't have to run back and forth every day."
So Xu Lai added another item to her daily routine: whenever it stopped raining and the weather got hot, Xu Lai would make her own herbal tea, take a big pot over, and let the construction workers next door quench their thirst.
The foreman was building a wall between the two courtyards and asked her, "Why are you two building a wall? Since the two families are related by marriage, it would be much more convenient without this wall."
Xu Lai was completely bewildered by her master's actions and asked in confusion, "What in-laws?"
The master said, "Aren't you and that handsome young man a couple? I think you two are a perfect match."
Xu Lai quickly clarified, "Uncle, you've really misunderstood. We're just neighbors."
The uncle quickly apologized, but Xu Lai said it was alright. She smiled wryly, wondering where all this gossip had come from.
The samples sent by the advertiser arrived, and after receiving the message, Xu Lai rode her electric scooter to town to pick them up.
When I got home and opened the package, it was mostly fast food, including Orleans chicken legs, chicken cutlets, and grilled sausages.
She had bought steaks from this brand before, so she was quite confident in the food safety of this restaurant.
For dinner, Xu Lai used an air fryer to grill a few sausages and two chicken drumsticks.
That evening, she sent the edited video to the advertiser, who said there were no problems, and she was relieved.
The house next door was quickly renovated and reinforced, but the kitchen will be ready to cook in a few days.
Grandma Jiang stayed in the county for several days, but she couldn't get used to it, so as soon as the house was finished, she asked Zhao Qingyun to bring her back.
Xu Lai knew that their kitchen was temporarily unavailable, so he offered to let Grandma Jiang eat there, and he would come over for dinner in the evening; it was just a matter of adding a couple more pairs of chopsticks.
Grandma Jiang didn't want to trouble her and kept refusing. Xu Lai pretended to be angry before she finally agreed. However, Zhao Qingyun still gave her living expenses according to the old lady's wishes.
Xu Lai had no choice but to accept the money, but then used it to buy a lot of food and send it to Grandma Jiang.
Time flew by and it was almost the end of April. Xu Lai looked at the calendar and saw that tomorrow was the third day of the third lunar month, and they had a custom of boiling eggs with shepherd's purse.
Xu Lai got up in the morning, put on her small basket, took a small hoe, and went to the fields to find shepherd's purse to cook eggs.
As she was leaving, she ran into Zhao Qingyun, who was returning from a run. He called out to her, "Are you going to the fields so early in the morning?"
Xu Lai nodded and invited him, "I'm going to dig some shepherd's purse, do you want to come with me?"
Zhao Qingyun turned around and stood next to her, walking side by side. Xu Lai asked, "Do you get up early to run every day?"
Zhao Qingyun nodded: "I basically run all the time. When the weather is bad, I exercise at home."
Xu Lai glanced at him and thought to herself, "I can't tell what his physique is like. Is he the kind of person who looks slim in clothes but has a muscular build when he takes them off?"
Xu Lai was lost in thought and didn't see the ditch in front of her. By the time she tried to step over it, her feet were already off the ground, and Zhao Qingyun grabbed her and pulled her across.
Xu Lai's feet had just touched the ground, and before she could say anything, she heard the man chuckle: "How come you almost fall into a ditch every time you walk?"
Unable to defend herself, she focused on walking forward. A large patch of shepherd's purse had grown in the field, now in full bloom. It was past its prime for consumption and too old to make dumplings, but perfect for boiling eggs.
Xu Lai once again marveled at the wisdom of the ancients, wondering how they discovered so many edible things and were able to combine food with festivals.
For example, the third day of the third lunar month, also known as the Shangsi Festival in ancient times, is said to commemorate the birthday of the Yellow Emperor. Some say it originated from the witchcraft activity of using orchid water to ward off evil spirits, and has the beautiful meaning of driving away disasters and evil spirits.
Xu Lai dug some up with a small hoe, and Zhao Qingyun was also busy helping her pull them out. When she turned her head, she saw that some wild grass had also entered the basket.
Xu Lai couldn't help but sigh. She called out to the person who was pulling weeds, "Why don't we identify the shepherd's purse first before we start pulling it?"
Zhao Qingyun looked back and realized that what he had pulled was indeed different from the others, but he had clearly aimed carefully before pulling it.
Xu Lai had almost finished picking the plants, and she picked up her basket to go home, with Zhao Qingyun following behind her.
When they arrived at her doorstep, Xu Lai waved the basket in her hand and said, "I'll bring you eggs later."
Zhao Qingyun nodded. He went back to his room, took a shower, and then planned the Labor Day holiday. Starting today, the company would be closed until May 3rd.
Ms. Yingqiu had been wanting to come back here to visit, but he had been too busy with work to take care of her. This Labor Day holiday, she had already bought her return ticket, so he had to go to the city to pick her up this afternoon.
Xu Lai broke the shepherd's purse flowers in half, put twenty eggs in a pot, and boiled them together. When the eggs were half-cooked, she gently cracked the shells with a spoon, continued to cook for a few more minutes, and then they were ready to eat.
She took seven or eight and took them next door. "Grandma Jiang, these are cooked with shepherd's purse flowers. I heard that we're having shepherd's purse boiled with eggs today, so I thought I'd give it a try. Please have a taste."
Grandma Jiang remained supportive as always, and Xu Lai thought to herself that Grandma Jiang was about to become her professional taste tester.
Grandpa and Grandma weren't home this morning; they went to Grandma's family home for a banquet. Xu Lai had no connection with that family, so Grandma didn't plan for her to go.
She was home alone at noon and ate a simple meal: a bowl of noodles with an egg, and Xu Lai also grilled a chicken leg.
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