Chapter 8. How could he have feelings for her?
Why would Chapter Eight have feelings for her?
The next morning, after finishing her work early and having breakfast, Lin Su rinsed her thermos with boiling water, added ginseng, goji berries, and red dates to it, poured in boiling water, and took a sip. The taste was sweet and refreshing, with a faint medicinal aroma.
My roommate asked curiously, "You're really not going to the sugar factory anymore?"
Lin Su sipped her tea and replied slowly, "Once you've finished learning, you don't need to go."
My roommate added, "If I were you, I'd stay at the sugar factory even if I had to. Farm work outside is so tiring, and you have to be exposed to the sun."
Lin Su said in a serious tone, "The sugar factory really doesn't have much to do lately. There are only a few resident sales and delivery personnel, as well as cashiers and others. The workers who can operate the machines only return during the crushing season. This kind of cyclical production factory is not like a regular factory where there is always work to do."
"Too……"
At the parking spot, Zhou Yunqi sat in the driver's seat, his fingers tapping the steering wheel, looking out the window.
Seeing that the car hadn't moved, Xu Yaodong reminded him, "Boss, are you waiting for Xiaolin? Didn't she say she wasn't going?"
Zhou Yunqi came to his senses. Yes, she no longer went to the sugar factory, but he still habitually waited for that slow-moving person.
Xu Yaodong chuckled and said, "Boss, are you not used to it?"
Zhou Yunqi ignored him and coldly replied, "Fasten your seatbelt."
The jeep sped out of the farm gate.
Back in the sugar factory office, Zhou Yunqi sat down in a chair. He had been quite idle lately, and he could come or not come at will. He only came to find a quiet place to rest.
The girl seemed restless; asking her to slack off felt like asking her to commit a crime. A couple of days ago, Sister Cheng said there was nothing left to teach her, and she couldn't really handle the factory's accounting, so she came over to ask if there was anything she could do.
Zhou Yunqi then told her to tidy up the office.
She, on the other hand, seemed to have boundless energy, cleaning his office spotlessly and tidying it up, putting away all the items. Naturally, he had to find all the things he could easily reach, like pens and paper.
After lunch break, she took a large bamboo broom and swept the factory courtyard again, prompting him to tease her, "You love cleaning so much, is your goal to become a cleaner?"
She laughed and said, "Let's clean the house before inviting guests..."
The next day, after all the cleaning was done, she had nothing to do and wanted to ask for help again. Zhou Yunqi simply gave her a notebook and a pencil: "Don't you know how to draw? Draw today."
The girl, who was always busy, went off to sketch. She spent the whole day drawing on paper with that pencil in her hand, and even went to find a pencil sharpener. Her sketches included a factory, a jeep, and several still life objects in the office, such as a thermos, with the patterns on the thermos drawn quite meticulously.
Zhou Yunqi flipped through the sketchbook; his drawing skills were quite good, as if he had practiced some basic techniques.
I closed the notebook, still puzzled.
Why not enjoy a peaceful and leisurely life instead of going back to farming? Aren't you afraid of falling headfirst into the sweet potato vines?
Before long, it was lunchtime, and Xu Yaodong came over and asked, "Boss, what are you having for dinner today?"
Zhou Yunqi said, "Go get me a boxed lunch."
Xu Yaodong nodded and went to the restaurant to get his food.
Around three or four in the afternoon, there wasn't much to do at the factory, so Zhou Yunqi went to the warehouse to check the shipment records, roughly counted the inventory, and then lit a cigarette while standing outside the warehouse.
At this time of year, I wonder if that fool has been sticking sweet potatoes in his nails until they're full of dirt, and since he doesn't like to cut his nails, his once healthy, shiny nails will become rough in less than two days.
Sigh, what's the point?
Xu Yaodong walked over and called out, "Boss, boss."
Zhou Yunqi, with a cigarette between his fingers, glanced at him speechlessly: "Just say what you have to say, you're giving me a headache."
"I don't have anything to say, I just called you to ask if you're having dinner here tonight."
Zhou Yunqi glared at him: "You've already eaten all the money, why are you still eating? Go back and eat communal meals."
Xu Yaodong laughed and said, "I didn't eat much either. It's mainly because you need to help Xiaolin recover, so I just ate a couple of bites."
Zhou Yunqi: "You said you didn't eat enough? You've been given the patient's nutritional meals, how dare you shamelessly say you didn't eat much?"
Xu Yaodong chuckled twice: "Alright, let's go back to the farm and eat communal meals. It's not that I can't get used to the food; I've been through even harder times."
Zhou Yunqi said, "Let's go back to the farm."
Sitting in the car, Xu Yaodong muttered, "I quite miss the days when Xiao Lin was around."
The man looked at him: "What?"
"Then you'll take us out to eat, so we won't have to eat simple boxed lunches for lunch."
Zhou Yunqi scoffed, "Now that you've gotten used to it, shouldn't you treat us to a meal too?"
Xu Yaodong nodded and said, "Okay, I'll treat you and Xiaolin next time."
The two returned to the farm around 5 p.m., and the kitchen lady was asking Deputy Farm Manager Guo, "We want to make tofu tomorrow, should we apply to get some soybeans from the warehouse?"
Xu Yaodong said happily, "Great! We'll have tofu pudding for breakfast tomorrow morning."
The kitchen lady soaked the soybeans in water, preparing to grind them into a paste the next morning.
Lin Su and the others returned as night fell. Dinner had already been served, and the kitchen had left some for them.
Zhou Yunqi stood at the door, a cigarette dangling from his lips, watching from afar as several girls chattered happily. The man couldn't help but mutter a cold sneer: "They're not enjoying their good fortune; they're just asking for trouble."
Xu Yaodong got him some food and brought it into the office, saying, "Boss, it's time to eat."
"Boss?"
Zhou Yunqi said impatiently, "Coming, coming."
Lin Su got her food and returned to her dorm. She decided to eat later and went to take a shower first.
After finishing all that, she lay down and went to sleep without going out to cool off or listen to people chat.
She had promised an older woman that she would pick some fresh, tender sweet potato leaves early tomorrow morning to stir-fry, so she needed to go to bed early.
The place for cooling off was very lively. A high-wattage lamp hung on the outer wall, and some people were playing cards under the light as usual, while others were chatting, and children were running around playing hide-and-seek.
Zhou Yunqi strolled over and glanced at the scene. Someone called out, "Manager, it's rare to see you here to enjoy the cool air."
"It's stuffy in here," he said in a low voice.
"Manager, the Torch Festival has already started. Are we going to have a holiday?"
Which day is the most lively?
"It should be the 9th, which happens to be market day, with bonfire parties and movie screenings, so there are a lot of activities."
Zhou Yunqi nodded: "Let's leave it for a day and a half. It will be midnight by the time you get back, but someone needs to be on duty at the farm."
The other party replied, "Don't worry, there will definitely be people staying on the farm, and not everyone likes to join in the fun."
Someone else asked, "Manager, will you slaughter pigs for the Mid-Autumn Festival?"
"Has the pig grown up yet?"
"One of them is gaining weight recently, and it's estimated to weigh around 100 jin by the Mid-Autumn Festival."
"Kill them then."
"..."
A moment later, Zhou Yunqi scoffed, "I've only been here a short while and you've already asked me a whole bunch of questions. What, can't the deputy director decide these things? Do I have to deal with all this trivial stuff?"
Everyone laughed and said, "The manager is wise and capable; of course, it's safer to ask you."
Zhou Yunqi turned and left in an annoyed tone: "Go back to your room, wash up, and go to sleep."
-
The next day, just as dawn broke, Lin Su got up, quickly washed up, and went out with everyone. The temperature difference between day and night in the mountains is large, and the dew was quite heavy at this time, making the grass wet, but the sweet potato leaves that were picked were the freshest.
The morning sunlight shone on people, and one of the educated youths glanced at Lin Su and exclaimed in shock, "My God, Lin Su, you are so fair-skinned, it's like you're glowing."
Someone joked, "Once you've recovered in a few days, you'll have the energy to work again."
Lin Su smiled politely: "It's alright."
Meanwhile, on the farm, the soybeans had been soaked overnight and were plump and swollen. The head cook and two other people worked together to grind the soybeans. One person pushed the millstone, another added water and soybeans, and the third swept the ground soybean milk into a bucket.
Next, boil water to bring the soy milk to a boil, filter it, add coagulant, and the tender white tofu pudding is ready.
A group of people, each holding a bowl or enamel mug, surrounded the kitchen lady, getting their tofu pudding filled.
The kitchen lady exclaimed, "Each person only gets one bite! Otherwise, how can we make tofu if everyone eats it all?"
Some people said, "Knowing that everyone loves tofu pudding, why not soak more soybeans?"
The eldest sister replied, "Even if you soak all the beans in the warehouse, you can still drink it all in one go. The deputy manager only gave us this many beans. I've already asked him for a little more."
She carefully divided the tofu pudding, then poured the remaining tofu into a wooden lattice lined with a tofu cloth, covered it with a wooden lid, and weighed it down with stones to help it solidify and gradually turn into tofu.
Xu Yaodong took an enamel bowl, filled it more than halfway with tofu pudding, and brought it over: "Boss, have some tofu pudding. It's fresh and smooth. The kitchen lady knew it was for you, so she specially filled it with extra."
Zhou Yunqi sat in his office chair with his eyes closed, trying to rest, but felt inexplicably irritated. He asked, "Did you save some for the people working outside?"
"I did leave some, but not much." Xu Yaodong placed the tofu pudding on the small table, scooped out a bowl, and then took out the sugar jar containing white sugar. "Mine has sugar, did you add salt?"
Zhou Yunqi: "Let's add the sugar in as well."
"Don't you eat salty food?"
Zhou Yunqi glanced outside: "It's for that idiot. When she comes back, will she be able to take it from them?"
Xu Yaodong looked at his eldest brother: "Aren't you going to eat?"
Zhou Yunqi didn't respond directly, only saying, "Just call her over later."
"Okay, I'm going out."
Lin Su returned to the farm and soon ran over: "Farm manager, did you save some tofu pudding for me?"
Zhou Yunqi looked her over: "You didn't faint while working?"
Lin Su shook her head and honestly replied, "No."
Why are your clothes and pants legs wet?
"The dew is a bit heavy."
"I'm not afraid of catching a cold anymore."
"No, it'll be dry soon." Lin Su looked at the tofu pudding on the small table. "Was this saved for me?"
Zhou Yunqi was extremely helpless and let out a soft "Ah".
Seeing that there was no spoon, Lin Su simply picked up the bowl and took a sip: "It's so sweet, did they put sugar in it?"
Seeing this, Zhou Yunqi couldn't help but shake his head speechlessly: "You've certainly got the air of someone drinking from a big bowl."
Lin Su smiled sheepishly, and after drinking half of her drink, she asked, trying to make conversation, "Manager, have you had a drink?"
Zhou Yunqi's face turned cold, and he said irritably, "If I drink it, what about your share?"
Lin Su paused for a moment, then looked down at the tofu pudding she had already drunk: "I didn't know you hadn't drunk any, otherwise I would have shared half with you."
Zhou Yunqi said quietly, "Heh, share half with me? I'll drink the salty one."
Lin Su was slightly surprised; he was actually a savory tofu pudding fanatic, while she was a die-hard sweet fanatic.
"So, when you eat zongzi, do you also eat savory zongzi?"
"Ah, of course."
Lin Su then smiled and said, "I also eat savory rice dumplings. They're best filled with salted pork and chestnuts. The pork belly is oozing oil, and the chestnuts are both powdery and crispy... It's simply delicious."
The man looked longing as soon as food was mentioned. Zhou Yunqi asked, "Have you ever tried the chestnut and salted pork rice dumplings from Hongbinlou Restaurant in Xicheng?"
Lin Su shook her head: "No, is it delicious?" She looked at him with her clear and bright eyes.
"I'll take you to try it when we get back to Beijing, then you'll know."
Lin Su replied carelessly, "Okay, okay." After finishing her tofu pudding, she said with a grin, "I'm done. I'm leaving now. Thank you, Manager."
The bowl was in the kitchen; she took it, washed it, and returned it to the kitchen.
Zhou Yunqi looked at the figure walking away through the door, closed his eyes, shook his head, sighed, and his restlessness remained.
Back in the dorm, my roommate asked, "Did the manager save some tofu pudding for you?"
Lin Su generously replied, "Yes, he didn't eat his own portion."
Finally, one of her roommates couldn't hold back any longer and looked at her with a questioning gaze: "Lin Su, isn't the manager being a little too nice to you?"
Lin Su said, "He is very good to me, but there is a reason for it. When he went back to Beijing to visit his relatives, he visited an elder in our mechanical family compound. That elder happened to be my father's mentor. He said that I was also on this farm and asked him to visit me if he had the time. I happened to be transferred here, so he took such good care of me."
Several roommates turned to look at them, exclaiming, "Is that how it is?"
"Yes, I only found out a few days ago."
"No wonder."
Someone muttered, "I almost thought he had feelings for you."
Lin Su vehemently denied it: "That's not true, you're overthinking it."
According to the book, Zhou Yunqi is a single big shot, so his requirements for finding a partner must be very high.
How could I possibly have feelings for her?
That's impossible.
However, she planned to cling to this powerful figure, just like Xu Yaodong.
Once she gets through these few months, she'll go back to Beijing to take the college entrance exam, while he'll work hard to become a big shot in Beijing's social circle. Everyone will have a bright future.
Maybe later she can casually chat with people and say in a nonchalant tone, "Zhou Yunqi? I know him very well. When we were sent-down youth, we were on the same farm. I often went to his office to freeload..."
...
A note from the author:
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In a corner, a weary-looking man lit a cigarette: No ideas? Ha.
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