Chapter 88 The spring night is too short, the night too long
Keeping bees under the mango tree was an idea Qin Suisui came up with on a whim the night Hao Ke left.
They lived in the family compound, so it was inconvenient to let Dahuang and Dahei out all the time. They could only let them out at night to guard the yard when Pei Jiuyan went out to sea. Xiaobaiqiu was too small, and there was no one to guard the house, so some clueless creatures would always wander in.
Qin Suisui deeply regretted not bringing back a few geese from Changbai Mountain.
But then she changed her mind and set her sights on the beehive in the space.
In less than a month, the number of bees in that large hive had doubled. Beehives had already been hung on two lychee trees and a mango tree in the space, and one of the honeys was estimated to weigh four or five pounds.
Moreover, Qin Suisui discovered that the creatures that had stayed in the space for a period of time seemed to be exceptionally intelligent, as if they could understand what she was saying.
So last night, while Pei Jiuyan was washing up, Qin Suisui quietly ran to the mango tree in the yard. Following the method she used to "abduct" these bees in Changbai Mountain, she scooped some stream water into an enamel basin, added white sugar and mangoes from her spatial storage, and then released a quarter of the bees.
The bees, initially disoriented by the sudden change of scenery, quickly flew towards the mango tree after smelling the aroma emanating from the enamel basin. Qin Suisui cheerfully instructed them, "Eat and drink well, and when you're done, build a nest under the tree. You'll live here from now on!"
It's unclear whether the bees understood, but when Qin Suisui went to check this morning, the sugar water in the enamel basin was all gone, and the bees seemed to be busily building their nest among the branches of the nearby tree.
Qin Suisui was overjoyed. Honey was a scarce commodity at this time of year, and she had so much honey in her spatial storage, but she had no reason to take it out and could only use it secretly. Now that there was a beehive in the yard, she could easily explain it away later.
Besides, these bees can also guard the house! Look, they chased Hao Ke out, so she won't dare to barge in again!
Qin Suisui clapped her hands happily, summoned the bees in, rewarded them with a basin of sugar water made from the stream in her space, and then sent the hardworking little bees out to collect nectar and build their nest.
Qiongtan Island has a humid and hot climate year-round, with lush vegetation, so she is not worried about the bees not being able to collect honey.
After putting the enamel basin back into her spatial storage, Qin Suisui left a small note for Pei Jiuyan and then rode her bicycle to town.
She planned to buy a pickling jar from the gatekeeper at the glass factory. The cucumbers in her space wouldn't rot if she didn't pick them, but there were too many cucumbers growing in the yard, and she couldn't eat them all. They would easily rot after a rain. She planned to buy another jar to pickle them. Pickled cucumbers are crisp, refreshing, and go well with rice, and they can be stored for a longer time.
Then she went to buy some radish seeds, because she wanted to eat pickled radishes.
When we arrived at the glass factory gate, sure enough, the same old man was on duty.
Qin Suisui stepped forward happily: "Grandpa, do you still have any of those pickle jars? Could you sell me two more?"
The old man sternly retorted, "What are you selling! Where did this little brat come from? If you want to buy something, go to the supply and marketing cooperative or the department store. What are you doing here?"
Qin Suisui then realized that she had been disguised when she came to buy things last time.
Using the cloth bag as cover, she took out a bottle of Erguotou (a type of Chinese liquor) from her spatial storage, just like last time, and chuckled, "Grandpa, it's me!"
The old man's expression changed the moment he saw the Erguotou (a type of Chinese liquor). He chuckled and said, "Girl, it's you! The pickle jars, right? Yes, I have some, I just got a few broken ones. How many do you want?"
Qin Suisui was overjoyed: "Grandpa, I'll take as many as you have!"
The old man pulled three out from under the table: "Can you take all three?"
Qin Suisui nodded: "We can finish it, we can finish it!"
Two of the three pickle jars were the same size as the ones she brought back last time, and the other one was a bit bigger. She could put it in her space to make a jar of rice wine. The rice wine her parents sent her from Jiangcheng was almost finished. She had Yang Jiankang's granary in her space, which contained glutinous rice and yeast.
The three jars of pickled vegetables were too big to fit on the bicycle, so Qin Suisui pretended that someone was waiting for her elsewhere and took the jars in two trips to an empty alley on the bicycle, where she stored them in her spatial storage.
Having had these two pleasant transactions, before leaving, the old man gave her a special "friendly reminder": "I heard there was a spy hideout in the alley ahead, which was wiped out by the People's Liberation Army. Be careful when you pass by, and don't stop!"
Qin Suisui was ashamed; how could this matter have spread so far?
After thanking the old man, she rode her bicycle towards the department store. Passing by the previous "location," she noticed the yard was tightly locked with several large padlocks. There seemed to be people moving around inside. Had they not finished moving everything after all these days? Or had they made some other discovery?
But none of that mattered to her. Qin Suisui sped up her bike ride and headed straight for the department store.
The department store sells radish seeds, but they don't sell well because the climate of Qiongtan Island is unsuitable for radish growth most of the time, so few people grow them.
But Qin Suisui wasn't worried; she planned to plant the radishes in her spatial dimension.
She bought several packets of radish seeds, as well as some seeds for cowpeas, peppers, and other green vegetables. But when she started learning to cook, she realized that there were too few vegetables in the yard, not enough for her to use!
When passing by the pastry counter, Qin Suisui replenished the pastries she had finished eating at home, and also bought two cases of soda. She put one case into her spatial storage so she could drink it occasionally when she went into the space, and put the other case into her basket so they could drink it when they ate, and take any leftovers home.
After all that fuss, it was almost time for Pei Jiuyan and the others to have dinner, so Qin Suisui packed her things and rode off to the state-run restaurant.
Chi Donglin and Hao Ke did not hold a wedding ceremony. Like Qin Suisui and the others, they only planned to invite their friends to dinner.
When Qin Suisui arrived at the state-run restaurant, Hao Ke and Chi Donglin were already there. Chi Donglin was not as happy as expected; although he was smiling, there seemed to be a shadow over his eyes.
Upon seeing Qin Suisui, Chi Donglin greeted her with a smile: "Little sister is here! Have a seat for a while. Ayan and Yunlai should be on their way."
Qin Suisui also smiled and said, "Brother Donglin, I wish you a happy marriage and a long and happy life together!"
Hao Ke covered her face and sobbed softly, "Waaah, Donglin-ge, I already told you Sui Sui this afternoon..."
Chi Donglin frowned impatiently, "That's enough. You got stung by a bee, why blame it on Sui Sui? Does she think she can command bees to sting people?"
Hao Ke stamped her foot: "Chi Donglin, you don't believe me? She can command bees to sting people!"
"I think Comrade Hao Ke has been blinded by the joy of getting married, hasn't she?" Pei Jiuyan's cold voice rang out, and Hao Ke was immediately too frightened to speak. Ah Yan was still angry with her; she couldn't afford to provoke him further.
Song Yunlai also smiled and tried to smooth things over: "Yeah, Coco, when did you learn to make jokes like this!"
Looking at the two big bumps on Hao Ke's face, Qin Suisui touched her nose. Everyone was too blindly siding with her. She could indeed command bees to sting people, and the two bumps on Hao Ke's face were indeed caused by the bees she commanded. It's just that Hao Ke ran out at noon and didn't see them. She didn't expect the bees to be so effective, with the two bumps being so symmetrical!
However, she couldn't let everyone down, so she went up to Pei Jiuyan and, imitating Hao Ke, pitifully said, "Jian, there's a new hive of bees in our yard. This afternoon, Comrade Hao Ke went to deliver something and got stung by a bee, so she blamed me."
Qin Suisui is beautiful, and when she pretends to be pitiful, she really does it. Even though Pei Jiuyan could tell she was faking it, he couldn't help but feel sorry for her, and his gaze toward Hao Ke became even colder: "If Comrade Hao Ke doesn't want to have dinner with us, then I'll take Suisui away first."
After saying that, he put his arm around Qin Suisui and walked out.
Chi Donglin and Song Yunlai tried to stop them, but Hao Ke was faster. She stepped forward to grab Pei Jiuyan, but Pei Jiuyan nimbly dodged her. She said dejectedly, "Ayan, you know I didn't mean it that way. I really misunderstood Sui Sui. Sui Sui, I apologize. Let's not spoil everyone's good mood. Come in and eat. Donglin has already ordered the dishes."
Qin Suisui sneered inwardly. Hao Ke was truly deeply in love with Pei Jiuyan. In order not to sever ties with him, she actually came up with the idea of marrying Chi Donglin. Now that Pei Jiuyan had given her a cold look, she immediately gave in. It was a real pity for Chi Donglin.
She turned to look at Chi Donglin and saw that the gloom in his eyes had deepened. No one was a fool; they just didn't say it out loud.
The meal was rather quiet. No one drank the soda Qin Suisui had brought.
Before the event ended, Song Yunlai patted Chi Donglin on the shoulder without saying a word, but everything was understood without being spoken.
Qin Suisui was actually a little worried. With Hao Ke around, it would affect the relationship between Pei Jiuyan and Chi Donglin sooner or later. After all, no matter how close they were, if one's wife only had her brother in her heart, Chi Donglin would eventually have his own thoughts.
Before taking a shower and getting ready for bed, Qin Suisui told Pei Jiuyan about her worries. Pei Jiuyan patted her head and smiled, "If we're true friends, we won't worry about these things."
Qin Suisui thought he was too optimistic, but before she could say anything more, Pei Jiuyan had already turned over and pressed down on her: "Wife, the night is too short, don't keep thinking about these unrelated things."
Qin Suisui nudged him: "What unrelated things? Donglin is not only your brother, but also your work partner. If your relationship deteriorates, it might affect your work!"
She hadn't forgotten that Liu Shao and Liu Yong, whom she had captured on the deserted island, were Pei Jiuyan's subordinates. For some reason, they had betrayed her and arranged to meet Pei Jiuyan on the island to frame him for stealing the information and make him "atone with his death." Song Yun later told her about this.
She had witnessed Pei Jiuyan fighting against multiple opponents on Qiongtan Island. If he had let his guard down even slightly, he might not have made it back. Qin Suisui then realized that Pei Jiuyan's job was far more dangerous than she had imagined.
Knowing what she was thinking, Pei Jiuyan chuckled softly in the darkness and reached out to smooth Qin Suisui's furrowed brows: "Don't worry, wife. Now that I have you, I will cherish my life no matter what I do."
Qin Suisui snorted softly, "That's more like it. Then tell me... mmm... I'm going to go beachcombing tomorrow morning... mmm..."
They say the spring night is too short, but Qin Suisui felt this night was exceptionally long...
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