Chapter 33: Who is the one who sent the roller skates?
This was not the first time Yan Xue had felt this way, but she had only thought about it in her mind before, and this was the first time she said it out loud.
The main reason was that they didn't communicate much before. Even when they did talk, it was mostly about personal matters, and there was no atmosphere for discussing these things. But now they talk more and occasionally joke around. At this point, Yan Xue also said it smoothly.
Unexpectedly, Qi Fang stared at her without saying anything for a long time.
Perhaps the 15-watt light bulb was not bright enough, or perhaps the man's pupils were too dark, Yan Xue always felt that his eyes were dim and dark, making it difficult to distinguish them.
This made him feel uncomfortable, as if her words had touched a sensitive nerve and made him unhappy.
Yan Xue lost interest in the conversation instantly and looked away, but the man's eyes remained fixed on her. He suddenly asked, "You don't know?"
"Know what?" Yan Xue was a little confused and looked back at the man's face.
There can't be any hidden secret here, right?
For example, he used to have good grades, but just like her in her previous life, he was unable to finish his studies due to family reasons.
Or maybe he had good grades and finished high school, but when he was preparing for the college entrance exam, he encountered those years and could only work as a worker in the forest farm...
In terms of age, he is more like the latter; in terms of the fact that both his parents are dead and he has a strained relationship with his aunt's family, he is more like the former.
Yan Xue was not too sure. At this moment, Qi Fang looked at her with only one thought in his mind -
She didn't know he had attended college.
She didn't even know he had been to college!
Even though they had very little contact before they lost touch, perhaps only one or two letters a year, how could she not know that he was admitted to university at the age of fourteen?
At that time, the Yan family specially sent a gift, a fountain pen. When he sent the deed back to the Yan family, he also sent the gift back.
In addition, she also wrote a letter to congratulate him at that time. It couldn't be that the letter was fake and the Yan family didn't tell her at all, right?
It's impossible for the Yan family to have foreseen everything that would happen so early and prepare to break off the engagement with him...
Unable to figure it out, Qi Fang looked at Yan Xue with a deeper and more searching gaze, "Have you ever had a head injury?"
The topic changed so suddenly that Yan Xue was visibly stunned for a moment before she subconsciously touched her forehead. "Did you see the scar on my head? I thought it was hidden by my hair."
Did she really have a head injury?
Qi Fang stood up and walked over, touching the place where Yan Xue had just touched, and sure enough, he saw a scar about an inch long hidden under the hair.
This made him frown, "How did it happen?"
While asking, he carefully touched the wound with his fingertips. It seemed that the wound had not healed yet and it still hurt.
Yan Xue felt a little itchy when he touched her, and subconsciously turned to the side, "I accidentally bumped it against a rock."
You can't say that it was because he had an argument with his aunt Bai Xiuzhen and was pushed by Bai Xiuzhen, right?
She really had no habit of complaining to anyone, and there was no one around her to whom she could complain.
Whether it was her father in the previous life, Jigang in this life, or even her grandmother, they all needed care and comfort more than she did.
Yan Xue straightened her hair that had been messed up by the man. "It was quite scary, wasn't it? I had to get several stitches. It's also because I fell and the injury got stuck in my hair. Otherwise, I would have been disfigured."
She was actually able to laugh, and even said thankfully that the injury was only in her hair...
Qi Fang felt uncomfortable, very uncomfortable, and unconsciously pursed his lips, "Is there no one taking care of your family?"
"Yes," Yan Xue said, "Jigang takes care of me every day. He wipes my hands and face, feeds me water and food, and even blows on my wounds."
Back then, her memory was fuzzy. She didn't know if she was living in this life or the past, or if it was her wounds or her brain that was a mess. She only knew there was a young boy watching over her every day, worried she was cold, hungry, or dying, so he'd get up several times in the middle of the night to check for her breathing. He'd only wait until she fell asleep to secretly wipe away his tears, fearing she'd worry.
Yan Xue couldn't help but smile whenever she thought of it, a warm, funny smile with a little bit of nostalgia.
Qi Fang thought she was just pretending to be strong, "Is it just Jigang?"
"No, there's also grandma. The Spanish mackerel dumplings she made were delicious, but unfortunately I had a head injury at the time and couldn't eat them. By the time I could eat them, Dahai City had already passed."
Dahai City is my hometown in March and April every spring. The breeding season is about to begin, and fish, shrimp and seafood will return, fat and delicious.
Yan Xue asked Qi Fang: "Do you like salted fish? The Spanish mackerel from my hometown is also delicious when it's dried and salted. If you like it, I'll try to get some next time..."
Before she could finish her words, she was hugged, her nose pressed against the man's chest, and a hand touched the back of her head.
Why are you touching my head again?
As soon as this thought flashed through her mind, the arms around her tightened, and something touched her head and then left.
Yan Xue raised her head in surprise, and happened to see the man's lips that had just been retracted and his beautiful jawline.
Seeing her looking at him, his eyes even paused, and he lowered his head again, and a light kiss fell on her forehead.
It was so light and shallow that if she hadn't been watching, she might even have suspected that her feeling was wrong.
It didn't contain any other meaning, but Yan Xue still lowered her eyes, her eyelashes trembled unconsciously, and she felt uncomfortable.
Maybe it's because I'm rarely comforted, and I feel uncomfortable...
Yan Xue thought to herself, and pushed the man away, "It's past eight o'clock, I have to go wash up." She hurried out.
Qi Fang didn't have any special expression. As soon as the man disappeared, he raised his hand and touched his ears, then his lips...
Because of this incident, Yan Xue put down the quilt without waiting for Qi Fang to finish drawing. Then she glanced at the man, turned her back to him, quickly took off her clothes, and crawled into the quilt.
Qi Fang sat sideways at the desk, not looking at her. Instead, he waited until she stopped moving before glancing back.
Because she was facing away from the light, the young girl only revealed her long black hair that looked like crow feathers and her small hands that were tugging on the quilt. She was very quiet, and it was unclear whether she didn't want to talk or had fallen asleep.
Qi Fang stood up, walked over quietly to turn off the light, installed the batteries in the flashlight, pointed it only at him, and continued painting.
It was already past nine o'clock when he finished painting. Just as he was about to go to bed, he stood by the kang and hesitated for a while, then turned on the flashlight, sat back at the table, and wrote a letter.
The letter was written to a rare friend he had in Yanjing. Since Yan Xue didn't want to talk about it, he didn't want to keep asking her, but there were some things he had to know.
How come Miss Yan got injured and only had a younger brother and a grandmother to take care of her?
Where's Yan's father? Where's Yan's mother? Is there no one else in the Yan family?
He was also busy with his studies and projects, and only kept in touch with Yan Xue. He didn't pay much attention to the Yan family, and didn't know if Yan Xue and her brother had a stepmother. Otherwise, why would Yan Xue's household registration be changed to the countryside?
The more he wrote, the deeper his frown grew. Some details that he had not paid attention to before now became things he wanted to ask about but couldn't ask directly.
He just didn't know if the other party still used this address, and whether they would reply to his letters. He remembered that the other party's family was not implicated at the time...
After Qi Fang finished writing, he hesitated again holding the letter paper. Finally, he took a look at Yan Xue who was sleeping soundly on the kang, and went to the drawer to look for the envelope.
When Qi Fang turned off the lights, Yan Xue hadn't fallen asleep yet. But she didn't like to let her thoughts wander, so she lay there and soon fell asleep.
It was not until she went out the next morning that she saw an extra letter in Qi Fang's hand, but she did not ask.
After all, she wrote to her hometown and no one asked. If she wanted her to know, she should have told her directly.
When we arrived at the gathering point for the family team, Captain Lin was there today, but his wife Cheng Yuzhen was not there. It was said that she had a stomachache.
There are many explanations for why your stomach is uncomfortable. It could be something you've eaten badly, or it could be dysmenorrhea. Some people even exclaim, "Ah!" and ask, "Am I pregnant?"
Captain Lin glanced at the other person, coughed softly and ignored him. Yan Xue later found out that he and Cheng Yuzhen had been married for almost ten years and had no children.
"They say his injury ruined his health, which is why his wife can't get pregnant. Otherwise, how could he give in to his wife in everything?"
"Yeah, didn't you get an explanation for Xiao Yan's incident last time?"
Yan Xue never discussed or participated in these matters. If you asked me, I'd just listen. If you asked me, I'd just laugh it off. But Jin Baozhi had clearly remembered her helping her out. The day after the afforestation was completed, Yan Xue, still exhausted, came to the door carrying 20 kilograms of rice and 20 kilograms of noodles.
Food is a scarce commodity these days. Although Yan Xue's family has a lot of meat, they only eat the fixed rations that she and Qi Fang receive every month.
If a family in the forest farm has many children and not enough food, they can either add some potatoes that do not require food coupons, or buy grain at a high price from the countryside.
This price was truly high. The cornmeal available in the market was only 9 cents per pound, but buying it yourself cost 30 cents. And what you got for 30 cents per pound wasn't just flour, but corn kernels with the husks on, which you had to dry on the kang and grind through the mill. Not to mention rice and flour.
She was really startled, "What are you doing?"
"Thank you for speaking up for me that day," Jin Baozhi answered simply, "My mother's home is in Dahuan Village nearby. I went back there to get it."
Because people in rural areas have private plots, those who are diligent can secretly reclaim small pieces of wasteland, so they can indeed have more food.
"My mother's family doesn't know anything else but farming. Otherwise, we wouldn't have been able to save enough money to buy one or two acres of land every year, and in the end..."
Jin Baozhi didn't continue talking. She clapped her hands and prepared to leave. "If you don't have enough food in the future, come to me. I'll go back to my parents' home and get it for you."
"Hey, wait a minute!" Yan Xue still caught up.
Jin Baozhi stopped and said, "Don't tell me you want to calculate the money." Her face was a little tense.
Yan Xue was about to say that, but after hearing that, she changed her tone and said, "I wanted to ask how much you paid for it, and if you can still make more, could you give me another 20 kilograms of each."
Hearing that Yan Xue wanted to buy more, Jin Baozhi's expression softened. "I'll go back and ask for you tomorrow."
"Don't worry, these 40 kilograms are enough for us to eat for a while." Yan Xue went into the house and gave her 20 yuan as a deposit. "We'll figure it out later if there's more or less."
Once we figure out the price, we'll make up for the shortfall. Just ask them to run errands, but there's no way we can expect them to deliver 40 kilograms of food at once.
Unexpectedly, just after seeing off Jin Baozhi, someone else came. It was Lang Yue'e, whom I hadn't seen for a while.
Ever since the Lang family had released the news that they were going to sue Kang Peisheng for attempted rape, the Kang family had been making a scene and begging for mercy. Lang Yue'e's mother, fearing the consequences for her, had sent her to her uncle's house. With this incident, the forest farm was sure to be buzzing, and her absence gave her some peace and quiet.
More than half a month passed in a flash, and Lang Yue'e suddenly came back. Yan Xue narrowed her eyes, "What? Did that matter come to fruition?"
"You are the smartest." Lang Yue'e smiled suddenly, and there seemed to be light in her eyes again.
She wasn't alone; her mother was with her. She smiled brightly upon hearing this and hurried in, carrying her things. "This is all thanks to you. If it weren't for you..." She lowered her voice slightly, "If it weren't for your idea, Yue'e wouldn't have been able to escape from that hell."
Yan Xue was stuffed with a piece of meat she had never seen before. "Didn't you thank me last time?"
"Last time was last time. This is to thank you for the good trick you gave us." Lang Yue'e's mother pointed at the piece of meat. "It's a carp that was newly caught in the Yalu River. Yue'e came back and saw it, so she quickly bought you a piece."
"There really is such a big fish." Yan Xue was very surprised and lowered her head to take a closer look.
In her previous life, big fish were rarely caught in the Yalu River. A fish weighing seven or eight kilograms was considered big news. Judging from the size and shape of the fish in her hand, it must have weighed at least ten or twenty kilograms.
Lang Yue'e's mother nodded. "Yes, I encountered a bigger one two years ago. We only pick the tenderest belly meat to cut for you, so don't mind."
He took Yan Xue's hand again and said, "You don't know how many times I cried because of Yue'e. When I heard that Kang Peisheng dared to come to Yue'e that day, I almost died of anger. If I had known he was such a person, I would never have given Yue'e to him no matter what."
As she spoke, her eyes turned red. Seeing that she was thinking about something sad, Yan Xue hurriedly asked curiously, "Where was the person transferred to?"
Lang Yue'e's mother had indeed forgotten her sadness and smiled, "Lupigou." Afraid Yan Xue wouldn't understand, she explained, "It's a very remote town in our county. It takes three hours to get there by car."
It's a very remote town, which means there won't be any good units in the town. After all, Kang Peisheng is not in the forestry system.
It takes three hours to get to the county by car, then from the county to Chengshui Town, and from Chengshui to the forest farm. Don’t even think about getting to Jinchuan Forest Farm for at least six or seven hours.
The key point is that the Lang family's actions this time were so ruthless that it's unclear whether Kang Peisheng would dare to come to Lang Yue'e again under the influence of alcohol. According to Lang Yue'e's mother, his previous workplace knew he was being sued, and coupled with his dishonorable divorce, he had been afraid to go to work for a while before his transfer.
"I heard it cost this much." Lang Yue'e's mother lowered her voice and raised her hand to make a five. "His mother sold their old house, and the three of them had to rent a house in Lupigou."
Five hundred yuan is a person’s annual salary. I wonder if their family spent so much money to marry Lang Yue’e.
Moreover, this is a change from a good place to a bad place. I guess the Kang family must have vomited to death when they found someone to do this.
Lang Yue'e's mother said a lot to Yan Xue in one breath, and she felt like she had finally gotten rid of a big worry.
After she had talked enough about the plight of the Kang family, she seemed to remember something and asked Yan Xue, "By the way, I heard Yue'e say there was a young man with you that day?"
Yan Xue thought she just wanted to thank him, "Yes, it's a comrade from Xiaojinchuan Forest Farm."
"How old are you? Are you married? You should know each other, right?" Lang Yue'e's mother asked immediately.
Lang Yue'e pulled her at that time, and Yan Xue also understood.
Lang Yue'e's mother was left with no choice but to say, "I was just asking, I didn't say anything." Her eyes were still on Yan Xue.
Yan Xue told the truth, "I've only met him two or three times, so I don't know his name."
"Is that so?" Lang Yue'e's mother was obviously disappointed. "I heard Yue'e say you two were together. I thought you knew him very well."
Just then, Qi Fang came back from outside, so she stopped talking and said goodbye with Lang Yue'e.
As soon as the man left, Yan Xue was about to clean up the meat when she heard the man ask, "Is it the one who gave you the roller skates again?"
I don't know how he was able to accurately extract this information from just hearing a few words.
Yan Xue was a little speechless, unable to express her little guess. "Aren't Sister Yue'e and her mother here to thank us for what happened last time? They also want to thank him by the way."
Qi Fang didn't say anything else. He lowered his head and picked up the soap next to the soap box. He didn't know what the meaning of his question was.
Yan Xue weighed the fish and thought it must be at least four or five pounds. "I'll grow some bean sprouts and make boiled fish later." She pointed to two bags of food on the cabinet and said, "Sister Baozhi from next door sent them here."
Qi Fang noticed it when he walked in, "Did you pay?"
This is exactly the same as Yan Xue, who never takes advantage of others. Yan Xue smiled and said, "If I give it to her directly, she will definitely not accept it. I asked her to buy 40 kilograms. I will give it to her when I know the price."
Qi Fang didn't say anything after hearing this. He poured the washing water into the dirty water bucket and filled a basin with clean water to wash again.
Yan Xue noticed that his hands were covered in motor oil. "Uncle Xu asked you to help dismantle it again?"
When Qi Fang first went there, he just watched from the side. Later, one day when there were not enough people, he helped Xu Wenli.
Xu Wenli then discovered that this person was much more useful than his two apprentices. He knew everything he had seen, and would never miss a single point when asked to dismantle something. Sometimes, when he didn't have an apprentice, or when the apprentice couldn't handle it, he would simply let him do it first so he could take a break.
Qi Fang didn't react much to this. "Well, we've basically finished dismantling it today."
"Then you don't have to go there anymore?" Yan Xue guessed what he meant.
"No need." Qi Fang answered concisely, but in fact the focus of the next few days would be on maintenance. Xu Wenli really wanted him to continue going, but he did not agree.
He didn't even need to go yesterday because the small repair shop had already dismantled the hydraulic transmission he wanted to see the day before.
Speaking of anger, after experiencing the emotional fluctuations of that day, he seemed not to be so angry anymore. The four Jicai 50s really used the system that he and his teacher had studied.
He insisted on completing the dismantling over the past two days, mainly because he wanted to see how the other party handled it and how the overall structure of the tractor was.
To be honest, there were some new things, but not much. They weren't even the latest versions he and his teacher had debugged repeatedly. It was like he was in a hurry to produce something to hand in for an assignment. No wonder Wu Xingde came to him personally, trying every possible way to get information out of him.
It's ironic to think about it. Those who are truly dedicated to research are forced to death, while those who just want to save face occupy high positions, and his so-called senior brother...
Qi Fang felt completely depressed whenever he thought about those people and this hopeless world.
Just as I felt relieved, I heard a voice behind me say, "Then you stay home tomorrow while I go to town. Zhou Wenhui told me today that the things I needed have arrived. I'll buy some glucose and sell some Gastrodia elata while I'm at it."
He was immediately drawn back to the trivialities of reality. "I'll go tomorrow. The wood has been delivered. I'll go to the brickyard to buy some bricks. I'll take advantage of the good weather and build the house."
"Buy bricks?"
"Well, I want to add another layer of brick to the outside of the house."
The forest farm’s enclosure is indeed warm, but it is certainly not as sturdy as a brick and tile house, especially the foundation, which cannot be dug too deep.
Yan Xue thought about it and simply went to the inner room to get some money and gave it to him. "Let's buy the tiles too. Wooden tiles don't allow for good drainage. If you can't, go buy a few packs of cigarettes. When the forest farm has an internal combustion engine running to town, ask if they can add an extra carriage to the back."
The forest farm does not use bricks to build houses, and of course does not use tiles for the roofs. Instead, they use tree bark or shaved wood chips.
Arranged in rows, they could indeed shed rain, but they certainly weren't as waterproof or durable as real tiles. Since they had the money, they decided to do it all at once, saving them the trouble of patching things up later.
As for adding an extra carriage behind the internal combustion engine, it is not a big deal as long as they load and unload it themselves.
Qi Fang had just washed his hands, so he took it and put it in his pocket. Unexpectedly, just as he mentioned the roller skates, he ran into the person who delivered the roller skates to Yan Xue in the car the next day.
The young man was at a distance from him and did not notice him. However, the flight attendant recognized him when he came to collect his ticket, but he just glanced at him and said nothing.
After a while, he walked over to Qi Fang. He didn't mention that he had seen the girl's lover. He just looked at the paper bag in Qi Fang's hand that he had handed over twice but hadn't given away yet. "Going to your aunt's house again?"
"Yeah," Qi Fang smiled and quickly took out money to buy the ticket, "No one came to collect it just now."
If it were an ordinary person, he might have kept silent, but he was different. He always bought his ticket seriously and never tried to get a free ride just because he knew the flight attendant.
The flight attendants sometimes thought he was too honest, but they also liked his honesty. After all, he was a really nice person. "I guess he'll come back this time."
Qi Fang nodded. "My aunt has some land. I have to come back around May Day to plant some crops, otherwise we won't be able to eat anything this year."
When we arrived at Aunt Qi's house, Aunt Qi had really returned, but she was wearing a black armband on her left arm. It was obvious that her father-in-law did not survive and passed away.
Qi Fang paused as the words were on the tip of his tongue, and whispered, "My condolences."
"It's okay. It's not good to say what will happen in the past two years. Your uncle and the others are mentally prepared."
Aunt Qi was alright, but when she saw him carrying a paper bag, she said to him, "You're here, why are you bringing anything? Can't you save that little money for your wife?"
Speaking of his wife Ben, she immediately remembered, "I left in a hurry and didn't have time to ask you, how was your blind date? Did it work out? I heard the girl is very beautiful."
Qi Fang had no choice but to hand over the fungus and said, "I don't know if it worked or not. I haven't met the person yet."
"It's been several months, and you still haven't seen anyone?"
Aunt Qi couldn't believe it, but she also knew that her nephew was honest and wouldn't lie to her. She immediately stood up and changed her shoes. "Come on, I'll take you to ask Shan Qiufang."
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