Chapter 90
Shen Jiangfu rode her bike to the pharmacy and bought two boxes of ibuprofen and a few boxes of cold medicine to take home as backup.
"Have you heard? Liu Chanxin will come to our place to film a variety show! Unfortunately, it's not in our village. It seems that they are filming in Kuantang Village."
After Shen Jiangfu finished her shopping and went to the cashier to pay, she heard two girls discussing Liu Chanxin. She looked over and saw one with a high ponytail and the other with a bun.
"What a shame! We're going to start school in a few days. Being a senior in high school is such a hard life."
"Momo, have you finished all your summer homework? I still have a lot, and I feel like I can't finish it. I plan to copy the answers."
"I don't even want to copy anymore. Just leave it there. If I have time, I'll write it. If I don't have time, I'll leave it blank. The teacher can scold me if he wants. Learning is my own business."
It sounds like he doesn't care at all whether the homework is finished or not.
After hearing this, Shen Jiangfu smiled helplessly. After she paid the bill and walked to the door, she heard two girls say, "Hey hey hey! Momo, I remember Liu Chanxin was still in our No. 1 Middle School. I heard she transferred to another school in her senior year."
"Really? Do you know why she transferred schools..."
Shen Jiangfu came out of the pharmacy and went to the vegetable market and supermarket.
Coming out of the vegetable market, Shen Jiangfu saw stalls outside the market selling potted plants, fruit trees, and melon seedlings. There was a loud speaker next to the stall owner, and Mandarin with a county town accent came out of the speaker one sentence at a time.
"Take a look! Take a look!"
"Strawberry seedlings, orange trees, eggplant seedlings, loofah seedlings, come and take a look! They're easy to grow! Easy to grow! Easy to grow!"
"There are also jasmine, roses, Chinese roses, daffodils, and sunflowers. Come and take a look! They're easy to grow! Easy to grow! Easy to grow!"
Shen Jiangfu walked over and saw a pot of jasmine flowers with small buds.
She squatted down and carefully observed its leaves and buds, then raised her eyes and asked, "How much is this jasmine?"
Seeing someone finally come to look, the stall owner looked her over and said quickly, "This jasmine flower, placed at the door or on the balcony, will make your home look stylish! I've sold several pots of this flower in the county town, but I hadn't planned to sell it. I came to Ningfu Town today to join in the fun. This flower costs 45 yuan."
"It's just the price of two meals of spare ribs, what a bargain! Do you want to buy a pot to take home? This is the last one, and I'll go home after I sell this one."
Shen Jiangfu raised her eyebrows when she heard what he said, looked at his expression, and thought: "It's too expensive, can you make it cheaper, twenty-five yuan. Your seedlings haven't grown much, and the flowers haven't bloomed yet, so I'll buy it for twenty-five yuan."
Normally, those who drive from the county to bring goods to the town to sell will raise the price. Shen Jiangfu didn't know if it was a loss to say 25, but any bargain she could get was a good deal.
"Oh my! Twenty-five is not enough! I sell it for forty in the county town! Today's driving will cost at least forty-five, including the toll, otherwise I can't do business anymore."
"Twenty-eight!" Shen Jiangfu had already stood up and looked at the stall owner, testing the waters. "I'll buy it for twenty-eight."
The stall owner looked at her and waved his hand: "No, it has to be at least forty."
"Thirty yuan, this is my expected price. If it's not thirty, I won't buy it." Shen Jiangfu stopped there for a few seconds, and when she saw that the stall owner didn't give in, she turned and left.
Shen Jiangfu thought she could definitely get it cheaper online. However, she saw this pot of jasmine today and wanted to buy it, so she didn't lose much money at thirty yuan.
Seeing that Shen Jiangfu was about to leave, the stall owner was undecided and worried that he would not meet other interested people later. "Hey! Thirty-five, I'll sell it to you for thirty-five!"
When Shen Jiangfu heard the price, she turned around and walked back, "Thirty-two."
The stall owner looked at her with a reluctant look, squatted down and picked up the potted plant, "Okay, thirty-two."
"I really don't make much money from this stall. If it weren't for the fact that this is my last pot of jasmine, I'd think it would be too much trouble to take it back. I wouldn't sell it to you for thirty-two yuan."
Shen Jiangfu paid the bill, smiled, and said nothing more.
As the stall owner filled the bags, he gave instructions: "When you get home, prune the plants regularly and loosen the soil. Water them once a day and keep the soil moist. Don't water them too much."
Shen Jiangfu took it and nodded: "Okay."
Before leaving, she said a blessing to the boss: "I wish your business will be prosperous."
After selling the things she needed to buy, Shen Jiangfu looked at the time and it was already past ten o'clock.
Didn’t you know what happened to Xie Jing after taking the medicine?
Shen Jiangfu opened WeChat and sent two voice messages.
"I'm back now, how are you feeling?"
"Did you have breakfast before taking the medicine? It seems that you usually need to eat something before taking medicine, otherwise it will irritate your stomach."
Shen Jiangfu exited Xie Jing's chat page and clicked into the village committee group to check the chat history.
The matter of extras had been basically finalized, and she saw that the principal's name was also on the list sent out by the secretary.
Shen Jiangfu put her phone away in her bag. As she was putting on her helmet with both hands, she saw several black cars with license plates from other provinces passing by and finally stopped at the Fuhua Hotel next to the supermarket.
Passersby saw several cars stop at the same time and looked over.
At the hotel entrance, several girls wearing masks had raised their mobile phones and pointed them at one of the cars.
Shen Jiangfu did not ride away immediately. She stared at the people getting off the vehicles, trying to find Liu Chanxin.
Everyone in the car got out, most of them carrying a large bag in one hand and using the other to get their luggage from the trunk of the car.
Several girls holding up their phones stared eagerly at the people getting off the car. Shen Jiangfu was also watching, but she didn't see Liu Chanxin.
Shen Jiangfu saw them carrying things in and out, so she didn't watch anymore and rode her bike home.
——
When she got home, Shen Jiangfu cooked the fresh meat wontons she had just bought.
She deliberately cooked an extra portion for one person, so that when she took the medicine down, she would also bring some wontons for Xie Jing.
It was almost midnight when Shen Jiangfu filled her wonton bowl with disposable bowls. She opened WeChat and found that Xie Jing hadn't replied to the two messages she had sent. She sent another voice message.
"I've left the medicine and wontons at your doorstep. Remember to take them when you wake up."
Shen Jiangfu looked outside. The sun was shining brightly, and the sunlight should be directly hitting Xie Jing's door.
So, she decided to wait for Xie Jing to reply before going down.
After putting the things for Xie Jing aside, Shen Jiangfu served herself a large bowl of wontons, sprinkled it with coriander and chopped green onions, and began to eat it happily.
After eating seven or eight, Shen Jiangfu felt her phone vibrate. She opened it and saw that Xie Jing had sent her a transfer message and replied:
【Thank you. 】
After a while, another message came in: [I didn’t see what you gave me.]
——
Xie Jing woke up, and after listening to the voice message sent to her by Shen Jiangfu, his mind paused for a moment.
He stared at the chat interface with Shen Jiangfu and read the text converted from the voice.
It had been a long time since he felt that someone cared about him when he was sick.
After Xie Jing got out of bed and washed up, he opened the door and found nothing inside. He didn't see ibuprofen and wontons. He took a photo of the door and went over.
After a few seconds, the man replied: [I haven't gone down yet. I'll go now. Wait for me for a moment.]
Xie Jing saw Shen Jiangfu’s WeChat message, and within two minutes, he saw Shen Jiangfu coming over with wontons and a bag.
The sun shone directly on her face, and her exposed arms and face were illuminated by the light. He saw Shen Jiangfu approaching with squinting eyes and frowning brows, and heard her explain in his ear: "The sun is too strong. If you are not awake by the time I come down, I will have to wait a while. So, I want to wait until you wake up before I go down to find you."
Seeing Xie Jing standing there in a daze, Shen Jiangfu handed over the things in her hand, "Here are the medicine and wontons for you. The wontons have been sitting around for a long time, so they might be a little cold."
Xie Jing took it and saw the sweat on Shen Jiangfu's forehead and temples. He went back to put the things on the table and took out a few tissues.
Shen Jiangfu saw Xie Jing take the things and go home without saying a word. She was wondering in her heart, and then she saw Xie Jing took out a few tissues and handed them to her.
"Thank you." Shen Jiangfu took it and wiped the sweat off her face.
Seeing Shen Jiangfu buying medicine for him and bringing him food, Xie Jing felt that their familiarity was not yet at that level, so he politely said, "You can put the things down and leave without waiting for me to wake up. It's already troublesome for you to buy medicine for me."
Shen Jiangfu watched Xie Jing speak a series of words with a solemn expression. Remembering his usual "hmm" responses, she felt a little relieved. "You've been talking to me a lot more recently. You're different from before. You used to be very frugal with your words."
Is this his focus?
Before he had time to guess what Shen Jiangfu meant, he heard her say, "It's okay. It's the same when you wake up. I just wanted to come see you."
Xie Jing looked at Shen Jiangfu with a strange look in his eyes.
Shen Jiangfu said this as if it was a matter of course, her eyes looking directly at Xie Jing boldly, as if she didn't think her words were ambiguous.
Xie Jing didn't see any suggestive meaning in her eyes, maybe he was overthinking it.
However, Xie Jing also felt that it was precisely because Shen Jiangfu acted so openly that their relationship seemed more unusual.
Two people with an average relationship should be cold and distant in their words and actions.
The midday sun was very dazzling. Shen Jiangfu raised her hands to her forehead, trying to block the light from shining into her eyes. "How about the red bean and water chestnut cake I gave you last time? What do you think it tastes like? I'll make matcha thousand-layer cake tomorrow. The matcha flavor is also delicious."
“Thank you, it’s delicious.”
Xie Jing noticed Shen Jiangfu's behavior, and his back was sweating now, "It's too hot, you go back first."
"Yes, it's very sunny." Shen Jiangfu pointed at Xie Jing's house. Under Xie Jing's gaze, she slowly said, "Next time I come to see you, if the sun is still this strong, remember to invite me into your house and stand there."
After listening to her, Xie Jing looked at her blankly and dazedly. He actually heard a hint of complaint in her voice.
But the complaint was so soft that it seemed like the person who said it had a good temper.
After Shen Jiangfu made her request, she silently observed Xie Jing's expression.
The expression on his face remained neutral, as calm as the surface of a lake without wind.
However, throughout the four seasons of the year, there will always be wind blowing, waves on the lake, and the silence between her and him will also be broken.
Xie Jing looked at Shen Jiangfu, who was staring at him with her eyes wide open, as if telling him "yes".
"good."
Seeing Xie Jing finally agree after a moment of silence, Shen Jiangfu was happy to hear the answer she wanted, "I'm going home. I'll come to see you tomorrow."
Before leaving, Xie Jing was still standing there, not knowing what he was thinking. Shen Jiangfu turned back every three steps and urged him to go in, "Go in and eat quickly. You still have a fever. Be careful of heatstroke."
After Shen Jiangfu's figure completely disappeared from Xie Jing's sight, he went home, closed the door, and looked at the things on the table. He opened the lid of the bowl, and the aroma of wontons wafted out.
At this moment, Xie Jing felt a little headache, probably because he had been standing in the sun for too long.
Or maybe he couldn't understand why Shen Jiangfu was... kind of nice to him?
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