Chapter 52
Pyeongchang is an ancient city. It was once an important military town and was very prosperous with many merchants coming and going. The ancient city has a history of more than 600 years. It is home to a population of more than 500,000 people all year round. Every morning at dawn, hardworking and dedicated cleaners begin to clean the streets to awaken this ancient city.
After hearing from He Guijuan that Xie Jinyan would come the next day, Jiang Jiang took the initiative to take on the task of picking him up at the station. It takes about three hours by train from the provincial capital to Pingchang City. Jiang Jiang calculated the time and arrived half an hour early.
It was a rainy afternoon and the air was a little stuffy. After the train arrived, waves of people came out of the train station. Jiang Jiang stood outside the crowded crowd and looked inside, afraid of missing anyone.
"Brother Jinyan!" Seeing the man walking out of the crowd, Jiang Jiang waved at him.
He had a gentle smile on his face, and the two looked at each other, both surprised by the other's changes.
Xie Jinyan has grown into a young man. His fair skin in his youth has turned into a healthy wheat color, and the muscles in his arms are obvious. He is taller now, although he was not short in junior high school. He has handsome eyebrows and eyes, and has a cool feeling like pine needles.
The four looked at each other for about a minute or two, and Jiang Jiang was the first to break the silence. She raised her face and smiled, "Brother Jinyan, long time no see."
He nodded gently in response, "Long time no see."
"Are you hungry? Do you want to go eat something first?"
"Okay, I'll listen to you."
Jiang Jiang took him to a noodle shop she often went to. The noodles in this shop were very chewy, and the noodles were topped with the shop's homemade臊子. The fat was fatty but not greasy, and the lean meat was crispy and soft. The noodles and the臊子 tasted especially delicious.
The next day, Jiang Jiang took Xie Jinyan to stroll around Pyeongchang City and ate mutton and buckwheat noodles.
On the third day, they took a long-distance bus back to Dongxi Village.
Jiang Jiang sat by the window, looking at the towering mountains in front of her and the fiery red sorghum in the river valley. As the car drove past this section of the road, another scene appeared in her eyes. Jiang Jiang suddenly thought of the scenery of the road from Dongxi Village to Qingjian County. There were also such endless mountains and cattle and sheep grazing. At that time, she was yearning for the future, curious about new things, and uneasy about the unfamiliar environment.
In the blink of an eye, twelve years have passed.
During these twelve years, Jiang Jiang has not undergone any major changes in essence. She is still that simple and kind-hearted child. It is only because of the upbringing of Lin Youqing and He Guijuan, as well as the education she has received, that she has become smart, lively, cheerful and positive.
After the car arrived at the county town, Jiang Jiang followed his father's instructions and went to the county tractor factory to find Boss Lin. In fact, Jiang Jiang had only met this uncle a few times, but Jiang Jiang had a good impression of his aunt Zhang Yueju, so he thought that his uncle must be a very good person as well.
The factory was not very large. Jiang Jiang followed the guard's instructions and quickly found the person. As Jiang Jiang had expected, he was a kind person with a dark complexion and a smile on his face.
Boss Lin had already received the letter from his younger brother. He looked at the graceful young girl in front of him and wiped the sweat from his forehead. "Are you tired? Wait for me in the guard room for a while. I will take you to dinner first, and then we will go back to Dongxi Village after dinner."
"I heard that you were admitted to Capital University. You are really promising. You have brought honor to our Lin family."
In the eyes of the older generation, family members refer to people with blood ties. Jiang Jiang does not have the blood of the Lin family, so Old Mrs. Lin has never liked Jiang Jiang and does not recognize her as a member of the Lin family. Since Jiang Jiang was adopted by her parents, she has been living with them outside, so she defines herself as "Lin Youqing's daughter" rather than a member of the Lin family. But Jiang Jiang did not expect Old Mrs. Lin to say such words, and he recognized and affirmed her identity as a member of the Lin family without hesitation.
She was a little surprised and had a very novel feeling, and she liked her uncle even better.
Boss Lin took Jiang Jiang and Xie Jinyan to the state-owned canteen on the street for a meal. This place was very familiar to Jiang Jiang and Xie Jinyan. When they were still in the county town, they often came here to eat, sometimes with family members and sometimes with classmates and friends.
Six years have passed, and the state-owned canteen has also undergone some changes. Business is quieter than before. When Jiang Jiang and Xie Jinyan came here just now, they saw that some other small restaurants had opened on the street, and business was still brisk. There were even some people setting up stalls on the roadside to sell tea and meals.
Boss Lin asked them what they wanted to eat. Jiang Jiang had no appetite after sitting in the car all the way, so she ordered a bowl of noodles. Xie Jinyan also ordered a bowl. Boss Lin then bought three bowls of noodles and a plate of chopped pork head.
After the three of them finished eating, Boss Lin took them on a bus back to Dongxi Village.
When Jiang Jiang appeared in Dongxi Village, it immediately set off a huge wave. The villagers did not forget this lucky girl who was adopted by Secretary Lin and his wife. She has been living with Secretary Lin and his wife in the city all these years. It is said that she was admitted to Capital University. The villagers who came to watch the fun filled the Lin family's yard.
Even Zhou Fugui's wife, who had abused Jiang Jiang in the past, couldn't help but mingle with the crowd. She wanted to see what that damn girl had become now.
No one expected that the skinny and pitiful little girl would grow up to be so beautiful now, and her speech and behavior are graceful and elegant. She is wearing a fashionable light yellow dress with the hem of her clothes tucked into her denim skirt and a neat ponytail. She looks particularly free and confident. Everyone was surprised at Jiang Jiang's change for a long time. There is really no way to connect this quiet and beautiful girl with the skinny girl who bit tree bark and grass roots.
At the same time, everyone also noticed the young man standing in the yard. I heard that he came back with Jiang Jiang?
What is the relationship between these two people?
The villagers couldn't help but ask around, and after finding out that he was not Jiang Jiang's lover, they were all disappointed and felt that there were fewer topics for gossip.
It was not until dark that Zhang Yueju tactfully ordered everyone to leave, and the people who had come to watch the fun left one after another.
Old Mrs. Lin did not show any obvious disgust, but she definitely did not like Jiang Jiang either. It was because her son's attitude was too tough and after so many years, she was forced to accept Jiang Jiang as her granddaughter. In fact, Old Mrs. Lin was resentful in her heart. She resented that her son had worked away from home for so many years and had become such a high-ranking official, but had never proposed the idea of taking her in to enjoy a good life.
However, although Old Lady Lin was cold towards Jiang Jiang, she was very warm towards Xie Jinyan. She had heard that this young man's parents were both high-ranking officials in the provincial capital.
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