Chapter 46 A Top-Tier Item is Still a Top-Tier Item
Chapter Forty-Six: A Top-Tier Item is Still a Top-Tier Item
The next morning, Li Yue lay in bed, having woken up very early, but unwilling to get up.
The person hugging her from behind asked, "Were you tired last night?"
Enjoying being held in his arms and lazing in bed together, Li Yue quietly looked at the curtains and uttered a single word: "Tired."
"How long have you been moving? I've been doing all the work."
Li Yue did not answer.
"You don't need to go to work today. If you're tired, just stay in bed. I have to get up."
"Don't get up."
He laughed, "It's a holiday, I have to go back to the camp to check on things. I'll be back soon."
She whimpered for a long time before Ling Jianwei was finally able to get out of bed.
After Ling Jianwei drove away, Li Yue packed a few thick clothes that she would never wear again into a bucket, moved a bathtub, and prepared to wash the clothes at the outdoor pool.
When I got there, I found that there were quite a few women doing laundry. The May sunshine was just the right amount of warm. Someone joked, "Why don't you do it at home? It's so much more convenient at home."
Li Yue smiled and said, "It's lively outside, and there are people helping to wring out thick clothes."
"That's true. Soak it in water first, then wash it slowly."
Li Yue filled a bucket with water and poured it onto the clothes in the bathtub.
Someone asked Li Yue, "How are things going at the Ru porcelain factory?"
"It's alright, it's passable."
Are you learning to make porcelain?
"Yes."
"I heard your factory is doing quite well. The country has assigned it a task to restore Ru porcelain production."
"Yes, the major porcelain brands have all resumed production."
As they chatted, Xu Lamei came over carrying a large bucket of clothes. Then another sister-in-law started gossiping about her sister-in-law: "Was Xue Lian on a blind date the day before yesterday? How did it go?"
Xu Lamei said, "I dare not interfere in her affairs now. She went with an older woman from her workplace, and I have never met her."
"I see. At least she'll work hard at her job before her older sister will take her on blind dates."
"It was probably just a coincidence."
Despite what Xu Lamei said, after Li Yue finished washing the clothes and hung them out to dry on the clothesline, she returned home and was about to draw something when Xu Lamei's voice rang out from outside.
She was chatting with her neighbor Li Jinqiu and playing with the child. A little while later, Xu Lamei brought Li Jinqiu's second child, a three-year-old girl, to Li Yue's door. She glanced inside and said, "Little Li, are you getting ready to draw?"
Li Yue was moving an easel when she glanced at her and said, "Yes, sister-in-law, come in and sit down."
Xu Lamei used the child as an excuse to say, "Come and see your Aunt Li painting. She paints very well."
Li Yue set up her easel, smiled at the other person, stopped what she was doing, brought out a plate of melon seeds, and was about to pour water: "Sister-in-law, have some melon seeds."
"No need to be so polite. I've never been to your house before, I just stopped by today," Xu Lamei said.
In the original book, Xu Lamei is the kind of down-to-earth military wife who lives a simple life. In addition to taking care of her children, she also works as a logistics staff member in a nearby unit.
But Li Yue had a feeling that something must be wrong since she was coming today.
Sure enough, after sitting for a while, Xu Lamei said, "You just heard about my sister-in-law going on a blind date, right?"
Li Yue nodded: "Yes, I heard you."
"There were too many people around, so I didn't say much. Now that there are fewer people, I'll tell you the truth. To be honest, the person she's dating is your factory manager's son."
Seeing Xu Lamei's frankness, Li Yue stopped beating around the bush and replied, "Yes, I know."
You know?
"I know, Deputy Factory Director Lin asked me about snow lotus."
Xu Lamei was surprised: "Really? What did you say?"
Li Yue recounted what happened yesterday, adding, "But I really don't know Xue Lian. I haven't spoken to her much, so I said I don't know her very well. However, she is quite good-looking."
"Sigh, what's the use of being good-looking? She's just relying on her looks to be so picky. She's gotten so picky that she's getting dizzy. I heard that the guy she's dating is quite talented, so I'm hoping they'll get together."
At this point, Xu Lamei lowered her voice: "So, what kind of person is Xiao Lin?"
Li Yue could only say, "His appearance is also acceptable, and the two of them are a good match in age and looks. However, Deputy Factory Director Lin usually works at the retail store and often travels on business to promote sales. When he comes back to the factory, he stays in the office. I am currently studying in the workshop, so I have never had any dealings with him. But I think he must be quite resourceful, otherwise he wouldn't be able to do sales work."
Although Lin Chunlai's appearance cannot compare to Ling Jianwei's, he is indeed good-looking and comes from a good family.
As for his character, as the saying goes, you can't see into someone's heart, and you can't judge a person's character at a glance. However, she vaguely heard Sister Li gossip that the factory director was quite cunning, taking all the credit for restoring Ru porcelain for himself, and also helping his son to become the deputy factory director.
Another thing is that when we were restoring the pea-green glaze Ru porcelain, an old craftsman felt that the technique was not up to standard, but the factory manager denied it. Not long after, the manager said that the old craftsman had leaked the formula and fired him.
Therefore, Li Yue didn't have much affection for the factory director. Perhaps it had nothing to do with the deputy factory director, but they were family after all.
Xu Lamei was unaware of these things and could only say, "Yes, to become the deputy factory director, one must certainly have some ability."
Li Yue guessed that her sister-in-law might have some feelings for Lin Chunlai, otherwise her sister-in-law wouldn't have come to inquire. So she asked, "Sister-in-law, is Xue Lian quite satisfied?"
My sister-in-law said, "I don't know if she's satisfied or not, but I didn't hear her complain this time. Maybe she was suppressed by her brother and didn't dare to nitpick anymore."
"I see. If both of you are interested, you should give it a try and see if you get along."
"Yes, my sister-in-law, everyone in the neighborhood thinks she has a very strong personality. If anyone can handle her, I'd be incredibly grateful."
Li Yue smiled and pushed the water glass towards Xu Lamei: "Sister-in-law, have some water."
"I'm not drinking anymore. I just came to check on things. I'll visit my sister-in-law another day. I won't disturb your painting."
"Okay, take care, sister-in-law."
After seeing her sister-in-law off, Li Yue sat in front of the easel and casually sketched a still life of the kettle in her home. She then went to the cafeteria for lunch.
It's the lean season now, and the newly planted vegetables haven't grown yet. The canteen staff sprouted bean sprouts and cooked some stored winter melon. Besides these two dishes, there was also rice and steamed cornbread.
After finishing her meal, Li Yue went to the nearest market in the afternoon as Ling Jianwei had instructed. She bought a piece of pork and some dried tofu. She also bought a pound of early-ripening plums from someone she saw selling.
Plums are very sour, but they're not bad for satisfying a craving.
After Ling Jianwei returned, she made stir-fried dried tofu with pork and cooked a seaweed and egg soup for dinner. Fearing that she might not have enough food for tomorrow, she also fried an egg for her.
When the dishes were cooked and served, Li Yue was biting into a plum, which was so sour that she grimaced.
The man shook his head: "If you can't eat sour food, then don't eat it, or you'll complain of toothache again later."
"It'll be fine once the sourness wears off."
During the meal, Ling Jianwei said, "We're going on a field training exercise in a few days."
Li Yue looked at him: "When?"
"It's estimated to be in the middle to late part of the month."
How many days will you be gone?
"Three days."
Where are you staying?
"Stay put and camp."
Li Yue nodded: "That's quite interesting too."
"We're not going out to play, we're going to train."
"..."
Thinking that there was still a long time to go, Li Yue didn't care and continued to go to work and come home these days.
Before they knew it, it was mid-May. One day, they heard from well-informed Sister Li that "Deputy Factory Director Lin has found a girlfriend, and she's from your family compound."
Li Yue: "Are they really together?"
"You knew all along?"
Li Yue could only say, "I know they went on blind dates, but I don't know how things went afterward, so I didn't say anything."
Sister Li said, "It seems like we're destined to meet. I also heard that the girl is going to work at our factory."
"No way!" Li Yue's eyes widened. "This is so boring."
She asked, "What position?"
"He's just a manager, the two of them are already engaged."
"So fast." Li Yue exclaimed in surprise.
"No rush, it's an efficient era now. If you like someone, you decide on the deal immediately," Sister Li said softly. "I heard she's quite pretty? What's her name?"
Li Yue smiled faintly and replied, "Her name is Zhong Xuelian, and she is quite good-looking."
Two days later, Zhong Xuelian indeed entered the factory and went directly to the Ru porcelain restoration office to be in charge of liaison work.
Upon hearing this news, Li Yue frowned slightly, a bad premonition creeping over her.
Sister Li continued, "It's a very easy job. There's basically nothing to do. At most, she'll greet people when they come to inspect. Unlike you, she's not a skilled worker. Look at the vase you made on the potter's wheel last time, it was so beautiful."
"Also, I saw her just now too." Sister Li shook her head. "Although she is somewhat pretty, she is far inferior to you."
Li Yue said dryly, "Let's not talk about this anymore, let's get to work."
Unexpectedly, in the afternoon, Zhong Xuelian specifically sought out Li Yue, who was learning quality inspection from her mentor in the workshop, and said to her, "Li Yue, we can go to and from get off work together from now on."
Li Yue: "You came by bike, right?"
"Yeah, it took me about forty minutes to ride. How about you?"
"I take the bus."
"There's no direct bus. How about I give you a ride?"
Li Yue wasn't sure about her sister-in-law's personality. After all, this girl had some quirks, but maybe she wasn't a bad person at heart? But if she wasn't a bad person, why would she have thought of clinging to Ling Jianwei in the first place?
She smiled and said, "No need, no need. There's a bumpy section of the road with an uphill section, and it's not easy for you to ride. I'll just take the bus."
Zhong Xuelian: "Then let's see what you're doing now?"
"Learning about quality inspection."
Zhong Xuelian nodded: "Then I won't bother you any longer."
...
After returning home, he mentioned this to Ling Jianwei.
He asked, "Do you mind if she works in your factory?"
Li Yue shook her head: "It's not that I mind."
Ling Jianwei comforted her, "Now that their relationship is settled, she will marry him sooner or later. She won't always be walking to and from work with you. Just focus on doing your job well."
Li Yue nodded.
She couldn't quite explain it, but the longer she stayed in the factory and heard about what the factory director's family did, the more she felt that Ru porcelain had become a tool for them to gain fame and fortune, and now there was another Zhong Xuelian...
Because they were going on a field training exercise the next day, Ling Jianwei was a bit too vigorous when they went to sleep. Later, he held her, wiped the sweat from her forehead, and instructed her, "Remember to close the doors and windows when you're home alone tonight. I should be back around Saturday night."
Li Yue readily agreed.
He suddenly hugged her tighter and whispered, "Don't miss me too much."
Li Yue laughed: "I probably won't miss it too much. I'm taking a break right now. You're the one who shouldn't miss me too much."
“You heartless man,” the man nuzzled his chin against her neck. “Of course I’ll miss you. I haven’t been apart from you since we got together.”
After saying that, with a hint of anger, he leaned over and kissed her lips, capturing her tongue in his mouth and playing with it for a long time.
After he left, Li Yue cooked for herself and slept alone. The bed was suddenly half empty, and at first she wasn't used to it, but fortunately she was very tired from work during the day, and after thinking about it, she was able to fall asleep peacefully.
These past few days, the factory has been firing a kiln of flowerpots. Some of the ones with cracks or flaws are considered defective and will be sold by the factory, but at a much lower price, and there are still buyers. Some broken porcelain pieces need to be cleaned out and placed in the factory's waste porcelain pile. Although they cannot be sold, the employees feel that they can take them if they are useful.
On Saturday, during a quality inspection, Li Yue picked up two flowerpots that had broken into several large pieces. She planned to take them home, repair them herself with some cement, and use them to plant some flowers and plants. Sister Li said there was a nursery on the south side of the county, and Li Yue planned to go there to select some flowers and plants after Ling Jianwei returned on Sunday.
When Li Yue finished get off work, she used several ropes to wrap them in newspaper, tied them up, and carried them out of the factory. Zhong Xuelian happened to be there too, and seeing what she was carrying, asked, "What are you carrying?"
Li Yue said, "I'll go back and repair the broken pieces of the flowerpots to use for planting flowers and plants."
Zhong Xuelian: "Can I just bring this home?"
"Sure, I've already asked."
Zhong Xuelian suddenly sneered: "But who knows if it was broken on purpose?"
"A top-notch person is a top-notch person. How could they make such malicious speculations?" Li Yue was dumbfounded and immediately retorted, "Master Wang knows. I asked him."
Wang Yuanshan happened to be nearby and chimed in, "They are indeed broken porcelain pieces from the firing process. If you like any of the broken pieces from the factory, you can take them home and repair them."
Zhong Xuelian was rebuffed and glared at Master Wang: "No need, I'll use a new one."
After saying that, he rolled his eyes, mounted his bicycle, and rode away.
Li Yue and Wang Yuanshan exchanged a glance, their feelings becoming even more complicated.
She hadn't expected Wang Yuanshan to stand up for her against the factory director's prospective daughter-in-law, but as they spent more time together, she came to regard him as her mentor. She knew he was straightforward and had vaguely heard that he was originally in the Ru porcelain restoration team, but was sent to the workshop because he spoke up for the old craftsman who had been dismissed. He was promoted to team leader a few years later.
Li Yue murmured, "Master."
Wang Yuanshan smiled gently: "I'm home, it's no big deal."
Despite this, Li Yue was in a very bad mood due to being unjustly questioned.
Ling Jianwei said he should be back tonight, but when Li Yue returned home, no one was home. Bored, she looked at the broken flowerpot pieces and couldn't help but try to piece them back together.
They had some cement left over from renovating their little house last time. Li Yue mixed cement paste, put on gloves, and used it to seal the flower pots, which were then left to dry outside.
After washing up, it was past ten o'clock, and Ling Jianwei still hadn't returned. Li Yue could only lock the door and go to sleep.
In a daze, someone knocked on the window: "Yueyue, Yueyue, I'm back."
Li Yue woke up, turned on the light, got out of bed, and then drew back the curtains.
Through the glass, the warm orange light from inside shone on Ling Jianwei's face, and the man's eyes were full of tenderness: "I'm back, open the door for me."
The moment Li Yue opened the door, she jumped onto him, her arms tightly wrapped around his neck.
He held her tightly, his voice weary: "It seems you missed me a lot."
Li Yue's eyes suddenly welled up with tears, and she wiped them away, saying, "No, I wasn't thinking about you at all."
_
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