Chapter 19, what are you recording? Turn it off!
After the exam, everyone returned to the production crew.
As soon as they arrived at the production crew's location, Shen Yingying and the others greeted them and asked, "How did the exam go? Did you pass?"
Gu Qingke smiled and answered in a relaxed tone, "Passed."
Qiu Nan looked at Lin Lang and said in a low voice, "I haven't."
Lin Lang was stunned for a moment, then immediately stepped forward and took her hand, gently comforting her, "It's okay, but it's alright. I know you're afraid of heights. Actually, I'm quite glad you didn't pass, otherwise you would panic every time you go up, and that would make me even more worried."
Qiu Nan smiled slightly and gently patted the back of her hand.
Seeing that Qiu Nan hadn't passed, Wu Xiaojia wondered to herself: Could Su Tangtang have failed too? With a hint of curiosity, she turned to Su Tangtang and asked, "What about you? Did you pass?"
Su Tangtang smiled and waved the report card in front of her. "You passed."
Wu Xiaojia was speechless. Her original intention to kick him was thwarted. She felt a surge of anger and thought that God was really unfair. Why did God always favor Su Tangtang?
Hearing that Su Tangtang had passed the test, Shen Yingying felt uneasy.
She regretted not insisting on taking the exam back then. Even without actually harvesting wheat, just getting a combine harvester certificate would have gained her a lot of fans. Why was she so easily persuaded by Gu Qingke?
Zhou Yan was genuinely happy for Su Tangtang, and said with a smile, "Tangtang, you're amazing!"
Su Tangtang smiled shyly.
Lin Lang gave her a thumbs up, and the two smiled at each other.
In the evening, the production team prepared a sumptuous dinner to celebrate everyone passing the exam. During the meal, Gu Qingke raised her glass and said to everyone, "I have to leave for a few days tomorrow. Please take good care of my Yingying while I'm gone."
Zhao Zhiyi was the first to respond, raising his glass and saying, "We're all on the same side, of course we will."
The others also raised their glasses, and although they didn't say much, the atmosphere was quite harmonious.
Shen Yingying felt a little bitter, but Gu Qingke's departure was a foregone conclusion, so she could only silently accept the arrangement.
-
The vegetables planted in the field had been sprayed with pesticides. After breakfast the next day, everyone gathered at the program crew's accommodation on time. The girls' group went to the weaving factory to continue learning, while the boys' group went to the construction site to move bricks.
When Su Tangtang and her group arrived at the weaving factory, it was already 8:30 in the morning.
After nearly half a month of learning, everyone has been able to weave cloth independently, but the speed is still relatively slow.
"You've arrived!" their instructor greeted them warmly upon seeing them.
Su Tangtang replied with a smile, "Yes, Master."
After a few brief pleasantries, everyone got down to work.
The group was arranged to work in the same room, which made it convenient for the instructor to provide concentrated guidance and for the photographer to follow up with the shots.
Having not touched a loom for a few days, Su Tangtang's touch was a little rusty. After a little recollection and practice, she quickly regained her composure and started knitting quite skillfully.
Her progress was going smoothly, but things weren't going so well for Shen Yingying and Wu Xiaojia.
They hadn't studied it very well before, and after a few days without practice, they had almost forgotten everything. The originally neat lines of latitude and longitude were soon turned into a mess by them.
The master had no choice but to step forward and explain and demonstrate again.
Wu Xiaojia said somewhat irritably, "It's so difficult, I really don't want to do it anymore."
Shen Yingying echoed in a low voice, "I also think it's too difficult."
As she spoke, she glanced at Su Tangtang and saw that her movements were smooth and skillful, almost indistinguishable from those of a master, except that she was a little slower.
Compared to the chaos before her, she felt terrible and couldn't even hear her master's explanation.
"Have you mastered it?" the master asked finally.
Wu Xiaojia nodded, "It should be fine. I'll try it first and won't ask you again."
The master then looked at Shen Yingying, "And you?"
But there was no response.
Wu Xiaojia nudged her arm, and Shen Yingying finally snapped out of her daze.
"What's wrong? Why are you spacing out?" Wu Xiaojia teased softly, "Missing your Gu Qingke?"
Shen Yingying's face flushed. "Don't talk nonsense, it's not true."
"What time did Gu Qingke leave?"
"Four o'clock in the morning."
"Oh, that's pretty early."
Seeing the two women chatting so enthusiastically, the driver, feeling slightly embarrassed, could only say, "If you don't understand something, just ask me again."
Shen Yingying quickly replied, "Okay, thank you, Master."
Zhou Yan glanced at them silently.
Since their falling out, she has made up her mind that unless Wu Xiaojia and the others apologize, she will not take the initiative to talk to them again until the end of the show.
The master craftsman patrolled back and forth in the loom room.
When he walked over to Zhou Yan and Lin Lang, he nodded in approval, "Not bad, but the speed is still a bit slow. You should try to increase the speed after you get used to it."
Lin Lang smiled and replied, "Okay."
Zhou Yan smiled and said, "I know, Master."
The master then turned to Su Tangtang.
In just a short while, she had already woven a small section, and the fabric was smooth with clear texture.
The master nodded in satisfaction, "Little girl, you knitted really well, both well and quickly! You've graduated now, keep up the good work!"
Upon hearing this, Su Tangtang's face lit up with a smile. "Really, Master? That's wonderful! I'll do my best!"
Hearing Su Tangtang being praised, Shen Yingying and Wu Xiaojia felt even more resentful.
Wu Xiaojia was particularly indignant. On one hand, she was thinking about how to ruin Su Tangtang's hard work without being discovered or photographed by the photographer. On the other hand, she was determined to surpass Su Tangtang, and her hands moved faster!
Before long, the ball of yarn had become completely knotted. The more anxious she became, the more confused she got, and the more confused she got, the angrier she became. She felt wronged and wanted to throw down the shuttle and leave.
Fortunately, reason prevailed over emotion.
-
May has arrived. Although the mornings are still a bit chilly, the weather gets noticeably hot by noon.
Huo Yizhou and his companions were covered in sweat, their clothes soaked through.
Zhao Zhiyi simply abandoned his task and sat down in the shade, watching the others work.
The photographer awkwardly pointed the lens at him.
Zhao Zhiyi waved his hand impatiently, "What are you recording for? Turn it off!"
However, the photographer ignored his request, and Zhao had no choice but to let the camera continue recording.
Qiu Nan sighed softly.
As Qu Xian worked, he muttered to himself, "A man like him is hopeless."
Qiu Nan smiled and agreed, "Indeed."
Qu Xianwang looked at the house frame that was beginning to take shape, and then said, "But watching this house being built little by little, I feel a strange sense of accomplishment."
Qiu Nan wiped his sweat and echoed, "Yes, although we mainly just move bricks and mix cement and don't participate in the actual architectural design, it makes us very happy to see it getting taller every day."
Qu Xian nodded, then looked at Huo Yizhou, who had been working silently and diligently. Everyone would take a break at some point, but he had hardly stopped. "Yizhou, do you want to take a break?" Qu Xian asked.
Huo Yizhou looked up at the sound, "It's nothing."
Building a house is a first for most of them, but he found it particularly interesting and even had the idea of learning how to build walls from the masters.
Qu Xian looked at him and smiled.
In fact, he had a good impression of Huo Yizhou. Compared to Gu Qingke, who was somewhat pretentious and seemed a bit "pretentious," Huo Yizhou was down-to-earth and seemed genuine and full of energy.
It's actually a good thing that Su Tangtang was able to give up Gu Qingke and be with Huo Yizhou.
-
At 5:30 p.m., everyone who had been busy all day finally finished work and returned to their respective residences.
As soon as Su Tangtang entered the room, she collapsed onto the bed, groaning weakly, "So tired and hungry..."
Upon hearing this, Huo Yizhou said, "I'll go cook."
Su Tangtang gave a soft "Mmm," then propped herself up. "I'll go with you."
She walked into the main room and met his gaze.
Huo Yizhou raised an eyebrow slightly, "Weren't you too tired to move?"
Su Tangtang sighed, "You do much more work than I do. Besides, how can one person manage to both light the fire and cook?"
"It's alright," Huo Yizhou chuckled, "The photographer will help."
Su Tangtang paused for a moment, then shook her head, "Never mind, we can't keep bothering the photographer."
"They eat too."
Su Tangtang thought for a moment and then exclaimed, "Oh right!" She subconsciously looked at the photographer in the courtyard, but he immediately turned his head away and pretended to look at the sky.
Su Tangtang couldn't help but laugh out loud.
The two went into the kitchen together; one washed the vegetables, the other pumped water, their teamwork was seamless.
The scene is warm and natural under the not-too-bright lighting.
Division of labor was indeed much faster, and the dishes were ready in no time. Huo Yizhou naturally sat down in front of the stove to start a fire, while Su Tangtang picked up the spatula to stir-fry the dishes.
The kitchen ventilation wasn't very good. Once the fire was lit, smoke would quickly fill the air, making people cough and their eyes water uncontrollably. Su Tangtang would run out every time she was choked by the smoke, only to rush back to continue cooking once the smoke had dissipated a bit.
Tonight they made braised pork and cabbage with glass noodles and stir-fried zucchini with eggs, both simple yet hearty home-style dishes. In just one hour, the steaming hot and fragrant food was ready.
By this time, it was completely dark.
Su Tangtang served each of the two photographers a bowl of rice, and then sat down with Huo Yizhou in the courtyard to eat by the light.
"Your cooking skills are getting better and better!" Huo Yizhou said earnestly after taking a bite.
Su Tangtang's eyes crinkled with laughter. "Thank you for the compliment, big brother!"
Huo Yizhou's lips curled up slightly.
He had eaten countless delicacies, but none of them could compare to the simple taste of Su Tangtang's home cooking. He even felt that she had spoiled his palate.
“Food cooked in an earthenware pot is just so much more fragrant,” Su Tangtang said, her eyes sparkling. Suddenly, she turned her head and suggested, “Hey, how about we buy a chicken tomorrow?”
Huo Yizhou nodded almost without thinking, a smile unconsciously spreading across his face. "Okay."
“We can make braised chicken in a clay pot,” Su Tangtang said, getting more and more excited, her words even faster. “This clay pot is practically made for braised chicken! It will definitely be incredibly flavorful. We can also buy some cornmeal to make flatbreads. The flatbreads will be half-crispy and half-soft, the chicken will be fragrant, and the broth will be reduced to just the right consistency…”
She spoke with great enthusiasm, gesturing with her fingers as if the steaming pot of chicken was already in front of her.
Looking at her bright eyes and cheerful expression, Huo Yizhou felt a gentle tremor in his heart, and an indescribable tenderness quietly spread through him.
He laughed along, his voice low, "Based on your description, I really want to eat it now."
Su Tangtang smiled, her eyes crinkling and her lips curving upwards. "Now that you mention it, I really want to eat it."
She suddenly leaned closer, her faint fragrance wafting over him, and looked at him eagerly, suggesting, "How about we go buy a chicken now?"
Huo Yizhou: "..."
His expression clearly paused for a moment.
Her eyes blinked rapidly, and with her beautiful face so close to his, Huo Yizhou's heart skipped a beat.
Seeing his stunned expression, Su Tangtang finally couldn't help but laugh out loud. "I was just kidding. Besides, it's so late, no one will be open."
The longer she spent time with Huo Yizhou, the more she realized that he wasn't difficult to approach.
Although he didn't talk much, he would occasionally blurt out a joke or two out of the blue, and he would also retort without hesitation when she rambled on about trivial things. He was nothing like the cold and boring person described in the original novel, who was like someone who operated according to a set procedure.
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