Yan Jie drove the tractor and worked in the field for more than two hours, cultivating nearly a dozen acres of land.
He got out of the driver's seat, parched with thirst, and saw Jiang Hexi nestled under the banyan tree, secretly taking a nap against the trunk.
He walked over, picked up a bottle of water, and gulped it down. After quenching his thirst, he urged her on.
"Jiang Hexi, it's your turn to plow the field."
Jiang Hexi woke up with a thud and looked up to meet that sweaty face.
His deep eyes were as vast and unfathomable as an endless ocean, concealing turbulent emotions. She stood up guiltily.
"You get some rest, I'll take care of the rest."
Yan Jie sat under the banyan tree to enjoy the cool shade, watching with eager anticipation as she finished plowing the rest of the land, but his brows furrowed more and more.
Not only is the tractor moving at a snail's pace, but the movement is also not a straight line.
Watching her plow the land was like slowly grinding him to death with a dull knife.
Yan Jie walked to the edge of the field, told her to stop the car, and then sat neatly in the passenger seat. While fastening his seatbelt, he said, "You drive your car, don't worry about me."
Jiang Hexi pressed the clutch, turned the key to start the engine, adjusted the throttle and gear, released the parking brake, and then slowly released the clutch, driving the tractor forward at a snail's pace.
Yan Jie waited until the tractor started moving before he began to speak to her:
"Why do you use so many tricks when you start?"
"Is there?"
"Why are you fiddling around with the gearshift lever while adjusting the throttle?"
Yan Jie corrected her mistakes one by one, "Can't you start the movement in one smooth motion? What are you thinking about, getting stuck there for so long?"
Jiang Hexi hates having others give her instructions while driving, and she retorted:
"It doesn't matter if it's a white cat or a black cat, as long as it catches mice, it's a good cat. I've made a successful start, so you can't say anything about me."
Yan Jie didn't refute her. He looked ahead with a stern expression and said, "Upgrade the speed to level II."
"The speed is too fast, I'm afraid I won't be able to drive in a straight line."
"Even in I gear, you don't seem to move in a straight line."
Jiang Hexi, feeling humiliated by his ruthless rebuke, silently increased the speed to gear II.
Yan Jie discovered that she was right-handed and always habitually turned the steering wheel to the right when driving, finally understanding why she couldn't drive in a straight line.
"Turn the steering wheel 15 degrees to the left."
“That would be too far off. My windshield wipers are right in the middle of the tree trunk in front of me, perfectly aligned.”
"Should I listen to you or me?"
Yan Jie lowered his eyebrows, and Jiang Hexi immediately felt the intense pressure from the "coach".
When it comes to driving, she admits that she is not a very principled person, otherwise she would not have passed the tractor driving test on the first try.
She obediently turned the steering wheel fifteen degrees to the left. After all, he was a race car driver with considerable experience, and whatever he said went.
Seeing that she was so "adaptable", Yan Jie left the driver's seat and went to cool off under a tree. He then used a walkie-talkie to give her remote guidance and finally saw her drive the tractor in a straight line.
Before 10 a.m., the two of them had finished plowing 30 mu of land and finished work early.
Jiang Hexi couldn't hide her joy.
Although Yan Jie is a sharp-tongued and cunning person, working with him means she can eat well, drink well, and sleep well. He protects her with his abilities, so overall, she is quite satisfied with this partner.
Yan Jie drove his tricycle, enjoying the breeze all the way back to another piece of farmland.
After three days of adjustment, the efficiency of the five people working together has significantly improved.
They had a clear division of labor: Chu Yang knocked on the basin to collect chickens, Yu Xiangwan and Shen Yingyu scattered grains separately, and Yan Jie and Jiang Hexi went up the mountain to collect eggs. In the afternoon, they even found three tractors to work at the same time, and they finished plowing 120 acres of land in less than six o'clock.
The village chief called them to stop working one by one, asking with concern, "How was it? Were you tired from working?"
Jiang Hexi squatted by the stream washing her face, mumbling as she replied, "I'm really tired, but the thought of going back to bed and doing nothing after work makes me feel alive again."
"Young people shouldn't just give up and slack off all the time."
The village chief couldn't help but say a few words to her: "Do you still remember those three acres of orchard on the mountain? The peaches on the trees are ripe. Since we finished work early today, I'll take you up the mountain to pick peaches."
Jiang Hexi was so exhausted that she was like a lump of mud, and no amount of help could lift her up: "Village Chief, another day."
"When is 'another day'?"
The village chief lectured her: "During the busy farming season, even taking a breath is a sin. There's no time for you to relax."
Chu Yang was exhausted, so he suggested, "Village Chief, how about we skip plowing tomorrow and go pick peaches instead?"
These words directly offended the village chief, who immediately launched into a tirade against Chu Yang:
"Next month is the rainy season. If we don't plant the wheat now, we can forget about the whole year's harvest!"
"The peaches have to be picked when they're ripe, otherwise they'll all rot if they fall to the ground. How are you going to get a good price then? Farmers depend on the weather for their livelihood, so you all have to persevere no matter how hard or tiring it is!"
The village chief drove a tricycle with five people to the orchard, and no one spoke a word along the way.
He glanced in the rearview mirror and saw them all slumped exhausted in the car. Suddenly, he regretted scolding them and tried to make amends:
"The peaches in the orchard won't ripen all at once, so picking them won't take long. You can just pick the ones that are about to fall off the ground."
He listened guiltily to the sounds behind him, and seeing that no one was paying attention to him, he softened again and said:
"It's okay to pick these peaches the next day. Just work hard tomorrow and try to finish early, then you can go back and let them rot."
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