Chapter 193 Wandering to the Ends of the World
The red earth was made up of countless small firecrackers strung together into a symmetrical long strip, several meters long. After the fuse was lit, the firecrackers crackled, one rising and the other falling, like boiling water drops splashing into a boiling oil pan, and the sound lasted for a full half minute before stopping.
Zhu Yingning demonstrated how to light the first string of red earth cigarettes.
Chu Jiating watched with great interest and boldly reached out to her to ask for the fire: "I'll do it."
Zhu Yingning stored the fire on a dry branch that Chu Jiating had picked up earlier. She handed the burning branch to her and told her to step away after lighting it to avoid getting her eyes blasted by the exploding firecrackers.
Chu Jiating personally lit the remaining five strings of red firecrackers. She never tired of this noisy game. Every time a firecracker went off, she'd jump in fear, only to quickly step forward and light the next string with gusto.
After setting off all the firecrackers, it was almost noon.
Zhu Yingning pulled over the bicycle parked next to the pavilion and suggested going to the town to eat at a restaurant and buy some food.
Chu Jiating didn't know what she wanted to buy, but the words "eating out" hit her spot. After cleaning up the mess on the ground, she hugged the bamboo basket full of firecracker debris and sat back on the back of the bicycle.
For Zhu Yingning, Chu Jiating was easy to feed because she wasn't picky about food. Ask her what she wanted, and she'd say anything was fine, as long as she was full. To satisfy her need for generous portions, Zhu Yingning packed up two large pork elbows in braised sauce, then went to the dumpling shop and ordered a large portion of 24 dumplings.
"I'll leave it all to you." She pushed the braised pork elbow and dumplings in front of Chu Jiating.
Chu Jiating pushed the bag of pork elbow back and said, "You can have one too."
"I don't like eating braised pork elbow." He pushed it back.
Chu Jiating then put on her gloves and took out the elbow. She asked, "So I really ate it?"
"Eat it."
Zhu Yingning ordered a medium portion of dumplings for herself. After eating and paying the bill, she didn't go for a bike ride. Instead, she took her to a lingerie store and said to the owner, "Boss, I'm looking for some small vests that can be worn by 11 or 12-year-olds."
The shop owner, sitting behind the counter, slurping noodles, bit off a noodle upon hearing this, wiped his mouth hastily with a tissue, and walked over, saying enthusiastically, "Is this for this little girl? Oh, she's so tall and strong, but why is her hair shaved so short? I'll find it for you. What material and color do you want?"
"Cotton, pure cotton." Zhu Yingning answered and turned to ask Chu Jiating, "Jiating, what color do you like?"
Chu Jiating didn't expect that she would bring herself to buy such things. She felt a little awkward and said vaguely, "Whatever."
After saying that, I saw the shop owner take out a bright pink one and quickly declared, "I don't want this color."
"Boss, please find some lighter colors, such as white, gray, light blue, and light yellow. Let her choose. There should be no fancy patterns on them." Considering that Chu Jiating herself doesn't like them, and the quality of summer uniforms in many schools is worrying, if the bra is too dark in color, the color will show through after wearing it, Zhu Yingning added in time.
The owner went back to the warehouse and found a few light-colored vests according to her request, ranging from sizes XS to XL.
"Well..." Chu Jiating asked with her limited knowledge, "Aren't you looking at cup sizes or something?"
"That's for when you're done growing up," the shop owner said cheerfully. "You're still a kid, so you can wear this. It's all elastic, you see, and it won't squeeze you. This sponge pad is sewn shut, so it won't move around, and it's comfortable to wear."
"Oh." Chu Jiating felt even more awkward.
After buying four or five pieces in a row, Zhu Yingning asked her if she wanted to go to the fitting room to try on the pieces to see if they fit her well. She immediately said, "No need." After that, she rolled up the bag, held it tightly in her hand, and looked like she wanted to leave quickly.
Considering that girls of this age would feel inexplicably shy, Zhu Yingning did not force her. After paying the bill, he took her away.
When asked if she wanted to go out and play somewhere else, she shook her head and said no. In her heart, she just wanted to go back quickly and put down the bag and vest.
"Okay, let's go home." Zhu Yingning smiled lightly and got on the bicycle.
On the way back, everything was silent.
At two o'clock in the afternoon, the whole world seemed to be taking a nap, even the wind was still, and the wheat in the wheat field stood upright in clusters, with its tops pointing to the sky.
They rode on the wide asphalt road, with mountains in the distance and the sky behind the mountains, as if they were quietly heading to the end of the world.
Chu Jiating held the bamboo basket and looked down at her short shadow cast under the wheel.
She said to herself, "...You're still okay."
"Ah?" Zhu Yingning, who was riding a bicycle in front, didn't hear clearly for a moment.
Chu Jiating repeated: "I said you are an okay person."
"Oh..." She smiled, "Thank you for the compliment."
She was still able to respond to this, but Chu Jiating's next sentence left her speechless, because she said: "It's much better than the woman who sent me here."
Zhu Yingning was stunned for a moment before realizing that "the woman who sent me here" was referring to Zhu Zhiwei.
She had never expected Chu Jiating to call Zhu Zhiwei "Mom", but she also hadn't expected her feelings of rejection towards Zhu Zhiwei to be so strong. She didn't know what to say for a moment and could only remain silent.
Chu Jiating seemed to have found an opportunity to talk. She rested her chin on the edge of the bamboo basket in her arms and said, "I made up my mind before I came here. As long as you let me understand that woman, as long as you say anything like that, I will not stay here anymore."
She raised the corner of her mouth and smiled bitterly, then cheered up and asked, "Where are you going?"
I thought she would answer whatever, but unexpectedly, Chu Jiating said: "The ends of the earth."
"Wandering?" She hummed softly, "Don't ask me where I come from. My hometown is far away. Why am I wandering? Wandering far away? Wandering..."
The tune of her singing is average, not as ethereal and story-telling as the original singer Qi Yu, but it is better in this situation, in this world, the singing is spread into the wilderness, carrying with it a vast and broad vitality, less sad and more heavy and distant texture.
Chu Jiating turned her head in surprise and glanced at her back: "You also read Sanmao?"
"I read it when I was a kid," Zhu Yingning said with a smile, her eyes curved. "I borrowed it from my teacher. There wasn't much to do in the mountains, so reading became my biggest hobby. When I read 'Stories from the Sahara,' I liked calling 'eating vermicelli' 'eating rain.' And when I read 'How Many Flowers Have Fallen in Dreams,' I felt a sense of melancholy and discomfort, but I couldn't explain why." She tilted her head slightly and asked, "Do you like it too?"
Chu Jiating put her chin back on the bamboo basket and said gloomily, "It's not love, it's envy."
"What do you envy her for?" she asked seriously.
"I envy her the courage to fly away."
**
This was the second day since Zhu Yingning and Chu Jiating met. As she lay in bed to rest that night, she reviewed the entire day's experiences. She felt like she and Chu Jiating had become much more familiar with each other, at least more so than on the first day. She closed her eyes, looking forward to the third day.
**
The third day was Monday. Because she had to go to work, Zhu Yingning had bought breakfast the night before and put it in the refrigerator. When she woke up in the morning, she took the ingredients out of the refrigerator and went to the kitchen to make pancakes. She had thought Chu Jiating would sleep in a little longer, but she had gotten up around the same time. Instead of going to the bathroom to brush her teeth, she squatted in the gutter by the door, brushing her teeth while clucking and teasing the passing chickens.
Zhu Yingning shoveled the cake onto a porcelain plate and was about to call Chu Jiating in to eat when Wen Wenxu suddenly rushed in with an anxious look on his face: "Captain! Something bad has happened!"
"What's wrong?" She quickly put down everything in her hands and signaled Wen Wenxu to speak properly.
Wen Wenxu's face wrinkled like a bitter melon. "I just got a call from the cooperative saying five pigs in the village farm died inexplicably! I asked them if it was swine fever, and the person in charge said it looked more like poisoning, because those pigs were among the first batch fed. They were fine before the feeding, but afterward, they foamed at the mouth and died suddenly. Now other pigs have also eaten that batch of feed, and they're trying to wash their stomachs to see if they can save some of them."
Zhu Yingning's face changed drastically.
Wen Wenxu even wanted to die. He was responsible for patrolling the farm on Monday. If something really happened, both he and the person in charge would be held responsible.
"Have you called the police?" she asked immediately after she calmed down a little.
Wen Wenxu was stunned by her question: "Not yet."
"No matter what, call the police first. If it's really poisoning, this is a very serious incident. No matter what, we must first ensure the safety of people and animals." She quickly grabbed the phone from the dining table and rushed out while giving instructions. "You call the police. You know the situation better. After that, go find Chen Fei and ask her to go to the company's farm to see if they are affected. It would be best if they could check the feed and other things. I'll ask the party secretary and others to go to the village farm to check the situation."
"Yeah, okay!"
Chu Jiating had been listening attentively since Wen Wenxu broke in. When she heard the word "poisoning", which was far from her life and sounded terrifying, the sleepiness in her mind instantly disappeared.
Zhu Yingning hurried over the threshold and, as he passed by her, he didn't forget to tell her, "The cake is in the kitchen. I'm going to take care of something. If you have any problems, go to the Party and Mass Service Center at the village entrance to find Aunt Yanzi."
Chu Jiating nodded while holding the mouthwash cup.
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