Chapter 19
At night, Jiang Yao waited until 9:30 in the evening before Lu Che knocked on her door.
That’s right, these days, 9:30 is definitely late at night.
In order to cover up her mistake, she blew out the kerosene lamp and pretended to be asleep when she heard any movement at the gate of the yard.
When she heard the "dong dong" sound, she slowly got up. When she came out to open the door, she was yawning, as if she had been woken up.
"Are you sleepy?" Lu Che asked.
"Of course." Jiang Yao muttered, "I was woken up by you. You shouldn't have come to see me so late."
"Really? If I don't come to see you, you won't be able to sleep tonight." Lu Che looked at her with raised eyebrows.
Jiang Yao pretended to be calm and argued, "I fell asleep at eight o'clock."
"Eight o'clock? How come your voice is still so clear after sleeping for almost two hours?"
"..." Jiang Yao refused to admit it after being exposed, and said stubbornly: "If you have something to say, just say it. If not, go back quickly."
"Of course I have something to say." Lu Che said, and handed a dollar to Jiang Yao.
"Another piece?" Jiang Yao was surprised. "You are making money as fast as a train now. Is this given by the production team?"
Lu Che nodded: "Xia Shui found me after asking Qianjin, so the reward must be the same. There are also 20 eggs. I will take 10 to the production team to record the centimeters tomorrow. Oh, and a bunch of bananas, which are given to you by the duck farmer's mother."
"Mother Lin? How did you suddenly run into her?"
"I was passing through Shangshui on my way back from Xiashui and happened to see her secretly burning paper to pray for the duck farmer at the door. She recognized me and stuffed a bunch of bananas in my hand and asked me to bring them to you, saying thank you for helping to find the real culprit."
"I see." Jiang Yao said, "That's strange. How did Mother Lin recognize you? Sister Qing and I went to Lin's house that day, but she didn't even know who we were."
"What's so strange about recognizing me? I'm a celebrity in this area." Lu Che said proudly.
Jiang Yao couldn't help but roll her eyes when she heard this. "You're a notorious troublemaker, and you're still honored to be in his place?"
"What's wrong with the prick? He still has a girlfriend, and a very beautiful one at that."
As soon as he finished speaking, Jiang Yao had already pulled him into her arms. Seeing that he was about to kiss her, Jiang Yao quickly blocked his chest with her hands, "Let me go first, I need to put the money away."
Anyway, she couldn't run away tonight, so Lu Che was not in a hurry and let go of her hand.
Jiang Yao took out a small tin can from the closet, opened it in front of Lu Che, put the one dollar he had just received into it, and said, "These are all given to me by you."
Lu Che looked inside the tin and saw two one-dollar bills and three one-cent bills, which he gave her today.
“Why put it separately and not with your own small treasury?” Lu Che frowned slightly.
Jiang Yao said as a matter of course: "If you put it separately, you don't need to keep an account. If we break up in the future, I can just give you this tin can..."
Before she could finish her words, she felt a burning gaze falling on her head. As soon as she raised her head, she was pressed into his arms, and the next moment, her lips became hot.
Gou Jian’s kissing skills were already terrible to begin with, and when he started going “crazy”, Jiang Yao felt like her lips were going to be bitten off.
After biting her, he still wasn't satisfied. He stared at her with gritted teeth and said, "If you dare to say the word 'break up' again, I will teach you a lesson until you dare not say it again."
"...Are you threatening me now?" Lawyer Jiang said unhappily.
"No." Lu Che's face turned aggrieved in an instant, "Although I look fierce and good at fighting, I am actually very innocent. Please don't play with my feelings."
“…”
He forcefully kissed her before they even confirmed their relationship. Is this still pure love? Pure love shouldn't make her blush and shy and not dare to look her in the eye. Shouldn't he even hold her hand the day after they confirmed their relationship?
The next day, Chunqing Da Lao got up at four in the morning and trotted to the county town to collect firewood for the factory canteen to earn money.
Seeing how diligent and hard-working he was, Jiang Yao decided not to be too lazy either. She got up early and used the eggs he had earned in the past two days, glutinous rice flour and shallots to make several large egg and shallot pancakes.
Since not a drop of water is added, the pancake egg is full of fragrance, and just smelling it will make people drool.
She sent two large eggs to Lu Qing, who was embarrassed to accept them, but she said, "Lu Che brought the eggs back, so feel free to eat them."
Only then did Lu Qing accept it.
Lu Che still got home around 6:30 in the morning. As soon as he entered the door, he took a shower and washed off the sweat on his body before going to meet his partner.
"Eat quickly." Jiang Yao handed him an egg pancake, and he ate it in big mouthfuls, saying, "I see there's still half of water in your jar. I'll come back at noon to get you some more water."
"Okay." Jiang Yao nodded, but seeing him busy all day long, she couldn't help but feel distressed, "It would be great if we had a well at home."
Lu Che was successfully pleased by her words "our family" and said with a smile: "We have one in our family."
"Where?" Jiang Yao's eyes lit up.
Lu Che: "It's in the vegetable garden. Someone broke in and buried it before. I'll dig it out again after I finish harvesting the sugarcane. When the seeds your brother sent arrive, we'll need more water to irrigate it."
"Great!" Jiang Yao was excited, but she couldn't help but worry, "Will we be discovered?"
"No." Lu Che said, "No one has dared to make trouble for many years, and this well must be dug. If I go to fetch water all day long, people will definitely find out. But even if I have a well in the future, I will have to fetch water every day to make it look good. I can't let anyone know."
Jiang Yao couldn't help but be amazed after hearing this. The boss is indeed a boss. He has planned everything perfectly before doing anything.
After a few days, the sugarcane fields were harvested and the members could take a short break and prepare for the rice planting at the end of September.
Lu Che has not been going to the county town to collect firewood recently. He digs a well at home before going to work every day.
After he had been digging for two days, Jiang Yao estimated that the time was about right, so she went to the county post office to see if Jiang Zhen had sent her the package.
In fact, Lu Che often came to the county town to pick it up for her, but she always returned to Qingyuan before dawn and the post office was not open yet.
She went out at the right time, and when she arrived at the post office, the staff had just opened the door. She didn't have to queue up, she reported her name, and got the package and letter sent by Jiang Zhen as she wished.
The package was not small, and the letter was bulging as usual, so I guess there must be money and tickets inside.
She put the envelope into her cross-body bag and carried the package back. Unexpectedly, she saw Zhao Pengfei as soon as she walked out of the post office.
Zhao Pengfei didn't expect to meet her here. He was surprised at first, but his face quickly darkened.
She never cared about how he treated her, but seeing as he was always so disappointed with her, she felt it was necessary to talk to him.
"Let's go to the state-owned restaurant and have a bowl of noodles." Jiang Yao said.
"...Okay." Zhao Pengfei thought she was going to make sarcastic remarks again, but he didn't expect her to invite him to eat noodles at a state-owned restaurant. He was stunned for a moment and nodded in response.
Walking all the way to the state-owned restaurant, although Zhao Pengfei didn't say anything, his expression eased a lot.
When it was time to pay the bill, he wanted to help Jiang Yao pay, but she refused, "We are just ordinary classmates, it's not appropriate for you to pay for this bill."
"Jiang Yao, you..." Zhao Pengfei's face tightened, and he was interrupted by Jiang Yao before he could finish his words, "Find a place to sit down and talk slowly."
Zhao Pengfei held back his words and waited until he found an empty table to sit down. Before he could speak, Jiang Yao said, "Maybe we had a good relationship when we were in school. Today's noodles will be our farewell dinner. From now on, I will be me and you will be you. We can say hello when we meet on the road, but don't interfere in each other's private affairs."
Zhao Pengfei listened and wanted to refute reflexively, but Jiang Yao did not give him a chance to speak and continued: "We are not children anymore. There are many people in the countryside who get married and become parents at the age of 19 or 20. There should be a limit to the relationship between adult men and women. Especially now that you are dating Du Yuejia, you often interfere with me, which is very bad for my reputation."
The last sentence successfully made Zhao Pengfei's face pale. After a while, he said, "Does it mean that I can't make friends just because I'm dating? Our friendship is very pure."
Pure? Jiang Yao wanted to laugh after hearing this. She said, "Whether you think it's pure or not, as long as I'm in contact with you, I'm not serious and have bad intentions in the eyes of others. I really don't have any improper thoughts about you, so there's no need for me to be criticized by others for the sake of our friendship."
"So... you are planning to not have me as your friend anymore?" Zhao Pengfei said somewhat desolately.
“No.”
Jiang Yao did not hesitate, and did not show any hesitation. Zhao Pengfei knew that what she said was true. He drooped his shoulders a little helplessly, "But I cherish you as a friend."
Jiang Yao listened without any emotion and said, "It's not me as a friend that you should cherish, but your girlfriend Du Yuejia."
"Although I don't have much friendship with her, I want to say a few words for her today. She is your partner, and may be your life partner in the future. You should consider her feelings first before doing anything. As your partner, she must feel how she feels when she sees you often making a fuss over another woman. You can put yourself in her shoes and you will know."
"Also, instead of caring about me, you might as well pay more attention to her. Her sister is not an easy person to deal with, and she is not as harmless as she looks. She might betray her someday."
After Jiang Yao finished speaking, she started eating noodles, leaving Zhao Pengfei sitting opposite her to digest what she said today with mixed feelings.
In fact, she was not such a good person. She gave advice to others about their feelings because she didn't want Zhao Pengfei to bother her again. Also, it would be best if she could use his hand to get rid of Du Yuejiao, the little troublemaker.
She ate with gusto. Zhao Pengfei watched her eat with mixed feelings, but did not touch his own bowl.
Jiang Yao didn't care about him. After finishing the noodles, she got up and left.
As soon as she stood up, Zhao Pengfei stopped her and said, "Um...say sorry to Lu Che for what my cousin did."
"No." Jiang Yao said, "You didn't do this, so you don't have to apologize on their behalf. Besides, if Lu Che knew that I met you, he would probably be jealous."
"..." Zhao Pengfei was stunned for a moment, and suddenly realized something. He asked in disbelief: "You...are with Lu Che?"
"Yes!" Jiang Yao's voice couldn't help but become cheerful, with a bright smile on her face, and said: "Lu Che is my partner now."
“…”
After Jiang Yao finished speaking, she left the state-owned restaurant without looking back.
It was a rare trip out and she had to hurry up early. Jiang Yao went to the supply and marketing cooperative and bought half a pound of pork belly and two pounds of flour. She hadn't eaten steamed buns for a long time. The temperature was easy to ferment now, so she planned to make a meal of meat buns to satisfy her craving.
In addition, she also bought two large bones and prepared to make some bone soup to nourish the body of Boss Lu who worked hard to make money every day.
The morning in mid-August had a hint of autumn, but now that the sun was out, it was hot again. Jiang Yao didn't wander around after leaving the supply and marketing cooperative, but returned to Qingyuan before the sun got too hot.
"Jiang Zhiqing."
Jiang Yao had just left the downtown area of the county town when she heard someone calling her. She turned around and saw that it was Lin's mother.
"Auntie, what a coincidence." Jiang Yao said with a smile.
Mother Lin came forward and smiled at her. Seeing that she was carrying both packages and meat, she asked, "Did you go to the county town to buy things, too?"
Jiang Yao: "Yes, my brother sent me a package and bought some meat."
"I also bought two taels of meat to make soup for Xiaofang to nourish her body." When mentioning her daughter, Lin's mother couldn't help but sigh.
"How is Xiaofang now?" Jiang Yao asked with concern.
"She was in a better mood during the first two days after she learned that the bastard had been arrested. But in the past few days, she has been like before, listless all day long and locking herself in her room." Mother Lin said with tears in her eyes.
"It's not easy to get over it. You family members should spend more time with her and encourage her."
"I know." Mother Lin nodded, then looked at Jiang Yao, seeming to hesitate to speak.
Jiang Yao knew that she had something to say, so she said, "Aunt, just say it."
"Okay." Mother Lin said nervously, "I think Jiang Zhiqing, you are very good at talking. People can't help but believe you. If possible, I would like to ask you to enlighten my daughter."
"His father and I are both bad at talking. We don't know how to tell her."
It was really pitiful that the parents in the world were so loving. There was no reason for Jiang Yao to refuse. She readily agreed: "Okay, let's go to your house now."
"Okay, okay, thank you so much." Lin's mother said excitedly.
Lin Fang learned from Public Security Zhang that Jiang Yao was the key to successfully solving the case, so when she heard that she was coming to see her, she did not resist.
Originally, Lin's mother asked Lin Fang to come out to the main room to receive the guests, but Jiang Yao said, "I'll just go to her room. She feels safer there."
Jiang Yao entered Lin Fang's room, then gently closed the door and greeted her like a friend, "Xiao Fang, how are you feeling recently? Do you feel unwell?"
Lin Fang replied in a low voice: "It's nothing serious, I just feel a little tired."
Jiang Yao: "You are tired because you have been staying in the room for too long. You should go out for a walk. If you are fine, go to work. If you don't want to continue raising ducks, then work in the production team."
When Lin Fang heard about going to work, she immediately became very resistant, "I won't go, I can't go, others will laugh at me."
Jiang Yao had expected this reaction, as she had come across many such cases in her previous life.
Jiang Yao reached out and held Lin Fang's hand, saying, "Xiao Fang, you have to know that this is not your fault. You are the victim. If even your subconscious mind feels that you are too ashamed to face others, how can you get respect from others?"
"You have to remember that you are not the one who did something wrong, and others have no right to point fingers at you. You may not be able to control other people's thoughts and actions, but if someone ridicules you or mocks you, you can bravely confront them."
"Is it really... possible to do this?" Jiang Yao's words were passionate, but Lin Fang still looked confused.
"Of course you can." Jiang Yao said, "You don't have to rush. You can take it step by step and gradually get out of this low point in your life. Your parents can accompany you and protect you, and your friends can comfort you and accompany you, but to really get out of it, you have to rely on yourself."
Lin Fang nodded, not quite understanding, "I'll try my best."
It took Jiang Yao a lot of time to get to Zhao Pengfei and Lin's mother. It was already half past ten when she returned to the Lu family.
She first put the package and cross-body bag back to the room, then went to the kitchen to prepare the ingredients.
There was a winter melon in the kitchen, so she used the ingredients available there to make a winter melon bone soup, then began to chop the meat for the bun filling, and finally kneaded the dough to make the bun skins.
When the noodles were ready, Lu Qing came to find her and said that Jiang Chao came to see him.
"Jiang Chao, is there something you want to talk to me about?" Jiang Yao walked to the door and saw Jiang Chao standing outside...
Jiang Chao smiled and said, "The production team leader came back a few days ago. I went to ask for leave from him and went back to the provincial capital to visit my parents before the busy farming season. If you want to buy anything, I can bring it back for you."
The educated youth in Qingyuan Production Team and even the entire Pingshan Commune were basically from the provincial capital. This place is not far from the provincial capital, just a few hours' drive away. If there is not much work in the team, the production team leader usually agrees that the educated youth can go home to visit their families.
It was a rare opportunity for someone to go to the provincial capital to buy things for her, so Jiang Yao certainly wouldn't miss this opportunity. But when asked to say what she wanted to buy, she was unsure. After all, she wasn't very clear about what was available to buy these days.
"When are you going back? Before that, I'll write down what I want to buy and give it to you," said Jiang Yao.
"The bus will be tomorrow morning." Jiang Chao said, "If you can't decide right away, I'll come back tonight."
"This is too much trouble for you, I can just go there myself."
"Yaoyao, look at what you are saying, let's..."
Before Jiang Chao could finish his words, he was suddenly interrupted by a cold voice, "Did you call Yaoyao?"
Jiang Yao turned her head when she heard the voice, and saw Lu Che walking towards the gate with a menacing look on his face.
When did he come back? How come she didn't know?
Lu Che walked quickly to Jiang Yao's side and said to Jiang Chao unhappily, "She is not familiar with you. You can't call her Yaoyao."
Jiang Chao had always hated and feared Lu Che. He was panicked by his yell. After he came to his senses, he stiffened his neck and said, "Why can't I yell?"
"Who are you to her? Why can you scream?" Lu Che asked instead of answering, and cracked his joints.
Seeing that he was about to hit someone, Jiang Chao immediately became timid and said with trembling lips: "I can't... call you Yaoyao, what can I call you...?"
"Comrade Jiang." Lu Che blurted out.
Jiang Yao: “…”
The author has something to say:
This book is likely to be completed. It is not long and will be completed before August. I will accompany Zhou Zhou during the summer vacation. If you like it, you can follow it.
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