Jiang Lianyue poured him a cup of tea and another for herself. She slowly drank half her cup before asking, “Do you often go to different villages?”
Xiao Qin nodded. “Yes, sometimes I’m driving Officer Zhou to the countryside, sometimes I’m delivering goods. I go out almost every day.”
“Do you know anywhere besides Nahuan Village where jasmine is grown? I mean large fields of jasmine.”
Xiao Qin thought for a moment, then shook his head with some difficulty. “I only know about Nahuan Village.”
Jiang Lianyue had expected this answer. She remembered clearly that it was not until 1979 that Hengzhou Tea Factory began experimenting with large-scale jasmine cultivation. Asking Xiao Qin was really just an excuse to keep him talking.
“It’s fine. I was just asking casually.”
“I’ll keep an eye out in the future,” Xiao Qin said quickly. “If I see any, I’ll tell you right away.”
Jiang Lianyue smiled. “Alright, then I’ll trouble you.”
After enjoying such a delicious and generous dinner yet being unable to help at all, Xiao Qin felt uneasy. He picked up his teacup awkwardly and took a sip.
Seeing this, Jiang Lianyue lifted the corner of her lips and said, “You’re always out and about. You must know a lot of interesting things, right?”
The author of this book was a complete flop, and many things in the story were never clearly explained. Because the original owner had grown up in poor circumstances, she also knew little about this world. If Jiang Lianyue wanted to open a factory, she needed to understand this world thoroughly.
Her smile was gentle, her tone warm, and Xiao Qin relaxed a great deal.
He really had heard quite a few interesting stories. To make up for being useless earlier, he immediately began talking at length.
While washing the dishes, Zhou Jiajing listened to the laughter and conversation coming from the living room, and his heart felt anything but comfortable.
In the past two days, Jiang Lianyue had not spoken as much to him as she had tonight with Xiao Qin.
When Zhou Jiajing finished washing the dishes and came out, he saw Jiang Lianyue smiling warmly at Xiao Qin, nodding from time to time as he spoke, as if Xiao Qin were a respected teacher and she an eager student.
Zhou Jiajing stood at the kitchen doorway for a while. The two who were speaking with enthusiasm and listening with fascination did not notice him at all.
He coughed lightly, but Jiang Lianyue did not react in the slightest. Xiao Qin turned his head, saw Zhou Jiajing standing at the kitchen door, and quickly stood up. “I haven’t studied much and I’m not good with words. Officer Zhou often goes to the countryside too, and he even studied in the capital. He definitely knows more than I do. Sister-in-law, if there’s anything you want to know, it’s better to ask him.”
Only then did Jiang Lianyue look at Zhou Jiajing.
Zhou Jiajing nodded with reserved composure. “If there’s anything you want to know, you can ask directly.”
Jiang Lianyue narrowed her eyes slightly and looked at Zhou Jiajing intently. After confirming that he was not being perfunctory, she asked, “I want to know how much tea Hengzhou Tea Factory fries each day, where it’s sold, what the domestic tea market is like, and which regions prefer flower tea.”
The more Zhou Jiajing listened, the wider his eyes grew, and the more doubts filled his heart.
No matter how he looked at it, this ‘wife’ of his did not seem like a rural girl with only a junior high education.
These were questions that even he, after three years of work, might not think to ask.
After Jiang Lianyue finished speaking, she tilted her head up and looked steadily at Zhou Jiajing.
Under the gaze of those bright eyes filled with expectation, Zhou Jiajing snapped back to his senses. He cleared his throat and said, “I only know that the white-haired tea produced by Hengzhou Tea Factory is sold all over the country. There isn’t any particular dumping market.”
He felt a little ashamed. A junior high graduate had asked questions he, a college graduate, could not answer. Even the little he could answer was information he had only gathered to send local specialties to his teachers.
After answering, Zhou Jiajing lowered his eyes slightly, his expression somewhat dejected.
Ever since Jiang Lianyue had forced him into marrying her, he had always looked down on this ungrateful village girl. Yet today, again and again, she made him feel that compared to her, he really had nothing to be proud of. He did not know how jasmine was grown, did not know jasmine could be used to make tea, and certainly did not know that jasmine could even be cooked as food.
Jiang Lianyue was not surprised. Information in this era was far from as accessible as it would be later. For Zhou Jiajing to know even this much already meant he was quite knowledgeable.
“I wonder if the tea factory’s technicians know?” Jiang Lianyue frowned slightly in thought.
Hearing this, Zhou Jiajing remembered that she would be meeting the tea factory technicians in Nahuan Village tomorrow. He frowned as well and said, “If you want to know, I can go check materials at the county propaganda office.”
As a well-known publicity officer at the machinery factory, he had contacts with the county propaganda office and could gather quite a bit of information through them.
The county propaganda office? Jiang Lianyue’s eyes lit up. “Can I go with you?”
Zhou Jiajing paused. “I’ll need to ask Officer Liang first.”
Even for him to go check materials there, he needed Officer Liang’s approval.
Jiang Lianyue had no objections and nodded. “That’s only right. I’ll wait for your news.”
The living room fell quiet for a moment. Xiao Qin glanced at the small wall clock, which read nearly eight o’clock, then stood up. “Officer Zhou, Sister-in-law, I should head back. I’ll come pick you up again tomorrow morning.”
Everyone had been running around all day, and Jiang Lianyue felt a bit tired as well. She stood up. “Take care on your way.”
After seeing Xiao Qin off, Jiang Lianyue went into the kitchen, intending to heat water for a bath, only to see an aluminum pot sitting on the stove, blue flames licking beneath it.
She frowned slightly, then silently turned and left the kitchen.
Zhou Jiajing was still in the living room.
“Call me after you’ve finished bathing.”
She tossed out that one sentence and drifted into the bedroom.
Zhou Jiajing looked up, the words he wanted to say sticking in his throat when he saw the closed door.
Fine then. He would use the water himself.
From morning to night, she had hardly stopped moving. Now that she finally relaxed, Jiang Lianyue felt as if her bones were about to fall apart. But after running around all day, she was dusty and did not want to dirty the bed. Looking around the room, the only place she could sit was the chair by the desk. She sighed softly, thinking that living comfortably at a time like this still required effort.
After Zhou Jiajing finished bathing and got dressed, he stood at the bedroom door, hesitated, then knocked. “I’m done.”
After waiting a while with no response, he turned and went to the kitchen to light the stove and heat water.
He had eaten two meals she cooked today. Returning the favor by heating bathwater for her was only right.
When the aluminum pot began to rumble and steam, Zhou Jiajing went to knock on the bedroom door again. This time, after two knocks, there was finally movement inside.
A minute or two later, Jiang Lianyue opened the door, her eyes still carrying traces of sleepiness. “What is it?”
Zhou Jiajing was momentarily stunned by the question. After a long pause, he said, “You told me to call you after I finished bathing.”
Jiang Lianyue blinked, her slightly sluggish, sleepy mind finally starting to work.
Oh, right. She had told him to call her before going back to her room.
“Oh, okay. Thank you,” she said, then closed the door again.
Zhou Jiajing stood blankly at the door for a while, then turned back to the study in frustration.
After Jiang Lianyue gathered her clothes and took them to the bathroom, she carried a bucket to the kitchen and discovered that the water was already heated.
Thinking of Zhou Jiajing’s hesitant expression earlier, she pressed her lips together. She still owed him a thank-you.
The next day, when Jiang Lianyue and the others arrived at Nahuan Village again, Village Head Chen was already waiting at the village office. Sitting across from him was a young man wearing glasses.
“Comrade Jiang and Officer Zhou are here.” Village Head Chen stood up to welcome them, then made introductions. “This is Comrade Jiang I told you about. She has considerable knowledge about jasmine. This is Officer Zhou, a cadre from the county machinery factory, and also Comrade Jiang’s husband.”
Zhou Jiajing was smiling at the bespectacled young man when Village Head Chen introduced him as Jiang Lianyue’s husband. His smile stiffened slightly.
He, the machinery factory’s famous pen, was being introduced to others as ‘Comrade Jiang’s husband’?!
Village Head Chen, who usually took good care of him, did not notice. He turned to Jiang Lianyue and continued, “Comrade Jiang, Officer Zhou, this is Technician Huang Xing from the county tea factory.”
Zhou Jiajing: “……”
Alright. He understood. He was surplus to requirements here.
“I still have an interview task today. I won’t disturb you. I’ll go get to work,” Zhou Jiajing said with a nod, then turned to leave.
After stepping outside, he remembered something and turned back. “We’ll be leaving Nakuan Village at four in the afternoon.”
Jiang Lianyue inclined her head slightly. “I’ll wait at the fork in the road at four.”
Seeing how in sync the couple seemed, Village Head Chen smiled and teased, “Newlyweds really are different. Such good rapport.”
Jiang Lianyue smiled but did not respond.
Zhou Jiajing felt his ears warm slightly. He glanced quietly at Jiang Lianyue, saw her calm expression, and his mind cleared at once. Right, they were only husband and wife in name.
He tugged the corner of his lips faintly at Village Head Chen and turned to leave.
Village Head Chen’s teasing received no response. Assuming the young couple were just shy, he did not mind and turned back to Huang Xing. “Comrade Jiang told me yesterday that jasmine flowers can be stir-fried and eaten directly. That really opened my eyes. Even someone like me, who doesn’t care much about food, is starting to look forward to eating jasmine.”
Huang Xing looked at Jiang Lianyue in surprise. “Jasmine can be eaten as a dish?”
“Yes,” Jiang Lianyue nodded. “There are many ways to prepare it. You can stir-fry it, deep-fry it, or make it into desserts.”
“If the factory director knew jasmine could be used this way, he’d definitely be delighted,” Huang Xing said.
He knew exactly how much effort the factory director had put into persuading the factory to plant jasmine. If the director learned that jasmine could be used not only for tea but also in cooking, how happy he would be. It would be one more reason to silence those who opposed planting jasmine.
This was exactly what Jiang Lianyue was waiting for. She quickly continued along his line of thought. “If your factory director knew jasmine could also be made into pastries, he’d be even happier. And once old jasmine plants need to be dug up and renewed, they can be transplanted into pots and sold to people who like bonsai.”
Huang Xing laughed. “That would be great. Nothing would go to waste. We used to think the dug-up jasmine could only be burned as firewood.”
Jiang Lianyue chatted with Huang Xing about the uses of jasmine for half an hour, convincing him completely.
“I came down today to check on the growth of the jasmine,” Huang Xing said. “Last time I was here, I noticed a plot where the leaves had turned yellow. I’m not sure how it’s doing now.” He invited her warmly. “Comrade Jiang, you’re more familiar with jasmine than any of us. Do you have time to come take a look with us?”