When Zhou Jiajing saw Jiang Lianyue, he paused slightly, then asked after a moment, “Weren’t you going to the market? How did you end up here?”
His gaze shifted from her face to the stick in her hand, and his brows knit faintly.
This narrow path by the woods was usually only used by people heading to the market. Normally, hardly anyone else came by. If something really happened out here, what use would a stick be?
“I’m going to Nahuan Village to take care of something,” Jiang Lianyue replied.
As she spoke, she craned her neck to look behind Zhou Jiajing.
From Xiaoyi Town to here, she’d already been walking for nearly an hour, and her feet were sore. If she could catch a ride…
At that thought, Jiang Lianyue frowned.
Why was she suddenly thinking about Zhou Jiajing’s tractor?
That was a bad habit!
She shook her head hard, tossing the thought aside.
Zhou Jiajing, however, seemed to see right through her and said, “Xiao Tan went to help some villagers haul goods. I just finished an interview and was about to go look for him.”
Jiang Lianyue ignored the trace of disappointment in her heart and nodded. “Alright then, I won’t talk anymore, I need to hurry on.”
She lifted her foot and walked off. After only a few steps, someone followed behind her.
There was only this one road here anyway. If Zhou Jiajing wasn’t heading back to town, then he could only be going toward Nahuan Village. Jiang Lianyue didn’t bother with him and kept her head down, walking briskly.
Perhaps because there was someone she knew behind her, she no longer felt as tense as before. Her mood relaxed, and her steps grew lighter.
When they reached the fork in the road, Jiang Lianyue turned right, following the directions she’d asked about.
The person behind her also turned right. Unable to help herself, she turned back and asked, “Where are you going?”
“Tengshan Village,” Zhou Jiajing replied.
Jiang Lianyue raised her brows. “Tengshan Village is this way too?”
The original owner of this body had lived far from Hengzhou and didn’t know the layout of the villages here. Naturally, Jiang Lianyue didn’t either.
Zhou Jiajing was silent for a moment. “I’ll go to Tengshan Village later.”
Jiang Lianyue stared at his fair face for a good while, then smiled brightly. “Approved!”
Zhou Jiajing: “!”
What kind of nonsense was that?!
Flustered by that dazzling smile, Zhou Jiajing felt oddly uncomfortable and turned his face away.
Clearly, he was kindly escorting her to Nahuan Village, yet he stubbornly refused to admit it. Seeing his awkward, stiff manner, Jiang Lianyue’s smile only grew wider.
After interacting with him over the past two days, she’d discovered that Zhou Jiajing wasn’t as cold-hearted as he was described in the book. On the contrary, there was something adorably awkward about him. She’d even managed to take over the bedroom with just a few words, no matter how she looked at it, he didn’t seem like someone who was indifferent to the original Jiang Lianyue at all!
Zhou Jiajing shot her a glance from the corner of his eye, then strode past her, walking quickly ahead.
Jiang Lianyue followed behind him with the stick in her hand. Watching him march forward as if fleeing something, a ridiculous thought popped into her head, she felt like some soldier forcing an innocent civilian forward. Especially with this stick in her hand, it oddly felt like she was carrying a rifle.
The idea amused her greatly. She slung the stick over her shoulder.
Haha, now it feels even more accurate!
The more she thought about it, the more she couldn’t help but laugh softly.
After walking for a while, Zhou Jiajing began to feel annoyed with himself.
What was wrong with him?
Why was he worried about her being unsafe on a sparsely traveled rural road?
Just two days ago, he’d still been harboring resentment toward her!
The more he thought about it, the angrier he became, at himself.
Then he heard Jiang Lianyue’s cheerful laughter behind him, and his irritation flared even more.
It must be because he’d eaten two of her rolled flatbreads this morning that he couldn’t bear to see her suffer.
Zhou Jiajing thought bitterly, You eat someone’s food, and your mouth grows soft.
From now on, I won’t eat anything she makes ever again!
Each with their own thoughts, they walked for over half an hour before farmland and villagers working the fields gradually came into view.
At this point, Jiang Lianyue stopped letting her thoughts wander. Her bright eyes scanned the surrounding fields with keen interest.
This should be the territory of Nahuan Village. Where were the jasmine fields planted?
With plenty of villagers nearby, she wasn’t worried about encountering bad people anymore. She said to Zhou Jiajing, “Thank you for walking with me this far. You still have work to do, right? I won’t delay you.”
Zhou Jiajing had already made up his mind and talked himself through it. Yet when he heard her trying to send him away, he felt inexplicably uncomfortable.
“Do you know anyone here?” he asked flatly.
Jiang Lianyue shook her head. “No, but with so many people around, I’m not afraid anymore.”
As if to prove she really wasn’t scared, she tossed the stick she’d been holding to the roadside.
Zhou Jiajing: “……”
So she was just kicking him aside now?
He pressed his tongue against his teeth. “I know the village chief of Nahuan Village.”
He’d even come here to do an interview just yesterday.
Jiang Lianyue’s eyes lit up.
Someone in the village, that made things much easier.
She bent down, picked up the stick she’d just thrown away, cleared her throat lightly, and said, “I just remembered, villages might have dogs. I’m actually a little scared of those.”
Zhou Jiajing shot her a sideways glance but didn’t expose her opportunistic switch in attitude. He turned around and continued walking.
If he looked at her any longer, he worried he might roll his eyes.
Upon entering Nahuan Village, Zhou Jiajing led Jiang Lianyue toward the village office with practiced familiarity.
They passed a few children along the way, who stared at them curiously. Jiang Lianyue smiled at them, and they immediately scattered shyly.
Seeing this, the corners of her mouth lifted again.
So simple and honest.
Zhou Jiajing had been paying attention to Jiang Lianyue the whole time. When he saw her smile at the children, he thought to himself, she really loved smiling.
Life wasn’t easy for most people these days. Many wore worried expressions all the time. Someone who smiled as easily as she did was truly rare.
At this hour, as long as people could still work, they wouldn’t be idle. So aside from three or four children, they didn’t encounter anyone else after entering the village.
They stopped in front of two adjoining houses made of mixed mud brick construction. Zhou Jiajing stepped forward and knocked. “Village Chief Chen, are you busy?”
Jiang Lianyue peered inside. A middle-aged man wearing a Zhongshan suit was seated at a wooden desk, writing something. Hearing the call, he turned around.
When he recognized the person at the door, he immediately broke into a smile and rose quickly. “Officer Zhou, are you here for an interview today?”
Zhou Jiajing said, “Today I came with… Comrade Jiang.”
Only then did Village Chief Chen look at Jiang Lianyue. Confused, he asked, “Comrade Jiang, you’re here too…?”
Judging by her attire, she didn’t look like a cadre. These days, aside from cadres, outsiders rarely come to the village office.
While Village Chief Chen had been greeting Zhou Jiajing, Jiang Lianyue had quietly observed him.
He looked about fifty, with a square face, upright posture, and resolute eyes, someone who seemed like he’d been in the military.
Such people usually had more decisiveness than ordinary folks.
She thought he really does look like someone who could lead the villagers to be the first to ‘eat the crab’.
Without beating around the bush, Jiang Lianyue said directly, “I heard that Nahuan Village is growing jasmine flowers, so I wanted to come take a look.”
At her words, Village Chief Chen immediately glanced around warily. Seeing no one nearby, he relaxed a little and asked, “Where did you hear that?”
The matter of their village growing jasmine couldn’t be openly publicized yet. Villagers spreading it privately was fine, but it wasn’t something to talk about openly.
Seeing his unease, Jiang Lianyue smiled. “I heard it from an auntie who sells tangyuan in a neighboring town. Everyone’s quite curious about whether growing jasmine can make money.”
Village Chief Chen glanced at Zhou Jiajing, then turned and said, “Let’s talk inside.”
Zhou Jiajing stepped aside and let Jiang Lianyue go first.
She followed Village Chief Chen into the village office.
The office was very simple, aside from a wooden filing cabinet and a writing desk, there were only two chairs and a few commendation banners hanging on the wall.
Village Chief Chen placed the two chairs in front of Jiang Lianyue and Zhou Jiajing. “Please, have a seat.”
He took a thermos from beneath the desk, retrieved two enamel mugs from the cabinet, filled them with water, and handed them over.
“Thank you,” Jiang Lianyue said as she accepted the mug.
The water wasn’t too hot. After drinking, she stated her purpose plainly. “I’ve been thinking about opening a tea factory recently. I’ve always liked growing flowers, and I know jasmine can be used to make tea. I heard your village has some, so I wanted to see if I could buy a portion from the village.”
Village Chief Chen stared at her in astonishment.
Only a few people knew the purpose of the jasmine grown in the village. How did this young woman know?
Even Zhou Jiajing, who usually showed little emotion, looked surprised.
He’d been here before and didn’t know Nahuan Village grew jasmine, yet she not only knew, she even knew it could be used to make tea!
There was truly so much about this “wife” of his that he didn’t understand.
Village Chief Chen asked, “Who told you this?”
“I read it in a book,” Jiang Lianyue replied. “Back when I was in school, I happened to read a book about it. I like growing flowers, and when I learned they could be used to make tea, I was quite curious and remembered it.”
The original owner certainly hadn’t known this, but Jiang Lianyue had already prepared the excuse. No one was going to check whether that book really existed.
As expected, the suspicion in Village Chief Chen’s eyes faded. He smiled. “Scholars really do know more. That’s right, our village’s jasmine is indeed grown for tea. The county tea factory even sent people to guide us.”
All of this matched what Jiang Lianyue already knew. She asked, “So does the tea factory buy all of it? Could you spare some for me?”
“I’m afraid not,” Village Chief Chen said with a troubled expression. “The seedlings were provided by the tea factory. What to do with the flowers once they’re grown is up to them.”
Jiang Lianyue had anticipated this outcome and wasn’t disappointed. She simply nodded. “May I go take a look at the jasmine fields?”
If they planted a lot, then after the tea factory collected its share, she could find another way to get some.
The request was simple. Village Chief Chen nodded in agreement.
He didn’t get up right away, though. Glancing at his watch, he said, “It’s almost noon. Let’s eat first, after that, we’ll go.”
He turned to Zhou Jiajing. “Officer Zhou, you didn’t eat at my place yesterday. You can’t refuse again today.”
Zhou Jiajing nodded. “Then I’ll trouble you.”
Jiang Lianyue was more than happy. Aside from knowing that the jasmine had originally been introduced by the tea factory director from elsewhere, she didn’t know much else. She was eager to learn more from Village Chief Chen.
Given the situation, if she wanted jasmine from the tea factory, she’d definitely need someone to make an introduction. Showing up rashly would likely make them think she was there to cause trouble.
And there was no better person to introduce her than Village Chief Chen.
She smiled. “Then I’ll shamelessly tag along for a meal too?”
Village Chief Chen had already intended to invite her anyway, to learn more about who she was, so he said warmly, “You’re very welcome.”
Going to someone’s home for a meal empty-handed wasn’t appropriate. Jiang Lianyue had noticed a small shop on the way to the village office, so she said, “Village Chief, it’s my first time in Nahuan Village. I’d like to look around a bit. Could I come to your place later?”
These days, no household was well-off, and meals for guests weren’t prepared in advance. Village Chief Chen would need time to get ingredients ready, so he nodded. “My home is on the east side of the village, next to a big banyan tree. If you can’t find it, come back here and I’ll come get you.”
The three left the village office. Village Chief Chen went home, leaving Jiang Lianyue and Zhou Jiajing standing there.
Zhou Jiajing asked, “Where do you want to look around? After that, I plan to go to the small shop to buy some things.”
Jiang Lianyue couldn’t help but laugh. “To the small shop.”
Zhou Jiajing paused, then laughed too.
Who would’ve thought they’d be thinking the same thing?
There was no need to wander around first. The two headed straight for the shop.
The shop was very simple, a mud-brick room under ten square meters, with limited goods. After asking what was available, Jiang Lianyue bought two jin of white sugar and two tubes of noodles.
Although Hengzhou County was a sugar-producing area, the economy was still extremely underdeveloped. White sugar wasn’t something every household could afford.
Many families still used cheap saccharin, and even that was only consumed during holidays when making pastries.
As for the noodles, Jiang Lianyue was thinking of local customs. When visiting relatives, if the household had elderly members, noodles were a must. Even if Village Chief Chen didn’t have elderly family members, he was still older than them, so bringing noodles wouldn’t be wrong.
The shop owner weighed the sugar, placed it with the noodles on the counter, and said with a smile, “That’ll be two yuan, five mao, and six fen.”
Jiang Lianyue placed the money she’d already prepared on the counter. “I didn’t bring sugar coupons. I’ll give you an extra two mao, will that work?”
The shop owner hesitated, about to reply, when a fair hand reached out from the side and pushed the money back.