Book Synopsis
Book Tags
Donation Rankings
Comment
0 Comments
You May Also Like
墨書 Inktalez
After finishing the ginger soup, Yezhi wrapped herself in a blanket and slept through the night. In the morning, she opened the door to find heavy snow falling, with snowflakes dancing in various forms in the air—some soaring, some spiraling, and others plummeting straight down, settling on the gray tiles, the branches of the old locust tree, and the withered flowers and grass. It felt as if time had warped, creating an atmosphere rich with ancient charm.
However beautiful the scenery was, it could not compare to the inconvenience of being bundled up in layers of clothing. Yezhi felt like a puppet, her body stiff and awkward. After washing up with hot water from the stove, she pondered what to make for breakfast when she heard the creaking sound of the door opening.
Lin Haitao entered with soy milk and sesame pancakes, gently tapping his foot against the door. Yezhi poked her head out from the kitchen and asked a rather silly question, "Xiaobinzi, is there any for me?"
Lin Haitao was speechless as he walked toward the main room. Yezhi followed him cheerfully. Xiaobinzi divided the soy milk in a metal lunchbox into two portions and picked out a sesame pancake. Yezhi drank the warm, sweet soy milk, feeling the chill dissipate. The pancake was crispy on the outside and soft on the inside, satisfying both her taste buds and her hunger.
Feeling warm and full, Yezhi half-closed her almond-shaped eyes while lounging in a chair, plotting to skip class. "It's 7:45; time to go!" Xiaobinzi finished clearing the table and glanced at his silver Seagull Brand watch.
"You go back to sleep; I'll rest for five more minutes!" Yezhi silently urged herself: Go to sleep quickly; don't see me; pretend I don't exist.
"This month I'm on day shift; I have to leave soon!" Yezhi's eyes widened in delight—great! She would be back under the covers soon!
"Time to go!"
"Bye! No, see you later!" Yezhi waved at Xiaobinzi, grinning—finally, he was leaving!
Lin Haitao picked up his bicycle and stepped outside. After checking his watch, he waved at Yezhi. She hurried over, "Yazi, you're going to be late; I'll ride you there!" Late? Why should it matter to you if I'm late? Yezhi glared at Xiaobinzi in frustration. Suddenly he flashed her a smile, and lost in thought for a moment, she ultimately succumbed to his charm. Reluctantly slinging her Cloth Bag over her shoulder, she sat sideways on the back of his bicycle as he pedaled steadily toward the Education Committee.
The streets of the county town had transformed into a world adorned with powdered sugar-like snow; pedestrians resembled ants crawling over icing. The bicycle moved slowly through the snow, and Yezhi feigned ignorance while feeling quite dissatisfied! Skipping class wasn’t a crime; did it really require such effort from law enforcement to nip it in the bud?
Yezhi jumped off the bicycle and huffed at Xiaobinzi through her nose. Lin Haitao chose not to comment on her childish behavior as he turned around and disappeared into the swirling snow.
Lu Xiaoli pulled Qian Jiazhen into a corner. "Did you see? Another man—looks like he's a police officer!"
"Isn't that the County Party Secretary's son?" Qian Jiazhen recalled that he looked somewhat round.
Lu Xiaoli exclaimed, "This country woman is really impressive!"
Qian Jiazhen raised an eyebrow, "Lili, are you jealous or envious?" Lu Xiaoli's face flushed as she hurriedly shouted, "Get lost! What I mean is I've never seen such a shameless, brazen woman who flirts around!" Qian Jiazhen chuckled, "I was just joking, why are you taking it seriously? We're on different levels than her. You’re just too concerned about her, which only fuels her arrogance."
"Jiajun, what I said is the truth. She can do it, so why should she care what others say?" Lu Xiaoli couldn't contain her anger when she thought of that despicable woman, Yezi. Qian Jiazhen touched Lu Xiaoli's cheek and said, "Lili, you need to be strategic in your actions. You're not her match; you're still too inexperienced!"
Yezi walked into the classroom, and Zhang Ling enthusiastically circled around her. "Sister Ye, with such heavy snow, I thought you wouldn't come back!"
"Sister Ye, Niu Niu misses you so much!"
Yezi laughed and said, "Don't you miss me?"
Zhang Ling grabbed Yezi's hand and affectionately said, "Of course I do! I miss you so much!"
"You're so sweet!"
The ringing of the bell scattered the small groups in the classroom. Lu Xiaoli and Qian Jiazhen held hands and hurried in.
Teacher He entered the classroom with a chalk box and textbooks, starting the day's lessons while Yezi slept soundly as usual.
After school in the afternoon, Yezi first went with Zhang Ling to her house to pick up Niu Niu. As soon as Niu Niu saw Yezi, her beautiful eyes sparkled like glass.
Yezi picked up Niu Niu and said, "Niu Niu darling, big sister is here to pick you up!" Niu Niu stuck out her pink little tongue and playfully licked Yezi's face all over.
Zhang Ling said enviously, "Sister Ye, when will Niu Niu be this affectionate towards me?" Such enthusiasm was something she couldn't handle. Yezi pinched the little one's back with a look of disdain while Niu Niu cutely waved her chubby limbs and playfully whined.
"Yezi is here!"
Uncle Zhang walked into the house with a black briefcase in hand. Just as Yezhi was about to leave, Uncle Zhang pulled her inside and started chatting about Zhoujiatun. Suddenly, Yezhi thought this was an opportunity; she hesitated for just a moment before speaking up, "Uncle Zhang, when will our village get electricity?"
Zhang Dechang looked at Yezhi with a half-smile, and Yezhi felt a chill in her heart—oh no! She said calmly, "Uncle Zhang, without roads or electricity, any development is just talk. We can slowly solve the road issue ourselves, but we can't resolve the electricity problem without help from the leaders. I know there are many villages in the county without electricity, but I still want to push for it and clear the obstacles to development."
"Yezhi, you are quite straightforward!"
Yezhi chuckled, "That's my strong point!" Zhang Ling, who had been eavesdropping outside the door curtain, couldn't hold back and burst out laughing.
Zhang Ling lifted the curtain and walked into the room. "Sister Ye, who praises themselves like that?" In this day and age, people value modesty; someone as unreserved as Yezhi often gets labeled as arrogant.
"Yezhi, as you said, there are many places in the county without electricity. If we take care of Zhoujiatun, what about the other villages? Uncle Zhang, I have good intentions but lack the power to help," Uncle Zhang seemed to imply something. It wasn't that he couldn't get electricity for Zhoujiatun; it was just that there were too many opinions involved.
"Then... if I offer all the preserved radish seeds and cabbage seeds from our village, can that silence those who say we are getting special treatment?" Yezhi stared intently at Uncle Zhang, hoping for a positive answer.
Zhang Dechang certainly valued these short-cycle seeds of excellent quality. "That’s possible, but I want to wait until spring to see how many seeds there are!" The implication was that it would be at least after spring before anything could happen. Yezhi pouted, "Uncle Zhang, you're too shrewd; you won't take any losses!"
Zhang Dechang chuckled, "Yezhi, we can't just paint a pie in the sky to satisfy our hunger!" It was getting late, and with no conditions to negotiate further, Yezhi picked up Niu Niu and prepared to leave. Uncle Zhang and Zhang Ling both urged her to stay for dinner first, but thinking of eating alone made her feel it was better to go home.
Holding Niu Niu close, she jogged back to the Lin family home. The kitchen was filled with a rich aroma of rice as Xiaobinzi focused intently on slicing shredded potatoes.
People often say that serious men are the most charming; Yezhi wholeheartedly agreed. At that moment, Xiaobinzi surpassed Xiao Bai for the first time and climbed to second place on her list of handsome guys. The first place? Of course, it was Xianruipu—the prodigy.
Yezhi leaned her whole body against the door while holding Niu Niu and quietly admired Xiaobinzi cooking in his apron. The bubbling sound from the pot and the rhythmic chopping sounds on the cutting board felt both real and dreamlike.
After finishing with the shredded potatoes, Lin Haitao looked up and noticed Yezhi staring at him. He awkwardly set down his knife. "You’re back! This knife is nice; it's sharp enough."
"Of course! Who would buy a dull one? Xiaobinzi, what delicious dish are you making for me?"
“Shredded Potatoes, Cabbage Shreds, Radish Soup!”
Yezhi said unhappily, “All vegetarian!”
Lin Haitao took off his apron, “You do it then; I can’t cook meat. I’ve only made these three dishes!”
“No way, I want to eat what you make,” Lin Haitao said, looking at Yezhi with an exaggerated drooling expression. Resigned, he tied his apron back on and started cooking, while Yezhi kept chatting beside him.
As soon as the dishes were served, Yezhi couldn’t wait to taste them. “The Shredded Potatoes are cut unevenly, the flavor is inconsistent, the Cabbage Shreds are overcooked, and the fried eggs are a bit burnt on both sides. Only the Radish Soup is acceptable.” Seeing Lin Haitao’s cold handsome face, Yezhi pretended to be generous and said, “Since the handsome guy worked so hard, I’ll reluctantly enjoy it.” With that, she happily dug in.
Lin Haitao’s cold expression gradually warmed as he watched the food disappear.
Four days passed like flowing water. During these four days, Yezhi shamelessly only took care of buying groceries and pushed all the cooking duties onto Xiaobinzi. She even proudly declared, “A man who can’t cook won’t find a good wife. To prevent Xiaobinzi from being single, I’ll reluctantly be his test subject for tasting.” Xiaobinzi’s face grew colder each day; last night he even yelled at her for being too noisy!
Today after school, Yezhi waited as usual for Xiaobinzi to come home to cook. While she communicated with Niu Niu with playful barks, she admired the newly bloomed Winter Beauty in the courtyard.
The Winter Beauty was about the size of a palm and resembled a Red Plum. Its bright red flowers looked particularly enchanting against the backdrop of snow, and a faint plum fragrance wafted through the courtyard, making her feel delighted to linger outside in the cold for a little longer.
“Yezhi, open the door!” Zhang Dou shouted while knocking on the door.
“What’s all the fuss about?” Yezhi jogged over to open the door.
Zhang Dou stood before her with Xiaobinzi’s head wrapped in bandages. Yezhi was taken aback; after coming to her senses, she hit her head hard. How could she forget to spray Xiaobinzi with Indestructible spray? Right! Zhang Dou needed it too!
Comment 0 Comment Count