Chapter 972: 954. Distant Zhou Tianyu
The chilled shredded radish served at noon was so crispy and refreshing that it was highly popular, and even Teacher Tang couldn’t help but eat more, leaving her with a bloated stomach as she strolled around the house.
But it’s not her fault, really; Seventh Uncle has such a knack for setting the nu—amid the dryness of sitting by the fire in the winter, he’d offer a dish of ice-cold, crisp green radish shreds!
After soaking the radish shreds in salty water, they turned a vibrant green. Tossing them with just so chilli, minced garlic, white vinegar, and sesa oil, then splashing them with hot oil, one can’t help but salivate even in the depths of winter.
So, even if the old lady disapproved of the unsophisticated stainless steel bowl the radishes were served in, it didn’t affect the speed at which she picked up her chopsticks.
After eating her fill, she looked at the radishes drying in the yard and couldn’t help but ask, “This pickled radish… when will it be ready?”
She had eaten plenty of pickled vegetables and plenty of soaked radish slices, but she had never tasted a whole pickled radish just out of the jar. What does it taste like?
With that thought, despite her full stomach, she couldn’t help but salivate.
Qiaoqiao let out an “ah” and looked at the radishes in the yard before saying, “They haven’t been pickled yet; it’ll take about a month, I guess.”
A month, huh…
The old lady made an effort to walk in circles, eyeing her loose woolen skirt; it was indeed necessary to do sothing to aid digestion.
Therefore, she took the initiative to ask, “It’s past twelve now, when are we going to pick oranges?”
No sooner had she spoken than Li Lanhua’s calling could be heard from a distance, “Wu Lan! Wu Lan… Are we ready? If we are, let’s go!”
She ca hurrying over, her cotton-padded jacket pockets stuffed with several large plastic bags, her eyes fixed on the jujube-red tricycle parked outside the yard:
“Can we ride the trike? Otherwise, how are we going to bring back the oranges? I’m afraid I might need to go back and ride the motorcycle.”
Of course, they needed to ride it!
In their mountainous area, the distance between villages was already quite far; walking from their ho to Shitou Slope would take about an hour, given the ups and downs!
Wu Lan swiftly boarded the tricycle: “Co on, Teacher Tang, Du i, Lianhua… get on! Li Lanhua, give Teacher Tang a hand!”
The back of the large tricycle was very spacious; even with everyone wrapped in bulky cotton-padded coats, there was still ample room after getting onboard.
The only downside was the lack of seating. Teacher Tang had wanted to maintain her decorum, but the force when the vehicle started imdiately made her grab onto the railing.
Looking around, she realized that everyone seed experienced; they were now holding onto railings on all sides and had simply squatted down in the cargo bed.
“No worries, Teacher Tang, just squat like this. It’s stable! And nobody’s looking!”
Having spent so ti together, Wu Lan knew exactly what to focus on when speaking to her.
Lady Tang smiled wryly, “It’s not that I’m too proud to squat, it’s just that I ate too much at noon and now I can’t squat comfortably.”
So, she had to strike a pose to squat, in a way that didn’t press on her round belly.
As she said this, Du i also subtly shifted her position, feeling embarrassed when everyone looked over, “I thought I was the only one who ate too much…”
Seeing this, Li Lanhua couldn’t help but feel envious, “The food at your place really is sothing… Ever since Tianyu ate at your place that ti, he’s been raving about it nonstop.”
As soon as Zhou Tianyu was ntioned, Wu Lan subconsciously wanted to pinch her cheek and pouted, then quickly shifted the topic, “I heard there’s no holiday on New Year’s Eve this year. Can Tianyu co back for the new year?”
“Sure!” Li Lanhua was quite pleased: “Isn’t his job in education? Who wants to take classes during the New Year holidays? He said if he manages to snatch a ticket, he’ll be back on the twenty-seventh of the twelfth lunar month.”
But raising a child is an endless worry. Her face bore a smile, yet her expression revealed concerns:
“What do you think Tianyu should do in the future?”
“What should he do?” Lady Tang’s interest was piqued as she listened in on the juicy details, her eyes lighting up.
The countryside really is better, there’s just so much more interesting stuff! Back when she was in the staff quarters, people would avoid gossiping around her – it was so boring.
What else could it be? Li Lanhua summarized in a few words: “He’s been working for years and hasn’t saved a penny, he makes over ten thousand a month, but by the end, it’s only enough for his spending… Teacher Tang, you are all capable people, tell , he can’t buy a house in Beicheng, just drifting and working, doesn’t it seem unreliable to you?”
Well, that’s a thing!
Lady Tang, as a spectator, saw things clearly: “If he earns over ten thousand a month steadily, it proves he’s already competent at his job, he can stay in the big city, why go back to a smaller one!”
“There are more job opportunities, more chances for advancent, more to learn…”
“But he can’t save money!” Li Lanhua started to get anxious: “Never mind whatever opportunities or future, he can’t save money now, I think this is a big deal!”
Indeed it is.
Teacher Tang also acknowledged: “Having savings ans a certain degree of freedom, the more savings, the higher the freedom — if he really can’t save anything in these two years, it ans there’s sothing wrong with his wage planning.”
Li Lanhua was dumbfounded.
Just… Lady Tang truly is an educated person, the direction of the discussion was entirely different with her!
She got serious and asked earnestly: “I don’t understand all this planning stuff, but since he can’t save money, I was thinking of convincing him to co back and just find whatever job, at least in the urban area we could afford a down paynt for a house if we really tighten our belts.”
She sighed again: “He’s getting to that age, he must consider getting married and starting a family.”
Teacher Tang shook her head: “It’s not easy to handle!”
“The cost of living in Beicheng may be high, but as a single man, it’s not like he shouldn’t have anything left out of ten or twenty thousand a month. The natural problem then lies in his spending habits.”
“Under these conditions, even if he returns to Yun City, given that the salary level there may only be a quarter of his original salary, his spending habits might not change… and if he cos back, won’t he still have no money?”
“Don’t even think about that down paynt of yours, you better start thinking about how to change his habits first.”
Teacher Tang looked at Li Lanhua again after finishing.
There were other things she did not say, which was that in her idle strolls around the village, she noticed that the radishes and vegetables planted outside everyone’s house were thriving splendidly.
The leaves were lush, and even though they could fetch a good price during winter, every household couldn’t help but cut a couple to cook and taste.
This showed that Song Tan’s initial act of providing the seedlings was correct and had promising potential.
In this case, as long as there is land at ho and a willingness to work hard, one should not be short of money in the future.
Anyway, if the children don’t want to co back, they might as well let them try their luck out there; the couple could farm at ho, and who knows, might even earn more than him!
As for Zhou Tianyu’s spending habits… sigh, if soone doesn’t want to listen, they won’t even if you tell them a hundred tis; once they are older, they will naturally understand.
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