Volume 5: Qingming Chapter 6: Check-in
Jiang You took Jiang Mo for a walk in the rapeseed field. After taking a few photos, he felt hungry, so he searched on Dianping.com and found a popular beef rice noodle shop nearby.
I took a taxi and ordered the signature set meal.
The rice noodles tasted average, neither good nor bad, but the chicken steak tasted good, the outer layer was crispy, and the meat inside was very tender, with the gravy locked inside. When you took a bite, the flavor of Sichuan pepper and the aroma of meat intertwined on the tip of your tongue.
The store also gave me a serving of iced mung bean soup. I took a big sip and the spicy taste in my mouth and the dryness in my body seemed to disappear. I just felt lazy and comfortable all over.
He put together four photos of rapeseed fields and rice noodles and posted them on his Moments, perfectly completing the spring check-in activity.
After drinking the last sip of mung bean soup and taking a short rest, he and Jiang Mo returned to Wenhua Street.
It was not even three o'clock yet. It was just the right time to take an afternoon nap and rest, then go to Sister Nan's place for dinner in the evening... He thought as he leisurely walked towards the insect house.
"landlord?"
Jiang You raised his head and saw Dai Qi standing next to the milk tea shop not far ahead.
"What a coincidence, are you buying drinks?" Jiang You walked over.
"yes."
Jiang You looked up at the billboard, which showed the new seasonal product: Strawberry Milk Frosted Smoothie.
"I want two cups of this." Jiang You pointed to the pattern on the billboard to the cashier girl.
After paying the money and getting the receipt, Jiang You took two steps towards Dai Qi and waited with her.
"Is the store closed today? I saw the door was closed when I walked by just now."
"I took him to visit the grave," Jiang You hugged Jiang Mo up, "Do you have something to talk to me about?"
"Nothing, just passing by."
"Number 27, cheese strawberry." The cashier girl called out.
After Dai Qi took her drink, she hesitated for a moment and said, "Well, landlord, Youyou may not rent the house anymore. She changed jobs."
"Are you still living here?" Jiang You asked.
"I want to stay here. I'm going to ask my colleagues in the group chat. If anyone wants to come, can I give Youyou's room to her?"
"Sure," Jiang You agreed, and he added, "Look for someone who likes to be clean."
"Definitely."
As they were talking, Jiang You's drink was ready.
Jiang You got the drink and saw Dai Qi still standing there, so he asked, "Do you want to sit over there for a while?"
"Okay." Dai Qi agreed.
Dai Qi followed Jiang You back to the insect house.
He took two lounge chairs and placed them in the shade of the yard. He half-lay down with a cup of strawberry ice cream in his hand. Then he said to Dai Qi, who was standing in the middle of the yard, looking around for something, "The sun is very hot. Come and sit for a while."
"Where is the orange cat?" Dai Qi asked.
"That's a friend's cat, I sent it back."
Dai Qi walked to the recliner and sat down with a look of disappointment.
"What job did she change to?" Jiang You asked.
"Youyou, she went to a new media company in Wuping District. The salary is pretty good."
"You won't change?"
Dai Qi shook her head. "I don't want to move for now. I've also thought about whether I should just go back to my hometown, have my family help me find a job, have no rent pressure, eat and drink at home, and then get married."
“That’s good.”
"Yeah," Dai Qi said while sipping milk tea and looking at the flowers in the flowerbed, "I just feel a little unwilling."
"Want to stand out?"
"Not really. I don't have much pressure at home, but I can't make decisions on what I want to do, even if it's just a small thing. There will be a lot of people pointing fingers. Here, whether I live a good life or a bad life is up to me. I want to settle down here, have my own little home, live alone for the rest of my life, and have two cats. "
"I want to raise one, too."
Dai Qi turned around and looked at Jiang You and smiled, "Landlord, please don't raise my rent this year. I'm so pitiful. If Youyou moves out and I haven't found someone else, I'll have to pay for it first."
"I wouldn't have thought of it if you hadn't mentioned it."
Dai Qi looked at Jiang You nervously.
"Okay, no more increase."
Dai Qi breathed a sigh of relief.
"Please take care of my business," Jiang You pointed to the store, "and buy some postcards."
"I'll bring canned cat food next time," Dai Qi stood up. "I'm going back now. The sun is about to set and my quilt is still outside drying."
"Let's go, let's go."
The setting sun dyed half the sky red.
Jiang You shook the cup of milk tea and drank it.
He stood up, stretched, and walked back to the store.
On the long table was a piece of sketch paper, a box of colored pencils, and a cup of milk tea that had also been empty.
Jiang You walked to the table and looked at the painting on the paper. Red circles of different sizes crossed into a long strip, dancing in the golden rain.
"What a great sense of color." Jiang You opened Taobao and started looking for a framing shop.
——
The garlic cloves were fried until golden.
Stir-fry star anise, Sichuan peppercorns and dried chilies in oil until fragrant, then add the prawns and turn down the heat.
"It smells so good," Jiang You opened the kitchen door, "Are you cooking shrimps?"
"I saw this when I was buying groceries," Chen Nan turned the shrimps in the pot over one by one, "The soybean and pork trotter soup is ready. Do you want to have a bowl first?"
Jiang You took out a bowl from the cupboard. He opened the lid of the casserole and saw a few red wolfberries floating in the steaming milky white soup, which looked very beautiful.
He took out a large soup spoon, scooped out a bowl of soup, and took a sip from the edge of the bowl.
"Is it salty? I think I put a little too much salt today."
“Not salty, just right.”
Jiang You watched Chen Nan add the wine and cook it quickly, then turned on the high heat and covered the pot. After simmering for about twenty seconds, she opened the pot again, sprinkled some cumin and black pepper on the shrimp, stir-fried it for a few times, and then turned off the heat and served it on a plate.
Chen Nan took off her apron and handed the plate to Jiang You. "Take it out. I'll serve the soup."
Jiang You reached out and took it.
Walking out of the kitchen and into the dining room, there were already two dishes on the table, a pot of chicken feet and stir-fried vegetables with ham.
After he sat down, Chen Nan came in with a bowl of soup.
She put the bowl on the table, "Jiang Mo went to bed so early? Do you want to pack some food and take it back later?"
"You must be tired from visiting the graves. It's so hot today. I'll take some shrimp back later."
"OK."
As she spoke, Chen Nan went to the kitchen and took out a Lock and Lock box. Jiang You watched her put half a plate of shrimps into it.
She picked out the peppers and put the lid back on, "This is a bit spicy, don't eat too much."
“Yes.”
"Would you like some wine?" Chen Nan looked at him and asked.
"OK."
Chen Nan took out a bottle of rice wine and two cups.
After sitting down, she asked, "Are there many people visiting the graves today?"
"There are not enough parking spaces. When I went in, I saw two cars blocking the door, and it looked like they were about to fight."
"Did the fight start?"
"I don't know, I just went in," Jiang You took a sip of wine, "I'm with the kids, what if they start fighting and accidentally bump into Jiang Mo? My feet are still a little swollen, so I can't walk fast. It's quite a coincidence today. Did I tell you that when I took Jiang Mo to the Science and Technology Museum, I met a little girl who got separated from her father, so I took her to the broadcasting room to find her father."
"No."
"Next to the grave of Jiang Mo's parents is the girl's mother. Look at the photo above. She's quite pretty."
