Chapter 136
After Elder Zhang had checked his pulse, Xiao Hong began to drink bitter medicine every day.
Zhou Xiaoman was worried that he was having a hard time and took the initiative to comfort Xiao Hong, "If we don't have a child, then we don't have a child. It's my fault for thinking too much about it. When Xiaohua has a child, and with Xiao Xi being here, our family will also be busy. In the future, if we settle in Fengcheng, we don't have to be afraid of being lonely in our old age, no matter if we have children or not."
Xiao Hong didn't show it on his face when he heard her words, but in his heart, he was relieved. In the past few days, he had been thinking about what Elder Zhang said about Xiaoman's depression. This matter could be big or small. It would be fine if taken care of, but it would affect her health if ignored. Now, no matter what Xiaoman thought, the reason for not having a child was on his head, so Xiaoman was finally less likely to blame herself.
After a week of drinking Chinese medicine, Xiao Hong calculated that it was time to go back to the northwest. This time, Xiao Feng had to go back with him as there were more things to do. Before he left, Xiao Feng found a chance to talk to Yan Yue and entrusted him with the family and the vegetable greenhouse. He wasn't worried about anything happening; he was just afraid that if something happened, he wouldn't be back in time, so there needed to be someone to make a decision.
When they left, it was the end of February and the first spring rain since the beginning of spring came to Fengcheng.
It was evening when the rain fell, and the thin threads of rain drifted down, crocheting a huge net in the air and enveloping the whole of Fengcheng. Because of the darkness, all the shops on the street of Tiny Garden had their lights on. The scattered lights filtered through the glass windows along the street, stringing up the raindrops outside and covering the whole street with a layer of soft bizarre colours.
Lu Lingxi stood at the door of Tiny Garden and caught a few drops of rain. It felt very cold to the touch, but there wasn't much coolness in the air, rather a warm and moist aura. He tapped on the panel in passing and what was displayed in front of him was a large white translucent area. Above the transparent pattern flowed a light layer of ink-blue water, representing the rainwater that had gathered on the ground. Lu Lingxi remembered that the rain he saw at first was black, but now it had gradually faded and transformed into ink blue. This meant that there was much less smog over Fengcheng, and the rain was correspondingly much cleaner.
"Owww."
Dahei, who had been squatting calmly at Lu Lingxi's feet, looked sharply in the direction of the opposite side of the street and barked in warning.
Lu Lingxi looked there; across the street, the silvery grey husky was crouching in front of the pet shop, looking as if it was eager to rush over. But because of Dahei's presence, the husky didn't dare to really rush over and just took a few tentative steps forward.
"Owww."
The husky wagged its tail sorrowfully at Lu Lingxi, who couldn't help but laugh. He remembered that when Dahei had just returned, this husky was completely unafraid of Dahei's majesty and often rushed to Lu Lingxi head over heels, boldly teasing Dahei in the process. After a few times, Dahei couldn't stand it any longer and gave the husky a strict lesson. Only then did the husky remember how powerful Dahei was and no longer dared to tease him.
Lu Lingxi guessed that the husky might have sensed the panel's scent and became excited. He didn't mind and continued to tap down on the white panel. As his fingers moved, the translucent area on the panel continued to expand. Judging from the scope of the purification, the whole street of Tiny Garden was included, and the purified area was still extending towards the surrounding streets. Seeing this, Lu Lingxi was somewhat pleased. After half a year's effort, about one tenth of the entire Fengcheng City area had been purified. These purified areas were faintly forming a circle, attempting to encompass the entire Fengcheng City.
He was a little too absorbed and hadn't noticed until Yan Yue stood in front of him.
"Xiao Xi." Yan Yue draped the coat over Lu Lingxi's shoulders, took his hand and frowned slightly, "Why are your hands so cold?"
Lu Lingxi returned to his senses and put away the panel before realising that he had been standing at the door for too long and his clothes were faintly wet from the rain. He shook his head, "It's okay, it's actually not too cold." Before Yan Yue could say anything, Lu Lingxi quickly changed the subject, "Big Brother Yan, are you done with your work?"
Yan Yue helplessly tightened his grip on Lu Lingxi's hand and cooperated in changing the topic. "There's nothing more to do at work, I've come to pick you up and take you home."
Lu Lingxi glanced at the time; unnoticeably, it was almost six o'clock. These days when Xiao Feng was away, he had to go back early every day to keep Wang Shuxiu company. "Wait for me to pack up, I'll be ready soon," he said as he moved the few pots of flowers that were placed at the entrance back to the shop, and Yan Yue rolled up his sleeves and tidied up with him.
After the two of them had cleaned up the shop and put away some bits and pieces, Lu Lingxi turned off the lights, locked the shop door and followed Yan Yue all the way to the car.
Across the street, the husky looked at Lu Lingxi with bated breath, whimpering repeatedly.
Yan Yue opened the window, "What's wrong with that husky?"
"Maybe it's a bit lonely."
"It seems like it's been at Dong Zhi's place for almost a month." Yan Yue said casually.
Lu Lingxi let out a sigh and waved to the husky from the window, explaining to Yan Yue, "Its owner has left the country. Brother Dong said he had gone to Africa and wouldn't be back for three years. He couldn't take the husky along, so he asked Brother Dong to find another owner for it."
As he said this, Dahei suddenly peeked his head over from the rear car seat and looked at Lu Lingxi with a gentle gaze. Lu Lingxi smiled faintly and reached out to scratch Dahei's chin. He understood what Dahei meant; even though it was due to a special situation, this husky's owner still abandoned the husky. Dahei was probably thinking of himself and that was why he acted this way.
Yan Yue also seemed to sense Dahei's mood and freed a hand to pet Dahei's head. He thought for a moment and asked, "Does the other party have any requirements for the adopter?"
"Big Brother Yan?" Lu Lingxi was a little surprised.
Yan Yue smiled lightly, "Ye Kang has always wanted to have a dog. He will be coming to Fengcheng City in a few days, so it's the perfect time to find something for him to do."
"…Brother Ye." Lu Lingxi pondered for a while and felt that Ye Kang was also quite reliable. At least Ye Kang had money and shouldn't abandon the husky again halfway.
"I'll go ask Brother Dong tomorrow."
"Good."
Yan Yue thought of Ye Kang completely accidentally, but the more he thought about it, the more he felt Ye Kang and the husky were quite a good match. Ye Kang had been looking forward to taking his dog out to car racing at night, and apart from Dahei's calm nature, only a dog with the husky's "lively" nature would be willing to cooperate with him.
Twenty minutes later, Yan Yue drove Lu Lingxi to the door. During these days, he picked up Lu Lingxi in the morning and brought him back in the evening, and from time to time, he would wander around in front of Wang Shuxiu. Wang Shuxiu's attitude had softened more and more; from her initial silence she moved to occasionally being able to say hello to Yan Yue.
"Big Brother Yan, I'll go back first." Pulling out the keys from his pocket, Lu Lingxi whispered to Yan Yue.
Yan Yue smiled and nodded as he went from Unit 3 to Unit 2. Before he could unlock the door, Xiao Feng's phone call came. Yan Yue was a little surprised, thinking that Xiao Feng had some problem, but when he picked up, he realised that Xiao Feng was looking for him because of Lu Yishui.
This time Xiao Feng followed Xiao Hong back to the northwest, and the two of them spent half a month disposing of the properties under their respective names resolutely. They sold them off, except for two homes that were left behind to facilitate their return to pay respects to their ancestors in the future. The most troublesome was the coal mine under Xiao Hong's name. It wasn't that no one was interested in the coal mine, but there were so many people interested that Xiao Hong had to sift through them for a long time.
Unlike other properties, Xiao Hong had real feelings for this coal mine. He asked the party that took over to make sure that the workers inside were properly housed and fed, and especially to keep an eye on Lu Yishui. Now that Wang Shuxiu was pregnant, not to mention Xiao Feng, Xiao Hong couldn't let Lu Yishui come back to torment Wang Shuxiu. In this way, the selling of the coal mine was not about whoever gave more money.
In any case, Xiao Feng called Yan Yue just to say that Lu Yishui's issue had been settled down. Lu Yishui would continue to dig coal in the northwest, but Xiao Feng didn't want his wages and Lu Yishui could save them. When Lu Yishui was old and could no longer work, he would use this money as his pension. Lu Yihui was Lu Lingxi's father, so Xiao Feng had to give Lu Lingxi face and leave Lu Yishui a way to live.
Yan Yue didn't question Xiao Feng's arrangement as long as he made sure that Lu Yishui didn't appear in front of Lu Lingxi.
After Xiao Feng talked to Yan Yue, he called Wang Shuxiu. Wang Shuxiu's life was now comfortable, and when Lu Yishui was mentioned, she wasn't as disgusted as before. She sighed over the phone and didn't say anything. This is good, Lu Yishui has a decent job, he can keep the money he earns, he can eat and drink and he doesn't have to burden Lu Lingxi. Wang Shuxiu finally instructed Xiao Feng to hide this from Lu Lingxi, so that the little bastard wouldn't feel uncomfortable. This was also Yan Yue's intention.
Lu Lingxi didn't know that his mother and Yan Yue were unexpectedly united on the matter of Lu Yishui. After giving Dahei a bath, he habitually hugged Dahei and read a book.
The rain outside the window continued to drizzle from afternoon to evening. Lu Lingxi read for a while, talked to Yan Yue on the phone again, and got ready for bed but the rain had not stopped. He stood by the window and watched for a while. Although the rain kept falling, there was no stagnant water in the yards of the community because the rain wasn't too heavy. The rain that fell on the ground quickly penetrated into the soil and was absorbed and stored by the underground hibernating roots.
After a good night's sleep, Lu Lingxi didn't even notice when the rain stopped. He slept until seven o'clock, pulled the curtains open and the spring morning light shone through the window, the golden light floating in the air, making the room warm and comfortable.
Lu Lingxi unconsciously looked out the window and suddenly opened his eyes wide. In front of Building 3, several willow trees planted in the community had sprouted green shoots overnight. As the morning breeze stirred them, the graceful branches danced lightly in the air, full of spring colours. He quickly washed up, pulled open the balcony door and ran out. On the ground in the backyard, tufts of grass sprouted from the ground. The golden morning glow, the clear dew, the tender grass, all woven together, put people in a good mood for no reason.
It was not only the backyard of the community. In the morning when Yan Yue picked up Lu Lingxi to go to the shop, all along the way, the willow trees along the street were sprouting new shoots. On both sides of the street, in the crevices of the stones, there was visible grass everywhere, and occasionally there were small pink flowers swaying in the wind. The whole city swept away the heaviness of winter and was alive with a vibrant vitality.
Chapter 137
In early March, Xiao Hong and Xiao Feng came back from the northwest. The things there were almost dealt with, and the two of them were thinking about home, so they didn't stay there longer.
On the way back, the two of them took turns driving, and Xiao Baiwan squatted quietly in the back seat all the way, guarding the various northwest specialties the two of them had bought. Among them were more than a dozen boxes of air-dried beef that Xiao Feng specially bought, and when Xiao Baiwan smelled the smell of beef, he refused to leave the back seat. After seven or eight hours of driving, the two of them got off the highway and entered the city. The first thing Xiao Hong saw was the willow trees planted on both sides of the street. It had only been a few days since the rain but the new shoots of the willow trees had already grown to finger length. The sun was shining down, the verdant colours were flowing, and the leaves on the trees were vibrant and soothing.
Xiao Hong had previously travelled halfway across China, from the northwest to the north, and all that his eyesight saw was dull and grey. How could he have imagined that Fengcheng was already looking green? He couldn't believe it, so he deliberately opened the window a crack and took a look outside to make sure it wasn't just his eyes, but that the willows on the roadside were really sprouting new shoots.
"What's going on? Spring comes so early in Fengcheng?" Xiao Hong asked as he told Xiao Feng to look outside.
Xiao Feng had been in Fengcheng for more than ten years, and this was the first time he had encountered such a situation. He simply rolled down the window and looked out. Not only were there the willows on the roadside, but as far as he could see, on the road junctions and in the cracks in the masonry on both sides of the street, wherever the soil was exposed, everything was emerald green. He shook his head, a little unsure, "It's probably because it's by the sea and the weather is warm this year."
It was indeed not too cold this year. There was a breeze blowing on their faces, and although it was still a little cool, it didn't cut sharply like in winter but was noticeably softer. Xiao Hong took a breath; the air outside the window was crisp and fresh. In winter he hadn't thought there was much difference between Fengcheng and the northwest, both being northern and heavily industrialised cities, and the wind was blowing similarly. But now, the air in Fengcheng was much fresher than that in the northwest.
Xiao Hong closed the car window with some emotion, "The air outside is good, much better than that in the northwest. I heard that a lot of trees were planted in Fengcheng last year, so it seems that greening and environmental protection are quite effective."
There were other people who felt the same way as Xiao Hong. The change in the environment was not something that couldn't be seen, it was plainly in front of people's eyes. Anyone who paid regular attention to the weather forecast would have noticed that Fengcheng had had an air pollution index below 50 for a week, with the air quality reaching excellent standards.
This change had another effect. According to statistics from several major hospitals in Fengcheng, the number of asthma patients admitted to hospitals in the last week had decreased by 50% compared to the same period last year, which meant that half of the asthma patients in Fengcheng had their condition under control during the peak of spring, not because of medication, but because of the improved environment. All of these changes were attributed by the public to the impact of the new environmental protection policy implemented in Fengcheng since last year, and environmental protection became the hottest topic among Fengcheng people for a while.
Xiao Feng and Xiao Hong chatted about the changes in Fengcheng all the way home, and by the time they arrived it was already past 3 o'clock in the afternoon and almost 4 o'clock. The two parked at the door of Unit 3 and together moved their things to the house. Xiao Baiwan sniffed and didn't feel the scent of Dahei, jumped out of the car and tilted his head with a sigh of relief. He didn't expect that a walnut would fall and hit him on the head.
On the second floor balcony, the white kitten licked its paw and meowed triumphantly at Xiao Baiwan.
Xiao Baiwan growled in anger, but unfortunately the distance was a little too far and growling was simply not enough to deter the kitten.
"Xiao Baiwan." Xiao Hong called out to stop him from barking loudly.
Xiao Baiwan stubbornly pawed the walnut at his feet, barking at Xiao Hong in a low voice.
Xiao Hong raised his head, glanced at the cat upstairs and touched Xiao Baiwan's head soothingly. He didn't know what was going on; when he went to the northwest this time, it seemed that he could suddenly understand the meaning of Xiao Baiwan's bark. At first, Xiao Hong thought it was his illusion, but after a while, Xiao Hong felt that something was wrong. It wasn't an illusion. He really understood what Xiao Baiwan said.
Xiao Hong didn't hide this from Xiao Feng, and Xiao Feng didn't take it seriously when he heard it. He had seen Lu Lingxi and Dahei asking and answering questions several times when he was at home, and had a vague suspicion that they seemed to be able to communicate with each other. Now that there was Xiao Hong and Xiao Baiwan, he wasn't surprised at all. However, after Xiao Hong accepted this fact, he found it very interesting and urged Xiao Feng to also have a pet. After raising it for a long time, maybe he could have a spiritual connection with it. Xiao Feng ignored this suggestion; there was already Dahei at home, that was enough.
With Xiao Hong's presence, the little white cat didn't dare to provoke Xiao Baiwan anymore. It waved its paws at Xiao Baiwan, turned its head and ran back to the house. Xiao Feng looked at this scene and laughed a little. He didn't say that the cats and dogs in the community were just smarter than usual; they were almost becoming intelligent.
Xiao Hong finished moving the things and had a few words with Xiao Feng in the yard before taking Xiao Baiwan away. As soon as Xiao Feng entered the house, Wang Shuxiu looked over, "Where's Big Brother, won't he eat here tonight?"
"No, Xiaohua, you are not physically fit, Big Brother is going home first."
When Xiao Feng explained this, Wang Shuxiu didn't say anything. She looked at Xiao Feng sorting out the northwest specialties on the floor and casually asked, "Why did you buy so many?"
Xiao Feng smiled, "Xiaohua, didn't you say last time that the air-dried beef from the northwest was delicious? I won't be going back to my hometown very often in the future, and I always feel that these things bought in other places are not of the same taste."
Wang Shuxiu was happy to hear Xiao Feng's reasoning, but on the surface she snapped, "How long will we have to eat this?"
Xiao Feng smiled and gave her a look, "If we can't finish it, send some to Yan Yue, I heard from Xiao Xi that Yan Yue also likes to eat it."
When he mentioned Yan Yue, Wang Shuxiu immediately snorted.
Xiao Feng was surprised: Xiaohua hadn't completely relented yet.
At half past six in the evening, Yan Yue sent Lu Lingxi home. As soon as Lu Lingxi entered the house, he saw a dozen boxes of air-dried beef piled up on the floor and immediately reacted. "Dad's back?"
Xiao Feng poked his head out of the kitchen and said to Lu Lingxi with a smile, "Xiao Xi, take two boxes of beef and send them to Yan Yue as a thank you for taking care of the family during this time."
Lu Lingxi's eyes lit up when he heard this, but instead of going to get the boxes directly, he turned his head to look at Wang Shuxiu first, waiting for her words. Wang Shuxiu snorted and waved her hand with impatience, "Go quickly, don't dawdle there and come back for dinner."
Lu Lingxi nodded obediently. When Wang Shuxiu saw that he really took two boxes, she said with a stern face, "We can't eat it all at home, so you can take two more boxes." Lu Lingxi and Xiao Feng were used to her hard-mouthed, soft-hearted way. Lu Lingxi didn't listen to her and still took only two boxes, saying with curved eyes, "Mom likes beef jerky, so I'll leave more for Mom."
Although she knew the little bastard was trying to please her, Wang Shuxiu couldn't help but smile at these words and scolded, "Little bastard."
Every time Wang Shuxiu ended with "little bastard", it meant she was in a good mood, so Lu Lingxi ran off in a flash to the next apartment with the two boxes of beef jerky. Ever since Yan Yue had confessed to his family, Lu Lingxi hadn't come over here, and this was the first time he was going there again. Pushing the door, Lu Lingxi put the things on the table and turned his head to look for Yan Yue.
"Xiao Xi?" Yan Yue heard footsteps, came out of the bedroom where he was changing his clothes and saw Lu Lingxi at once. In surprise he reached out and hugged Lu Lingxi tightly. "How did you manage to come here, Xiao Xi?" Yan Yue asked in a soft voice, lowering his head to give Lu Lingxi a kiss on the forehead.
Lu Lingxi gestured for Yan Yue to look at the boxes on the living room table. "This?" Yan Yue vaguely guessed something but didn't dare to confirm it.
"Dad asked me to send you these." Lu Lingxi said with a smile as he hugged Yan Yue's waist. He thought it was a good sign; although it was Xiao Feng who had asked him to come over, Wang Shuxiu didn't stop him. Did it mean that he could come to Yan Yue again in the future as often as before?
As Lu Lingxi thought about it happily, Yan Yue also thought of this and raised his hand to rub Lu Lingxi's hair, asking in a low voice, "Mom isn't angry?"
Lu Lingxi shook his head, "Mom even told me to take two more boxes."
Yan Yue smiled and deliberately looked around, "What about the two more boxes?"
Lu Lingxi blinked, with a sly expression, "If I really took four boxes here, Mom would definitely be unhappy in her heart without saying anything."
Yan Yue chuckled as he listened. Looking into Lu Lingxi's eyes, he couldn't help but lower his head and kiss him. Lu Lingxi was in a hurry to go back, "Mom told me to go back quickly, she's still waiting for me to eat."
"Don't worry, it's been just a short while." Yan Yue didn't let go and said softly, "I haven't hugged Xiao Xi for a long time." Since Xiao Feng had gone back to the northwest, Lu Lingxi had not spent the night in the plant nursery because he was worried about Wang Shuxiu being home alone. Whenever the two were alone together either in the car or in the shop, Yan Yue couldn't do anything, mindful of the eyes around, and could only keep holding back his desire for Lu Lingxi. Now that they had the rare opportunity to be alone together, Yan Yue was impulsive and didn't want to let Lu Lingxi go back.
He gently lowered his head and kissed Lu Lingxi's lips, grinding tenderly. Lu Lingxi was nervous that Wang Shuxiu would be unhappy if he returned back late, but he couldn't leave Yan Yue, so he opened his eyes and watched Yan Yue kiss him.
Yan Yue's eyes were hot and focused and he felt his heart melting when he looked at Lu Lingxi like this. He lowered his head to rest his forehead against Lu Lingxi's and said, "I'll come to you tonight."
Lu Lingxi's eyes suddenly widened and his heart pounded fiercely. "What if Mom finds out?"
Yan Yue raised his eyebrows and seriously considered, "She'll beat me up?"
Lu Lingxi imagined the scene for a moment and nodded, holding back a smile.
Chapter 138
It was a quarter of an hour later that Lu Lingxi came home from the next door.
Wang Shuxiu sat on the sofa and glared at him. Lu Lingxi's knees felt weak and he snuggled up to Wang Shuxiu's side. He didn't know how to be coquettish, he just hugged Wang Shuxiu's arm affectionately and called out in a soft voice, "Mom."
Every time he did this, Wang Shuxiu was helpless. She reached out and bitterly poked Lu Lingxi's forehead with her finger, saying sternly, "Eat."
Lu Lingxi followed Wang Shuxiu like a little tail. The mother and son sat next to each other. Xiao Feng looked at them with amusement and gave each of them a portion of pork ribs, saying in a conciliatory manner, "Come on, try my cooking."
"Thank you, Dad." Lu Lingxi said obediently.
Xiao Feng smiled, "If Xiao Xi likes it, I'll continue to cook tomorrow."
The father and son deviated from the previous incident in a couple of sentences. Wang Shuxiu knew what was going on, gave them a glance, lowered her head and started eating. The corners of her mouth curled up slightly.
After they ate, it was almost nine o'clock in the evening and Wang Shuxiu went back to her room early to rest. Lu Ling also went to his room as if nothing had happened. But he kept sitting at the door listening to the movement outside. Dahei was quietly lying beside Lu Lingxi, his ears perked up.
Lu Lingxi guessed Dahei's thoughts, smiled and stroked Dahei's head, whispering, "Dahei, are you listening to Mom falling asleep too?"
Dahei gave a low bark in a suppressed voice.
Lu Lingxi was a little embarrassed and didn't say anything more as he stroked Dahei. However, Dahei's hearing was much more sensitive than his. Had Dahei been there last time, Mom wouldn't have been able to catch Big Brother Yan and him together. After waiting for a while and hearing no movement outside, Lu Lingxi guessed that Wang Shuxiu should be asleep. Originally Yan Yue said he would come to him, but Lu Lingxi thought it would be more convenient for him to go to Yan Yue. It was fine if Wang Shuxiu caught him outside, but if Yan Yue was caught in the house by Wang Shuxiu, the consequences would be serious.
"I'm coming." Lu Lingxi sent a text message to Yan Yue first, and then talked to Dahei quietly.
Dahei immediately ran ahead, his four paws stepping onto the ground silently.
As soon as Lu Lingxi went out, he saw Yan Yue standing outside waiting for him just like last time. His eyes lit up and the corners of his mouth couldn't help but curve up.
Inside the room, Xiao Feng keenly heard the commotion outside and smiled silently. He carefully tucked in the corners of the blanket of the sleeping Wang Shuxiu, thinking that it was better for Xiaohua not to know anything.
Have a good night's sleep.
The next day Lu Lingxi returned to his room early. Xiao Feng pretended not to know that he had been out all night. When he saw Lu LIngxi, he just asked if he had slept as usual. Lu Lingxi felt so guilty that he almost buried his head in his bowl when he ate.
Xiao Feng laughed in his heart and shook his head without saying anything.
The very next day after Xiao Feng returned, Ye Kang also came to Fengcheng. Just like Xiao Hong's reaction when he first entered the city, Ye Kang was also surprised by the changes in Fengcheng. Past the highway toll booth, it was like there were two seasons inside and outside of Fengcheng City. On one side it was still as dark as in winter, while on the other side it was already spring.
Ye Kang was so surprised that when he saw Yan Yue, he asked if Yan Yue knew what was going on. Ye Kang remembered that the climate in Fengcheng was similar to that in Zhongjing, so he didn't think there was such a big difference between the two cities. Besides, the change in Fengcheng was limited to the city, and outside it still felt similar to the weather in Zhongjing, which was really strange.
Since it was related to the white panel, Yan Yue couldn't say anything to Ye Kang. He just said vaguely, "Fengcheng is by the sea, and the weather is warm this year, so it's probably affected by it."
Ye Kang gave him a blank look, "You believe what the experts say, right?"
Yan Yue laughed as he heard it.
Ye Kang parked his car at the entrance of Tiny Garden and greeted Lu Lingxi who came out. Yan Yue followed closely by his side. His first concern was that Lu Lingxi wasn't wearing a coat, just a thin sweater when he walked out.
"Be careful of catching a cold." Yan Yue stepped forward and pushed Lu Lingxi back.
Lu Lingxi smiled at Ye Kang in embarrassment and meekly called out, "Brother Ye."
Ye Kang nodded with a smile and followed the two into Tiny Garden. The atmosphere of Tiny Garden was as good as ever, and Ye Kang took a deep breath, intoxicated. The last time he had left Fengcheng, what he missed most was the air inside Tiny Garden. Although it was said that the smog in Zhongjing should be less in winter, the moderately polluted air all year round still left Ye Kang with a feeling of breathlessness from time to time. "It's still such a good environment here, Xiao Xi." Ye Kang sighed from the bottom of his heart.
Basically this was a sentiment that everyone who came to Tiny Garden would have, and Lu Lingxi was used to it.
Ye Kang thought of something, "The air outside is also good. It's actually rare to see the blue sky."
He wasn't being sarcastic. Fengcheng was heavily polluted. If Zhongjing was moderately polluted all year round, Fengcheng was heavily polluted all year round. In a year of 365 days, there could be 300 days without seeing the blue sky. Every time China selected the city with the worst environment, Fengcheng was basically at the top of the list. When Ye Kang compared his visit to Fengcheng last year, he couldn't help but feel somewhat emotional.
When he finished speaking, Lu Lingxi nodded and said seriously, "You can see blue skies these days, it has been particularly blue for more than a week."
The three of them chatted on the topic. Ye Kang didn't know about the plant evolution and only thought that the improvement in Fengcheng's air was an effect of the new environmental protection policy; although he wasn't optimistic about Fengcheng's long-term future. For Fengcheng, a heavy industrial city, the main pillars of the economy were coal and steel. And it so happened that these two industries were the two most polluting to the environment. Although the new mayor of Fengcheng was mainly concerned about environmental protection, it was not possible for him to leave economic development unattended. He had planted trees everywhere in Fengcheng and shut down a number of small steel factories with incomplete formalities, but this was only treating the symptoms but not the root of the problem for the entire environment of Fengcheng. No matter how many trees were planted, as long as Fengcheng didn't adjust its industrial structure, it would not be possible to avoid pollution completely. Besides, the mayor's term of office was five years. Who knows if the next mayor would focus on the economy or on environmental protection after this one was gone?
When Ye Kang spoke about it bluntly, Yan Yue frowned slightly and subconsciously looked at Lu Lingxi. Although Xiao Xi didn't say it, in his heart he was very concerned about the improvement of the environment. Yan Yue didn't want Ye Kang's words to discourage Lu Lingxi. Besides, Ye Kang didn't yet know that plants could evolve. If the evolution of plants outpaced the rate of pollution in Fengcheng, even if Fengcheng couldn't manage to avoid pollution completely, it could still absorb all the pollution and try to maintain the status quo of blue skies and clear water.
Lu Lingxi, unaware of Yan Yue's worries, thought for a moment and said, "It would be nice if there were plants that could replace steel or other materials. This wouldn't affect the economy, but would protect the environment, and there would be no need to worry about pollution." As he said that seriously, Yan Yue thought about the existence of the white panel and raised his hand to rub Lu Lingxi's hair, saying softly, "We might really be able to find a plant like that if we try our best."
Lu Lingxi glanced at Yan Yue and nodded vigorously.
Ye Kang found Lu Lingxi's idea interesting, but when he looked at the two men's expressions, his heart fluttered. Yan Yue's attitude didn't look like he was coaxing Lu Lingxi, making a casual remark, but rather there was a vague sense of certainty and seriousness. Ye Kang looked at the two men's faces, his expression somewhat thoughtful.
They chatted for a long time and in the afternoon, Lu Lingxi accompanied Ye Kang to the pet shop across the street. Yan Yue had already talked to Ye Kang about adopting the husky, and Ye Kang had agreed. As soon as the three of them entered the shop, the silvery grey husky rushed towards Lu Lingxi like an arrow. Lu Lingxi took a step back and caught it, stroking the husky's furry head with a smile and gesturing to Ye Kang, "Look, Brother Ye, it's very obedient."
Just as Lu Lingxi finished speaking, Dong Zhi's girlfriend rushed out from the back angrily, carrying a pair of jeans, and furiously said to the husky, "Stinky Erha (Husky), these are the new jeans I bought!"
As soon as the husky saw her, it immediately laid down on the ground belly up and pretended to be dead.
Knowing that Ye Kang was the one who was going to adopt the husky, Dong Zhi was afraid that he would have a bad impression of the husky, so he hurried up and asked, "What's wrong? Erha has always been quite well behaved."
"Where's he well behaved!" Dong Zhi's girlfriend said angrily. She didn't know Ye Kang, but she was familiar with Lu Lingxi and Yan Yue, so she didn't treat them as outsiders. Furiously, she turned the jeans in her hand to reveal the back and demonstrated that the two pockets at the back of the jeans were scratched to pieces, with strips of denim flapping in the wind. She was irate, "I just put a bar of chocolate in my pocket and the stinky Erha saw it. I've told him he can't eat chocolate, but he still found it and scratched the jeans."
The husky on the ground also seemed to know that Dong Zhi's girlfriend was talking about him, and raised both front paws to cover his eyes, looking as if he had no face to see people.
Lu Lingxi: "…"
He had just praised the husky for being obedient.
Ye Kang looked at the husky's appearance and laughed. Unexpectedly he liked this husky, although he could tell from these jeans that this husky wasn't as obedient as Lu Lingxi had described. But it might be the old saying about love at first sight; he took an instant liking to this husky. "What's his name?" Ye Kang asked.
Dong Zhi didn't know whether to laugh or to cry for a moment and replied, "His previous owner was too lazy and called him Erha. There's no formal name."
Ye Kang thought that when Dong Zhi's girlfriend was saying "Erha", she meant the dog breed, but he didn't think it was really the dog's name. He thought Erha was pretty good and turned to Lu Lingxi to ask what he thought. Lu Lingxi's way of naming was always simple: Dahei, Xiaohei, Xiaohui and so on. He stared at the husky and suggested a few names for Ye Kang to choose from, such as Xiaoyin (Little Silver), Xiaohui (Little Grey) and Erha, or else Xiaoqi (Little Wonder) would be fine.
Ye Kang & Yan Yue: "…"
"Alright, let's go with Erha and don't bother changing his name." Ye Kang made the final decision.
By now Dong Zhi's girlfriend finally understood that Ye Kang was the new owner of Erha. She looked at the jeans in her hand and somewhat regretfully thought that she should have saved face for Erha. As soon as she put her jeans away, Erha, who was lying on the ground pretending to be dead, immediately got up and continued to circle around Lu Lingxi.
Ye Kang smiled, squatting on the ground and stroking Erha's head. Erha squinted his eyes at him and suddenly pounced on him and enthusiastically licked Ye Kang's face.
Dong Zhi looked happy; although Erha usually acted silly and cheap, and had been lively and playful since he was sent to the pet shop by his original owner as if he wasn't affected by the abandonment at all, but in fact Erha understood everything in his heart, otherwise he wouldn't have been so enthusiastic towards Ye Kang and tried so hard to please him. The good thing was that Ye Kang was a friend introduced by Xiao Xi, so Dong Zhi felt relieved to leave Erha in his hands and didn't have to worry that Erha would have to adapt to another home after he had just adapted to one.
Seeing that Ye Kang and Erha were having fun, Lu Lingxi and Yan Yue went back to Tiny Garden. The afternoon passed, and before 6 o'clock, Ye Kang walked back across the road to the shop alone.
"Huh, where's Erha?" Lu Lingxi who was talking to Yan Yue turned his head to look and couldn't help but wonder a little when he didn't see Erha.
Ye Kang said, "Erha couldn't bear to leave the pet shop, so I let him stay one more day and will come back tomorrow to take him away." What he didn't elaborate on was that just as he was about to take Erha away, the ever coquettish Erha suddenly became downcast and looked at Dong Zhi with a look of reluctance.
Dong Zhi smiled nervously and whispered to Ye Kang, "Don't look down at them, they don't talk but they understand everything in their hearts. They know who has been good to them, and they know how to repay the kindness."
Dong Zhi was talking about the pets kept in the shop, and Ye Kang immediately thought of Dahei when he heard it, nodding with emotion. That was why Ye Kang deliberately let Erha stay at the pet shop for one more day to say goodbye to Dong Zhi and the others.
As soon as the time passed 6 o'clock, the three packed up and left Tiny Garden together. Yan Yue suggested going to the small restaurant for dinner, a sort of meet-and-greet for Ye Kang. Lu Lingxi also wanted to go and see if Bai Yuan was accustomed to the restaurant, so he nodded in agreement. Ye Kang was curious about the restaurant and agreed too.
When the three of them arrived at the restaurant, they saw from afar that the entrance was full of people waiting for a table. It was still early spring, but these people, freezing and with red noses, had been waiting outside for who knows how long. By then the residents in the vicinity of the restaurant had all chosen to pack up and go home, otherwise there would be even more people queuing up at the restaurant than there were now.
Because of Wang Shuxiu's pregnancy, both the expansion and the plan to open a new restaurant were halted, which directly led to the restaurant being too small and the need to wait in line for a long time no matter what time of day you came to eat. Luckily, Lu Lingxi had already spoken to Yi Hang in advance, so they didn't need to wait with other customers downstairs and could just eat upstairs.
Ye Kang was a little surprised by the scene in front of him. He had already returned to Zhongjing when the small restaurant opened and he hadn't eaten here. However, he had heard Yan Yue mention a few times that the ingredients in the small restaurant were purely natural and unpolluted and very fresh, so it was no wonder that it attracted so many people.
"Shall we go straight in?" Ye Kang glanced at the people lining up around him, feeling deep in his heart that if he said aloud they were not queuing, someone would immediately rush out and give him a lecture.
Lu Lingxi was amused by Ye Kang's expression and nodded with a smile, whispering, "It's fine, the regulars all know me."
When the restaurant first opened, Lu Lingxi used to come over after work to help out. At that time, all the residents in the neighbourhood knew Lu Lingxi. Later on, more and more customers came to the restaurant, and accordingly, more and more people knew Lu Lingxi, and they all knew that he was the lady boss's son, and was also considered the little boss of the place.
After Lu Lingxi said that, Ye Kang exaggeratedly made a relieved expression, and Yan Yue and Lu Lingxi both laughed when they looked at him. Facing the eager gaze of a group of people, the three entered the small restaurant, and Dahei was left in the car outside. There were more and more guests in the small restaurant, and Lu Lingxi also had to consciously stop bringing Dahei in. Although he knew that Dahei was very healthy, had no germs and was clean, it was inevitable that some guests would mind this, and he could only wrong Dahei.
Dahei obediently stayed in the car without making a fuss. Ye Kang felt somewhat glad, "Fortunately I didn't bring Erha along, otherwise it would've been a headache."
Lu Lingxi and Yan Yue looked at each other and nodded in agreement.
The three of them went straight upstairs, and Yi Hang found some time to come over and say hello. Lu Lingxi stopped him and asked how Bai Yuan was faring.
"Don't worry, Lao Si can't stand bullying." Yi Hang patted his chest and assured, "He's doing well here, it's not like he has to cut radishes every day. Occasionally the master chef is busy and he can even stir-fry a dish. It's much better than what he used to study from a gold medal chef."
When Yi Hang said this, Lu Lingxi also felt relieved. Now that there were many people outside, he couldn't afford to keep Yi Hang, so he hurriedly said a few words and watched Yi Hang rush off. While the two of them were talking, Yan Yue had already invited Ye Kang to sit down, pouring him a cup of tea.
What Yan Yue was holding was a bamboo tea set, and there were quite a few bamboo crafts upstairs. These were all bought by Wang Shuxiu and Zhou Xiaoman while shopping in the past few days. They looked elegant and interesting.
Lu Lingxi sent Yi Hang away and sat down next to Yan Yue, who had a small bamboo building model in his hand. Lu Lingxi found it interesting, so he took it and played with it.
Yan Yue looked at him dotingly, "You like it?"
Lu Lingxi nodded, fondled the bamboo building and asked curiously, "Are there really a lot of bamboo buildings like this in Kunnan? Won't they collapse if people live there?"
Yan Yue chuckled, "How can that be? Bamboo is flexible and tough, it has low density (ratio of mass to volume) and is several times stronger than steel…"
He stopped suddenly when he said this and looked at Lu Lingxi thoughtfully.
The author has something to say: If you are interested, you can search for articles about bamboo. Now the use of bamboo is really beyond imagination. There is a kind of bamboo called Gangzhu, which has a tensile strength (maximum stress the material can stand) of 2833 kilograms per square metre and enjoys the reputation of "plant steel". People really use bamboo instead of steel bars in bamboo reinforced cement for buildings. There are many other uses, and it is a treasure all over. Of course this story will be a little exaggerated O(∩_∩)O~
Chapter 139
Bamboo, from the Paoceae family, not only has many varieties but also grows rapidly. Some varieties are as low as grass, while others are as tall as trees. Most of them are distributed in tropical and subtropical areas.
This was the introduction to bamboo in the Illustrated Book of Plants, something that Lu Lingxi had been reading all night. Since Yan Yue had inadvertently mentioned the properties of bamboo during dinner, namely its toughness, flexibility and low density, the three of them had talked about it a little. It was just a casual conversation, but Lu Lingxi had something in mind and started looking for information on bamboo when he returned.
In fact, there were many records about bamboo in China. In the early days, bamboo was associated with Chinese calligraphy (bamboo calligraphy pen, one of the oldest calligraphy tools in the world), and was then used in technology, architecture, for tools and musical instruments. Lu Lingxi found quite a lot of information, but only skimmed through the irrelevant parts, focusing on the history of bamboo in the development of construction and tools. According to the information, bamboo had a long history of use in construction, with skilled craftsmen building a palace using bamboo as early as two thousand years ago. In the south, where bamboo was abundant, bamboo buildings were even the most common houses for ordinary people, and there were still people living in them to this day.
Lu Lingxi looked at these records and found out that around the 1950s, some buildings in China were actually built with bamboo instead of steel. However, the situation was unique at the time because of the lack of steel. It was a last resort, and this method wasn't widely promoted. However, this also showed that there was a real possibility that bamboo could replace steel.
Closing the information, Lu Lingxi remembered what he had said to Yan Yue this afternoon, that he hoped to find some alternative plants to replace steel. At that time, he was actually thinking of trees such as hsienmu. Previously, Lu Lingxi had read in a book that there were several precious trees in nature that were as hard as steel, anti-corrosive, bullet-proof and erosion-proof, that were used as a substitute for metal, sometimes for ships, waterworks, vehicles, special buildings and so on. However, these trees were precious and rare, especially as they were slow growing and not easy to grow, which was not conducive to large-scale promotion.
In Lu Lingxi's view, the biggest advantage of bamboo over them was that it grew quickly and was easy and inexpensive to plant. If bamboo could really replace steel after the proper treatment… just thinking about this possibility made his spirits high and he couldn't wait to go find some bamboo right away. These thoughts were swirling in Lu Lingxi's head until midnight when he fell asleep in a daze.
When he opened his eyes the next day, Lu Lingxi's mind was filled with bamboo, so much that he seemed a little distracted all morning.
At half past eight, Yan Yue came to pick up Lu Lingxi to go to the shop, precisely as if checking in at work. Usually, Wang Shuxiu treated Yan Yue as air, but today, she actually smiled at him unexpectedly. Yan Yue was a little surprised but his face didn't show anything. Only when he saw Lu Lingxi's slow reaction did it dawn on him what Wang Shuxiu's change in attitude meant.
As soon as the two of them left the house, Wang Shuxiu asked Xiao Feng in a low voice, "Did Xiao Xi have a fight with Yan Yue? Why does he look so listless?"
Xiao Feng didn't believe that the two would quarrel at all, smiled and comforted Wang Shuxiu, "Why would they, don't worry about it." He then teased Wang Shuxiu, "Besides, isn't it good for the two of them to fight? Don't you dislike them being together, Xiaohua?"
Wang Shuxiu glared at Xiao Feng, who shook his head in amusement and said nothing else. Maybe all mothers are like that. Wang Shuxiu said she didn't want Lu Lingxi and Yan Yue to be together, but if things went wrong between them, she started to worry about whether Lu Lingxi would be unhappy, hoping that Yan Yue could coax Lu Lingxi to be happy. As they say, care is chaotic, and so is worry.
Wang Shuxiu was at home thinking about it while Yan Yue helped Lu Lingxi fasten his seat belt and asked him with a smile, "Is Xiao Xi still thinking about bamboo?"
Lu Lingxi nodded, a little embarrassed, "Big Brother Yan, do you think I'm fanciful?"
"No." Yan Yue affirmed, "The relevant technology is already available now, it's just that we don't usually care about it."
Like Lu Lingxi, Yan Yue had also looked through quite a lot of information last night. He hadn't paid much attention to this before, and only last night did he realise that replacing steel with bamboo wasn't a crazy idea of his and Lu Lingxi's, but a direction of development in the international environmental protection industry. Whether it was bamboo reinforced concrete in the past or high-tech research now, the people involved were working hard to put it to practical use. A certain number of pavilions at the World Expo in Haicheng two years ago were the best example of this.
Actually, Lu Lingxi and Yan Yue were looking at different information in different directions. Lu Lingxi didn't know much about the technology Yan Yue was talking about, but he thought that technology was only one aspect, and the most fundamental thing was the bamboo itself.
Yan Yue nodded in agreement, "Xiao Xi is right, the most fundamental thing is the bamboo itself."
"Then, Big Brother Yan, should we find a few suitable bamboo plants to try? I still have 5 points of the power of nature." Apart from returning the owed power of nature from the reward by the last panel upgrade, Lu Lingxi still had 5 points left for himself. He had been reluctant to use them, thinking to save them just in case. Now it was just the right time to use them to evolve the bamboo and see what effect it would have.
His eyes were eager, and Yan Yue couldn't help but smile as he watched him. "Good, let's find a few suitable bamboo plants to try."
There are many different types of bamboo, but not all of them are suitable for construction. Generally the most common is moso bamboo. Yan Yue spoke to Xue Yongtong and asked the other party to help him find a few bamboo plants. Xue Yongtong, who received Yan Yue's call, was a bit surprised that Xiao Xi was thinking about bamboo. Although bamboo was mostly found in the south and not very common in the north, it wasn't a difficult task for Xue Yongtong to find a few bamboo plants and he readily agreed to do so.
In less than two days, Xue Yongtong found the moso bamboo that Lu Lingxi wanted. He deliberately chose a five-year old healthy bamboo and planned to transplant the whole thing to the plant nursery of Tiny Garden. When they received Xue Yongtong's call, Yan Yue and An Jie were accompanying Ye Kang outside to look for a suitable apartment. Ye Kang stayed at Ye Cheng's house for two days. The first day Erha was able to restrain his nature and act innocent and well-behaved, but by the second day only Erha turned Ye Cheng's house into a demolition site.
Even now Ye Kang didn't dare to recall Ye Cheng's expression when he saw the scene at home. He only felt a chill down his back, and Ye Cheng's face was so gloomy it could scare people to death. Erha probably knew that he was in trouble, so he hid in the bathroom and refused to come out. After Ye Kang finished cleaning up the house, he wanted to go to the bathroom, but he had to go through Ye Cheng's bedroom and was stabbed countless times by Ye Cheng's eye knives. Ye Cheng endured for the whole night with supreme fortitude, and the next morning he packed Ye Kang and Erha and kicked them out.
Ye Kang was quite gloating when he talked about the incident, and he even made it a point to show Yan Yue and An Jie the photos he took at the scene. Anyone familiar with Ye Cheng knew that apart from being vindictive, he also had a slight obsession with cleanliness. Thinking about the tragedy of the demolition site, it was incredible that he could hold back and didn't kick Ye Kang and Erha out immediately.
"How about this apartment?" Yan Yue asked Ye Kang.
Ye Kang circled around and touched Erha who was following him, "What do you think, Erha?"
Erha looked at Ye Kang with big, innocent eyes, and Ye Kang shook his finger at him in amusement, "You're just pretending." He chose to live in an apartment also because it was a place where he could keep his dog and there was someone to clean up after him no matter how much Erha tossed and turned; Ye Kang just had to pay for it.
"Okay, this is it. Next door is An Jie's apartment and Erha will have an extra place to play."
The corners of An Jie's mouth twitched slightly as he heard that. He didn't really want the place where he lived to become the place where Erha played, as Ye Kang put it.
As they were laughing and joking, Yan Yue received a call from Xue Yongtong. On the phone, Xue Yongtong talked about how he had already transplanted the bamboo to the plant nursery and asked when they would go to see it.
"So fast!"
Xue Yongtong laughed, "Naturally Xiao Xi's affairs are top priority."
After hanging up the phone, Yan Yue planned to pick up Lu Lingxi and go to the plant nursery with him to have a look, so that they could stay there at night. Before he had the chance to speak to Lu Lingxi, Ye Kang excitedly decided to go with him. Yan Yue had no choice but to bring An Jie with him as well to join the fun.
As they had to rush back to the city in the evening, they left after lunch and it wasn't yet two o'clock when they arrived at the plant nursery. Compared to downtown Fengcheng City, the change in the environment of Lingshui Village was more obvious. The first thing Ye Kang saw before he even entered the village was the large willow tree growing at the entrance to the village. Seen from the road, the big willow tree was towering and majestic, its branches flourishing, its dense wickers hanging down like thousands of green ribbons fluttering in the wind.
Ye Kang was taken aback. When he came to the plant nursery last year, the big willow tree wasn't so tall. In just over half a year, the big willow tree seemed to have risen by two or three metres.
"I remember you saying that this willow tree was struck by lightning once?"
"Yes?"
Ye Kang joked, "I suspect that it was struck by lightning as a tribulation."
Yan Yue glanced at him speechlessly, and Ye Kang laughed.
Ye Kang was obviously more interested in the big willow tree than the newly transplanted bamboo. As soon as he got out of the car, he called Erha and wanted to go and have a look at the big willow tree. An Jie had been to Lingshui Village quite a few times and wasn't as sensitive to the changes in the big willow tree as Ye Kang was; he was just intrigued by what Ye Kang said and followed along to the vicinity of the big willow tree.
Both of them knew the way, and there was no need to worry about them getting lost. Yan Yue confidently left them behind and went with Lu Lingxi to look at the few moso bamboos that had been transplanted. Moso bamboo does not require much soil, as long as it is fertile, moist and has good drainage and breathability. The soil in the Tiny Garden plant nursery had been purified and met almost all the requirements for the growth of moso bamboo.
When the two went over, Uncle Li was looking curiously at the few lone bamboos. This southern plant, Uncle Li had still seen once in the Fengcheng Botanical Garden a few years ago. He asked Lu Lingxi with a smile, "Does Xiao Xi want to eat bamboo shoots?" Otherwise he couldn't think of a reason why Lu Lingxi would transplant so many bamboos.
Lu Lingxi blushed a little at this, and wondered which would sound more funny, the real reason or his desire to eat bamboo shoots. Uncle Li saw that he didn't speak and thought that he had guessed Lu Lingxi's mind. The child was thin-skinned; Uncle Li smiled and didn't continue asking.
Uncle Li watched for a while and then went to work. Lu Lingxi clicked on the white panel and the information on moso bamboo appeared on it.
Plant name: Moso bamboo
Plant needs: none
Plant vitality: high
Generally, newly transplanted plants needed a process of adaptation, and the vitality level of moso bamboo indicated that it was clearly very well adapted to the environment here. Lu Lingxi looked at the panel and considered what to do next. According to his experience, the panel would show when the current state of the plant fulfilled the conditions for evolution, and since the moso bamboo clearly didn't meet the conditions for evolution at the moment, he could only consume 5 points of the power of nature to induce it to evolve. The problem was that the last time the donglingcao had evolved he had done it accidentally, and he couldn't find any hint on the panel how he could choose the bamboo to evolve.
As this thought flashed, the panel displayed a line of green text.
After receiving the host's spiritual instructions, consume five points of the power of nature to start evolution?
Lu Lingxi was startled but decisively chose yes.
Chapter 140
The evolution of bamboo was influenced by Lu Lingxi's spirit, and the direction of evolution was Strength +20%. As soon as the evolution was completed, Yan Yue cut a section of the bamboo and sent it to Wang Chaoliang who was far away in Kunnan, so that he could do a mechanical test. Three days later, Wang Chaoliang appeared at the door of Tiny Garden in a dishevelled state, much to Lu Lingxi's surprise.
"Uncle Wang, you're back!"
The clothes of Wang Chaoliang who appeared in front of Lu Lingxi were slightly wrinkled, as if he remained in the same pose for a long time. His hair was also a bit messy and his face was visibly tired, but his eyes were amazingly bright. When he saw Lu Lingxi, he took a step forward excitedly and said quickly, "Xiao Xi, is the bamboo that Yan Yue sent me a new species that you discovered?"
From time to time, Lu Lingxi would discover and cultivate some new varieties of plants, and both Wang Chaoliang and Xue Yongtong were accustomed to his behaviour and secretly surprised by his amazing talent. Therefore, after receiving the bamboo sent by Yan Yue, Wang Chaoliang vaguely realised something. Instead of doing the test in front of his colleagues, he borrowed the laboratory after his colleagues got off work. After a series of tests, although he was psychologically prepared in advance, Wang Chaoliang was shocked by the test results. Out of his responsibility to Lu Lingxi, Wang Chaoliang bought a ticket to the nearest plane and rushed back to Fengcheng.
Lu Lingxi nodded softly under the excited eyes of Wang Chaoliang.
After the evolution of moso bamboo, its genes would definitely change, which was equivalent to a new plant variety. In view of the fact that the moso bamboos transplanted by Xue Yongtong were healthy five-year old bamboos, Lu Lingxi couldn't say that he raised them by himself, he could only "discover" them unintentionally.
As soon as he nodded, a big stone fell from Wang Chaoliang's heart. He released his grip on Lu Lingxi's arm and said with great excitement, "Xiao Xi, your discovery is definitely a big one! The economic and environmental value is immeasurable." When Wang Chaoliang said that, he thought of something, "Xiao Xi, I want to introduce a friend to you, he specialises in bamboo research. If he knew about your discovery he would be overjoyed."
The friend Wang Chaoliang was talking about was called Zheng Xinhe, a researcher at the Kunnan Botanical Garden and the deputy director of the International Bamboo and Rattan Organisation in China. He was an expert specialising in the study of bamboo. Two years ago, China deciphered the genome code of moso bamboo and published the results in "Nature & Genetics". The deciphering work was led and organised by Zheng Xinhe.
Because Wang Chaoliang had a good relationship with Zheng Xinhe, he paid attention to his research from time to time. He knew that Zheng Xinhe was now working to promote bamboo as an environmentally friendly material, and even hoped that bamboo could change the current industrial structure of China and become a new type of industrial resource.
Zheng Xinhe had once told Wang Chaoliang that bamboo was simply natural plant steel, and that if the right bamboo could be found, together with the current mature technology, bamboo could completely replace the existence of steel. And in Wang Chaoliang's opinion, this bamboo found by Lu Lingxi was the most suitable bamboo that Zheng Xinhe mentioned, bar none.
After spending half an hour introducing his friend, Wang Chaoliang seriously said to Lu Lingxi: "Xiao Xi, you have to realise that this newly discovered bamboo of yours has the potential to change the future structure of industry. If you just promote it as an ordinary plant, then it's a pity. This friend of mine, Zheng Xinhe, I trust his character wholeheartedly. Only by taking the lead in the development and promotion can he truly maximise the value of this bamboo."
"Can't you, Uncle Wang?"
Lu Lingxi had no doubts about Wang Chaoliang's words, he just preferred to cooperate with him.
Wang Chaoliang hesitated for a few seconds, shook his head with a bitter smile and said frankly, "I can't. I'm not a bamboo researcher, and my knowledge and resources in this area are not as good as Zheng Xinhe's."
He wasn't being modest, but telling the truth. That said, it wasn't that Wang Chaoliang was unmoved; since he could see the value of bamboo, he knew how much of an impact this would have if it succeeded. If he took the lead, he could foresee great glory in the future, perhaps even the highest glory he could ever achieve in his life. But he couldn't. As he himself had said, his knowledge and resources about bamboo were not as good as Zheng Xinhe's, and since Xiao Xi and Yan Yue trusted him, he had to be responsible for them.
Wang Chaoliang had said this, and Lu Lingxi knew that the other party was doing it for his own good. He thought about it and said, "I'll discuss it with Big Brother Yan."
"Okay, I've taken a week's leave, Xiao Xi, you can look for me anytime."
Wang Chaoliang gave Lu Lingxi the mechanical test report that Yan Yue had asked him to do, and after a few more words he went back to Grandma Wang's house. Lu Lingxi quickly gave Yan Yue a call and spoke in detail about Wang Chaoliang's return.
"I know, I'll come back soon. By the way, what does Xiao Xi want to eat for lunch? I'll bring it to you from the small restaurant."
Ever since Wang Shuxiu had intentionally or unintentionally hinted that Lu Lingxi had lost weight again recently, Lu Lingxi's lunch had been taken care of by the small restaurant. Either Yan Yue went there to pick it up, or Yi Hang took the time to deliver it to Tiny Garden. Lu Lingxi felt that it was too much trouble and once mentioned that he could just eat something by himself. The next day Wang Shuxiu personally cooked the food and brought it to the shop for Lu Lingxi. Lu Lingxi couldn't do anything about Wang Shuxiu, so he could only promise to wait for the lunch prepared for him by the small restaurant every day at noon.
"Glutinous rice ribs, right, Dahei wants to eat ribs." Lu Lingxi said obediently.
Yan Yue said softly, "Okay."
After hanging up the phone, Yan Yue packed up and prepared to go to the small restaurant. Ye Kang very consciously pulled An Jie and followed behind Yan Yue. Yan Yue said kindly, "Preparing to dine out again?"
Ye Kang wasn't at all embarrassed to be poked fun by Yan Yue; instead he said bluntly, "You know how crowded the restaurant is, who knows how long it will take to queue. You can't just care about Xiao Xi and ignore your brothers, right?"
Yan Yue chuckled at this and gestured for the two to hurry to the car. Erha rushed to the car before everyone else and jumped in, hogging the co-pilot seat.
Ye Kang: "…"
Erha didn't know that he was disliked by his own master and was looking through the window in excitement. After following Ye Kang once in a night car race, Erha had fallen in love with this new activity and had identified the co-pilot seat as his own, jumping there very consciously whenever he saw a car.
Ye Kang looked at Erha speechlessly while Yan Yue was amused by his expression. Finally, Ye Kang followed Erha into the car. Half an hour later, Yan Yue dropped Ye Kang and An Jie upstairs at the small restaurant and left, carrying the two large insulation boxes prepared by Yi Hang.
Wang Chaoliang was at Tiny Garden again. He came this time to deliver chicken legs to Dahei. Grandma Wang had braised a pot of chicken legs today and was about to deliver some to Dahei. When she caught such a coolie as Wang Chaoliang, she simply sent him out.
Wang Chaoliang looked at Dahei and said with a smile, "I'm taking advantage of Dahei again. If it weren't for Dahei, I wouldn't be able to eat chicken legs for lunch today."
Lu Lingxi was embarrassed to receive the chicken legs from Grandma Wang. Last time he asked Elder Zhang for a recipe for health care, but he had forgotten it in the morning when Wang Chaoliang left in such a hurry. Now he gave it to Wang Chaoliang.
"This is the recipe given by Grandpa Zhang, it works very well." Lu Lingxi carefully introduced it to Wang Chaoliang.
Wang Chaoliang himself didn't really believe in these things, but it was Xiao Xi's good intention, so he happily took it. "I'll ask your Grandma Wang to make it and drink it accordingly."
Lu Lingxi nodded and instructed Wang Chaoliang to make sure to talk to Grandma Wang. He also made a point, bringing up Elder Su as an example. After he told Elder Su about this recipe, Elder Su drank it for a few days and called Lu Lingxi, saying that it worked and that he felt warm qi in his body after drinking it, which was very comfortable.
Lu Lingxi said it seriously, and Wang Chaoliang also nodded.
Yan Yue came over and saw this scene. "Xiao Xi, Mr. Wang."
"Big Brother Yan." Lu Lingxi curved his eyes at Yan Yue.
Wang Chaoliang also greeted "Mr. Yan" politely. Although he knew Yan Yue well, he wasn't as close to him as he was to Xiao Xi; it was difficult to get close to Yan Yue as a person. Wang Chaoliang sometimes wondered how Xiao Xi could know someone like Yan Yue. He didn't mean that Yan Yue was bad, but he was quite different from them, a kind of elite. However, Wang Chaoliang thought it was a good thing that he met Yan Yue, because what he said to Xiao Xi might not be understood by Xiao Xi, and it was Yan Yue who really made the decision. With this in mind, Wang Chaoliang was in no hurry to go home but was going to find time to talk to Yan Yue.
Yan Yue saw his intention, opened the insulation box and placed it in front of Lu Lingxi, "Xiao Xi, you eat first, I'll come over later."
Lu Lingxi watched as Yan Yue and Wang Chaoliang walked to the door of Tiny Garden, chatting in low voices. He couldn't eat by himself, so he simply put the insulation box away and waited for Yan Yue to come back to eat together.
Yan Yue turned his head to look at Lu Lingxi; his heart softened and his attention returned to Wang Chaoliang. He interrupted when he heard Wang Chaoliang mention Zheng Xinhe's name, "Zheng Xinhe is a member of the International Bamboo and Rattan Organisation?"
Wang Chaoliang nodded.
The International Bamboo and Rattan Organisation was an independent, non-profit, intergovernmental international organisation. Their aim was to promote the welfare of bamboo and rattan producers and users on the premise that bamboo and rattan resources were sustainable. In recent years this organisation had played a unique role in environmental and ecological conservation, poverty alleviation and trade promotion through pioneering new applications of bamboo and rattan. If Zheng Xinhe, the man whom Wang Chaoliang spoke of, was the deputy director of this organisation, then the resources at his disposal were indeed innumerable.
Yan Yue had already basically approved of cooperating with Zheng Xinhe in his heart; what he couldn't have imagined was that Wang Chaoliang had actually conceded the promotion of this matter to another person.
"You don't regret it?"
Wang Chaoliang smiled and shook his head, "You trust me, I have to be responsible for you."
His tone was calm; as Yan Yue listened, the corners of his mouth curled up and a flash of appreciation appeared in his eyes extremely quickly.