When Gu Lingyu poured water, she had just finished peeling the orange. While getting the water, she handed the orange over, saying, "Here, I peeled too many. You can have them."
Gu Lingyu was overjoyed. She took the orange, quickly broke off a piece and put it in her mouth. After tasting it, she broke off a piece and handed it to Shen Wuqiu.
"You eat, I won't." Shen Wuqiu turned her head away, picked up her water glass, and went to drink some water.
Gu Lingyu didn't force her.
She likes the sweet taste of oranges, but the taste of orange peel is a bit unacceptable to her.
In no time, she had finished the whole orange, then leaned close to Shen Wuqiu and said, "Sister, would you like to try some? This orange is really sweet."
Shen Wuqiu looked at her empty hands, "How can you taste it? Didn't you finish it all?"
Gu Lingyu leaned closer to her and pointed to her lips, "There's still some here."
"..." To be honest, this cat is a bit silly, but sometimes it can be quite mischievous.
She didn't react, so Gu Lingyu moved a little closer to her in a showy manner.
Shen Wuqiu stared at her slightly pouting lips and couldn't resist reaching out to gently pinch them. Then, in front of her, he licked his fingers and said, "Hmm, it is indeed quite sweet."
"..." Now it was Gu Lingyu's turn to have mixed feelings. She never expected that her sister could be so flirtatious.
Shen Wuqiu felt uncomfortable under her gaze and turned her face slightly away. "Why are you looking at me like that?"
"Sister, your face is red."
"...It's too stuffy inside, I'm going to the yard for some fresh air." Well, she's actually quite flirtatious herself.
Chapter 49 Jealousy
Just as Zhao Jiujiu predicted, Shen Zhipeng's matter was not over yet.
The back of the head is a special location. After the external bleeding was stopped, there were no major problems. However, the doctor still advised him to stay in the hospital for observation for a few more days to prevent intracranial hemorrhage.
With him hospitalized, his family naturally started asking why.
Shen Xianghua felt that he had lived an upright and honest life and had not hidden the outrageous things his son had done. He told his family everything that Zhao Jiujiu had revealed.
One stone stirs up a thousand waves.
Li Chanchan, who had originally planned to take care of Shen Zhipeng at the hospital, completely broke down on the spot. She no longer cared about his life or death; she wished he were dead immediately. Ignoring the embarrassing scene and the ridicule she would cause, she started cursing and swearing at people in the ward.
"I've always turned a blind eye to your affairs outside because of your parents and children. I never imagined that you would neglect your own children and instead become a bastard who raises illegitimate children..."
Li Chanchan was never one to swallow her anger. Over the years, she was willing to endure Shen Zhipeng's grievances for several reasons: firstly, she had some feelings for him; secondly, her in-laws were kind to her; and thirdly, she had both a son and a daughter. That's why she had been putting up with Shen Zhipeng all this time.
She knew perfectly well how many fish were in the reservoir, but Shen Zhipeng's explanation was that he had used the money to invest in a friend's sand dredging boat and lost money. Although she didn't understand his actions, she always covered for him and tried to smooth things over for him.
Who knew that in the end, he was just using the money to support a mistress.
How could she possibly bear this?
Li Chanchan was so angry that she hurled harsh words without any regard for sentimentality.
Shen Zhipeng's younger sister, Shen Zhihe, couldn't stand it anymore. "Sister-in-law, let's talk this out at home. This is a hospital; it's not a good place to be here."
"I'm saying it has a bad influence, but why don't you say what your brother did has a bad influence?"
“It’s true that you should admit your mistake, but we should also be mindful of the occasion, shouldn’t we? Besides, Dad did his job to get revenge for you; he even got someone into the hospital.”
"Ha! As expected, blood is thicker than water. Your brother suffered so little, and you're already feeling sorry for him. Your dad beating him up is seen as a way of getting revenge for me..."
“Sister-in-law, if you say it like that, then it loses its meaning.”
"What's wrong with it?" Li Chanchan was holding back her anger and didn't hold back when she retorted to her sister-in-law, "Do you think that since your brother has a mistress outside, you're thinking about finding a new sister-in-law?"
"...This is simply incomprehensible." Shen Zhihe also lost his temper.
"Finally, you're telling the truth. Haven't you been unhappy with me, your sister-in-law, for a long time and been hoping your brother would find you a new one?"
Shen Zhihe was about to retort when her mother, Yang Shuitao, quickly pulled her back, saying, "Say less."
"Look how awful she was saying!"
Yang Shuitao glared at her, but softened her expression when she looked at Li Chanchan. "Chanchan, Pengzi went too far this time. Don't worry, once he's out of the hospital, Mom will make him apologize to you properly."
Li Chanchan lowered her head, remained silent, stood there for two minutes, then picked up her bag and walked away without looking back.
Shen Zhihe watched from the side, feeling somewhat resentful. "My sister-in-law is going too far. It's one thing for her to yell at me, but she also ignores you all."
"I think you're getting more and more outrageous." Yang Shuitao looked at her with a bit of anger. "It's a good thing your dad isn't here right now. If he were, seeing you arguing with your sister-in-law just now, he'd probably beat you up."
"Then why didn't you listen to what she just said?"
"Your brother did something like this, your sister-in-law is definitely angry and saying some harsh things. Can't you just let it go in one ear and out the other?"
“This is a hospital. People say you shouldn’t wash your dirty linen in public. I think she wants to announce it to the whole world. She’s not giving my brother any face, nor is she giving our family any face. She might just be ready to throw caution to the wind and not live with my brother anymore.”
"If you keep talking nonsense, I'll beat you up too."
Shen Zhihe didn't think he had said anything wrong, but when he noticed Shen Xianghua coming over, he stopped talking.
Now let's talk about Shen Wuqiu.
Knowing that Shen Zhipeng was temporarily out of danger and just needed to be observed in the hospital for a few days, not only Zhao Jiujiu breathed a sigh of relief, but Shen Wuqiu also breathed a sigh of relief. Although this matter seemed to have nothing to do with her, it was somewhat caused by her.
Since they were relatives, Shen Wuqiu originally wanted to buy some fruit and go to the hospital to see a doctor, but because her belly was getting bigger every day, her father wouldn't let her go no matter what he said. He only took Zhao Jiujiu to see a doctor once.
Shen Wuqiu didn't think she absolutely had to go. Besides, with the Dragon Boat Festival approaching, as a large landowner with 20,000 mu of land, she had some things to take care of.
The night Shen Zhipeng was admitted to the hospital, there was thunder but no rain, and the next day it was sunny for two days in a row and he recovered.
Such fine, sunny weather is perfect for the bayberries growing on Xishan Mountain.
That evening, Uncle Zheng, who had disappeared for almost half a month after being shocked by the news that Shen Wuqiu was pregnant, finally reappeared.
Upon seeing Shen Wuqiu, Uncle Zheng still felt somewhat awkward, and his usual enthusiasm had faded. He exchanged a few awkward small talk with Shen Wuqiu before getting down to business:
"The weather's been nice these past few days, and a lot of the bayberries have turned black. Do you have any plans for that?"
Just then, Su Yunzhi brought over the bayberries that Zheng Shuxin had sent, washed them, and Shen Wuqiu picked out a dark one. She tasted it and found it to be sweeter than the ones she had last time. The taste was even better than she had expected.
She had some plans for the bayberry orchard in Xishan. She thought that if the bayberries grown in Xishan were good, she would sell them directly; if the bayberries were not so good, she would use them to research canned goods, bayberry preserves, bayberry wine, and the like.
However, before her subsequent plans could be implemented, this bayberry orchard gave her such a big surprise this year—a considerable harvest was expected, and it also told her that this batch of bayberries was of good quality and suitable for direct sales.
Shen Wuqiu ate two bayberries before asking, "I've never been to Xishan, so I don't know how many bayberries we have. Uncle Zheng, how many can we pick before the Dragon Boat Festival?"
"That depends on how you plan to pick them. If you wait until the fruit is fully ripe, you can probably pick about 800 jin by the Dragon Boat Festival."
The plump, juicy bayberries weigh a lot; eight hundred pounds isn't much.
Shen Wuqiu quickly made a plan in her mind, "The day after tomorrow is the Dragon Boat Festival. Our town holds dragon boat races every year, and it seems that quite a few people watch them. We'll use our first batch of bayberries this year to attract customers."
Upon hearing this, Uncle Zheng's expression lit up. "That's a good idea. In the whole county, only our town has the tradition of dragon boat racing, and many people come to watch every year."
Shen Wuqiu made this plan precisely because of the large flow of people. "If we have enough time, we can hold a bayberry banquet, but we are too rushed. Let's keep it simple and just take the freshly picked bayberries to the dragon boat race site for people to enjoy."
"In that case, this batch of bayberries probably won't be very profitable."
Shen Wuqiu was quite optimistic: "It was an unexpected surprise. The quality of the bayberries is good, so the most important thing now is to open up the market and find customers."
Uncle Zheng agreed with her, and the two discussed the matter further before Uncle Zheng left.
As soon as he left, Shen Wuqiu called Shen Yan.
Shen Yan was a little surprised when he received her call. "I thought you had dialed the wrong number."
Shen Wuqiu teased, "What? Did I bother you, a busy person like you?"
"I'm not as busy as you." Shen Yan said on the other end of the phone, just as he heard the low battery warning sound. He couldn't find the charger and was getting a little anxious. "Wait for me a minute, let me look for the charger."
"Okay. Shall I call you back later?"
Upon hearing this, Shen Yan stopped looking for the charger. "What's up?"
"There's something I wanted to ask you."
Shen Yan raised his hand and tidied up the documents on the table. "I'm at the village committee center right now. How about I come to your house?"
The village committee center wasn't far from her home, only a ten-minute walk away, so Shen Wuqiu had no reason to refuse. "Okay, then come over."
Shen Yan replied and immediately hung up the phone. After leaving the office area, he went to the restroom to look in the mirror, tidied his appearance, and then went to Shen Wuqiu's house.
As soon as Shen Wuqiu hung up the phone, she saw someone staring at her with a large bayberry in their mouth, wearing a sour expression. It was quite comical, and she couldn't help but laugh. "Is this bayberry really that sour?"
Gu Lingyu hummed in agreement, "The bayberries aren't sour anymore."
"Then why do you have that sour look on your face?"
Gu Lingyu ate a bayberry with her cheeks puffed out, slowly finishing it, spitting out the seed, and then stuffing another one into her mouth. She mumbled, "Who were you talking to on the phone? You seem so happy..."
It seems it's not the bayberry that's sour, but acetic acid.
Shen Wuqiu raised an eyebrow. "What's it to you?"
Gu Lingyu didn't reply, spat out the seeds, and continued to stuff bayberries into her mouth.
Seeing that there were already many seeds in the small dish in front of her, Shen Wuqiu was worried that her teeth would hurt if she ate too much, so she reminded her, "Eat less, don't eat too much."
Gu Lingyu mimicked her earlier tone: "None of your business."
The particle "oh" is very subtle, instantly softening what would otherwise be a barbed word.
Shen Wuqiu found it amusing to see her looking so frustrated yet afraid to vent, so she ignored her and got up to go to the kitchen. She saw that there were still quite a few bayberries that Uncle Zheng had brought over, so she found a small basket that was used for strawberries, picked out the big and dark ones, and put them in the basket, intending to give them to Shen Yan later.
A short while later, Shen Yan arrived.
Shen Yan has always been a favorite of his elders since he was a child. Now that he is helping the villagers with their affairs, his father is even more enthusiastic towards him. He was originally walking along the road with Gu Junshan and the others, but when he saw that they were heading home, he stopped walking and followed them home.
Before even entering the house, he called out to Shen Wuqiu in the courtyard, "Wuqiu, Shen Yan is here."
Shen Wuqiu had just filled a small basket, washed her hands, and came out. There wasn't much formality between old acquaintances. She smiled and said, "Did I interrupt your business?"
"There's no need for so much business." Shen Yan followed her into the house, his eyes constantly lingering on her. Although they lived in the same village, they hadn't seen each other for quite some time.
Upon entering the house, Shen Wuqiu saw a certain cat still eating bayberries and casually instructed, "Lingyu, please pour me a glass of water."
Gu Lingyu could smell her rival from afar, but she remained seated and ignored Shen Wuqiu's words.
Shen Wuqiu thought she hadn't heard him clearly, so he walked over to her and nudged her, "Still eating bayberries?"
Gu Lingyu turned her head away, ignoring her.