Then It's Such a Coincidence

Then, as fate would have it, Zhou Chenglei walked into the orchard with Jiang Xia.

The owner of the orchard was a man about the same age as Zhou Chenglei. His skin was tanned from years of tending the orchard. When he saw them, he flashed a surprised smile, his teeth particularly white. "Battalion Commander, what wind blew you in here?"

He then looked at Jiang Xia and laughed, "This is the Commander's wife? Hello, Commander's wife! Commander's wife, you're so beautiful! Welcome!"

As expected of the Battalion Commander, his wife is so radiant!

More beautiful than flowers! Whiter than the clouds in the sky!

Jiang Xia smiled, "Hello."

Zhou Chenglei said to Jiang Xia, "Jiang Yang, a former comrade-in-arms."

Jiang Xia: "Brother Jiang."

Jiang Yang was flattered and waved his hands vigorously, "No, no, Commander's wife, just call me Xiao Jiang."

Jiang Xia smiled.

Zhou Chenglei gave the wine and cigarettes to Jiang Yang.

Jiang Xia handed him the half-slab of ribs and two pineapples.

Jiang Yang waved his hands vigorously, declining, "No need, Battalion Commander, why did you bring so much stuff? No need..."

Zhou Chenglei gave him a look, and he didn't dare refuse, obediently taking it, his body still standing very straight.

Jiang Xia found it amusing, her eyes crinkling with laughter.

Jiang Yang glanced at her, then at Zhou Chenglei, and thought they were a perfect match! Too perfect! Zhou Chenglei asked Jiang Yang, "What kind of fruit tree seedlings do you have here now? Do you have grape seedlings?"

Jiang Yang immediately said, "Yes, yes, yes... My family has many kinds of fruit trees. Even if I don't have them, I can find them. What kind of fruit tree does the Battalion Commander want?"

Zhou Chenglei looked at Jiang Xia, "What kind of fruit tree do you want to plant?"

Jiang Yang: "Whatever kind of fruit tree the Commander's wife wants to plant, I'll take you to see. If you like it, just take it back. If my family doesn't have what the Commander's wife likes, I'll go to other places to find it for her."

Jiang Yang enthusiastically led them in to visit his orchard.

He was talkative, introducing the "empire" he had built since he retired from the army a few years ago as they walked.

Jiang Yang had contracted a lot of land and planted peaches, guavas, grapes, pomegranates, mangoes, Yang Mei, and other fruits.

Except for the grapes and mangoes, which could bear fruit this year, the other fruits had not yet borne fruit and would have to wait a year or two.

But it could be seen that he was very passionate and expectant about the orchards he had planted.

Jiang Yang was a talkative person, enthusiastically telling Jiang Xia that many of these fruit tree seedlings were bought back with great difficulty after he went to various places to perform tasks when he was a soldier, trying every means possible.

Because his wife loved to eat fruit, he specially bought them back to plant, and it was not easy to keep them alive.

Finally, after walking around the orchard for more than an hour, Jiang Xia picked a pomegranate, a guava, a persimmon, a grape seedling, and several strawberry seedlings.

Originally, Jiang Xia also wanted a peach tree and a longan tree, but Jiang Yang said that no one in his family's yard planted peach trees because peach trees were prone to becoming spirits, and longan trees were prone to attracting stink bugs.

If Jiang Xia wanted to eat peaches and longan, he would send them to her when they bore fruit.

Jiang Xia didn't understand those things, and Jiang Xia didn't know what stink bugs were, so she thought about it and let it go.

Grapes can be propagated by cuttings, but Jiang Yang had well-cultivated grape seedlings here, so she could take them back and plant them directly, and they would bear fruit in a year or two.

Jiang Xia liked to eat fruit and wanted to plant a lot of things, but the yard was not big enough. She would buy a big yard herself and plant a few more kinds of fruit.

In addition to the fruit seedlings, Jiang Yang's wife, Yang Mei, also planted some different colors of monthly roses, roses, bougainvillea, cockscomb flowers, rain lilies, sunflowers, and other flowers. Seeing that Jiang Xia liked them, she gave Jiang Xia some of each to take back and plant.

Jiang Yang said with a look of disgust, "Commander's wife, take more back if you like them, don't take up the space where I plant fruit!"

Yang Mei glared at him, "My flowers are planted in the corner of the wall, where are they taking up space? You take up the most space! Get out of here!"

Jiang Xia laughed, and it could be seen that the couple had a good relationship.

The couple also had lunch in the orchard at noon.

Jiang Yang's wife made Pineapple Chicken, which was sour and sweet and very appetizing. Jiang Xia helped make Red Braised Ribs and Perilla Goose, which were praised by the couple, making her embarrassed.

When they left, Jiang Yang gave them a large bag of fruit, including mangoes, grapes, two large watermelons, several cantaloupes, and two large geese.

The goose heads were particularly large, and Zhou Chenglei gave him money, but he didn't want it.

Jiang Xia then gave each of the two children a 10 yuan red envelope.

Fortunately, although the furniture took up space, there were still quite a few gaps left, so the fruit trees and fruits could be stuffed in, otherwise there would be no place to put them.

Jiang Yang and his wife watched the tractor leave.

Jiang Yang's wife was tall and her skin was a little dark because she had been managing the orchard for many years.

She looked at the departing tractor and said, "Commander Zhou's wife is so delicate and beautiful. Commander Zhou has also retired from the army and returned to the village to fish for a living. He is no longer a commander, yet he married such a delicate wife. Can he afford to support her?"

When people in the village marry a wife, they like to marry a woman who is strong and can eat a lot, because such a woman can work and take care of the family.

Jiang Xia looked too delicate and probably couldn't endure the hardships of the village.

"The commander's wife is the youngest daughter of our former division commander, and she was born late in life, so of course she is delicate. My commander is capable, how could he not be able to support her?" Jiang Yang retorted.

Yang Mei glanced at him when she heard this, "Then have you heard that your commander's delicate wife eloped with another man and was caught back by him?"

Jiang Yang: "..."

*Zhou Chenglei and Jiang Xia returned to the village after two o'clock in the afternoon, which was the hottest time of the day.

Jiang Xia felt that her skin was being scorched by the scalding air.

The courtyard door was closed. Zhou Chenglei jumped off the tractor and opened the door.

Mother Zhou heard the noise and came out. Seeing a tractor full of things, she was surprised and said, "Why did you buy so much? It must have cost a lot of money, right?"

Great-Grandmother also heard the sound and came out from the neighboring yard, smiling and saying, "Oh! You bought so many stools? It's good to buy more, it feels like a home when they are placed in the house."

Mother Zhou thought of the long and empty living room and felt that she should buy some back.

The things on the tractor were tied with ropes. Jiang Xia untied the ropes while smiling and replying, "The living room is indeed too empty, so we took advantage of today's market day to buy some furniture back."

Great-Grandmother smiled and said, "Yes, yes, an empty living room doesn't attract wealth! It should be bought! Xiao Xia understands, no wonder Xiao Xia encountered Red Seabream as soon as she went out to sea!"

What else could Mother Zhou say? They had already said everything.

Jiang Xia untied the ropes, but she had never seen the way the ropes were knotted, and she couldn't untie them after a long time.

Mother Zhou and Great-Grandmother were moving the fruit saplings into the yard.

Zhou Chenglei also untied the other ropes. He walked to Jiang Xia's side, "Let me do it."

He tied these knots, and ordinary people wouldn't be able to untie them.

Jiang Xia let go and stepped aside to let him do it.

But when she stepped aside, her shoulder brushed against the back of a bamboo chair on the tractor. Several bamboo chairs were stacked on top of each other. The ropes had kept them stable before, but they became loose after Zhou Chenglei untied the ropes.

When Jiang Xia bumped into them, several bamboo chairs fell down.

Jiang Xia subconsciously reached out to hold the bamboo chairs, but there was still one falling down on top of them.

"Be careful!" Zhou Chenglei also subconsciously reached out to hold the bamboo chairs, and his other large palm held Jiang Xia's head to prevent her from being hit.

Jiang Xia only felt that she was completely encircled in his arms, and her nose was filled with the clear ocean scent from his body and the Soap Pod fragrance from his sleeves.

Great-Grandmother and Mother Zhou hurriedly reached out to help hold the bamboo chairs.

"Okay! Okay! We've got them!" Mother Zhou said.

Zhou Chenglei then put down his hand, and Jiang Xia turned her head when she heard this.

And it was just so coincidental that Zhou Chenglei's arm, which was rolled up, brushed across Jiang Xia's lips as he lowered it.