Zhou Chenglei led Jiang Xia into the orchard.
The orchard's owner was a man about the same age as Zhou Chenglei. His skin had been darkened by years of tending the orchard under the sun. When he saw the two of them, he broke into a delighted smile, his teeth especially white. "Regiment Commander, what brings you here?"
He looked at Jiang Xia and smiled. "Is this Sister-in-Law? Hello, Sister-in-Law! Sister-in-Law, you're beautiful! Welcome!"
As expected of the Regiment Commander—his wife was fresh and radiant!
More beautiful than flowers! Whiter than the clouds in the sky!
Jiang Xia smiled. "Hello."
Zhou Chenglei said to Jiang Xia, "This is Jiang Yang, my former comrade-in-arms."
Jiang Xia said, "Brother Jiang."
Jiang Yang was flattered and waved his hands vigorously. "I wouldn't dare, I wouldn't dare. Sister-in-Law, just call me Xiao Jiang."
Jiang Xia smiled.
Zhou Chenglei handed the liquor and cigarettes to Jiang Yang.
Jiang Xia handed him half a rack of ribs and two pineapples.
Jiang Yang waved his hands hard and refused. "No need. Regiment Commander, why did you bring so many things? There's no need..."
One look from Zhou Chenglei made him stop refusing. He obediently accepted everything, standing especially straight.
Jiang Xia found it amusing and smiled until her eyes curved.
Jiang Yang glanced at her, then at Zhou Chenglei again. He could only think how well-matched they were! Too well-matched! Zhou Chenglei asked Jiang Yang, "What kind of fruit seedlings do you have here? Do you have grape seedlings?"
Jiang Yang immediately said, "Yes, yes, yes... My family has many kinds of fruit trees. Even if we don't have something, I can find it. What kind of fruit tree does the Regiment Commander want?"
Zhou Chenglei looked at Jiang Xia. "What kind of fruit trees do you want to plant?"
Jiang Yang said, "Whatever fruit trees Sister-in-Law wants, I'll take you to have a look. Just take home whatever catches your eye. If my family doesn't have anything Sister-in-Law likes, I'll find it for you somewhere else."
Jiang Yang enthusiastically led them inside to look around his orchard.
He was talkative, introducing them as they walked to the "territory" he had built up over the several years since returning from military service.
Jiang Yang had contracted quite a bit of land and planted honey peaches, guavas, grapes, pomegranates, mangoes, Yang Mei, and other fruits.
Apart from the grapes and mangoes, which could bear fruit this year, the other fruit trees had not yet produced anything. They would need to wait another year or two.
But it was clear that he was full of love and anticipation for each stretch of orchard he had planted.
Jiang Yang was a talkative man. He enthusiastically told Jiang Xia that many of these fruit seedlings had been bought with great difficulty during his military service. Whenever he went somewhere to carry out a mission, he would rack his brains and find every possible way to buy them and bring them back.
Because his wife loved fruit, he had gone out of his way to buy and plant them. It had taken no small effort to get them to survive.
After walking around the orchard for more than an hour, Jiang Xia chose a pomegranate tree, a guava tree, a persimmon tree, a grape seedling, and several strawberry seedlings.
Jiang Xia had originally wanted a peach tree and a longan tree as well, but Jiang Yang said that no one planted peach trees in the courtyard at home because peach trees easily became spirits, while longan trees easily attracted stink bugs.
Jiang Xia wanted to eat peaches and longans, so Jiang Yang said he would send some to her once they bore fruit.
Jiang Xia did not understand any of that, and she did not know what kind of insect a stink bug was either. After thinking about it, she decided to forget it.
Grapes could be propagated from cuttings and would survive, but Jiang Yang had already raised grape seedlings here. They could be planted directly after being brought home and would bear fruit in a year or two.
Jiang Xia liked eating fruit, and there were actually many kinds she wanted to plant. But the courtyard was not large enough. She would have to buy herself a larger courtyard and plant several more kinds of fruit.
Besides the fruit seedlings, Jiang Yang's wife, Yang Mei, had also planted roses in several different colors, as well as bougainvillea, cockscomb flowers, wind-and-rain grass, portulaca, and other flowers. Seeing that Jiang Xia liked them, she gave her some of each to take home and plant.
Jiang Yang wore a look of disdain. "If Sister-in-Law likes them, take more home. Don't let them take up the space where I grow fruit!"
Yang Mei glared at him. "My flowers are planted in the corner by the wall. How are they taking up space? You're the one taking up the most space! Get lost!"
Jiang Xia laughed. It was obvious that the couple had a very good relationship.
The couple even ate lunch in the orchard.
Jiang Yang's wife made Pineapple Chicken, which was sweet and sour and whetted the appetite. Jiang Xia helped make Red Braised Ribs and Perilla Goose. The couple praised her dishes enthusiastically, making her feel embarrassed.
When they left, Jiang Yang gave them a large bag of fruit: mangoes, grapes, two large watermelons, several melons, and two big geese.
The geese had especially large heads. Zhou Chenglei tried to give him money, but he refused to take it.
Jiang Xia then gave each of their two children a 10-yuan Red Envelope.
Fortunately, although the furniture took up a lot of room, there were still plenty of gaps left. The fruit trees and fruit could all be stuffed inside. Otherwise, there would have been nowhere to put them.
Jiang Yang and his wife watched the tractor leave.
Jiang Yang's wife was tall and sturdy, her skin slightly dark from tending the orchard year-round.
Looking at the tractor disappearing into the distance, she said, "Regiment Commander Zhou's wife is so delicate and beautiful. Regiment Commander Zhou has retired and returned to the village to make a living fishing, so he's no longer a regiment commander, yet he still married such a dainty wife. Can he afford to support her?"
The villagers all liked marrying sturdy, hearty women who could eat. Women like that could work and take care of the family.
Jiang Xia looked far too delicate at a glance. She probably could not endure the hardships of village life.
"Regiment Commander's wife is the youngest daughter of our former division commander, and a daughter born in his later years at that. Of course she's delicate and beautiful. My Regiment Commander is very capable. How could he not support her?"
Yang Mei shot him a glance. "Have you never heard that your Regiment Commander's delicate wife eloped with another man, only to be caught and brought back by him?"
Jiang Yang: "..."
Zhou Chenglei and Jiang Xia returned to the village after two in the afternoon, when the day was at its hottest.
Jiang Xia felt as though the scorching air had burned her skin until it stung.
The Courtyard Gate was closed. Zhou Chenglei jumped down from the tractor and opened it.
Mother Zhou heard the noise and came out. Seeing a tractor loaded with things, she asked in surprise, "Why did you buy so much? It must have cost quite a bit, right?"
Great-Grandmother had heard the noise too and came out from the neighboring courtyard, smiling broadly. "Oh my, you bought so many stools? It's good to buy more. Only then will the house look like a home."
Mother Zhou thought of the long, empty Living Room and felt that perhaps they really should have bought some things.
Everything on the tractor had been tied down with ropes. As Jiang Xia untied them, she replied with a smile, "The Living Room really was too empty. Since today was Market Day, we went to buy some furniture."
Great-Grandmother smiled. "That's right, that's right. An empty Living Room can't gather wealth! You should buy things! Xiao Xia understands. No wonder Xiao Xia encountered a Red Seabream as soon as she went out to sea!"
What else could Mother Zhou say? The two of them had already said everything.
Jiang Xia worked at the ropes, but she had never seen knots tied in that way. She worked at them for a long time without managing to undo them.
Mother Zhou and Great-Grandmother were carrying the fruit seedlings into the courtyard.
Zhou Chenglei had also untied the other ropes. He walked over to Jiang Xia. "I'll do it."
He had tied these knots himself, and ordinary people would not know how to undo them.
Jiang Xia let go and moved aside to let him take over.
But as she moved, her shoulder brushed against the back of a bamboo chair on the tractor. Several bamboo chairs had been stacked on top. They had been held firmly by the ropes before, but after Zhou Chenglei untied them, they loosened.
When Jiang Xia bumped them, several bamboo chairs immediately began falling.
Jiang Xia instinctively reached out to catch them, but another chair on top was falling as well.
"Careful!" Zhou Chenglei instinctively reached out to catch the chairs too, while his other large hand shielded Jiang Xia's head to keep her from being struck.
Jiang Xia felt her entire body being enclosed in his arms. At the tip of her nose was the crisp, oceanic scent of him, mingled with the Soap Pod fragrance clinging to his sleeves.
Great-Grandmother and Mother Zhou hurriedly reached out to help hold the bamboo chairs.
"All right! All right! We've got them!" Mother Zhou said.
Only then did Zhou Chenglei lower his hand. Hearing that, Jiang Xia turned to look back.
And then, by such a coincidence, when Zhou Chenglei lowered the arm with its sleeves rolled up, it brushed across Jiang Xia's lips.
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