Chapter 187: Chapter 183: Li Jing’s Visit

Lin Lan watched Zhao Dehai hurry away, then picked up her hoe and continued loosening the soil around the ramie plants. A moment later, she heard Yang Meihua calling for her from the front gate.

She walked over to the courtyard gate and saw Yang Meihua standing there with a few of the other village women. “Where are you all headed?” she asked with a smile.

The weather had turned cold, and the women kept their hands busy even while walking, some holding shoe uppers and others clutching soles.

Yang Meihua said, “The team’s holding a meeting about distributing the land. Want to go see?”

Lin Lan shook her head with a smile. “I’ll pass. I haven’t finished tilling my plot.” ’She didn’t like going to the village’s threshing ground to listen to people gossip about everyone’s business. She’d rather spend the time digging up the taro in her backyard vegetable patch.’

One of the older women looked at her with envy. “Lin Lan, is it true? Yesterday, Third Aunt came to ask my father to pick an auspicious date and said you bought a house in the city.”

“Yes,” Lin Lan nodded. “I want to send Douzi to the city’s Number One Primary School, so I borrowed some money from my parents to buy it.”

Hearing this, the women’s faces filled with envy as they looked at her.

Lin Lan noticed a gaunt woman standing in the back, her eyes red with envy.

The older woman looked at the others. “See? I wasn’t lying! Business is really lucrative. She bought a house in just over half a year. I hear it’s even a villa!”

“It’s true! Who would’ve thought that running a small business over at the Eucalyptus Forest could get you a villa.”

Seeing their envious expressions, Lin Lan gave a wry smile. “I bought the house, but I also racked up a lot of debt.”

“Don’t worry about it. You borrowed it from your own parents, so it’s okay if you pay them back a little late!” Yang Meihua said with a laugh. “Ding Bang is moving in a few days. We’ll come over and see your new villa then.”

Lin Lan readily agreed. “Sure! Ding Bang’s house is right across from mine, just a lane away.”

Yang Meihua nodded with a smile. “Great. We’ll head over to the team meeting first, then.”

As the women walked past Lin Lan’s private plot, Xiang Hongxia turned to the older woman. “Did Lin Lan really buy a villa in the city?”

The older woman nodded. “I heard it from Third Aunt with my own ears. Lin Lan, Ding Bang, and two of his good friends all bought places there. That Lin Lan is really something else. A single woman with a child, doing better than those of us with several able-bodied men at home.”

One of the women nudged Yang Meihua. “Meihua, isn’t one of Ding Bang’s friends dating Lin Lan? She bought a house, and he bought one too. When they get married, they’ll have two villas!”

Yang Meihua smiled. “That’s right. The one dating Lin Lan is Xiangyang. He’s tall and handsome, too.”

Yang Meihua’s sister-in-law, Xiang Hongxia, pushed her way to the front, her eyes gleaming. “Meihua, you’ve always been on good terms with Lin Lan, haven’t you? You should ask her to teach you how to make her pastries!”

’Then she could learn from Yang Meihua.’

Yang Meihua shot a cool glance at the gaunt-cheeked Xiang Hongxia and laughed self-deprecatingly. “Second Sister-in-law, me? I’m all clumsy hands and feet. I’m not going to embarrass myself and waste good ingredients trying to make pastries.”

Xiang Hongxia grinned at her. “Then how about you put in a word with Lin Lan for me?”

Yang Meihua’s expression immediately darkened. “Liying and Liqun are her own sisters-in-law, and even they haven’t asked Lin Lan to teach them. What gives me the right to ask?”

The older woman nodded in agreement. “That’s right. The sisters Liying and Liqun are busy grinding soybeans to make and sell tofu. Besides, that pastry recipe is Lin Lan’s livelihood!”

’The nerve of some people! We’re relatives from the Yang family, and even we haven’t considered asking Lin Lan to teach us. What right does she, a member of the He family, have to ask?’

Xiang Hongxia glanced at Yang Meihua sheepishly. “I was just making conversation.”

Yang Meihua turned away and rolled her eyes. ’Gaunt-faced and cruel-hearted. We’ve been sisters-in-law for over a decade; do you think I don’t know what kind of person you are? I need to give Lin Lan a heads-up when I get back so she doesn’t get pestered by her.’

Lin Lan watched them walk off into the distance, then returned to fertilizing and loosening the soil. When it was about time, she went to the vegetable patch, pulled a few radishes and green onions, and headed back to the kitchen. Inside, she found Lin Yuezhen and Wu Shufen had already fried all the orchid beans for the afternoon and were now portioning them into bags.

She washed her hands and joined them in bagging the snacks. Soon, the large wicker basket was piled high with finished bags of orchid beans. Lin Yuezhen and Lin Lan carried the basket to a side room to store it. Then, Yuezhen pointed to a bamboo hamper, showing Lin Lan that they were almost out of kraft paper.

Lin Lan slapped her forehead. “I meant to buy more yesterday, but I got busy and forgot. It’s still early, so I’ll go get some now.”

Lin Yuezhen nodded and gestured with her hands, ’Go on. We’ll start making lunch.’

“Okay!” Lin Lan grabbed some money, went to the main room, and attached two baskets to the back of her bicycle. She pushed it out the door and started riding toward the supply co-op.

Not long after she left, a black sedan pulled up in front of the Shiqiao bridge.

Li Jing opened the car door and stepped out. She stood there looking at Yang Dingbang’s house. Just as she was about to head over, she saw a woman carrying a bamboo draining basket walking up the stone steps from the irrigation ditch.

“Excuse me, ma’am, do you know where Lin Lan lives?”

Li Guizhi gave her a curious look and pointed toward Lin Lan’s house. “Right there.”

“Thank you!” Li Jing turned and walked toward Lin Lan’s house. The courtyard gate was open, so she reached out to knock. Just as she was about to call out, she heard a low “GRRRR,” and a large dog started barking as it lunged toward her. WOOF! WOOF!

“Ahh!” she shrieked in terror, scrambling back out the gate and leaping into the car like a startled rabbit.

Wu Shufen heard the commotion and came out onto the porch. Seeing no one, she scolded Wangcai before turning back into the kitchen.

Still shaken, Li Jing sat in the car. She let out a sigh of relief only when she saw the dog hadn’t followed her out.

She glared at Lin Lan’s house with contempt. ’Country hag. Her dog tries to bite someone and she doesn’t even bother to come out and check.’

The driver chuckled. “Some country families keep dogs to guard the house. They’re usually tied up during the day. If you call out from the gate, the owner will come out.”

“No wonder it didn’t chase me,” Li Jing said, getting ready to get out of the car again and call for someone.

“Ms. Li,” the driver called out, stopping her. He pointed ahead. “Look at that young man on the bicycle. He looks like your brother.”

Li Jing scrambled back into her seat. Peeking through the window, she saw it was indeed Li Xiangyang. “Go, go, go! Back up! Don’t let Xiangyang see that I’m here.”

“Right away!” The driver started the car and began to reverse.

Li Xiangyang had already spotted the black sedan parked in front of Lin Lan’s house. “That menace Li Jing,” he fumed. “How dare she show her face here!”

Yang Dingbang leaned out to look. “How do you know it’s Li Jing?”

“I’ve seen her in that car before.” By the time Li Xiangyang reached Lin Lan’s gate, the sedan was already disappearing down the road.

Yang Dingbang got out, leaning on his crutches. “Looks like Li Jing doesn’t want to see you and Lin Lan become a family.”

WHOOSH. Li Xiangyang let out a long, heavy breath. “A person like her only sees personal gain. She thinks me marrying Lin Lan would be an embarrassment to her, so she came here to cause trouble.”

Thinking about Li Jing’s personality, Yang Dingbang had to agree. “She really is that kind of person. But marriage is a matter of personal choice these days. As long as you love and value Lin Lan, other people’s opinions are just that—opinions.”

Li Xiangyang glanced worriedly toward Lin Lan’s house. “I don’t know if Li Jing just got here or if she was leaving after talking to Lin Lan. I’ll take you home first, then I’ll come back and ask.”

Source: Webnovel.com, updated by NovelKeep