Tang Yu was simple-minded, and Feng Xue knew this. A little coaxing was all it took for her to forgive Feng Xue.
She was still feeling guilty about accidentally injuring Feng Xue’s hand.
Feng Xue, being understanding, said, "It's alright, it will heal after applying medicine."
Tang Yu lowered her head, remorseful. "It's all my fault."
Feng Xue shook her head. "Don't say that. I deserve this."
As they chatted, the conversation inevitably drifted back to Qi Chengyan.
Even though Cheng You hadn't written the anonymous letter, it didn't stop Tang Yu from disliking her.
"I heard Cheng You can't have children!"
Feng Xue froze. "What did you say?"
Her voice was filled with excited surprise.
Tang Yu let out a smug laugh, immensely pleased with herself.
"Cheng You, she can't have children, so she brought a child back from her hometown to raise. She wants the child to study at the compound! Everyone's saying she brought another woman's child home because she's infertile."
Feng Xue's heart stirred, sensing a greater opportunity.
A woman who couldn't bear children, and Song Qinglan still doted on her?
"Tang Yu, this child isn't related to Cheng You at all. They shouldn't be able to attend school in the military compound, right?"
Tang Yu scoffed. "Qi Chengyan has been promoted to deputy regiment commander. With a little effort in pulling strings, why couldn't it be possible?"
"He's just been promoted to deputy regiment commander. If he's reported because of this child, it might have negative consequences," Feng Xue said softly.
Tang Yu glanced at her swiftly, as if a thought had just struck her.
But Feng Xue's expression remained unchanged, as if it were just a casual conversation.
However, her words planted a seed in Tang Yu's mind.
...
After Cheng You gave Song Qinglan the ginseng pills, Li Qin arrived shortly to pick her up.
She first asked him to pick up Qin Jianzhong, and then they would go to look at the land in Yanjiao.
Qin Jianzhong had done many things to earn money in the past.
Now that he had the general store, his life had stabilized, and he rarely went out to take on odd jobs.
However, Cheng You's medicinal herb garden was large and had the potential to be quite profitable.
To keep the benefits within the family, Cheng You decided to entrust this matter to him.
Upon arriving at the location, it was an expanse of barren land.
They drove around the area. Besides the fields, there was also a hilly section planted with many fruit trees.
The land had already been requisitioned, and compensation had been provided for the fruit trees.
But the fruit trees were well-maintained, and it seemed a shame to cut them down.
After circling back to the starting point, Qin Jianzhong had already jotted down the general location on paper.
"The soil composition is different, and so are the medicinal herbs that can be planted. We'll need Professor Zhao to take a look," Cheng You said.
Qin Jianzhong nodded. "It snows in winter. Cold-sensitive herbs will require greenhouses. If you plan to start planting this year, you'll need to have them ready in advance."
Cheng You nodded. "I'll have Professor Zhao come over tomorrow. I'll let you know once we've finalized the plan."
Qin Jianzhong walked around the vicinity again, surveying the land and planning the direction of the medicinal herb garden's entrance.
He made some adjustments on the drawing, and it took him quite some time.
"Let me know once you and Professor Zhao have the plan ready. I'll bring people to measure the area and start construction as soon as possible."
"Okay, thank you, Brother Qin."
Qin Jianzhong gave a wry smile. "My wife and I should be thanking you. Without you, we wouldn't be where we are today. Besides, this project is how I'm making money."
Cheng You smiled and nodded. "Of course."
Cheng You was incredibly busy these past few days.
She had accompanied Professor Zhao on several trips to Yanjiao, cramming a wealth of knowledge about Chinese medicinal herbs.
Professor Zhao had high standards for planting, considering factors like climate, preference for shade or sun, and soil quality.
He tested the soil while explaining everything to Cheng You, making her feel as if she were attending an extracurricular tutoring class.
Once the plan was finally confirmed, Cheng You had to contact Qin Jianzhong to start the construction.
It took a full week, and July came to an end.
August was just as hot.
Cheng You had been out quite a bit in the preceding days and was sunburned. She decided to rest at home for the next couple of days and catch up on sleep.
Qi Chengyan returned from the cafeteria with breakfast.
Cheng You had no appetite and pouted, "I want ice cream."
Her head was tapped.
"Ice cream first thing in the morning."
Cheng You didn't like wearing too many clothes while sleeping. As she sat up, the blanket slipped, revealing her fair shoulders.
The black spaghetti straps barely concealed the cleavage of her chest.
She looked at him with a wronged expression, and even Qi Chengyan couldn't resist.
"Alright, I'll buy you some, but eat your breakfast first."
Cheng You instantly beamed. "I'll go wash up first."
Qi Chengyan had no choice but to watch her finish her breakfast before going out to buy ice cream.
After eating breakfast and then satisfyingly devouring a popsicle, Cheng You felt the heat lessen slightly.
"Are you going to the medicinal herb garden today?"
Cheng You shook her head. "No."
"Then will you go grocery shopping with Sister-in-law He later, and I'll cook when I get back?"
Qi Chengyan stroked her head. It was hot, and Cheng You didn't like him to touch her.
"Okay, I'll go out later."
She was feeling a bit queasy now that she was full.
After seeing Qi Chengyan off, Cheng You watered the flowers and vegetables by the corner of the house.
The tomatoes had grown and were bearing fruit.
Sister-in-law He had said she never grew vegetables so well and had already reserved a few tomatoes from Cheng You.
She called out to Sister-in-law He from across the wall.
Sister-in-law He quickly responded, "What is it?"
"Let's go grocery shopping together later!"
Sister-in-law He said "Okay," and "I'll call you when it's time to go."
Unexpectedly, before they could go out to buy groceries, Song Qinglan paid a visit.
"It's hilarious, someone reported Ah Yan."
"Reported him? What did we do?" Cheng You felt she had conducted herself properly and had no weaknesses to exploit.
"They're saying he used his public office for private gain by bringing someone else's child to the compound to study!"
Song Qinglan found it amusing. This matter had been the talk of the military compound recently.
Little did they know, Cheng You hadn't actually brought the child here.
This report was utterly nonsensical.
"Oh, even if I brought Zhenzhen over, I wouldn't ask Chengyan to pull strings for me."
Cheng You had her own connections. She was now a contributor to the country, so she wouldn't be unable to make such a small request.
Qi Chengyan was in the military, and there was nothing she could do to help him; the least she could do was not be a burden.
Song Qinglan clapped her hands, a look of schadenfreude on her face.
"That's not the main point. The person who reported him was Tang Jing, but when the authorities investigated, they found that Song Jingye had helped his wife's nephew get admitted through connections!"
Cheng You looked at her in surprise. "She reported her own son?"
"Isn't that right! Now Meng Xin's nephew has been ordered to withdraw from school, and the mother and daughter are fighting at home!"
Cheng You listened to these matters and was about to dismiss them when Song Qinglan, being nosy, insisted on taking her to see.
The two of them went to the Song family's building and could still hear screaming.
A crowd had gathered downstairs, watching with great interest. Some were even eating melon seeds.
After watching for a while, they saw Song Jianyang and Song Jingye returning in a hurry.
However, before they could even enter, they heard a loud thud, followed by a scream: "She's bleeding! She's bleeding!"