Chapter 47 Wu Tingting

However, what made Jiang Pan Yu feel somewhat hurt was that all the male educated youths at the residence were vying to help Tan Yanlu.

In contrast, her side seemed somewhat neglected. Jiang Pan Yu touched her face, wondering if her aesthetic sense had gone awry. She wasn’t ugly, so why was no one paying attention to her?

Doubting herself, Jiang Pan Yu even took a moment to look in the mirror while moving.

She touched her face; her features weren’t bad at all. The Gossip System had simulated her appearance once she regained her health and fully matured—she would be a beauty with delicate features.

Jiang Pan Yu narcissistically believed that her beauty was on par with Tan Yanlu’s, though their temperaments were different, naturally giving them distinct styles.

If compared to flowers, Tan Yanlu was like an orchid that required careful nurturing, exuding an ethereal and elegant aura.

Jiang Pan Yu saw herself as a wild pink rose, blooming in clusters without needing meticulous care, enduring wind and rain, yet still bursting into full bloom.

Though pink roses might not be as highly sought after as orchids, they were still beautiful!

It was a pity that these young male educated youths were all blind. No wonder they couldn’t win Tan Yanlu’s heart—they were all just simps, destined to end up with nothing.

Thinking this way, Jiang Pan Yu stopped dwelling on the awkwardness of her neglected situation.

Since moving to Wu Dama’s house, Jiang Pan Yu and Tan Yanlu had been living their own lives, only going out for work and otherwise keeping to themselves.

Having their own private space and not having to deal with constant noise indeed made life much quieter and more comfortable.

They divided the household chores between them. Tan Yanlu was in charge of cooking. Though she was clumsy at handicrafts, she had a natural talent for cooking.

Jiang Pan Yu took on the role of assistant, washing dishes and pots, leaving such tasks to her.

For heavier chores like chopping firewood or cleaning wood ash, they worked together, making their life quite pleasant.

Jiang Pan Yu also had the time and space to practice the Women’s Body Tempering Technique. This set of exercises was somewhat similar to yoga in later generations, though more challenging.

After each session, Jiang Pan Yu felt invigorated, drenched in sweat, as if her muscles and bones had been thoroughly massaged.

In just a few days, she noticed her complexion had improved, and her hands and feet weren’t as cold as before.

Having tasted the benefits of the Body Tempering Art, Jiang Pan Yu naturally didn’t give it up. She practiced diligently every day, and even when she felt lazy, she had the Gossip System push her.

Her life became a routine of three points: waking up at five to practice the Body Tempering Art for an hour, freshening up, and then Tan Yanlu would join her to prepare breakfast together.

After breakfast, around seven, little Wu Tingting would arrive.

Wu Tingting was Wu Dama’s granddaughter, just six years old. Perhaps due to Wu Dama’s overprotectiveness, Wu Tingting was somewhat shy and introverted, like an adorable little bunny.

Jiang Pan Yu and Tan Yanlu had discussed with Wu Dama and decided to hold four hours of classes each day, with each of them teaching for two hours. After all, Wu Tingting was still young, and it was uncertain whether she could understand the lessons.

It didn’t matter how fast or slow Wu Tingting learned; the important thing was to lay a solid foundation.

In the morning, from seven to nine, Tan Yanlu was responsible for teaching Wu Tingting Chinese. In the afternoon, from four to six, Jiang Pan Yu took charge of Wu Tingting’s math lessons, covering the most basic concepts.

After a few days of teaching, the two were pleasantly surprised to discover that Wu Tingting had a genuine talent for learning. She not only grasped things quickly but also understood them after being taught just twice.

Moreover, her memory was exceptional. Both Jiang Pan Yu and Tan Yanlu praised Wu Tingting’s talent, which made Wu Dama very happy.

It was at this point that Wu Dama decided that as long as she had the ability and her granddaughter was willing to study, she would find a way to ensure her granddaughter could continue her education.

As long as she could succeed in her studies, Wu Dama would swallow her pride and seek help from her son’s comrades, doing whatever it took to secure a job for her granddaughter. Only then could she rest easy and close her eyes in peace.

In the blink of an eye, it was mid-November. With some free time on their hands, Jiang Pan Yu and Tan Yanlu began discussing what to plant in their private plot next year.

Since they had moved out, the private plot at the Educated Youth Residence was too far away. After giving the Brigade Leader’s wife four eggs and half a pack of brown sugar, the Brigade Leader allocated them a new private plot.

It was located behind Wu Dama’s house, adjacent to her private plot. The soil quality was good, and there was a small water pit nearby, so watering wouldn’t be a concern.

Both of them were in a situation where they only had to worry about feeding themselves, so they didn’t plan to grow grain in their private plot. Instead, they intended to plant a variety of vegetables to add some variety to their meals.

Jiang Pan Yu also considered raising chickens. Currently, they exchanged eggs with villagers at five cents each. Although they didn’t eat them every day, Jiang Pan Yu and Tan Yanlu didn’t skimp on treating themselves, which added up to a significant expense.

If they raised two chickens, they could at least be self-sufficient in eggs. The regulations at the time were peculiar; each household was only allowed to have two chickens. Since Jiang Pan Yu and Tan Yanlu had two separate household registrations, they could raise four chickens.

If it weren’t for the high cost of raising pigs and the lack of a pigpen, Jiang Pan Yu would have considered raising pigs as well.

However, whether or not to raise chickens was a matter for next year. They had just moved out and didn’t have any vegetable seeds. In those days, vegetable seeds weren’t expensive, as every household saved their own seeds. A couple of pieces of rock sugar could exchange for quite a few seeds.

While Jiang Pan Yu prepared for Wu Tingting’s lesson, Tan Yanlu, with some free time, decided to take a walk and fetch some vegetable seeds.

But she didn’t expect that this outing would bring her another pleasant surprise.

Tan Yanlu had heard that Hu Niu’s family had grown sunflowers this year and thought of exchanging some sunflower seeds to plant.

Hu Niu was the little girl who had dared to throw a tantrum and fake an injury in front of Lin Wumei and had also helped Jiang Pan Yu deliver messages to the Educated Youth Residence.

Jiang Pan Yu and Tan Yanlu had gotten to know Hu Niu and quite liked the girl’s feisty personality.

It was during the hemp rope twisting sessions that the three of them truly got to know each other and became familiar. Despite the significant age difference, it was surprisingly easy for Hu Niu to chat with them for an entire afternoon.

And so, Jiang Pan Yu and Tan Yanlu made their first friend in Lianshan Village.

Tan Yanlu went straight to Hu Niu’s house, intending to exchange seeds with them. First, she asked for sunflower seeds, followed by cabbage, spinach, celery, radish, mustard greens, cauliflower, leeks, garlic, Chinese cabbage, crown daisy, bok choy, tatsoi, kai-lan, and lettuce.

Tan Yanlu managed to exchange a little bit of each of these dozen or so seeds. She thought she had quite a fruitful day, but then Hu Niu’s mother unintentionally revealed a few more seeds, which surprised Tan Yanlu.

These seeds were different from the usual vegetable seeds; they were red with a black tip. Hesitantly, she asked, “These look like ginseng seeds, don’t they?”

Hu Niu’s mother glanced at them and nodded, saying, “Yes, they are ginseng seeds. A few years ago, my husband dug up a ginseng root in the mountains and got these seeds.

He wanted to plant them himself, but after several unsuccessful attempts, only these few seeds remained.

If I hadn’t gone through these seeds today, I would have almost forgotten about them.”

Tan Yanlu licked her lips, feeling a surge of excitement. While others might not be able to grow them, she certainly could—after all, she had the Golden Finger.