Chapter 21: Top-Tier Green Tea

“Enough! You talk too much and work too slowly. The scorekeeper will deduct your points.” Lü Beichu threw his winnowing basket to the ground; the scattered rice grains landed on Liu Sicun, almost in her eyes.

Liu Sicun wiped her eyes; her grip on the sack loosened, and rice spilled out. “Ah!”

The stinging rice grains angered Liu Sicun. She tossed the half-full sack aside, pointed at Lü Beichu , and shouted, “What are you doing? Want to hit a woman? You say I’m slow, but you’re slow too! I’m fast because you’re slow!”

A male and female educated youth arguing drew everyone’s attention.

Guo Jingyi stepped between them. “Stop arguing! Everyone’s watching.”

Lü Beichu ‘s chest heaved; he bent down, picked up the basket, and frantically poured rice into the hopper.

Liu Sicun rolled her eyes and put a new bag on the hopper.

Lü Beichu worked quickly; the hopper was almost overflowing. Guo Jingyi’s hands moved like a machine, still unable to keep up.

“You’re too fast; Jingyi’s hands will be ruined! You’re selfish; you don’t care about others! Whoever marries you will suffer!” Liu Sicun put on a new bag, looking at Guo Jingyi with concern.

Lü Beichu paused, seeing Guo Jingyi’s hand was blurred. She switched hands; her right hand was shaking. He apologized. “I’m sorry, Jingyi. I wasn’t paying attention. Let me help.”

Lü Beichu quickly sifted the rice.

Liu Sicun smirked triumphantly.

Guo Jingyi said softly, “I can do it. The speed was fine.”

“Okay,” Lü Beichu slowed down.

Others had stopped working to watch, so they heard everything.

“Lü Beichu stirred up a hornet’s nest. His love life will be bumpy,” Zhang Meili said, admiring Liu Sicun’s ability to switch tactics. She hadn’t expected them to be friends after seeing Liu Sicun taunting Guo Jingyi.

Wang Shuning was amazed; watching from the sidelines, she found it entertaining. Liu Sicun was a top-tier green tea, subtly mocking and infuriating people.

At noon, He Guoyue, covered in dirt, put ten cabbages under the eaves.

He Zhuzhu had planted many cabbages in her garden. They were large and white but weren’t tasty stir-fried. Wang Shuning had only eaten them once.

“Mingming, can we eat this much?” Half the cabbage patch was empty, and the cabbages under the eaves were half a meter high.

Goudan said, “Sister Shuning, Mom said the cabbages are ready; we’ll make sauerkraut.”

Wang Shuning put down her water bottle. Sauerkraut?

She remembered He Zhuzhu’s pickled mustard greens, delicious with porridge. He Zhuzhu also made fermented tofu, but white tofu was expensive; they didn’t make much.

She could eat the vegetables freely; He Zhuzhu often gave her some.

Wang Shuning helped.

He Zhuzhu returned later than Wang Shuning; Wang Shuning left promptly, avoiding overtime.

They removed the yellow leaves, washed the cabbages, and hung them to dry before pickling.

Wang Shuning put the cabbages on the fence. Fences were made of bricks, stones, or bamboo.

He Zhuzhu’s fence was bamboo, like her chicken coop.

The bamboo was planted, and the upper part was woven into a fence—strong and long-lasting, replaced every two or three years.

Wang Shuning planned to make a chicken coop from bamboo in her space but hadn’t had time.

“Aunt Zhu, does the white stalk turn green when pickled?” Sauerkraut in the supermarket was green. These stalks were whiter than her teeth. How long did it take to turn green?

He Zhuzhu said, “No, it stays white. Sliced and stir-fried with chili, it’s crunchy. Unlike pickled mustard greens, it doesn’t need salt when cooking tofu. If you buy meat, add minced meat to noodles or pancakes.”

Wang Shuning realized it wasn’t the sauerkraut used for fish.

After drying the cabbages, Wang Shuning cooked noodles. She made enough for three meals; the cooler weather prevented spoilage.

She closed her eyes to rest before going back to work. It was the eleventh; three days until the fifteenth.

That afternoon, Liu Sicun wasn’t with Lü Beichu ‘s group; a fifty-year-old woman replaced her. They finished quickly.

Zhang Meili excitedly said, “Lü Beichu and Liu Sicun almost fought at noon. He almost slapped her; she dodged quickly.”

Zhang Meili was there; it was like a rollercoaster.

Wang Shuning’s eyes lit up. “What happened?”

“Liu Sicun called Li Jiefang and tried to match him with Jingyi. Lü Beichu got angry and almost hit Liu Sicun. She ran away with Li Jiefang and changed teams.”

Wang Shuning raised an eyebrow. Lü Beichu was probably furious.