Green Rice Balls

This was Xia Jiao’s first time meeting Bai Ruolang.

Wen Chongyue’s mother had soft black hair, and her overall demeanor was like a snowflake resting on a plum blossom in winter, exuding an air of coolness that discouraged strangers from approaching.

She scrutinized Xia Jiao, offering a faint smile as she politely said, “Xia Jiao, right? I heard Old Wen mention you and praise you for being sensible.”

Xia Jiao replied, “Thank you, aunt.”

She didn’t know how to deal with this situation. Wen Chongyue hugged her and repeatedly asked Bai Ruolang. “Did you find Dad?”

Bai Ruolang avoided the question. Slightly tilting her head, she continued to gaze at Xia Jiao, “When I learned that Chongyue got married, I was quite surprised. It takes a very understanding person to rush into a marriage without any preparation. Marriage is different from dating. It involves two families coming together. Chongyue is being reckless, and it’s a shame that you’re going along with him.”

Her tone was gentle, calm, and unhurried.

Xia Jiao found it difficult to grasp her meaning and remained silent.

Bai Ruolang continued softly, “But even though you’re married, you still call me aunt. I don’t think you’re very sensible.”

Xia Jiao tugged at Wen Chongyue’s clothes, pulling him closer. Wen Chongyue wrapped his arms around her and asked Bai Ruolang, “Are you planning to leave on your own, or should I call the police?”

Bai Ruolang laughed, wrinkles at the corners of her eyes crinkling: “Who in the world would call the police on their own mother?”

Wen Chongyue replied, “So you can still choose to leave on your own.”

His tone was calm as he glanced at his watch, reminding her, “You have one minute to consider.”

Bai Ruolang stopped smiling. She looked at Wen Chongyue, and after a long pause, she slowly said,”I told you long ago that marriage is not a joke, but you didn’t listen… Forget it, forget it. Today  I’m just here to see Jiao Jiao.”

Her tone was intimate, but Xia Jiao felt uncomfortable hearing it.

Like the lavishly dressed models she had encountered, no one could deny Bai Ruolang’s beauty. Yet, she seemed like an exquisitely crafted shell, empty inside, merely a coin bank that would emit a pleasant sound only after someone dropped in a coin.

Bai Ruolang, now bored, took her bag and left. As she walked out, she paused, slowly turning back to look at the two in the room.

She said, “Remember to remind your dad to take his medication, listen to the doctor, and accept treatment well. Keep a positive mindset.”

Xia Jiao felt that this was the only warm thing she had said.

Wen Chongyue replied, “The less you see him, the better he’ll feel.”

Bai Ruolang stopped talking. When it comes to debate, she will never be a match for Wen Chongyue.

As soon as she left, Wen Chongyue shut the door and calmly called a locksmith.

Once he had arranged everything, he turned to Xia Jiao and apologized, “I’m sorry, my relationship with my mother isn’t great—she’s targeting me, not you.”

Xia Jiao nodded.

After a moment, she quietly asked, “Is uncle unwell?”

Wen Chongyue hesitated for a second before answering, “Don’t worry, he’s already had surgery and is recovering well.”

Xia Jiao fell silent.

Having been forewarned by Jiang Wanzhu, Xia Jiao could vaguely guess the reasons behind Wen Chongyue’s eagerness to marry. One was to avoid being set up for blind dates by his mother, and the other… perhaps it had something to do with Uncle Wen’s illness.

Wen Chongyue had the locks changed at home and called his father. Xia Jiao had no idea what they discussed.

Two days later, they visited Father Wen. The old professor, using tea as a toast, softly apologized to Xia Jiao on behalf of his ex-wife.

“She’s lived a smooth life, hasn’t experienced much hardship, and her temperament is somewhat proud,” Father Wen said. “Jiao Jiao, I know you feel wronged, and I can’t say anything about forgiveness or not—I can only promise that such a thing will never happen again.”

Xia Jiao was taken aback and quickly said it was okay, drinking the water in one gulp.

This was Xia Jiao’s first confrontation with Bai Ruolang, ending with Father Wen’s apology and comfort.

Setting aside her feelings, Xia Jiao’s immediate priority was to lose the “extra” weight to fit into her wedding dress.

Wen Chongyue rejected her dieting plan entirely; he couldn’t bear to see her mistreating her stomach. After much discussion, they reluctantly settled on a balanced meal plan.

For breakfast, all bread was switched to low-fat whole grain, sugar intake was controlled, and the focus was on vegetable fiber and quality protein, with milk replaced by black coffee.

Wen Chongyue has a roaster at home. He roasts coffee beans twice a week. The roasted coffee beans need to release carbon dioxide before they can be ground into a delicious flavor. After being left for 96 hours, the coffee beans will reach their peak flavor

As we all know, coffee beans can only grow in the “coffee belt,” and within the latitudes of 25 degrees north to 25 degrees south, different landscapes and growing conditions yield varying flavors of coffee. As someone who studied food thoroughly, Wen Chongyue’s home was stocked with various coffee beans, stored in uniform glass jars, each labeled in English with a fountain pen.

While roasting coffee beans with Xia Jiao, Wen Chongyue spoke fondly of the beans with labels: “These beans are from Keny—”

Xia Jiao interjected, “Kennedy?”

“No,” Wen Chongyue laughed, “It’s from Kenya, smell it.”

Wen Chongyue took the coffee beans and placed them under her nose. She sniffed hard and it smelled like coffee, and a little bit sour.

Unable to resist, Xia Jiao stealthily licked her tongue against the beans—

Wow, it’s still a bit bitter.

She frowned.

“So sour,” Xia Jiao whispered, “Is the brewed coffee also sour? Is this the sourest coffee you have?”

“No,” Wen Chongyue replied, “Its acidity can only rank third, but its bitterness can be ranked first. I think it is like air-dried apricots, with a sour and sweet fruity aroma. I usually use it for medium-dark roasting.”

Xia Jiao couldn’t detect any sweet and sour fruity aroma.

As a beginner, all she could taste was the combination of sour and bitter from the coffee beans.

Wen Chongyue opened the red roasting oven, evenly placing the coffee beans inside. As the beans slowly rotated in the high heat, they released a rich, aromatic scent.

While they waited, Wen Chongyue shared his collection of other coffee beans, such as the Blue Mountain coffee, which is actually grown in Jamaica’s rainy and misty Blue Mountains, boasting plump beans and a rich aroma; coffee beans from Guatemala, the largest and hardest, akin to small stones; and the coffee from Colombia, which he considered the most acidic and notoriously difficult to roast; coffee beans from northern Sumatra have a mellow fragrance, while those from Rwanda are small and uniform, combining red tea aroma and fruity acidity…

Wen Chongyue’s favorite was the coffee from Yemen, known for its complex mocha flavor and wine-like aroma, while Xia Jiao preferred the last jar of coffee beans, which had a faint citrus fragrance with low acidity and bitterness.

Xia Jiao lifted the bottle, asking, “Where is this from?”

She didn’t see the label.

Wen Chongyue glanced and replied, “Honduras.”

Xia Jiao carefully placed the glass bottle back, saying, “I’ve only heard of Las Vegas.”

Wen Chongyue asked, “Do you want to go to Las Vegas?”

Xia Jiao shook her head vigorously, “No, no.”

“Once the pandemic is over,” Wen Chongyue said, “I’ll make sure to give you a proper honeymoon.”

Xia Jiao nodded.

To help her lose weight, Wen Chongyue made her coffee without milk or sugar, just the rich aroma of the brew.

With some free time, Xia Jiao followed Wen Chongyue’s lead to learn how to brew a cup of coffee at home, how to select roasted coffee beans, grind them fresh, measure the precise amount of beans and mineral water, how long to brew the coffee, and the differences between light, medium, medium-dark, and dark roasts, as well as the best roasting methods for common coffee beans.

Xia Jiao’s admiration for Wen Chongyue is growing day by day.

Yes, there are two meanings of “day,” whether referring to a unit of time or as a verb.

In everyday life, Wen Chongyue was refined and gentle, but he could be demanding when it came to certain matters. Xia Jiao didn’t want to use the word “beast” to describe him, but he did show her a lot of bad sides at this time, such as lying to her that he was about to come out, and coaxing her to wait a while. Xia Jiao had a first taste of it, and was led around in a daze, learning all the postures and moves.

He always had many new tricks up his sleeve.

Perhaps the daily exercises and new dietary regimen had enough effect, but after a month, Xia Jiao successfully fit into her custom wedding dress, with enough room at her waist to insert a little finger.

Wen Chongyue found various ways to replenish her body.

As spring arrived, schools of saury fish swam upstream in the Yangtze River, with peach blossoms floating downstream, waves crashing against the shore, and under the bright sun, flashes of silver glimmered.

Before the Qingming Festival, the saury fish were at their most tender, melting in the mouth. Wen Chongyue purchased the freshest batch after the fishing season opened. He steamed the fish with shiitake mushrooms, green onion, ginger, and other seasonings, cooking it at high temperatures until the fish’s flesh turned buttery and fragrant. It was so tender that it could hardly be picked up with chopsticks, so Xia Jiao had to carefully extract the meat.

Having been choked by fish bones as a child, Xia Jiao couldn’t eat bony fish anymore. Wen Chongyue patiently removed the bones and fed her piece by piece. He even peeled off the fish skin, as the fine bones were mostly attached to it, so removing the skin naturally brought out many of the soft bones as well.

Father Wen had another trick that Wen Chongyue learned. He placed pigskin under the skinned saury fish and gently tapped the fish with the back of a knife, pushing the bones and spines onto the pigskin before using a sharp knife to gently slice the fish.

The tender, boneless saury fish meat was chopped into a fine filling to make small wontons. When boiled in water, they were topped with some chopped green onions and seasoning, creating a fragrant dish that Xia Jiao could devour two bowls of in one go.

In previous years, Xia Jiao bought ready-made green rice balls from stores or street vendors. This year was different; she and Wen Chongyue worked together to make them. Though Wen Chongyue was from the North and didn’t have the custom of making green rice balls, it was easy enough. Xia Jiao knew how, and Wen Chongyue watched a tutorial. Together, they bought red beans, brown sugar, white sugar, glutinous rice flour, and fresh mugwort. They crushed the red beans, mixed them with brown sugar for the filling, blanched the fresh mugwort, cooled it, mashed it, and kneaded it together with the glutinous rice flour.

Wen Chongyue’s green rice balls turned out flat, while Xia Jiao’s were much prettier, round and adorable.

During dinner, Xia Jiao ate four green rice balls in one sitting. Before going to bed, she began to regret it, muttering to herself about exceeding her calorie intake and worrying about gaining weight and not fitting into her wedding dress. Wen Chongyue was kept awake by her worries, so he decided to engage in a little fun with Xia Jiao. She shouted so much that her voice went hoarse, and she woke up the next day so swollen that she had to skip her morning exercises.

The night before the wedding, Jiang Wanju held a happy bachelorette party for Xia Jiao. Xia Jiao invited a few close friends from high school and college, and they celebrated until eight in the evening. She then called Wen Chongyue to let him know she would be home in about half an hour, depending on traffic.

Wen Chongyue was at home reading when he also prepared some honey pomelo tea for Xia Jiao. At eight-thirty, the flower shop’s delivery person brought a bouquet of bright red roses.

After confirming the address was correct, Wen Chongyue signed for the delivery.

Among the roses, he found a small card with just a few lines of text.

“Wishing you a happy marriage and peace every year.”

Signed, “The coward in the bottle.”

Wen Chongyue pulled out the card, glanced at it for a moment, then lit the corner with a lighter and slowly burned it away.

He watched calmly as the flames consumed the entire paper, including the careful handwriting written with a fountain pen.

When Xia Jiao and Wen Chongyue held their wedding, Bai Ruolang did not attend.

After all, it was a significant life event, and even if everything was simplified, there were still basic rituals. Xia Jiao’s only impression was how tiring it all was. She had initially thought Wen Chongyue wouldn’t place too much importance on the wedding night, but things didn’t go as planned.

Xia Jiao was so tired that she could barely keep her eyes open and wanted to tell a kind lie, “I’m a very traditional woman. There’s a tradition in my hometown that we must rest well on our wedding night.”

Wen Chongyue nodded, “I understand.”

She didn’t expect him to be so understanding, which made Xia Jiao happy.

However, Xia Jiao was too early in her happiness.

Wen Chongyue maintained traditional practices throughout the night, including in language.

After the wedding, Xia Jiao moved to Suzhou with Wen Chongyue, bringing along their two cats and all the flowers and plants they had on the balcony.

Xia Jiao officially went to work in the new branch opened by Yu Tan, but Yu Tan was not the kind of person who would show favoritism. There were two other florists who came in with Xia Jiao. One of them was more lively, named Gao Chan, who had just graduated and studied under the chief floral director of a well-known domestic brand and came here to gain experience.

The other was gentler, with a unique name, Yu Qingzhen, who had graduated two years prior. The current branch manager highly appreciated her and convinced Yu Tan to bring her over.

Recently, Yu Tan had not been frequenting the new branch as she was busy with a project for another luxury brand, preparing for the display setup for the Qixi Festival. Events like this were typically planned and prepared several months in advance.

Because of this, the people at the new branch were unaware of Xia Jiao’s relationship with her.

Wherever there are people, there are connections.

The salary of a florist is tied to customer satisfaction, with bonuses for high ratings. Particularly after three months of employment, if a customer specifically requests a designer, that designer earns extra commissions.

Currently, a senior florist, affectionately referred to as Sister Lan, oversees the three new florists in the shop. Sister Lan is outgoing and efficient, and she tends to chat more with Gao Chan, showing a bit more attention to her in the group.

Yu Qingzhen has complained to Xia Jiao a few times, but Xia Jiao pretended not to hear. She focused on carefully cutting floral foam, trying to arrange different flowers based on the customers’ orders.

She didn’t wear a ring, starting her career as a basic florist. There was a lot of trimming and changing water, which could easily scratch a ring, so she just wore a necklace around her neck.

Over time, Yu Qingzhen and Gao Chan began to think of Xia Jiao as a block of wood.

Perhaps because Xia Jiao didn’t enjoy gossiping about Gao Chan with her, Yu Qingzhen felt she wasn’t “one of them” and gradually distanced herself. In contrast, Gao Chan liked to invite Xia Jiao to go home together.

Gao Chan lived close to Xia Jiao’s home, making it convenient for them to walk together. A cheerful girl who had just graduated, she chatted excitedly the whole way. Once she learned Xia Jiao was married, she immediately showed great enthusiasm about her marital status and wanted to see a picture of her husband.

Xia Jiao honestly replied, “I don’t have one on my phone.”

This was true. She and Wen Chongyue rarely took selfies, not even a couple’s photo.

Gao Chan thought for a moment and smiled even brighter, “It’s fine, just invite brother-in-law out for tea sometime.”

Xia Jiao nodded, “I definitely will when I have the chance.”

However, she never found the time,after all, in the unspoken language of social anxiety:

The next day is the 32nd of this month, and the next day is equivalent to the 13th month of this year; the next time equals the eighth day of this week, and having time is like saying a hundred years later. I’ll definitely make plans after I die.

Before she knew it, Suzhou had entered the plum rain season.

In the lush green canopies, the yellow plum rain began, and the entire Jiangnan was drenched in a misty, continuous fine drizzle.

It was in this drizzling rain that the new branch received a big order.

The owner of the order was Bai Ruolang.

The second time Xia Jiao met Bai Ruolang, Bai Ruolang was representing the VIC brand, arranging flower decorations for her son’s birthday party. Interestingly, her son was born on the same day as her, not by coincidence but because she had chosen to have a C-section on that very day.

Gao Chan whispered to Xia Jiao that wealthy people tend to be superstitious. Bai Ruolang was particularly so. She believed that children born on the same day would bring her good fortune, so her son must celebrate his birthday with her.

These were all private gossip shared in whispers. Gao Chan’s master was familiar with the owners of the brand stores frequently visited by Bai Ruolang, which is how they learned this information.

Xia Jiao didn’t have any particular feelings about Bai Ruolang. She had pieced together Bai Ruolang’s life story from Jiang Wanju and Father Wen.

Bai Ruolang was born into a prominent family, living in luxury from a young age. During her school years, she fell in love with the impoverished Father Wen. Despite her family’s opposition, she resolutely chose to register their marriage.

Unfortunately, the story became less romantic after marriage and the birth of their child. As Father Wen described, Bai Ruolang was pampered and grew up with a silver spoon in her mouth, unable to endure any hardship. Not only was she restricted from spending lavishly, but she also had to stick to a job where her salary barely covered her shoes. When difficulties arose at work, she had to endure for a meager paycheck. A rich girl couldn’t handle the daily grind of cooking, cleaning, and budgeting, and Father Wen’s salary at that time could not provide Bai Ruolang with a wealthy, carefree life.

He was merely a new teacher, and moreover, he had given up a well-paying university teaching position to be with Bai Ruolang.

Ultimately, they chose to divorce. Father Wen took their young son, Wen Chongyue, to continue teaching and living. Bai Ruolang returned to her affluent family, resuming her life as a spoiled heiress, spending money effortlessly, rather than hesitating between T-shirts priced at 29 and 39.

Bai Ruolang’s second husband had been her childhood sweetheart, pursuing her since they were young. After her divorce, he launched an intense courtship. After marrying her, he continued to cater to her every whim, and they had a son together. To outsiders, they still appeared to be a harmonious family.

Xia Jiao wasn’t interested in Bai Ruolang’s past. She focused on verifying the client’s requirements.

Naturally, the reception and communication with VIC were handled by experienced florist. The newcomers like them were only there to observe and arrange flowers according to the designs, without any involvement in the detailed design process.

A luxury brand was specifically organizing a birthday party for Bai Ruolang and her son, sending someone to discuss floral arrangements and birthday gift registrations.

Bai Ruolang personally visited the shop the day before the birthday to inspect the floral arrangements. Gao Chan and Yu Qingzhen curiously went to see what the wealthy woman, who received such luxurious treatment from a luxury brand for her birthday, looked like. They dragged Xia Jiao along, but Xia Jiao chose to stay at her workstation, trimming the stems of the eustomas and pondering how to arrange them to satisfy the picky client.

Xia Jiao only saw the final result of Bai Ruolang’s birthday party: countless air-freighted flowers, classic and dreamy star and vine decorations, elegant and pure whites. Regardless of anything else, the cost of the floral materials alone was in the hundreds of thousands.

After arranging the venue, Xia Jiao left—florist always depart when the lights come on. On the way back, Gao Chan and Yu Qingzhen were both stunned by what they had just witnessed, marveling at the extravagant romance of the wealthy.

Sister Lan drove attentively, saying, “I’m giving you all a day off today. I’ll treat you to lunch, and in the afternoon, go home and rest well. Come back to work tomorrow.”

Gao Chan and Yu Qingzhen cheered in delight, while Xia Jiao thought for a moment and shook her head, “I won’t be going.”

Sister Lan casually asked, “That’s fine. If you have something to do, just focus on that. Is everything alright at home?”

“My husband’s birthday is today,” Xia Jiao replied honestly, “I want to go home and spend time with him.”

Sister Lan nodded without insisting.

Gao Chan smiled and said, “Brother-in-law is really lucky.”

Her sweet words flowed easily. She referred to Xia Jiao’s hidden husband as “brother-in-law” even though they had never met.

Yu Qingzhen sighed, “Women shouldn’t get married. After marriage, they really turn from pearls into fish eyes.”

Xia Jiao remained silent.

She didn’t have hundreds of thousands worth of flowers, but she managed to bring home a bouquet, taking advantage of the employee discount.

The total cost of the flowers was less than two hundred yuan.

Today was also Wen Chongyue’s birthday.

He didn’t have a lavish birthday celebration or an overwhelming number of flowers. His father was far away in Beijing, and his mother had a closer son by her side.

But that was alright.

Xia Jiao lowered her head and gently inhaled the fragrance of the roses in her arms.

Teacher Wen had the flowers she had carefully arranged.

But Bai Ruolang and her new son did not.

After bringing the flowers home, Xia Jiao originally planned to cook a sumptuous meal for Wen Chongyue. Unfortunately, things didn’t go well. She struggled with the new pot for some reason, and smoke began to rise from the edges. In a flurry, Xia Jiao turned on the range hood and turned off the heat, contemplating the cause of the smoke as she waited for it to dissipate.

Before she could figure it out, Wen Chongyue arrived home.

Following the smell of smoke, he came into the kitchen and saw Xia Jiao deep in thought over the pot.

Wen Chongyue asked, “What are you doing?”

Xia Jiao replied, “I wanted to cook.”

He breathed a sigh of relief and said, “Thank goodness.”

Xia Jiao was puzzled. “What are you thankful for?”

“I’m just glad you were trying to cook,” Wen Chongyue explained. “I thought you were going to burn down the kitchen.”

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