Back To The 80s-Chapter 380 - 390: Impression_1

Ji Xiangdong first took a cold shower, then went upstairs to call Bai Xiaolan for her bath, only to come inside the room to see Bai Xiaolan asleep, hugging her pillow. He chuckled softly, shaking his head. It seemed that these past few days had really tired her out.

He took out a light blanket from the cupboard and put it on Bai Xiaolan, then prepared to go downstairs to cook.

Since Ji Xiangdong was the only single person in his unit, other than the lunch which was eaten together, everyone went to their own homes for dinner.

Ji Xiangdong rolled out the dough for noodles, then went to the vegetable garden behind the unit and picked eggplant and chili peppers. He made a dish of hot peppers and braised eggplant. When the water boiled, he went upstairs to call Bai Xiaolan for dinner and to bathe afterward.

When Bai Xiaolan woke up after a nap, she felt much better. As she held the bowl of noodles, she asked Ji Xiangdong, "Why are there only a few households here?"

"The unit just moved here, and many living facilities are not yet complete. These households are responsible for managing the fields nearby," Ji Xiangdong explained carefully.

"Isn’t it very far to buy things?" Bai Xiaolan said in surprise.

"It’s not far. It’s a small town a dozen or so minutes away by bike. They sell everything, but it’s a concentrated ethnic community and they may have difficulty speaking Mandarin. In case you’re worried about adjusting, if you want to buy something, I can go with you." Ji Xiangdong offered.

Bai Xiaolan declined with a shake of her head, "Nothing is needed, just curious. If you’re not too busy, why not take me to see it."

Ji Xiangdong nodded. He added a bit more of the vegetable dish to Bai Xiaolan’s bowl, "Eat quickly. After dinner and a good night’s rest, tomorrow we’ll visit old Mr. Ji. The day after tomorrow I’ll take you to the town. On Thursdays, there’s a bazaar you can visit."

After Bai Xiaolan had eaten and bathed, she went upstairs. Ji Xiangdong had already changed the sheets on the bed to clean blue-and-white checked ones. The blanket was the same military-green cotton blanket that Ji Xiangdong used in the military – so well washed it had faded to white. On the floor, he had laid out a mat.

"You can sleep on the bed. When the cold air descends from Tianshan late at night, it gets a bit cold. Make sure to cover yourself with the blanket." Ji Xiangdong said, lying down on the cool mat on the floor, a thin blanket draped over his belly.

Bai Xiaolan blinked her eyes, said with worry: "It’s very cold on the floor. You might get sick from sleeping there."

"It’s fine, go to sleep. The radio broadcast will keep you from sleeping in the morning." Ji Xiangdong said with his eyes closed. Now that they were legally married, he was sure that if he got into the bed, he would lose control and become a wolf, so he decides to endure it for a few more days.

As expected, Bai Xiaolan was awakened by the morning radio broadcast singing praises of her country, followed by news highlights. When she opened her eyes, Ji Xiangdong had already put away the cool mat and was gone.

The window was open, and the morning breeze blowing in was unexpectedly cool. It gave Bai Xiaolan goosebumps on her bare arm.

She rubbed her arms, got out of bed, found a warm jacket in her suitcase and put it on. As she was about to go out, Ji Xiangdong came in, carrying a pot in one hand and a plate with two steamed buns and a dish of pickles in the other.

Bai Xiaolan, excited, went up to him and asked, "I’m really hungry! What’s in the pot? Is it millet porridge?"

Ji Xiangdong put down the pot, urging Bai Xiaolan to hurry up and wash up, eat, so they could go pay a visit to old Mr. Ji.

When Bai Xiaolan finished washing and happily picked up the pot, she was shocked to see a brown liquid with a white, fluffy substance floating on top, "What is this?" she asked in surprise.

"It’s milk tea. Try it and see if you can get used to it." Ji Xiangdong said gently, watching Bai Xiaolan.

As soon as Bai Xiaolan heard it was milk-based, she was sure it’d be tasty. She took a big gulp, but it went directly out again as she sprayed it right out. Ji Xiangdong evaded the liquid with quick reflexes, while also saving the steamed buns from a terrible fate.

Bai Xiaolan made a face and said, "Why is it salty? And it has a strange taste..."

Ji Xiangdong put down the plate, took a towel and gently wiped Bai Xiaolan’s face clean, then wiped the table clean with a dishcloth before saying, "This is the local milk tea. A local woman from the nearby village brought over a pot. It’s quite good once you get used to it."

After that embarrassing incident, Bai Xiaolan had breakfast drinking plain water and gnawing on the steamed buns, and ever since then, she has put milk tea in her list of least favourite foods.

After they had eaten, Ji Xiangdong put away the dishes, packed the presents they brought for old Mr. Ji, and left the apartment with Bai Xiaolan. When they reached the ground floor, they saw the deputy head and the technical officer coming out of the meeting room.

The deputy group leader, Xing Jianwei, was of a sturdy build, and his face had a red tan from constant exposure to the sun. He boomed in a loud voice, "Old Ji, so this is the wife you brought from the mainland. You’re a lucky man."

Ji Xiangdong’s smiled deepened. He said, "Yes, Xiaolan, this is Deputy Group Leader Xing, and that is Technician Cui."

Bai Xiaolan smiled warmly and greeted both men. Ji Xiangdong chatted with Xing Jianwei for a while before leaving with Bai Xiaolan.

Ji Xiangdong brought out a bicycle from the storage room and rode with Bai Xiaolan to old Mr. Ji’s house.

As Bai Xiaolan looked at the healthy corn and cotton crops lining both sides of the road, she saw the gleaming white peaks in the distance. Excited, she asked, "Is that a snow-capped mountain? Can we go see it?"

"It might look closer than it seems, but it’s very far. It would take several days to get there." Ji Xiangdong said, laughing.

Old Mr. Ji lived in a nearby village under local administration, and there were different ethnic groups living in the same village.

Old Mr. Ji’s house was at the end of the village, next to the river. The yard was large, about an acre in size. The house was of rammed earth, somewhat short, and its exterior walls were not whitewashed but rather bare earth mixed with wheat straw.

In the yard, a large grapevine was full of clusters of gleaming grapes. Purple grapes, black ones, seedless whites in light green, deep green horse milk grapes, and rosy finger grapes in golden yellow. It was appetizing just to look at them. All these grape varieties were ones that Bai Xiaolan had never seen before. 𝓯𝓻𝒆𝙚𝒘𝓮𝙗𝓷𝒐𝓿𝙚𝒍.𝙘𝓸𝙢

Old Mr. Ji was in the yard, thinning out cabbage seedlings, when he saw Ji Xiangdong enter. He got up, happy, and walked over, laughing out loud, "I was thinking that you wouldn’t come back until mid-September."

Old Mr. Ji looked to be in his fifties, but he seemed to be in his sixties. He was not tall. When he walked, he dragged his right leg, which was stiff. It seems that long-term illness had robbed it of its flexibility, but his face still carried a cheerful smile.

Ji Xiangdong parked his bicycle, stepped forward, shaking old Mr. Ji’s hand, and said, "I was afraid there would be a lot of work picking flowers in the unit in September, so I came back early. This is Bai Xiaolan, my wife. We have already received our marriage certificate."

Old Mr. Ji was shocked. He hadn’t expected Ji Xiangdong to get married so quickly. Ji Xiangdong had always been a bit cold. Back in the day, there were so many girls who secretly made shoes for him, but he didn’t even look at them. He directly rejected their intentions. And now, after only a few months of studying, he had brought a wife back home. Old Mr. Ji smiled, sizing up Bai Xiaolan, nodding incessantly, "Good, good."

Bai Xiaolan politely greeted, "Hello, Mr. Ji."