Chapter 17: Heaven and Earth (Revisions) An Unwelcome Visitor

Jiang Zhimiao was utterly defeated by his father!

By the time Jiang Qingshi finally realized it was time to feed him, Jiang Zhimiao had long passed the point of hunger. Being a clumsy man, Jiang Qingshi managed to shove the spoon right into Jiang Zhimiao’s nostril while feeding him rice paste…

Jiang Zhimiao could no longer hold back and burst into loud wails.

When Lin Guilan returned home and saw Jiang Zhimiao in such a state, her heart ached terribly. From then on, no matter how eagerly Jiang Qingshi volunteered or how earnestly he promised, Lin Guilan refused to let him take care of their child.

Moreover, Jiang Zhimiao discovered that even when he was alone with Jiang Qingshi, he couldn’t read his father’s thoughts. Through his observations during this period, Jiang Zhimiao realized that this Elementary Mind-Reading Technique only worked on his parents, and even then, he could only hear thoughts related to himself. No matter how hard he tried, Jiang Qingshi’s mind remained completely impenetrable, leaving him unable to peek inside.

Thus, this Elementary Mind-Reading Technique became even more useless…

But Jiang Zhimiao thought this indirectly reflected that his father was a man of profound depth—otherwise, why couldn’t he penetrate his thoughts?

Watching his mother bustling about while his father sat peacefully reading in the room, Jiang Zhimiao found the scene exceptionally warm. It was a pity he was still too young; otherwise, he would have definitely helped his mother with her chores. Having never experienced the joy of family bonds in his previous life, he now felt that life was so tranquil and warm with his own parents.

Lin Guilan prepared a large table of dishes and called her husband and son over. Though they were just homemade dishes, Lin Guilan’s culinary skills were exceptional. Jiang Zhimiao felt that even in upscale restaurants in his past life, he had never tasted such delicious food! His mother was truly remarkable. If not for his father’s handsome face… he really wouldn’t be worthy of her.

“Husband, we’ve run out of ice, and since summer is almost over, I plan to make some local snacks. Many travelers coming from north and south are outsiders and surely haven’t tasted our local delicacies. Of course, these snacks can’t be as expensive as the tea drinks. The most valuable part of the tea drinks was the ice chilling them. I’ll make these snacks exquisitely and price them between three to ten coins. Without the limitation of ice, we can sell them from morning till night, and it should still bring in a decent daily income.”

“Your idea is wonderful,” Jiang Qingshi expressed his approval. “It’s indeed correct to adapt our business strategy with the changing seasons.”It’ll just require you to work hard to write a new signboard for me.” It was originally called ‘Lin’s Tea Drink’… now let’s call it ‘Lin’s Teahouse.’ I’ll still make tea drinks, but they won’t be served cold. I’ll adjust them according to the autumn season as well.”

Unable to speak, Jiang Zhimiao could only nod vigorously in agreement. His mother was so intelligent and beautiful!

“That’s no trouble at all.” Jiang Qingshi nodded, then suddenly gazed deeply at Lin Guilan. “Wife, although you were born into a farming family, your vision and knowledge far surpass that. You will reach even broader horizons in the future.”

Lin Guilan felt embarrassed by Jiang Qingshi’s words and scratched her head. “Husband, I’m just a simple farm woman. All I want is for our family to live peacefully and smoothly. How could I possibly be as capable as you say?”

“My words will be proven true in time.” Jiang Qingshi smiled. “Just wait and see, my wife.”

After changing her shop sign, Lin Guilan’s business remained as prosperous as ever. Some customers even skipped going to the town, choosing instead to eat the snacks Lin Guilan prepared right at the dock. As the weather gradually turned colder, Lin Guilan simply brought along a pot and stove to provide them with warm meals. During busy periods, Lin Guilan couldn’t manage everything alone, and even Jiang Zhimiao had to be left unattended occasionally. But Jiang Zhimiao had always been a sensible child, sitting quietly by himself in a way that put Lin Guilan at ease.

Sometimes Aunt Zhao, who sold yam beans nearby, would come to assist Lin Guilan. Being an honest person, Lin Guilan never took Aunt Zhao’s help for granted. Every time Aunt Zhao lent a hand, Lin Guilan would give her several dozen to a hundred wen – more than what Aunt Zhao earned from selling yam beans!

Lin Guilan’s reputation grew increasingly prominent. Combined with her natural good looks, many travelers from north and south had heard of her – known as the pretty young wife selling tea drinks at the small dock in Linzhou. Several men had encountered Lin Guilan multiple times, drawn by her personality. Upon learning she was married, they were greatly disappointed and curious about what kind of man her husband was.

Lin Guilan felt quite embarrassed by this attention, thinking to herself how fortunate it was that the villagers didn’t know about these matters, otherwise she couldn’t imagine how they would talk about her!

She was also relieved that her husband didn’t know about these incidents. It would be troublesome if he thought she was some kind of improper woman – though he wouldn’t think that way, he would certainly trust her character and integrity.

Jiang Zhimiao, however, thought his father should know about these things, otherwise he’d have no sense of crisis whatsoever!

After all, his mother was quite popular! Two men who had confessed their feelings to her wore fine silks and obviously were quite wealthy. They had even expressed that they wouldn’t mind Jiang Zhimiao and would treat him as their own son. This made even Jiang Zhimiao feel slightly tempted, thinking he might actually have a chance to become a rich young master in this lifetime! (Though he still loved his father the most!) But his mother remained steadfast, completely unmoved. Truth be told, her devotion to his father could truly be described as strong as gold!

It was already early autumn, and Lin Guilan worried about Jiang Zhimiao catching cold. Every day she bundled him up warmly before bringing him to the stall. Having saved several strings of cash from selling tea drinks recently, after purchasing some necessary household items, she gritted her teeth and spent over two strings of cash to buy an ox, returning the one borrowed from her brother.

Her brother needed the ox cart too. As a married woman, she couldn’t constantly think about taking advantage of her maiden family, otherwise she would truly become the kind of person You Zhen accused her of being.

The newly purchased ox was somewhat skinny – well-bred oxen were even more expensive. But Lin Guilan noticed this ox had good spirit, though it might not be fully grown yet. If she fed it well, she believed it would become as strong as her brother’s ox before long.

All in all, their life was gradually improving. Now they didn’t have to endure others’ disdainful looks in the Jiang Family, and could even afford to buy an ox – unlike that status-obsessed Jiang Family who suffered while maintaining appearances, unable to afford an ox themselves!

My husband said that around February next year, he would go to the county town to take the county exam, which would last about four or five days. By then, she would need to prepare more things for him, so he wouldn’t be looked down upon just because he came from the village! After all, wasn’t her husband studying so diligently to give her and their child a better life?

The more Lin Guilan thought about it, the more pleased she became, and her hands moved with increasing energy. Recently, she had developed many new pastries, and she had risen early that morning to make them fresh. If customers wanted them warm later, she could heat them up—traveling was never easy, after all.

At this moment, the sky was just beginning to lighten. Lin Guilan was busy with her work and didn’t pay much attention to her surroundings, but Jiang Zhimiao sensed something amiss. Sitting on a small stool beside the ox cart, he suddenly felt an uneasy premonition.

Jiang Zhimiao looked up and saw two burly men, one fat and one thin, walking toward Lin Guilan. They had come from the opposite direction, clearly not merchants passing by on boats, and their faces were unfamiliar.

In his previous life, Jiang Zhimiao had an exceptional memory—anyone he had seen, he wouldn’t forget in a short time. During this period, as he accompanied Lin Guilan to her stall, he had already figured out who her regular customers were: which ones came from the town, which were merchants frequently passing through on boats, who were the big spenders, and who were stingy and always trying to haggle for discounts… Though Jiang Zhimiao couldn’t express himself, he had already categorized these people in his mind.

He was certain he had never seen these two men before. Though one was fat and the other thin, neither was particularly short, but they had shifty, rat-like eyes and carried an air of sleaziness.

Moreover, Jiang Zhimiao felt that these two men were heading straight for them.

Author’s note: