Chapter 136 - 136: Farewell
After receiving the grain, Shen Mo and his companions bid the village chief farewell. Now, with solid evidence and witness, they had a solid reason for either restructuring the village or distributing the emergency food supply.
The village chief grasped Shen Mo’s hand, expressing his gratitude. Over their stay at the village chief’s house, Shen Mo’s group had been open about their real purpose for being there. Even though the village chief was already aware, receiving Shen Mo’s assurance brought tears to his eyes. He murmured, “Our village is saved!”
After bidding farewell to the village chief, Shen Mo made his way to Jiang Xia’s place. As he knocked on the door, he was surprised to find it wasn’t the scene he expected of Jiang Xia educating the children. Instead, it appeared the Jiang family was packing their belongings.
“Planning a trip to the mountains?” Shen Mo asked.
Jiang Xia shook her head, “No, we’re preparing to visit the city.”
With that, she turned her head and called into the house, “Mom, Dad, I’m stepping out for a bit, will be back soon.”
It wasn’t that Jiang Xia was reluctant to invite Shen Mo in. The problem was that there were many items she had taken from her interspace within the house, making it difficult for her to explain if Shen Mo saw them.
Mo Jing didn’t ask any more questions and left the Jiang house with Jiang Xia. “Since you are heading to the city, why don’t you join us?” Shen Mo suggested. He’d been getting along well with Jiang Xia lately. He seldom got this close to women. Partly because he was often in the military with limited interactions with women, and partly because he wasn’t fond of girls who would stick to him upon first meeting.
However, when he got along with Jiang Xia, the two of them talked more about how to develop the countryside, from land distribution to individual farming, and even talked about free trading. It was clearly a topic that was forbidden to be mentioned, but the two of them talked to their hearts ‘content. Jiang Xia gave him a very different feeling. The two of them could be friends.
Jiang Xia shook her head, “We’ll be here for a few more days. We’re planning to go to the town before heading to the city.”
“In that case, once you reach the city, get in touch with me. I’ll treat you to dinner.”
Upon hearing this, Jiang Xia recalled their first encounter at the restaurant and joked, “I’m worried I might choke if 1 dine with you.”
“Why would you?” Shen Mo asked, puzzled.
“Don’t you remember? During our first meal together, you were glaring at me so fiercely that I thought you were picking a fight.”
Jiang Xia was somewhat exaggerating, but she really didn’t want to meet Shen Mo’s gaze back then. It was absolutely terrifying.
Shen Mo opened his mouth but closed it again. Though he was just looking at Jiang Xia at that time, his attitude, as Wang Wen said, was not that friendly.
“I won’t do that again,” Shen Mo assured her earnestly.
Seeing Shen Mo this serious, Jiang Xia burst into laughter, “You goof, 1 was just teasing you! We’ve been together for such a long time, don’t I know what kind of person you are? When 1 get the chance, 1’11 come find you.”
Shen Mo was looking at Jiang Xia, who was standing in front of him with the sunlight falling on her back. Her smile was radiant, and she was without a trace of makeup, but she possessed a pure, natural beauty.
A sudden wave of emotion rose in Shen Mo’s heart. He wanted to ask Jiang Xia to go with him, but the thought disappeared as soon as it appeared. Shen Mo was startled by his own thoughts and he subconsciously averted his gaze.
“Okay.” After a long silence, Shen Mo heard his own stiff voice.
That very afternoon, Shen Mo and his team left. As soon as Jiang Xia got home, her loving mother pulled her inside for questioning.
“Xiao Xia, you’ve been so close to the young master of the Shen family lately. Is there something going on?” Zhou Lan asked curiously.
Jiang Xia rolled her eyes at her mother. “No way, mom. Are you still thinking about your novels even when we’re barely managing to feed ourselves?”
Zhou Lan lightly tapped Jiang Xia’s head, “You naughty girl, your mother is just concerned about your love life. You’ve always been picky, now you’ve finally met someone who fits your standards and you’re not grabbing the chance.” Jiang Xia took her mother’s hand, “My dear mother, don’t worry about it. Instead, we need to bring some things for Zhou Juan when we go to the town tomorrow! It’s tough to get into the city without someone you know.”
In truth, when Shen Mo suggested they all leave together, Jiang Xia was moved. But she still hoped that Shen Mo and his crew would report the matter as soon as possible to avoid any delay.
When Jiang Gu called the two for dinner, the conversation around the dinner table turned to their trip to town the following day. They were asking someone for a favor after all. No matter how well they planned, Jiang Xia still had some concerns.
Two days passed, Jiang Chuan had everything sorted out in the village, and the family hurried to the town. They were fully prepared this time. Jiang Xia was brimming with excitement.. She wondered, what did the towns of the 1960s look like?