Chapter 531: Chapter 48: Farewell to the Yunteng Sect
Yu Shanyang also started suffering in his fifties, his mind preoccupied with heavy thoughts, especially after the incident involving Zhu Shijun, which resulted in a serious illness.
It was Mei Nian who increased the medicinal effects, allowing him to barely recover his health, but he was still not much better off than his peers.
"The mind nurtures the body; uncle’s worries are just too great." That’s what Mei Nian had told Yu Gang at the time.
Listening to Yu Shanyang bring up Mei Nian again, the nearby elderly people all chimed in, "Xiao Yu, you should find yourself a wife. Every time you come to the old age home, it’s just you alone, so lonely. Your dad may not say it, but he’s been wanting to hold his grandson for many years." A few of the elderly even enthusiastically started recommending suitable women from their own families. They meant well, and Yu Gang felt quite embarrassed, not sure how to explain.
Yu Gang himself had excellent credentials, serving as the deputy director of the Agricultural Science Academy—a secured position provided by the state. He was also humble. It was beyond these elderly people why such a man was still single at his age.
Seizing the opportunity, the father bypassed his son to approach the table where the elderly were sitting.
The mat had been neatly rolled up, with only the exquisite silk edging yet to be sealed. Even as simple as it was, the mat shone in Yu Shanyang’s eyes, his hand caressing its cool, warming surface.
On closer examination, the rattan strips on the mat were polished like oiled, each one bright and plump. The mat had no gaps, and though it was about two centimeters thick—much thicker than the average mat—it felt light as a feather. The combination of seemingly contradictory descriptions—thick in appearance yet lightweight, tightly woven yet breathable—didn’t clash at all when applied to this mat.
"Dad," Yu Gang finally managed to send away those meddlesome match-making elders, only to find his father staring intently, holding a rolled-up mat.
"Was this mat woven by people here at the old age home?" It must be the work of a master. Yu Gang had never seen a Purple Vine Mat so exquisite immediately after being cut.
He may not know weaving, but he understood plants. The materials used for mat weaving usually required processing and dyeing. However, the rattan used for this mat was completely natural, vibrant inside and out, a rarity indeed.
"It’s by a little girl brought by Old Mao, such craftsmanship—it’s envy-inducing. She’s just a half-grown child; how could she possess such exceptional skills unless she started learning in the womb?" Praise was shared all around. "She went with Mao Dazhu to check out a shop space just now. That kid is so sensible. Before coming here, she also brought us a lot of sweet potatoes grown by her family, and even my son, who’s picky, said those sweet potatoes were delicious. Come to think of it, they taste just like the ones you, Xiao Yu, brought to the old age home last time."
The same taste in sweet potatoes reminded Yu Gang of something, and he asked hurriedly, "Is the little girl in her teens, tall, and quite pleasing to the eye?"
Since he last bought sweet potatoes at Jingxi Agricultural Market, he had been busy. When he thought about buying sweet potatoes on the weekend, he heard the vendors saying that the potato-selling couple had gone back to their hometown and mentioned opening a shop in the city, where they would sell in the future.
"That’s exactly what she looks like. A sweet-talking kid, calling everyone grandpa and grandma. I hadn’t seen my old man so cheerfully teased in a long time," a few beaming old men and women were laughing heartily.
"Where did they go, Ah Gang, since you know her? I’m quite curious about the weaver of this mat too. Let’s go and have a look together," Yu Shanyang suggested, seeing his son’s excitement. He had never seen Yu Gang so excited about another woman, except for Mei Nian.
"I do need to find her; I want to buy some sweet potatoes from her for an experiment. If early-maturing and high-quality sweet potato varieties could be promoted nationwide, it would be a great help to farmers," Yu Gang, his mind filled with work, elicited a wry smile and head shake from Yu Shanyang. Yet, upon seeing the Black Purple Vine Mat again, he paused, lost in thought.
"It’s near Old Mao’s rattan mat shop, in the new rental spaces nearby. You and your father should be able to find her if you look around," the elders at the old age home reminded them.
Xiao Xian was initially going to wait at the old age home, but Mao Dazhu had received a sudden notice about a shop space found for the farm’s specialty products.
Mao Dazhu had promised Feng Xing he’d help find ways to get Yanqing Farm’s products into supermarkets. His initial idea was through some connections to get the farm’s sweet potatoes and processed goods into several chain supermarkets, but he learned that the current listing fee alone was a significant sum.
To disregard that cost, larger supermarkets required production and processing certificates, specific place-of-origin certificates, and various pesticide residue test reports.
Getting all sorts of certificates and reports was complicated, and completing them all would take ages.
After some thought, Mao Dazhu decided to do it his way, renting a suitable shop space. Although the cost of rent and an operating license were necessary and not cheap, this paperwork was much simpler compared to supermarket procedures.
Once they hired someone to attend the shop and displayed their goods, who wouldn’t buy quality products?
With Zhuo Feng and his wife not yet back, Mao Dazhu took Xiao Xian to get a rough look first. The specifics would wait for Zhuo Feng and his wife to have a look and make the final decision.
Mao Dazhu’s shop had a good location and had been leased seven or eight years earlier, when there were few shops around the rattan mat shop and the rent was very cheap. Mao Dazhu signed a ten-year contract with the landlord. Later, when the district government developed it into a commercial street, shops sprouted like mushrooms after rain, and the rent correspondingly skyrocketed.
Xiao Xian and Mao Dazhu strolled the commercial street, finding either overpriced shops or ones in too remote locations. They sat in a shop, took a break, and discussed which place might be best to choose.
That’s when Yu Shanyang father and son stepped into the shop.
**
Shivering, for two consecutive weeks it’s been almost like a frantic sprint, with diverse data shockingly low...
No popularity, no tickets,
Alas, the tender tickets have vanished too, dabbing tears,
**(To be continued. If you enjoy this work, you are welcome to cast your recommendation ticket and monthly ticket at Qidian (). Your support is my greatest motivation.)