Chapter 855: Love and Heartache
Chapter 855: Love and Heartache
“Yeah,” Zi Die answered before he could even finish his question. “People can buy popcorn and snacks at the ticket office. People typically enjoy having snacks while watching the play, so I bought some. The popcorn here is pretty tasty. Would you like to try some, Professor?”
“Of course. Thank you.” Su Wenxiu nodded.
“You don’t have to thank me. You treated me to lunch just now, after all.”
Moreover, Su Wenxiu had helped cure Zi Die’s mother once, so the girl considered her professor her family’s benefactor. Zi Die’s heart raced as she sat beside Su Wenxiu.
She handed a bucket of popcorn to Su Wenxiu, and the latter tried some. The popcorn here differed from the ones he used to it. These were sweeter and crunchier.
He did not need to guess to know that his sister had taught the employees to cook and sell popcorn at the theater. Su Wenxiu had to admit it was pretty good to have a snack while watching the play.
“It tastes good.” Su Wenxiu only wanted to have a taste. When he returned the popcorn to Zi Die, he accidentally touched her fingers.
At that moment, Zi Die felt a tingling sensation shoot from her palm to her heart. Whenever she saw Su Wenxiu at school, she would have the same tingling sensation, and her heartbeat would quicken.
Zi Die blushed until even her ears reddened. Fortunately, they were in the theater, or Su Wenxiu would have noticed it.
Soon, the play began. The last play Zi Die watched was The Cow Herder and Weaver Girl. This time, the performers reenacted The Perfect Match. Zi Die could not help but cry at the end of it.
She cried silently but felt warm inside. Even Su Wenxiu became emotional as he watched the play. Although the girl was silent, Su Wenxiu noticed she was crying because he was right beside her.
Su Wenxiu asked softly, “Are you crying?”
He was at a loss as he looked on. After all, he did not know how to comfort Zi Die. He even felt an indescribable feeling in his heart. Su Wenxiu realized he did not want the girl to cry.
Usually, he would always feel happy whenever he saw Zi Die. The girl always had a bright smile and had never cried. She hurriedly wiped her tears when she heard Su Wenxiu’s voice.
She was embarrassed and wished she could hide in a hole. ‘Why am I crying when Professor Wenxiu is here? I look horrible when I cry.’ “No, I wasn’t,” Zi Die hurriedly said, “I’m okay, Professor.”
She tried to calm down and wiped her tears. However, she did not notice how choked up she sounded.
“Here, use this to wipe your tears.” Su Wenxiu removed a handkerchief from his pocket and handed it to Zi Die.
The latter took the handkerchief and placed it in her palm, reluctant to use it to wipe her tears. Moreover, the handkerchief had a faint herbal fragrance, which seemingly came from Su Wenxiu.
Although Zi Die was reluctant, she ultimately wiped the corner of her eyes with the handkerchief. She thought Su Wenxiu would find it strange if she simply held it.
After the play, the dup left the theater and saw the sunset illuminating the entire sky. The red sunlight was mesmerizing as it shined on the duo. Zi Die looked up at Su Wenxiu and thought he looked particularly handsome at that moment.
Su Wenxiu lowered his gaze and saw the girl’s reddened eyes. He did not know why, but he felt a sense of tenderness in his heart. He then remembered having some candy in his pocket, so he took one and handed it to Zi Die.
The girl was in disbelief as she pointed at herself and asked, “Is that for me, Professor?”
“Yeah, it is. Don’t cry so much, okay? Your eyes are red now.” Su Wenxiu did not want to see Zi Die cry and wanted to cheer her up.
Zi Die was delighted as she immediately smiled. Su Wenxiu sighed in relief when she saw her smile. “Thank you, Professor. Umm, do you…”
Zi Die wanted to ask if Su Wenxiu liked her back. However, she sensed his heartache when she looked into her eyes. Zi Die blinked and rubbed her eyes
to ensure she was not hallucinating. Immediately after, her smile became even brighter.
That evening, Su Binglan and her parents went to check out the mountain. When they reached the top and looked down, they saw crops all over the place below. In more than a month, the seeds had sprouted and thrived.
The trio could see the lushness from afar, giving them the feeling of spring. It was a season for all living things to grow, after all.
Shen Qiuhua said, “Not only are the people of our village prospering, but those in the surrounding villages have planted their potatoes and sweet potatoes, too.
“Everyone has used more than half the land to grow their potatoes. They even have leftover land to grow wheat, corn, and other crops. We’ve hired some people to help us with our crops. We planted soybeans in the first fifty acres of land you bought us.”
The Su family continued to grow large amounts of soybeans because the tofu factory needed them. Fortunately, the mountain was a treasure trove. When everyone realized Su Binglan had bought the mountain, they began to gather firewood elsewhere.
Still, Shen Qiuhua felt it was okay for the people to continue chopping wood on Su Binglan’s mountain. Moreover, the villagers would not find anything of value, even if they went to Su Binglan’s mountain.
Shen Qiuhua thought it was a strange phenomenon. She wondered why no one else could reach the mountain’s depths and find valuable things as her daughter did.
After all, Su Binglan found soybeans and rapeseed back there.
Su Binglan nodded and said, “That’s good. Sweet potatoes and potatoes are highly adaptable to the environment. Their production and yield are high, so it’ll be a bumper harvest this year.”
Shen Qiuhua smiled and said, “Everyone will be delighted and in a good mood whenever there’s a bumper harvest.”
She could not describe her feelings but knew she felt a sense of joy. Although the Su family’s living conditions were exceptional, they still grew crops. It felt different to eat the crops they harvested themselves.
“Father, Mother, I’m going to check things out at the paper mill and printing factory.” Su Binglan was in a hurry to arrange things in Su Teng Village so that she could visit the capital as soon as possible.
“All right, let’s go there now..”