country bumpkin

Chapter 348 Holiday Ends, Back to Hai City

As for Yunya, she took advantage of this trip back to Kongjia Village and spent a few days with her grandmother.

The weather is getting hotter and hotter. The countryside is full of trees, and a gentle breeze carries the scent of fresh grass.

Yunya squatted in front of the small vegetable garden in the yard and picked a few tender green cucumbers with small yellow flowers.

Wash the cucumber thoroughly in the sink, then take a bite with a crisp sound. The cucumber has a refreshing aroma and a hint of sweetness, leaving your mouth feeling uniquely refreshed.

Yunya was biting into a cucumber when she remembered that her grandmother loved it, so she picked out the best-looking one that hadn't been bitten and took it to her grandmother.

Grandma was sitting on a reclining chair in the main room, fanning herself with a palm leaf fan. When she saw Yunya coming over, a kind smile appeared on her face.

Yunya quickly walked up to her grandmother, held the cucumber to her grandmother's mouth, and said, "Grandma, try it, it's so crisp and sweet."

Mu Shuyun smiled, opened her mouth, took a bite, chewed, and nodded repeatedly: "It's so delicious. It has to be my Yunya, she knows how to pick food."

Seeing her grandmother enjoying her meal, Yunya was overjoyed. She sat down next to her grandmother, fanned herself with a palm leaf fan, and chatted about everyday things.

Sunlight filtered through the dappled shadows of the trees, casting a warm glow on them, as if time itself had slowed down.

After a while, Mu Shuyun took Yunya's hand and said, "Yunya, if you get tired outside, come back and Grandma will make you something delicious."

Yun Ya's eyes reddened slightly, and she nodded vigorously: "Yes, Grandma, don't worry, I will eat and sleep well while I'm away. I will come back to see you often when I have time."

The grandmother and grandson ate cucumbers and chatted about everyday things; the heartwarming scene was so beautiful and touching.

The grandmother and grandson chatted and laughed, and before long, Granny Zhang from across the street came over for a visit.

As soon as Granny Zhang came in, she said with a smile, "Oh, these two are having a good time here."

Yunya quickly stood up and greeted her with a smile, "Grandma Zhang, please sit down."

Mu Shuyun warmly pulled Granny Zhang to sit down, "Come and try the cucumbers Yunya picked, they're so sweet."

Granny Zhang took the cucumber, took a bite, and praised, "This is a really good cucumber, sweet and crisp."

As she spoke, Granny Zhang took out a handful of broad beans she had grown herself from her pocket. "Yunya, these are from Grandma Zhang. Try them."

Yunya took it, thanked Grandma Zhang, peeled one and put it in her mouth, "Mmm, it's fragrant and soft, so delicious."

Grandma Zhang looked at Yunya and said lovingly, "This child is growing more and more beautiful. She will definitely do a great job in her work outside."

Yunya smiled a little shyly, "Grandma Zhang, you flatter me. I'm just trying my best to do my job well."

Afterwards, the two elderly people started chatting about everyday things in the village. Yunya listened quietly, feeling the unique warmth and comfort of the countryside, and thought how wonderful it would be if time could stand still at this moment.

Unfortunately, time is the one thing that can never stand still. Before long, Yunya had already spent three days at her maternal grandmother's house, and tomorrow she would be returning to Yicheng.

I also need to prepare some food from my hometown to take to the market. So I have to go home this afternoon.

When Yunya got home, she went to her grandfather's workplace and brought him some vegetables and meat.

Grandpa Kong Tongming is currently working as a construction site manager at a real estate development in City Yi. His daughters take turns bringing him vegetables and meat every four or five days.

Now that Yunya is back, she definitely wants to see her grandfather, otherwise she won't be able to come back again until the Chinese New Year after returning to the factory. It's been too long, and she misses her grandfather very much.

When she's away from home, she doesn't miss it. If she does miss it occasionally, it's her maternal grandparents, the relatives who raised her. They're even closer to her than her biological parents.

After returning from her grandfather's house, Yunya bought some pancakes to take to the sea market. She also prepared a cup of instant noodles to eat in the car; this time, she was willing to eat the cup noodles.

That evening, Yunya sat in the waiting room of the train station, waiting for her good friends to arrive so they could board the train together.

Zhu Yanan and Tong Jiahui arrived late, half an hour before the ticket check-in time.

Bai Yan and Bai Rui took a bus back to Hai City in the morning. Because they had to return early, they arrived in Hai City in the afternoon, and Bai Yan went with her sister to visit her brother-in-law.

Yunya ate the whole way after her overnight train journey, so she didn't get carsick. Besides instant noodles, she also bought sunflower seeds, which she ate whenever she felt nauseous, and surprisingly, they actually helped.

Yunya didn't know if it was motion sickness or staying up late that made her feel nauseous and uncomfortable, but eating kept her so she had to keep eating.

This is an experience she gained from taking the train several times, and it may only be effective for her!

The next morning, just after 5 a.m., the train arrived at its destination. They got off the train and waited at the bus stop for the bus to come, as they would have to transfer to another bus to get back to the shoe factory.

At 6 o'clock, the buses started running, and they boarded the bus carrying their luggage.

The bus traveled for another 40 minutes before arriving at the shoe factory. People were already starting to enter the factory one after another, and they followed behind, dragging their luggage inside.

Back in the dorm, the three exhausted students quickly put down their luggage and lay down on their beds to rest. Although they were very sleepy, everyone else in the dorm had returned and was chattering about the interesting things that had happened during the holiday.

The three of them couldn't sleep because of the noise, so they all sat up and pricked up their ears to listen to the gossip.

Jiang Yuqing took out wedding candies to share with everyone, and then Qi Qiaodi also took out wedding candies to share with everyone.

The other roommates accepted the wedding candies one after another, all saying words of blessing to them.

They didn't go to work today; they all came back early to get some rest before officially starting work tomorrow.

After distributing the wedding candies, everyone chatted for a while. Yunya and the other two were feeling listless and gradually fell asleep while listening to the conversation.

I slept straight through until the next morning. When one person in the dorm got up, everyone else was also woken up by the noise.

Everyone busied themselves getting dressed and putting on their shoes, and then folding their blankets. We just got back to work today, and the floor supervisor is doing a routine check; everyone has to fold their blankets into neat, square shapes.

This was what the manager told them when they first joined the factory. They needed to be checked every Monday and on their first day back to work after a holiday.

There will also be competitions, and those who keep their dorm rooms clean and tidy will receive a reward.

Last time, Yunya and her dorm received a reward; the administrator gave each person in the dorm a new bed sheet. That was the reward.

There's also a flag hanging on the dormitory wall, but this flag is used on a rotating basis; it might be moved to another dormitory next week.

After leaving the dormitory, everyone went to the cafeteria for breakfast. Every morning, it was a packet of pickled vegetables, a steamed bun, and half a porcelain jar of white rice porridge.

Yunya didn't like the taste of this plain rice porridge; it always smelled like alkaline water. She only ate steamed buns, pickled vegetables, and drank cold boiled water.

Others might not do this, but they don't really like this kind of breakfast either. It's free, so not eating it would be a waste.

It's possible that Yunya often caught colds and vomited when she was little, or that she damaged her stomach by vomiting while working the night shift at the textile factory, which is why her stomach is more sensitive than others.

That's why the first thing people do after getting paid is buy a bunch of instant noodles and sausages. These are foods that replace breakfast.

In their minds, being able to eat a packet of instant noodles every morning is considered a very good food.

After finishing their meals, people would clean the porcelain mugs at the entrance of the canteen, and then go to work in twos and threes.

There will definitely be a morning meeting when you first come back to work. The foreman of each assembly line will start with the usual reprimand.

They were shouting at the top of their lungs with their mouths wide open, each one louder than the last, making a "whoosh" sound that would sound like a high-note competition!

After the meeting, everyone returned to their posts and started working. During the lunch break, Sister Ma resumed her matchmaking business.

She'd try to smooth things over with any newcomer in her group. Who knows, she might just sway one of them!

Life in the shoe factory consisted of working, eating, and sleeping every day. It was like being a robot, with a repetitive, busy routine.

One day, Yunya ran into Meng Hongping while doing laundry. Meng Hongping was very happy to see Yunya and came over to collect water from Yunya's tap to wash her clothes.

The two rarely run into each other since they work in different workshops; they hadn't seen each other for a month now.

Meng Hongping happily showed off to Yun Ya that she was now learning Korean and said she wanted to run for group leader.

This is a joint venture, so there are many entertainment options and benefits. Learning their (the joint venture partners') language has also become an honor.