Chapter 14: Liang Aishu, can you understand what I'm saying?

The next morning.

The morning mist had not yet dissipated, but the transport team's loading area was already bustling with activity.

Lu Qiaoge followed behind Lu Zhiguo, her canvas shoes stepping across the water-logged concrete, splashing tiny droplets of water.

She intended to see if she could borrow a vehicle from Captain Jin of the transport team.

"Big brother, do you think Captain Jin will agree?" Lu Qiaoge asked idly.

She didn't notice the figure that had suddenly come to a halt not far away.

Liang Aishu stood at the corner of the warehouse, the documents in his hand crumpled from his grip.

He should have been rushing to deliver the dispatch orders for this batch of steel, but his feet felt as if they had taken root.

Lu Qiaoge hadn't worn her usual braided hair today; she had tied it in a ponytail.

The ends of her hair swayed gently with the movement of her head, shimmering with a honey-colored luster in the sunlight.

He remembered that she used to always keep her head low and speak in a soft, timid voice, like a frightened little sparrow. But now, her beautiful eyes held an indescribable spark, making her entire being seem brighter.

This wasn't how a girl who had broken off an engagement should look—at least, not the Lu Qiaoge that Shen Yun described as "vicious, loathed by all, and ugly in face."

"Technician Liang?" someone urged from behind, "The dispatch order..."

Liang Aishu acted as if he hadn't heard. He could only think of how Shen Yun had sobbed against his shoulder last night. After a moment of hesitation, he strode toward the loading area.

"What are you doing here?" His voice was colder and harder than expected.

Lu Qiaoge turned around.

*Why is it Liang Aishu?*

*What a bad start to the morning!*

But Captain Jin was walking toward them, so she immediately put on a polite yet distant smile: "Technician Liang."

This form of address felt like a fine needle, lightly pricking Liang Aishu's heart.

He remembered how she used to call him "Brother Aishu" in a soft, sweet voice.

Now, this formal address made him feel inexplicably irritated.

"The loading area isn't a place where just anyone can enter." His gaze swept over her face. "What are you doing here? If you're looking for me, you should go to my workplace. Don't come here and interfere with other people's work."

Lu Zhiguo hadn't expected Liang Aishu to be so narcissistic.

He really wanted to stuff him in a sack and give him a beating, but his parents had said that since the engagement was broken, they shouldn't get involved to avoid trouble.

But the guy's words were truly asking for a punch.

Lu Qiaoge restrained her irritable brother and sized Liang Aishu up with a cool gaze. "Since the engagement is broken, we shouldn't disturb each other. Even if we happen to run into each other, one should be sensible enough to avoid the other, let alone be so self-righteous as to say things without knowing the depth of the situation. Liang Aishu, do you understand what I'm saying?"

Liang Aishu understood, of course. His face flushed red as he froze in place.

Since when had Lu Qiaoge become so sharp-tongued and aggressive?

Then, shame and indignation surged in his heart.

He suddenly realized that he seemed to have never truly known this girl who had almost become his wife.

Before he could say anything, Lu Qiaoge had already turned away. Facing the approaching Captain Jin, she said very politely, "Captain Jin, I have something to discuss with you. Could you spare a few minutes?"

Captain Jin frowned slightly, but he looked at Liang Aishu and said with a smile, "Technician Liang, Old Peng said you were looking for me?"

Captain Jin didn't want to offend Liang Aishu, but Lu Qiaoge had helped find Auntie Li's gold ring.

And his third cousin was the second daughter-in-law of Old Lady Li; for the past few days, the mother-in-law and daughter-in-law had been at each other's throats over that gold ring, nearly ending up at the police station.

He didn't know what Lu Qiaoge wanted, so he gave Liang Aishu an out first.

Coming back to his senses, Liang Aishu managed to say, "I was just going to tell you about today's tasks. We can talk later."

With that, he turned and left, his departure quite hurried.

Captain Jin couldn't be bothered to ponder the thoughts of young people. He looked at Lu Qiaoge and said cheerfully, "Oh, it's you, Qiaoge. I still need to thank you for helping find the Li family's gold ring."

Lu Qiaoge and Lu Zhiguo exchanged a glance.

The genuine bewilderment in the siblings' eyes was clearly seen by Captain Jin.

This made him feel a bit better.

Otherwise, he would have truly thought she had come to ask him for a favor.

He felt a bit of regret.

He shouldn't have spoken so abruptly.

Just as he was about to explain, Lu Qiaoge timely cut him off. Regardless of the reason, she acted as if she hadn't understood.

"Captain Jin, please look at my letter of introduction first."

She then handed the letter to Old Wang and continued, "I also discovered this while wandering around these past few days. It isn't very convenient for those of us in the residential compound to get seasonal leafy vegetables... but many households in Guzi Tun have more vegetables than they can eat... and they happen to be in urgent need of daily necessities. I thought we could exchange them. I reported this to Director Hu, and that's how this community service station came to be. Now, I need a truck. I've calculated that a round trip to Guzi Tun would cost about five yuan. I can provide the transport team with fuel fees, labor costs, and so on. Of course, I can also trade with vegetables. If it works, I'll make the trip to Guzi Tun. If it's inconvenient, I'll find another way."

It was Captain Jin's first time encountering such a matter, but the thought of the fresh vegetables in the peasant gardens described by Lu Qiaoge was very tempting.

Although meat was scarce in this era, it wasn't exactly lacking in their military factory, especially for dual-income households where two people could be allocated three pounds of pork a month.

It wasn't exactly a feast, but it was better than some units that provided nothing at all.

However, those living in apartment buildings truly lacked vegetables.

Mainly because the supply centers and grocery stores received vegetables in large batches; the most common were storable ones like cabbage and radishes. When small amounts of spinach or leeks came in, they were snatched up immediately.

Captain Jin asked, "No money, just trading goods?"

Lu Qiaoge nodded. "Of course. We are following the regulations."

Captain Jin told Lu Zhiguo to get to work immediately, while he asked Lu Qiaoge a few questions.

For instance, the price of fuel and vegetables for the driver.

Lu Qiaoge was well-prepared and gave Captain Jin a satisfactory answer.

Finally, Lu Qiaoge said, "But I still need to discuss these details with the Guzi Tun production brigade before I can confirm everything."

Captain Jin said, "Then go ahead. Let me know once you've discussed it. If it works, I'll assign a vehicle to you tomorrow."

In any case, he wouldn't lose out.

Even though he was the captain of the transport team and could use connections to buy vegetables from the grocery store, he didn't dare use those connections every day.

In this season, eating vegetables in the city was harder than eating meat.

And so, Lu Qiaoge led Lu Qiaoling onto the bus heading toward Manshan Commune.

Guzi Tun was in the outskirts of the city; it was the first stop for the bus, taking less than ten minutes.

"Second Sister, Mom was right. Don't end up working hard for nothing in the end."

Lu Qiaoge glanced at Lu Qiaoling, who had followed them. The girl was blinking, looking at her somewhat cautiously.

After throwing a little tantrum on the day they returned, she had become quite timid.

"There are so many people in the residential compound; it's impossible for everyone to be stingy. Besides, it's just a truckload of vegetables. Before people even realize it, it'll be traded away."

Lu Qiaoling thought about it and felt it made a lot of sense.

But her worry returned.

"Second Sister, even if the villagers have vegetables, we have nothing. What will we use to exchange? Are we going to buy on credit?"

(End of Chapter)