novelraw Chapter 165 The Mute Granny Wasn't Mute After All; She Could Talk
Chapter 165 The Mute Granny Wasn't Mute After All; She Could Talk
Tan Suyun had already married Ren Hongmin, and the two of them rented a house from an elderly couple in the middle of the village. The young couple got some leafy vegetable seeds from Tong Yuheng and filled the kang (a heated brick bed) in another room with planting boxes, growing a whole room full of vegetables.
They also lived a secluded life, not going to the educated youth settlement unless necessary. Tan Suyun had no friends to begin with, and Ren Hongmin also preferred quiet, so no one noticed that their home was full of lush greenery.
Whenever someone came, they would draw the curtains of the vegetable garden and lock the door, claiming it belonged to the elderly couple. In reality, the elderly couple had taken everything they could, and the rest they kept were in the small wing of the front yard.
The two of them would occasionally visit the Tong family, and Tong Yuheng would sometimes come over to check the temperature and humidity for them. Then he encouraged them to grow mushrooms in the kitchen outside, which wasn't in use for the time being. He suggested putting up shelves and saying that they could harvest a lot of fresh mushrooms over the winter and earn a good amount of money!
"That's great, Yuheng! Where can we get the inoculum? If you provide the inoculum, I'll grow it and we'll split the profits!" Tan Suyun said immediately.
"Forget it, why bother dividing such a small amount? You can grow it and give us some to eat occasionally."
"No problem, I'll buy your bacteria strain. I can't keep taking advantage of you."
"That works too. I'll give you a hundred mushroom bags and you give me ten yuan. How about that price?"
"This is too cheap. One spawn bag can produce mushrooms in a week or two, and last for two months. Even if one bag only produces three to five pounds of mushrooms, you can still make a few dollars. I'll give you twenty!"
"No need, the price is what it is, I'll bring it to you tomorrow. You can plant it in batches, taking fifty or sixty bags at a time, too many to manage."
"I understand, thank you! By the way, when are you getting married? You'll be nineteen soon, right?" Tan Suyun is happy now and hopes that all lovers in the world can be together.
"I haven't decided yet, let's wait and see! Besides growing vegetables, what else do you guys do in your spare time?"
Tong Yuheng wanted to subtly suggest that they take some time to study, but he couldn't be too explicit. After all, it would still be six or seven years before the college entrance examination was reinstated.
"What are you doing? Dreaming about the future, huh? You don't even have children yet, and you've already come up with seven or eight names for boys and girls!" Tan Suyun rolled her eyes. Actually, she didn't really want to have children right now.
"Tell me, if it's a few years from now and the college entrance exam is coming up again, will we still have the motivation to go to university?" Tong Yuheng brought this up.
"Stop joking! They haven't let us take the exam for four or five years. When would we ever have that opportunity again? If they let us take it again, I'd go to school even if I had one on my back, one in my arms, and one in my belly!"
"Hahaha! Just imagining this scene is hilarious! You better keep your word, I'd love to see how you manage to carry one on your back and hug one in your arms, hahaha!"
"What are you saying, you're so happy? Yuheng, have some hot tea, it's black tea my mom sent, it's good for your stomach."
"We'll let your wife tell you what we're going to say later. Now I'll tell you the general precautions for mushroom cultivation."
I won't handle the sales after we grow them. I'll introduce you to Uncle Cheng Si; you can ask him to help with sales. It's much safer than going to the black market yourself. This place is too small; going there too often will easily expose you, so it's best to be cautious.
Ren Hongmin brought over some tea and listened as Tong Yuheng explained mushroom cultivation methods to his wife, taking notes one by one in a small notebook.
After Tong Yuheng left, Tan Suyun told him about the hypothetical situation Tong Yuheng had mentioned, and said that if she could take the college entrance exam, she would do so even with her child in tow.
"Suyun, do you think Tong Zhiqing is hinting at us? Maybe we really will be able to take the college entrance exam in a few years, so we shouldn't put down the knowledge we've learned?" Ren Hongmin was very perceptive; he felt that Tong Zhiqing never joked around.
"Really? How did she know?" Tan Suyun thought about it over and over, but still couldn't figure it out.
"Maybe she doesn't know either, and it's just based on her own inferences or analysis? That's why she won't tell you directly, but just make an assumption," Ren Hongmin analyzed.
"It's quite possible she's reminding me! Don't be fooled by how fierce Yuheng is when she hits people; she never actually picks fights. I trust her; I'll find my books to review tomorrow!"
"We have to keep this a secret, we can't let anyone know, otherwise it'll cause trouble for Tong, the educated youth. Let's just say we're bored and want to read some books. Even if the college entrance exam isn't going to be reinstated, learning more won't be a bad thing!"
The couple secretly began searching for textbooks and supplementary materials the next day. Taking advantage of the days leading up to the Chinese New Year, they went to the city and searched through all the recycling stations in the county, but still couldn't find all the high school textbooks.
Tan Suyun wrote to her family asking for study guides, saying that she and her husband were too bored and didn't dare to read any other books, so they decided to find some study materials to look at.
She also wrote to her younger sister, telling her to spend time studying and not to rush into marriage unless she meets someone kind and good to her.
Years later, when the college entrance examination was reinstated, the young couple took the exam with their two children. Both of them were admitted to the provincial industrial university and eventually settled in the provincial capital.
~
Tong Yuyao accepted the job as a math teacher and applied to teach junior high school math at the town middle school in Hongzheng Commune because her home was in Chenjiatun and it would be more convenient for her to go to work in town.
The county education commission was more than happy to accept this, as the town's middle school was even more in need of good teachers. Actually, she was doing this so that it would be easier for her to transfer the job to her mother in the future.
She worked for less than two months before winter break started, but she made a lot of progress during that time. Her interactions with teachers and students allowed her to meet people with different temperaments and learn how to deal with them according to their individual characteristics.
To quote Tong Yuheng, her social skills have greatly improved. When people asked her what social skills were, Tong Yuheng pulled out several translated psychology books for them to read.
Throughout the winter break, the whole family secretly practiced martial arts and studied. With her help and medication, everyone's strength improved rapidly. Following Xiao Wu and her maternal grandfather, Linglong and Yuxuan also possessed a trace of internal energy, which could barely be considered as the level of martial arts masters.
Ever since Yuyao and Xiaowu were injured and their grandfather was kidnapped, the sisters have been very careful, especially the two younger ones. They no longer go out to play with the children in the village, afraid that if someone were to harm them, it would implicate their friends.
At the same time, Tong Yuheng intensified his observation of the mute old woman and discovered that apart from her daughter and son-in-law coming back to visit her, she did not come into contact with any other suspicious people.
One day, she noticed a reflection appearing near the house of the mute old woman, flashing by in an instant! This reflection caught her attention; it must mean someone was monitoring their home.
She observed carefully and noticed that the mute old woman often secretly watched their actions through binoculars from her window; the light she saw was simply the reflection from the glass lens. She only noticed this after Professor Zhang pointed out that something was wrong with the mute old woman.
If it weren't for her keen senses, she wouldn't have noticed anything even if she had paid attention.