Chapter 12

Chapter 12

It was supposed to be a day out, but with the sun already high, someone was still sleeping in.

Early in the morning, Jiang Jining got up, had breakfast, and went to the courtyard to feed the koi fish. He was dissatisfied with the housekeeper's indulgence and pointed out: "He's been coming back late too, but he'd always get up right after me."

They were going on a spring outing today. Did he have to choose this day to sleep in?

Jiang Jining scooped a large spoonful of fish food and tenderly delivered it into a koi's mouth. Uncle Lu found it amusing: "Feeding them like that, won't they overeat?"

"They're not plump enough."

Jiang Jining said very seriously.

The koi in the lake pavilion on the palace grounds were fattened up, making them quite adorable to watch. They were plump but skittish; when he entered the water, not a single one could be seen.

The ones here weren't even half their size.

At 8:30, Fu Yuze finally made a leisurely appearance, descending the stairs dressed in a thin gray hoodie and black jeans.

Uncle Lu went over to check on him.

Jiang Jining glanced from afar, then turned his head away at a forty-five-degree angle, faintly ignoring him.

"You're up early today, Young Master," Uncle Lu noted, observing how youthfully and handsomely Fu Yuze was dressed, radiating the clean scent of a fresh shower. "Was the air conditioning in your room set too high last night?"

Uncle Lu remembered having prepared a bath for him last night.

"A bit," Fu Yuze replied, fastening his watch. The cold bath that morning had cooled him down considerably, at least enough to give instructions without changing expression: "Set my room's temperature separately from now on, two degrees lower."

"Very well."

Uncle Lu then shifted his gaze to the watch, smiling slightly as he addressed his boss, who was staring intently: "Ningning has eaten. He wants to feed every fish until they're full. It's a long drive; you should have something to eat before we set off too."

Fu Yuze withdrew his gaze. "Hmm."

Jiang Jining had originally thought he'd have to wait a long time.

Fortunately, once Fu Yuze came downstairs, he seemed to switch to fast-forward mode. They managed to leave before nine o'clock.

"Seatbelt," Fu Yuze reminded him.

Jiang Jining complied. As he sat up straight, he noticed the new thing on Fu Yuze's right wrist and slowly raised his own hand to compare.

They were the same.

"Give me yours."

Seeing him looking for differences, Fu Yuze opened his palm.

Jiang Jining was somewhat puzzled but still took off his watch and handed it over. He watched as Fu Yuze skillfully added a new set of physical training to the swimming regimen, set the timer, and returned it: "We're going to do farm work in the fields today. No food until you complete the target."

"Farm... work?" Jiang Jining was confused.

Wasn't it about enjoying the scenery, mountains, water, chickens, and ducks?

Fu Yuze looked at the slender, pale wrist so close, hesitated for half a second, then proactively fastened the watch for him, avoiding contact with that warm, smooth skin. He observed Jiang Jining's state. "You can do as you please after the work is done."

After a pause, he added: "It's not difficult."

Jiang Jining looked especially beautiful today.

Aunt Tao had specifically studied tutorials these past few days and put his hair up before they left.

Jiang Jining felt it took longer than usual but didn't think much of it. However, when the aunt brought out a small flat iron and he looked in the mirror, he found his hair had been styled into a side bun.

The braiding was exquisite, not even needing a hairpin.

Jiang Jining was about to leave; there was no time to lament Aunt Tao dressing him up like a girl. Uncle Lu also kept praising him, so he got into the car with flushed cheeks.

So there was work to do today after all.

Jiang Jining remembered Aunt Tao asking him to take off his bracelet this morning and then bringing him a set of soft, comfortable linen clothes. The fabric was excellent and breathable, but too plain.

But if it was for working in the fields, then everything made sense.

"Understood," Jiang Jining said good-naturedly.

Seeing him unaware of hardship and quite compliant, Fu Yuze decided not to personally take part once they started driving. Otherwise, it would inevitably be abandoned halfway.

Jiang Jining was too good at crying.

When he got tired and sweaty, the destructive power was almost on par with his tears.

There was plenty of land in the Beijing suburbs. The plot the Fu family selected and developed into a private farm had dedicated personnel managing separate zones for livestock, vegetable gardens, and orchards, with regular harvesting. Ten kilometers away was a national-level agricultural research base.

The private farm was entirely according to Fu Yuze's personal preferences.

The originally built two-story warehouse was transformed, with the yard and railings renovated, the ground raised and fully paved with wooden planks, and a grapevine trellis circling the outside of the house.

The yard also had a grill rack, charcoal basin, fishing rods, and various camping equipment.

As soon as Jiang Jining entered the house, he instantly transitioned from the dry heat to a bone-chilling coolness. Before him stood two floor-standing air conditioners, and in the center of the living room was a nearly four-meter-long solid wood table.

"Freshly squeezed."

Fu Yuze poured him a glass of peach juice.

Following that, someone knocked on the door outside: "Boss."

The visitor was about five foot ten, neither fat nor thin, with some small muscles. He wore a blue T-shirt and a straw hat, taking off his mud-stained white gloves. "Haven't seen you in a long time."

"On vacation, came to have some fun."

Fu Yuze naturally shook his hand and introduced him to Jiang Jining as Brother Wang, the farm manager. He clapped his hands: "Let's start now then. The sooner we go, the sooner we return. Otherwise, we won't get a full two hours in this morning."

Jiang Jining: "..."

He really wasn't joking. Fu Yuze brought a pair of rubber boots from the storage room, new ones, crouched down, and handed them to him backwards. "Change here?"

"I'll change them myself."

Jiang Jining said so but didn't move.

With both men hovering before him, he was just about to make a request when Fu Yuze said: "Xiao Wang, come outside with me for a moment."

Brother Wang, who had been looking at Jiang Jining, quickly agreed.

Once outside, Fu Yuze placed Jiang Jining's clean shoes from the doorway on the rack. Glancing at the person inside stepping into the new shoes, he instructed the manager: "Just teach him how to dig soil and pull vegetables."

"Alright."

Foreman Wang chuckled, "If you want him to have some fun, you might as well head to the chicken coops. This morning's eggs haven't been collected yet, and one of the workers even brought in a batch of chicks to raise—they're quite adorable."

"The sun's harsh; it's better inside the shed." Fu Yuze declined, then added, "Clean the chicken coop two extra times this afternoon."

"Sure," Wang replied. As if it isn't swept three times a day already.

Now it's five.

Fu Yuze didn't need to ask about the recent harvest; the best-looking, thriving vegetables would reliably appear in his kitchen on time every day. After chatting about other things for a bit, he waited for Jiang Jining to come out and handed him a straw hat. "Will this work for you?"

"Sure." Jiang Jining took it—it felt prickly.

"Let's go, boss."

Seeing Jiang Jining's delicate skin, Wang grabbed a large black umbrella leaning against the railing and opened it. "Come over here."

Jiang Jining immediately donned the straw hat he'd just found prickly and shook his head. "This is fine for me."

Wang genuinely thought the sun outside was too harsh.

Fu Yuze interjected: "He's sensitive to heat; let him do whatever makes him comfortable. Don't crowd together in this hot weather."

Wang also put away the umbrella and put on a matching straw hat. "Got it."

Jiang Jining held both sides of the hat, bending it like a potato chip. His oversized rubber boots were unstable, and he squinted one eye, looking up with moist, shiny lips as he spoke, the picture of someone afraid of the sun. "Where are we going?"

"What vegetables do you like to eat?"

"Do you want to see the chickens, ducks, fish, and sheep? We even have newborns."

"Potatoes, radishes, eggplants, pumpkins, bell peppers—do you prefer picking or digging?"

Jiang Jining suddenly thought it sounded quite interesting. "Anything's fine."

Wang laughed. "Alright!"

The two walked far away.

Fu Yuze stood in the bright sunlight at the doorway, hands in his pockets, watching them go. To be honest, he regretted it for a second.

*

The vegetable plots were divided into open-air and organic greenhouses.

They basically ensured a year-round supply of fresh vegetables.

While the sun wasn't too harsh yet, Wang took Jiang Jining for a stroll in the open, muddy fields.

After pulling out his first radish and scraping off some mud, Jiang Jining pressed the start button on his watch, eliminating any possibility of being accused of slacking off.

Ding—

Chef: I need you to bring back the ingredients.

Chef: Don't just pick one or two of each; I need enough to really cook.

This put Jiang Jining in a tough spot.

He wasn't picky himself, but what did Fu Yuze like to eat?

Jiang Jining rolled up his sleeves, squatted on the ground, and put more effort into digging up radishes. Whether it was the planting method or the quality of the seeds, the red radishes he unearthed were each more beautiful than the last.

There was a lot of soil.

He tugged on the leaves and rolled the radish on the ground.

With a bit too much force, it snapped in two! The inside looked juicy, crisp, and vibrant.

"Taking your frustration out on the radishes?"

Wang, having finished inspecting the vegetable plots, stood on the slope and laughed.

Jiang Jining hurried to explain: "It was a bit heavy; it slipped and broke when I tossed it."

Wang had thought he was already getting bored and chuckled, helping him carry the basket with one hand while pointing. "Over here, we have cauliflower, over there are cucumbers, and there are green beans too..."

"Oh, right, we need to get some scallions later. The boss said he wants to fry scallion oil. They're not here; they're along the way we came."

Jiang Jining was fairly diligent.

Although his movements were slow and deliberate, insisting on wiping clean every vegetable dug from the ground, he visited all the seasonal vegetable plots. While picking cherry tomatoes in the greenhouse, he broke a sweat.

Wang was called away by a colleague.

Jiang Jining, truly pampered, was exhausted after an hour and a half of work. Carrying a large basket of vegetables, he walked ten steps before stopping to catch his breath, then headed to the faucet at the greenhouse entrance to wash up.

"Splash—"

After washing all the vegetables, the cool, clean water flowed over his palms, a refreshing relief in the heat.

Jiang Jining freed his tightly rolled pant legs from the rubber boots, took off his socks, and stuck his feet under the cool water, idling away the last few minutes.

The ground was a bit hot.

Jiang Jining waited a moment, letting the water cool the ground and wash away the mud, then prepared to step onto it with both feet.

Just as he began to enjoy it, uneven footsteps sounded nearby.

Someone was coming!

Jiang Jining immediately turned to find his shoes.

His wet feet stepped on the dry mud nearby, making a mess, but he could only quickly slip into his shoes—

Fu Yuze walked in and saw him standing with his hands behind his back, as if being punished.

"I'm here to check on the progress."

Fu Yuze casually leaned the umbrella against the wall.

Jiang Jining noticed the sun was scorching; Fu Yuze had already taken off his sweatshirt, leaving only a white T-shirt that accentuated his broad shoulders and long legs. The white fabric was tucked into black jeans, subtly outlining the narrowing lines of his abdominal muscles.

Just then, Wang came in. "Boss is here?"

"How did he do?"

Fu Yuze asked casually, hands on his hips.

Wang immediately started praising: "He did great! Young folks really have energy. Look at this—I was gone for five or six minutes, and he’s already washed this whole big basket of vegetables. Xiao Jiang did a fantastic job!"

He offered again to take the vegetables to the kitchen himself.

Once they were out of the shed, Fu Yuze raised his hand, holding a brand-new water bottle. "Thirsty?"

"Thank you." Jiang Jining took it and drank absentmindedly.

"You did a great job with the task."

Fu Yuze thought maybe his comment hadn't hit the mark.

Yet Jiang Jining still seemed unenthusiastic, as if holding back some frustration.

With his keen eye, Fu Yuze spotted a clue—

Jiang Jining's walk was a little off.

The third time he lifted his foot, Fu Yuze saw his pant leg had come loose, a squelching sound came from his shoe, and a glimpse of pale ankle peeking out—but his socks were nowhere to be seen.

Jiang Jining noticed it too.

He immediately froze.

Fu Yuze’s first thought was that he might have been bitten by an insect or snake, or injured. His heart skipped a beat as he crouched down, grabbed Jiang Jining's calf, lifted his foot, and yanked the rubber shoe off, tossing it to the ground!

To his surprise, under the blue rubber shoe was just a muddy, bare foot.