FYN Chapter 317: I Need Seeds
Chapter 317: I Need Seeds
Cheng Jinyun said earnestly, "Yes, it’s what I should do."Here, the brother and sister chatted as if yesterday’s unhappiness had vanished into thin air.
While talking, the two of them had already walked to the West Gate.
Cheng Jinyun couldn’t enter the gate, so he could only watch Lin Xiang go in. It wasn’t until her figure gradually disappeared into the dormitory building that Cheng Jinyun turned and left.
The next day at noon, Lin Xiang and her roommates returned after lunch, planning to study a bit of a foreign language. However, before she even took out her notebook, she heard the dormitory manager aunt yelling through a loudspeaker downstairs, "Student Lin Xiang from 51102, someone is here to see you."
"I’ll go down and check."
Mao Ying casually handed the scarf draped over the chair back to Lin Xiang, "It’s very cold outside today. Wear the scarf, and don’t catch a cold."
"Thanks, Yingying. I’ll be right back. You all study hard, don’t slack off while I’m away."
"Got it, Teacher Lin. You hurry and come back!"
Lin Xiang jogged downstairs, only to see Zhang Maoyan.
"Senior Sister, why did you come?"
Seeing Lin Xiang come out, Zhang Maoyan tried to give her a friendly smile. However, since she naturally doesn’t like to smile, the expression seemed a bit awkward.
"The number you left last time was wrong. When I called, they said there’s no one named Lin Xiang, so I came to the school to find you."
Huaqing University and the Agricultural University aren’t close, with no direct bus. It takes at least an hour and a half one way.
Lin Xiang felt a pang in her heart.
Did Zhang Maoyan go to great lengths to find her because there was trouble with the teacher?
"Thursday is my grandpa’s birthday. He doesn’t like grand celebrations, but our family will gather for a reunion dinner. You’re his only student, and he wants to introduce you to the family at the family banquet. So, we hope you can attend on Thursday."
"As it’s the teacher’s birthday, I’ll definitely go early."
But Zhang Maoyan said, "Grandpa said you should not delay your studies to celebrate his birthday, so the family dinner is set for six o’clock in the evening. You can head over after school."
After conveying the message, Zhang Maoyan prepared to leave.
As she turned around, Lin Xiang stopped her.
"Senior Sister, I have a presumptuous request and would like your help."
"You say it first. If it’s not too difficult, I’ll consider agreeing."
Lin Xiang explained truthfully, "My elder in Qi State has a piece of land and a mountain there. He plans to set up a farm, but the land is wasted if left empty, so he wants to plant some vegetables. But we have trouble getting seeds. Senior Sister, since you’re from the Agricultural University, could I buy some seeds from you?"
Zhang Maoyan furrowed her brow in thought.
After a while, she said to Lin Xiang, "My lab does have some seeds, but our current research is at a bottleneck, and we have a high demand for seeds. If you only need a few, I can give them to you. If you need too many, I can’t help."
For twenty acres of land, you’d need seeds by the pound; just a few seeds would be useless.
"However, once our greenhouse planting technology succeeds, I can give you seeds, but at the current pace, it will take at least half a year."
Lin Xiang could wait six months, but greenhouse planting...
"Senior Sister, may I ask, are you researching greenhouse planting to increase crop yield or to cultivate out-of-season fruits and vegetables?"
Zhang Maoyan didn’t expect Lin Xiang to ask such a professional question and paused before responding, "Both, but currently we’re focusing on increasing yield."
"Maybe, I can help?"
Zhang Maoyan knew Lin Xiang came from a rural area, where her grandpa was once sent to, which was in the same place.
Rural folks tend to have experience with crop planting. However, the concept of greenhouse planting was proposed by a professor just a few years ago, so Lin Xiang shouldn’t know about it.
But Lin Xiang’s eyes were so sincere, so after thinking about it, Zhang Maoyan was willing to give it a try.
"I happen to know some greenhouse planting techniques. Let me organize them, and I’ll give them to you on Thursday. I can’t guarantee they’ll work for you, but perhaps they might offer some inspiration?"
"What you say makes sense. I’ll look forward to your technique notes." Zhang Maoyan waved to Lin Xiang, "Time’s getting late; I have to rush back to do experiments. See you Thursday."
"See you Thursday."
When Lin Xiang returned to the dorm, except for Zheng Miaoyue, who was already asleep, the other four were diligently writing notes.
Lin Xiang wasn’t sleepy, so she took out a blank notebook to write.
Even though the teacher said he didn’t want her to bring a gift, she couldn’t possibly show up empty-handed, so she planned to prepare a gift that would make the teacher happy.
Lin Xiang continued writing until the class bell rang, then locked the notebook in the drawer and went to class with her roommates.
After school, Lin Xiang returned to Xingfu Restaurant.
Mrs. Lin had already set aside a meal for her, letting her sit in a booth to eat alone, "Didn’t your roommates come with you?"
"Mom, they asked me to tell you, their studies are heavy, so they can’t come to Xingfu Restaurant to work part-time."
"The restaurant has enough staff, they don’t need to help. But not eating is not okay! Especially those two whose families are not well-off; if you don’t bring them to eat here, they’ll end up eating cold buns in the canteen. Next time you come for a meal, bring them along; it’s not a big deal for our family."
"Got it. I’ll eat first, then bring some back for them."
Lin Xiang quickly finished her meal and carried the thermos back to the dorm.
As Mrs. Lin expected, the four were eating buns in the dorm.
But they weren’t eating cold buns; they broke the buns into pieces and soaked them in hot water for fullness.
"Teacher Lin, why are you back again?" Qian Miaomiao took a bite of the soaked bun and teased Lin Xiang.
Lin Xiang placed the thermos on the table, "I specially came back to feed you all."