Chapter 59 Xiaoyan, do you like eating fruits?
“What I can do today is just to help her face the knot in her heart.

She will grow up in the future, and this method may work for a while, but not for a lifetime.

To truly build up her self-confidence, it depends on you, aunt, and uncle's daily influence.

Let her know that scars should never be a symbol of inferiority, but a mark that belongs to her alone.

If you all avoid her scars, how can she truly face them?"

"Yes, yes"

The second sister-in-law nodded repeatedly:

"Your uncle and I have not received much education, so we don't know much.
Ruoruo didn't like us to mention her scar, so we carefully avoided mentioning it, but we didn't expect that this would be wrong."

"It doesn't matter. Ruoruo should trust me more now and be willing to treat me as an older friend.

If she has any little thoughts or ideas in the future, just let her tell me directly.

As long as I can help her, I will do my best to help her."

Jiang Mengyan smiled.

"That would be too much trouble for you. You're pregnant, teaching at a university, and you have to worry about Ruoruo.

I really don’t have anything I can offer you to thank you for.”

The second sister-in-law lowered her head and rubbed her hands awkwardly.

Jiang Mengyan was about to say that family members didn't need to be so formal when she saw her second sister-in-law suddenly raise her head and look at her expectantly:
"Xiaoyan, do you like to eat fruit? Oranges fresh from the tree?"

"She really likes oranges. When I'm at home with nothing to do, I squeeze orange juice for her."

Lin Han took over the conversation with a smile.

"That's great!"

The second sister-in-law smiled so hard that her brows relaxed. She nodded repeatedly and said:
"It just so happens that the orange orchard that your second uncle and I contracted is about to bear fruit. In fact, there are already early-ripening fruits, but the sugar content has not yet reached its highest level and is still quite sour."

"sour?"

This time it was Jiang Mengyan's turn to try.

She had been craving for sour food recently, and when she heard that there were sour oranges freshly picked from the tree, her mouth was watering.

“Hahaha, I know you like sour food right now.

If you two have nothing to do right now, come with me to the orange orchard and pick some to taste."

"Then I'll trouble Second Aunt."

Jiang Mengyan agreed with a smile, pulling Lin Han's arm and shaking it:

"Oranges, oranges! I've never eaten oranges fresh from the tree!"

"Eat the big one."

Lin Han couldn't help laughing:

"Even if you eat as much as you can, you won't make Second Aunt poor. I'm afraid your teeth will fall out before you eat much."

My second sister-in-law’s orchard is some distance away from the village.

Afraid that Jiang Mengyan would be too tired to walk, she rode her family's three-wheeled electric scooter, took two large baskets, put a few cushions under them, let Jiang Mengyan sit in the back of the cart, and pulled her over.

As the tricycle gradually drove out of the village and approached the foot of the mountain, a large lush orange orchard appeared in front of the two.

"This variety became popular about ten years ago. It is called Ehime and is more commonly called Jelly Orange in the market.

Because it has a thin skin, is rich in moisture and sweet, and becomes soft when fully ripe, it tastes like jelly when you scoop it up with a spoon, hence the name.

The second sister-in-law spoke while driving.

"Jelly orange! I know, I've bought it before, it's delicious."

Jiang Mengyan nodded repeatedly. "When this orange was first introduced, your second uncle and I thought this variety had potential, so we rented the orchard here and bought Ehime seedlings to plant.

The first few years were very good, because the quality of this variety of fruit was really excellent, many people bought it, and the price was high, so we lived very well in those years, but in recent years"

The second sister-in-law suddenly sighed:

“In recent years, orchards in many places have developed the so-called improved Ehime variety, which has a higher fruit-bearing rate and is harder and easier to care for than the original Ehime variety.

The fruit of this improved variety is not as fragrant as the Ehime variety, and its skin is thicker, so the taste is worse.

However, because it bears the name of Ehime and has a large output, the price of Ehime has been falling in the past two years.

Because the taste is not as good as the original Ehime variety, consumers buy less and fruit merchants are not willing to purchase it. Instead, we, the fruit farmers who grow the original variety, are the first to suffer.

The fruit is obviously good, but the price is suppressed and there is no market for it.

The first batch of fruits this year is about to fall from the trees, but we haven't found anyone to pick them up yet. Your second uncle has been so busy these days that he has to ask people for help and find fruit merchants everywhere.

Ehime oranges have a lot of water and thin skin, so they can’t be stored like other thick-skinned oranges. If they can’t be sold in a short period of time, they will just rot in the fields.”

After listening to the second sister-in-law, Jiang Mengyan spoke thoughtfully:
"I was wondering why the Ehime oranges I bought in recent years are not as delicious as they were in previous years. It turns out to be because of this."

"Yes, if you try the oranges from our fields, you will know that they are far superior to those so-called improved varieties."

As the second sister-in-law spoke, she stopped the tricycle.

She led Lin Han and the other person into the garden and stopped under an orange tree.

“It smells so good.”

The fruits hanging on the trees are the finest ones after being pruned.

Even so, the branches are still heavily loaded with them, and they are already bent from the weight.

It is bright orange and very pleasing to the eye.

"Come, Xiaoyan, I'll pick one and cut it for you to taste."

The second sister-in-law picked an orange from the tree that was slightly larger than an adult man's fist, and then took out a small fruit knife from her bosom.

Jiang Mengyan subconsciously wanted to reach out to catch it, but the orange was cut halfway and the orange juice splashed all over her hand.

"So juicy? And the orange peel is so thin."

Jiang Mengyan stared at the orange in her hand in amazement, then brought it to her mouth and took a tentative bite.

The sweet and sour orange juice instantly bursts out in the mouth. You can't even feel the fiber of the orange flesh before it turns into juice and flows down your throat.

"Isn't this delicious?"

Jiang Mengyan finished eating half of the orange in her hand in a flash and sighed with a feeling of being unsatisfied.

“This is not the best time to eat it. Wait for it to hang on the tree for a few more days to accumulate sugars, and then it will be fully ripe on the tree.

Since my second aunt’s family rented the garden, I can eat the freshest tree-ripened Ehime every year. I know when it is the best to eat. "

Lin Han said with a grin as he finished chewing the half in his hand.

The acidity was just right for Jiang Mengyan, but it was still too much for him.

"It's such a good product, but it's been squeezed out of the market by inferior products. It's so unfair."

Jiang Mengyan looked at the orange peel that had been bitten bare in her hand and muttered sadly.

"It's okay, we're used to it."

The second sister-in-law smiled and patted Jiang Mengyan on the back, and handed her a pair of scissors specially used for cutting oranges:

"You can pick as many fruits as you want from such a large orchard. You can eat them directly or make orange juice from them!"

(End of this chapter)