Chapter 52

Chen Hongfu said: "How embarrassing, you are guests; how can we let you pour the water?"

Xue Qin smiled and said: "Uncle Chen, don't be so formal with me. Xinghui and I are so close; if I don't help him, who will?"

Lu Xiaoya didn't say anything, but she gave Su Xinghui a look that was neither a smile nor a frown. This look made Su Xinghui shiver.

Within a few minutes, Fang Youcai and Zhao Zhongfu ran back together, with Gao Daping following behind them. As soon as they entered the conference room, they asked: "Secretary Chen, where is the honored guest?"

Chen Hongfu smiled and introduced Song Qiaoli's identity to them. Song Qiaoli stood up, smiled, and extended her right hand to them. Fang Youcai hurriedly waved his hand and said: "Can't shake, can't shake. We just came from the construction site, and our hands are very dirty."

Song Qiaoli said: "I heard them say you are building a breeding farm. How is the construction going now?"

Fang Youcai said: "It's only been a few days since we started; it's still very early."

Song Qiaoli stopped asking this question. She took out a bamboo weaving and asked: "Then can you call over the person who wove this?"

Fang Youcai certainly knew; this bamboo weaving was indeed woven by Xia Zhu. He replied: "We've already sent someone to call her; she'll be here soon."

The one sent to call Xia Zhu was, of course, Xia Lan. Before long, Xia Lan and Xia Zhu ran over together. Because they were in a hurry, they were sweating a little on their foreheads, and their faces were as bright as peach blossoms.

Seeing two more great beauties arrive, Zhang Cheng and the others exchanged mischievous glances again.

As soon as Xia Zhu entered the conference room, she called out "Brother Xinghui." This "Brother Xinghui" immediately made Xue Qin and Lu Xiaoya widen their eyes and look at Xia Zhu.

This wasn't intentional on Xia Zhu's part; it was just that there were too many people in the conference room, and the only person she knew was Su Xinghui. When she got nervous, she could only call the name of the person she was most familiar with and trusted. She had gotten used to calling him "Brother Xinghui" over the past few days, so it came out naturally.

Seeing everyone looking at her, she couldn't help but lower her head with a blushing face, her hands unconsciously playing with the ends of her hair again.

Su Xinghui was a bit numb by now. He pointed to Xia Zhu and said: "Auntie Song, this is the person who wove these bamboo crafts. Her name is Xia Zhu."

Song Qiaoli smiled and nodded: "Xia Zhu, not bad, a very nice name. You are beautiful, and your hands are skillful."

Hearing Song Qiaoli praise her, Xia Zhu blushed and said "Thank you."

Hearing that she was the Xia Zhu that Su Xinghui had told her about, Lu Xiaoya couldn't help but look at her carefully. After observing for a while, she couldn't help but sigh in her heart: No wonder Su Xinghui said she was beautiful and pure. If this mountain girl dressed up a little, she would absolutely be no worse than any star!

But thinking of the "Brother Xinghui" Xia Zhu had just called out, Lu Xiaoya couldn't help but glare fiercely at Su Xinghui. This guy, he just broke up with Jiang Ting, and now there's Xue Qin, and now Xia Zhu. It's a waste that she even sympathized with his heartbreak; it looks like this guy isn't suffering at all.

Xue Qin also glared at Su Xinghui. No wonder he refused to transfer back to the county seat; it turns out there was such a beautiful girl hiding here calling him "Brother Xinghui."

Su Xinghui felt like he was sitting on pins and needles. Even if he were sitting in front of a Provincial Party Secretary now, he wouldn't have this feeling. He simply looked at his nose, his nose at his mouth, and his mouth at his heart, assuming the posture of an old monk in meditation.

Song Qiaoli held the bamboo weaving and said to Xia Zhu: "Xia Zhu, is this thing woven by you?"

Xia Zhu looked up and saw it was a little duck woven from bamboo. The duck was woven in a simple and cute way, lifelike, and was indeed her work. She nodded: "Yes, it is exactly what I wove."

Song Qiaoli placed the duck on the table and beckoned: "Come over here for a moment."

Xia Zhu walked over. Song Qiaoli took a stack of printed pictures from her bag to show Xia Zhu and asked: "Can you weave these things out of bamboo according to these patterns?"

Among those patterns were bamboo-woven teapots, lampshades, flower baskets, birds, beasts, insects, fish, handbags, fruit plates, toys, and other objects, and even world-famous paintings and calligraphy works woven from bamboo.

Xia Zhu flipped through these pictures and looked up with confidence: "No problem, I can weave these things."

Speaking of the bamboo weaving she was familiar with, there was no more shyness on Xia Zhu's face; her face shone with a moving radiance.

Song Qiaoli smiled and asked: "Then can I watch you weave bamboo on the spot today?"

Xia Zhu nodded: "Yes, I will go home to get my tools and weave it for you on the spot right here."

Xia Zhu knew that this kind and amiable aunt in front of her was the person who held her destiny. She must exert all her skills to win her approval.

Song Qiaoli nodded: "Okay, then I will wait for you here."

Xia Zhu ran out quickly. In less than ten minutes, she ran back with a few bamboo stalks, a bamboo knife, and a small stool.

She sat on the small stool and began to split the bamboo strips with the bamboo knife. Her ten nimble fingers flew, and the bamboo knife in her hand seemed to have life, splitting the bamboo stalks into bamboo strips as thin as hair.

After splitting all the bamboo strips, she began to weave. Her weaving speed was very fast, and her fingers seemed to be dancing in the air. As her fingers danced, a bamboo weaving gradually took shape.

Xia Lan whispered to Song Qiaoli: "Manager Song, Xia Zhu is nineteen years old this year. She has been very interested in bamboo weaving since she was a few years old, and she has been weaving for more than ten years now. She is also the most skillful girl we have here; she can weave anything just by looking at it once, and it will be lifelike."

Song Qiaoli could certainly see that Xia Zhu was so skilled that she must have at least ten years of foundation. She nodded and asked: "Then how many people here can weave bamboo, and how many have her level of skill?"

Xia Lan said: "Our village has six or seven hundred people, and many women know how to weave bamboo. There are at least a hundred or so who can be called skilled, and at least dozens who are proficient. However, there aren't many with Xia Zhu's level of skill, mainly because they lack her inspiration. But weaving the birds, beasts, insects, and fish they are familiar with is no problem."

Song Qiaoli nodded. She had long anticipated this situation. If everyone here had Xia Zhu's level, she would have found it strange instead. But it didn't matter; if they made a living from this, their level would improve after long-term practice.

In less than an hour, Xia Zhu completed a bamboo weaving work. This was one of the pictures Song Qiaoli had brought out: an old fisherman fishing, sitting on a small boat.

Xia Zhu handed this work to Song Qiaoli. Song Qiaoli carefully examined the work, her eyes full of disbelief. The fisherman was woven to be lifelike, with every detail visible. If you looked closely, you could even see the leisurely expression on the fisherman's face.

Could this really be a work woven by Xia Zhu within an hour? Could this be woven after she just glanced at that picture? If she hadn't seen it with her own eyes, Song Qiaoli would absolutely not have believed it.

After a long time, Song Qiaoli murmured: "A genius, a genius!"

Song Qiaoli looked up and said solemnly to Xia Zhu: "Miss Xia Zhu, you really are a genius. The works you weave will definitely be very popular! You will definitely become a master of arts and crafts in the future!"

Xia Zhu couldn't help but blush. When had she ever received such praise? Since she was a child, her obsession with bamboo weaving had been seen by her parents as not attending to her proper duties. But she just liked weaving this; she liked it from the bottom of her heart!