"Hmm?" Elder Hua's interest was piqued.
Ji Xingmi didn't hide anything. "I want to make a machine that can draw pictures, write reports, and print reports. Don't they already have some kind of microcomputer abroad? I want to make one too."
"You want to buy one? These things can't be bought and sold yet, and the prices they offer are very high!"
"I don't want to buy one! I plan to make one myself. Aren't I looking for some related materials from you to take a look at?"
Elder Hua saw that she was serious and asked, "Can you make it better than theirs?"
"Let's try! I can't say for sure right now!" Ji Xingmi thought for a moment before giving a vague answer. She wasn't very confident about this, but she remembered having some books on this topic in her space. She needed to study them carefully.
Elder Hua fell silent for a moment. Fine, this was typical of her. He called for Spider and asked him to help prepare some materials for her, then he didn't bother with it anymore.
Speaking of which, he had another idea. He took out the materials he had previously compiled and looked through them again. He was a good young man, but he wasn't good enough for her. Otherwise, it would be better to help her. With her personality, if he, an old man, wasn't around, she probably wouldn't be able to protect herself! It seemed he needed to take a good look at this person and see if he was worth it.
Ji Xingmi thought Elder Hua was lost in thought and didn't disturb him. She leaned on the table again, closed her eyes, and began searching for books on this topic in her space. When she first obtained the space, she had thought of many things, so she had basically collected a little bit of everything. Where had she put it?
Finally, she found it in a corner of the space's library. She lay there, flipping through the materials. When Spider came in, he saw her like this and thought she had fallen asleep. He gently placed the items on the empty space beside the table.
Ji Xingmi didn't like people touching her things. Even if things were messy, no one could help her tidy them up, or she wouldn't be able to find them. So, her table was still piled with previous materials. Spider had no choice but to put the items on the floor next to it. There were more outside. This time, there were quite a few materials, some of which weren't available here and required Elder Hua's intervention to retrieve.
Ji Xingmi finished reading the book in a short while and then saw the stack of books piled at her feet, knowing that new materials had arrived. She then tidied up her messy table, neatly stacked the previously read materials on Secretary Sun's desk, as these were to be returned. As for the drawings she had made, she found a box to put them in and handed them to Spider.
When she came, Elder Hua had instructed that everything in this room, even a piece of scrap paper, could not be taken outside and must be destroyed. Therefore, even though she knew her drawings were incorrect, they wouldn't be useful if taken, and she didn't just discard them. Another reason was to ensure her safety.
After tidying up, she took out new paper and began to write her report. After all, there were no tools that allowed her to be lazy yet. Fortunately, all the information was in her mind, so writing wasn't that difficult.
Seeing her like that, Elder Hua didn't disturb her. He made a few phone calls and made some arrangements. After Ji Xingmi finished writing the report, she handed it directly to Elder Hua and went back to study the materials.
Now, a common sight in Elder Hua's courtyard was Ji Xingmi in different corners, holding different books and reading them. She had visited almost every corner of the courtyard. However, the place she spent the most time was the vegetable garden at the back. She could often be seen with a cucumber in her mouth, holding materials in her hands. She had spent more than half a month just looking at these materials, and the watermelons she had planted had grown by more than a circle.
One day, Ji Xingmi was tending to her watermelons in the small courtyard in the back when she heard Elder Hua approaching with someone. She didn't know who it was, as she hadn't heard this voice before.
"I say, Old Hua, your backyard looks quite presentable! It's so green and pleasing to the eye. Oh! These cucumbers are so plump and juicy, I'll pick one to taste!"
A younger voice was interspersed: "Elder Mao, be careful! Let me do it!"
"No need for you, I'll pick it myself. It tastes better! What do you know!" The man's bodyguard wanted to help, but he was directly refused. Ji Xingmi was listening to the commotion and wanted to see who it was, to have Elder Hua bring them to the backyard to pick cucumbers. As she stood up, she saw the person had already walked up to her.
And he asked her, "What are you doing?"
"Elder... Elder Elder Mao!" Ji Xingmi was a little shocked to see the person in front of her. Wasn't this Elder Mao? Why was he here? Alive! Elder Mao! Mom, I think I'm amazing!
"Hahahaha! This little girl is nervous. That's rare!" Elder Hua directly teased her. Elder Mao, standing beside him, also smiled and nodded, but his attention was drawn to the things on the ground.
"Just call me Grandpa Mao from now on, no need to call me Elder Mao Mao Mao! Hahaha, are these watermelons you're growing! When can they be eaten?"
"......Okay, Grandpa Mao, it will take some more time!"
"Alright, when the melons ripen, send a few to Grandpa Mao!"
"Okay, I'll have Grandpa Hua send them to you then."
"Alright, I heard from Old Hua that you buried some wine in his courtyard today. I came today to ask for some wine!"
Ji Xingmi had long forgotten about this. Counting the days, it seemed it was indeed time to dig it up and try it.
"It seems like we can dig it up and take a look. You chat with Grandpa Hua first, I'll go dig it up and see!"
After speaking, Ji Xingmi left in a hurry, without taking anyone with her. Elder Hua and Elder Mao looked at her like this, shook their heads with a smile, and then followed. Elder Hua gave Spider a look, and Spider nodded and quickly followed.
Ji Xingmi had already run to the corner and started digging. When Spider arrived, she had just dug open a hole. Spider took the tools from her hand and began to dig. In just a few scoops, they reached the spot, and he carefully dug out the jar.
Ji Xingmi cleared the soil from the mouth of the jar, opened the seal, and a strong aroma of wine wafted out. It seemed to have worked. Just as Ji Xingmi was about to reach out to taste it, a cough came from the side.
"Hehe, Grandpa Hua, I wasn't trying to drink it, I was just smelling it to see if the aroma was right!" Ji Xingmi knew Elder Hua was standing nearby without even looking. She turned around and saw Elder Hua glaring at her.
Elder Hua gave her an exasperated roll of his eyes. He wondered if she thought he was easy to fool! Looking at her like a mouse preparing to steal oil, he couldn't bear to watch!
Ji Xingmi smiled sheepishly, then made an excuse to leave, "I'll go make two side dishes to go with the wine for you grandpas!"
Elder Hua didn't make things difficult for her. "Go ahead!"