Chapter 96 - 19 Reflection
Therefore, the only option left was the public balcony, which fortunately, Lin Xiaoguai had observed in the past couple of days. Although the balcony outside their door was a common space, it wasn’t a thoroughfare.
There were only two apartments on the third floor—aside from their four-bedroom, two-living-room unit, there was an empty three-bedroom, one-living-room apartment next to them. However, the staircase was located inside the building, leading one way towards their apartment and the other way towards the vacant one, meaning there was no interference between the two.
The balcony, though public, was effectively theirs. It wasn’t as private as the small balconies, just like she saw others stacking briquettes on the balconies by their front doors. She could plant vegetables on this balcony without affecting anyone else.
As for clothes, the clotheslines were outside on the balcony now. All she needed to do was leave a passageway wide enough for one person on the balcony.
No sooner said than done, Lin Xiaoguai bought some vegetable seeds and seedlings suitable for this time of year from her space: bok choy, celery, radishes, lettuce, cabbage, peas, green onions, garlic, mustard greens, and rapeseed were all in season. Some were already late, but with the quality of the seeds and the help from her space, she wasn’t worried her efforts would be in vain.
Lin Xiaoguai first set up the tiered vegetable rack on the balcony and then planted various vegetables one by one. She didn’t plant much of each type, but it was still a big job. By the time she finished, most of the afternoon had passed, and Little Niangao had already grown bored by her side, dangerously reaching out for the seedlings on the rack. If Lin Xiaoguai hadn’t been quick to stop her, today’s labor might have largely gone to waste.
"Xiao Guai!" A voice calling out suddenly paused, then expressed surprise, "I was just about to ask you, how did you get things done so fast?"
Lin Xiaoguai looked up and immediately smiled, "Oh, it’s Sister-in-law Er Mei."
Then she answered her question, "I had some free time, so I fixed the vegetable rack. After all, it’s never too early or too late to plant vegetables." She pointed to an empty rack filled with soil but no plants yet and said, "This one is vacant; I’m planning to plant some potatoes here after some time."
Wu Ermei, looking at the neatly arranged three-tiered rack in admiration, couldn’t help but exclaim, "You did a really good job with the setup, girl. Did you make this rack yourself?"