31. A Leisurely Half Day

“So how did you end up opening a retirement home?” Tang Yiyi asked curiously.

“Oh, what retirement home? It’s just a farm, really. More and more people came here to buy plants, and they found the environment so comfortable that some started staying a few days during the holidays. To make it convenient for them, I gradually renovated this little two-story building.”

“You did a wonderful job with the renovations, especially the activity room downstairs—it’s so versatile.”

“Later, some friends’ elderly relatives liked it so much, they didn’t want to leave once they came. Word spread, and more and more seniors wanted to move in. That’s when I really started thinking about turning it into a mutual-aid retirement place. Generally, they come in the summer to escape the heat, stay until about November, then return to the city. After the Qingming Festival the next year, they come back again.”

“So they’re like migratory retirees. How do you charge them?”

“They’re all friends’ family members, not open to the public. They pay what they think is appropriate—I don’t set a fixed price. But what they give is usually more than double what I’d ask. Sometimes if something’s missing, they don’t even tell me; they just pool their money and buy it themselves. When I say I’ll get it, they tell me I worry enough already and don’t want to bother me. They’re just like my own parents.”

“They really treat this place as home.”

“Only Aunt Qin has health issues like this—everyone else is full of life! You can see for yourself.” Boss Fan gestured toward the seniors in the activity room, and indeed, they all looked robust and lively.

“If it weren’t for the fact that she’s Baike’s mother, I wouldn’t have agreed to take her. I’m mainly worried something might happen and I wouldn’t know how to explain it.”

There were two steps up to the first floor, and Boss Fan had even built a wheelchair ramp on the side for accessibility.

“Is there a hospital nearby?” Tang Yiyi asked.

“Yes. If you drive out, there’s a county hospital not far from the scenic area entrance. Usually, it’s no more than fifteen minutes by car. If we call an ambulance, it’s even faster. I’ve spoken to the director of the emergency department there, so they know about this place.”

“You really think of everything,” Tang Yiyi said.

“Oh, it’s nothing. Half the plants in that hospital are rented from me, and I take care of the greenery in the hospital courtyard too. See those trees by the vegetable patch? Do you know what they are?” Boss Fan pointed for Tang Yiyi to see.

“No idea.” To Tang Yiyi, all trees looked the same.

“Longan trees. Every year when they bear fruit, I bring over ten kilos to the doctors and nurses in the emergency department to let everyone have a taste. It’s not expensive, but people are always so delighted to see me.”

“I’m always delighted to see you too,” Qin Baike interjected.

Boss Fan gave him a friendly punch. “Get out of here! All you do is give me trouble. I’d rather not see you at all.”

Inside the activity room, Boss Fan pointed to the mahjong table and said to Qin Baike, “Push your mother over there and wait. I’ll go call Sister Wu.”

Four seniors were playing mahjong at the table. When Qin’s mother saw the mahjong set, her spirits visibly lifted, her eyes clearing as she watched with intense focus. Qin Baike bent down to lock the wheels on the chair, then invited Tang Yiyi to sit with him by the tea table.

“Every time I come here, I feel completely relaxed.” He pressed water from a dispenser into the kettle, set it on the induction stove, and began boiling water.

He picked up a tea canister, opened it, poured some tea leaves onto a scoop, closed the canister, and with one hand holding the scoop and the other the teaspoon, placed some leaves into a small Yixing teapot. He used tea tongs to set two cups by the pot.

The water came to a boil. He poured it into the teapot, filled it to the brim, replaced the lid, and rinsed it a few times. Then, he poured out the first steep to wash the cups, emptying out all the water before brewing a new pot.

After a minute, he poured the tea into a pitcher and divided it between two cups. He took one for himself and gestured for Tang Yiyi to take the other. The entire process was calm and unhurried, not the studied elegance of a teahouse hostess, but carrying a natural ease.

Tang Yiyi took a sip of tea. It was fragrant, with a gentle sweetness and a lingering aftertaste.

As soon as she set her cup down, he refilled it for her. She was a little curious; he didn’t usually drink tea, yet his tea ceremony was flawless. Perhaps noticing her uncertainty, he explained, “Boss Fan taught me.”

Sipping her tea, gazing out at the vegetable patch, the green mountains and bamboo in the distance, Tang Yiyi said, “My master would definitely like Boss Fan. He appreciates people who know how to enjoy life. No wonder no one ever wants to leave.”

“Young people can’t stay here long, though. It’s a perfect place to retire.”

“It’s also great for a vacation. No need to go all the way to Dali or Lijiang.”

“Have you been?” Qin Baike topped up her cup again.

“Yes, I have. One of my roommates is from Lijiang. Last summer, all of us took the train back to her hometown together.”

“Hmm.” Qin Baike nodded.

“Have you been, Baige?”

“No.”

“Don’t like traveling?”

“I’d like to go to Tibet, Xinjiang, Qinghai, Inner Mongolia, Heilongjiang—places like that.”

“All up north.”

“The Nansha Islands would do as well.”

“I get it. You’re not into those soft, artistic places.”

Qin Baike smiled. “I’d like to drive all the way around China’s borders.”

Tang Yiyi’s eyes lit up. “Baige, could you take me with you when you go?”

“Sure. When you’ve saved up ten thousand yuan, we’ll head out for Tibet.”

“…That’ll take a while.” Tang Yiyi’s shoulders slumped.

“Tibet isn’t going anywhere. We can go later.”

“True. That’s a great idea—driving around the border. Awesome. But even just one direction would take at least ten days, right? Will Liu Xin be able to cover for you that long?”

“Once Liu Xin graduates and finds a job, I won’t ask him to help out anymore.”

“Right. He should be teaching kids to paint.”

“Mm.”

“Why didn’t he do that, though? Why is he delivering food for the noodle shop instead?”