My skill tree increases every day.

They even prepared a pen for me.

"Oh, right," Li Mai pulled a stack of papers out of her canvas bag, "Take these papers. Keep them handy."

Lin Yu glanced at the canvas bag Li Mai was carrying; there were already more than a dozen sheets. Was she worried it wouldn't be enough? She was so well-prepared; there were probably even spare pens inside, right?

There must be spare pens in there, spare spare pens, spare spare spare pens, right?

Li Mai handed over a small pack of tissues.

"spare."

Lin Yu wouldn't be surprised if Li Mai pulled out something now.

Even if Lin Yu suddenly collapsed, she might be able to pull out a bottle of nitroglycerin and give it to him to bring him back to health.

She must have everything ready.

That bag doesn't look very big, but how can it hold so many things?

Perhaps it's not that the bag is small, but rather that it appears small.

After all, it's slung over the shoulder, and next to something suffocating, everything else seems insignificant.

The subway kept moving and stopping, and the GG signs flashing outside the window went by quickly.

Lin Yu sat on the subway, carefully reviewing the plans made by Li Mai.

The more I look at it, the more alarmed I become.

With this arrangement, this isn't a survey; it's clearly a field training exercise!

Lin Yu suddenly felt that yesterday's time with Ruan Yunxian wasn't so tiring after all.

About forty minutes later, the subway arrived at the station.

The two stood up and walked out of the carriage. There weren't many people on the platform, only a few elderly people.

Although this old village has a quaint and antique feel, it has not been included in the scenic area plan, so not many people come here.

This is one of the main reasons for choosing this location. We can't just choose a crowded place, can we? What's the point of doing any research then?

After exiting the subway station, Lin Yu originally wanted to scan a shared bicycle, but perhaps because the ancient village is located on the edge of the city, there is no commercial environment for the use of shared bicycles.

Lin Yu did not find any shared bicycles here.

It's amazing that there are places like this in Wu Jing's movies, places where you can't find a single shared bike.

However, the next part of the journey is not long, only a few hundred meters, and the two of them can walk there.

The ancient town is not large. Although it is now located on the edge of the city, judging from the style of the houses with their black tiles and white walls, it must have been a prosperous town in the past.

However, now, this place does seem somewhat desolate.

Most of the people who remain here are elderly. The young people have mostly chosen to work and live in more modern cities.

That's actually a good thing, because older people will understand folk culture better. As for young people? They'll be lucky if they can remember the holidays that are public holidays.

Walking through the alley, you can hear birdsong coming from afar.

Li Mai walked ahead at a moderate pace, while Lin Yu followed beside her, holding a camera and occasionally snapping photos of the street scene.

The two walked along the stone path, polished smooth by the footsteps of passersby.

Lin Yu held the camera and pressed the shutter button from time to time. Since it was a digital camera, it didn't use up any film, so he could just keep shooting.

Despite the extensive preparations, Lin Yu still felt that Li Mai had made some miscalculations.

There weren't many people around in the town. Lin Yu had been walking in for more than ten minutes and hadn't seen anyone suitable for an interview.

Even the most skilled cook can't cook without rice; no matter how much quinoa you prepare, it's all for nothing if there's no one around.

Turning left and right, Lin Yu followed Li Mai into an even narrower alley.

Although the alley is narrow, it is lined with houses on both sides, with the doors of the houses facing directly into the alley.

Several doors were open, revealing dimly lit main rooms, old photographs hanging on the walls, and calendars with portraits of great figures.

Finally, Lin Yu saw an old woman.

The old lady sat on her doorstep with a large bamboo basket beside her, filled with insoles.

"Grandma, may I ask you a few questions?"

"What's there to ask?"

The old lady spoke something, her voice hoarse and with a heavy local accent, which Lin Yu could barely understand.

However, I could still barely understand the meaning, and the last few words were relatively clear.

Lin Yu had a guess.

"Grandma, how much does one of these insoles cost?"

"5 pieces."

The old lady's voice became clearer, and it was somewhat understandable.

really.

"Okay, get me one."

The old lady took a piece of cardboard with blue and green QR codes pasted on it from the basket and placed it on top of the basket.

"WeChat payment, five yuan."

The old lady handed me a shoe insole.

"Grandma, why do you only have your left foot?"

"Didn't you say you were going to buy one?"

The old lady's Mandarin had become much more standard, and Lin Yu could understand her now.

"Where can I buy insoles individually?"

"Yes, this is the first time I've seen something like this in all these years. But since you want to buy it, how can I refuse to sell it to you?"

"Um……"

"WeChat payment, five yuan."

"Young man, what do you want to ask?"

The old lady's voice no longer carried the accent of Wu Jing, and Lin Yu could easily understand it.

Lin Yu accepted the insole from the right foot and nodded to Li Mai.

"Senior, go ahead and ask."

Li Mai smiled and said, a slight curve to her lips.

"Grandma, may I ask you a few questions?"

"Ask away, ask away."

The old lady's Mandarin is getting better and better. I feel like if I buy two more of her insoles, he can take the Mandarin proficiency test right now.

Lin Yu turned on the voice recorder, and at the same time took out a pen and notebook, and began to take notes.

Li Mai began asking questions according to the prepared instructions, and the old lady was indeed honest, answering in considerable detail.

However...

Li Mai asked about three questions, and the old lady's Mandarin got worse with each question. After answering the last question, her heavy Wu Jing accent came out again.

Lin Yu was starting to lose track of what was being said.

Looking at the old lady, Lin Yu smiled.

"WeChat payment, 10 yuan."

Lin Yu reached out and took two more blue insoles.

"Lin Yu..."

Li Mai hesitated, clearly realizing that this was not a solution.

"Grandma, let's make this clear first, we can't do what we did before."

"Alright, alright, you silly child, whatever you want, whatever you want."

The old lady waved her hand, and her accent became standard again.

……

Ten minutes later, Lin Yu handed a smaller pair of white insoles to Li Mai.

"Here, take this."

"How can this be? You're the one who paid for it. How can I..."

"Senior, please don't refuse. You treated me to breakfast this morning, didn't you? Besides, you did most of the homework; I didn't really help much. You can't not let me thank you a little, can you?"

Lin Yu smiled and stuffed the insole into Li Mai's hand.

"Besides, I can't use this size."

"Thank you then."

"It's nothing."

Seeing that Li Mai had accepted the insoles, Lin Yu stuffed the remaining two pairs of insoles into his bag.