Thanks to Gu Tingzheng, Lin Xiaojiao had her first proper meal since crossing over.
Everyone sat around the square table.
Father Lin sat at the head, Gu Tingzheng on the east side, the two Lin brothers on the west, while Lin Xiaojiao and her mother sat at the lower end.
Looking at the full pot of braised chicken with potatoes, which was a bit too far from her, she wished she could drag it right in front of her.
And the fragrant white rice…
She was going to have two bowls.
Well, even though she had eaten bread in the afternoon and wasn’t that hungry now…
But this was white rice!
She would eat and cherish it while she could.
Gu Tingzheng had specifically brought wine and chatted with the Lin father and sons while drinking.
At first, they were a bit reserved, and the conversation mostly revolved around the house repairs.
Gu Tingzheng sat upright, exuding an aura even at a rural dining table.
When listening to others, his gaze was focused, and he occasionally nodded, giving an inexplicable sense of respect.
He didn’t talk much, but he never let the atmosphere turn awkward, always guiding the conversation at the table just right.
Lin Xiaojiao kept her head down and focused on eating, not joining their conversation, but she couldn’t help but marvel—
What an impressive man!
She stared at the pot of braised chicken with potatoes, wondering if it would be appropriate to take it over while they were chatting.
Perhaps her gaze lingered too long, as the man beside her seemed to notice, his eyes casually sweeping over.
Lin Xiaojiao hurriedly lowered her head to avoid his gaze.
Hmph, why are you looking at me?!
She just wanted to eat that piece of chicken gizzard.
However, the man didn’t tease her about it. Instead, he casually swapped the positions of the peanuts and the chicken.
“Peanuts go well with wine.”
Lin Xiaojiao looked at the chicken now placed right in front of her, feeling inexplicably warm inside.
…
After a few rounds of drinks, the conversation gradually opened up, and the Lin brothers were completely won over by the man’s knowledge and insight.
They took turns calling him “Uncle Gu” and challenging him to drink.
Gu Tingzheng accepted every toast, downing each cup without hesitation, yet his expression remained unchanged, as if he had an endless capacity.
Polite and courteous, yet measured and composed.
Suddenly, a moth flew in from somewhere, circling frantically around the lightbulb.
Lin Xiaojiao was afraid of all insects!
Instantly, her hair stood on end, her body stiffened, and she stared warily at the moth.
“Where did this bug come from? Probably the door curtain wasn’t secured properly.” Mother Lin, Zhang Guilan, got up to check the door curtain.
Just then, after fluttering around twice, the moth flew straight toward Lin Xiaojiao’s face.
“Ah!!”
She screamed.
Without a moment’s hesitation, she hid in the arms of the man closest to her.
Manners, guests—she forgot all about them!
Fear overwhelmed everything else.
She buried her face in his chest, her hands clutching tightly at the shirt on his chest.
Her voice trembled with a sob:
“The bug! Get rid of it!!”
The dining table fell silent instantly.
Everyone was stunned by this sudden turn of events.
Zhang Guilan hadn’t even secured the door curtain yet. Turning around and seeing her daughter’s reaction, she was shocked—how embarrassing!
The Lin brothers were also dumbfounded, with Lin Xiangyang even dropping a peanut from his mouth.
Lin Yunli was the first to react, his face flushing red with both embarrassment and apology. “It’s just a moth! Was that really necessary? What kind of behavior is this!”
His words scolded his daughter, but more than that, they were filled with awkwardness and discomfort.
Gu Tingzheng was indeed taken aback.
This was more troublesome than encountering a surprise attack on the battlefield.
A soft, warm bundle had suddenly crashed into his arms.
His hand holding the wine glass was still suspended in mid-air, while his other hand had only managed to open slightly, avoiding excessive physical contact with the young girl.
His posture was upright, yet stiff.
He could clearly feel the force with which the girl in his arms was clutching his clothes, as well as her still trembling body.
She was truly terrified.
“It’s alright, it’s over,” he attempted to soothe her, keeping his tone as steady as possible.
Then, he glanced at the embarrassed Lin family members and shook his head slightly, indicating it was fine. “Young girls tend to be timid, it’s normal.”
Upon hearing this, Zhang Guilan stepped forward and pulled her daughter out of the guest’s embrace. “You useless girl, scared by just a moth like that! Hurry up and come over, don’t let Uncle Gu laugh at you!”
Only then did Lin Xiaojiao slowly snap out of her extreme fear, unconsciously being led out of the man’s embrace by her mother.
Oh my god!
What had she just done?!
She… had actually thrown herself at Gu Tingzheng?!
Instantly, blood rushed to her head.
“S-sorry!”
As she spoke, she let go of his clothes as if electrocuted.
Ignoring her injured foot, she stumbled and ran into her room.
Please, just let the ground swallow her up!
…
After that ultimate social death that night, Lin Xiaojiao retreated into her shell again.
Using her injured leg as an excuse, she didn’t even step out of the courtyard gate for an entire week.
As for Gu Tingzheng, the little thoughts that had arisen during their first meeting had already been digested by her over the past few days.
How could she have lost her head like that?!
He looked to be around twenty-five or twenty-six—for all she knew, he might already have a wife and children!
Good looks can be misleading, regardless of gender!
Crunch.
Lin Xiaojiao bit into the last apple.
She decided to keep her distance from that “uncle” next door.
Getting close to him would mean losing face for several lifetimes.
Sitting by the window, she flipped through The Legend of the Condor Heroes, which she had snatched from her second brother.
The paper quality was poor, but it didn’t stop her from being engrossed in the story.
“Xiaojiao! Come help me with something quickly!” Zhang Guilan lifted the door curtain and entered the room. It was still early in the morning, and she hadn’t left for work yet.
Lin Xiaojiao looked up from her book. “Help you thread a needle?”
She couldn’t do much else anyway.
“What threading a needle! This is serious business! Your Uncle Gu next door is going to the county town now. Go with him and help me buy some foreign cloth. I’ll make summer quilts for you all. Weren’t you always complaining that the quilts were uncomfortable?” Zhang Guilan seemed anxious as she spoke, pulling her daughter up.
“I’ve already prepared the money and cloth coupons for you. Staff Officer Gu has already started the car! Hurry up!”
“Wait—Mom, what’s going on?” How had she been handed off to Gu Tingzheng just like that?
“Quick, quick, quick! Put on your shoes!” Zhang Guilan hung the prepared cloth bag over her daughter’s arm.
“I’m not going.” Lin Xiaojiao instinctively resisted, then thought of another excuse. “Mom, I mean, I can go by myself. There’s no need to trouble Uncle Gu.”
“There’s only one bus to the county town per day, and you’d have to queue up at the town station to buy a ticket. How could that be as convenient as catching a ride? Your leg is fine now, can’t you even run this errand for me? If I didn’t have work in the team today, would I have asked you?” Zhang Guilan’s expression darkened as she spoke.
Lin Xiaojiao was taken aback. Was Her Majesty… angry?
“Fine, I’ll go… Just give me five minutes!” At least let her change her clothes.
“Alright, alright, alright!” Zhang Guilan’s mood immediately brightened, and she turned around with a beaming smile. “I’ll go tell Staff Officer Gu. We’ll wait for you outside.”
Lin Xiaojiao sighed. After hiding for a week, she was about to see him again.
Outside, Zhang Guilan emerged from the back room, and Lin Yunli immediately pulled his wife aside.
“What did she say?” he asked in a low voice.
“She agreed, she agreed! How dare she not listen to me?” Zhang Guilan wore an expression that said, “You owe it all to me.”
“Heh heh,” Lin Yunli chuckled, but then his brow furrowed. “They’ve already entered the village. We can’t let them run into each other. They left, so why are they back now? We need to get Xiaojiao out quickly, or who knows what foolish thing she might do.”