Wen Zhile sipped her soda while looking at him.
“What do you want to do?”
Zhou Jihuai poured himself a glass of water: “Just asking casually.”
Wen Zhile could sense he was angry.
“Thank you, Comrade Zhou.”
“You’re the first person who’s considered things from my perspective since I escaped the Dai Family.”
Zhou Jihuai raised an eyebrow slightly, opening the other bottle of soda on the table and pushing it toward her: “Drink up.”
Wen Zhile: “Thank you, brother.”
She focused on drinking her soda while Zhou Jihuai studied her intently.
He was quite curious about how this young girl had managed to quickly emerge from the shadow of abuse by her adoptive parents. It had only been a few days, yet there was no trace left of the trembling, timid girl from the day she escaped.
Yu Qi was both skilled and quick at cooking, not keeping the guests waiting long before serving two dishes.
One was Wen Zhile’s choice, the other Zhou Jihuai’s.
After setting down the dishes, he hurried back to the kitchen. Zhou Jihuai rinsed a pair of chopsticks with hot water and handed them to Wen Zhile: “Have you found your biological parents yet?”
Wen Zhile accepted the chopsticks.
[Sister, you can’t fool him. You’d better tell the truth.]
Wen Zhile: “The boss called you Regiment Commander. Is he your soldier?”
Zhou Jihuai: “…”
He could tell that this young girl would change the subject whenever she encountered questions she didn’t want to answer.
Not bad—at least she wasn’t lying to him.
He nearly laughed in frustration.
“He was my former soldier. He suffered an eye injury, and even with glasses his field of vision is limited to two meters, so he was discharged and opened a private restaurant at home.”
“Try his cooking. If you like it, come by yourself later. Just mention my name…”
Wen Zhile had already taken a bite of the stir-fried fresh bamboo shoots, her eyes lighting up: “Discount?”
“Wishful thinking. He might give you some pickles.”
“Pfft.”
The atmosphere at the table was unusually harmonious; one might think they had known each other for years.
Yu Qi brought in two more dishes he had finished cooking, listening cheerfully as they occasionally exchanged comments about the food.
Two empty soda bottles sat on the table. Yu Qi set down the plates and casually took the bottles away.
As dusk fell, Zhou Jihuai led Wen Zhile out of the Siheyuan.
The young girl struggled to carry a box.
They got into the car, and Zhou Jihuai glanced at her.
Wen Zhile quickly expressed her sincerity: “I secretly left two yuan under the plate.”
Earlier, when they were about to leave, the boss, noticing her fondness for soda, had given her all the remaining bottles at his home.
The box contained ten bottles, retailing at two mao each.
Zhou Jihuai still maintained a stern expression: “It’s not about the money.”
“Then what is it?”
“Don’t drink too much.” He started the car and said quietly, “When I was a kid, I had a dog. One day it drank half a bottle of soda and was listless for the next two weeks.”
Though the statement was indirect, Wen Zhile understood: “I’ll drink at most one bottle a day.”
In her previous life, she had loved soda, but her parents only allowed her one bottle per month.
Now that she was reborn and temporarily free from parental supervision, wouldn’t it be fine to drink a bit more?
“You just drank two bottles.”
“But you gave me the other one. I couldn’t disregard your kindness.”
“…” The young girl’s voice was soft, but her words were anything but.
The jeep drove smoothly and swiftly along the road, stopping with a light breeze.
Wen Zhile got out first, picking up the two packed dishes and a steamed bun. When she went to carry the box, a strong hand suddenly brushed hers aside: “You go on in.”
Wen Zhile readily agreed, “Alright, how thoughtful of you, brother. Your future wife will be so lucky.”
The last person who heard her say something like this was her cousin Shu Cheng’an.
Of course, that was in her previous life.
In her past life, Wen Zhile was pampered by her entire family to the point where she couldn’t carry heavy loads or do manual work. She had never moved heavy objects before—even her school dormitory suitcase was carried by Shu Cheng’an, who even made her bed for her.
After arriving in Jingzhou City, Wen Zhile’s mind was filled with memories of her past life, but she deliberately pushed away all those unpleasant memories from this lifetime.
“Sister Xiuxiu, I’m back.”
“The food is still warm, here you go.”
She glanced at the wall clock in the hotel and breathed a sigh of relief—luckily she hadn’t returned too late. “Eat it while it’s hot.”
Zhou Jihuai walked in carrying a box with one hand. Wen Zhile turned back to grab a bottle of soda and placed it on the front desk.
Fang Xiuxiu was stunned.
She had told Wen Zhile to just pack some leftovers, but the food she brought back was clearly a freshly cooked full portion.
Zhou Jihuai stopped to ask for his room number. Fang Xiuxiu quickly handed him the key and said to Wen Zhile, “Xiao Dai, this comrade’s room is right across from yours.”
Wen Zhile said, “Then I’ll take him upstairs. Sister Xiuxiu, you should eat.”
Zhou Jihuai followed the young girl upstairs, his brow furrowed the entire time.
When he traveled, he either stayed in military guesthouses or high-end hotels—all with better environments than this place.
The second floor had low ceilings, dim lighting, and an indistinct odor that seemed to drift from the end of the hallway.
This girl clearly wasn’t short on money, yet she chose to stay in such a hotel. There must be a reason.
“What was your name before?”
Wen Zhile, walking ahead, answered directly, “Dai Zhi.”
Zhou Jihuai nodded and went straight into his room after arriving.
A while later, he went downstairs to borrow the hotel phone.
Although Wen Zhile had changed the subject, with his extensive connections, it would be easy for him to find out who her adoptive parents were.
Two days later, while investigating from faraway Jianghe Village, Shu Cheng’an discovered that the Dai Family had been beaten up, but he couldn’t find out who had done it.