In the faint light, Gu Yunche looked at Mu Cheng, who was whimpering softly. Her face appeared especially hazy under the dappled shade of the trees, half-lit and half-shadowed. Her delicate, stunning features flickered in and out of view, and even the fine down on her cheeks carried a unique texture.
Mu Cheng was as soft as a heartbroken little fox, and she was so close to his heart.
Gu Yunche stood frozen for a moment before pushing Mu Cheng away under the astonished gaze of the man opposite him.
“Mu Cheng, mind your behavior.”
Mu Cheng cried tears of joy.
Wiping her tears, she laughed and cried at the same time, saying, “I thought you’d abandoned me here.”
Gu Yunche had chased after her from the guesthouse. Sweat beaded on his forehead, and his face was filled with anxiety.
The tension in his brow only gradually eased after seeing that Mu Cheng was safe and sound.
“Bai Lin has a high fever and was hospitalized with acute pneumonia. I took her to the hospital and then went to the guesthouse to look for you.”
Gu Yunche raised his eyes to the man who also wore an anxious expression and said in a low voice, “The staff at the guesthouse said you came to the Zhangs’ house looking for me.”
Mu Cheng wiped her tears.
She pointed to Qi Heng behind her. “He brought me here. I couldn’t find Director Zhang’s house.”
At that moment, Zhang Qingqing and the others were standing at the entrance of the alley, having witnessed Mu Cheng hugging Gu Yunche.
Zhang Qingqing’s small face flushed red.
“That Mu Guiying! No, that Mu Cheng is so shameless! She actually hugged Yunche-ge in broad daylight!”
Zhang Qingguo scolded the outspoken Zhang Qingqing.
“Shut your mouth. Don’t speak of this matter outside—it won’t look good for Regiment Commander Gu. The Gu family… is not to be provoked!”
Zhang Qingqing pouted.
Why shouldn’t she say anything?
That Mu Cheng was nothing but a shameless vixen trying to seduce Gu Yunche to climb the social ladder.
If Mu Cheng dared to do it, why shouldn’t she dare to say it?
Gu Yunche had changed Mu Cheng’s name and insisted on taking her to the capital to settle her household registration. It was clear he favored her, though whether this favor stemmed from sympathy or romantic feelings was hard to say.
However, she noticed that Qi Heng’s eyes were glued to Mu Cheng.
Zhang Qingqing began to form a plan in her mind.
Pretending to be obedient, she said, “I understand, Dad! It’s almost noon—why don’t we invite Sister Mu Cheng and Brother Qi to stay for a simple meal?”
Zhang Qingguo and his wife were of the same mind.
Zhang Qingguo walked over with a cheerful smile and opened the gate, inviting Gu Yunche, Mu Cheng, and Qi Heng inside to sit. Meanwhile, Zhang Qingqing busied herself brewing tea and pouring water with great enthusiasm.
Mu Cheng took the teacup handed to her by Zhang Qingqing.
She wondered to herself, had this girl suddenly changed her personality overnight?
A complete transformation overnight was almost impossible unless it involved winning the lottery—it was nearly unheard of for someone’s personality to change so drastically!
“Thank you!”
Mu Cheng steadily accepted the teacup.
She had read novels where scheming, green-tea-type women would deliberately spill soup or water on themselves to gain sympathy or on others to play innocent.
She blew on the tea and took a sip. The temperature was just right—it seemed Zhang Qingqing wasn’t quite “tea” enough yet.
Gu Yunche held his teacup, occasionally glancing up at Mu Cheng.
He thought of the soft, feminine sensation he had felt earlier—not quite a hug but still a close contact—and his heart grew restless again.
Gu Yunche felt he had been acting too strangely lately. He needed to restrain his wild thoughts and dreams. He had made up his mind: once he returned home and settled Mu Cheng and Bai Lin, he would immediately rejoin his unit.
Lowering his head, he watched the tea leaves slowly sink in the water and thought of Mu Cheng, her hair dripping with water as she dried it with a towel.
Gu Yunche abruptly set the teacup down on the coffee table and stood up awkwardly.
He muttered to himself, "I'll go pack some dishes."
Mu Cheng glanced at the wall clock—it was almost noon. It made sense for Gu Yunche to pack some dishes to spare the Zhang family the trouble.
After Gu Yunche left, Zhang Qingqing warmly invited Mu Cheng to tour her room and Bai Lin's room.
After looking around, Mu Cheng noticed the Zhang family treated Bai Lin quite well. Almost everything Zhang Qingqing had, Bai Lin had too, and they were identical items.
She thought of Bai Lin deliberately showing her hands frequently in front of Gu Yunche and felt somewhat puzzled.
"Sister Zhang, your cousin must be very clean, right? The bedsheets and pillowcases are all hand-washed so spotlessly."
Seeing Mu Cheng's naive expression, Zhang Qingqing pointed to the washing machine in the corner.
"Our family uses the washing machine for all our clothes. My dad got a washing machine ticket and picked it up from the foreign exchange goods section at the International Trade Mall. Our household is the only one in this alley with one."
Then why had Bai Lin's hands become so rough?
Zhang Qingqing thought of something else and sneered, "My cousin is just pretentious. Two months before you came, she said she wanted to save electricity for our family, so she stopped using the washing machine and started washing everything by hand."
She pulled Mu Cheng to the living room and turned on the television.
"Why isn't she worried about electricity when she studies with the light on every night? She just wants to show off in front of my mom."
The straightforward Zhang Qingqing blurted out everything she wanted to say.
She pointed at the television, "You can watch some TV. I'm going back to my room to study."
Mu Cheng was a bit stunned by the 18-inch black-and-white television, and the images on the screen left her even more bewildered.
Yet, this dazed beauty struck Qi Heng as uniquely charming.
He cleared his throat, "Comrade Mu, I also managed to get a television ticket this year. My mom said we'll pick up the television before I get married."
Mu Cheng didn't understand what he meant.
She smiled and nodded, "That's great. Congratulations, Comrade Qi! I didn't know you were getting married soon!"
Qi Heng paused and scratched his head, "The apartment allocated by my mom's workplace has also been assigned. It's a two-bedroom, one-living-room unit."
Mu Cheng hadn't expected Qi Heng's family conditions to be so good and offered a few more compliments.
Qi Heng pursed his lips, smiling proudly, "I also have a refrigerator, washing machine, tape recorder, and bicycle!"
Mu Cheng, "…"
Was this early-stage flaunting of wealth?
She took a sip of tea and fell silent.
Not long after, Gu Yunche returned with food containers.
As soon as he entered, he saw Mu Cheng watching television. Her lively eyes were filled with curiosity, yet her curiosity seemed tinged with an indescribable sadness.
In the dining room, Zhang Qingguo and his wife began setting the table.
Gu Yunche called Mu Cheng over to wash her hands.
The Zhang family had a sink outside with running water, but the water was a bit cold.
Mu Cheng pulled her hand back and said apologetically, "I didn't expect the water to be so cold."
Her delicate, slender hands were smooth and tender. Gu Yunche glanced at them and went back inside to fetch a thermos.
"Let me add some hot water for you."
Gu Yunche recalled the village Party branch secretary mentioning that Mu Cheng loved beauty and saved up to buy vanishing cream and clam oil. He also thought of Bai Lin's rough hands and didn't want Mu Cheng's hands to become coarse from using cold water.
Inside the room, Zhang Qingqing clenched the note in her hand.
Watching the two washing their hands outside the window, the jealousy burning in her heart erased all her earlier hesitation.
Zhang Qingqing walked over and pulled Qi Heng, who was arranging the stools, handing him a note.
"Sister Mu Cheng wrote this in my room earlier and asked me to pass it to you."
After saying that, she nonchalantly went to the kitchen to help her mother stir-fry the dishes.
Qi Heng's heart raced. He glanced around before walking to a corner to unfold the note.
He saw a line of crooked handwriting with pinyin mixed in—Comrade Qi, at 9:30 tonight, I'll be waiting for you in my room at the guesthouse. As long as you don't look down on me for being a country girl, I'm willing to be with you.
Qi Heng crumpled the note into a ball and hastily stuffed it into his pocket.
After Gu Yunche and Mu Cheng washed their hands, they walked in one after the other.
Gu Yunche glanced at Qi Heng, whose burning gaze was fixed on Mu Cheng—a look that made Gu Yunche deeply uncomfortable.
During the meal, Qi Heng kept serving dishes to Mu Cheng.
Gu Yunche's expression grew increasingly dark.
He vaguely sensed that Qi Heng seemed interested in Mu Cheng, and wondered if Mu Cheng was falling back into her old habits again.