Wen Quhua had never been treated like this before. Her expression turned unpleasant, her lips pressed tightly together. As their eyes met, there was a faint tension in the air.
Just then, someone from the barbecue stall called out to him. Seeing her cold face and silence, he turned and left.
Wen Quhua swore in her heart that she would never say another word to him again.
Yang Qin had a good reputation in the county town and received quite a few jobs. Today, a small boss was treating him to a meal and wanted to discuss cooperation.
The old bus station in Langcheng was going to be renovated. It was a big project. But if he wanted to take on that project, he would have to leave the current construction site.
The construction site work was stable, but it could not compare to the bus station project. If he worked on it for one or two years, he could establish himself in Langcheng.
“If you follow me and finish the bus station project, we can cooperate afterward. I’ll focus on taking on government projects, and you can contract the work. People always have to move upward. Yang Qin, I truly think highly of you.”
“Work for a few years, settle down, start a family, and you’ll have earned the money to marry a wife.”
The small boss knew Yang Qin was still single. For men, the desire to earn money was nothing more than for dignity, reputation, and a wife and children.
When Yang Qin heard the words “wife,” he smiled casually and did not take it seriously.
He raised his glass, and Yang Qin also raised his glass to clink with him. His thoughts were deep, and nothing could be seen from his expression.
At the construction site, he was considered a small subcontractor with his own renovation team. He could take on all kinds of jobs, and payments were settled quickly.
The old bus station project was certainly a good opportunity, but it would take one or two years, and wages would be delayed. His grandmother’s medication and hospitalization required money, so he had many concerns. He only said he would go back and think about it carefully.
After two hours of exchanging toasts, the time passed. During that period, he occasionally saw Wen Quhua carrying sweet soup to the barbecue stall. She had started opening her shop at night these past few days.
It was obvious that business was better at night, so she had even delayed her beauty sleep.
However, because of what had just happened, Wen Quhua came to deliver food several times but did not even glance at Yang Qin.
On the other hand, after drinking, Yang Qin could not fully control himself and searched for her figure among the crowd a few times.
“Then I’ll wait for your good news.” After sending off the small boss, Yang Qin stood up. He had drunk quite a bit, and the smell of alcohol on him was strong.
As he left, he happened to pass by Wen Quhua.
Her fragrance drifted over, and he subconsciously turned his head to follow it.
She had clearly made new acquaintances. Encouraged by the enthusiasm of the customers, she pursed her lips and took a sip of the iced beer someone offered her.
There was laughter and cheer, completely unrelated to him.
A shadow passed through Yang Qin’s eyes, and he turned to leave.
By the time Wen Quhua finished tidying up the shop, it was almost eleven-thirty. She picked up her bag and flashlight and walked toward the construction site.
The streetlights had all gone out. She wore a light green qipao that hugged her waist, with a white trim at the hem, and a pair of sandals. The exposed skin of her feet was pale and smooth like jade.
The night breeze was cool, and she also wore a white outer shawl. Perhaps her rashes had improved quite a bit. Even under the moonlight, her face was striking.
It was as if the moonlight was illuminating her alone, giving her a soft glow.
Yang Qin stood in the shadow by the wall, watching her walk past without noticing him.
It was almost midnight. There were inevitably drunken customers from the barbecue stalls nearby, yet she walked this road alone. For the sake of earning money, she did not even consider her personal safety.
A shadow darkened Yang Qin’s eyes. About ten meters behind her, he followed slowly.
He followed her until she entered the construction site gate, then all the way to the dormitory building.
She lived on the second floor. Walking up the stairs, she turned off her flashlight. The corridor light on the second floor fell on her, outlining her delicate profile.
Yang Qin stood under the shadow of a tree downstairs, watching her take out her key, open the door, and close it.
He felt that he had truly gone mad. He had silently escorted her back, yet they were not even friends. He only knew her name. As for the rest, her age and preferences, he knew nothing.
Now he knew one more thing.
She had a fiancée.
She had come to Langcheng to find another man.
He should stay even further away and not get close.
Yang Qin stood there for a while before leaving.
After that, Wen Quhua focused on her small business, and Yang Qin was busy with the construction site and outside jobs. They went their separate ways.
It was Aunt Lu who reminded Wen Quhua to pay attention to her safety. Aunt Lu’s nephew worked at the barbecue stall. If the stall was not too busy at night, Aunt Lu would have him walk Wen Quhua back.
Wen Quhua was grateful to Aunt Lu and gave her nephew a red envelope as payment.
Life was calm, and everything gradually fell into place, except that there was still no news from the informant.
Wen Quhua was packing her things in the construction site dormitory. The rashes on her body had long healed, and the ventilation in her small building was sufficient. She will stay one more night and move out tomorrow.
Yang Qin had helped her rent this dormitory. Logically, she should thank him, but after what happened last time, she had sworn not to speak to him again. Unexpectedly, even though they lived in the same dormitory area, she had not seen him at all.
It seemed that he truly found her troublesome and wanted nothing to do with her.
It was the first time Wen Quhua had been disliked by someone, and she felt a bit humiliated.
However, there would probably be no more interaction between them in the future.
Just as she finished thinking this and was about to sleep, something unexpected happened.
Late at night, Aunt Zhu knocked urgently on her door. “Xiao Wen, wake up quickly.”
Still half-asleep, Wen Quhua got up to open the door. “What’s wrong, Auntie?”
Aunt Zhu grabbed her hand, shaking slightly. “Someone died at the construction site…”
Wen Quhua’s sleepiness instantly vanished in fright. Her face turned pale.
“Aren’t you moving out tomorrow? Don’t wait. Leave tonight. Before dawn, the family will probably come to make trouble. If they block the gate, it will be hard to get out.”
Upon hearing this, Wen Quhua immediately turned back, quickly changed clothes, grabbed her bag, and went out first. As for her daily necessities and bedding, she could come back to get them in a couple of days.
She followed Aunt Zhu out. After walking downstairs for a while, she heard many voices, chaotic, and also miserable crying. Her heart sank.
Aunt Zhu instructed her, “I won’t see you off. I need to hurry over and see if there’s anything I can help with. Oh, what a tragedy… Xiao Xin, that child, I don’t know…”
Wen Quhua had been about to nod and leave, but when she suddenly heard Aunt Zhu mention Xiao Xin, she paused.
She knew Xiao Xin. He was a very enthusiastic young man. At the beginning, it was Xiao Xin who had taken the job from her to fix the electric meter.
Her steps paused. She glanced at the crowd, and for some reason, she turned around and followed Aunt Zhu over. She wanted to take a look before leaving, hoping Xiao Xin was alright.
When she got closer, she could hear more clearly the sobbing voices of women. “Xiao Xin is still so young. When he first came, he was only this tall. If he loses his life…”
Wen Quhua squeezed into the crowd and took a look. The ground was covered in blood. Several people lay there groaning in pain. They had all fallen from the scaffolding above.
With one glance, she saw a man kneeling halfway beside a blood-covered figure on the ground, checking the injuries while urgently asking, “Has the ambulance arrived?”
“Brother Qin, the county hospital only has two ambulances. They said both have already been dispatched. We’ll have to wait an hour…”
An hour? There was no way they could wait that long.
Yang Qin’s face darkened. Xiao Xin had been brought to the construction site by him. He was only eighteen. Forget losing his life, even losing a leg would ruin the rest of his life.
“Brother… it hurts…” Xiao Xin was sweating from the pain. One of his hands was covered in blood as he clutched Yang Qin’s sleeve.
Wen Quhua gritted her teeth, withdrew from the crowd, and took out her mobile phone from her bag to make a call.
After a moment, she squeezed back in and said to Yang Qin, “Don’t move him. I’ve called for cars. They’ll arrive in at most ten minutes. Everyone, make some space.”
In an instant, many eyes turned toward her in the crowd, including Yang Qin’s.
She was still holding the mobile phone she had just hung up, dressed in a clean, light-colored outfit, completely out of place in the dusty construction site.
“There are cars coming?” Hearing this, the others became excited. It was not just Xiao Xin who was injured. Some were even more severely injured and had already fallen unconscious.
Aunt Zhu had said there were also people who had died on the spot. Wen Quhua did not even dare look in that direction.
It was her first time encountering such a bloody scene. Her face was pale as she forced herself to say, “Yes. I called a few cars. You all help send them to the hospital.”
Before long, several cars arrived one after another at the construction site entrance. Wen Quhua had called the renovation company owner and the hotel she had previously stayed at, paying to borrow vehicles. She had managed to gather three cars.
Amid the rush and chaos, the injured were finally carried into the vehicles and sent to the county hospital.
As Yang Qin passed by Wen Quhua, he looked at her deeply but said nothing.
Wen Quhua watched him leave with the cars. The construction site was still in an uproar. Those who had died on the spot did not need to be sent to the hospital; their families just needed to be notified.
Aunt Zhu urged her again, and only then did Wen Quhua, still in a daze, leave the construction site and return to her shop.
She took a shower, but even lying in bed, she could not sleep. Every time she closed her eyes, she saw the ground covered in blood and Xiao Xin saying, “It hurts.”
She got up and opened the window. Dawn had broken. From here, she could still hear the noisy commotion at the construction site. The families of the deceased had probably already arrived to cause trouble.
The sound made her feel unsettled, and she closed the window again.
County Hospital
“Brother, will my leg be broken? Will I be unable to work anymore?” Xiao Xin tightly gripped Yang Qin’s hand. His face was covered in blood and sweat, his eyes filled with near despair.
Yang Qin pressed his hand down. “Don’t worry. You’ll be fine.”
He went to pay the fees, then sat on a chair with his head tilted back, waiting.
Xiao Xin had been brought out of the small fishing village by him. That year, Xiao Xin’s father had died in an accident, leaving only his mother and younger sister at home. At sixteen, he had come to Yang Qin and said firmly:
“Brother, take me with you to work. I can do anything!”
For the past two years, Xiao Xin had been following him, sending all the money he earned back home to support his family and younger sister.
If something happened to him, his family’s world would collapse.
“Brother Qin, the construction site boss still hasn’t shown up. The families have surrounded the entire site. They’re only letting people in, not out.” A coworker came over to find Yang Qin, frowning. “I’m afraid this job… our wages might be gone.”
The construction site boss had not appeared at all. It was obvious that he had either hidden or already fled.
A cold look flashed in Yang Qin’s eyes. Most likely, after learning that someone had died on site, the boss had already cleared out his home.
But right now, he had no mood to deal with that. Xiao Xin was still lying inside.
His clothes were also stained with Xiao Xin’s blood, a large patch that looked shocking.
After waiting for several hours, when he finally saw Doctor Chen, Yang Qin immediately stood up and walked over.
“The leg is saved. Fortunately, you brought him in time. But the follow-up treatment costs…” Doctor Chen knew the relationship between Xiao Xin and Yang Qin. He sighed heavily.
Yang Qin instantly felt the tension in his chest loosen, as if a blade hanging over him had finally fallen away. He said indifferently, “Money doesn’t matter.”
As long as Xiao Xin’s leg was saved, there was still hope. Yang Qin would not be crushed by overwhelming responsibility and guilt.
Doctor Chen could only think on the bright side. Money could be earned again.
“Then go complete the hospitalization procedures. Go back and clean yourself up before coming back to stay with him.”
“Alright. Thanks.”
After handling the hospitalization, Yang Qin prepared to return to the construction site. A coworker went with him, planning to see if they could recover their wages.
As they passed by the barbecue stall, Yang Qin immediately saw Wen Quhua by the window.
When she saw them, she stood up at once.
Yang Qin said quietly to the others, “You go ahead. I’ll buy a pack of cigarettes.”