Li Qinkuai and Duan Pengyue went upstairs to their room. It wasn’t until the door closed behind them that Li Qinkuai’s anxious heart finally settled.
In truth, she had been taking a gamble earlier. She had accused the woman of being a child trafficker based solely on the memories in her mind—what if she had remembered wrong?
Still, she felt mostly relieved that they had managed to rescue the child.
Now that the adrenaline had worn off, she felt a wave of fear. If she had reacted even a moment slower, both the woman and the child might have disappeared without a trace.
Duan Pengyue poured a glass of water and brought it over. “Have a drink to calm your nerves.”
Li Qinkuai took the glass with trembling hands, took a sip, and looked at the composed Duan Pengyue. “Aren’t you scared?”
Duan Pengyue sat down beside her and took a sip from the same glass she had just drunk from. “Scared of what?”
“Scared that the woman wasn’t actually a child trafficker. What if I had wrongfully accused her?”
“But the fact is, she was a child trafficker. Besides, I trust that you wouldn’t randomly accuse someone of being one without good reason.” Duan Pengyue spoke earnestly, his gaze filled with trust as he looked at her.
“What if I was just joking?” Li Qinkuai found herself asking this almost impulsively.
Duan Pengyue replied, “No one jokes about child traffickers. You must have noticed something unusual to say she was one. Even if she hadn’t been, we were doing a good deed by following up on our suspicions. And when she noticed me chasing her, she panicked—a normal person wouldn’t have reacted that way. So, you don’t need to feel guilty. You’re a good person who saved a family.”
Li Qinkuai blushed at his words and muttered, “Am I really as good as you say?”
“Of course. In my eyes, you are exactly that good,” Duan Pengyue affirmed.
Li Qinkuai lowered her head and said nothing more.
She thought to herself that if it weren’t for her memories from her past life, she wouldn’t have been able to identify the woman as a child trafficker.
But this incident also made her realize that everything could be changed.
At the dinner table, Duan Pengwei heard about Li Qinkuai and Duan Pengyue’s heroic deed of catching a child trafficker and looked at Li Qinkuai with admiration. “Second Sister-in-law, you saved an entire family! This is a genuine act of heroism in fighting child trafficking. I must write about this in the newspaper!”
Duan Pengwei was a reporter for the People’s Daily. Her job usually involved conveying national policies, publishing news, and promoting heroic deeds.
Now that heroes had appeared in their own family, she felt compelled to publicize their story properly. She even wanted to publish photos of Second Brother and Second Sister-in-law in the newspaper so everyone would know they were heroes in the fight against child trafficking.
Before Li Qinkuai could say anything, Duan Pengwei had already taken out her camera, ready to photograph Li Qinkuai and Duan Pengyue.
Li Qinkuai quickly covered her face. “Pengwei, there’s no need to include my face in the photo. I think you should focus more on how child traffickers abduct children. That way, families with children can learn what methods traffickers use and be more cautious.”
Seeing how resistant Li Qinkuai was, Duan Pengyue reached over and took the camera from Duan Pengwei’s hands. “Your Second Sister-in-law is right.”
“Well said, Qinkuai. Pengwei, listen to your Second Sister-in-law.”
Duan Wu nodded in agreement, his gaze filled with admiration as he looked at his second son’s wife.
She had done a good deed without seeking attention or becoming arrogant—her character was truly commendable.
Second Brother had truly found a treasure.
Although Duan Pengwei really wanted to publish the photos, seeing that neither Second Brother nor Second Sister-in-law was willing, she didn’t insist any further.
“Alright, I’ll listen to Second Sister-in-law and publish the details of what happened in the newspaper.”
For the next two days, Duan Pengyue took Li Qinkuai out to visit attractions in the capital.
Duan Pengwei’s newspaper announcement was also swift—within just two days, their heroic deeds were already published in the papers.
The neighbors in the military compound all learned about it, and when they dropped by the house, they praised Li Qinkuai and Duan Pengyue for their cleverness, calling them great heroes.
This made Wu Yafang beam with pride, though she modestly said, “Oh, it was just a small thing, nothing heroic!”
During these two days, while out sightseeing, Li Qinkuai also looked into job opportunities. However, jobs were hard to come by these days—even temporary positions required connections. It seemed unlikely she would find anything anytime soon.
During dinner that evening, a guest arrived at the house.
“Auntie, I came to see you.”
Hearing that unforgettable voice, Li Qinkuai’s body instinctively trembled. She turned to look—it was Qing Shuangyun.
Noticing her unusual reaction, Duan Pengyue held her hand and asked anxiously, “What’s wrong? Are you feeling unwell?”
Li Qinkuai shook her head. “I’m fine.”
Seeing it was her, Wu Yafang quickly said, “Shuangyun, what brings you here? Have you eaten? Come join us for dinner.”
Duan Pengwei was also delighted to see her. He rushed over and took Qing Shuangyun’s hand. “You’ve finally come! You must not have eaten yet—come join us for dinner.”
Duan Wu also called out, “Shuangyun’s here! It’s been a while since we last saw you. Come, join us for dinner.”
Qing Shuangyun smiled sheepishly and set down the pastries she had brought. “Then I won’t stand on ceremony. These are some pastries I brought for Uncle and Auntie.”
Wu Yafang reached out to take them. “You always bring us something when you visit—really, don’t bring anything next time!”
At this moment, Qing Shuangyun looked toward Duan Pengyue, her eyes filled with tenderness and her voice softening. “Pengyue, you’re finally back. You haven’t forgotten me, have you?”
Duan Pengyue nodded to her. “Of course I remember you. This is my wife, Li Qinkuai. Wife, this is Qing Shuangyun, a friend I’ve known since childhood.”
His description of her as “a friend since childhood” made Qing Shuangyun’s expression stiffen for a moment, though it vanished almost instantly. But when Qing Shuangyun caught sight of Li Qinkuai’s appearance, she froze completely.
Qing Shuangyun had long known that Duan Pengyue had married a country girl. She had thought a country girl was nothing—no match for her.
Yet she never expected Li Qinkuai to be so beautiful—so beautiful that Qing Shuangyun felt a pang of inferiority just looking at her.
No wonder Duan Pengyue married her.
Duan Pengwei nudged the stunned Qing Shuangyun and said, “Well? My second sister-in-law is pretty, isn’t she?”
Qing Shuangyun snapped back to reality, her heart filled with bitterness. She forced a smile and said, “Yes, very beautiful. Hello, I’m Qing Shuangyun.”
Li Qinkuai also greeted her reluctantly. “Hello, I’m Li Qinkuai.”
Facing the person who had killed her in her past life, she couldn’t bring herself to smile.
“Now that everyone’s acquainted, let’s sit down and eat,” Wu Yafang urged.
Qing Shuangyun sized up Li Qinkuai, feeling unwilling to accept the situation. But when she thought about her own relationship with the Duan family and remembered that Li Qinkuai was just a country girl with nothing but a pretty face, hope suddenly rekindled in her heart.
Considering that Duan Pengyue would report to the military unit the day after tomorrow, she would have more opportunities to see him and spend time with him in the future. Over time, could she really not surpass Li Qinkuai?
Filled with confidence once again, Qing Shuangyun wore a smile on her face and turned to chat animatedly with the Duan family.
Li Qinkuai didn’t speak, eating her meal earnestly. For dishes she couldn’t reach, Duan Pengyue would pick them up for her, and those she didn’t like, she would toss to Duan Pengyue to eat.
Although Qing Shuangyun was chatting, her peripheral vision was constantly fixed on Li Qinkuai and Duan Pengyue. Seeing them so intimate, she was burning with jealousy, yet she couldn’t show it.
In the end, it was Qing Shuangyun who couldn’t bear to watch any longer. After hurriedly eating a few bites, she said she had to leave. However, before departing, she deliberately said to Duan Pengyue, “Duan Pengyue, I’ll be waiting for you in the army.”
After saying this, she looked provocatively at Li Qinkuai.
Duan Pengyue gave a noncommittal “Hmm.”
“I’ll see you home. I happen to have something to give your mother,” said Wu Yafang, taking two jars of chili sauce made just yesterday to send Qing Shuangyun off.
As soon as they left, Li Qinkuai returned to her room, with Duan Pengyue following behind.
Duan Wu watched the two walking one after the other and sighed helplessly.
Duan Pengwei was clearing the bowls. “Dad, why are you sighing for no reason?”
At this moment, Duan Pengcheng spoke up, “It’s all because of you.”
“What does it have to do with me?” Duan Pengwei protested.
Duan Wu looked at his eldest son and quickly understood, turning to his younger daughter. “Did you know Shuangyun would come to our house today?”
“No,” Duan Pengwei denied.
Duan Pengcheng chuckled. “Then why did I see the two of you shopping together this afternoon, buying things? This snack was something you bought together, wasn’t it?”
Duan Pengwei fell silent, her gaze evasive.
Duan Wu glared at her. “You little troublemaker, stop stirring up trouble!”
He had wondered why Qing Shuangyun would come to their house out of the blue. So it was his daughter behind the scenes, pushing things along!
“Shuangyun, Auntie has something to say to you,” Wu Yafang said, stopping under a tree while holding Qing Shuangyun’s hand.
Qing Shuangyun smiled and asked, “What is it, Auntie? You can speak directly.”
“In that case, Auntie will be straightforward. I know you still have feelings for Pengyue, but you and Pengyue aren’t suited for each other. Besides, Pengyue is already married now, so you should stop thinking about him.”