Why are you suddenly being so nice to me?
Jiang Queyun’s life suddenly became fulfilling.
He woke up earlier to cook breakfast, and knowing that Lu Hanbai needed to exert his physical strength, he intentionally prepared some dishes with a bit more oil to ensure he wouldn’t starve before noon.
Lu Yu was much easier to handle. Being just a little kid, a steamed bun and a bowl of noodle soup were enough to fill his stomach. Besides, he would be home by noon anyway, so a short wait didn’t matter.
After finishing the cooking and seeing the father and son off, Jiang Queyun left them to their day.
If he had woken up this early in his past life, he would have suffered from dizziness and dry heaving. Fortunately, there were no distractions here tempting him to stay up late. Sleeping and waking up early every day left him feeling refreshed and full of energy.
Since he was already up, he might as well tidy up the house.
To be honest, this run-down home didn’t really have much to clean.
It pretty much boiled down to sweeping the yard and having a staring contest with a pile of dirty clothes.
He picked up a wooden basin and headed down to the river. Going early meant there probably wouldn’t be many aunties doing laundry yet.
“Oh, just you today?”
“Tell me about it. The last few times, he made Brother Bo do the laundry alongside him. I’ve never seen such a spouse; who makes their own husband wash clothes?”
“Will you listen to yourselves? Brother Bo has hands and feet. If he wasn’t willing, could Queyun possibly force him? It’s a matter between the young couple, can’t you mind your own business?”
Jiang Queyun glanced at the sister-in-law who had spoken up. She had a youthful complexion, but her speech carried a fearless, fiery edge. He liked her type.
Her voice was loud, but her heart wasn’t bad.
He walked straight over in that direction, set down his basin, and sat on an empty patch of ground.
Seeing her face up close, he matched it to the memory. This sister-in-law was the wife of the man who had previously helped carry Lu Yu down the mountain.
Jiang Queyun quickly expressed his gratitude. “Sister-in-law Hongying, it’s been a while. Thank you so much for having Brother Cheng help bring Lu Yu down the mountain before.”
Fang Hongying smiled indifferently. “What a small thing to keep thanking people for. Your husband already sent us a thank-you gift, so let’s let this matter rest.”
“Got it.” Jiang Queyun readily agreed.
He could still tell the difference between genuine kindness and pretense.
For now, he ignored the annoying gossip and quietly scrubbed the clothes, finding it much easier to handle than swinging a wooden club.
Summer clothes weren’t difficult to wash. People in these times weren’t well-off enough to be dripping with grease, so the garments only had a bit of sweat and dust. He finished washing them in no time.
He scratched his itchy hand, though the whispering murmurs around him hadn’t stopped.
A flicker of impatience crossed his eyes, but he raised his head with a smile on his face. “I’m right here. You ladies still haven’t finished talking? What are you so curious about regarding me anyway? Why don’t you just come and ask me directly?”
He genuinely wanted to build good relationships with the people of North River Village, but that didn’t mean he would tolerate being treated as village gossip indefinitely.
The murmurs quieted for a split second, followed immediately by a sharp voice.
“What, we aren’t even allowed to talk now? Have you forgotten what you did yourself? Running around stealing chickens and dogs, completely shameless, and now you know how to get annoyed?”
Jiang Queyun felt a brief pang of guilt. Blame it on the original owner!
Yet, he quickly retorted, “The mistakes I made before, you beat me for them and scolded me for them, and I, Jiang Queyun, apologized. Later on, my husband compensated you all as well. You say you’ve forgiven me with your words, but you keep holding grudges in your hearts. Just who is being shameless here?”
Thank goodness he managed to dig up those memories from the original owner; otherwise, he’d be left with no choice but to lie flat and take the mockery.
He had to hand it to them. Dealing with someone as terrible as the original owner, Lu Hanbai had actually been willing to spend silver to smooth over the messy situation.
For that alone, he deserved to be the male lead.
He was totally worth it! What an absolute saint of a man! From now on, he would never talk back to him casually again.
Fang Hongying couldn’t help letting out a chuckle.
The crisp laughter landed like a slap across the faces of those gossiping aunties. Matters of the past had already been cleared up, yet they kept dragging them out over and over again. Wasn’t it simply annoying?
She didn’t particularly like Jiang Queyun either, but since he hadn’t crossed her path, she saw no need to go out of her way to curse him out. They were all villagers after all, bound to see each other every day, and falling out completely would be awkward.
That single laugh cleared the tension for the aunties and gave Jiang Queyun a graceful way out.
Jiang Queyun smiled slightly. “The aunties all know what kind of temper I have. I’m trying to change, and the aunties need to give me a chance too. Constantly bringing it up like today won’t do, right?”
“Right.”
“Alright, alright. What’s in the past is in the past, let’s not mention it anymore. It’s a good thing Queyun wants to change, just get along well from now on.”
“That’s right, that’s right! Queyun, I heard your Ah Yu went to study at the Jujube Village private school? Ah Yu is smart and sensible. If he manages to pass the imperial exams as a scholar, you won’t have to worry about food and clothing anymore!”
Becoming a scholar was about as grand as villagers dared to dream.
These words were a blatant compliment and an obvious olive branch, so Jiang Queyun gladly took it, playing along with a cheeky grin to look a bit smug yet careful not to overdo it.
After a few pleasantries, Jiang Queyun packed up his wooden basin and headed home.
The house was quiet, which actually made him feel more at ease. He hummed a little tune while hanging the clothes out to dry, then began pondering what to cook for noon.
Studying required mental and physical energy, so he needed to make something hearty with some oil and fat to keep him going.
After much thought, Jiang Queyun decided to steam white rice and stir-fry a meat dish. It had to be a substantial meal so he wouldn’t feel hungry by the afternoon.
He rested for a bit before starting to cook. The weather was warm enough that even slightly cool food wouldn’t be an issue, especially since he didn’t need to go pick up that brat from school.
“Hoh, hoh. I’m exhausted.”
Jiang Queyun panted heavily as he walked. Despite saying he didn’t want to go pick him up, his legs had moved out on their own.
Lu Yu was only seven years old. Leaving such a small child to climb mountains and cross ridges all by himself to get home was something Jiang Queyun simply couldn’t bring himself to do.
Whoever has a soft heart suffers for it; it served him right.
Once he climbed to the top of the mountain, he could catch his breath a bit and wait for him there.
The top of the mountain, the top of the mountain, the top of the mountain.
Jiang Queyun collapsed onto a rock in the shade of a tree, looking down the descending path. If he walked all the way down from here, he’d have to climb right back up. His mental endurance wasn’t up for that, so he’d just wait right here.
“Hey!”
A childish voice rang out right beside his ear.
Startled out of nowhere, Jiang Queyun felt the drowsy bug brought on by the sweltering heat screech and run for its life. He blinked his eyes open to see Lu Yu staring at him with a complex expression.
A seven-year-old child still didn’t quite know how to hide his emotions.
He still disliked Jiang Queyun and resented the things the person had done in the past, but he couldn’t help feeling a flicker of joy at Jiang Queyun’s actions right now.
“Are you waiting for me here?” Lu Yu couldn’t help asking.
“I’m here to sunbathe.” Jiang Queyun couldn’t help chuckling. The little brat had even learned to ask rhetorical questions.
Lu Yu’s expression flickered, but ultimately he swallowed the biting retort. He knew this troublemaker had come to pick him up.
Between his two lives combined, Jiang Queyun had never been one for exercise, suffering from chronic low health. Tossing himself back and forth like this nearly brought him to the point of fainting by the time he reached home.
“The food is all in the pot. You can eat on your own, right?” After a moment of thought, Jiang Queyun still decided to dish out the food for him. “You’re barely taller than the stove. What would you do if you fell right in?”
Lu Yu: “I’m not an idiot.”
Jiang Queyun replied perfunctorily, “Yeah, right, absolutely.”
Lu Yu: So mad, so mad, so mad!
“I’m going to go lie down for a bit. Remember to call me when it’s time for you to head to the private school,” Jiang Queyun said, letting out a sigh afterward.
Making a seven-year-old child walk to school alone felt wrong on every level. What if he got snatched by human traffickers along the way? How would he explain that?
With the rich aroma of food filling his nose, Lu Yu raised his voice slightly. “I can go by myself. You look like you’re about to fall apart.”
Jiang Queyun waved a hand dismissively, walked into the room, and collapsed onto the reclining chair. Sleeping and waking up early for just a few days had already broken his habit of skipping afternoon naps. This was unbelievable.
Lu Yu ate his meal quietly, having to admit that the troublemaker’s cooking was far superior to his dad’s. If the troublemaker could keep this up, he might even consider letting him stay instead of finding his dad a new wife.
He quietly washed his bowl and chopsticks, then went back to his own room for a short nap.
Jiang Queyun was jolted awake by a disturbance, vaguely feeling as though a mosquito had been buzzing relentlessly in his ear. Blinking sleepily, he opened his eyes to see Lu Yu staring at him with wide, round eyes.
“I have to go to the private school now, just letting you know,” Lu Yu said softly. “I don’t need you to walk me. I was just afraid you’d wake up and worry.”
Jiang Queyun was drenched in sweat from his nap. Supporting his slightly weak body, he sat up and swallowed to moisten his throat. “I’ll walk you.”
Lu Yu shook his head slightly. “I know the way, I can go by myself. A real man can handle a small task like this.”
Though he was indeed a bit scared, knowing someone was keeping him in mind made it feel a lot less frightening.
Naturally, Jiang Queyun wouldn’t abandon a seven-year-old child to make the trip alone. Adjusting his expression, he put on a willing-and-eager look as he walked the boy up to the hillside, not forgetting to instruct him, “I’ll wait for you right here from now on. If you get here and don’t see me, I might have been delayed, but I’ll definitely be on my way to get you. In that case, just start walking home, understand?”
“Why are you suddenly being so nice to me? It’s kind of disgusting.” Lu Yu said with a hint of awkwardness.
His memory held no trace of a maternal figure, and Jiang Queyun had never treated him well before. Faced with this sudden wave of kindness, he desperately wanted to smile with happiness, yet feared it masked some hidden danger.
It was awkward, strange, and utterly bewildering.
Jiang Queyun looked slightly puzzled. “Does this even count as being nice?”
He was simply following his instincts and doing what he felt was right, but in his mind, this didn’t fall into the category of being nice.
Lu Yu’s face flushed red. He wanted to look at him, but felt too embarrassed after saying those things.
“Probably because of your dad’s threats. He went around yelling about sticking my head on the fence yard. I was terrified, so I figured I better do things that benefit us both.” Jiang Queyun casually threw Lu Hanbai under the bus. Threatened like that, anyone would change their tune.
“Oh, I see. Got it.” The tiny bubble of warmth in Lu Yu’s chest instantly burst. He put his game face back on, hoisted his small messenger bag, and stomped off fiercely.
Jiang Queyun quickly hurried after him, wondering why the kid had suddenly gotten upset out of nowhere.
“Can those short legs of yours walk a bit slower?”
“Do I need to strap a rocket to my back to catch up to you?”
“Hey, what are you running for?”
What a fiery little temper!