Zhou Yunting’s sharp brows twitched slightly.
He felt as though he had overlooked something important.
At that same moment, far away in the capital, inside a two-story building belonging to the Wu family—
The doors to the Wu family hall were tightly shut.
“Father, the Zhou father and son are completely ruined this time.
“Even if policies loosen in the future and they somehow return, they’ll never be useful again.
“They no longer have the ability to compete with our Wu family.
“As for the Liu family?”
Old Master Wu frowned deeply, his expression grave.
“You’re certain?”
“I personally examined their injuries before returning. There’s no mistake.”
“The Liu family has no influence left in the military. With the Zhou family fallen, they pose no threat to us anymore.
“There’s no need to bother with them.”
Naturally, Liu Zhixia knew nothing about the conversation taking place in the capital.
Right now, all she could think about was how to make full use of her supplies while bringing them out openly and naturally.
She had assumed that traveling at night would be convenient since fewer people would be around.
Unexpectedly, the moment she stepped outside, she ran directly into the novel’s female lead.
Liu Zhixia’s gaze casually swept over the white steamed buns in Zheng Chunli’s hands before glancing toward the room behind her. A strange smile appeared on her lips.
Combined with the world-weary look in Zheng Chunli’s eyes—something that clearly did not match her age—what else was there to misunderstand?
So the female lead must have grown tired of her previous life with the male lead and wanted to choose someone different in this lifetime.
Although that idea strangely aligned with some of Liu Zhixia’s own thoughts…
Why did it still make her feel uncomfortable?
Truthfully, while the novel’s male lead was hardly admirable, the female lead was no saint either.
Take her “support-type” spatial storage, for example.
That treasure originally belonged to her aunt and was meant for the aunt’s biological daughter.
In the end, however, the female lead claimed it for herself.
And she even justified it by saying:
“My aunt’s daughter can’t be found anymore. Keeping it would only bring sadness. It’s better to put it to good use.”
How shamelessly manipulative.
The novel barely mentioned the female lead’s aunt.
It only said she had trusted the wrong man, became pregnant before marriage, and was eventually driven to death by the harshness of the times.
As for her daughter, no one knew where she had gone.
The aunt’s dying wish had been for the butterfly accessory in her possession to be passed on to her own daughter.
Who could have imagined that not only had she trusted the wrong man—
She had also entrusted the wrong people.
In the end, everything benefited the female lead and her mother.
As the memory resurfaced, Liu Zhixia’s gaze toward Zheng Chunli turned faintly mocking.
“Educated Youth Zheng, do you need something?”
At that instant, Zheng Chunli suddenly felt uncomfortable all over.
It was as if all her little schemes had become completely transparent under this woman’s sharp, piercing gaze.
Steadying herself, she finally replied:
“I have something I’d like to speak to Brother Zhou about.”
Liu Zhixia silently laughed inwardly.
This familiarity was truly something else.
The lawful wife was standing right here, yet the female lead had already started calling him “Brother Zhou.”
Still, Liu Zhixia was curious to see what this little white lotus intended to do, so she lightly stepped aside.
Unexpectedly, both she and Zheng Chunli suddenly lost their balance at the same time and nearly fell over together.
Even Liu Zhixia was startled.
She knew her own physical abilities well.
Could it be that she and the female lead were simply incompatible by nature?
For a brief instant, Zheng Chunli felt an inexplicable panic.
But since nothing seemed physically wrong, she quickly recovered.
What neither woman realized was that their spatial dimensions had changed.
Zheng Chunli’s space was rapidly shrinking.
At most, within two days, it would disappear completely.
Meanwhile, beside Liu Zhixia’s spatial marketplace, the landscape was rapidly expanding.
Mountains rose from the earth.
Lush trees spread across the land, and the scent of ripened grain drifted through the air.
Birdsong occasionally echoed in the distance.
Her space seemed to come alive.
Bursting with vitality.
When Zhou Yunting saw Zheng Chunli bringing steamed buns to them, surprise briefly flashed across his face.
“Comrade, we’ve never met before. Thank you for your kindness.
“But grain is precious these days. I can’t accept rewards without reason.”
His meaning was perfectly clear:
He would not accept things from strangers.
Zheng Chunli’s almond-shaped eyes widened as mist gathered in them.
“Brother Zhou, don’t you remember me?
“My father is the deputy director of the Second Food Factory in the capital. My brother is Zheng Chuncheng. I used to greet you whenever I visited my brother…”
Liu Zhixia crossed her arms and leaned casually against the doorway, smiling brightly like someone watching an entertaining drama unfold.
After all, she herself was only here to cling to a powerful ally.
She had never thought too deeply about the future.
Deep down, Liu Zhixia did not actually mind if Zhou Yunting someday found another woman.
But even if Zheng Chunli was the original female lead, Liu Zhixia genuinely disliked her character.
Then came Zhou Yunting’s devastatingly blunt response—
“Zheng Chuncheng? I don’t remember him…”
His voice was calm, tinged with thoughtful confusion.
Yet it was loud enough for everyone in the room to hear clearly.
Who was Zhou Yunting?
With a single glance, he could already see the calculations written all over this woman’s face.
He did not believe there was much left worth scheming for from a man in his current state.
But one thing was certain:
He absolutely could not allow Liu Zhixia to become unhappy.
Just moments earlier, he had seen her frown.
Of course he remembered Zheng Chuncheng—that man had once served as a company commander under him.
But since the little girl was unhappy…
Then naturally, he no longer remembered who Zheng Chuncheng was.
If Zhou Yunting knew that Liu Zhixia was not actually jealous—
That she simply did not want him deceived by a white lotus woman and hoped he would someday find someone better—
Who knew what expression he would make then?
At this moment, Zheng Chunli felt thoroughly humiliated.
Still, she had not forgotten her true purpose.
She had come to gain favor.
Liu Zhixia was destined to die young anyway.
As long as she accumulated enough goodwill points with the Zhou family, then once Liu Zhixia was gone, wouldn’t she naturally take her place?
Patience was something she had plenty of.
So Zheng Chunli immediately replaced her expression with what she believed was a flawless, gentle smile.
“Brother Zhou, keep the buns and eat them. I still have things to do, so I’ll leave first…”
Without giving the Zhou family any chance to refuse, she turned and ran off quickly.
Zhou Yunting awkwardly rubbed his nose.
Faced with Commander Zhou’s disapproving look and Old Master Zhou’s furious glare, he felt extremely wronged.
For some reason, he even looked a little pitiful as he glanced toward Liu Zhixia.
Seeing such a normally elegant and composed man reveal such a rare expression, Liu Zhixia nearly burst out laughing.
Still, she managed to hold it in and merely let out a soft huff.
“Commander Zhou, having such a gentle and considerate young lady fussing over you—
“Doesn’t it feel pretty satisfying?”
The moment her words fell, three pairs of eyes instantly locked onto Zhou Yunting like searchlights.
Despite having done absolutely nothing wrong, Zhou Yunting suddenly felt as though he had committed some unforgivable crime.
As if he were currently facing a three-way interrogation.
One wrong answer, and the consequences would be disastrous.
Suddenly, Zhou Yunting sat upright and sharply raised a military salute toward Liu Zhixia.
His posture stood perfectly straight.
“Comrade Liu Zhixia—
“In the past, I was loyal to the army and loyal to the nation.
“Now, I am loyal to the nation, loyal to the army…
“And even more loyal to you.”
For once, Liu Zhixia’s face flushed red.
The man’s eyes remained fixed on her, blazing intensely.
Beside them, Commander Zhou and Old Master Zhou nodded in satisfaction.
Truthfully, everyone in the room had already seen through Zheng Chunli’s little tricks.
At most, she had merely become a catalyst for the young couple’s growing feelings.
Commander Zhou and Old Master Zhou genuinely liked the current Liu Zhixia.
The girl was decisive, loyal, and deeply affectionate.
If the Zhou family had never fallen, she would still have been more than worthy of Zhou Yunting.
How could they possibly allow someone so obviously scheming to take advantage of the situation?