It's just that in her past life, she really didn't pay much attention to the Gu family and Gu Juncheng, to the point that she didn't notice Chen Xia at all.
The villagers stepped forward and helped Gu Juncheng and Chen Xia out of the net.
Chen Xia finally couldn't hang onto Gu Juncheng's neck anymore, so she held his hand instead. "Ah, Chengzi, your hand is bleeding, what should we do? It's all my fault."
Lin Qingping stood at the back of the crowd, her gaze piercing through them, fixated on the two.
Someone as sharp as Gu Juncheng had long noticed her, so he withdrew his hand, his tone indifferent, "It's okay, just a minor injury."
Seeing that the people had been rescued, the villagers returned to their own work; it was busy farming season!
At the back of the hill, only Gu Juncheng, Lin Qingping, and Chen Xia remained.
Only now did Chen Xia see Lin Qingping standing next to Gu Juncheng. She called out, "Sister-in-law," her face full of surprise, "You're here too?"
Lin Qingping didn't know if Chen Xia's surprise was genuine or fake, but she smiled and looked at Gu Juncheng, "Mom never told me there was another younger sister in the family. Why don't I know her?"
Just as Gu Juncheng was about to say something, Chen Xia quickly smiled and interjected, "Chengzi and I have known each other since we wore 'open-crotch pants.' Today, it's all my fault—I shouldn't have arranged a reunion with Chengzi today, and we ran into the landslide, causing him to get hurt. I'm sorry, sister-in-law!"
Tsk tsk tsk. Lin Qingping clicked her tongue several times in her heart. This level—truly impressive!
Lin Qingping smiled slightly and linked her arm with Gu Juncheng's. "Chengzi, the food at home is ready. Mom asked me to call you. Do you want me to bring your friend too?"
Chen Xia's gaze fell on Gu Juncheng's arm that Lin Qingping had hooked onto.
These days in the countryside, it's rare to see a couple publicly holding hands like that.
Chen Xia's gaze dimmed, and he smiled awkwardly, 'N-no, I have something to do...'
'Oh, then we'll go ahead. Goodbye.' Lin Qingping linked arms with Gu Juncheng and walked down the mountain, occasionally glancing up at him. She noticed a dry leaf stuck in his hair and smiled as she reached out to flick it off.
Chen Xia stood behind them, watching Lin Qingping's radiant smile, his eyes darkening further.
————
Lin Qingping knew Gu Juncheng was looking at her.
Since the moment she linked her hand with Gu Juncheng on the mountain, he had been watching her.
But Lin Qingping pretended not to notice.
Back at home, she dug out the medicine Gu Juncheng had applied to her arm the previous night and sat in front of him, ordering him to extend his hand.
She had to give an order because for someone as tough as Gu Juncheng, a small scrape on the back of his hand wouldn't bother him at all.
'This is different from what we normally...' he completely ignored her approach.
Lin Qingping had no choice but to put on a threatening expression, 'I don't care about your usual training! In the army, your soldiers obey you; at home, you obey me!'
Gu Juncheng finally, helplessly, held out his hand to her. Lin Qingping carefully applied the medicine to his hand while blowing on it as she went, and Gu Juncheng watched her concentrate on the task with a bit of exasperation.
Lin Qingping didn't care what he thought. Only when she was satisfied with her work did she let him go eat. The meal she cooked today was so good that Zhiyuan lingered at the table even after finishing.
When they went out, their mother-in-law Liu Fen was still there, saying to Zhiyuan, 'If you like it, eat more! Why are you running off so soon?'
Lin Qingping knew that Zhiyuan liked to eat today's pumpkin pancakes. However, as a child living as a dependent in someone else's home, who had previously been disliked by her, he was inevitably sensitive and couldn't change quickly.
She left two pumpkin pancakes for Zhiyuan; he could eat them later.
Speaking of which, in his past life, Zhiyuan liked sweets. For someone so stubborn, tough, and socially hardened to enjoy sweets...
Gu Juncheng was slightly surprised when he looked at this meal.
If it had been her, she would have been surprised too. After all, since marrying into the Gu family, none of the villagers had ever seen her do any work.
Gu Juncheng usually ate quickly. Sitting across from him, she hadn't even finished one pumpkin pancake when he had already eaten a big bowl...
"Is it tasty?" she asked, smiling, her voice soft and slightly coquettish.
Gu Juncheng was about to eat his second bowl, but at her words, his hand holding the chopsticks paused. After taking a bite, he said, "She asked me to help with the orchard. Her brother injured his foot."
Biting the pumpkin pancake, Lin Qingping nodded, her eyes curved with a smile. "Mm!"
Was he answering her about how she liked the lunch, or explaining the matter on the mountain?
Naturally, she meant Chen Xia...
Anyway, his personality was always like this: quiet and unwilling to express what he was thinking directly. That was how he was in his past life. No one knew what was on his mind; he would only send her money and things unavailable in the countryside on time each month.
He still had considerable prestige in the village. The village secretary considered him knowledgeable because of his military background. When he returned, everyone consulted him on everything. Having just finished eating, they were already asking him for help again.
They were busy all afternoon. By evening, they invited Gu Juncheng to have dinner at home and even asked for Lin Qingping to join.
Lin Qingping was delighted!
She happily went, but as soon as she entered the door, Chen Xia arrived.
Chen Xia smiled warmly, holding a piece of meat, and said, "Party secretary, my brother has been injured, and the family farm work has suffered without your family's help. Otherwise, we wouldn't know what to do. My brother asked me to come and thank you."
Then, she looked surprised and said, "Oh, Chengzi and his wife are here too!"
The party secretary laughed warmly, "Yes, I invited Chengzi and his wife to dinner. Why don't you join us as well?"
"Well..." Chen Xia glanced at Gu Juncheng and Lin Qingping, "That's great! I haven't seen Chengzi in a long time. Sister-in-law, do you mind?"
Lin Qingping smiled, but inwardly she was amused.
A dinner invitation from the village party secretary — would she really mind? She wouldn't be so rude, right?
Besides, even if she said she minded, Chen Xia had already sat down, hadn't he?
When the dishes were served, the party secretary also brought out a jar of homemade wine.
At this time, wine was a luxury. How could villagers buy wine? They brewed their own. And even if they did, they wouldn't use rice; grains were too precious. They brewed with wild fruits from the mountains, like wild plums, wild grapes, wild plums, and so on. Gujiacun was backed by mountains, and almost every family did this.
The secretary enthusiastically poured wine for Gu Juncheng, but Gu Juncheng said he wouldn't drink; he had to return to the army the next day.
Chen Xia reached over with one hand and picked up the cup in front of Gu Juncheng. "Chengzi has discipline and can't drink, so I'll drink this cup for him!"
Chen Xia.
Hmm? Lin Qingping thought this person was really interesting.
Chen Xia looked completely innocent and pure, staring at Lin Qing...
Chen Xia had a face full of innocence and naivety as he looked at Lin Qingping. 'Sister-in-law, Cheng Zi and I are like real brothers. I drank on his behalf!'