What a scene!

For a moment, none of them spoke; they looked at each other in silence.

Finally, Su Qiao spoke first.

"Comrade Lu, what brings you to my house?"

"I...I came to bring you something as a thank you."

A basket was placed at Lu Xiangze's feet.

There were several packages wrapped in oil paper inside.

Two lunch boxes were also placed there.

It wouldn't do for a few people to just stand there like that.

Su Qiao took out her key, opened the door, and led everyone inside.

Zhou Qing had been closely following Su Qiao.

Su Qiao took out the thermos and was about to go to the kitchen to find something.

Lu Xiangze stopped him.

"How about I do it? Your brother said it's best not to let you into the kitchen."

Su Qiao was so angry she laughed.

Why does my brother say everything?!

She stood at the kitchen doorway, sulking.

Lu Xiangze had already found the cup at the bottom of the cupboard.

"Do you need anything added?"

Su Qiao casually replied that there was honeysuckle tea outside.

The two returned to the main room.

Zhou Qing was whispering to Zeng Weidong.

Seeing Lu Xiangze and Su Qiao walk out together, she was a little surprised. Was this the same cold-faced man she had met on her blind date before?

Why does it feel like melted ice?

Zhou Qing's gaze towards the two of them immediately changed.

Lu Xiangze automatically brewed tea, served tea to others, and only poured himself a cup at the end.

The main room was fairly cool, but Su Qiao was constantly sweating.

So they had no choice but to let the three of them sit down and chat for a while.

When she returned refreshed after washing her face, the atmosphere had completely changed.

The three of them chatted and laughed.

"You had a good chat?"

Zhou Qing pulled Su Qiao to sit next to her, with Lu Xiangze sitting beside her.

She leaned close to Su Qiao's ear and whispered, "This person is alright."

Su Qiao: ? ? ? Who?

Seeing her clueless expression, Zhou Qing shook her head and continued whispering to her.

"I think this Comrade Lu is quite good; you could consider dating him."

"What are you thinking about? I'm only 17! I'll only be 18 in December!" Su Qiao's voice rose.

She's still young; in later generations, she'd be at university age.

Zhou Qing stared at her, stunned, and looked her up and down.

Is she 17?

Su Qiao was deeply shocked. "Doesn't it look like it?"

Zhou Qing shook her head honestly.

She thought Su Qiao was already an adult, and suddenly felt glad that she hadn't called her "sister".

She's two years older than Su Qiao.

The two skipped over the topic.

Zeng Weidong and Lu Xiangze exchanged a glance and smiled.

The two had their own thoughts.

A hint of regret flashed through Lu Xiangze's mind.

He noticed it was getting late.

She proactively said, "Qiaoqiao, isn't it time for lunch?"

Su Qiao wasn't unfamiliar with this name.

Why does it sound so strange coming from Lu Xiangze?

"How could you..."

“Your brother is my comrade-in-arms. He asked me to take good care of you, so it’s okay for me to call you by your name, right? Don’t be so formal with me, just call me Brother Lu.”

Zhou Qing gave Su Qiao a teasing look.

Su Qiao nodded immediately. "Let's leave it at that. The more you hesitate, the more it seems like something's going on."

"What does Qiaoqiao want to eat?"

"Anything is fine."

"Then I'll handle it myself." After saying that, Lu Xiangze went into the kitchen as if he knew the way well and closed the door.

"Well, you figure it out yourself~"

Su Qiao moved aside.

"Speak properly. What brings you here today?"

Speaking of this, Zhou Qing immediately remembered it. She crossed her arms angrily.

"Didn't you say you'd come visit me? I waited and waited, but you never showed up, so I had to come here."

Su Qiao gave an awkward smile.

I've been so busy lately.

"Let's not talk about that now. You left in such a hurry last time that you haven't taken your clothes back yet."

Su Qiao went back to her room and took out the clothes that she had washed and dried long ago.

I also prepared a few bags of leftover mountain produce from last time.

Give everything to Zhou Qing.

Zhou Qing didn't want to accept it at first, but Su Qiao persuaded her to.

I was thinking about what to send her next time.

Before long, Lu Xiangze brought out several dishes.

In addition, considering that Su Qiao likes spicy food, two spicy dishes were specially prepared.

There was also the braised pork he had packed from a state-run restaurant.

It was originally intended as a treat for Su Qiao, but I didn't expect there would be guests.

I had no choice but to cook two dishes on the spot.

Su Qiao ate with great pleasure.

She didn't feel so uncomfortable when Lu Xiangze called her Qiaoqiao anymore.

Having an older brother who's a great cook is really nice.

Zhou Qing could only eat half of it before she couldn't eat anymore.

She has recently started losing weight and is gradually getting back in shape.

Everyone else looked very surprised when they saw her.

Only Su Qiao seemed the same as before, making her much more comfortable to be around.

After Su Qiao finished eating, she realized that Zhou Qing hadn't eaten much.

"Is the food not to your liking?"

Zeng Weidong consciously swept the remaining food in her bowl into his own and ate it all.

"Qingqing, I'll say it again: take it slow. Don't rush things; it's bad for your health."

Zhou Qing nodded shyly.

He then apologized to Su Qiao.

Su Qiao didn't care.

After everyone had finished eating, Lu Xiangze insisted on clearing the table.

Zhou Qing then revealed the true purpose of her visit.

She has no one to confide in.

We can only turn to Su Qiao.

Zhou Qing explained the whole story to Su Qiao.

It turns out that last time she fell into the water, it was Zhou Xiaohe who had someone push her.

Unfortunately, no evidence was found, and the person who pushed her into the water also died in an accident.

Only the Zhou family knew about this.

Zhou's parents knew her personality; she never lied, and they trusted her completely.

So after that, Zhou's parents and Zhou Xiaohe's family had no contact with each other.

But that was her third uncle, the one her grandmother doted on the most. She insisted on living with him even if it meant being poor.

He always expects his eldest son to take care of his younger brother.

Zhou's father was not such a feudal person; he only paid what he was supposed to pay.

Grandma scolded Zhou's father every day for being unfilial.

One day, Grandma suddenly became very attentive and made her a bowl of noodles, but Zhou Xiaohe had poisoned it.

If it weren't for Zeng Weidong's timely rescue...

I'm afraid I won't survive this time.

Zhou Xiaohe has been arrested, and her grandmother is in the hospital due to her advanced age and illness.

He cursed her and Zhou's father every day.

They even insisted that they release Zhou Xiaohe...

The news spread throughout the alley, but everyone was saying she wasn't still alive. It's all over now; people are saying she should release the person.

Tell her to be magnanimous.

This is absolutely appalling; someone would kill a loved one simply out of jealousy.

Su Qiao looked Zhou Qing up and down.

"So, is your loss of appetite due to food poisoning? How are you feeling now?"

"I'm completely cured. It's like fighting poison with poison. Dr. Zeng said that my body will gradually return to normal in the future."

Seeing that she looked healthy and had a strong voice, Su Qiao felt much more at ease.

Lu Xiangze had finished cleaning by then.

I'm getting ready to leave now.

"Qiaoqiao, I'm going back now. If there's anything you want to eat, just leave it in the kitchen, and I'll cook for you tonight."

Su Qiao was about to refuse.

Lu Xiangze added another sentence.

"Your brother said he can't let you go hungry."