Chapter 27 Chapter 27 You're Not Coquettish Enough

The lights in the yard are solar-powered. It has been raining during the day recently, so the lights are not very bright at night, but they are enough to see the people in front of you clearly.

The man stood with his back to them, his slender figure immediately caught their attention. A light rain mist shrouded him, adding a bit of mystery.

Zhou Zilang was puzzled: "Who is standing in the yard?"

Jiang Ruzhi: "Is he from here? I don't think I've seen him before."

After saying that, the man suddenly turned around, and his face suddenly became clear. Zhou Zilang yelled, "Fuck!" "Why is it him?"

Jiang Ruzhi was also dumbfounded: "Why is Zhao Qingshi here?"

Ruan Xiangyi said nothing, and a thousand thoughts flashed through her mind: It's over.

Turning around, Zhao Qingshi immediately noticed the crutch under her armpit and her limping gait from a distance of several meters.

Ruan Xiangyi watched him approach step by step, listened to the discussion next to her, and was thinking about how to explain. Before she could open her mouth, Zhao Qingshi bent down and picked her up.

The two people next to him exclaimed, "You look at me and I look at you, what's going on!"

The two of them stood there petrified, a light rain falling, watching Zhao Qingshi carrying Ruan Xiangyi upstairs.

Zhao Qingshi said nothing.

Ruan Xiangyi hugged his neck tightly, and when she looked up, she saw his cold and hard jaw.

"Where do you live?" he asked.

Ruan Xiangyi pointed, he kicked open the half-closed door and walked in, putting her on the bed.

Zhou Zilang had been working in the industry for many years, so he calmed down and asked, "Why is Mr. Zhao here?"

Zhou Zilang: “?”

Jiang Ruzhi looked at Ruan Xiangyi.

Zhao Qingshi carried her inside, letting out two awkward laughs from his throat: "You're welcome."

Ruan Xiangyi immediately lowered her head guiltily. Only she could hear the meaning behind this laughter.

Going upstairs, Zhao Qingshi put her on the bed and squatted down to help her take off her shoes. Jiang Ruzhi followed in and saw this scene, her mouth opened wide, not knowing what to say.

Ruan Xiangyi had no choice but to ask her to get some hot water for her. After sending the person away, she said, "It's just a sprain, nothing serious."

Zhao Qingshi carefully examined it, his expression finally less gloomy. After confirming that there were no wounds, he asked, "How did you sprain it?"

Ruan Xiangyi hesitated for a long time, and under his intimidation, she had to tell the truth. After she finished speaking, she raised her eyes and secretly looked at his expression, and her face became even darker.

After a while, he went to her suitcase and found another pair of cotton socks and put them on her to keep her warm.

There was no heating, and the room was freezing. With him around, she felt even colder.

"Why are you here?" she asked, changing the subject.

Zhao Qingshi remained silent, thinking about having someone come install an air conditioner tomorrow. Ruan Xiangyi touched his shoulder with her hand when he deliberately ignored her: "Don't ignore me."

Zhao Qingshi raised his eyelids and glanced at her, then said in a tone of voice, "Of course, I came to see how the filming of Reporter Ruan's rural revitalization documentary is going."

Even though she knew he was teasing her on purpose, Ruan Xiangyi still felt embarrassed. Her phone accidentally fell from her pocket to the ground. She tried to reach for it, but Zhao Qingshi picked it up first and handed it to her.

Ruan Xiangyi: "Thank you."

The man laughed meaningfully: "You're welcome."

“…”

She had no choice but to ask again: "How did you find this place?"

"After entering the village, find someone to lead the way."

"Have you been here long?"

"It's okay, just five hours." As he said this, he raised his eyes and looked at her quietly.

“…”

Ruan Xiangyi always felt that his words tonight were sarcastic. When he came, it should have been the time when she went out to look for Li Yingxue, and when she came back from the hospital.

He just stood there waiting in the yard?

"You should have told me."

"Would you like to check your phone?"

"I'm sorry." She didn't pay attention and saw that there was a wet spot on his shoulder. Ruan Xiangyi apologized.

"If I don't come, are you not going to tell me?" Zhao Qingshi asked meaningfully.

The word "again" seemed to refer to something in particular. Ruan Xiangyi answered truthfully, "I'll be back in Yitong in two days. You'll know even if you don't come."

But she really knows how to talk. Zhao Qingshi snorted lightly, pinched her face in anger, and sighed helplessly: "How can what you told me be the same as what I discovered myself? You came from such a long place, and you didn't tell me anything. Have you ever thought about my feelings? I will be very worried about Xiangyi."

Ruan Xiangyi was slightly stunned.

After getting the hot water, Jiang Ruzhi happened to see something she shouldn't have seen. She actually saw Zhao Qingshi's hand on Ruan Xiangyi's face!

She was in a dilemma. After thinking for half a minute, she gritted her teeth and shouted, "Xiangyi, the hot water is here."

Hearing the sound, Ruan Xiangyi raised her leg and gently pushed him away.

"Please put it there for me, thank you."

Jiang Ruzhi put down the hot water, stood for a while and asked, "Is there anything else I can help you with?"

Ruan Xiangyi glanced at the person in front of her and shook her head. Seeing this, Jiang Ruzhi hurried back to her room, closed the door, and clutched her chest in disbelief as she recalled the events. The more she thought about it, the more it felt like a dream. She texted Zhou Zilang: "Mr. Zhao stayed in Xiangyi's room and even knelt down to take off her shoes! Am I blind?! And the most important thing is, he even pinched her face! This is too intimate!"

Zhou Zilang: Holy crap! Is this true?!

Jiang Ruzhi: I saw it with my own eyes! I couldn't believe what I saw was real!

Zhou Zilang: Then everything makes sense. Do you still remember that department dinner?

Of course she remembered, it was the first time she met Zhao Qing.

Zhou Zilang: I suspect they knew each other at that time.

Jiang Ruzhi's eyes lit up, as if she had found a big secret: You mean, the relationship between the two of them is extraordinary?

Zhou Zilang: This is the current speculation.

Jiang Ruzhi: But Zhao Qingshi is married.

Jiang Ruzhi fell into despair. She felt that Ruan Xiangyi was a good girl, pretty and well-behaved. How could she not do such a thing?

A minute passed.

Zhou Zilang: Let’s just pretend we don’t know.

After everyone left, Zhao Qingshi closed the door and said to her, "I'll stay here tonight."

"here?"

"Um."

Ruan Xiangyi's first reaction was no, "Ruzhi is across the street, she will find out."

"You don't think she noticed something just now?"

"But……"

"Oh," Zhao Qingshi stared at her with a half-smile. Ruan Xiangyi pretended to cough twice, then hooked two scallion-white fingers around the hem of his shirt: "Please."

Her tone softened, her eyes flickering, reminding Zhao Qingshi of the cat at home, wagging its beautiful tail and rubbing against your hand, then meowing a few times in your palm, and then easily deceiving the cat from your hand. Looking at her again, there was a hint of pleading in her eyes, a pair of bright and beautiful eyes that were hard to ignore. Zhao Qingshi suddenly thought of what he had said that day, if Ruan Xiangyi had acted coquettishly towards him...

"Ruan Xiangyi."

"What."

"You're not cute enough."

Ruan Xiangyi blinked when she heard him say this suddenly. What?

"I'm not being coquettish." Ruan Xiangyi's ears turned red with admiration.

"Xiangyi, we haven't seen each other for so long. How could you bear to let me go to the hotel alone?" Zhao Qingshi played the emotional card. "I'm unfamiliar with this place. I've waited so long for you to come back, and you have the heart to kick me out?"

Ruan Xiangyi was hesitant. "There's only one bathroom here, and Ruzhi lives across from me. It would be very inconvenient for her if you lived here."

"Then come with me."

"But Ruzhi would ask me to go have breakfast with her in the morning. If she found out I wasn't there..."

"So what do you want?"

"I have no idea."

“…”

Zhao Qingshi smiled and said, "I found that I can't talk to you properly."

Ruan Xiangyi: "Ah?"

He added unhappily, "You'll make me mad at you, you know."

After staring at each other for a long time, Ruan Xiangyi moved her lips and said, "I'm sorry."

It was like a punch hitting a piece of soft cotton. Zhao Qingshi stayed for a while, and then left when he saw that she was sleepy.

Before leaving, he knocked on the door opposite. Jiang Ruzhi came to open the door. Seeing it was him, she was stunned for a moment: "Mr. Zhao, what do you want to talk to me about?"

Zhao Qingshi said directly: "Xiangyi's leg is injured and it's inconvenient for her. Please help me take care of her."

Jiang Ruzhi nodded vigorously: "Don't worry, I will!"

Zhao Qingshi nodded: "It's troublesome."

After Zhao Qingshi went downstairs, Jiang Ruzhi recalled the scene just now. Ahhh, his name is Xiangyi!

Before coming here, Zhao Qingshi opened a hotel in the town. For convenience, he ended up staying here and squeezed in with Zhou Zilang. Fortunately, there was still an empty room.

Zhou Zilang was terrified. The conditions here were much worse than those in the girls' dormitory. The paint on the walls was peeling, and if it rained at night, the rain from the eaves would drip onto the steel scaffolding, making it impossible to sleep all night. But even if it didn't rain, it wasn't much better. Here, you could hear roosters crowing at four in the morning, and two hours later, you could hear the neighbors talking. He finally understood. No wonder they say time is long in the countryside. How could getting up at six not be long?

At three in the morning, Zhao Qingshi still hadn't fallen asleep. The bed was hard, but he also heard the sound of the next-door neighbor snoring. He had never experienced such pain in his life. He closed his eyes and forced himself to stay awake until four o'clock. Just as he was about to fall asleep, the crowing of a rooster woke him up again. He was so annoyed that he simply sat up and pondered until dawn.

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The author has something to say: I raise my paw and ask for a day off tomorrow!