Zhou Qiqi left quickly this time, and returned even faster.
Before Shen Huaichuan could finish cleaning up the broken porcelain shards on the ground, she returned with her things.
She first handed the towel to He Wanrou and said weakly, "Sister He, wipe yourself down."
Hearing her still call her "elder sister," He Wanrou glared at her resentfully, snatched the towel, and began to wipe herself.
Zhou Qiqi ignored her and turned to walk towards the door again.
Shen Huaichuan assumed she was going to get the mop, so he quickly followed, instinctively reaching out to take it, saying as he did so:
"Give it to me. There are broken pieces of porcelain on the ground. Don't cut your hands. I'll clean it up."
He had already arranged with Zhou Qiqi to do all the chores around the house when he got back; he was unwilling to let Zhou Qiqi do any of them.
But when he reached out, he caught nothing.
Looking down, Zhou Qiqi was not holding a mop at all, but a thick stack of the "Avant-garde Daily".
This was their military region's newspaper, which he read almost every issue of, and he recognized it at a glance.
He asked, somewhat puzzled, "What's this...?"
My gaze unconsciously swept across the top of the newspaper and immediately caught sight of a large, brightly smiling photo of Zhou Qiqi, accompanied by a prominent headline reporting her advanced achievements in reform and innovation.
Zhou Qiqi blinked at him quickly and gestured towards his parents.
Shen Huaichuan didn't fully understand her intention at first and was wondering why she was taking the newspaper.
Immediately afterwards, he saw Zhou Qiqi grab the top newspaper with her photo and story printed on it, and make a move to spread it on the puddle of water, saying as she did so:
"I don't know where I've put the mop and rags at home. I'll use these old newspapers to absorb the water for now. They should be pretty useful."
Shen Huaichuan instantly had a flash of inspiration and understood her "bad idea".
He immediately straightened his face, coughed heavily twice, frowned deeply, and scolded:
"Nonsense! Don't you even look at what kind of newspaper this is?! Is this something you can just use to wipe the floor and absorb water?! Qiqi, what's wrong with you?! This is outrageous!"
It has to be said that people can really learn to do bad things without any instruction.
Shen Huaichuan's rebuke came quickly and fiercely, his expression and tone making it seem as if he was truly angry, successfully drawing the attention of everyone in the room.
Zhou Qiqi silently gave him a thumbs up from behind, but on the surface she bit her lip, her eyes timid, looking frightened, and mumbled "I...I..." twice, unable to speak.
It was as if they had really done something wrong.
He Wanrou felt incredibly pleased to see Shen Huaichuan actually lose his temper with Zhou Qiqi.
To achieve her goals, besides sowing discord between Zhou Qiqi and the Shen family couple, she also needed to sow discord between Shen Huaichuan and Zhou Qiqi.
She just didn't expect Shen Huaichuan to be so protective of Zhou Qiqi, completely ignoring her words, and her attempts to provoke him earlier had failed.
She was just wondering what to do when the opportunity came knocking on her door.
She was secretly overjoyed, but put on a righteous look of "can't stand it anymore" on her face. She rushed forward and reached out to snatch the newspaper from Zhou Qiqi's hand!
Zhou Qiqi seemed not to have reacted yet, her fingers still gripping the edge of the newspaper.
He Wanrou didn't manage to snatch the newspaper; she only managed to catch a glimpse of the registration information and military insignia at the very top.
But that was enough. She felt she had seized upon a huge weakness, and following Shen Huaichuan's words, she joined him in a united front, questioning him:
"The Vanguard Daily?! Oh dear! Isn't this a military newspaper? Zhou Qiqi, you...you've gone too far! How dare you treat a military newspaper like this?!"
As she spoke, she stared at Zhou Qiqi with a accusatory gaze, as if she had committed some heinous crime.
Upon hearing the words "military report," Shen Zhenbang's brows furrowed even more deeply, and he asked in a low, displeased voice, "What? Military report?"
Just then, Shen Huaichuan snatched the newspaper, his face grim, and handed it to his father.
The expressions on the father and son's faces were practically identical.
His brows were furrowed, his lips were pressed into a thin line, and his eyes were sharp, clearly showing his displeasure!
He Wanrou felt incredibly pleased as she looked at the father and son's identical serious expressions!
The opportunity to add fuel to the fire has arrived!
She quickly pressed her advantage, speaking in a voice that was both urgent and pained:
“Zhou Qiqi, if you want to be a military wife, you need to catch up with her mindset! The military newspaper publishes the glorious deeds of soldiers and their families! It’s an honor! Something you might never achieve in your entire life! Even if you come from the countryside and don’t understand these things, you can’t be so disrespectful! Uncle, don’t you think? She really needs to be taught a lesson!”
After she finished speaking eloquently, slightly out of breath, she waited for Shen Zhenbang to nod in agreement, and then took the opportunity to kick Zhou Qiqi a few more times.
Unexpectedly, after Shen Zhenbang took the newspaper, his gaze fell on the page and he seemed to be nailed to the spot. He didn't say a word for a long time, just kept looking down and examining it closely, his brows furrowing more and more tightly.
He Wanrou waited for a long time without receiving a response, and feeling a little anxious, she couldn't help but urge, "Uncle?"
Shen Zhenbang was engrossed in reading when he was suddenly interrupted, and he glanced at He Wanrou with some displeasure.
However, he didn't continue looking at it, but instead turned to Zhou Qiqi.
His expression shifted from displeasure to shock, inquiry, and even a hint of...admiration?
"Qiqi,"
He pointed to the newspaper and asked in surprise, "Is this... about you?"
Zhou Qiqi blinked her clear, big eyes with a blank expression, her voice soft and sweet, and asked:
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