Zhu Yingying shook her head gently, her hands clenching nervously, her voice growing weaker and more timid as she spoke.
"No, I don't know why she's targeting me. Maybe I did something wrong and she misunderstood..."
"Stop!"
Zhou Qiqi pressed down hard on Zhu Yingying's thin shoulders with both hands, so hard that Zhu Yingying had to look up.
The moment their eyes met, Zhou Qiqi's almond-shaped eyes widened, and she spoke with unwavering resolve.
"You can't think like that. When you encounter someone who is completely unreasonable, don't always look for the cause within yourself. If you can blame others, never blame yourself. Got it?!"
As she spoke, she held up three fingers.
"There's an old saying that goes, 'I examine myself three times a day'—Was I too polite? Did I give him too much face? Should I have taken action?"
Zhu Yingying was completely confused. She subconsciously pushed up her glasses and muttered softly, "Ah... I remember that's not what it meant..."
Zhou Qiqi said confidently, her eyes unblinking: "You must have remembered it wrong."
Zhu Yingying wasn't stupid; she understood that Zhou Qiqi was trying to comfort her, so she stopped arguing and nodded, blushing.
But she was still a little worried. "You'd better be careful in the future. You spoke up for me today, so Li Hongjuan will definitely hate you from now on."
Zhou Qiqi shook her head nonchalantly, her jet-black ponytail flying freely, a relaxed smile on her face.
"I'm not afraid at all. If she hates me, I'll hate her right away!"
As she said this, she grabbed a broom from the corner of the wall and swung it forcefully in the air.
"Remember, if you get bitten by a dog, don't kneel down and bark like a dog. You have to pick up a stick and beat its leg until it's crippled!"
Zhu Yingying burst out laughing at her series of absurd arguments, and the gloom of the past few days was instantly dispelled.
The two chatted and laughed as they tidied up the house.
They worked together to move all the stoves, coal briquettes, and other things piled up at the door into their home.
Then, she set up all the pots, pans, tablecloths, and bed sheets she had just bought.
In less than an hour, the house, which was originally cold and simple like a military barracks, was transformed into a warm and comfortable pastoral style.
The natural wood furniture was covered with white floral fabric, with a layer of white georgette and a layer of lace underneath. Canned jars served as vases, filled with wildflowers that Zhou Qiqi had picked outside the military dependents' area, scattered here and there, full of life.
A breeze blows, causing the light gauze to dance and carrying the fragrance of flowers—it's both beautiful and pleasant.
"So beautiful!"
Zhu Yingying looked around the room excitedly, her eyes practically glued to the view.
Suddenly turning her head, she saw the small room where Shen Huaichuan had rested last night. It was completely different from the other rooms; it was still cold and bare, with no decorations at all.
"This small room..."
Zhou Qiqi coughed lightly, her face flushing red instantly, a little embarrassed.
"I don't want anyone to stay in this room. Let's leave it like this for now. There's no need to decorate it specially. If it's comfortable, people won't want to leave."
If this place is so comfortable, what if someone gets addicted to living here every day?
After saying that, she quickly changed the subject.
"Come here quickly and help me measure the window size. I'll go get some fabric later to make some curtains for the bedroom, and then get some cabinets and furniture."
With that, the two quickly walked into the bedroom.
But no one noticed that someone was quietly standing in the courtyard at some point.
The man heard their conversation clearly.
After hearing this, his face instantly turned gloomy and ugly, and he turned and left.
"Yingying, did you hear anything?"
Zhou Qiqi vaguely sensed the sound of leather shoes on the ground in the yard, but when she turned her head she didn't see anyone. She looked back at Zhu Yingying and saw her shake her head, so she didn't think about it anymore.
The two of them busied themselves in the house for quite a while, and before they knew it, it was past five o'clock.
In about half an hour, the men who have been busy all day in the army, as well as the children who are going to school, will gradually return.
Zhu Yingying hurriedly went home to cook, carrying the piece of pork belly she had just bought.
Zhou Qiqi casually put on an old coat full of patches and turned to walk towards the stove.
When Zhu Yingying bought meat, Zhou Qiqi also bought some vegetables, planning to make a delicious braised pork rice.
She carefully picked out some coal ash and placed it at the bottom of the stove. Then she tore the newspaper into strips and struck a match with a "snap".
After lighting the newspaper, I gently tossed it into the stove and then sprinkled a handful of dry wood shavings on it to make the flames leap up even brighter.
Once the flames had steadily risen, she calmly picked up the honeycomb briquettes and carefully placed them into the stove.
In no time, the coal was burning bright red. She used the tongs to pick up a new piece of coal and placed it steadily on top, ensuring that the fire would continue to burn brightly and not go out.
The entire set of movements was fluid and skillful.
These cooking and fire-starting skills weren't from the original owner's memories, but rather Zhou Qiqi's own real-life experience.
Before she traveled through time, she had just started teaching in a remote mountainous area where the power grid was unstable and cooking relied entirely on coal stoves.
A local girl, seven or eight years old, was very skilled at cooking with coal, and we taught her step by step.
While the coal briquettes were heating up, Zhou Qiqi picked up an onion and chopped it into small pieces with a few quick "clack-clack-clack" sounds.
You should know that the essence of this braised pork rice lies entirely in the onions.
Dice the onions and put them in a pan. Fry over medium-low heat until golden brown and translucent. Remove and set aside.
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