"Director Zhang, Master Ma, don't be fooled by their dusty appearance now; they'll be quite different later!"
The certainty and excitement in her voice were infectious, dispelling Zhang Guoqiang's doubts.
Although he still had a lot of questions, he was impressed by Zhou Qiqi's previous heroic actions. He steeled himself, waved his hand, and...
"Alright! I'll do as Master Zhou says! Old Wang, hurry up and call everyone who's free to come out and unload the goods!"
Suddenly, the experienced workers and young people who had arrived early all poured out.
Shen Huaichuan rolled up his military uniform sleeves to help, but Zhou Qiqi gently pulled his elbow.
"You should go back quickly. There's a lot going on in the military region at the end of the year, so don't delay."
She felt sorry for him, for staying up all night and running around for him, but the words stuck in her throat and wouldn't come out.
Shen Huaichuan stopped what he was doing and looked at her deeply, his deep eyes seeming to see into her heart.
“We’re married, so we’re husband and wife. These things are what husband and wife should do, to share joys and sorrows.”
It was a very simple sentence, without any fancy words, but it was like a small pebble thrown into Zhou Qiqi's heart lake, creating ripples of unfamiliar waves.
She stood there, stunned.
In the past, when people talked about marriage, they referred to husband and wife.
The first thing Zhou Qiqi thought of was the image of her parents arguing and complaining to each other.
But now, just thinking about those two words makes those images suddenly blurry, and some become unclear.
Instead, there was a steaming bowl of noodles on the table when Shen Huaichuan returned home late at night, his tired sleeping face curled up on the sofa waiting for her, and the sweet moments of him holding her as they slept at night...
In a frozen corner of her heart, a crack seemed to appear, revealing a thin fissure.
A thought popped into my head: this is marriage, isn't it? It seems that when you meet the right person, everything... isn't so bad after all.
However, the thought only flashed through her mind for a moment, and she dared not dwell on it, as there were more important things waiting for her at hand.
She shook her head, banishing those unfamiliar feelings, and forcefully pushed Shen Huaichuan into the car, urging him to leave quickly.
As the jeep drove further and further away, she was about to turn around when she saw a figure she never expected to be there at this time.
She stared in surprise, thinking she had been too busy to see clearly.
"Sister Mei?!"
She exclaimed, "Why are you here at this hour?"
She's been bringing me food these past few days, but it's not mealtime right now.
Zhao Damei walked over briskly, carrying a cloth bag in her hand, a hearty smile on her face.
"Look how busy you all are. I asked Sister Ping for two days off to come and see if there's anything I can help with. You've always helped me before, now it's my turn to help you."
She shoved the bag into Zhou Qiqi's hand; inside were still warm, roasted chestnuts.
"I don't know the intricacies of your clothing making business, but I can certainly do things like cooking, serving tea and water, and running errands. I can't promise anything else, but I have plenty of strength!"
Without saying a word, he deftly rolled up his sleeves, revealing his strong arms, and joined the unloading team, hoisting a roll of woolen fabric with his back straight.
Zhang Guoqiang tried to persuade her not to tire herself out, but she just rolled her eyes and said, "I'm helping Qiqi, not you. It's none of your business to speak here."
With so many people watching, Zhang Guoqiang wasn't annoyed at all. He scratched the back of his head with a憨厚 (honest and simple) expression, and the admiration in his eyes as he watched Zhao Damei work efficiently was impossible to hide.
As Zhou Qiqi watched her retreating figure as she threw herself into the "battle" without saying a word, a sudden pang of sadness welled up in her eyes.
These past two days, although she has been under a lot of pressure and facing many difficulties, it seems that the people around her are all supporting her in their own ways.
Zhu Yingying, of course, helped her take care of Zhouzhou, ensuring that the child could have a hot meal every day.
Deng Cuixiang had just returned from out of town yesterday. As soon as she heard about this, she immediately brought over some freshly pickled and refreshing side dishes, just so that she could eat a few more bites of rice.
Zhao Damei, standing right in front of them, immediately came to lend a hand;
And there's Zhang Guoqiang, Master Ma, Sister Li Ping...
These small acts of kindness converged into a warm current, washing away the gloom that had settled over her because of Qiu Fengxian.
Despite the hardships in life, Zhou Qiqi felt full of energy and had a bright future thanks to the kindness of so many people supporting her.
She stopped thinking about it and a bright smile appeared on her lips. She quickly stepped forward and rolled up her sleeves just as neatly.
"Come on! Let's all work together and finish this quickly so we can make 'Guanghua' shine sooner!"
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