Chapter 165 Casting the Net
Jiang Zhizhi's eyes widened in surprise when she saw Zhou Xiye.
When Zhou Xiye walked up to her, she straightened her back, raised her chin, and gave a haughty snort. But when she saw the small circle of teeth marks on his chin, she couldn't help but burst out laughing.
Zhou Xiye sighed helplessly and couldn't help but reach out and ruffle her hair: "Still smiling? During the meeting today, Vice Minister Shang looked at me several times."
Jiang Zhizhi laughed even louder: "Why did you come back at noon? Don't you have a meeting this afternoon?"
Zhou Xiye nodded: "It's going to be held. There's an hour and a half for lunch break and free discussion at noon, so I'll rush back to see you."
Jiang Zhizhi then noticed that she felt a bit cold even in her down jacket, while Zhou Xiye was only wearing an autumn casual outfit, with a slight sheen of sweat at his temples. Her heart was filled with sweetness, but her words were anything but polite: "I'm at home, I won't run away, and you still made a special trip back to see me. Why didn't you come back to see me yesterday…?"
Zhou Xiye was amused by her arrogant tone: "Does it still hurt?"
Jiang Zhizhi frowned, her expression suddenly becoming very serious: "How should I put it? It doesn't hurt much, but it feels like there's a draft when I walk."
Zhou Xiye: "..."
He had absolutely no experience; he had only noticed some swelling there last night and didn't know what medicine to use.
I was thinking of coming back at noon to check on her, and if she was still swollen, I would take her to the hospital in the compound.
Thinking it over, she honestly asked, "If you're still in pain, let's go see a doctor to see if something's wrong."
Jiang Zhizhi was taken aback for a moment, then reached out and pinched his arm: "How are we supposed to see a doctor? What am I supposed to say if the doctor asks? That you have excessive needs? Or that it's too big and you've hurt yourself?"
Zhou Xiye: "..."
He knew Jiang Zhizhi was particularly good at talking nonsense: "I think it's all swollen..."
Jiang Zhizhi blushed and pushed his arm away, saying, "No need to see a doctor, just rest. You need to get used to it. If we go to see a doctor, the whole compound will laugh at us tomorrow."
Seeing that Jiang Zhizhi was blushing but in good spirits, Zhou Xiye felt relieved: "Tell me if you feel unwell, and I'll take you to see a doctor."
Jiang Zhizhi rolled her eyes at him, then laughed: "Old-fashioned."
Although she was a novice, she had seen and heard a lot.
Zhou Xiye is a complete old-fashioned guy from Xinkaifeng, completely clueless.
...
Fang Hua was preparing lunch for herself and Jiang Zhizhi. It was just the two of them, so she thought she would just cook some porridge, reheat the leftover steamed buns, and stir-fry some vegetables.
Zhou Xiye returned, and upon entering, he first asked where Jiang Zhizhi was. Upon hearing that she was going to find Li Yuanchao, he turned around and went back to look for her.
Fang Hua was stunned for a moment, watching his son rush out. He thought to himself, "He only has a short time at noon to come back and see his wife. Does he think she can eat his wife up at home?"
While muttering to himself, he added two more steamed buns to the pot and also took out the tofu he planned to eat that evening to cook.
Zhou Xiye and Jiang Zhizhi entered the room, and Fang Hua glanced at them and called out to them to wash their hands and have dinner.
She didn't ask Zhou Xiye why he suddenly came back. After dinner, she tactfully went out for a walk, leaving the young couple some space.
Jiang Zhizhi watched Fang Hua leave, swallowed the last mouthful of porridge, and kicked Zhou Xiye's trouser leg: "Look at you, coming back so suddenly, you scared your mother."
Zhou Xiye let her fuss for a while, but he was still persistent: "Do you want me to take a look?"
Jiang Zhizhi glared at him: "Zhou Xiye, I didn't expect you to be such a hooligan. What are you looking at in broad daylight? Hurry up and go to the meeting, or you'll be late."
Zhou Xiye didn't have much time: "Then you should rest well at home. I have something to do this afternoon and will be back later."
He glanced at the time, then turned to leave.
Jiang Zhizhi sighed, sat in her chair without moving, looked at Zhou Xiye, and then gestured with her lips.
Zhou Xiye was caught off guard: "What's wrong?"
Jiang Zhizhi snorted: "Just like that, you're leaving? You should at least give me a goodbye kiss."
With a smile in his eyes, Zhou Xiye went over and ruffled her hair before leaning down to kiss her.
He didn't let go until Jiang Zhizhi's eyes reddened.
He gently stroked her fair cheek with his thumb: "Alright, stay home and behave yourself. I'm leaving."
Jiang Zhizhi was very satisfied, and even rushed to Zhou Xiye at the door to blow him a kiss: "Take care on the way."
...
After the meeting ended in the afternoon, Zhou Xiye checked the time and went to the guard regiment behind the General Staff.
They contacted Zhao Haiyang, the deputy head of the delegation.
When Zhao Haiyang saw Zhou Xiye, he exclaimed a few times and came over to punch him on the shoulder: "When did you get back? Why didn't you let me pick you up?"
Zhou Xiye smiled faintly: "I've been back for a few days, but some things have been delayed, so I haven't been able to come and see you."
As dusk settled, Zhao Haiyang, a former reconnaissance soldier, immediately noticed the scar on his chin: "I heard you got married. Looks like you're having a happy marriage. You didn't even bother to contact your old comrades after you came back."
Zhou Xiye had been stared at with strange looks all day, but he was quite calm now: "I came to see you because I have something I want to ask you."
Zhao Haiyang chuckled: "I knew it. If you had nothing to do, you'd never think of me in your life. Alright, what is it?"
Zhou Xiye didn't stand on ceremony: "Doesn't your brother Zhao Haibing work at customs? Have him keep an eye on Xiao Chuan for me."
Zhao Haiyang was surprised: "Your brother went to customs too? Who goes to that office these days?"
Zhou Xiye didn't explain much: "He's young and reckless, simple-minded, and easily manipulated. Ask your brother to keep an eye on him."
Zhao Haiyang thought it was a small matter: "Okay, I'll go talk to him first thing tomorrow morning. Let's go eat now, and invite Da Liu and the others too."
Zhou Xiye refused: "I..."
Zhao Haiyang stopped him directly: "Don't make excuses. How about I call your wife to ask for leave? You don't still not want to see us because of Bian Zhan, do you?"
“We all know that the border battle was a sacrifice, and it had nothing to do with you. You don’t need to blame yourself too much.”
Zhou Xiye felt a pang of heartache, which was also why he didn't want to see them. Whenever they met, Bian Zhan's matter would be brought up again.
As someone in the know, he had no desire to discuss this person at all.
Unable to refuse Zhao Haiyang's enthusiasm, she said, "Let me call home first."
Zhao Haiyang was satisfied and put his arm around Zhou Xiye's shoulder as they went to the duty room to make a phone call.
...
Jiang Zhizhi answered Zhou Xiye's call, saying that she had dinner with her comrades and would be back, and didn't think much of it.
After hanging up the phone, all attention was focused on Zhou Xiaochuan, who had suddenly returned.
He also brought back a document and proudly told Fang Hua, "As long as I sign this, I'll be a full-time employee. I'll start work tomorrow. Mom, just you wait, I'll definitely make you proud."
Jiang Zhizhi's attention, however, was drawn to the paper bag containing the documents; it was no ordinary brown paper bag at all...
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