Chapter 41 Two and a Half

This year's Mid-Autumn Festival seems to be different from previous ones.

Lin Xiang traveled across time to this world and welcomed an important festival for the first time. She had lived alone for more than 20 years in her previous life, but here she was watching the moon and eating moon cakes with her partner and the kind Zhou family on Mid-Autumn Night as if it was a family reunion.

The silver moon hangs high in the sky, shining equally on every inch of land and casting a little light. Everyone in the family yard is out and about in the yard, chatting and sharing the joy of Mid-Autumn Festival. Adults and children, couples, are all reunited at this moment.

In a quiet corner, Lin Xiang, with flushed cheeks, leaned on He Hongyuan's shoulder. The man's shoulders were solid and reliable, which would be called the Pacific Ocean's broad shoulders in later generations. Lin Xiang's furry hair rubbed against He Hongyuan's neck, and her strands of hair brushed against his neck, making him feel a little itchy.

A breeze blew by, bringing a slight coolness. He Hongyuan was just about to ask Lin Xiang if she was cold when he saw the woman leaning on his shoulder stand up with a panicked look on her face.

His heart tightened, and he hurriedly asked, "What's wrong?"

Lin Xiang was swiping her chin with her index finger in a daze. She looked at He Hongyuan with a look of regret in her eyes: "Oh no, I just pointed at the moon!"

He Hongyuan was puzzled: "What's wrong with pointing at the moon?"

Lin Xiang was surprised: "Haven't you heard? If you point at the moon, your ears will be cut off!"

He Hongyuan was almost amused by Lin Xiang's words. He raised his hand and put it on Lin Xiang's ear. His rough palm wrapped around her cute little ear and gently stroked it: "You are not three years old this year."

"You are only three years old!" Lin Xiang believed this when she was a child. At that time in the orphanage, she didn't know which child was the first to say that you can't point at the moon, otherwise your ears will be cut off.

The young Xiao Lin Xiang at that time believed it firmly and paid attention to this point at all times.

She couldn't help but pinch He Hongyuan's waist and said angrily, "You still say I'm childish, right?"

It was just that the man's gentle rubbing of his ears felt itchy.

"It's okay. If you really have to have your ears cut off, I'll take it for you." He Hongyuan whispered, "I'm not afraid."

As if only a child could talk seriously about childish superstitions, Lin Xiang looked at the handsome face of the man in the night, raised her hand and touched his cheek. His jawline, as sharp as if chopped by a knife or an axe, looked even sharper under the silver moonlight, but his eyebrows were gentle.

Lin Xiang was touched by what he said, and her fragmented voice was elongated by the wind: "If someone had said this to me when I was a child, I wouldn't be so scared all the time."

He Hongyuan seemed to have heard his own childhood thoughts. When he looked at Lin Xiang again, a storm seemed to build up in his black eyes, but then he calmed down again. He pressed Lin Xiang against his shoulder again and said nothing.

The moonlight is bright and clear, shining on the people on the ground, who are leaning on each other.

——

After the Mid-Autumn Festival, Lin Xiang returned to Factory 2.

The crisis of Factory 1 was temporarily resolved. The canned shrimp sauce with a modified formula sold out all its stocks and won astonishing attention. When the canned shrimp sauce with classic flavors was put on the market again, the 119 canned shrimp sauce seemed to have regained its dignity and stole the limelight of taste.

Lin Xiang became famous in Factory 1, and even the factory director praised Lin Xiang's contribution through the loudspeaker. The workers in Factory 1 had been living in fear for the past one or two months, watching their flagship product almost being completely defeated. Now that it has finally come back to life, they look at Lin Xiang with new eyes.

They worked and chatted in the various workshops, and almost every three sentences they talked about was Lin Xiang.

"Comrade Lin Xiang is really amazing. He took the can of shrimp sauce back in no time."

"It's a pity that Lin Xiang is in Factory 2."

"Don't worry, didn't she say she would be back in October? She is from the same factory as us."

A forgetful worker was curious: "What happened at that time? Why did they send Lin Xiang from our factory one to the second factory?"

The workers with better memories looked at each other for a moment, and then turned to look at He Fen, who had been demoted to an ordinary first-class female worker in the fermented black bean fish canning workshop.

Several people rolled their eyes at her: "It's all because someone has bad intentions. Otherwise, why would Lin Xiang go to a place like the Second Factory? It's really insulting."

He Fen was stirring fermented black beans, and her nostrils were filled with a pungent, rancid smell. A large jar of fermented black beans had a lot of lethality, and she felt as if she had been marinated in the flavor. Every day when she came home, she could smell the fermented black beans on her clothes and trousers, which made her want to vomit.

She used to be a respectable worker in a factory office, envied by everyone. But now she has to stir fermented black beans in the workshop every day. Her hands and feet are sore and she smells strange. She is almost going crazy.

Just now, she heard the factory director praising Lin Xiang through the loud speaker in the factory. Now, she heard people in the workshop and even in the whole factory discussing Lin Xiang. Some people even traced the source and rolled their eyes at her. He Fen could only lower her head and dared not say anything.

The shrimp sauce workshop regained its vitality. No matter how temporarily it withstood the attack of the food smell, the workers continued to work vigorously, as if they were excited and excited after winning a battle, all of which turned into fighting power.

However, Qin Yangbo was still resting at home, and the shrimp sauce workshop was leaderless. Director Huang thought that Qin Yangbo was the "founding hero" of the shrimp sauce workshop. The workers respected him the most and he was the best in technology. All the canned seafood in the factory were developed by him. The workshop could not do without him, and he must be sent back.

However, when the deputy director of the workshop and the head of the fermentation group went to Qin's house to invite someone, they were rejected.

Qin Yangbo said that he had no ability and decided not to come back.

Factory Director Huang knew very well that this person was very concerned about his reputation. Now that the crisis had been resolved by Lin Xiang, he just felt that he had been slapped in the face and lost to a little girl. He had no face to go back.

"Old Qin is so old but he still acts like a three-year-old child!" Factory Director Huang was worried.

Secretary You consoled him, "Director, Director Qin is embarrassed right now. It's better to wait a little longer and talk about it after some time."

Fortunately, the shrimp sauce workshop has standardized process flow, so it can run smoothly even when Qin Yangbo is temporarily away.

Factory Director Huang also felt that this was the only way to go.

Fortunately, Qin Yangbo didn't return the favor, so Director Huang first took care of Lin Xiang. She was a talented person and had made great contributions to the factory this time. She must be rewarded with bonuses and rewards. More importantly, he was thinking of letting Lin Xiang return to Factory 1 immediately to be reused. Factory 2 was really not the place for her.

With this in mind, Director Huang took the 100 yuan bonus and a certificate specially approved for Lin Xiang and went to the second factory with Secretary You.

The second factory, separated by a wall, was bustling with activity at this time.

When Lin Xiang came back, Director Zhao organized the workers to applaud and welcome her, which made Lin Xiang shy. This scene was a bit childish!

But the workers all had excited looks on their faces and clapped their hands loudly.

Sister Guazi said excitedly, "Oh my, I went back home and told my neighbors that the one who helped the shrimp sauce workshop defeat the smell was someone from our second factory. I also said that I have a very good relationship with Xiaolin."

Worker Yang in the workshop was also proud and said, "Xiao Lin is capable, which means that we in the second factory are capable, which means that we all are capable!"

Yang was the worker who almost rolled up his sleeves and started a fight in a shrimp sauce workshop that day. He was born with great strength, and when there were no mixing equipment before, he could mix it well with just his two hands.

Lin Xiang thanked everyone again, went back to the office to put her bag away, and when she went to the workshop to check the operating procedures near lunch time in the morning, she started chatting with everyone.

Qiu Hongxia pulled her to sit down and talk, and stuffed a hand full of melon seeds into her hand.

But this time the melon seeds were different, they were still in their shells!

"Qiu Hongxia, the melon seeds you gave us all had shells, but why were the ones you gave to Xiaolin still peeled?" A worker saw this and started making fun of her.

Qiu Hongxia sneered at him: "Go away, are you worthy of eating the melon seeds that I peeled with my own hands? Only Xiao Lin is worthy of that!"

Lin Xiang couldn't stop laughing. She even slacked off and ate melon seeds during work hours. She felt that she was being treated too well!

Not only melon seeds, but other workers also brought oranges, winter melon candies, and glutinous rice sticks from time to time. Lin Xiang almost ate her fill in the workshop.

Lin Xiang was not at the Second Factory these days, and Qiu Hongxia was very upset. She had a lot of gossip in her mind but could not find the best listener. Now that Lin Xiang was finally back, she talked about it to everyone she met: "You don't know, the couple of Head Liu in our family compound had a very fierce quarrel..."

"There's also the quarrel between Captain Feng's mother-in-law and daughter-in-law. They have a big quarrel every three days and a small quarrel every two days."

"By the way, Instructor Sun's wife is five months pregnant. She says every day that she is pregnant with a son, but when I saw her round belly, I guess it is still a girl. The couple is crazy about having a son. They have already given birth to three girls. What will happen if this baby is not a boy?"

Parents' gossips and trivial matters were the entertainment gossip of this era. Qiu Hongxia was a smart person who knew everything and was almost a know-it-all in the family compound.

Lin Xiang listened with great interest, but as she was listening, Sister Guazi suddenly changed the topic to her.

Qiu Hongxia asked while eating melon seeds: "By the way, Xiaolin, when are you and Head He planning to hold the banquet?"

It is not fashionable to get a marriage certificate these days, and holding a wedding banquet can better represent the union of a couple.

Lin Xiang was chewing melon seeds in her mouth and was stunned.

He Hongyuan had mentioned marriage several times, but Lin Xiang always felt that it was too fast for two people who were in a free love relationship. After all, it had only been more than a month since they officially established their relationship.

However, at this moment, Lin Xiang's mind replayed every moment of her time with He Hongyuan, especially the Mid-Autumn night yesterday when the two of them were alone in a quiet corner of the noisy family courtyard, looking up at the moon. She shuddered in her heart, as if it was very desirable to start a family with such a man.

Lin Xiang smiled shyly and said, "It will be soon. I will give out wedding candies to everyone then."

"Oh, that's great!" Qiu Hongxia thought Lin Xiang and He Hongyuan were a perfect match. "When you come to the family compound to choose a house, remember to ask me and I'll point you to a good place. Housing is different here. There are many things to look at, such as where the house faces and whether the neighbors on both sides are easy to get along with... It's a lot of knowledge."

Lin Xiang knew that this was a serious matter. When she and He Hongyuan got married, they would naturally have to apply for housing. They were not familiar with many families in the family compound, and it would be painful if they really met neighbors who were difficult to get along with. She immediately agreed: "Okay, Sister Guihua, I will definitely come and ask you to help me choose when the time comes."

The two chatted and laughed, and when they heard Director Huang's voice, they dispersed lazily.

Factory Director Huang walked into Factory 2 and saw a group of people slacking off again. He felt numb and was too lazy to waste words. After all, Factory 2 was hopeless, so he called Lin Xiang aside.

"Comrade Xiaolin, this is the bonus and certificate approved specially for you by the factory." Factory Director Huang now looked at Lin Xiang with a special look in his eyes. He felt that she was a rare talent. He was used to being a leader and was good at holding meetings and giving long speeches.

Lin Xiang was delighted to receive the award certificate and prize, as she now had a huge amount of money added to her personal piggy bank.

When the factory manager paused for a moment and suggested that Lin Xiang should just go back to Factory 1 to start working officially tomorrow and was going to arrange a good position for her, Lin Xiang was stunned.

"Director, can you please go back to the factory early?" These days, Lin Xiang almost forgot the original arrangement. She was supposed to take over the position of the factory manager, Sister Sun, who was transferred away with her husband in October.

Director Huang couldn't bear to see Lin Xiang continue to be corrupted in the second factory, so he said sternly: "Yes, you don't have to go to the factory office to take that job. It's too low a position for you. I will arrange a good position for you. Go to the shrimp sauce workshop and be a team leader. This is a position that many senior employees who have worked for seven or eight years cannot get promoted to."

"Director, I still want to stay in Factory 2 first." Now it is mid-to-late September, and there is less than a month left before she is scheduled to return to Factory 1 in October. After asking herself, she does not have a strong desire to leave early.

On the contrary, the thought of leaving the Second Factory, which I was reluctant to come to in the beginning, actually made me feel a little reluctant.

"Comrade Xiaolin, what are you thinking!" Factory Director Huang was very puzzled. How could someone be unwilling to return to Factory 1 when they have the opportunity to be promoted? This person is a fool! "Don't you know the difference between Factory 1 and Factory 2? Even if Factory 2 is selling better soda now, it is still far from Factory 1. You are young and staying in Factory 2 is simply a waste of time. It is better to return to Factory 1 as soon as possible."

Lin Xiang only thought about the easy life she had in Factory 2 every day, how she got along well with her colleagues, and the quarrel that day over her going to the shrimp sauce workshop.

She shook her head and firmly rejected the director's kindness again: "Director, I have been conspicuous enough recently. Don't make an exception and call me back early. We can talk about it when the time comes."

Director Huang left in a huff. On the way back to Factory 1, he couldn't help but complain to his secretary: "This place is so irritating. Lao Qin is too proud to come back, and Xiao Lin is too confused to go back to Factory 1 early. It's really..."

Secretary You followed the factory director and strode away, and then said a few words of comfort: "Factory director, Comrade Lin Xiang definitely does not want to be treated specially, otherwise it will be easy for people to target her. This is a very high level of ideological awareness. It's not long until October now, and you can ask her to come back and she won't have to wait long."

——

Having received a huge bonus, Lin Xiang was in a very good mood. He went to the supply and marketing cooperative and spent two kilograms of sugar coupons to buy a kilogram of orange candy and a kilogram of nougat candy, and then went to the second factory to distribute the candies to the workers.

She also prepared gifts for the Zhou family. She stayed at the Zhou family all day, eating and drinking there. She was grateful in her heart, so she picked practical things. She gave Zhou Lu a pen, which he often used for official business; she gave Aunt Feng a bottle of Pechoin, which was used for skin care, with a refreshing texture and a fragrant smell; and she gave Yue Zhu a handkerchief with white durian flowers embroidered with red silk thread, which looked very beautiful.

The last one is prepared for He Hongyuan.

He Hongyuan was very generous in buying things for Lin Xiang, watches, bicycles...all of which cost more than a hundred yuan. Lin Xiang was shocked in her heart, thinking that Captain He was really rich and generous, so it was natural for her to put more effort into giving him a gift in return.

He Hongyuan seemed to care about nothing. He lived a simple life, almost without any desires or demands. He devoted all his attention to the army and had no requirements for food, clothing, housing and transportation. He was happy as long as he could survive.

Lin Xiang racked her brains, but couldn't think of anything to give. It wasn't that hard to buy things for other people. It was all because He Hongyuan didn't have any obvious preferences, so she didn't know where to start.

It was Saturday after all. Lin Xiang discussed with her husband about going into the city the next day. She wanted to go shopping in the department store in the city. There were so many things there, which were not comparable to the supply and marketing cooperative on the island.

On Sunday, He Hongyuan picked up Lin Xiang from Zhou's house early in the morning and the two of them sailed on the sea in a boat with ease.

It was the first time for the two of them to go out alone. Today, Aunt Feng and Yuezhu had no plans to join in the fun and they were all resting at home. Only Yuezhu asked Lin Xiang to see if there were any new hairpins for sale in the department stores in the city. If there were any nice ones, she should bring one back for her.

The ship swayed gently on the blue waves. The military dependents filled the entire cabin. Lin Xiang was surrounded by people in front, behind, and on both sides. As the number of people increased, she was pushed towards He Hongyuan.

The distance between the two people was getting closer and closer, and the military wives who were familiar with them teased them when they saw them.

"Captain He even accompanied his target into the city! He is much better than my man."

In many families, men are unwilling to help when their husbands are in trouble. Everyone was making fun of Head He without any hesitation, because after all, he had never shown any willingness to find a partner or get married.

Lin Xiang smiled at the military wives, then turned to whisper in He Hongyuan's ear: "Look at how low everyone's expectations of you are. You were praised for accompanying me into the city. This shows that your image in the past was not that of someone who could accompany a partner out."

He Hongyuan chuckled: "That's my fault. I'll accompany you to the city more often in the future to show them."

Lin Xiang: "..."

In a place where no one could see, Lin Xiang reached out from behind and quietly pinched the man's arm, but He Hongyuan's skin was thick and hard, so she couldn't exert any strength.

After more than forty minutes of sailing, the boat docked at the North Shore Pier as usual. Lin Xiang's waist and legs were sore from sitting all the way, so he quickly got up and rushed to get off the boat.

After stepping onto land again and breathing the fresh air, Lin Xiang couldn't help but sigh: "Now I really feel that your missions at sea are too hard. It must be so uncomfortable to stay on the ship for so long."

Isn't this like putting a person in a small box and letting him wander on the sea? It's really scary to think about it. After a long time, even the most beautiful sea view will become boring. When there is only sea water on all sides, all that is left is boredom.

He Hongyuan disagreed: "I'm used to it."

Phnom Penh was a prosperous city. The two of them walked around first. This was Lin Xiang's second time in the city. Last time they were in a hurry and as there were four of them, they didn't actually visit many places.

In addition to the department store and cinema that she had visited once, this time Lin Xiang saw another two-story blue brick building in the city - Xinhua Bookstore standing on the roadside.

In her previous life, she loved visiting bookstores, and she often felt happy when she saw neatly arranged books. However, bookstores in the 1970s were slightly different. The area of ​​the two-story building was not very large, and the first floor mostly contained basic books. As the college entrance examination had been cancelled for many years, and the "Four Olds" campaign was underway, books on subjects such as Chinese, literature, and mathematics were almost nowhere to be found in bookstores, and ancient books were also hard to find. There were mostly ideological quotations and books on agriculture, industry, and technology, as well as some comic books and picture books.

The second floor is mainly for book storage, and there is also a quiet reading room.

Lin Xiang wandered around the bookstore, feeling quite free and easy, which was a rare experience. It was as if she relaxed physically and mentally the moment she entered the bookstore.

She casually flipped through the quotations on the bookshelf, most of which were positive words of this era. There were many people around her reading books in the store, from young people in their early twenties to elderly people in their fifties and sixties wearing glasses. After walking around for a few more times, she found some books on agricultural and industrial machinery, many of which were related to production equipment. She immediately picked out a few books to buy and take back to the factory.

The only books He Hongyuan knew about were those on military theory. He picked up a book and flipped through it, then saw Lin Xiang turn around and stare at a short storybook.

"Do you like this?" He Hongyuan knew that many of his comrades liked to buy a few picture books to kill time, but more of them were children who liked to read them.

Lin Xiang smiled mysteriously at him: "Well, I'm going to buy a bunch to give to someone."

He Hongyuan nodded without asking any more questions. If he was going to give a picture book as a gift, it would either be given to Yuezhu, the childish girl, or to some neighbor's child.

As a result, after leaving the bookstore, Lin Xiang gave He Hongyuan the eight picture books she had carefully selected.

He Hongyuan: “…?”

He Hongyuan was at a loss whether to laugh or cry as he lowered his head to look at the picture book that he thought only three-year-olds would like to read.

"Why are you giving me this?" The man had a stern look on his face, as if to say, "Do you think I'm someone who would look at this?" Lin Xiang couldn't help laughing.

Lin Xiang's theory: "Children like to watch this, and their childhood will be happy after watching it! We met too late, and I didn't recognize you when you were a child. Now I'm making up for it~"

He Hongyuan was stunned holding the picture book. Looking at the girl in front of him, his heart seemed to be rubbed by an invisible hand, feeling sour, bitter and swollen. The picture book in his hand seemed to weigh a thousand pounds.

The two of them had lunch at a state-owned hotel. Each of them had a bowl of rice noodles mixed with lard. After the rice noodles were cooked and then rinsed with cold water, they became smoother and more chewy. A spoonful of lard was added to the seasoning, and the oily aroma permeated every strand of rice noodles. The aroma of lard was overflowing every time you chewed them.

The food in the state-owned restaurant was generous in quantity and the ingredients were solid. A bowl of two taels of pork fat mixed with rice noodles was much more filling than the two taels in later generations. Lin Xiang ate with great satisfaction. When she turned around, she saw that He Hongyuan, who had ordered three taels of rice noodles, had quickly finished it.

Men eat fast, and He Hongyuan is an example of this, as he eats at an absurdly fast speed.

Lin Xiang specifically asked him about it, and he just said that it was a habit he developed when he was on the march and fighting in the past. During training or on the battlefield, time was tight and the mission was heavy, so he ate voraciously, hurriedly and quickly. This habit has been retained and continues to this day.

"You eat too fast, aren't you afraid of getting burned?" Lin Xiang whispered to him, then winked at him, "Can you eat slower in the future? Otherwise, you'll finish early, and I'll be eating alone."

Just having a meal sounded like a small matter. He Hongyuan was stunned for a moment, then nodded: "Okay."

After dinner, the two watched a movie in the city's cinema. When they came out, it was already 2:30 in the afternoon. Thinking of the letter they sent to He Hongyuan's mother last time, the two went to the post office to inquire, and found that there was actually a reply letter from Aunt He.

There is also a post office on the island, but all letters and parcels from all over the country are sent to the Phnom Penh Post Office, where they are sorted and sent to the post office on the island on a chosen day.

After picking up the letter, Lin Xiang saw her own name and He Hongyuan's name written in the recipient column. She instantly remembered the two names she had written in the sender column when she wrote the letter that day.

Aunt He could not read or write, so she asked a literate member of the brigade to write the letter for her. In the letter, she talked about her recent satisfaction with life, saying that everything was good, the crops were good, and she had received the cloth coupons sent by Xiangxiang. She praised her as a good child, and then naggingly said that it was a great thing that her son and Xiangxiang were together. She also specifically mentioned that she asked her son and Xiangxiang to greet the third brother and his wife on her behalf, and sent everyone some local products she made, which were not worth much, so just try them. It was almost autumn harvest, and everyone was busy, so she would not come over. If she came over next time, it would be when the two had good news and were preparing to hold a wedding banquet.

Lin Xiang pretended not to have seen the last sentence, handed the letter to He Hongyuan, and then lowered her head to look through the package.

Along with the letter came a package containing some wild vegetables that Aunt He had hung out to dry, dried radishes, two sausages, one piece of bacon, and six salted duck eggs. The package was full, heavy, and substantial.

On the boat back to the island, Lin Xiang checked the salted duck eggs one by one, and found none of them were broken. Aunt He wrapped each salted duck egg with straw, and they were sent back intact.

"My mother is a good cook. When I was little, I loved to follow her to pick wild vegetables. They can be kept for a long time after being dried. Whenever we got home and had nothing to eat, we would just pick a handful of wild vegetables and cook them." He Hongyuan sat next to Lin Xiang, looking out at the sea, as if he had returned to his childhood. "The family situation was not very good at that time. My mother also adopted two children whose entire family was killed after the Japanese invaded the village. We were often hungry, and it was good to have meat once or twice a year. My older brother and I would go up the mountain to catch wild rabbits and pheasants and roast them. They were satisfying even without adding salt. But among all these things, my favorite is still the salted duck eggs pickled by my mother herself."

Lin Xiang had never seen such an expression on He Hongyuan's face. While the wives of soldiers around her were chatting and no one was paying attention to this corner, she quietly reached out and held He Hongyuan's palm and squeezed it: "I heard from your mother that you like this the most, so you are allowed to eat two of the five salted duck eggs! The other three are for Yuezhu and the others."

He Hongyuan smiled and didn't care too much: "It's not easy for my mother to raise us, especially because she had bad luck and the men she met were not good people."

It was the first time that Lin Xiang heard He Hongyuan mention his father on his own initiative. He spoke briefly and to the point, saying that he was a worthless person.

After getting off the boat, the two rushed back to Zhou's house with a lot of bags, buying a lot of food and daily necessities, as well as the food sent by Aunt He.

"Aunt Feng, Aunt He still remembers that you like to eat sausages, so she said she sent it to you specially so that you can try it and see if it tastes the same as before." Lin Xiang hung the sausage and bacon on the iron nails on the wall and said excitedly.

Feng Li followed him into the kitchen and looked at the bright red sausage. After being smoked and dried, the dark red casing was filled with firm pork meat, which was really tempting.

"Second sister-in-law is too polite. Her cooking skills are the best! I am craving for this one!"

After dinner, He Hongyuan was about to leave Zhou's house and return to the army. Before leaving, he picked up the eight picture books that Lin Xiang had given him, but this caught Zhou Yuezhu's eye.

Zhou Yuezhu loved reading comic books, and she often laughed to herself. She hurried forward and said, "Cousin, you actually want to read comic books! Didn't you say it was childish?"

He Hongyuan raised his eyelids and said seriously, "It's nothing to take a look."

"Then show me a few." Zhou Yuezhu stretched out her hand to take the two picture books, but He Hongyuan raised his hand to block her and directly avoided Zhou Yuezhu's action.

Zhou Yuezhu frowned: "Cousin, you can't be so stingy, right? You won't even lend me two picture books?"

He Hongyuan raised his eyebrows and said, "If you want to read comic books, find your partner and he will take you there."

Zhou Yuezhu: “…!”

Are you human?

Zhou Yuezhu turned around and complained to Lin Xiang, but she just watched Lin Xiang looking at her cousin with a smile in her eyes. Neither of them said anything, but there seemed to be an undercurrent when their eyes met.

Lin Xiang laughed: "Yuezhu, I'll buy it for you another day!"

After seeing He Hongyuan off and going out for a walk, Lin Xiang couldn't help but smile: "Captain He, don't you think comic books are childish? Why don't you even want to lend Yuezhu one?"

He Hongyuan did not blush when being teased, and remained calm and said, "Does she have a boyfriend who takes the comic book that my boyfriend bought?"

Lin Xiang: ...I couldn’t refute it.

After strolling around with He Hongyuan, the two parted at the gate of the family compound. Lin Xiang walked back happily. When she approached the Zhou family's gate, she suddenly heard lively greetings coming from the house, and it seemed that there were more than just the voices of the three Zhou family members.

Pushing the door open, Lin Xiang saw that in addition to the three people from the Zhou family, there were two other middle-aged men and women in the living room.

The middle-aged woman was wearing a dark red shirt made of exquisite fabric. Her complexion was kept delicate and fair by her hands. Although traces of time could be seen on her face, her skin was tight and graceful. Even her hair was kept smooth and black, and it was tied into a bun at the back of her head, giving her a very dignified look.

The middle-aged man next to her was wearing an olive green military uniform, exuding a domineering aura and sharp eyes. When he heard the movement at the gate and looked over, he looked at Lin Xiang with scrutiny and inquiry.

Lin Xiang didn't know the two of them, but she knew who the middle-aged man was at first sight.

It was because He Hongyuan was about 50% similar to him, especially his sharp eyebrows and eyes, as if they were carved from the same mold.