Seeing her red eyes, Jiang Linchuan felt a pang in his heart. He raised his hand and gently wiped away the tears from the corners of her eyes with his fingertips. "How could I have meant that?"
He cupped Xu Xinghe's small face in his hands, making her look into his eyes, and said, word by word, "I'm not asking you to do nothing, but I'm afraid you'll get hurt. My enemies are all very powerful; they'll stop at nothing to achieve their goals, and they're even willing to kill. How could I bear to let you face such danger?"
Looking into the sincerity in his eyes, Xu Xinghe felt most of her grievances dissipate.
How could she not know that this was for her own good?
Two days have passed, and no clues have been found. Jiang Linchuan has been suspended from his duties and placed under surveillance, and he is not even allowed to leave the military headquarters.
The thought that newspapers might publish false reports and smear his reputation made Xu Xinghe feel both wronged and anxious, which is why he couldn't help but throw a tantrum.
She sniffed, then nestled into Jiang Linchuan's arms, wrapped her arms around his waist, buried her face in his warm, strong chest, and said in a muffled voice, "I know, I was just too anxious, but I believe we'll be able to find out soon."
Jiang Linchuan tightened his arms around her, resting his chin on the top of her head.
The person in his arms was soft and smelled of jasmine; they were his only solace now.
No matter how hard life gets, no matter how many obstacles there are, as long as she's by my side, I'll definitely be able to overcome them.
Neither of them spoke, quietly enjoying this rare moment of peace.
a long time.
Jiang Linchuan spoke first, "I still have some work to hand over to Zhao Feng. I'll go take care of it first, okay? I'll come find you as soon as I'm done. Don't worry, I'm just not allowed to leave the military headquarters; everything else is my freedom."
"Okay, go ahead."
He hugged her for a while longer before reluctantly letting go of her, pinching Xu Xinghe's puffed-up cheeks. "Sweetie, you don't need to go to Hongqi Village today. Get some rest; you're not feeling well."
Xu Xinghe nodded and watched him leave, only turning her gaze away after the door closed again.
She lay on the floral-patterned bedding, staring blankly at the old newspapers above her head.
Jiang Linchuan worried that she was a weak woman who couldn't even kill a chicken, but only she knew that she wasn't.
She has a spatial ability, and having consumed spiritual spring water for a long time, her physical condition is much better than before.
Now, even when running back and forth between the town's military headquarters, I don't get out of breath like before, and I rarely feel tired.
Not only that, but the space also contained weapons, medicinal herbs, and spiritual spring water that she had hidden long ago.
Even if she were to encounter real danger, she might still have the ability to protect herself.
As she pondered, her thoughts drifted back to last winter.
At that time, she was framed as a spy by Wang Zhizhi. In order to investigate, Jiang Linchuan withstood the bomb and brought back the evidence. His back was blown to pieces and he spent more than a month in the hospital to recover.
She stayed by Jiang Linchuan's bedside, and every time she saw the hideous wounds on his body, she couldn't help but shed tears of heartache.
Now it's his turn to be wronged, how can I stand idly by just because there might be danger?
Xu Xinghe sat up abruptly, smoothing her braids. She couldn't let Jiang Linchuan shoulder the burden alone!
only……
She slumped back onto the kang (a heated brick bed).
How is she going to continue the investigation?
Those people are all scoundrels; she can't find them at all.
Wait a minute... you slacker!
Xu Xinghe's eyes lit up.
She actually knew a few hooligans, all from nearby villages.
It is said that birds of a feather flock together.
A hoodlum definitely knows another hoodlum!
If she asks around one by one, she'll definitely find it!
Xu Xinghe suddenly perked up and stopped worrying. He sat up, took out his notebook, and began to carefully recall what kind of hooligans were in the nearby villages.
The hooligans in Hongqi Village are no good; they mostly stay in the village and are on par with Erlaizi. They rarely go outside, so theoretically they don't know many people from outside.
However, there was a scoundrel in Hongxing Village who was said to go to the town and city whenever he had free time and could bring back money.
That scoundrel might be a big scoundrel!
By the time Xu Xinghe had hidden the notebook with the clues, it was completely dark outside the window.
In mid-March in the north, it still gets dark very early. The lights were off inside, and only the moonlight from outside the window could vaguely illuminate the outlines of the furniture.
She sat at the table, resting her chin on her hand, quietly waiting for Jiang Linchuan to arrive.
Before long, the door was gently pushed open, and Jiang Linchuan walked in carrying a lunchbox, followed by Zhang Cishu.
Lian Xiao was to keep an eye on Er Laizi in Hongqi Village and stay for dinner at the village chief's house that night.
Zhang Cishu had no other tasks, so he went back to the military headquarters with them.
Jiang Linchuan laid out the food one by one, "Let's eat first."
Xu Xinghe glanced at the drawer where the notebook was hidden, and after confirming that it was secure, she deliberately changed to a cheerful demeanor, skipping and hopping over to the table with bright eyes, "The food today is so plentiful!"
There was not only meat on the table, but also stewed green beans until they were soft and tender.
These were winter vegetables that the military had specially stored in the cellar in the autumn. Being able to eat such a meal in winter was considered an extraordinary privilege.
"Yes, I steamed two kinds of rice today." Jiang Linchuan looked at the bright smile on her face, and his tense nerves finally relaxed a bit.
He himself wasn't worried about being suspended; what he feared most was that Xu Xinghe would get anxious and upset along with him.
This wasn't Zhang Cishu's first time eating here. He familiarly took out his lunchbox from his bag and sat down opposite the two of them.
Logically, after such an incident, the two should have been gloomy, but the atmosphere at the dinner table was unusually peaceful.
That kind of unspoken warmth will be revealed even without doing anything.
After eating and drinking to her heart's content, Xu Xinghe held an enamel cup and sipped the spiritual spring water.
She also made sure to offer Jiang Linchuan and Zhang Cishu a drink.
"Ci Shu, are you going to Hongqi Village again tomorrow?" she asked casually.
"Yes, I plan to check the villagers' whereabouts again to see if there are any details I've missed." Zhang Cishu took the cup, his fingertips touching the warm cup, and the gloom that had been hanging over the military headquarters seemed to have lessened a bit.
“That’s perfect, let’s go together tomorrow. I’ll go back to the village and ask around, maybe I can get some new information from the aunties and grandmas.”
Jiang Linchuan sat to the side, quietly watching the light rekindle in her eyes, without saying a word to stop her.
If I keep her cooped up by my side and don't let her do anything, she'll only become more anxious and overthink things. It's better to let her go with me to the village, even if it's just to gather information; that will put her at ease.
He reached out and ruffled Xu Xinghe's hair. "Be careful on the road. If you need anything, ask Zhang Cishu to help you out."
Seeing the two's intimate actions, Zhang Cishu stood up with great tact and said, "I have some things to take care of back in my office, so I'll be leaving now."
Jiang Linchuan looked up at him, "Won't you sit a little longer?"
"No, I have to get up early tomorrow to go to the village to check the information." Zhang Cishu picked up his lunchbox, nodded to the two of them, and turned to leave.
He walked along the road, and as soon as he turned a corner, he paused and subconsciously looked back.
The curtains weren't drawn on the windows, and the warm yellow light made the figures inside the room exceptionally clear.
Jiang Linchuan reached out and put his arm around Xu Xinghe's waist, then lowered his head and kissed her lips.
Xu Xinghe placed her hand on his chest, but instead of pushing him away, she slightly tiptoed and nestled into his arms...
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