Liu Hu and the others dared not refute, and could only lower their heads and agree.
Xu Xinghe, who had been standing in the crowd, finally felt relieved upon seeing this scene. She quickly walked to Jiang Linchuan's side and looked him up and down. "How are you? Are you injured? Fortunately, the captain was fair and didn't favor them."
Jiang Linchuan shook his head slightly, not surprised at all.
He had long anticipated that Zhang Qiang would handle things this way.
The damage to the saplings by Liu Hu and his group was too obvious; the roots were broken, and the branches and leaves were trampled. Anyone with eyes could see that it was deliberate sabotage, not improper planting.
If Zhang Qiang were to show favoritism towards Liu Hu in front of so many villagers and educated youth, it would only cause the villagers to question his impartiality and damage the good reputation he had built up over the years.
But this is just a facade in front of everyone. It's hard to say how Zhang Qiang would handle things behind the scenes.
"I'm fine, just some minor injuries. If they weren't holding back, they wouldn't have been able to hurt me." Jiang Linchuan lowered his voice and said to Xu Xinghe, "You go back to the nursery and get back to work. I can handle things here. Just don't let anyone else notice anything unusual."
Xu Xinghe nodded and walked towards the nursery, turning back every few steps.
As soon as they returned to the nursery, Zhao Xiaoyan came over, her eyes sparkling, her tone full of admiration, "Li Juan, your brother is amazing! He single-handedly chased away so many people and even got the brigade leader to punish Liu Hu and the others. That was so satisfying!"
Xu Xinghe recalled Jiang Linchuan's previous instructions and continued, "He learned martial arts when he was at home. He's very strong, and no one dares to mess with him."
Zhao Xiaoyan suddenly realized, "So that's how it is! No wonder he's so powerful! With your brother around, let's see who dares to bully us now!"
Xu Xinghe smiled, said nothing more, and continued working.
A little while later, a girl came over carrying a bucket with several rough porcelain bowls in the basket. It seemed she had come to bring water to the educated youth.
She looked to be about seventeen or eighteen years old, not very tall, around 1.6 meters. Her build was the typical sturdy type common in Eastern Mongolia. Her face was somewhat round, and her skin was a healthy tan from years of sun exposure, with a natural rosy glow, unlike Xu Xinghe's deliberately darkened complexion. She wore two jet-black braids, the ends tied with red hair ties, swaying gently as she walked, with bits of grass clinging to the ends.
The girl walked straight to Xu Xinghe, smiled, put the bucket on the ground, picked up a clean bowl, poured in some cool water and handed it to him, "Comrade educated youth, I saw you making a lot of noise over there just now, you must be thirsty, right? Have some water and rest first."
Xu Xinghe took the bowl and said thank you.
The girl poured two more bowls of water for Zhao Xiaoyan and the others. Standing next to Xu Xinghe, she glanced at the planting area where Jiang Linchuan was from time to time. After hesitating for a while, she couldn't help but ask, "Just now... who is that guy who was fighting with you? You two seem to know each other very well."
Xu Xinghe looked up at her. "He is my cousin, Li Guowei. We came to the forest farm together."
"Cousin!" The girl's eyes lit up instantly, her tense shoulders relaxed noticeably, and the corners of her mouth couldn't help but turn up.
Just now, watching Jiang Linchuan and Xu Xinghe being so affectionate, her heart skipped a beat, thinking they were a couple, and she almost died of anxiety.
She secretly sized up Xu Xinghe, comparing them in her mind.
The only similarity between herself and Xu Xinghe was that neither of them had fair skin and both had a few light freckles on their faces. However, Xu Xinghe's eyes were as bright as stars, her features were as delicate as those of a person in a painting, and even her shy demeanor when she spoke was full of charm.
I am completely inferior to him...
Now that she knows it's just her cousin, she finally feels relieved.
"Oh, it's my cousin! I thought..." The girl stopped mid-sentence with a smile, took out a small aluminum water bottle from her pocket, and unscrewed the lid. "You must have been frightened just now. Drinking only cold water won't do. I have some brown sugar water in this bottle. I'll pour you some to help you recover."
Before Xu Xinghe could refuse, she brought the kettle to the bowl and poured out a bowl of brown sugar water, which was still steaming. "I made this myself and added some ginger."
The girl smiled, her eyes crinkling, and her tone was full of enthusiasm, "Try it, it's very sweet, and it will warm you up."
Xu Xinghe looked at the brown sugar water in the bowl, then at the girl's obviously excited expression...
etc!
She had just inquired about her relationship with Jiang Linchuan, and after learning that they were cousins, she specially poured him some brown sugar water.
What does this mean?
Could she possibly have feelings for Jiang Linchuan...?
Xu Xinghe took a sip without realizing it, and it tasted sweet. "Thank you, it's delicious."
"Drink more if you like it!" The girl was even happier, and she added some more brown sugar water to her bowl. "My name is Zhang Qianqian, and my dad is Zhang Qiang, the captain of the forest farm. If you ever need anything at the forest farm, just come to me!"
As she spoke, she couldn't help but glance at Jiang Linchuan again, her eyes filled with undisguised joy, as if she was already planning how to spend more time with him in the future.
Xu Xinghe nodded, said nothing more, and silently drank her brown sugar water, while pondering in her heart.
Zhang Qianqian is Zhang Qiang's daughter. If we can get along well with her, we might be able to get some information about Zhang Qiang out of her.
But what if she really falls for Jiang Linchuan? If I use this relationship to try and get information out of her, wouldn't I be harming her...?
Zhang Qianqian chatted with Xu Xinghe for a few more minutes, mostly asking about everyday things, and her tone was incredibly warm. It wasn't until she saw villagers calling her from afar that she reluctantly left with her bucket of water. Before leaving, she specifically told Xu Xinghe, "I'll bring you brown sugar water again tomorrow!"
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