Chapter 293: Not a single stroke of the eight characters
Zhou Mingli and Lu Chun'e didn't walk far. They walked out of the winding path in front of the door and entered the alley in front. Then they continued to walk slowly along the bluestone road into the depths of the alley.
There are tung trees on both sides of the alley, with lush leaves that block out the sun.
A group of children came running towards them, laughing and holding paper windmills or rolling iron rings in their hands. Zhou Mingli reached out, pulled Lu Chun'e to the side, squeezed her lightly, and then let go.
Lu Chun'e froze for a moment, and before she could react, the hand holding her loosened. She felt her face getting hot, thinking of herself as a mean-spirited person.
"Are you familiar with this place?"
Zhou Mingli glanced at her sideways and said, "We are quite familiar with each other. In the past, the Xu family, that is, Wen Wan's maternal grandfather's home and our family were not far from here. Later, they moved there as the elders in the family were promoted. Many people whose family conditions allowed would look for opportunities to buy a house here. After all, only what they actually bought with their own money is considered theirs." However, those who can spend money to buy a house here are all from families with relatively sufficient financial resources. They work hard to buy something for their younger generations so that they can have someone to rely on in the future, which is similar to what the Xu family does.
"You have one too?"
Zhou Mingli nodded: "Yes, I am the youngest of our generation. I also have a place here. I will take you to see it later."
Lu Chun'e shook her head decisively: "Forget it!" Why was she going to that person's place for no reason? It seemed that they were not familiar enough with each other.
Zhou Mingli didn't mind and chuckled, saying, "You don't have to refuse so bluntly. You didn't say now. There will be plenty of opportunities in the future."
For some reason, Lu Chun'e didn't think there was anything wrong before, but now when she heard him laugh, she felt something strange, as if a feather was gently plucking her heart. The strange feeling disappeared in a flash.
"We won't go far, let's go back."
Zhou Mingli pointed ahead: "Don't worry, don't go far, just go to the front, and then we'll come back."
Lu Chun'e was still wondering what was going on ahead. She walked to the end of the alley and there was a corner, and there was still an alley. The scenery on both sides was no different from this side. The only difference was that Zhou Mingli suddenly became more talkative.
"I will be back in the team early tomorrow morning, and the next time I come back should be when school starts." He was wondering whether he should be straightforward and make it clear now.
He is a person who, if he likes a girl, he likes her. If he likes a girl, he will fight for her with all his might. He doesn't care about being subtle at all. The only thing he has to consider is how to speak in a more tactful way so as not to scare the other person and make both of them embarrassed with no room for maneuver.
"We are already acquainted. Can I briefly introduce myself to you?"
This was just one encounter, and the next meeting would have to be a month later. Although this girl doesn't have a boyfriend now, outstanding people always have suitors.
Although one month is not a long time, there is no guarantee that there will not be other variables.
Without giving Lu Chun'e a chance to say "no", he continued, "I was transferred back from the Southern Military Region last year and am now affiliated with the Central Military Region. I'm at the regimental level and earn 110 yuan a month. I don't smoke, I drink occasionally, I don't hit women, and I don't have any bad habits—"
Lu Chun'e listened to his words and hurriedly covered her ears, backing away again and again, putting a long distance between them. "Stop, stop talking. Why are you telling me all this?"
Zhou Mingli chuckled softly, standing where he was without moving closer to her. Instead, he looked at her and said, "Am I not being obvious enough? Come closer. What I want to say is not suitable for such a distance. If someone hears—"
Lu Chun'e didn't even wait for him to finish, she just ran back, her heart beating so fast that she almost suffocated.
She ran to the door of her house in one breath, but she still couldn't calm down. Her heart was beating faster and faster, and her face was burning. She squatted on the ground and rubbed her face with her hands, trying to calm herself down, but her hands were sweaty and it didn't seem to work.
As for what Zhou Mingli said, she didn't think about it, nor did she think deeply about it, but it was like a tight hoop that kept repeating itself in her mind over and over again.
Before, she had been too frank, so she hadn't thought much about it, but now that it was almost completely exposed, what else could she not understand? She had never been in a real relationship with anyone, but that didn't mean no one had pursued her.
Zhou Mingli's opening remarks, introducing himself, shouldn't sound too familiar! There's nothing new about it!
Before the heat on her face subsided, Zhou Mingli followed her and asked her with a smile: "Why are you running so fast?"
Lu Chun'e pursed her lips, ignored him, and walked up the stairs into the yard.
Fortunately, everyone was in the kitchen, so she quickly washed her face with cold water.
Wen Wan came out of the kitchen and asked, "You're back so soon?"
Lu Chun'e said as she washed her face with her back to her, "It's still hot outside, not as cool as inside."
Wen Wan didn't notice her strangeness: "It's time to get hot, it must be hot, wash your face and wipe it, then go inside. It's so stuffy, I'm afraid it will only cool down a little after it rains."
After washing her face, Lu Chun'e went into the kitchen and left the living room to Xu Qingming and Zhou Mingli, so that out of sight, out of mind.
"Sister-in-law, if you need anything else, I'll do it."
Wen Wan said, "It's hot, so I made some porridge and let it cool, then made some pancakes and a few stir-fried vegetables. I just picked some peppers on the counter, they're quite flavorful, and I shredded some potatoes and stir-fried them, and then made some scrambled eggs and some lentils, and that's it. It's so hot, it's hard to buy meat later in the day, so I'll just have to make do with what I have, since there's no one else around anyway."
Everything she said has been almost sorted out now.
Lu Chun'e opened the lid of the steel pot, saw that the porridge was almost done, then took it down and put the iron pot on top.
Wen Wan has already adjusted the noodles.
The noodle sauce with eggs and chopped green onions looked very colorful, so I filled half a bowl with it. After all, there were three men eating today, and they all had big appetites, so I couldn't afford to leave them without food.
Here, the aunt and sister-in-law were making pancakes and chatting, and the atmosphere was very harmonious, but it was not so good in the living room.
After talking with Wen Wan, Xu Qingming felt more and more that Zhou Mingli had bad intentions. It was very likely that Wen Wan was right. He was targeting Lu Chun'e.
Before, the old lady tried hard to pull him together with Wen Wan while she and Lu Dongping were separated, but she never expected that he would fall in love with Lu Chun'e when she turned around.
Indeed, he has good taste.
"Tell me the truth, what are you doing in Tonghua Lane today? Don't try to fool me. I've known you since you were wearing open-crotch pants. I know your character. Is there any mission that needs to be handed over to this district that requires you to come here in person?"
Zhou Mingli leaned back, his hand resting behind his head in a rare, lazy gesture. He snorted softly and said, "Of course not. Don't forget, there's a yard over here in Tonghua Lane. Not only does your aunt have one, I have one too!"
How could Xu Qingming possibly believe him? "No, don't pretend to show off to me here! Let me tell you," he said, coughing lightly and glancing outside: "Don't treat everyone else as fools and blind people, as if no one can understand what you are trying to do. Chun'e, I watched her grow up. She is a good girl. If you can't protect her and give her a stable life, then don't bother her here!"
Zhou Mingli snorted softly. "You don't need me to tell you. Of course I know she's a good girl. Since I want to pursue her, I must like her and I can definitely protect her. Okay, she'll spend her life with me. What does it have to do with the Zhou family? If we can get along, then we'll get along. If not, then we'll stay away."
This was like making things clear directly in front of Xu Qingming.
Xu Qingming looked at him and felt a little uncomfortable. "Don't be so cocky. You haven't even started yet! If you like me, I have to like you back. You have to go back to the team early tomorrow morning. It won't be easy to come back, right? You have to wait until the first day of school. After a month, who will remember who you are?"
Zhou Mingli said, "You don't need to worry about that. You should worry more about yourself. You're not young anymore, but your brain is still not smart. In a few years, you might be old and no one will want you."
Zhou Mingli doesn't curse people, but he hits Xu Qingming's weak spots directly when he opens his mouth.
It took Xu Qingming a long time to suppress the urge to fight with him.
Although Zhou Mingli has been in the army for many years and can easily defeat Xu Qingming in a real fight, he still has to have some ideas.
Anyway, the conversation had reached a dead end, with nothing more to talk about. Xu Qingming snorted, "Friday, don't be so arrogant! I've already said that Chun'e grew up under my watch. Guess who she is, considering your current situation, is she closer to me or you? She calls me brother, and I'm half her family. This girl, although a little naive, is obedient. If I tell her that you're not a good person and should stay away from her, do you think you still have any hope?"
This is like pulling out the whiskers from a tiger's mouth.
To be honest, when men become childish, they are completely unrecognizable and their childishness is outrageous.
Zhou Mingli chuckled: "You try it!"
Xu Qingming raised his eyebrows, really arguing with him. Just as he was about to speak again, Lu Chun'e's voice came from outside: "Brother, you're back!"
Xu Qingming looked at Zhou Mingli and smiled meaningfully.
Lu Dongping wasn't surprised to see Xu Qingming; they'd known each other for years and knew he was close to Wen Wan. But seeing Zhou Mingli was a bit of a surprise; they had met before, but they weren't very familiar with each other.
Xu Qingming finally regained his composure after being interrupted by his entrance, and took the initiative to introduce Zhou Mingli to him: "Zhou Mingli, Wanwan and I have played together since childhood, and we have a good relationship."
Lu Dongping nodded and was about to say hello, but Zhou Mingli suddenly stood up, saluted him very formally, and then extended his hand and said, "Hello, I'm Zhou Mingli!"
Lu Dongping was stunned.
I just thought this person looked weird.
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