Chapter 38

Jiang Nian's eyelashes trembled slightly, and she pursed her lips and turned to look at Lu Yu. She suddenly bumped into the other's dark eyes, which were as sharp as if they could see through people's hearts. Jiang

Nian subconsciously looked away and nodded: "Okay."

Lu Yu's eyes paused on Jiang Nian's drooping eyebrows for a few seconds and then retracted his gaze. He took a few dry firewood and added it to the stove. When he lowered his head, he had some understanding in his eyes.

It was already very late after the cakes were steamed. Jiang Nian put the cakes out one by one to dry. Lu Yu stood up to wash and cut vegetables and said: "It's too late today, send it tomorrow."

Jiang Nian nodded quickly: "Yes."

It was exactly what she wanted.

Tomorrow morning, she would get up first and pack the cakes to deliver, and then come back to tell Lu Yu after delivering them. What if Lu Yu went with her to see the professor in the cowshed? Wouldn't that reveal the truth?

The cheerful expression on Jiang Nian's face did not escape Lu Yu's eyes. The man went out with a bucket to fetch water, and when he turned around, there was a smile on the corner of his lips. He filled the bucket with water and took it to the kitchen. Jiang Nian heated the oil in a pot and cooked vegetables. After cooking, the two of them ate together in the kitchen

. Because of the indecent sleeping posture last night, Jiang Nian lay on the kang at night, pressed tightly against the wall, and pressed both sides of the quilt under his body, almost wrapping himself up like a mummy, and then stared blankly at the beams above.

Seeing Lu Yu coming up from the corner of her eye, Jiang Nian turned her head to look at the newspapers on the wall, pursed her lips and tried to ignore the movements around her.

The kerosene lamp went out, and the room instantly fell into pitch darkness.

It was not until her eyes adapted to the darkness that Jiang Nian could see the outline of the window. She was afraid that tonight would be the same as last night, so she hesitated and whispered, "If I roll over to your place tonight, wake me up."

Lu Yu's voice sounded even deeper and mellower in the dark night: "Okay."

Jiang Nian just closed her eyes and heard Lu Yu ask her, "Why did sister-in-law want to go home to collect the debts she owed in the past?"

He was referring to the Jiang family.

Jiang Nian had thought of the words early in the morning. She opened her eyes and looked at the moon outside the window: "I have figured out a lot of things in the past six months. In the past, I was too stupid and cared too much about family affection, so my mother and brother went too far. I have also died twice, and I have let go of many things. Some people are not worth my protection, nor are they worth my careful treatment."

She paused for a moment, turned her head to look at Lu Yu, the man looked at the beams above, and she only saw Lu Yu's profile. His face was angular, his nose was high, his eyebrows were slanted into his temples, and his thin lips were slightly pursed. He seemed to notice her gaze and turned his head to look at her.

The two people's eyes met unexpectedly in the dark night.

Jiang Nian blinked, looking at the cold and handsome man in the dark night, and suddenly a string in her heart jumped. She pursed her lips and noticed that her breathing seemed to be a little disordered.

In the quiet night, Jiang Nian could even hear her accelerated heartbeat.

The man who was originally lying on the kang suddenly stood up and approached her. Jiang Nian widened her eyes in surprise, and the tip of her nose was filled with the strong masculine scent from the other person. Lu Yu stretched out his hand and rubbed her quilt. The back of his hand intentionally or unintentionally rubbed Jiang Nian's rosy face, and his hand pinched the corner of her quilt and pulled it.

"Don't press too tightly, your arms and legs will easily go numb."

Because his arm passed over Jiang Nian and pulled the corner of the quilt against the wall, the distance between the two was very close, so close that they could smell each other's breathing.

Lu Yu's eyes fell on Jiang Nian's bright eyebrows, then he lowered his eyes to look at Jiang Nian's lips, which were slightly pursed. His Adam's apple moved a few times, and his fingers holding the corner of the quilt suddenly tightened. Suddenly, some wanton and dirty thoughts arose in his mind.

He wanted to get closer...

"I'm not pressed anymore."

Jiang Nian moved her body gently and pulled the corner of the quilt out from under her shoulders.

Her voice brought back Lu Yu's dangerous thoughts that were on the edge. The man let go of the corner of the quilt, lay back on the kang, closed his eyes and controlled his disordered breathing.

Jiang Nian loosened the corner of the quilt on the other side, looked at the roof and said, "My mother and her friends took away your money, and the money that my father saved over the years. We can't let them take away this money."

Lu Yu closed his eyes, "No, they won't take it away. We will get it back."

In the dark night, his voice was hoarse and sharp.

Jiang Nian thought he had a cold, and asked with concern, "Do you

have a cold?" Lu Yu said, "A little bit."

"Then buy some cold medicine on your way back, don't take it seriously."

"Okay."

Jiang Nian thought about things alone for a while, and then gradually fell asleep.

Hearing the steady breathing beside his ear, Lu Yu slowly opened his eyes and turned to look at Jiang Nian who was sleeping soundly.

He watched for a long time, until Jiang Nian suddenly turned over and rolled towards him. Lu Yu shamelessly stretched out his arm and let Jiang Nian rest her head on his arm. Feeling the gravity from his arm, Lu Yu turned around and looked at Jiang Nian's curled eyelashes in the moonlight.

His hand that hit the quilt curled up, but he couldn't help it in the end. He raised his head and touched Jiang Nian's face, and hooked his fingertips on the woman's curled eyelashes. The sleeping person turned his head uncomfortably, turned around and faced the wall, leaving him with the back of her head.

Lu Yu realized what he had just done, his ears turned red, and he withdrew his hand and turned over to lie down.

The next morning, when Jiang Nian woke up, Lu Yu had already prepared breakfast. She sat up and put on her cotton coat. She looked at herself lying obediently against the wall with the quilt still pressed under her body, and immediately smiled happily.

It seems that she slept well last night.

Not embarrassing.

Jiang Nian got off the kang, put on her cotton-padded shoes, washed up with hot water, and after having breakfast with Lu Yu, she put the cakes she made last night into a small basket and covered it with a cloth: "I'm going to deliver cakes to Aunt Zhao and the team leader."

Lu Yu said, "I'll go with you."

Jiang Nian:...

She held the basket tightly, wanting to say no, but she couldn't find a suitable excuse. When she walked out of the house, Jiang Nian was worried, afraid that after Lu Yu went to the cowshed with him and met the professor, her lies would be exposed. With this worry in her heart, she delivered cakes to Aunt Zhao, Aunt Li, and Aunt Wang's homes, and then went to deliver cakes to the team leader's home. The team leader's family had just finished their meal, and when they saw Lu Yu and Jiang Nian coming, they stood up and let them in.

Jiang Nian put the cake down. The captain looked at the white cake and the red brown sugar cake in the bowl in amazement. They were soft and fluffy. He had never seen them before.

The captain looked at Jiang Nian and said, "Xu's wife, did you make this?"

Jiang Nian said, "Well, I also want to thank the captain for his help yesterday."

The captain waved his hand and smiled, "What are you thanking me for? But I'll accept this food. I haven't eaten it yet, let my grandchildren have a taste."

After sitting in the captain's house for a while, Jiang Nian wanted to leave, so she turned and looked at Lu Yu.

Lu Yu said, "Sister-in-law, go first. I'll talk to the captain."

Seeing him say this, Jiang Nian's heart, which had been hanging for the whole morning, completely fell. She stood up and said goodbye to the captain, then carried a basket and went to the old professor who lived in the cowshed. It was cold now, especially in the morning, and there were not many people on the road.

Jiang Nian passed by the educated youth settlement. There was no wall in the yard of the educated youth settlement. It was fenced with sticks outside. There were more than a dozen chickens and ducks inside. Two female educated youth went into the stove room built on a straw shed to cook breakfast, and two male educated youth carried buckets to the well to pump water.

When Jiang Nian passed by, the people in the educated youth settlement also looked at her.

After Jiang Nian walked away, several people who knew the situation were discussing who she was. These educated youth had lived here for two years and were familiar with everyone in the team, but they had never seen this woman. Although she was wearing country clothes, she was clean and had no patches. She was also white and beautiful, and didn't look like someone here at all.

The cowshed and the educated youth settlement were separated by a mile.

Jiang Nian rubbed her face, which was almost frozen, with a cold look. Although the cowshed was a place where people could live, it was very simple. When she walked outside the cowshed, she saw the old professor making a fire and cooking. He was wearing a patched cotton jacket, but the jacket was still thin and did not seem to be very resistant to freezing. The old man sat in front of the stove and warmed himself by the fire. Although he was not well dressed, his clothes were clean.

And from the old man's temperament, it can be seen that he is obviously different from the old people in the countryside.

"Uncle."

Jiang Nian walked over and put the basket on the stove, "Uncle, do you still recognize me?"

The original owner had sent corn cakes to the old professor before, but she rarely went there later. She could not guarantee whether the old professor still remembered her.

The old professor heard the voice and looked up at Jiang Nian who was walking to the stove. She squatted down, her eyes were level with his, and helped him put the dry firewood at his feet into a pile.

Although it was just a quick glance, the old professor still recognized her.

He always recognized people's faces, and a kind smile appeared on his face: "It's you, your name is Jiang Nian, right?"

Jiang Nian was a little surprised. She didn't expect that after a year, the old professor still recognized her.

She smiled and said, "Well, my name is Jiang Nian."

Jiang Nian lifted the cloth on the basket and said, "Uncle, this is the cake I made, please try it."

The old professor was a little surprised. He looked at Jiang Nian's face for a few more times and said, "You are different from before, you like to smile more."

Jiang Nian

smiled and said, "Everyone will change." I don't know what the old professor thought of. He picked up a piece of cake, his face looked a little sad, and he muttered to himself, "Yes, everyone will change."

Just like him.

He almost forgot how he lived before.

The old professor took a bite of the pastry and thought of the man who came last night. He didn't know who that man was, but the two of them sat in front of the stove and talked for a long time. Only Jiang Nian's name was mentioned in the conversation. He always remembered this girl who secretly sent him corn cakes when he was in the most difficult time.

Everyone here wanted to stay away from him.

Only this girl would sneak out in the middle of the night to give him a bite to eat. She was the only ray of light for him in this gloomy land.

Jiang Nian talked to the old professor and then went back. She didn't go to the captain's house to find Lu Yu, but went back home directly, found Xu Chengsheng's clothes, altered them, and planned to send them to the old professor.

She had just taken a quick look at the old professor's place. There was only one quilt, which had never been replaced because it was frozen after washing in winter. After Jiang Nian had altered the clothes, Lu Yu came back.

She said to Lu Yu, "I altered your eldest brother's clothes when he was alive, and I was thinking of giving another quilt to the old professor. What do you think?"

She was asking for his consent. After all, Lu Yu was also a part of this family. Although she had this intention, she had to discuss it with Lu Yu.

Lu Yu nodded, went back to the house and picked up a quilt: "I'll take it over for you."

"No..."

Before Jiang Nian finished her words, Lu Yu had already left the house.

Jiang Nian: …

She quickly picked up the two sets of cotton-padded clothes that had been altered and followed Lu Yu to the cowshed. After dinner, the old professor sat in front of the stove and weaved bamboo baskets. This was the job assigned to him by the brigade, which could earn him more work points in exchange for food.

When the old professor saw the two people coming over, he looked at Lu Yu and Jiang Nian for a few seconds without saying anything else. Finally, his eyes fell on the quilt that Lu Yu was holding, and then looked at the cotton-padded clothes that Jiang Nian was holding in his arms. His eyes suddenly became red and hot.

Lu Yu carried the bedding into the cowshed, and Jiang Nian followed him in. After putting away her cotton-padded clothes, she turned to the old professor and said, "These two sets of clothes were worn by my deceased husband. I altered the size. If you don't mind, you can wear them to keep out the cold."

The old professor's eyes were warm, "Why would I mind? I should thank you."

Jiang Nian was afraid that Lu Yu would ask the old professor about what she had said before, so she kept talking like a chatterbox, fearing that Lu Yu would interrupt her. Lu Yu was a little surprised that Jiang Nian was so talkative at this moment, and couldn't help but look at her a few more times.

Jiang Nian introduced the old professor: "This is my husband's comrade-in-arms, Lu Yu."

Lu Yu nodded and exchanged a few words with the old professor. The two seemed to be meeting for the first time and understood each other tacitly.

After leaving the cowshed, Jiang Nian also breathed a sigh of relief.

They returned home one step ahead, and the captain came right after them, saying that the public security comrades had just arrived and had already gone to the Jiang family in Tianxi Village. Aunt Zhao, Aunt Li, and Aunt Wang had been chatting outside after dinner early in the morning. When they heard what the captain said, they went to the neighboring Tianxi Village with Jiang Nian and the others.

When Jiang Nian walked into the Jiang family, he saw three boxes outside the yard. The boxes were made of old-fashioned wood and had a sense of age. Cao Lan insisted that the key was lost, and finally the captain Du Ping smashed the lock with a hammer.

Jiang Guo and Lian Qin only felt that everything was dark in front of them.

Cao Lan also sat on the ground, thinking that this time it was really over.

The final result was as Lu Yu expected. The public security comrades found money and notes wrapped in gray cloth from the largest box. The money of that era was all small denominations, plus cloth tickets, grain tickets, meat tickets, cotton tickets, and several other kinds of tickets, a thick stack.

The people present were all villagers from Tianxi Village. When they saw the thick stack of money and tickets, they all took a breath of cold air. Suddenly, everyone felt that the Jiang family was a bandit with a really evil heart.

And everyone present knew that the Jiang family had robbed the money from their daughter. Otherwise, how could they have so much money? They were lucky to have a mouthful of food to eat every year, unless they engaged in speculation, but this crime was much more serious than robbing the daughter's money.

The Jiang family was not stupid. Who dared to say that they got the money through speculation?

Especially when the public security comrades showed the bills one by one, and there were indeed stamps of the army on them, the solid evidence slapped the Jiang family several times. Cao Lan sat on the ground with a dead heart and bent her waist. She felt that she had given birth to an ungrateful person who teamed up with outsiders to bully her family.

She regretted not drowning Jiang Nian in the dung pit when she was born.

The facts were in front of them, and Jiang Guo and Lian Qin did not dare to say anything. Even if they were reluctant to part with the money and bills, they could not get them back. Moreover, without this money, how would the Jiang family live in the future? If they

did not go to the fields to earn work points, the family would not get any food at the end of the year, and they would have to go to the mountains to dig wild vegetables to fill their stomachs.

For a while, people outside the Jiang family began to talk about it, saying that the Jiang family deserved it, that they were shameless, that they were the termites of Tianxi Village, that they were like vampires who grabbed their daughter and bullied her,

and that the Jiang family deserved this day. The public security comrades took the tickets and money back to the county, and asked Lu Yu and Jiang Nian, as well as Cao Lan and Jiang Guo, to go to the police station to take notes. To put it mildly, this matter was a family conflict, and to put it more seriously, the Jiang family had an indirect relationship that led to Jiang Nian's near death.

The Jiang family spent some of this money, and finally deducted it from the betrothal gift that Xu Cheng's father gave to Cao Lan to compensate Jiang Nian. The total was 700, and there was still a shortfall of 300. The tickets were also spent. These losses were subsequently compensated to Jiang Nian by the Jiang family.

The public security officer asked Jiang Nian whether to settle the matter on his own or continue to investigate. Jiang Nian did not hesitate and chose to settle the matter on his own. If the Jiang family did not return the 300 yuan, they would continue to investigate. In the end, the Jiang family wrote an IOU to Jiang Nian, with the fingerprints of both parties on it, and the public security officer was a witness.

On the way back, Cao Lan cursed Jiang Nian vigorously. Jiang Guo wanted to go up and beat Jiang Nian, but when he saw Lu Yu standing by Jiang Nian, he dared not move like a turtle.

The wrist that was pinched by Lu Lao Er yesterday is still blue, and it hurts to move.

Jiang Nian looked at Cao Lan with a gloomy look and said coldly: "It is written on the IOU that the repayment period for the 300 yuan is five years. If you can't pay back the 300 yuan after five years, I will continue to pursue it. Don't even think about shirking your debt. You can't shirk this debt."

She knew that with the ability of the Jiang family, they couldn't get 300 yuan in five years, let alone 300, and they probably couldn't even get 100. Jiang Guo was lazy and lazy, Lian Qin didn't look like a worker, and Jiang Hai was lame, not to mention that Cao Lan was the only one who worked properly in the family.

If their family still didn't change their bad habits, I'm afraid the whole family would go hungry.

For Jiang Nian, getting back 700 yuan and some bills was good enough. The worse the Jiang family was, the happier she felt. She had paid back all the bullying and abuse from the Jiang family in the past two days. In the end

, the one who should be thanked the most was Lu Yu.

And Lu Yu was also one of the victims of this incident. After all, all the money and bills were his. On the way back, Jiang Nian hesitated for a moment before asking, "Are you angry that I didn't pursue the Jiang family?" Lu Yu

glanced at her and said, "No."

In fact, not pursuing the case was a good thing. If Cao Lan had a criminal record, and if my sister-in-law got married and had children in the future, it would also affect the children's career. After all, legally, Cao Lan was Jiang Nian's direct relative.

Jiang Nian thought the same thing. When she heard Lu Yu say no, she smiled and said, "Thank you for this time."

Lu Yu frowned slightly and turned to look at Jiang Nian beside him. When he thought about Jiang Nian getting married and having children, his eyebrows frowned even tighter.

"Sister-in-law."

"Hmm?"

Jiang Nian looked up at Lu Yu and said, "What's wrong?"