The old military doctor squatted on the ground and had just unbuttoned Su Haiting's collar when he suddenly exclaimed "Huh?" and reached out to pick up a small amount of light brown powder from the back of her neck. "This isn't from the peanut soup; it looks more like... the residue of some kind of herb."
He flipped Su Haiting's palm open again, his fingertips brushing against the white powder remaining on her palm, his brows furrowing even more. "Moreover, her convulsions were much more severe than those of ordinary food poisoning, unlike what could be caused by spoiled peanut soup."
Ling Huanwu's heart skipped a beat, and she suddenly remembered that when Su Haiting was showing off earlier, there seemed to be some white powder stuck between her fingers.
Just as she was about to speak, Aunt Liu suddenly slapped her thigh and said, "This morning I saw Comrade Su picking some small white flowers behind the mountain. I asked her what she was going to do with them, and she said she would make tea. I thought the flowers looked familiar, like the 'bitter root flower' that the villagers had mentioned. It's poisonous!"
These words were like a thunderbolt, leaving everyone stunned.
They immediately sent someone to check behind the mountain, and sure enough, they found a small pile of bitter root flowers that hadn't been processed yet next to the rock where Su Haiting often stayed. The petals were still covered with the same white powder as the one on her palm.
At this moment, Su Haiting, who had been unconscious, suddenly groaned and her eyelashes trembled.
Ling Huanwu stepped forward, her voice turning cold: "Su Haiting, if you're awake, explain yourself clearly: before you drank my peanut soup, did you first eat the 'tonic' you picked yourself?"
Su Haiting suddenly lifted her eyelids and saw the probing gazes of those around her. Her face turned deathly pale, and her lips trembled as she was unable to speak.
Looking at her like this, Zhou Jiuzhen understood perfectly well.
He took the thermos from Ling Huanwu, unscrewed the lid, and a rich aroma of peanuts wafted out.
He scooped up a spoonful, tasted it, and turned to the others, saying, "The soup is good; it's not poisonous."
"Su Haiting, your superiors initially spared your punishment because you voluntarily handed over the treasure map, but now you've deliberately feigned illness to frame someone and even illegally collected poisonous plants. Once you recover, you'll be dealt with according to regulations."
After saying that, he looked at Ling Huanwu, his originally cold and hard gaze softened, and he reached out to tuck a stray hair behind her ear. "The soup is still hot, I'll drink it now."
Seeing that their uncle believed their aunt, the triplets immediately surrounded him. The eldest hugged his leg, his voice sweet and soft, "Uncle, Mommy's milk...it's so delicious..."
The three little ones are still too young to know what peanut soup is; they just think it's milk with peanuts added.
Those who didn't understand the context might mistakenly think that her uncle was eating something delicious, which made Ling Huanwu, who was already angry, blush deeply.
The onlookers were all amused by the little child's soft, sweet voice.
Ling Huanwu's cheeks flushed, and her anger finally subsided considerably, though she felt a burning sensation in her eyes.
She turned around, picked up the thermos, and was about to leave when Zhou Jiuzhen grabbed her arm.
What are you doing?
"I have something to tell you..."
Ling Huanwu turned around and glared at him, annoyed. "Didn't you say you were so busy that you didn't even have time to drink soup? How come you have time to talk to me now?"
Zhou Jiuzhen sighed and reached out to pinch her cheek affectionately. "I really didn't have time just now. I was busy working on the data. As for Su Haiting, she voluntarily handed over the treasure map. The brothers have all discussed it and decided to give her another chance for Hai Di's sake."
"I didn't expect her to still be causing trouble."
"She had been handing out towels and water to all the men on the mountain. Just now she handed me a towel, but you just happened to see it."
Aunt Liu and her second aunt, who were present earlier, chimed in, "Yes, Xiao Ling, please don't overthink it. These past few days, that Su girl has suddenly become like a different person, so obedient and docile. Everyone thought she'd changed, but the girl... sigh..."
“Yes, all of us aunties have seen it, but Battalion Commander Zhou has never paid any attention to her.”
Several people surrounded Ling Huanwu, offering words of advice one after another.
Ling Huanwu opened her mouth, making it seem as if she had just been being unreasonable.
Of course, she wouldn't reveal that she had been bothered by those things, waving her hand and saying, "It was just handing me water and wiping my sweat, I really don't care."
She tried to argue, but Zhou Jiuzhen grabbed her wrist and dragged her behind the big banyan tree at the back of the mining area.
"What are you doing? Zhou Jiuzhen, let go of me! I'll call for help if you keep this up!"
Ling Huanwu walked and cursed, but the next second her feet were off the ground and her back was pressed against the tree trunk. Zhou Jiuzhen held her and stopped her from saying anything she was about to say.
The shadows of the trees overhead swayed, and the leaves rustled.
When their lips parted, they were still immersed in their own worlds, breathing slightly heavily.
Ling Huanwu hugged Zhou Jiuzhen's waist, burying her face in his chest, not daring to look up at him.
"sorry……"
When she spoke, she found her voice was hoarse, with sobs and trembling that she herself dared not admit.
She couldn't stand seeing Zhou Jiuzhen behaving intimately with someone else, let alone the fact that Zhou Jiuzhen must have felt a hundred times worse than her when he saw her struggling with Zhou Shuyao and Qin Jinshen.
Zhou Jiuzhen gently stroked the top of her head and immediately understood what she was apologizing for.
"You mean there are some things you haven't told me? It's okay."
"Everyone has some little secrets, and it's okay if you don't want to tell me. I was just too curious before. I've thought it through. From now on, as long as we're doing well together, nothing else matters."
"Don't call me Battalion Commander Zhou anymore, it makes me feel uncomfortable. Call me old man! We still want to grow old together."
Ling Huanwu's eyes welled up with tears; she hadn't expected him to be so forgiving of everything about her.
But she despicably tried to hide her past.
She decided to tell him everything from her previous life.
Whether he believes it or not, whether he minds or not, she is determined to tell him honestly about her past life.
"Old man, come home early tonight, okay? I have something to tell you..."
Before Ling Huanwu could finish speaking, Wang, the guard, called out from behind the tree, "Commander Zhou, Engineer Zhang is waiting for you to come over and discuss the next steps!"
“I’m here,” Zhou Jiuzhen replied, gently stroking Ling Huanwu’s small, high nose bridge and smiling indulgently, revealing two dimples. “I’ll definitely be going back tonight. There’s a lot to do here, so I’ll be there as soon as possible.”
He held Ling Huanwu's hand tightly, gently stroking it, reluctant to let go.
He reluctantly let go of her hand only after they had walked outside.
Meanwhile, Ling Huanwu's hand was still being held by Zhou Jiuzhen, savoring the feeling of being held in someone's palm. When she looked up, she met the angry gaze of Guard Wang.
"Wha...what's wrong?"
Ling Huanwu stammered, feeling somewhat embarrassed, thinking he was blaming her for delaying their work.
Unexpectedly, Guard Wang suddenly jumped up, looking at Ling Huanwu with an angry expression, and began to accuse her, "Comrade Ling, do you still remember Pilot Song, who broke his leg and was waiting for you to visit him in the military medical tent?"
Ling Huanwu's eyes widened, her mouth agape in disbelief. "He sent you to find me?"
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