Too lazy to watch the two of them bickering, Qi Yanjue picked up his lunchbox and left.
Zhao Yiheng, with his sharp eyes, watched Qi Yanjue's departing figure and asked, "Yanjue, where are you going?"
"Take lunch to her," Qi Yanjue replied, without stopping.
Remembering he had some money left after buying two meals, Zhou Feng quickly pulled out some loose change from his pocket. He grabbed the money and chased after Qi Yanjue, calling out, "Captain, Captain, wait a minute!"
Upon hearing Zhou Feng's voice, Qi Yanjue stopped and turned to look at him.
"Captain, this is some change my wife gave me after buying food. Could you please take it back to her? I won't go over there." Zhou Feng handed the money to Qi Yanjue.
Qi Yanjue glanced at it, took it, turned around, opened the door, and walked out without looking back.
In the next ward.
Hearing footsteps inside the space experimental vehicle, Song Yueying quickly slipped out.
I guessed that Qi Yanjue had returned. I was currently a bit far from the hospital bed, and it was too late to go to the bed and pretend to be asleep.
After glancing around, Song Yueying made a decision in an instant and quickly walked towards the window.
Just as he stood still, the ward door opened, and Qi Yanjue's tall and upright figure appeared in the doorway.
Song Yueying seemed to turn around only after hearing the door open, and saw Qi Yanjue. A bright smile lit up her face, "You're back?"
Qi Yanjue assumed she was still asleep and, not wanting to wake her, opened the door quietly. But not only was she awake, she was standing by the window, seemingly looking at something.
“You’re not asleep? Come and have some dinner.” Qi Yanjue turned around, gently closed the door, walked to the bedside, and placed the lunchbox he was carrying on the low cabinet.
“After you left, I slept for a while but couldn’t fall back asleep, so I got up and looked outside.” Song Yueying walked towards him.
Qi Yanjue said, "The temperature by the window is higher than the temperature inside the room, and it's currently the hottest time of day at noon, so it's best not to linger by the window."
"I understand." Song Yueying understood that he said this for her own good, so she naturally agreed.
"What kind of food does the hospital cafeteria serve? Is it good?" Song Yueying sat down by the hospital bed and looked curiously at the lunchbox that Qi Yanjue had just taken out of the mesh bag.
"Zhou Feng said that the hospital cafeteria had braised pork today, and he bought two portions for us," Qi Yanjue said as he opened the lid of the aluminum lunchbox.
"There's braised pork!" Song Yueying's eyes lit up at the mention of braised pork.
As the lunchbox lid was opened, the aroma of meat wafted out.
Qi Yanjue remained calm.
Song Yueying swallowed hard, her eyes gleaming with longing. Without waiting for Qi Yanjue's help, she took out chopsticks from the net bag herself, her bright eyes fixed on the lunchbox.
She took a deep breath of the aroma and exclaimed, "Wow! It smells so good! It really is braised pork, my favorite braised pork!"
The meat dishes prepared by the chefs in the state-run restaurants were of average quality; they weren't particularly delicious, but they weren't bad either.
Song Yueying was looking forward to the lunchbox with its perfectly marbled braised pork belly, wondering how good the chef at the hospital was.
Braised pork is her favorite food, how could she even say that? Seeing her so openly craving meat for the first time, Qi Yanjue couldn't help but twitch his lips.
"Eat it while it's hot." He handed the lunchbox to Song Yueying.
"I won't stand on ceremony." Taking the lunchbox, Song Yueying first picked up a piece of braised pork and put it in her mouth. As she chewed, the expression on her face changed.
A smile turned into a bitter face, and then into something indescribable.
With meat in her mouth, Song Yueying didn't know whether to spit it out or swallow it. Finally, she steeled herself, chewed hard, and swallowed it, then shoveled a few mouthfuls of white rice into her lunchbox.
Qi Yanjue had just opened his lunchbox and hadn't even had a chance to take a bite when he saw her expression change. He asked in confusion, "What's wrong?"
"This braised pork..." Song Yueying couldn't find the right words to describe it.
"What's wrong with the braised pork?" Seeing her hesitant expression, Qi Yanjue, who was not in a hurry at first, is now getting a little anxious.
When she mentioned braised pork, Qi Yanjue began to suspect that there was something wrong with it. Meat usually gets spoiled when it's spoiled, so he looked down and smelled the braised pork in his lunchbox.
Besides the meaty aroma, there was no other strange smell, which means the meat wasn't spoiled.
The food in both lunchboxes was the same. The braised pork in hers wasn't spoiled, and the one in Song Yueying's hand couldn't be spoiled either, so why did her expression change?
Song Yueying was still struggling with how to tell Qi Yanjue that the braised pork was even worse than she had imagined when a large hand reached out and took the lunchbox from her hand.
Then, Qi Yanjue placed another freshly opened lunchbox in her hand and said, "I haven't started eating yet, you can have mine."
Song Yueying looked up in surprise, her eyes filled with disbelief.
"I just smelled it, the braised pork is fine, it's not spoiled." Qi Yanjue said as he put the braised pork from his lunchbox into Song Yueying's lunchbox.
After he picked up two pieces of braised pork, Song Yueying finally realized what was happening and quickly moved the lunchbox away from her hands, saying, "I don't like this braised pork, so don't give it to me anymore."
Qi Yanjue paused, looking at her with confusion. "Didn't you just say that braised pork was your favorite? Why don't you like it anymore?"
"When I said braised pork is my favorite, I meant braised pork that's cooked really well." Song Yueying glanced at the lunchbox in her hand, her expression somewhat disgusted.
"This braised pork is obviously not good. Not only is the flavor bland, but the meaty taste is also unbearable."
Endure it. Qi Yanjue recalled her expression when she swallowed the meat; she had indeed swallowed it while enduring the discomfort.
She meant that the braised pork was unpalatable, that she didn't like it anymore, and even disliked it. Qi Yanjue understood what she meant, but didn't quite grasp the meaning.
He asked, "When we eat meat, is it just for the taste of the meat?"
Qi Yanjue would not ignore things he couldn't understand; he would try his best to understand them.
"The taste of the meat I'm talking about isn't the kind you're describing..." Song Yueying didn't know how to explain for a moment, so she simply said, "Anyway, it's not the same taste as the meat you're describing."
"Hurry up and put all the meat from my lunchbox into yours."
As she spoke, Song Yueying held her lunchbox up to Qi Yanjue.
Qi Yanjue still couldn't understand what she meant by "taste". In his mind, it didn't matter what he ate, as long as he could fill his stomach and not be hungry.
He wasn't particular about food; it didn't matter whether he ate meat or not.
Seeing her serious expression, Qi Yanjue still wanted to confirm again, "You really don't want to eat this meat? Maybe the piece of meat you just ate wasn't good, but the other meats might be delicious."
"I'm not eating anymore, I'm not eating anymore, you take it all away." Song Yueying was extremely disgusted at this moment and had no intention of trying it again.
Just then, there was a knock on the ward door.
"Who?" Qi Yanjue asked, looking at Song Yueying, who also looked up at the door.
Chen Guangyao's voice rang out from outside the ward, "Captain, the police are here to ask us about the situation. They're asking if you're available right now."
Police officers came to investigate.
Upon hearing this, Song Yueying's heart skipped a beat, guessing that Qi Yanjue and Chen Guangyao's trip to find Luo Ming today might have been exposed.
She lowered her voice and asked Qi Yanjue, "When you and Chen Guangyao went out to look for Luo Ming, were you seen by the police?"
"No," Qi Yanjue answered with certainty. "I've been hiding in the shadows the whole time. The police may have seen Chen Guangyao, but they definitely didn't see me."
It was good that he hadn't been seen by the police. Song Yueying breathed a sigh of relief and put her lunchbox on the low cabinet. "You hurry up and sit on the hospital bed. I'll go to the door to greet them."
Just as she turned around, her arm was grabbed. Song Yueying turned back and looked at Qi Yanjue suspiciously. She didn't ask him if he had anything else to say, but simply waited for him to speak.
"Don't worry, they're probably just asking about the situation, they don't mean anything by it," Qi Yanjue reassured her. "You sit and continue eating, I'll go to the door..."
“You are the seriously injured patient now,” Song Yueying interrupted him. “I am a family member. I’m sitting down to eat, and you, a seriously injured patient, have to get out of bed to open the door. What kind of situation is that?”
Qi Yanjue's face darkened; he hadn't expected this at all.
After letting go, Qi Yanjue wanted to say something, but he didn't know what else to say.
As if seeing through his inner turmoil, Song Yueying said, "Don't worry, I know what I should and shouldn't say."
"Don't forget you're seriously injured." After giving these instructions, Song Yueying walked towards the door.
After reaching the door, she glanced back to make sure Qi Yanjue was already sitting on the hospital bed before opening the door.
Chen Guangyao and two uniformed police officers stood at the entrance.
One looked to be in his forties, the other looked to be under twenty. The older officer was empty-handed, while the younger officer held a notebook and a pen.
However, Song Yueying felt that he looked somewhat familiar.
As Song Yueying sized up the two police officers, the two officers were also looking at her.
The older police officer only thought the woman was pretty, while the younger officer smiled broadly.
Seeing that it was her who opened the door, Chen Guangyao secretly breathed a sigh of relief and introduced her, saying, "Comrade Song, these two are comrades from the Public Security Bureau. They are here to find out about the situation."
He was really afraid that the captain would be the one to open the door, which would expose them.
Song Yueying saw Chen Guangyao's expression but said nothing.
"Hello, Comrade Xiao Song!" The older police officer stepped forward and introduced himself, "My surname is Zhang, and this is my apprentice, Xiao He. We are from the county public security bureau."
"Hello, officers. Please come in." Song Yueying nodded and stepped aside to let the two officers into the ward.
Entering the ward, we saw Qi Yanjue sitting on the bed, holding a lunchbox in his hand. The older police officer, Zhang, smiled and said, "He's eating lunch."
"Yes," Song Yueying replied, then casually asked, "Have you two police officers had lunch?"
"Not yet," the young police officer Xiao He answered quickly, his eyes shining as he looked at Song Yueying. "Comrade Song, hello, it's nice to see you again."
"We meet again," he said, instantly drawing the attention of everyone in the ward.
Officer Zhang glanced at him, wondering to himself, "This guy isn't usually so outgoing! Why is he saying 'we meet again' as soon as he sees a pretty woman?"
The young police officer, whose smile seemed worthless, recognized his sister-in-law. Chen Guangyao cautiously glanced towards the direction of the hospital bed.
Qi Yanjue recognized the young policeman at a glance; he was the same man who had delivered food to Song Yueying before. At the time, he had felt the policeman was being overly attentive to Song Yueying, and now it seemed…
Looking at the young police officer with his sunny smile, a single adjective came to mind for Song Yueying.
A sunny boy.
"You are..." Just as she was about to ask, a scene flashed through Song Yueying's mind, the location being the next ward. She smiled and said, "I remember now, I remember you."
"You're the police officer who brought me food."
On the day she assisted the police in arresting human traffickers, it was too late for her to return to the village. Then she remembered Qi Yanjue and went back to his hospital room to spend the night.
The young police officer somehow discovered she hadn't eaten dinner and brought her some. After eating, she had a good night's sleep.
Song Yueying was grateful to the police officer who had once brought her meals.
Police officer Xiao He was taken aback for a moment, then said with a shy smile, "Comrade Song, you still remember this matter!"
"I won't forget it easily," Song Yueying said. "If it weren't for Officer He bringing me dinner that day, I would definitely have gone to bed hungry."
Chen Guangyao looked at his captain with an expression of utter disdain. What was the captain doing, letting another man deliver food to his wife?
"Of course, of course," Officer He scratched his head, looking a little embarrassed.
Song Yueying said, "I haven't thanked Officer He yet before I went back to the village. I'll be in the county tomorrow too, so how about I treat Officer He to a meal?"
"Okay!" As soon as he finished speaking, Officer He realized he had agreed too quickly and asked, blushing, "Wouldn't this...wouldn't this be too much trouble?"
Police Officer Zhang was surprised that his young apprentice and this beautiful woman had such a connection, and said with a smile, "You two are really destined to meet."
These words made Qi Yanjue's gaze sharpen instantly.
When she looked up at Officer He, her gaze was calm and unwavering. "It's no trouble at all. Officer He has delivered food to Yueying before, so it's only right that we treat you to a meal."
After he finished speaking, he waved to Song Yueying.
Song Yueying was puzzled, but she still walked up to him. Qi Yanjue was very satisfied with her cooperation, put the lunchbox he was holding on the low cabinet, and picked up another lunchbox for her.
Qi Yanjue said gently, "The food is getting cold. You eat first, and I'll talk to the two police officers for a while."
Blinking, Song Yueying still couldn't understand his purpose in doing this. She was never one to make things difficult for herself; if she couldn't figure it out, she simply wouldn't think about it.
He carried the lunchbox to another hospital bed, sat down, and began to eat slowly with his head down.
Police Officer Zhang and Police Officer Xiao He stared blankly at the interaction between the two, feeling something was strange, but they couldn't quite put their finger on why.
The captain must care about his wife; there must have been a reason why he had this young police officer deliver food to her. Chen Guangyao mentally prepared a reason for his captain.
"Chen Guangyao just said that you two came to me to understand the situation? May I ask what situation you want to understand?" Qi Yanjue's tone was no longer gentle at all.
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