After leaving the police station, Song Yueying walked ahead with her head down, looking sullen.
Qi Yanjue followed behind her, understanding that she was feeling down and knowing the reason for it.
First, there was no marriage registration office in Qingyuan Commune, a fact obtained from one of the three robbers.
Secondly, the only bus from Qingyuan Commune to the county in the afternoon departed at 1 p.m., as I just learned from the police captain.
Someone was riding a bicycle up ahead, but Song Yueying kept walking forward with her head down.
"Be careful." Qi Yanjue's expression changed upon seeing this. He took three steps at a time and ran towards Song Yueying. When he got close to Song Yueying, he reached out and grabbed her arm.
"What did you do..." Forced to stop, Song Yueying hadn't finished her question when she felt a gust of wind blow past her.
Looking back, I saw someone speeding away on a bicycle.
Recalling the warning she had just heard, which sounded like it came from Qi Yanjue, Song Yueying asked in confusion, "Was he trying to run me over?"
"It's also possible he wanted to run me over." Qi Yanjue said this deliberately, not wanting her to be frightened. He didn't chase after the cyclist either, afraid of falling into a diversionary tactic.
The police station was not far away. Anyone who dared to commit murder here must be quite bold. Qi Yanjue narrowed his cold, sharp eyes and warily surveyed his surroundings.
Finding no one suspicious, Qi Yanjue withdrew his gaze and met Song Yueying's scrutinizing look.
"He wanted to run you over...?" Song Yueying's gaze swept over Qi Yanjue from top to bottom, then from bottom to top, finally revealing a look that said, "Guess if I believe you?"
Qi Yanjue nodded. "He only sped up and rode his bicycle towards us after he saw the two of us. So, he probably wanted to run over either of us."
"They might also want to kill us both."
“He must have some misunderstanding about killing someone with a car,” Song Yueying said confidently. “Killing someone with a bicycle is just wishful thinking.”
"That guy was trying to run us over and kill us both. He must be out of his mind."
Qi Yanjue agreed with Song Yueying's words, but as a soldier, he couldn't curse people as freely as she did.
Realizing he was still holding her arm, Qi Yanjue quickly let go and explained, "Comrade Song, I..."
"Call me Yueying, or like Mom calls me Little Shadow, but you're not allowed to call me Comrade Song." Qi Yanjue was interrupted by Song Yueying as soon as he opened his mouth.
“I’m your own sister, we’re family. Don’t you find it strange that family members call me Comrade Song?”
After numerous unsuccessful attempts to correct the problem, Qi Yanjue no longer wants to try.
Seeing that Qi Yanjue didn't correct her, Song Yueying was very happy, and her tone became much lighter, "Brother, what did you want to say to me just now?"
Qi Yanjue said, "I just checked the time, it's a little past two in the afternoon. If we take an oxcart to the county town, it will take at least two hours."
"By the time we got to the county town, the marriage registration office was already closed."
"You're right, we can't get a divorce today. It's all for nothing." Hearing this, Song Yueying's good mood vanished again.
Why did I remind her? Why? She gave Qi Yanjue a resentful look. Head down, she continued walking, sighing all the while.
Seeing that Song Yueying was starting to feel down again, Qi Yanjue regretted saying those words to her.
Take a few quick steps and walk alongside her.
His real intention was to tell Song Yueying that they couldn't go to the county this afternoon. They could go back to the village first and go to the county tomorrow; that would be the same.
"It wasn't a wasted trip; at least we caught three robbers who had been entrenched in Qingyuan Commune for a long time." After saying that, Qi Yanjue began to regret it again.
He really knows how to bring up the most sensitive topics.
Unfortunately, he's not good at comforting people, let alone how to comfort a young girl who's feeling down.
Song Yueying gave a soft "hmm," which was taken as agreement with him.
Qi Yanjue tried hard to think of any way or thing that could distract the little girl.
Surprisingly, it actually gave him an idea.
"Why did you tell them that I arrested those three people?" Qi Yanjue asked. He had wanted to ask her that ever since he heard her say that to the police.
I refrained from asking because I was at the police station.
"If you say I arrested him, do you think they'll believe me?" Song Yueying asked instead of answering.
Qi Yanjue was speechless at these words.
"Actually, it's not that important who catches the bad guys." Song Yueying glanced at Qi Yanjue. "What's important is that if the bad guys are caught, there will be fewer victims."
"Besides, we're family, so what does it matter who catches the bad guys?"
"You're right." Qi Yanjue nodded in agreement, then remembered something else, "How did you take them down?"
The three people suddenly collapsed at the same time. As a soldier, Qi Yanjue naturally didn't believe it was a coincidence. He could only believe it was deliberate, since Song Yueying was the only other person present besides him at the time.
He didn't do anything; it must have been Song Yueying who did it.
"I knew you'd ask that." Song Yueying stopped, a smug look on her pretty face. She raised her hand, leaving a tiny gap between her thumb and forefinger.
"It was just a little bit of powder that made them feel weak all over."
"You sprinkled a powder on them that makes them weak all over." Qi Yanjue looked at Song Yueying calmly. Those who knew him knew that the calmer his face was, the more unsettled he was inside.
Unfortunately, Song Yueying didn't understand Qi Yanjue. She nodded and then emphasized, "Only a tiny bit was sprinkled, just a tiny bit."
Qi Yanjue had no idea how much "a little bit" she was referring to. He just couldn't believe that the three people could suddenly collapse at the same time for no reason.
So it really was her who did it? He wasn't wrong about her.
Qi Yanjue thought about it carefully, but still couldn't figure out when she had sprinkled the powder. Unable to understand, he asked directly, "When did you sprinkle it? I didn't see it."
Not only did he not see it, he also couldn't smell it at all.
"When you were taking out the money!" Song Yueying smiled, her eyes crinkling. "You were blocking me behind you, how could you possibly see what I was doing?"
"Moreover, the powder I mix is colorless and odorless, making it difficult for people to detect."
"So that's how it is," Qi Yanjue suddenly realized. "So, you took out the money not to provoke those three men, but to use the act of taking out the money to sprinkle the powder?"
He used to think she was stupid, but now Qi Yanjue realizes that he was the stupid one.
Song Yueying said, "Taking money out to show off is to provoke them. People are most likely to lose their rationality when they are extremely eager to get something."
"Once you lose your mind, you will expose your weaknesses."
For some reason, Qi Yanjue thought of the robber who called her "ancestor" again. "When that man begged you, I thought you would let him go."
"How could that be? Do I look like such a saintly person?" Song Yueying looked at Qi Yanjue in surprise, shocked that he would have such an outrageous idea.
"Holy Mother?" Qi Yanjue looked at Song Yueying in confusion as she uttered another word he didn't understand.
Knowing he didn't understand what "Saint Mary" meant, Song Yueying kindly explained it to him, "It means a kind-hearted person who is overly accommodating."
"The saint is just a pushover, remember that," Qi Yanjue said. "Then you are definitely not a pushover. Pushovers don't take all their money and votes."
“They are bad guys, and they are the ones who wanted to rob us! Is it wrong for us to hand the bad guys over to the police station?” Song Yueying smiled, her eyes crinkling.
"No." Qi Yanjue shook his head, sensing a mischievous glint in her smile.
“They had knives and axes. We were frightened. Is it wrong for us to ask for some compensation?” Song Yueying asked again.
"No problem." Qi Yanjue shook his head again.
"Do you have any other questions?"
"no problem."
Having received a satisfactory answer, Song Yueying took out the money and bills she had taken from the robber. She waved them around and said, "Let's go, let's go eat first."
"Then I'll bring some good food back to Mom. I promised her."
Looking at the money and tickets dangling in front of him, Qi Yanjue wanted to tease her. He pointed at the money and tickets in her hand, "You...didn't put any pesticide on them, did you?"
Song Yueying was taken aback, then shook her head and said, "No."
Seeing her stunned expression, Qi Yanjue smiled and said, "That's good."
After saying that, he took the lead and walked ahead.
If Song Yueying still doesn't realize she's been tricked at this point, she doesn't deserve to be called Song Yueying.
"Qi Yanjue!" Song Yueying shouted angrily, "I was going to treat you to a big meal, but now you only deserve a bowl of vegetarian noodles."
Listening to the girl's lively voice, Qi Yanjue himself didn't realize that the corners of his mouth were widening, and something was quietly changing.
The two went to a state-run restaurant for a big meal and even packed a portion of braised pork for Song's mother.
As for Song Yueying's claim that Qi Yanjue only deserved a bowl of vegetarian noodles, that didn't happen, because it was Qi Yanjue who paid for the money and the ticket.
After dinner, they went to the supply and marketing cooperative and bought rice, flour, oil, and some snacks. It was Qi Yanjue who suggested buying them, and Song Yueying did not object.
The rice and flour were in ten-pound bags, and the oil was in buckets, which Qi Yanjue carried out of the supply and marketing cooperative. Song Yueying followed behind him, carrying only a packed aluminum lunchbox and some snacks.
After loading Song Yueying and the grain onto the oxcart, Qi Yanjue took out a dollar and gave it to Chen Yuan. This was agreed upon from the beginning: the commune would pay one dollar for each trip the oxcart made.
He then reminded Song Yueying to be careful on the road before leaving.
"Comrade Song, isn't Comrade Qi coming back to the village with us?" Chen Yuan, who was driving the oxcart, looked at Qi Yanjue's departing figure with an expression of regret.
He also wanted to chat with Comrade Qi. Comrade Qi knew a lot, and chatting with him would not only be pleasant but also broaden his horizons.
“He has something to do,” Song Yueying replied succinctly.
She had long suspected that Qi Yanjue's identity was not simple, and she wouldn't pry into what he was up to. Qi Yanjue had already made clear arrangements for her before leaving, which was already very considerate.
For a brother to go to such lengths, he's definitely a doting brother to his sister.
Most men nowadays still hold old-fashioned views, believing that their sisters are a financial burden while simultaneously relying on selling them to obtain dowry money.
They really have to have their cake and eat it too.
Song Yueying's opinion of Qi Yanjue changed considerably.
Chen Yuan said, "Why can't we do this tomorrow? It's getting late, and if we don't go back soon, we'll have to walk home in the dark."
"Let's go." Song Yueying already knew Chen Yuan's talkative nature, so she never said a word of nonsense when talking to him.
"Shouldn't we wait for Comrade Qi to finish his business before heading back to the village together?" Chen Yuan asked. His personal thought was to wait a bit; the oxcart, though slow, would save energy!
Wait a moment for Qi Yanjue, then Song Yueying thought for a moment and shook her head, saying, "No need."
Qi Yanjue didn't tell them to wait for him, which means that he wouldn't be able to finish what he needed to do so quickly.
Comrade Song said there was no need to wait, so Chen Yuan had no choice but to stop waiting and drove the oxcart away.
The oxcart was really slow; it was already evening when they returned to the village, and every household was starting to cook. Song Yueying gazed at the smoke floating in the air; she had finally seen the legendary wisps of smoke rising from chimneys.
Song Yueying's good mood vanished as soon as she reached the gate of her own courtyard, because she encountered an annoying person.
Song Rumeng.
Chen Yuan helped Song Yueying unload the rice, flour, and oil from the oxcart, placed them at the courtyard gate, and then drove off. Song Rumeng's eyes widened when she saw the rice, flour, and oil placed at the courtyard gate.
Song Yueying used to go to the commune to sell grain, but she could never buy so much at once.
There was also the net bag that Song Yueying was carrying in her hand. She saw that it contained sponge cake, White Rabbit milk candy, and an aluminum lunchbox.
“Cousin, why didn’t you call me when you went to the commune to buy things?” Song Rumeng walked up to Song Yueying with a smile and reached out to take the net bag from her hand.
"This net must be very heavy. Here, let your cousin help you carry it."
Taking a step back to avoid Song Rumeng's outstretched hand, Song Yueying glanced at Song Rumeng's outstretched hand, then at the net bag she was carrying, and chuckled softly.
“Cousin…” Song Rumeng was taken aback, looking at her empty hands and then at Song Yueying who avoided her hands.
She had no idea that Song Yueying would avoid her hand.
Looking at the stunned Song Rumeng, Song Yueying asked with a half-smile, "Is my eldest cousin trying to steal my things?"
Song Rumeng claimed she was helping her carry things, but in reality, she wouldn't bring the things into her house at all. Song Rumeng would just take the things back to her own house and then shamelessly claim they were a gift from her.
"What nonsense are you talking about? How could I possibly steal your things?" Song Rumeng angrily accused Song Yueying. "Cousin, I've been so good to you, how could you be so heartless?"
"What you're doing really, really hurts my cousin's feelings!"
As she spoke, tears began to well up in her eyes again.
"Is my eldest cousin about to cry again?" Song Yueying raised an eyebrow. "Wait until later before you cry. You always say you're good to me. Tell me how good you are to me."
Song Rumeng couldn't cry anymore. Her eyes widened as she stared at Song Yueying in disbelief. Her face showed heartache, but in her heart, she was cursing Song Yueying fiercely.
That damned Song Yueying, you shameless bastard, you shameless bastard, you actually fell for it this time.
"Why isn't my eldest cousin saying anything?" Song Yueying asked. "Is it because you can't say it, or have you forgotten? Every time you say you'll help me carry things, when have you ever actually brought them into my yard?"
"Are you helping me carry my things, or are you blatantly stealing them from me?"
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