Chapter 31: Lu Cha’s Gesture of Goodwill

“Yang Qing, are you really not going to see her?”

Zheng Shu lowered her head, casually flipping through the bills as she asked.

Standing in front of her was a brown-clothed man wearing a gauze hat. Hearing her question, the man just sighed softly: “Now is not the time.” He paused, then looked up at Zheng Shu, “Did you go to confirm her identity?”

Zheng Shu’s expressionless face changed slightly, and she flatly denied: “I didn’t.”

Yang Qing: “I just hope she can live a peaceful life, not to be involved in those filthy affairs. I hope you can understand. If you dare to harm her, I won’t let you off either.”

Zheng Shu closed the bill book and stood up straight: “It’s not your place to meddle in my affairs.”

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Zhang Meng pushed open the fence gate and froze.

The yard, which was full of pits yesterday, had miraculously been filled up today.

After helping Lin Hao clean up his stall, she had gone up the mountain to clean up the remaining pits from yesterday. Now seeing that the pits had all been filled, the first person she thought of was Yang Qing.

These traps were all dug by her and Yang Qing together. Besides her and Yang Qing, no one else could place the wooden boards in the right positions.

Zhang Meng’s heart started beating excitedly, and she quickly ran into the yard, searching for Yang Qing. However, she searched every corner of the house but couldn’t find Yang Qing anywhere.

As if a bucket of cold water had been poured over her from head to toe, all the excitement turned into deep disappointment.

Zhang Meng sat dejectedly in the house for a while, then returned to the government office.

On her way back to the government office, she met Zi Yi. As soon as Zi Yi saw her, he handed her a folding fan.

“Constable Zhang, this is from the young master for you.”

It was a delicate and exquisite folding fan. The fan face was painted with ink landscapes, trees, and fruits. Under the tree stood a tall, slender male figure with his back turned. The man had long black hair like a waterfall, and his face was slightly turned, revealing a delicate profile.

In the blank space of the fan face, a few words were inscribed: “My heart is like yours.”

Zhang Meng was somewhat surprised: “For me?” She hurriedly waved her hand, “No, I can’t accept this.”

Zi Yi insisted: “The young master told Zi Yi to give it to you no matter what. He said you would understand the meaning of the fan.”

Zhang Meng took the fan and carefully examined it, but couldn’t see where the meaning of the fan lay. She fanned herself with it, and a cool breeze with a faint fragrance came to her face, refreshing her. Zhang Meng thought for a moment, as the weather was hot now, perhaps he was sending her a fan to cool off? Maybe this was his way of thanking her for sheltering him before.

“Your young master is too kind,” Zhang Meng smiled.

She accepted it. Although the folding fan wasn’t a very expensive item, it was rare for Xu Lu Cha to be so thoughtful. Now that they were considered friends, she should reciprocate the gesture. As it happened, she had just bought some snacks, so she handed the small bag of snacks to Zi Yi.

“Please give this to your young master and tell him that I really like his gift.”

Zi Yi took the small bag and looked at Zhang Meng, seeming to have something to say but hesitating. In the end, he didn’t say anything, bowed to Zhang Meng, and turned to leave.

……

“Zi Yi, did you give her the fan?”

As soon as Zi Yi stepped into the courtyard, Xu Lu Cha stood up from the swing, his feet touching the ground, and hurriedly walked towards Zi Yi.

Zi Yi: “I gave it to her. This is her return gift.” He handed the small bag of snacks to Xu Lu Cha.

Xu Lu Cha quickly opened the bag, saw the snacks inside, and was a bit stunned. He asked Zi Yi, “Did she say anything?”

“Constable Zhang said she really likes your gift.”

Xu Lu Cha bit his lower lip slightly. Her reaction was different from what he had imagined. He had already expressed his feelings to her, shouldn’t she have responded with some words of affection? She truly was a blockhead.

Xu Lu Cha sat glumly on the stone bench, spread out the snacks, and rested his chin on his hands, staring blankly at the snacks.

He missed her very much. Even though it had only been a day since he last saw her, it felt like a long time had passed, so long that it made him uncomfortable, as if a piece of his heart had been carved out, leaving him feeling empty and vaguely painful.

He had shown interest in many women before, and it had almost always been successful. He had never felt nervous about such things before, and every time he showed interest in them, although he pretended to be shy and delighted on the surface, he was actually extremely disgusted with them inside.

This time, showing interest in Zhang Meng, he was doing it with burning emotions. Although he knew Zhang Meng would certainly accept his feelings, after Zi Yi left, his heart had been on edge. He was afraid Zhang Meng would think he was frivolous, afraid Zhang Meng had changed her mind, and also afraid that he had misjudged Zhang Meng’s feelings, that she actually didn’t like him. Many emotions mixed together, making him anxious all morning, unable to stand still or sit comfortably.

Now that Zi Yi had brought back her answer, he couldn’t quite understand her attitude.

She said she liked his gift, and she even gave him snacks.

Did she mean – she really liked the fact that he liked her?

She always regarded food as her lifeline. By specially giving him snacks, was she indicating that she was willing to give him all her best things?

Xu Lu Cha’s handsome face reddened slightly as he understood this. His heart, which had been on edge all morning, finally settled down, followed by an overwhelming sense of happiness.

She indeed loved him.

He cherished the snacks in his arms, imagining her gentle smile. He wished he could run to the government office right now and throw himself into her embrace.

Zi Yi had never seen Xu Lu Cha show such a gentle expression before, and was surprised.

The relationship between the young master and Constable Zhang seemed to be somewhat unusual.

During the time when the young master was fleeing from marriage, he and Constable Zhang must have experienced something together.

Zi Yi lowered his eyes slightly. After a while, he seemed to remember something and took out a small rolled paper from his sleeve: “Young master, this is from Miss Qin. She asked me to give it to you.”

Saying this, he handed the paper to Xu Lu Cha.

Xu Lu Cha’s gentle expression quickly disappeared, replaced by his usual cold and distant look. He took the paper, opened it to glance at it, then tore it up.

“Zi Yi, go tell her that I am aware of the situation. Tell her to proceed according to the plan.”

“Yes.” Zi Yi bowed his head and left.

Xu Lu Cha hugged the snacks tightly, his slender white fingers picking up a piece and putting it in his mouth. The soft and sweet snack melted in his mouth, seeming to sweeten his heart.

Zhang Meng, the show is about to begin.

You don’t need to do anything, just focus on marrying me and loving me.

Wealth, I will strive for.

Power, I will strive for.

I will marry you with the most luxurious dowry in grand style.

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Chen Yue adjusted his clothes and said to the middle-aged man serving him behind him: “What’s that slut been up to lately?”

The man replied: “He seems to have been sending Zi Yi out often recently, but we don’t know where Zi Yi goes. Zi Yi always manages to shake off our people who follow him.”

Chen Yue sneered: “I’m afraid he’s sending Zi Yi to find Qin Long. That slut can’t go a day without seducing women.” He brushed the long hair hanging on his chest to the back and stood up. “Qin Long must be infatuated with him, probably wanting to be around that slut all the time. But the forces behind Qin Long can’t be underestimated. We can’t let her have any more contact with that slut. We need to find a way to prevent Zi Yi from going out.”

The man looked a bit troubled: “Master, Zi Yi is the lady’s adopted son, unlike other servants. We can’t touch him casually. If the lady finds out, she will be angry.”

Chen Yue’s face turned cold: “Xu Hong betrayed me, yet she refuses to divorce. I’m the one who should be angrier. I don’t want to see that slut Lu Cha’s disgusting face every day. Making him miserable is what I want.” He thought for a moment and said: “For now, don’t touch Zi Yi. We need to send someone to keep watch at the Qin residence, to see exactly what Zi Yi is doing with Qin Long, to see what scheme they’re plotting.”

“Yes.”

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“Ying?”

As soon as Zhang Meng entered the dream, she started looking for that small white creature. The last time she encountered it, it was greatly weakened. After bringing her to the mountaintop, it became very weak and slept on her knee for a long time. Zhang Meng estimated she was about to wake up in the real world, so she hid it in a cave.

Every time she woke up in the real world, she would vanish into thin air in the dream world. She didn’t know if Ying would look for her when it woke up and found her gone, as she hadn’t said goodbye.

Zhang Meng walked to the cave and looked inside, but found the little creature was gone. She went in and searched carefully, but still couldn’t find it.

“Ying?”

Zhang Meng walked out of the cave, calling its name loudly. Soon, a gust of wind blew past, and a ball of white fluff appeared out of nowhere and pounced into her arms, almost knocking her to the ground.

“Ying.” Zhang Meng stepped back with the force of Ying’s pounce, raising her hand to rub its soft, fluffy ears.