At the same time, he added, “Someone like Li Lifen, who exploits others for personal gain, has brought shame upon our village. She will have to make a self-criticism at the next village assembly.”
Setting an example was a standard part of every brigade meeting. Meng Xinfeng had been relieved that no one had caused trouble this month, and he had even considered going to the commune to receive praise from the leadership. But then Li Lifen went and threw herself into the fire—and committed such an appalling act.
The more he thought about it, the angrier he became. He nearly clenched his fists and punched her himself.
Moreover, Meng Xinfeng kept recalling what Zhou Yinghuai had said to him last time. That only deepened his unease, and after confirming the truth of the situation, he was determined to give Li Lifen a proper lesson.
With the brigade leader’s firm stance, the village party secretary had no objections, and the matter was settled.
Li Lifen and her husband had no defense. They could only tremble as they apologized to both the Cheng and Jia families, returned the matchmaking money they had taken, and finally, under the watchful eyes of the villagers, swore never to meddle in matchmaking again.
With that, the incident was officially put to rest.
From that day on, Li Lifen’s reputation was completely ruined—but she had no one to blame but herself.
—
As Cheng Fangqiu left the courtyard with the others, she suddenly spotted Li Jianping standing ahead. He hesitated, stepping forward as if wanting to speak to her.
She pretended not to see him and was about to walk past when she felt someone move close beside her, lightly supporting her arm.
“Qiuqiu, there’s a rock. Be careful not to trip.”
Hearing this, Cheng Fangqiu instinctively glanced down—only to see that the dirt road ahead was completely smooth.
If she had to call something a “rock,” maybe that tiny clump of hardened mud counted?
The fleeting sensation of a warm touch disappeared as soon as it came. When she looked up at him, Zhou Yinghuai gave her a gentle, almost impossibly soft smile—like he hadn’t just told an outright lie.
Cheng Fangqiu belatedly realized that the man beside her was…jealous again.
Her brow twitched, and she quickly sped up to escape the situation.
She left in a hurry, completely missing the moment when the previously “gentle” man turned to look at Li Jianping—his gaze filled with unmistakable warning.
Li Jianping’s heart trembled. The courage he had mustered to apologize to Cheng Fangqiu instantly vanished into thin air.
—
Perhaps because Ping Le Village hadn’t had any major drama in a long time, people talked about Li Lifen’s incident for nearly a week before finally letting it fade.
Meanwhile, the road construction project was nearing its final stage. The technicians were so busy that they barely had time to set foot on the ground, and even mealtimes had lost their usual lively chatter.
Today, the weather was particularly bad. Since morning, the sky had been covered in thick, oppressive clouds. The light struggled to pierce through the dense overcast, leaving the world shrouded in heavy gloom—like a raging sea of darkness churning above, threatening to spill over at any moment.
It wasn’t until work was nearly finished for the day that the long-looming rain finally began to fall.
At first, it was a soft drizzle, but soon, the droplets grew larger, turning into a downpour that stung against the skin.
Standing in the doorway of the kitchen, Cheng Fangqiu watched the rain cascade from the eaves, her brow furrowing slightly in concern. She mentally counted the time, waiting until she finally saw a group of men in identical work uniforms running toward them from a distance.
Only then did the tension in her expression ease. She turned back and helped He Shenghui ladle out the ginger soup.
“This rain is crazy—I’m soaked through!”
“No kidding. At least it didn’t start earlier, or we’d all be drenched like drowned chickens.”
The technicians who had just rushed inside to take shelter wasted no time voicing their complaints about the downpour.
“Drink some ginger soup to ward iff the cold.”
Cheng Fangqiu called for everyone to sit down, and only then did they notice the strong, spicy aroma filling the air. One by one, they broke into smiles, showering her and He Shenghui with praise for their thoughtfulness.
She smiled but didn’t respond. Instead, she scanned the room again. After confirming that Zhou Yinghuai was nowhere to be seen, she asked, “Where’s Brother Huai?”
“Oh, right! I forgot to tell you, Comrade Cheng,” Zhao Zhigao quickly put down his porcelain bowl of ginger soup and explained. “The machine had a minor malfunction, so Brother Huai stayed behind to fix it.”
Machine breakdowns were common. Zhao Zhigao had originally wanted to stay and help, but Brother Huai insisted that he could handle it alone and told everyone else to head back first.
Although Brother Huai never said it outright, they all knew that he had noticed how exhausted everyone was these past few days. He would rather take on extra work himself than make things harder for them.
His skills were well-recognized—staying behind wouldn’t make much of a difference, so they had returned ahead of him. Who knew it would start raining on the way back?
Fortunately, the malfunction was in the cab, so Brother Huai was working inside and wouldn’t be exposed to the rain. There wasn’t too much to worry about.
“I’ll bring him an umbrella now,” Zhao Zhigao said, about to down his ginger soup in one go.
Seeing this, Cheng Fangqiu stopped him. “You’ve all worked hard today. Finish your soup and eat dinner—I’ll take the umbrella to him.”
“Comrade Cheng is so kind. We’ll trouble you with this, then.”
Zhao Zhigao didn’t argue too much. After all, the two of them were officially courting. A thoughtful gesture like this was much more fitting for Comrade Cheng than for him.
Cheng Fangqiu smiled, borrowed two umbrellas, and dashed into the rain.
“She sure cares About Brother Huai.”
Sitting among the group, Shen Xilian muttered under her breath while watching Cheng Fangqiu’s departing figure.
The moment the words left her mouth, she realized she was unintentionally complimenting her. Her expression stiffened as she nervously glanced around to see if anyone had heard her. Fortunately, no one seemed to notice.
Feeling a bit flustered, she quickly took a sip of her ginger soup to cover up her awkwardness—only to remember that Cheng Fangqiu had made it.
Now she didn’t know whether to keep drinking or not.
—
The sky was dark, but the road was still visible.
Cheng Fangqiu gripped the umbrella handle tightly, fearing that if she loosened her grip, the strong wind would snatch it away.
Even with the umbrella, the slanted rain still soaked her almost completely. But it was better than nothing. Clenching her teeth, she hurried forward.
Before long, she spotted the massive silhouette of the machine standing in the heavy rain. Quickening her pace, she ran toward it.
Just as she approached, the cab door suddenly swung open from the inside.
When Zhou Yinghuai saw her, a flash of surprise crossed his face. Then, realizing what was happening, he immediately jumped down.
Cheng Fangqiu swiftly raised the umbrella to shield him from the rain.
The excavator’s cab was high, and with her hands occupied, it was inconvenient for her to climb up. She planned to simply pull him back to the village, but the rain was coming down even harder. In just the brief time they stood outside, they were getting drenched even more.
“Get inside first.”
Without hesitation, Zhou Yinghuai took the umbrella from her, then wrapped an arm around her waist and effortlessly lifted her up.
Caught off guard, Cheng Fangqiu let out a soft gasp. She instinctively looked down at the strong hand gripping her waist. His veins were bulging—wild and powerful.
His strength is insane.
The scene suddenly reminded her of their first meeting—he had lifted her into the reed marsh in the same way.
Before she could dwell on the memory, she reached out, grabbing the handrail inside the cab and scrambling up. Just as she was about to turn back to help Zhou Yinghuai, he had already jumped up with ease.
With a bang, the cab door slammed shut, sealing them away from the chaotic sounds of the rain.
Zhou Yinghuai swiftly stored the umbrella in the corner, then grabbed a towel from the rack. He reached out, intending to wipe the rain off her face, but she instinctively dodged.
His hand paused midair, towel still in his grasp, as he froze in place.
“What is this towel used for?”
Cheng Fangqiu realized her reaction might have seemed rude, but she didn’t want to wipe her face with a potentially dirty towel.
Zhou Yinghuai snapped out of his daze, then, without warning, pinched her cheek.
The skin beneath his fingers was incredibly soft, smooth, and bouncy. Unable to resist, he pinched it again before leisurely explaining, “I brought it over at noon. I washed it last night and haven’t used it yet.”
After a brief pause, he arched a brow and added in a low, drawn-out tone, “Are you disgusted with me?”
These words made Cheng Fangqiu feel a bit awkward. She cleared her throat lightly and quickly shook her head, “No, I was just asking casually.”
But no matter how she tried to sound natural, her guilty tone betrayed her.
Zhou Yinghuai narrowed his eyes slightly, about to speak, when she suddenly swatted his hand away in a spoiled manner. While rubbing her cheek, she pouted and complained, “You pinched me too hard.”
Her tone was soft and delicate, her expression filled with grievance—it melted his heart in an instant. There was no way he could hold it against her. Besides, he had a mild case of cleanliness obsession himself, so he understood why she avoided the towel earlier.
He was about to put the towel back when she suddenly scolded him.
“Zhou Yinghuai, are you stupid? Hurry up and wipe my face! What if I catch a cold?”
She was sitting while he was standing, clearly in a lower position. But in that moment, her imposing aura completely overshadowed his.
Even after being scolded, he simply chuckled and obediently bent down, gently pressing the soft towel to her face. The towel carried the fresh scent of soap—exactly the same as his. Before long, a faint blush bloomed on her cheeks.
Zhou Yinghuai curled his lips into a small smile and asked in a low voice, “The rain is so heavy. Why did you come?”
“I was worried about you, so I came to bring you an umbrella.”
Cheng Fangqiu grinned playfully, sitting comfortably in his seat, letting him wipe her face. Her lilting tone brushed against his ears like a feather, stirring up waves in his heart. For a long time, he couldn’t find the words to respond.
After swallowing hard twice, his voice finally came out hoarse. “Thank you, Qiuqiu.”
The space inside the driver’s cab was already limited, and Zhou Yinghuai, with his long legs and broad shoulders, occupied nearly two-thirds of it. Now that Cheng Fangqiu had taken his seat, he was forced to crouch by the door, barely finding a place to settle.
Hunched over as he wiped her face, he looked a bit amusing—but also somewhat pitiful.
Cheng Fangqiu felt a pang of guilt and scooted over slightly, offering him some space. “Come sit.”
At her words, Zhou Yinghuai instinctively glanced at the seat beside her. If he sat down, they would end up pressed against each other.
His heart trembled at the thought, and his fingers subconsciously rubbed together. Just as he hesitated, her voice urged impatiently, “Hurry up!”
He stopped overthinking it. With one fluid motion, he swung his long leg over and smoothly settled into the seat.
Cheng Fangqiu hadn’t noticed anything when she was sitting alone, but now that he was beside her, she realized just how cramped the space had become.
Their shoulders touched. Their hips touched.
They couldn’t possibly be sitting any closer.
She turned her head slightly and finally noticed that he was also wet from the rain. It must have happened when he jumped down to meet her earlier.
His navy-blue work uniform was damp, darkened in patches that spread out like blooming flowers.
Droplets of rain trickled down from his short hair, following the contours of his chiseled face. They rolled along his jawline, slipping down to his collarbones before disappearing beneath his tightly buttoned shirt.
It was an oddly restrained kind of allure—subtle yet impossible to ignore.
For some reason, it made her want to unbutton that annoyingly well-fastened shirt, just to see where those droplets would finally rest.
Her thoughts spiraled down a dangerous path.
Would they stop at his collarbones? His well-defined abs? Or maybe…
The deeper her thoughts ran, the hotter her face burned.
Realizing where her mind had wandered, her ears turned crimson, glowing like rubies.
She swallowed hard, her heart pounding as she tried to avoid his gaze. Lowering her lashes, she let her eyes drift downward naturally—only for them to almost land on a place they shouldn’t.
Before she could take a closer look, a strong arm suddenly moved in front of her, blocking her view completely.
She pouted in disappointment, a mix of frustration and embarrassment flashing across her face. In the end, she shot Zhou Yinghuai a resentful glare.
Zhou Yinghuai, still gently dabbing at her face, noticed the sudden shift in her expression. His hand paused.
“Did I hurt you?” He was about to ask when he saw that the grievance in her eyes had already vanished, replaced by a soft smile.
“Let me wipe your face too.”
Cheng Fangqiu took a deep breath, using this as an excuse to shift her focus.
Zhou Yinghuai blinked in surprise, then smirked and handed her the towel.
“Alright.”
Cheng Fangqiu took the towel from Zhou Yinghuai’s hand, intending to help wipe his face and hair. However, she quickly realized that he was too tall—she had to keep lifting her arms to reach him, which was far too tiring.
Without thinking, she instinctively reached out, hooked an arm around his neck, and pulled his head closer to her.
“Be good. Lower your head.”
Caught off guard, the sensitive nape of his neck was suddenly pressed by her cool fingertips, sending a shiver down his spine. A wave of heat surged beneath his skin, and in an instant, a faint blush climbed up the tips of Zhou Yinghuai’s ears.
He obediently followed the force of her pull, leaning in toward her.
His eyes aligned perfectly with her lips.
“Should we head back now, or wait until the rain lets up a little?”
Her soft cherry lips parted and closed as she spoke, but Zhou Yinghuai didn’t register a single word.
His gaze was utterly fixated on that small, slightly open mouth. Between her lips, a glimpse of pearly white teeth and the tip of a delicate pink tongue peeked through, like honey-coated fruit—sweet, tempting, and utterly irresistible.
He knew how she tasted.
And suddenly—he wanted to taste her again.