Chapter 14

Qiao Yanxiang quickly denied it. “She’s not feeling unwell at all. She’s perfectly healthy.”

Health conditions on both sides are usually a major consideration during blind dates.

Lu Miao was still getting pinched on the thigh by Qiao Yanxiang. With tears in her eyes, she chimed in, “I’m not unwell. I was just thinking about your work—it’s really admirable.”

To prove she was being sincere, she shut her eyes and nodded earnestly. “Yeah, that’s right. I’m just… moved.”

He had sharp, well-defined features—handsome, but with a kind of intensity that made him a bit intimidating.

She’d only met his father before, who had a gentle and warm demeanor. So clearly, He Mingchuan must take after his mother—or some other relative.

His brow ridge was prominent, and his eyes were deep-set. He stared seriously at Lu Miao and said, word for word, “There’s no such thing as high or low when it comes to work. Every ordinary person working hard for the socialist cause is worthy of admiration.”

Suddenly getting schooled like that, Lu Miao scratched her head and admitted, “You’re right. That was narrow-minded of me.”

Qiao Yanxiang, for a moment, felt like she might actually fall into that category of ‘worthy of admiration’ too. And when someone compliments you, of course you have to return the favor. So she said, “Soldiers protecting the homeland, that’s deeply admirable.”

Lu Miao’s thigh was still trapped in her mom’s grip, so she didn’t dare chime in carelessly.

But as she looked at He Mingchuan now, he didn’t seem quite as aloof or hard to approach as he had when they first met.

Still, she figured the reason she and He Mingchuan couldn’t really click probably had more to do with how they started off.

Like her mom—she could talk to him just fine.

Actually, it wouldn’t be that hard for her either. She just had to adjust her mindset, pretend she was twenty years older, like she was already in her forties or fifties.

But she couldn’t go too far either—couldn’t end up like Uncle Lu, who gave off strong “dad vibes” every time he opened his mouth.

After the meal, He Mingchuan was the one to suggest he should head out.

Qiao Yanxiang told Lu Miao, “Sanshui, go walk Mingchuan out.”

Lu Miao replied slowly, “Sure.”

Then she turned and called out to someone nearby who’d been watching the whole show. “Lu Conge, come with me.”

No way was she going to face He Mingchuan’s cold expression all by herself.

Lu Conge didn’t want to go either, but that was his sister—he couldn’t just let her suffer alone.

Ignoring the death glare from Qiao Yanxiang, he reluctantly followed behind Lu Miao.

He Mingchuan walked with long strides and a faster pace than the two of them.

No wonder when the Lu siblings were rushing home earlier, they could only see his back at first—and the next second, even that had disappeared.

“He Mingchuan, slow down a bit. I can’t keep up.”

When he’d first arrived, He Mingchuan didn’t know the way, so Lu Miao and Lu Conge had led the way. You couldn’t tell then that he walked so fast.

Now that he’d already walked the route once, he knew where to go and didn’t need Lu Miao to lead anymore. He just kept walking ahead, and even when he noticed the two of them had fallen behind, he assumed that was as far as they were planning to accompany him.

When he heard Lu Miao’s voice, he paused and waited for the siblings to catch up before saying, “I know the way back. No need to walk me further.”

It was two in the afternoon, the hottest time of day. Lu Miao raised her hands to shield her eyes from the sun. “It’s fine—we’re just walking off lunch anyway.”

The sun was blazing, and with lunch just finished, most villagers were napping indoors. The streets were completely empty.

Lu Miao actually liked it this way. It meant they didn’t have to run into someone half-familiar and go through the hassle of explaining things.

But of course, just as she thought that—bam, the very thing she didn’t want happened.

Right at the village entrance, just a few more steps before they could say goodbye, a middle-aged woman suddenly appeared. One of the village’s biggest gossips.

She was holding her grandson’s hand and carrying a bunch of bags. “Sanshui, it’s scorching out. Why aren’t you resting at home?”

Then she “suddenly noticed” He Mingchuan next to her and deliberately asked, “And who’s this young man?”

There was something about her smile—more mocking than friendly.

Lu Miao forced a little laugh. “You should know him. Professor He’s grandson—He Mingchuan.”

That was not who Liu Granny was expecting. She’d thought the whole marriage deal between the Lus and the Hes had fallen through. She wasn’t sure if He Mingchuan was here to cancel the engagement or for something else.

Her gaze swept up and down He Mingchuan with open curiosity, almost envy. How could a guy this good not find a better girl? Why let himself be insulted by the Lu family, getting passed down from the older sister to the younger one? He must be here to call it off.

“Well now, what a rare visitor.”

He Mingchuan really didn’t like being looked at like a pig on a chopping board. He frowned at her.

Liu Granny got spooked by his expression. “Well, Sanshui, your auntie’s got things to do, so I’ll head back now.”

Once she got home, she couldn’t wait to spill everything to her daughter-in-law.

“You don’t even know—the way he looked at me!” She patted her chest dramatically, clearly still shaken, and added with a hint of glee, “That guy doesn’t seem easy to deal with.”

Her daughter-in-law stroked her chin and said, “Looks like Lu Lu made the right choice going after Qinglin.”

“Right choice, my foot.” Liu Granny spat. “Even if life in the city’s tough, it’s still better than scraping by in the dirt. And besides, that He Mingchuan is way better than that Li boy.”

She leaned in, voice dropping like she was revealing state secrets. “And get this—it wasn’t even Lu Lu who stole Qinglin. The He family didn’t want her in the first place. That’s why she settled for Li Qinglin.”

Her daughter-in-law stared in disbelief. “No way. Lu Lu’s from the village head’s family. They’ve got good standing.”

Liu Granny always thought her daughter-in-law was a little dense, but she explained patiently, “Sure, her family’s decent—but how can that compare to the He family? To them, whether it’s Lu’s first or second daughter, they’re all just… poor. One’s broke, the other’s slightly less broke. Still not good enough.”

“When you’re picking a daughter-in-law, of course you choose someone with good character who fits with the family. No wonder their family’s so successful—they’ve got real wisdom.”

“And I’m not making this up. Lu Miao said it herself.”

Her daughter-in-law looked doubtful. “What if Lu Miao just said that to save face?”

Liu Granny shook her head. “No way. Lu Lu was right there when she said it. If it were a lie, why didn’t Lu Lu correct her?”

Of course, Liu Granny wasn’t there in person. And the person who told her conveniently left out the part where Lu Miao had basically half-threatened her sister while saying it.

Her daughter-in-law was just as nosy as she was. And coincidentally, they were somewhat distantly related to Li Qinglin’s family—small villages were like that, everyone tangled up in some relation or another.

“Well, that actually makes sense. The village head’s wife isn’t dumb. If the He family really hadn’t turned them down, she wouldn’t have let such a good son-in-law go.”

“Exactly.”

Back at the village entrance, the Lu siblings stopped walking. “You should know the way out of the village by now. We won’t walk you further. Be safe on your way back.”

He Mingchuan gave a barely audible “mm” in response.

It was a pretty half-hearted reply. He’d just taken a few steps when Lu Miao called after him, “Oh right—call when you get home, just to let us know you arrived safely.”

There was a phone at the production brigade office, but no one used it much. First off, making a call cost money, and it wasn’t cheap. Second, everyone had always lived in the village—there was never much reason to call anyone.

Lu Conge wanted to shake some sense into his sister. Did she have the wrong idea about He Mingchuan or something? The guy was nearly six foot three—who would even dare mess with him? She was acting like he was some delicate girl needing to call home for safety.

Lu Miao rattled off a phone number. “Don’t forget to call me.”

He Mingchuan didn’t respond, but Lu Miao figured he probably heard her. Whether he’d actually call her… well, that was another story.

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