Chapter 33.1

In the jeep, Pei Zheng sat in the front passenger seat, bargaining with Xiao Zhou. One insisted that he had promised to treat him at the state-run restaurant that morning, while the other claimed that a promise had been made but no specific time was mentioned.

The front seat was lively with conversation, while the backseat was unusually quiet.

Lu Nong didn’t expect Pei Ji’an to join them that evening. She sat silently next to him, not deliberately ignoring him but rather lost in feelings of regret.

She would sneak glances at the man beside her, only to quickly look away, then glance again after a while…

As the sun set, its warm glow streamed through the car window, illuminating the man’s face. The play of light and shadow created an almost artistic profile, accentuating his sharp features. The light barely touched his half-closed eyes, giving him an air of indifference and coldness.

Yet, the occasional sparkling highlights from the movement of the jeep softened his icy demeanor, adding a touch of warmth to him. This stark contrast struck a chord in Lu Nong’s heart.

This was akin to the frail charm Pei Ji’an exhibited after his injury, though that day he had a certain “battle-damaged beauty” effect. Today, however, Lu Nong couldn’t find any excuses for herself. She was undeniably drawn to him.

When first meeting Pei Ji’an, one would be intimidated by his commanding presence. But once you began to see him as a man, his allure only grew stronger, leaving you captivated.

Lu Nong realized that ever since Pei Ji’an got injured, she had become more aware of his delicate charm. She found herself stealing glances at him, captivated by his looks. Furthermore, his composed remarks during the previous day’s discussion on diplomacy had genuinely struck her.

What a pity, what a pity. A man of such caliber could only be admired from afar. It was even more unfortunate that he seemed to have limitations. He needed to drink tonic soup to function properly. It seemed the universe was fair in its way.

But thinking about Pei Ji’an’s size when he was in peak condition made Lu Nong shiver. She quickly shook off those thoughts, grateful that he could only function for a while. The heavens truly worked wonders.

Lu Nong thought Pei Ji’an was resting with his eyes closed, so she changed from sneaking glances at him at the beginning to admiring him openly later. As her thoughts deepened, her gaze inevitably wandered lower.

Though Pei Ji’an’s eyes were closed, he wasn’t asleep. As a soldier, his hearing, sight, and sensitivity to his surroundings were exceptional. This meant he could sense everything, from Lu Nong’s discussions with Sister Qin yesterday to her current scrutiny.

At that moment, he noticed Lu Nong’s gaze settling on his lower body. Had someone questioned his capabilities again?

Pei Ji’an suddenly opened his eyes, catching Lu Nong in the act of ogling him.

Lu Nong: “…” That’s not a moral code.

Caught for the second time, and especially in the car this time. Pei Ji’an had not shown anger before, so he was even less likely to be upset now. Lu Nong decided to shrug it off, feeling only a fleeting embarrassment before casually averting her gaze—if one could overlook her inching body that was trying to hide against the car window.

Fortunately, at that moment, Xiao Zhou came to her rescue, exclaiming, “Chief, it seems someone is following us, but the person following us is a little stupid…”

Lu Nong immediately turned to peer over the seat, only to see someone on a bicycle chasing after them. The wind tousled the person’s hair as they pedaled furiously. From the figure and clothes of the chaser, she could roughly tell that the person was Qian Yu.

Originally, Lu Nong was only cooperating with Xiao Zhou in order to divert attention, but it turned out to be an acquaintance who came for her.

Lu Nong: “…” This girl is working too hard.

Surprised, she reflected that although Xiao Zhou’s speed wasn’t high since they had just left school, a car with four wheels was still significantly faster than a bicycle powered by two legs. For Qian Yu to keep up with the jeep was nothing short of impressive. She must have poured every ounce of effort into it, determined not to give up until she caught them.

She considered whether to ask Xiao Zhou to stop.

If they didn’t stop, letting Qian Yu chase them was quite dangerous. A slight mishap could lead to an accident. But stopping would be bothersome for Lu Nong.

Despite being the daughter of her godmother, Qian Yu was nothing like the elderly woman, who was simple and optimistic. Qian Yu was ambitious and often jealous of what others had that she did not.

While having high ambitions isn’t inherently bad—most successful people start with strong aspirations and dissatisfaction with their circumstances—it becomes a disaster if ambition isn’t matched by the necessary skills. If the person has a flawed mindset, seeking to bring down those who possess what they desire rather than striving positively, it becomes even worse. Anyone doing better than Qian Yu would likely suffer.

Qian Yu was precisely this kind of person.

Lu Nong had always compared her to a venomous snake, avoiding her at all costs. However, after their recent encounter at school, where Qian Yu was involved with Lu Qing, she began to feel uneasy.

She thought about how Qian Yu was now chasing them. If Lu Nong pretended not to see her, Qian Yu would undoubtedly drag Lu Qing into it next time, perhaps even bringing the entire Lu family along.

There was no doubt that Qian Yu would stop at nothing to get what she wanted.

Avoiding her wasn’t a viable solution, so Lu Nong was curious about what Qian Yu sought from her. Taking a deep breath, she said, “Xiao Zhou, stop the car.”

Qian Yu, who was chasing the car, had also reached her limit. She couldn’t believe that she had chased it like this. The people in the car in front couldn’t see it, but they should have seen it long ago. But they didn’t stop even after seeing it. There was only one possibility, that is, Lu Nong didn’t let them stop.

Qian Yu angrily thought that it was time for Pei Zheng and his father to fully understand Lu Nong’s true nature. Thinking of this, Qian Yu decided to add fuel to the fire.

She glanced at the small ditch by the road, gritted her teeth, and suddenly leaned her body out of the car, rolling into the river. “Help! I can’t swim…”

Xiao Zhou was about to pull over after hearing Lu Nong’s words. He glanced in the rearview mirror and noticed the foolish person on the bike chasing after them had suddenly disappeared from sight, as if they had fallen.

“!”

Life was at stake. Xiao Zhou quickly slammed on the brakes and got out to check the situation. However, once he stepped out, he found the narrow road empty. He scratched his head in confusion. “Strange, where did they go?”

“Is it a ghost?” Xiao Zhou shivered, becoming more frightened as he thought about it. When he saw Pei Ji’an, Pei Zheng, and Lu Nong getting out of the car one after another, he mustered his courage to say, “Chief, the person has vanished. Have we encountered something sinister?”

Lu Nong also felt it was odd. She had clearly seen Qian Yu chasing after them, so how could she suddenly disappear in the blink of an eye?

“Are you sure you didn’t see it wrong?” Pei Zheng said impatiently. He hadn’t noticed anyone chasing the car and, after a long afternoon of playing basketball, he felt a bit hungry and tired. At that moment, all he wanted was to get home, eat, and sleep.

Pei Ji’an looked around and his gaze fell on the ditch by the road. Xiao Zhou and Pei Zheng followed his line of sight and, in the next moment, they realized what was happening and hurried toward the riverbank.

……”No way?

Lu Nong also ran toward the river.

Qian Yu, who had fallen into the river, was initially choked by a few mouthfuls of water. After all, jumping off her bike into the river was quite a jolt. Water rushed into her nose from all sides, and she struggled for a moment.

However, after splashing around a bit, she discovered that the water in the ditch only reached her knees. Even if she waded deeper, it would only come up to her thighs, and she wouldn’t drown without standing up.

Qian Yu: “…”

What could she do? Since she was already pretending to have fallen into the river, if she got up now, it would be all for nothing. Gritting her teeth, she splashed around a bit longer, determined to make the people in the Jeep stop when they saw her in the water.

So Qian Yu waited a bit longer… and then waited some more…

She kept waiting, feeling desperate as she realized Lu Nong was genuinely ruthless. In frustration, Qian Yu slapped the water’s surface, stood up, and crawled back to the shore.

Having lost both her dignity and her composure, Qian Yu was completely soaked. Her hair, already loose, now hung messily, dripping water and making her look like a drowned ghost.

As she crawled, she vented her frustration, “Ahhhh, bitch, bitch, bitch, damn Lu Nong, don’t let me catch you, I’ll kill you, kill you!”

Just then, Pei Zheng and Xiao Zhou were panting as they rushed down the riverbank, only to awkwardly encounter Qian Yu, who was cursing as she climbed out of the river.

Pei Zheng & Xiao Zhou: “…”

Qian Yu: “…”

Lu Nong, who followed behind: “…”

Thinking the Jeep had already driven far away and that there was no one around, Qian Yu shouted loudly, cursing Lu Nong. Her voice carried so that even Pei Ji’an, along with Lu Nong and the others, heard her derogatory remarks.

Qian Yu looked at the returning figures with a twisted expression, struggling to force a smile.

Lu Nong glanced at Qian Yu, still in the river, where the water only reached her calves. Qian Yu appeared unscathed, full of energy.

To put it bluntly, the distance from where Xiao Zhou parked to where Qian Yu fell in the water was about two to three hundred meters. They had wasted some time getting out of the car and looking for her. Given that Qian Yu had disappeared from the rearview mirror (by falling into the river) for so long, she still hadn’t crawled out.

It was quite embarrassing. If she had climbed up to the road earlier, she would have seen them already parked. If she had taken a bit longer and still been floating in the water, Pei Zheng and Xiao Zhou could have gone in to rescue her.

But she hadn’t timed it right, exposing her dark intentions. Lu Nong felt a wave of secondhand embarrassment just thinking about it.

Xiao Zhou’s previously tense expression shifted to a serious and sharp one. “Comrade, I now suspect you are illegally following a military vehicle with unclear motives. You will need to come with me to the National Security Department.”

Dressed in military uniform, Xiao Zhou had a stern demeanor that was quite intimidating. Qian Yu’s face went pale at the thought of going to the National Security Department. Was she being suspected of being a spy?