Chapter 5

There was no pain as she expected. When Xia Qingning came to her senses, she found herself pulled into Lu Jingzhe’s arms, her body pressed tightly against his.

His palm was rough and large, covering her waist, almost enveloping her entire slender waist.

The two of them were so close, Lu Jingzhe could feel the soft touch of her body against his chest. Realizing what it was, his face suddenly changed, and he immediately let go of her.

He had just pulled her up out of pure instinct, but he hadn’t expected to pull her directly into his arms.

It wasn’t his fault. He was surrounded by rough men in the army, and he had almost never been in contact with women. How could he know that women were so delicate and their bodies so light?

This kind of physical contact with a man she didn’t know very well was somewhat embarrassing. Xia Qingning hesitated for a moment before saying, “Thank you.”

Her politeness made Lu Jingzhe uncomfortable. He stiffly nodded his head.

It was only when he hugged her that he realized how thin the woman in front of him was. Her waist seemed to have no meat at all.

“Did she never eat enough?” he couldn’t help but think to himself.

In the meantime, Lu Xiaoxue had gone over to rummage through Lu Jingzhe’s bag and soon found a bag of milk candy. She happily held it up:

“Wow, Big White Rabbit!” She said, then ran out with the candy in her hand, shouting:

“Maigouzi, look, I have milk candy, a whole bag! Do you want some? Haha, I won’t give you a single one.”

By the time everyone reacted, Lu Xiaoxue had already disappeared with the candy.

Lu Jingzhe frowned, trying to suppress the urge to chase her back and give her a good beating.

“This kid is good in every way, just a little mischievous. It’s my fault for spoiling her too much.” Wang Mingfang walked to the table, pouring water while smiling.

These words were ostensibly self-reproach, but they were actually reminding Lu Jingzhe that she was very good to his sister.

“Oh, children without a mother are pitiful. If I don’t love her, who will?” Wang Mingfang put the poured water in front of Lu Jingzhe, her tone sounding sincere.

Lu Jingzhe didn’t even give her a glance.

“This woman would be a great actress if she wasn’t doing this,” Xia Qingning thought to herself.

But she didn’t have time to watch her put on a good wife and good mother act. She needed to change out of her wet clothes quickly, or she would catch a cold.

Just as she was about to go back to her room, an 18 or 19-year-old girl suddenly came in with two thermoses.

Xia Qingning knew from her original memories that this girl was Li Qiulian’s daughter, Maimiao.

After entering the room, Maimiao put the thermoses at Xia Qingning’s feet and said without any good humor:

“My mom told me to bring them to you. She said you should take a hot bath. When you’re done, don’t forget to return the thermoses.”

Then she turned to Lu Jingzhe and called him “Brother,” but her tone was much better than it was to her.

Lu Jingzhe nodded in response.

Maimiao had two thick braids, a round face, and although she wasn’t beautiful, her eyes were a little small, and she looked quite cute overall. But her way of speaking… Xia Qingning was a little helpless. It seemed like no one here was polite to her.

Xia Qingning thanked her, and Maimiao didn’t stay at the Lu family for long before she went back.

Xia Qingning took the two thermoses back to her original room, feeling a little grateful to Li Qiulian. She was actually quite kind to the original owner, otherwise she wouldn’t have let her daughter bring her water.

She put the thermoses on the floor and turned to close the door. She quickly discovered that the latch was a bit of a problem. It was loose when she inserted it, but she didn’t have time to deal with it now, as long as it closed.

There was a mirror on the bedside table, and the face in the mirror was eight or nine points similar to her own in the real world. It was a standard oval face with fair and delicate skin, exquisite and delicate features, only the eyes were not quite the same. The original owner’s eyes were slightly drooping at the corners, making her look more innocent and vulnerable.

Xia Qingning poured the water from the two thermoses into a wooden basin, added some cold water, and then began to undress.

She took off Lu Jingzhe’s jacket and put it on the bed, then took off her skirt and underwear and put them on the stool. She took a towel and stepped into the wooden basin.

She couldn’t wash her hair at the same time, so she simply combed it all up to the top of her head and made a simple bun. Then she used the towel to dab the water and wipe her body. There was no bathroom shower here, so she could only make do with this.

The water slid across her cool skin, and Xia Qingning felt the warmth, which was much more comfortable.

She found that although this body was a little thin, it was well-developed. It could be said to be round and full, with curves in all the right places, especially the birthmark on her chest, like a touch of red on a white porcelain blank, adding a touch of charm and allure.

No wonder that workshop director named Liao couldn’t control himself and tried to touch the original owner in broad daylight.

Thinking of that director Liao, Xia Qingning realized that the reason why the original owner was alone with him by the river today, and almost got taken advantage of by him, was all because of Wang Mingfang’s instigation.

Two years ago, the original owner was able to stand out among so many female workers and be recruited into the factory, largely because she was beautiful and attractive. Many men in the factory were interested in her, but when they learned that her husband was in the army and that his position was not low, no one dared to make a move.

This man named Liao Qiang was a new addition to the factory this year. It was said that he had a backer, and he became the workshop director after entering the factory. Seeing that the original owner was so beautiful and hearing that her husband had not been home for several years, he began to harass her frequently.

The original owner was timid and afraid, and she didn’t know how to deal with it, so she told Wang Mingfang.

Wang Mingfang immediately had a crooked idea. Her daughter with her second husband, He Shanshan, was now 21 years old and worked as a temporary worker at the supply and marketing cooperative. She had always wanted to enter a state-owned factory, but she didn’t have any connections. Now she finally had an opportunity.

Wang Mingfang not only didn’t help the original owner, but also threatened her, saying that if she didn’t get along with the director, she would lose her job.

The original owner was timid and couldn’t stand being scared. She was afraid of losing such a good job, so she could only silently endure Liao Qiang’s harassment.

Wang Mingfang was just waiting for the two of them to have an affair, so she could use it as leverage to threaten Liao Qiang into getting her daughter into the factory.

This woman really had a Bodhisattva! Xia Qingning knew that this was not the first time she had plotted against the original owner.

When the original owner had just come up from the countryside, her son, Lu Lidong, was completely disgusted with her and was about to break off the engagement.

But she told her son to be patient, not to mention breaking off the engagement, but to be especially good to the original owner.

Later, when Lu Jingzhe came home to visit his family, she had her son get him drunk and then gave the original owner sleeping pills, putting the sleeping original owner on Lu Jingzhe’s bed.

In the middle of the night, she pretended to be sick and called someone to the Lu family to take Lu Lidong away, creating an alibi for him.

The next day, when Lu Lidong returned home, the original owner and Lu Jingzhe were already caught “in bed” by the neighbors, according to their plan.

Lu Lidong was so “angry” that he started smashing things on the spot. The original owner was so scared that she only knew how to cry, and she didn’t know what was going on.

Lu Jingzhe couldn’t believe that his older brother, who had grown up with him and been good to him, would plot against him. He thought that the original owner was promiscuous and had taken the initiative to get into his bed. He felt guilty towards his older brother.

From then on, the original owner’s “climbing into bed” and having an incestuous relationship with her brother-in-law became a foregone conclusion. The Lu family was disgraced because of her, and everyone else secretly and openly ridiculed and looked down upon her. Lu Jingzhe was filled with shame and anger, and he didn’t come back for four years.

Xia Qingning’s face darkened. If she didn’t explain this “climbing into bed” incident clearly, Lu Jingzhe would probably have a hard time getting over it, and outsiders would continue to use it to mock her and her relationship with Lu Jingzhe.

But now, so much time had passed, and she had just told the truth, but no one believed her. It was no surprise. After all, in everyone’s eyes, Wang Mingfang was a rare good person, and her words and actions were impeccable.

The situation seemed like a dead end, but Xia Qingning was never one to give up easily, and she wouldn’t be as weak as the original owner, allowing herself to be bullied.

She would gradually expose Wang Mingfang’s insidious nature and make her receive the punishment she deserved.

Heh, she always liked to plot against others, didn’t she? Then she would let her taste the feeling of being plotted against.

Didn’t she want to remarry Lu Baichuan? Then she would completely crush her hopes.

At this time, Lu Jingzhe, carrying his bag, was walking towards his room. He didn’t know that Xia Qingning was currently staying in his room.

This house was assigned by the unit two years after they returned to the city. It had four rooms. The three men in the family each had their own room. After the original owner came from the countryside, she shared a room with Lu Xiaoxue.

Even after he had that affair with the original owner, they still lived separately. After all, the original owner was not yet 16 years old at the time, and they didn’t have a marriage certificate, so it was impossible for them to live together.

So, seeing that the door to his room was closed, he didn’t pay any attention. He reached out and pushed it open.

The door was originally latched, but the latch was loose. He pushed it twice, and it opened.