Chapter 36 Comrade Yuan Meilin, I didn’t expect you to be such a nice person!

Jiang Wan furrowed her brows slightly—she hadn’t expected this mother-daughter duo to cling like glue! Even Grandpa Fu had personally kicked Tang Feng out, yet her daughter still wouldn’t let it go?

Jiang Wan didn’t rush over immediately with the lunchbox. Instead, she found a spot partially hidden behind a big tree and observed from a distance. She wanted to see what Yuan Meilin was really up to.

It was almost noon now, and the sun was blazing overhead. The heat had made everyone irritable and hungry. Nobody could focus on their work, so they simply stopped and watched the commotion instead.

And with Yuan Meilin’s loud voice and burly figure, it was practically impossible not to notice her.

Yuan Meilin, eyes red with tears, was clinging shamelessly to Fu Jingchuan’s arm, her voice choked as she pleaded, “Captain Fu, you have to believe me! I really didn’t know my mom would do something so shameless!”

“You know I rarely even go to your house. And when I do, it’s just to play with the kids. What she did really has nothing to do with me! Captain Fu, Brother Jingchuan! Look, I even took money from my mom to bring to you! Please, just don’t hate me!”

“I truly had no idea what she was doing!”

The older men working in the fields had simply sat down on the field ridge, lighting up some Da Qianmen cigarettes and watching with interest, one cigarette per person. A couple of them who knew the story a bit better even started chatting.

“Whew, that Tang Feng is a real heartless piece of work! Worked at Captain Fu’s house for a few years and still managed to let the kids go malnourished!”

“I heard the little boy from Fu’s house had a fever last night, and it was that Comrade Xiao Jiang who carried him through the dark to the military camp to find Captain Fu!”

“Exactly!” another uncle chimed in, puffing hard on his cigarette and spitting. “I passed by their house this morning and heard that even the old master Fu came by!”

“You know, it was Old Master Fu who found Tang Feng in the first place—out of sentiment! But that Tang Feng turned around and badmouthed Comrade Jiang in front of the old man, trying to pull strings. And what happened?”

“Old Fu is a retired soldier—you think he’d be fooled by a woman like her? Plus, when Comrade Jiang came to the fields with the kids, she was all smiles—gentle and patient! We saw it with our own eyes!”

Yuan Meilin, hearing all this from the side, was fuming. What, does Jiang Wan know some kind of sorcery or what? How had she won over all these old men in just a few days?

In Yuan Meilin’s opinion, it must be because these rustic men were uneducated—easily fooled by Jiang Wan’s delicate, fair little face! She was sure Jiang Wan was calculating and manipulative!

Furious, Yuan Meilin still forced herself to keep acting pitiful—after all, that was the whole point of today. She wasn’t expecting Fu Jingchuan to let her mom return to work, she just wanted him to stop disliking her and allow her to keep interacting with the kids.

If she could win over the children, then maybe one day, when Brother Jingchuan couldn’t handle Jiang Wan’s spoiled city-girl attitude anymore, he’d divorce her—and Yuan Meilin would be right there, ready to swoop in!

Pouting, she pushed herself to say things she didn’t believe.
“Brother Jingchuan, my mom’s uneducated—she doesn’t know any better… I’ll even apologize to Comrade Jiang on her behalf!”

“Please, just take the money. If you don’t, I’ll feel even worse!”
“And this lunch, I made it especially for you!”

Yuan Meilin flashed a sycophantic smile and quickly opened the lunchbox.

Several of the old men nearby stood up, craning their necks to see what was inside.

Whoa! Braised pork belly with preserved mustard greens! A whole lunchbox packed to the brim!

Fu Jingchuan looked at the glossy, oily meat, and the sharp, cold glint in his eyes deepened. The long eyes beneath his prominent brow ridge grew colder and heavier.

He pressed his lips together, his jaw tightening slightly, and the entire atmosphere around him seemed to drop a few degrees.

When Yuan Meilin looked up, she saw his dark, stormy expression—like a storm was about to break—and didn’t get it at all. She forced a smile and said,
“Brother Jingchuan, don’t you like braised pork belly?”

“You work so hard in the army! I bought the meat just to nourish you!”

As she kept talking, a few of the older men nearby couldn’t take it anymore. One snubbed out his cigarette on the ridge and spat out,
“Dammit, is Yuan Meilin’s brain full of cow dung?”

“Who doesn’t know what kind of condition the Yuan family’s in? Her mom feeds the Fu kids watery porridge every day, and she turns around and brings out a lunchbox full of braised meat? Pfft! Shameless!”

Yuan Meilin’s heart jolted at those words, her face instantly going pale. Her hands holding the aluminum lunchbox began to tremble.

She glared at the men viciously, then tried to explain her way out, only making things worse:
“No, that’s not it, Brother Jingchuan! I bought this meat with my own savings! It has nothing to do with my mom, I swear!”

“I don’t even know how much salary she’s getting from your house! Really!”

She quickly closed the aluminum box that had caused so much ridicule, tucked it under her arm, then pulled out a wad of bills and tried to shove them into Fu Jingchuan’s hand.

“Brother Jingchuan! This money is what we owe you—I’m begging you, please, just take it! For the sake of my sincerity!!”

“Jingchuan, why are you just standing there like an idiot? Hurry up and take the money!”

Yuan Meilin kept trying to shove the money into Fu Jingchuan’s hands while he stood stiff and expressionless, trying to step back and avoid her.

Suddenly, a pair of soft, fair hands—with slender fingers and rosy fingertips—reached out slowly and took the wad of bills.

Yuan Meilin stared in shock, eyes wide, watching as Jiang Wan’s glowing, jade-like skin formed a sharp contrast with her own rough, tanned arms. A flash of envy and hatred flickered in her eyes.

Jiang Wan, however, smiled sweetly, her almond-shaped eyes crinkling softly. She lightly hooked her arm through Fu Jingchuan’s strong, bare one and leaned in gently.

Even though she was only wearing a plain blouse and had her jet-black hair tied up, she looked stunning—like something ethereal, not of this world.

Fu Jingchuan had been working in the field and was covered in sweat. His army-green half-sleeves had long been tossed aside, leaving him in just a white ribbed tank top. His muscular chest rose and fell slightly.

He had been stiff before—now he was practically a statue. His whole body tensed up like a stone, and his breath came heavier.

His mind went blank as his deep, dark eyes fell helplessly on her delicate arm wrapped around his.

Jiang Wan, still calm and composed, looked directly at Yuan Meilin.

She casually slipped the wad of bills into her pants pocket, her smile still soft and sweet.
“Comrade Yuan Meilin, well now, didn’t expect you to be such a kind person!”
“You’re way better than your mother, that’s for sure!”
“…”