Chapter 7 – Lin Shuqiao, Everything Feels Off

“Lin Shuqiao, can’t you just behave yourself for once?”

Lu Zheng looked at the hearty dishes laid out on the table. His brows furrowed as he spoke through clenched teeth:
“Where did you steal these from this time? Hurry up and send them the money.”

He knew it—there was no way Lin Shuqiao could stay out of trouble. He hadn’t taken his eyes off her for a moment, and already she was back to her old ways.

Lin Shuqiao had just finished setting the table. One look at Lu Zheng’s expression and she immediately knew he’d misunderstood.

Without rushing, she calmly finished what she was doing, then turned to him and said,
“I bought all this from Auntie Wang next door. I already paid her.”

Lu Zheng: “……”

His eyes narrowed suspiciously, a dark intensity behind his gaze.

In the past, Lin Shuqiao would’ve wilted under that look, too guilty to hold his gaze.

But now, she met his eyes with calm composure.

It wasn’t entirely his fault for doubting her. Her history was full of misdeeds—just the last time he was away for a bit, she had mooched meals off nearly every family in the compound.

And every time she went over, she brought absolutely nothing with her.

Today, it was like the sun had risen from the west. Since marrying him, she’d never even stepped foot in the kitchen. And now suddenly, she’d cooked a whole table’s worth of dishes?

And even paid for ingredients?

It was almost like he was seeing things.

Lin Shuqiao’s tone remained steady:
“I’m not lying. I learned to cook a bit at home before, not much, but today I just wanted to practice. I tried the dishes, and they tasted decent. If you don’t like them, just eat less.”

Lu Zheng and Lu Ziqi sat down at the table, staring at the surprisingly rich spread in silence.

Lu Zheng took a bite of the braised pork trotter, and a flicker of surprise flashed in his eyes.

This flavor—could Lin Shuqiao really have made it?

Looks like she was really unhappy in this marriage. Two months of never touching the kitchen, and now that they were getting divorced, she was finally showing her skills.

Lu Ziqi silently kept his head down, repeatedly picking at the shredded potatoes in front of him.

So weird… even the rice tasted better today.

Seeing this, Lin Shuqiao picked up a piece of pork trotter and placed it in Lu Ziqi’s bowl.

“I stewed the meat until it’s really soft. You should be able to chew it.”

Lu Ziqi: “……”

This… is it really not poisoned?

Seeing the wary look in the boy’s eyes, Lin Shuqiao reflected silently.
What on earth had she done in her past life?

It seemed like from the very first time she saw Lu Ziqi, she had made no effort to hide her dislike.

The boy had always been mute, and avoided her like the plague.

By the end of the meal, there wasn’t a scrap of food left. Lu Zheng quietly collected the dishes and took them to the kitchen to wash.

Lin Shuqiao looked a little worn out, but still dragged herself to the kitchen to boil water. After all, there was still a child in the house—things had to be cleaned up.

“You and Jiang He don’t suit each other.”

Just as Lin Shuqiao was crouching in front of the stove, drowsiness hitting her hard, Lu Zheng’s voice came from above. She looked up and met his deep, dark eyes.

Yawning, her eyes misty from sleep, she answered seriously:
“There’s nothing between me and Jiang He.”

Lu Zheng didn’t respond directly. He just dried the dishes and put them away before finally saying,
“Once the divorce paperwork gets approved, you can leave whenever you want. Until then, try not to cause any more trouble.”

Yet another lecture—but Lin Shuqiao didn’t take it personally. She nodded lightly,
“I understand. Don’t worry, I won’t cause you any problems during this time.”

Seeing the sincerity on her face, Lu Zheng’s expression relaxed somewhat. He walked over and crouched beside her.
“You go rest. I’ll handle this.”

Lin Shuqiao really was exhausted and didn’t argue. She returned to the bedroom without hesitation.

As soon as she lay down on the soft bed, Lin Shuqiao fell asleep.

There were only two rooms in the house—one for Lin Shuqiao and Lu Zheng, and one for Lu Ziqi.

But Lu Zheng had only ever shared a bed with her once, the night he came back from a mission right after they got married.
The very next day, he found out she had a terrible reputation in the compound, and she made no effort to hide her dislike of him. Since then, he had always stayed in the dorms.

Now…

He glanced at the time and decided not to overthink it.

He still wanted to keep an eye on Lin Shuqiao, just in case she caused more trouble before the divorce went through.

But the moment he stepped into the bedroom, his gaze froze.

Lin Shuqiao was sleeping sideways, facing the door. She had taken off her oversized pants and was only wearing an olive green shirt.
The shirt, which normally reached her knees, had ridden up as one leg bent and rested on top of the blanket, slightly revealing a sliver of black underneath.

Her legs were long, fair, and well-shaped.

Long, dark hair spilled across the pillow, making her petite face appear even more delicate and striking.

And that shirt’s collar was way too loose—hanging wide open, revealing a generous curve of her chest.

Lu Zheng’s Adam’s apple bobbed. He turned and left the room.

He decided to go back to the dormitory after all.

Something was definitely off with Lin Shuqiao.

---

“Ziqi? Ziqi…”

Lin Shuqiao was awakened early the next morning by the sound of someone calling out.

When she went to open the door, she saw a girl of about twenty with two long braids, carrying a basket, standing at the doorway.

It took her a few seconds to recognize her: Liu Jie, Auntie Zhang’s daughter.

Auntie Zhang had always wanted to marry her daughter off to Lu Zheng, and Liu Jie clearly had feelings for him.

“Can I help you?”

Liu Jie’s eyes widened as she took in Lin Shuqiao’s outfit. Her cheeks flushed and she snapped angrily,
“Lin Shuqiao, have you no shame? Dressing like that?!”

Only then did Lin Shuqiao realize she was still wearing Lu Zheng’s shirt.

She had gotten used to wearing nightgowns to sleep and had forgotten to change.

Luckily, no one else was around.

“I’m in my own home. I’ll wear whatever I want. If Comrade Liu doesn’t like it, you’re free to leave.”

She was about to shut the door when Liu Jie pushed her way inside.

“I’m not here for you. I came to bring something for Ziqi.”

Not wanting to be seen like this, Lin Shuqiao simply shut the door behind her.

Liu Jie sneered,
“Hmph, dressing like that—are you waiting for Jiang He to come visit? Lu Zheng is really unlucky to have married you. I heard you’re divorcing him. About time you came to your senses.”

“You like Jiang He, don’t you? Well, he’s single now. Once you’re divorced, you can go chase your so-called ‘true love.’”

Lin Shuqiao shot her a cold glance.
“Comrade Liu, spreading rumors about others is against the law. Don’t tell me you didn’t know that?”

Liu Jie huffed arrogantly:
“Rumors? Everyone in the compound knows about you and Jiang He. What are you trying to deny now? If you had any decency, you’d hurry up and divorce Lu Zheng already.”

Lin Shuqiao smirked.
“What does my divorce with Lu Zheng have to do with you? Or… are you planning to interfere in a military marriage too, Comrade Liu?”

Liu Jie choked and didn’t dare bring up the divorce again.

If Lin Shuqiao went around shouting about this, she’d never live it down.

As Lin Shuqiao looked at Liu Jie, a thought popped into her mind.

At this point in her past life, Liu Jie had done something… something that rocked the entire military unit.