Jiang Lin was observing the young man in the corner.

He wore a military green short-sleeved sweatshirt, his arms showing smooth and well-defined lines, sturdy yet not bulky—outwardly appearing to be a decent young man.

But appearances can be deceiving.

Beside him was a large and bulky backpack—just how much stolen goods could it contain?

People with a penchant for theft often blend seamlessly into public places, but Jiang Lin wasn’t afraid.

She instructed Dabao and Xiaobao to sit at a table near the door while she went to order food.

Luxury items like watches or bicycles cost ten yuan each, which didn’t seem like much.

However, when she considered items like three cents for a bun or six cents for a bowl of plain noodle soup, she realized it was quite a sum of money.

Most people were eating simple vegetable noodles for their cost-effectiveness, and Jiang Lin was no exception.

She ordered two large bowls and smiled at Li Yuegui, saying, “Li Jiejie, do you have any meat? Give us two pieces for the kids. We haven’t had any meat in nearly half a year.”

Without meat ration coupons, it was impossible to get meat outside.

However, by spending a little more money here, they could buy some.

Li Yuegui chuckled, “Sure, but it’s not cheap.”

Jiang Lin replied, “That’s alright, Jiejie, please give us two pieces. Kids need nutrition to grow.”

Xiaobao was shorter than Dabao by a slight margin.

Most people thought they were twins by looking at their appearances, and they seemed to be only a year apart in age.

A slick man nearby teased, “Hey girl, what did your family do with your monthly meat vouchers?”

He noticed Jiang Lin and her children were handsome and dressed neatly, with an embroidered handkerchief, clearly from a refined family.

Would such a family not be able to afford meat? Or perhaps it was just the vanity of women, exchanging meat vouchers and supplementary food tickets for useless trinkets.

Women like this were easy to please.

Jiang Lin scoffed, “Where in our countryside do we have meat vouchers? We raise a pig all year round and still have to meet quotas. Look, this is your meat voucher.”

The people in the restaurant chuckled.

In the corner, the young man also looked up at her.

He was tall and handsome, with thick, long eyebrows framing bright, black eyes.

His gaze was sharp, immediately felt by Jiang Lin.

She glared back at him, but he had already lowered his head to eat his noodles.

The slick man took the opportunity to tease Jiang Lin, “Little sister, should big brother help you get some meat vouchers?”

Jiang Lin replied, “Oh, I wouldn’t dare take advantage of you. You look too young to be my uncle. Uncle, since you’re well-connected, how about getting everyone here two pounds of meat vouchers? We’d all appreciate your generosity.”

“Hahaha,” everyone laughed.

In reality, he and Jiang Lin were about the same age.

He spent his days taking advantage of women, but had a thorn in his side.

In the corner, the young man quickly finished his noodles and looked up at her again, his gaze still sharp.

Jiang Lin, feeling annoyed, immediately shot back with a fierce glare. “What are you looking at? Eat your food.”

Hmph!

Such a strange character despite his good looks! What a waste of such a fine look.

The slick man started teasing again, “Hey niece, you already have a son, why are you eyeing young men? Be careful your husband doesn’t get jealous, haha.”

Jiang Lin retorted, “And who are you eyeing?”

People around them laughed again, making the man look embarrassed.

When their noodles arrived, Jiang Lin served a bowl to her sons, instructing them to drink some water first, then eat their vegetables and meat.

Even without looking up, she could feel the young man’s eyes fixed on her.

His gaze felt almost tangible, impossible to ignore.

She was angry, gripping her chopsticks tightly as she shot him a fierce glance.

Surprisingly, he didn’t look away this time but continued staring back at her.

This drew Cheng Dabao’s displeasure, who furrowed his brow and glared at him fiercely too.

Cheng Xiaobao, on the other hand, grinned at him showing his perfect teeth.

No one could resist such an innocent and pretty child.

Cheng Rushan smiled faintly at them, his once solemn eyes now warm with laughter.

When he didn’t smile, his expression was stern, but when he did, it was as warm as spring blossoms.

To Jiang Lin, this smile seemed dangerous.

He must have had ulterior motives!

…

Cheng Rushan had a good memory, especially for faces.

When he first saw her at the apple stand, he felt she looked familiar and wanted to go over to confirm.

Instead, he caught a pickpocket stealing her wallet.

He managed to catch the thief just as he saw her face clearly, which reminded him of someone from his memory.

In an instant, she ran faster than the pickpocket could.

Cheng Rushan had a good memory and had been trained to remember faces well.

The first time he saw her at the apple stall, she seemed familiar, so he wanted to approach her to confirm.

But he encountered a pickpocket stealing her wallet.

Just as he caught the thief, he got a good look at her face, which partially matched the face from his deep memory.

In the blink of an eye, she ran faster than the pickpocket.

He thought it might just be a resemblance and didn’t think much of it.

Later, he moved on to a restaurant to have a bowl of noodles, not expecting her to walk in with two children.

Now, looking at her closely, there was about seventy or eighty percent resemblance, but there were also differences.

They looked similar but had different personalities.

Even with his good memory, he couldn’t immediately make a judgment.

Now that he had carefully examined her face, he could confirm that she was Jiang Lin.

But he wasn’t sure if she was still his wife.

When they got married, she wanted to avoid work, and he completed the marriage task.

But as long as she married him, he was willing to shelter her.

Unfortunately, plans changed quickly, and he was suddenly taken away and lost contact with his family.

He didn’t provide her with a good living condition.

He rushed back as fast as possible, not expecting to meet her in the county as soon as he came back, with two identical handsome children.

After two brief encounters, she glared at him ferociously, probably not recognizing him.

In the beginning, she never really looked at him.

They had only known each other for a couple of days before he was taken away, so it was normal for her to forget what he looked like.

Although he didn’t have any feelings for her, he remembered her appearance distinctly: beautiful yet discontented and despondent.

Now, sitting there, she exuded vitality, radiating beauty from within that was hard to ignore—even an old man in the corner couldn’t help but gaze at her intently.

Her two children were handsome and intriguing.

The older one had the same fierce glare as her, while the younger one had a smile that was just as charming as hers.

What had happened in these few years to bring about such a significant change in her?

Was it because of the children?

He scrutinized the two children again, looking so much alike they could be twins. It was intriguing.

Were they his sons? Suddenly, his usually calm heart fluttered with the impulse to immediately declare his identity.

But he quickly regained his composure.

She was so hostile towards him; speaking to her now, especially in public, would surely provoke her.

Honestly, he didn’t have vivid memories of the few days they spent together six years ago.

He remembered her crying the first night, her eyes swollen and very unhappy.

The second night, she had approached him herself, and he knew she had someone else in her heart until he was taken away and never touched her again.

So, he really couldn’t be sure if these two children were his.

Was she this happy because she had married someone she loved?

Thinking about this, he grew increasingly calm, and any previous warmth he felt abruptly faded away.

He stared at her, noticing the scarves on her head and around the children’s necks, embroidered with his mother’s craftsmanship.

However, this couldn’t guarantee she hadn’t remarried.

He decided to wait until she finished eating her noodles before calmly chatting with her.

When they finished eating, he was about to get up when she glanced at him alertly, stood up, and quickly left with the two children.

She ran away…

“….”

Did she recognize him and fear an awkward encounter, or did she mistake him for a thief?

He didn’t look like a bad person, right?

He had clearly retrieved the wallet from the thief, but she didn’t listen to his explanation and now she ran away again.

How did she run so fast!!

---

Jiang Lin truly didn’t recognize Cheng Rushan and suspected he had ulterior motives.

The original owner didn’t have much memory of Cheng Rushan.

He wasn’t her type, and at that time, she was heartbroken and had no interest in other men.

Even during their honeymoon days, her impression of him was vague, overshadowed by her sorrow and thoughts of her first love, and the imperfections of love.

Jiang Lin wouldn’t think about those things when she had nothing to do.

She concluded that he had a psychological problem.

When they were eating, he kept staring at her, so she was naturally cautious.

Besides stealing, she believed he might have other mental illnesses, such as having an ulterior motive for married women with children!

When he looked at her before, she quietly signaled to Dabao and Xiaobao to hurry up and eat.

She ate while keeping an eye on him, knowing even without using her eyes, he would die staring at her.

His gaze was just too noticeable, like being locked onto by something.

He must be a total weirdo!!!

After they finished their noodles, she noticed him still staring at her as she stood up.

Immediately, she led Da Bao and Xiao Bao out of the restaurant.

As she walked out, she glanced back and saw him standing there with a complex expression and a cold, intense gaze.

Jiang Lin: “I don’t know you, who are you trying to impress with that look! Damn psycho!”

Cheng Dabao: “Where are we going?”

Jiang Lin smiled, “We’re going to the supply and marketing cooperative to buy things.”

Cheng Xiaobao looked back at the young man, but Cheng Dabao dragged him away.

Cheng Da Bbao scolded his younger brother, “You don’t know him, why are you staring at him?”

Cheng Xiaobao replied innocently, “He’s handsome.”

Jiang Lin said, “Be careful, he’s known for taking and selling kids.”

Cheng Xiaobao chuckled.

As they walked along, Cheng Xiaobao turned back and waved, “Here he comes.”

Jiang Lin and Cheng Dabao turned around and saw him approaching with a huge backpack on his back, big enough to fit a child.

Jiang Lin couldn’t help but wonder if he was up to no good, like kidnapping children.

He looked decent enough, but many people who seem honest on the surface can hide darker intentions.

Quickly, she scooped up Xiaobao and hurried towards the cooperative store with Dabao, not giving him a chance to get close.

Behind them, Cheng Rushan muttered to himself, “…”

If she didn’t recognize him, she might think he’s a bad person, which troubled him.

If she had really remarried, he wouldn’t bother her.

A marriage should end amicably, and they should have a clear conversation.

He would compensate her for marrying him and then being taken away.

But if she avoided him like a snake or scorpion, then he would let it be…

He continued on to the cooperative store. He was going to buy things for Yan Runzhi.

Just after lunch, the cooperative store was unexpectedly crowded.

Two counters had long queues because there was a notice this morning that several kinds of staple foods and daily necessities would arrive at noon.

Jiang Lin asked around and found out they were selling soap, glutinous rice flour, dried longan, and such.

Rather than squeezing in, she took the two children to look at the cloth counter on the side.

Sometimes the cooperative store sold high-priced goods without cloth coupons or had special offers.

y that should’ve taken two weeks. Did you take a helicopter out of the mountains with that money?”