“Wait.”

He put the enamel basin by the well and walked to Wen Nan in a few steps. Wen Nan shyly pursed her lips: “Thank you, brother.”

Her voice was crisp and sweet, with water marks on her cheeks, her eyes were red from the soap water, and she had unbuttoned two buttons of her collar, revealing her slender clavicle and a small patch of snow-white delicate skin below. A few strands of black hair slid into her collar along her neck.

Even, the subtle curve was faintly visible.

Her eyelashes were wet, and her eyes were red, making her look like she had been bullied.

Chen Xu smelled the scent of soap nuts, avoided her gaze, and bent down to help Wen Nan pour out the water.

The man was tall and leggy, even when bending down, he wasn’t much shorter than her. Wen Nan looked down at the man’s strong and tense lower back. She wondered which woman would marry Chief Chen in the future. He was handsome and considerate. When she saved enough money, she would definitely give him a big gift at his wedding, thanking him for taking her in.

Chen Xu helped Wen Nan pour out half a basin of water and handed it over: “The water temperature is just right, not cold.”

Wen Nan smiled: “Mm.”

She sat on the stool, rubbed and washed her hair. After washing it clean, she wrapped her hair in a towel and poured herself another half basin of water into the room. She had worked all day, and her whole body was covered in sweat, and her hair was also dirty. Feeling sticky and uncomfortable, Wen Nan poured two basins of water before she finished washing.

She looked at the small enamel basin in her hand, then at Chen Xu, who was squatting by the well washing his uniform. After thinking for a moment, she decided to borrow industrial coupons from Chief Chen to buy a larger wooden bucket after finishing the grass-cutting work, so that it would be more convenient to take a bath.

These days, no matter what you buy, you not only need money, but also coupons. Without coupons, you can’t go anywhere.

Wen Nan put the basin by the well and said to Chen Xu before entering the room: “I’m going to sleep.”

Chen Xu didn’t look up, rubbing his clothes: “Mm.”

Hearing the sound of the door closing, the man looked up, glanced at the dark room, and let out a heavy sigh.

Having an extra woman in the house was really unusual.

In the room.

Wen Nan tossed and turned in bed, thinking about cutting grass today, whether Xiaomai helped or Chief Chen helped, she didn’t do much work in a day, and she also got injured. Listening to the splashing water and steady footsteps outside, Wen Nan yawned and decided to get up to cut grass before dawn tomorrow.

Since she was slower than others, she would just start earlier.

Wen Nan kept this in mind, and after sleeping, she didn’t stay in bed. She opened the curtains and looked at the sky. If she wasn’t mistaken, it was probably around 4 am. She got up, took a clean set of clothes from the box and changed, took the dirty clothes from yesterday to the yard to wash and hung them on the rope, and after tidying up, she went to the kitchen to cook the porridge in advance and keep it warm in the pot. She took a warmed corn cake, put on her basket, and just walked out of the kitchen when she met Chen Xu coming out of the room.

The man glanced at the white floral shirt hanging on the rope, then at Wen Nan, who was standing at the kitchen door with the basket on her back: “Going to cut grass?”

Wen Nan took a bite of the corn cake and nodded: “Mm, the earlier I go, the more I cut.”

The early bird gets the worm, right?

Chen Xu: “Wait for me.”

The man went back to the room, put on a clean uniform, and came to the well with a toothbrush and washbasin to wash up. Wen Nan swallowed the cake in her mouth and softly asked: “Brother, what are you going to do?”

“I’ll take you there.”

Chen Xu finished brushing his teeth and continued: “I’ve also slept enough.”

Wen Nan smiled: “No need, I know the way, I’ll be there soon. I’ve cooked the porridge, it’s in the pot, you can just eat some, I’ll go first.”

After saying that, she lifted the straps on her shoulder and went out, but before she had taken a few steps, she heard footsteps behind her. Before Wen Nan could turn around, she caught a glimpse of a figure in army green. Chen Xu was walking beside her, a person’s distance between them.

It was still dark, and the surroundings were quiet, only the chirping of crickets could be heard from far and near.

Wen Nan looked up at Chen Xu beside her, knowing that he had made up his mind and wouldn’t change it, so she didn’t say anything else. She looked down at the corn cake in her hand, hesitated for a moment, broke off half and handed it over: “Have some?”

Chen Xu lowered his eyes. The small hand in front of him was open, with half a corn cake in the palm, not enough to fill his teeth.

“No, I’ll eat later when I come back.”

“Oh.”

Wen Nan retracted her hand and walked along eating.

When they reached the main alley of the family quarters, they heard the neat footsteps in the dark night, so they looked up and saw a row of neat teams on a distant road. Those people were wearing army green clothes, holding steel guns. Even though it was dark, Wen Nan could see the inviolable majesty on them.

This was the first time she had come into contact with soldiers holding steel guns in real life.

Unconsciously, she started walking a little awkwardly. Chen Xu beside her noticed her nervousness and explained to her: “These are people from the security department, they patrol at a fixed time every night.”

Wen Nan thought of the first time she met Chen Xu, when the man was cold-faced and wanted to send her to the security department.

She pursed her lips, swallowed the corn cake in her mouth, and nodded: “Oh.”

The two walked across the stone bridge, and when they passed by Xinghua Village, they saw two people walking from the corner of the house, pulling and pushing each other.

Still a man and a woman.

It was still a little dark, and it was hard to see clearly. Wen Nan narrowed her eyes to focus her vision. After the two pushed and shoved a little further, Wen Nan saw clearly that the woman was Kang’s wife, Lin Meizhen, and the man was wearing a sleeveless shirt, black long trousers, and cloth shoes. There was a small scar under his left corner of his mouth. The man was pulling Lin Meizhen’s arm and pulling her back.

Wen Nan: ???

Wow!

A sudden big melon!

The platoon leader’s wife was having an affair outside?!

She subconsciously looked at Chen Xu. The man was tall, and from her angle, she could only see the man’s cold and hard jawline. His cheekbones moved, and he suddenly lowered his head and glanced at her. Their eyes met unexpectedly. Chen Xu’s brows were tightly furrowed, he took two steps forward, using his tall figure to block Wen Nan’s view, looked at the two people who were still pulling and shoving, and said in a deep voice: “Lin Saozi, what are you doing here?!”

Looking at the tall army green figure in front of her, Wen Nan: …

He blocked her view of the good show.

Lin Meizhen and the man were startled by Chen Xu’s voice.

The two separated abruptly. Lin Meizhen’s face was pale and green, she glared at the man opposite her, turned to Chen Xu, and unnaturally tucked her hair behind her ears: “I slept at my mother’s house last night, and I wanted to go back early to cook for Lao Kang. My brother-in-law wasn’t worried about me walking alone at night, so he had to send me to the family quarters. Chief Chen, don’t misunderstand.”

The man didn’t pull Lin Meizhen anymore, greeted Chief Chen, and said: “I was just sending my sister, now that Chief Chen is here, I won’t bother. Meixia is still waiting for me at home, I’ll go back first.”

After saying that, he turned and ran away.

Lin Meizhen tugged at the sleeve that had been wrinkled by the man, walked towards Chen Xu, and smiled: “Chief Chen, I’ll go back—”

Her words stopped abruptly!

Lin Meizhen looked at Wen Nan walking out from behind Chief Chen, her face changed, and her heart jumped. Seeing her carrying a basket and corn cake, she guessed that Chief Chen was sending her to the grassland to cut grass. She thought this little vixen was sick, she was slow and clumsy at work, and she didn’t sleep in, she ran to the grassland before dawn. Did she really think Director Liu would know that she was the most diligent?

She and Li Hongping hadn’t done anything excessive just now, they just pulled and pushed a little, she wasn’t afraid that the siblings would tell Lao Kang.

“I’ll go back first.”

Lin Meizhen walked past them and onto the stone bridge to the family quarters.

Sister and brother-in-law…

Wen Nan ‘tsk’ed in her heart.

Regardless of whether it was true or not, the way they were pulling and pushing each other didn’t seem right, they probably weren’t innocent. She wondered if Lin Meizhen’s sister knew?

Along the way, Chen Xu didn’t speak. The man didn’t walk very fast, as if he knew that if he walked too fast, Wen Nan wouldn’t be able to keep up.

The darkness at the horizon gradually faded, and a faint glimmer could be seen.

Wen Nan arrived at the grassland and had just put the basket on the ground when Chen Xu took the sickle from the basket. The man bent down to cut grass, quickly. His hands were also large, grabbing a large handful at a time, more than Zhao Xiaomai.

Wen Nan: …

This wasn’t her earning money by working, it was clearly others helping her work and she taking the money.

Wen Nan ran over to grab the sickle from Chen Xu’s hand, Chen Xu was afraid of hurting her, so he moved his hand holding the sickle to the side. Wen Nan was a little anxious: “Chief Chen, I can cut the grass myself, don’t help me.”

As she spoke, she leaned over to take the sickle.

The two were very close. Wen Nan reached across his elbow to grab the sickle, almost burying herself in Chen Xu’s arms. The woman’s faint scent of soap nuts filled his nostrils, and her black hair occasionally brushed against his jaw and neck, itchy and uncomfortable. Chen Xu’s breathing became heavier, and his palms holding the sickle were slightly sweaty. He suddenly stood up, handed the sickle to Wen Nan, took two steps back, clenched his fist against his lips and coughed twice: “Okay, you cut the grass, I’ll go for a walk over there.”

“Mm.”

Wen Nan took the warm sickle, imitating Chen Xu’s previous posture, bent down, grabbed a handful of grass and started cutting, but the sickle in her hand was disobedient, and the speed was not fast at all.

Chen Xu ran around from the other side of the road, and when he came back, he saw a small pile of grass behind Wen Nan. She was bending over, her hand grabbing a handful of grass and cutting it with difficulty. She hadn’t cut much grass, but she was already tired and her face was flushed.

Chen Xu: …

He grabbed a large handful of grass and threw it into Wen Nan’s pile of grass, and asked: “Did Xiaomai help you cut the grass?”

Wen Nan didn’t hide it and said “Mm”: “I share my work points with her, I can’t let Xiaomai suffer a loss.”

Chen Xu: …

No wonder.

With her speed, it was impossible for her to cut so much grass in a day.

Wen Nan straightened up and patted her lower back, turned around and smiled at Chen Xu, who was half-squatting on the ground: “Brother, now you know why I came to cut grass before dawn?”