Chapter 25 – “I Knew You Still Loved Me.”

Cough cough cough… “Lu Qinglin, help!”

Su Tangxue stumbled out of the kitchen filled with thick smoke, running right into the oncoming and anxious Lu Qinglin.

“Stay here and don’t move. I’ll go take a look.”

“But… the smoke inside… cough cough… it’s choking. You be careful too… cough cough…”

Su Tangxue couldn’t stop coughing, and there were still tears in her eyes from the smoke.

“I got it.”

Watching the thick smoke continuously pouring out, her heart was in chaos—she realized she had caused a disaster.

If she accidentally burned the house down, she’d have to sleep in the wild with Lu Qinglin tonight.

Yun Xiangrui had smelled the smoke in the house—much thicker than usual—and immediately rushed out, worried something had happened to her grandson and granddaughter-in-law.

Seeing the dense clouds of smoke, she was visibly shocked.

“Xiaoxue, what happened?”

Su Tangxue, seeing her grandmother alarmed, quickly ran to stop her from approaching.

“Grandma, there was a small accident when I was starting the fire, but it’s okay now. Lu Qinglin has already gone in.”

Hearing that her grandson was handling it, Yun Xiangrui felt reassured.

Ever since he came back from the army, she noticed he’d become more dependable—she felt much more at ease with him around.

Not long after, Lu Qinglin came running out of the kitchen, covering his nose and mouth. Su Tangxue rushed up to check on him.

“Lu Qinglin, are you okay?”

“I’m fine. The fire is under control. And… next time, don’t use lard to start a fire.”

Su Tangxue laughed awkwardly. She had tried smearing lard on the firewood earlier because it wasn’t catching fire—how could she have known it would go so wrong?

She swore never to try that again.

Once the smoke cleared, Lu Qinglin pulled her into the kitchen and taught her how to start a fire step-by-step. This time, Su Tangxue paid close attention, afraid to miss anything and risk setting the kitchen on fire again.

He explained that fire should start with flammable materials like cotton or dry kindling, then small sticks. He demonstrated using the outer husks of bamboo shoots.

Earlier, Su Tangxue had wondered about those rough, prickly bamboo husks—she had thought he used them because he couldn’t find proper firewood.

Turns out, she was just inexperienced.

Once the fire was steady, Su Tangxue brought over a small stool and sat by the stove to help feed the flames.

When it came time to stir-fry the bee pupae, she even stood up to watch.

Lu Qinglin dropped the washed pupae into hot oil and gave them a quick stir. The aroma soon filled the kitchen.

Su Tangxue had never smelled anything like it—her mouth started to water uncontrollably.

Lu Qinglin noticed and picked one up with chopsticks, holding it to her lips.

She hesitated at first, still a bit reluctant, but the irresistible smell overcame her. Closing her eyes, she ate it.

Her eyes lit up instantly.

What used to seem like disgusting soft-bodied insects had now turned into golden, crispy delicacies from the frying pan.

No wonder Fourth Brother said they were delicious!

Crispy on the outside, bursting with tender juice inside, it was rich in protein and absolutely delicious.

“Lu Qinglin, this is really good! You try one too.” Su Tangxue took the chopsticks and gave him one, thinking he had never tried them and wanting to share the treat.

Lu Qinglin took it without hesitation and ate it.

It was really good!

He hadn’t had such mountain delicacies in a long time.

Bee pupae, when fried right, were incredibly tempting. Su Tangxue feared she might eat them all before they made it to the table, so she stopped herself and quickly brought the precious little bowl to the dining table.

Since the wild chicken was a bit tough, Lu Qinglin cooked it longer so Grandma could chew it easily. Now, only the chicken soup remained to be done.

Afraid Grandma would get too hungry, Su Tangxue had already given her a chicken cake earlier while Lu Qinglin was still prepping the bird.

“Knock knock knock—”

“Xiaoxue, are you home?”

Hearing someone at the door, Su Tangxue handed the fire poker to Lu Qinglin and went to open it.

“Uncle Li? You’re looking for me?”

“Nothing urgent, just something I need your help with.”

It was late and dark out, so Su Tangxue couldn’t see any expression on the village chief’s face.

But she had a pretty good guess.

“Uncle Li, wait here for a moment. I’ll go tell Lu Qinglin I’m heading out.”

“Sure, go quickly. It’s kind of urgent.”

She could hear the urgency in his tone and didn’t push back. She quickly went to the kitchen and let Lu Qinglin know.

Lu Qinglin frowned slightly. “Wait—I’ll come with you.”

Su Tangxue nodded. With Lu Qinglin by her side, she felt much more confident.

After all, she and Fourth Brother hadn’t done anything wrong.

Li Bing had notified not just her but also Second Uncle Lu. As they walked down the path, Su Tangxue and Lu Qinglin ran into her Fourth Brother.

He looked terrible—clearly just scolded badly. He slouched in defeat, but upon seeing Su Tangxue, he instantly lit up and ran over with a smile.

Lu Qinglin also nodded in greeting to Second Uncle.

Su Tangxue walked side by side with Lu Shan, whispering.

“Fourth Brother, did Second Uncle beat you?”

Lu Shan glanced toward his dad, lowered his voice and grumbled, “Don’t ask. That rabbit wasn’t worth it—I still got beaten. Not a single blow was spared. Especially after the village chief showed up—he hit me even harder. I’m still sore!”

Su Tangxue couldn’t help laughing. “Fourth Brother, I feel bad for you… for two seconds.”

“What about you? Did Lu Qinglin scold you?”

Su Tangxue peeked at Lu Qinglin before replying, “Nope. He didn’t scold or hit me.”

“Well, that’s good. If he dares to hit you, I’ll skin him alive—hey! Little sister, why are you laughing? I’m serious!”

Su Tangxue nodded. “I know.”

Just as Lu Shan indignantly finished his speech and turned his head, he realized someone was standing nearby.

Seeing that familiar face, Lu Shan jumped in fright.

“Lu Qinglin?! When did you get here? Why didn’t you make a sound when you walked?”

Lu Qinglin looked at him with a slightly chilly gaze and said coolly, “Right around when you said you’d skin me alive.”

Lu Shan shivered all over and glanced at Su Tangxue’s eyes, seeing the look of grievance and hurt in them.

His little sister had changed since she got married—now she stood on someone else’s side.

He wasn’t her favorite person anymore.

Sob sob sob…

“Little sister, I knew you still loved me… sob sob sob…”

Lu Shan leaned in, trying to cry on Su Tangxue’s shoulder, but Lu Qinglin pushed him away.

Looking at Lu Qinglin’s face, Lu Shan was both mad and scared, but couldn’t say anything. He just quietly stepped aside and cried in a corner.