Chapter 67

“Knock, knock.” The sound of knocking came from the study door, followed by Aunt Wu’s voice. “Nong Nong, Xiao Zhang said he’s here to see you.”

Lu Nong put down the photo and walked to the door. Upon opening it, Aunt Wu pointed downstairs. “He’s waiting in the living room. He seems to have something urgent.”

Lu Nong frowned slightly. Zhang Kaiping was looking for her?

“Please help me keep an eye on Huaihuai. I’ll go see what he wants.”

Aunt Wu reminded her, “Alright, but be careful going down the stairs. Don’t trip.”

“I know, I’m not a child,” Lu Nong replied with mild exasperation.

When she reached the living room, she saw Zhang Kaiping pacing back and forth, his steps firm. After months of hard training, his once chubby figure had become lean and strong. His round face had taken on sharp angles. Though he wasn’t as strikingly handsome as Pei Zheng, he had grown into a fine young man.

It seemed true: “Every chubby person has a hidden potential.”

Hearing footsteps behind him, Zhang Kaiping quickly turned around and rushed toward Lu Nong, his face filled with urgency. “Sister Nong Nong, I forgot to tell Pei Zheng earlier. When I was collecting his letter, Zhao Xin was there too. If I hadn’t shown up in time, Pei Zheng’s letter would have been intercepted by Zhao Xin.”

“What letter?” Lu Nong quickly pieced things together. “Could it be a letter from Song Laixi?”

Zhang Kaiping nodded. “Laixi mentioned in the letter that he was knocked unconscious by a man and put on a train to the Northwest. He even drew a picture of the man’s face. Pei Zheng took the letter and the portrait to give to Uncle Pei. If Zhao Xin is closely connected to that man, I’m afraid Pei Zheng could be in danger.”

Lu Nong was shocked by Song Laixi’s ordeal but also puzzled. How did Zhao Xin know Pei Zheng and Song Laixi were in contact?

Although she hadn’t seen the portrait, like Pei Zheng, she believed the man who knocked out Song Laixi was likely the same one who had attacked her.

If Zhao Xin suspected the Pei family would investigate her, there were several ways she could try to cover her tracks, and Song Laixi would be a key focus for her.

Whether Pei Zheng had written to Song Laixi or not, Zhao Xin, cautious by nature, would always keep an eye on any correspondence coming from the Northwest.

It was just by luck that Zhang Kaiping had intercepted the letter in time. If not, Song Laixi’s letter would now be in Zhao Xin’s hands.

Now that a letter from the Northwest had arrived, but Zhao Xin hadn’t intercepted it, what would her next move be?

She couldn’t be sure what Song Laixi had written in the letter. Would Zhao Xin take a risk?

Without knowing the letter’s contents, Zhao Xin couldn’t assess the level of threat, so she wouldn’t act rashly. There was a fifty-percent chance she would continue monitoring Pei Zheng’s movements, and another fifty-percent chance she would take drastic action.

However, seeing Pei Zheng leave in a hurry with the letter might push that fifty percent to ninety.

Zhang Kaiping was right—Pei Zheng could be in danger.

Lu Nong’s expression grew serious. “I’ll call your Uncle Pei right now.”

Zhang Kaiping nodded.

Lu Nong dialed the Pei Ji’an’s office. The person who answered wasn’t Pei Ji’an, so Lu Nong calmly said, “I need to speak with Pei Ji’an. This is his wife, Lu Nong.”

After a moment, Pei Ji’an’s deep voice came through the line. “Hello, Nong Nong. Is something wrong?”

Pei Ji’an knew that Lu Nong wouldn’t call during work hours without a good reason.

“Pei Ji’an, has Pei Zheng reached you yet?” Lu Nong asked without any small talk.

Pei Ji’an replied, “Pei Zheng? Wasn’t he on his way to school?”

Lu Nong felt uneasy. Pei Zheng, who had grown up in the military base, knew the route to the barracks better than the way home. If he hadn’t arrived after all this time, something must have happened on the way, and Lu Nong grew anxious.

“Song Laixi sent a letter with a sketch of a suspicious man, and Pei Zheng left to bring it to you. It’s been two hours since he left. Zhang Kaiping told me that he encountered Zhao Xin when he was taking the letter for Pei Zheng. Zhao Xin tried to intercept it. If the man in the sketch is indeed connected to her and she knows Pei Zheng is taking the letter to you, she might take desperate measures. You should go meet him on the way.”

Pei Ji’an frowned after hearing this, but did not hang up the phone immediately. Instead, he comforted Lu Nong and said, “Okay, don’t worry, stay at home and don’t go out. I will go find Pei Zheng right away.”

“Is Zhang Kaiping there? Let me speak to him.”

Handing the phone to Zhang Kaiping, Lu Nong overheard him reply loudly, “Understood! I’ll complete the task!”

After hanging up, Lu Nong was still uneasy, though there was nothing more she could do. She paced back and forth in the living room, waiting for news. Meanwhile, Zhang Kaiping sat calmly on the sofa, sitting upright with his hands resting on his knees.

Seeing him, Lu Nong said, “If you have work to do, go ahead with it.”

Shaking his head, Zhang Kaiping replied, “I’m not busy. Uncle Pei instructed me to protect you, Huaihuai, and Grandma Wu. My task is to stay with you until he returns.”

“Please sit down first. Pei Zheng has been an outstanding martial artist since he was young. Most people cannot easily beat him.” Zhang Kaiping stood up to help Lu Nong. “You are pregnant, so don’t worry too much.”

Lu Nong held back a laugh. At only five months pregnant, her belly wasn’t that large, yet everyone was treating her as if she were made of glass.

“No need to help me,” she said, pushing him away and moving quickly to the sofa. Then, with a thought, she motioned him over and whispered, “Go to Zhao Xin’s house and see if she’s there.”

Zhang Kaiping looked up and replied, “Okay. Just stay here and don’t go out.”

“Go on, I’m not going anywhere.” Lu Nong waved him off.

After he left, she placed a hand on her belly, thinking through Zhao Xin’s background. Pei Ji’an had once told her that Zhao Xin came from a poor rural family. Before liberation, she had worked as a maid for a high-ranking Nationalist official. After the war, she returned to her village and married a local man. When he passed away a few years later, without any children, his family forced her out.

With nowhere to go, Zhao Xin moved to the capital to find relatives. They got her a job sweeping streets, which she felt was beneath her. They then got her temporary work in a factory and a position as a waitress in a state-owned restaurant, but she quit both within a couple of months. 

Finally, a relative found a way to introduce her to Song Laixi’s maternal family, the Xu family, as a nanny. Zhao Xin calmed down and did not resign.

Five years later, Song Laixi’s mother passed away, and Zhao Xin married his father. The Xu family then moved to Shanghai.

Lu Nong was very curious about Zhao Xin’s relatives. What kind of relative could tolerate Zhao Xin changing jobs again and again?

But if the relatives really wanted to be good to Zhao Xin, why did they introduce her to the street sweeping job in the first place? Wouldn’t it have been better to directly arrange for her to work in the factory?

Unfortunately, Pei Ji’an said that these relatives left the capital for Hong Kong after Zhao Xin’s marriage.

And while she could understand Zhao Xin couldn’t stand sweeping the streets, but she even quit her job as a temporary factory worker and a waitress in a state-owned restaurant. These two jobs belonged to the working class and were very respectable at that time.

Though she seemed to act above her background, she somehow managed to work dutifully as a nanny for the Xu family for five years.

As she pondered these things, there was a knock on the door. Her expression shifted, and she walked out to the yard.

“Who is it?” she called out.

After a moment’s pause, a light laugh came from outside. Then a woman’s voice replied, “It’s me, Zhao Xin, Sister Lu. Why is the door locked today? I came to check on you. Please open the door.”

“… “ So, I’m supposed to be foolish enough to open the door after hearing that villainous laugh?”

Lu Nong shuddered and had to admire Zhao Xin’s psychological quality. Even at this time, she could still laugh.

“Sorry, I’m not feeling well. Please come back another day.” Lu Nong responded.

Zhao Xin gave a few coughs. “Sister Lu, are you avoiding me? I didn’t come alone. A few of the other ladies are here too—Sister Zheng, Sister Qin, and Sister Li. If you won’t open the door, we’ll go gather at Sister Qin’s instead.”

Sister Qin? Lu Nong was puzzled. Why would Sister Qin be with Zhao Xin?

Then she heard Sister Zheng, who often hosted tea gatherings, say, “Nong Nong, I shouldn’t have disturbed you at this time since you’re pregnant, but there are rumors in the compound that you and Comrade Zhao Xin have a big conflict. Comrade Zhao Xin took the initiative to find me and asked me to be the one to make peace. Then you and Comrade Zhao Xin should clarify the conflict face to face. Let’s not affect internal unity.”

Lu Nong: “…”

At that moment, Sister Qin interjected, “Since Nong Nong is not feeling well, let’s visit her another day. Resolving conflicts doesn’t have to happen today.”

“That’s right, let’s come back another day.” This is Jiang Yu’s mother Li Lingyi.

“That won’t do. Comrade Lu’s voice sounds healthy and full of energy. She doesn’t sound sick,” a slightly sharp and unfamiliar voice said. “Haha, is she pretending to be sick?”

Another voice joined, “She’s probably spoiled by Chief of Staff Pei. He treats her like a treasure, so she thinks she can look down on us.”

“Exactly. Sister Zheng, you see, she won’t even open the door for you. It’s obvious that she looks down on us.”

Lu Nong nearly laughed out of anger. Zhao Xin was shameless enough to attempt manipulation outright after her earlier schemes had failed.

She would see just what game Zhao Xin was trying to play.

Lu Nong unlocked the door and let a group of people inside.

As soon as the door opened, Sister Qin quickly approached Lu Nong and discreetly signaled her, “Let me see, where do you feel uncomfortable?”

Lu Nong understood and leaned against Sister Qin, covering her head. She coughed lightly and said, “It’s nothing serious. I just have a cold and a headache. I was worried about infecting Comrade Zhao Xin, so I asked her to come another day. I didn’t expect it to cause such misunderstandings.”

Sister Zheng looked at Lu Nong and saw that her skin was snow-white (naturally), the corners of her eyes were red (you know, last night), and she looked listless, as if she was really sick. Her expression changed from anger to guilt.

“Sorry, I misunderstood you. I thought…” Sister Zheng sincerely apologized.

“Cough, it’s okay, Sister Zheng. I should have been clearer. Please come in,” Lu Nong replied.

She turned to Zhao Xin.

Zhao Xin looked back at Lu Nong, her face full of concern, seemingly worried like everyone else. However, when no one else was looking, she flashed Lu Nong a fleeting smile.

Lu Nong squinted her eyes and returned a knowing smile just as quickly.

Zhao Xin’s expression stiffened. She stared at Lu Nong for a moment before following the others inside.

Lu Nong smirked internally. If Zhao Xin wanted to play games, she was ready to outsmart her.