Chapter 16: Silent Concern

When Luo Qiao thought about this, she felt she couldn’t go to the commune first tomorrow. It would be better to visit the mountains first, so she could find an excuse for herself. Otherwise, what could she do with those seven yuan?

The next morning, Luo Qiao got up early and simmered porridge in the kitchen. Then she returned to her space’s kitchen and made scallion pancakes. She also served some radishes and pickled cucumbers that she had prepared earlier from her space.

After she finished preparing herself and the porridge was ready in the kitchen, she set aside a large bowl to cool while she stored the rest in containers back in the space’s pantry.

After eating, she cleaned up the kitchen. She noticed there wasn’t even a basket in the yard. She thought she should ask someone to make a basket for her. It would be convenient to have one in the future.

For now, she could only borrow one from someone else. After locking the door, she headed towards Lu Yichen’s house, which was the closest.

The Youth courtyard was about five hundred meters from Lu Yichen’s house. Their area was considered outside the village, though still a considerable distance from the village itself, close to Daqing Mountain.

That day, the Luo family and the Zhao family intended to reason with the Captain at the foot of Daqing Mountain. They happened to have a disagreement at Lu Yichen’s doorstep, and unexpectedly, without any agreement, the two families started fighting.

In the chaos, Luo Qiao was pushed down and hit her head, causing her to faint. She had to be given emergency treatment at Lu Yichen’s house.

Luo Qiao gently knocked on the door of Lu Yichen’s house, and a voice from inside asked, “Who is it?”

Luo Qiao softly replied, “It’s me, Luo Qiao.”

After a while, the door was opened, and Lu Yichen looked at the slender girl outside, “So early, something happened?”

Luo Qiao felt a bit embarrassed, thinking she might have come too early, “Brother Lu, I wanted to ask if there’s anyone in the village who knows how to weave baskets?”

Lu Yichen didn’t answer immediately but turned and went back to the yard. Luo Qiao thought she had arrived too early and disturbed him.

Just as she was about to leave, Lu Yichen came out with a basket. It looked unused and was just the right size for her to carry.

Lu Yichen said, “No need to buy it. You can take this basket.”

Luo Qiao took the basket and asked, “How much does this cost?”

Lu Yichen waved his hand, “Take it, no need to pay. I made it myself before, but it didn’t suit me.”

Seeing Lu Yichen already turning back towards the yard, Luo Qiao knew he wouldn’t accept money even if she insisted. So she called out to the yard, “Thank you, Brother Lu!”

After turning around, she thought to herself that she would make some delicious food another day and bring it over as a way of repaying the favor.

Lu Yichen heard the footsteps outside the courtyard as she left and couldn’t help but let out a sigh of relief. He chuckled self-deprecatingly, realizing he had made excuses about the basket being not suitable for him even though he had made it specifically for the girl a few days ago.

—

Luo Qiao carried the basket and walked along the path towards Daqing Mountain. These days, she exercises every night in her space to keep fit. In her previous life, her parents were always busy with their careers, and rarely spent time with her.

When she was eight years old, a friend of her father’s had their child kidnapped for ransom. Since then, her father enrolled her in Taekwondo, Sanda classes, and free fighting combat.

She might have some athletic talent because she learned everything quite well. Despite being a girl, she could easily take on four or five grown men.

When the original owner of this body was sent to the farm with the Luo family, she learned military boxing from Grandpa Yuan, who lived not far from her home. She learned quite well and received high praise from Grandpa Yuan.

When Grandpa Yuan left, he advised her not to slack off and to practice daily. The Luo family had heard about these things from others, but no one took it seriously.