Chapter 71

Country girls do a lot of manual labor, so their bodies are strong and their strength impressive. Caught off guard by the impact, Qiao Xinyi nearly lost her balance—fortunately, Fu Qingshan was standing nearby and caught her in time.

Looking at Zhang Mengdi, who had already reached the gate, Qiao Xinyi picked up a stone from the yard and swiftly hurled it at her.

“You think I’m an easy target? You dare bump into me? Get back here!”

The stone, about the size of a fist, hit Zhang Mengdi squarely on the shoulder. She cried out in pain, turned around, and glared at Qiao Xinyi.

Just then, Fu Linzhou and Fu Zeyu followed suit, picking up stones from their feet and throwing them as well.

“How dare you glare at our bald auntie? We’ll smash you!”

Fu Linzhou tossed his stone, and Fu Zeyu quickly followed. Zhang Mengdi fled, covering her head in a panic. Her cries could be heard from miles away—it clearly hurt. Though whether it was physical pain or emotional, no one could say.

Fu Qingshan gently placed his hand on Qiao Xinyi’s shoulder and asked softly, “Are you hurt? Do you want to go to the clinic in town? Does it hurt?”

Aunt Feng thought to herself, This rebellious boy actually has such a caring side now that he has a girlfriend? What a surprise.

“I’m fine,” Qiao Xinyi shook her head. She wasn’t made of tofu—getting bumped once wasn’t enough to warrant a trip to the clinic.

Qiao Xinyi looked up at Fu Qingshan. “Are you the type that attracts rotten peach blossoms (unwanted admirers)? One Zhang Mengdi is bad enough, and now there’s another from the county town. Don’t tell me the whole point of this trip was to help you deal with this kind of mess?”

She rubbed her chin and began to seriously consider, “Your face draws too much attention. If I marry you, will I have to deal with this kind of drama all the time?”

Her first reaction was: That’s way too annoying. It felt like she had a meat bun, but it was constantly surrounded by a swarm of green-headed flies. If she wanted to eat that bun, she’d have to keep swatting flies.

Dear lord, that sounds exhausting.

Seeing the expression on Qiao Xinyi’s face, Fu Qingshan immediately sensed danger. Is she about to dump me because of this?

“Don’t overthink it,” Fu Qingshan said quickly. He didn’t want the girl he had finally found to slip away. At his age, finding someone he liked was no easy feat. He lowered his voice to distract her.

“Qingshan isn’t the kind of man who messes around,” Aunt Feng said, taking Qiao Xinyi’s hand. “Stay here for lunch today, all of you. You brought so much meat—if we don’t eat it at noon, it’ll go bad.”

“Okay! Sounds great!” Fu Linzhou and Fu Zeyu clapped and cheered.

Fu Qingshan figured his own home probably wouldn’t prepare anything special to welcome Qiao Xinyi for lunch, so he didn’t refuse.

“I plan to go to Zhangjia Village to speak with the local officials about the rumors that I’m going to marry Zhang Mengdi. And the fact that Zhang Mengdi deliberately bumped into you—she can’t just get away with that. Can you wait for me at Aunt Feng’s place with the kids?”

Qiao Xinyi had only thrown the stone in retaliation, and it was Zhang Mengdi who had been out of line first—and then ran off without even apologizing. So no, it couldn’t be left like that.

Fu Qingshan was also worried about Zhang Zao—she was known to be vicious—and he was concerned that the Zhang family’s gossiping mouths would cause trouble later. After he and Qiao Xinyi got their marriage certificate, he didn’t want them spreading ugly rumors like “Qiao Xinyi stole someone else’s man.”

In rural places like this, people never blamed the man when something went wrong. All the blame was thrown on the woman. But if there was credit to be given for something, it always went to the man.

Even Zheng Youliang was like that. Fu Qingshan had seen it his whole life.

“Go ahead,” Qiao Xinyi nodded.

“Brother Qingshan, I’ll definitely take good care of Sister-in-law!” Feng Zhenzhu volunteered enthusiastically. She couldn’t stand Zhang Mengdi, but she didn’t dislike Qiao Xinyi—the woman Fu Qingshan had openly brought back as his official girlfriend.

Besides, the fact that Fu Linzhou and Fu Zeyu liked Qiao Xinyi showed that she must be a good person. Fu Qingshan borrowed a bicycle from Aunt Feng and rode off to Zhangjia Village.

There was still some time before lunch, and Aunt Feng had laundry to finish, so Qiao Xinyi asked Feng Zhenzhu to take her around town for a walk and to look around.

The four of them headed out together. Originally, it was supposed to be Qiao Xinyi and Feng Zhenzhu each holding one of the children’s hands. But six-year-olds, especially when they’re in familiar territory, don’t keep their hands held for long. In no time, the kids had broken free.

Every time they saw someone they knew—whether close or just an acquaintance, man or woman, old or young—the two kids would loudly announce:

“This is the woman Uncle brought home. She’s going to be our future aunt!”

As the four of them walked down the street, those two kids with their megaphone mouths made sure everyone in town knew Fu Qingshan had brought home a girlfriend.

Qiao Xinyi couldn’t help thinking—these two kids and that gossiping Auntie Zhang would probably get along great.

When they passed by the freezer in front of the supply and marketing cooperative, Qiao Xinyi bought four ice pops. Feng Zhenzhu was called over by some classmates, so Qiao Xinyi told her not to worry about continuing the walk with them—she would take the kids on her own.

As they continued walking, she suddenly noticed that people on the street kept turning around to look at her and the kids, some with strange smiles on their faces.

Qiao Xinyi turned back to look at the two kids—and only then realized they were marching in a line behind her like little ducklings. She herself was walking leisurely, one hand holding an ice pop, the other clasped behind her back.

The two kids, imitating her exactly, also held their ice pops in the same hand, with their other hand behind their backs.

When Qiao Xinyi turned to look, the two kids thought something interesting was happening behind them, so they turned around to look too.

The whole thing looked like a flock of ducks going out for a stroll, and nearby passersby burst into laughter.

The two kids looked at the people in confusion, then turned to Qiao Xinyi and asked, “Bald Auntie, what are they looking at?”

Even Qiao Xinyi herself couldn’t hold back her laughter.

“They’re looking at us,” she said. “I’m looking at you two.”

“Walk properly. Don’t copy me.”

“No!” the two kids shook their heads in unison. “You look so cool walking like that, Bald Auntie!”

Qiao Xinyi didn’t say anything else. She casually tossed her finished ice pop stick into the grass by the roadside.

Of course, the two kids immediately followed her lead. They quickly bit off what was left of their ice pops in two or three crunches, wincing from the cold, their little faces scrunched up.

With the perfect twin coordination they had, both raised their hands at the same time and flung their sticks in the same direction Qiao Xinyi had thrown hers.

Just then, a gust of wind blew from the front, and the sticks they had thrown got blown right back, smacking Fu Linzhou on the chin and Fu Zeyu on the chest, before falling to the ground at their feet.

Qiao Xinyi couldn’t stop laughing. But thankfully, the two kids weren’t fussy—they didn’t need comforting and didn’t make a fuss at all. One rubbed his chin, the other brushed off his shirt, both grinning foolishly at her.

“All right then.” Qiao Xinyi clasped her hands behind her back again, and sure enough, the two kids instantly mimicked her.

That morning, anyone who stepped outside in town probably saw the same amusing scene: a young woman in a sun hat walking with her hands behind her back like an official inspecting the grassroots, with two little “junior officials” following behind in the exact same pose.

The posture looked perfectly normal for an adult, but for six-year-old kids, walking with hands behind their backs made it hard to balance. Yet these two little guys insisted on copying the adult in front, even puffing out their chests and trying to keep their backs straight.

The result? They wobbled and swayed the whole way. It was an absolutely hilarious sight.