owlsbooks Chapter 1844 is very good.
Chapter 1844 is very good.
The bluestone pavement in the alley was warmed by the setting sun.
Huang Yuqi turned her head and took several bags of gifts from Jiang Cheng's hands.
She seemed to want to help him share the burden.
Although this action is normal, it is still inevitable that the fingertips will touch each other.
The moment they made contact, Jiang Cheng noticed that the tips of Huang Yuqi's ears turned slightly red.
Neither of them spoke, and they walked forward in silence.
The footsteps crunched softly on the surface, and the lively atmosphere in the courtyard grew even stronger.
The aroma of food and the faint scent of soapberry mixed with laundry detergent.
Just as I rounded a corner piled high with honeycomb briquettes, a clear, childlike voice rang out: "Sister Yuqi!"
Huang Yuqi paused, then turned around with a smile.
Li Tanghu suddenly appeared from under an old locust tree, holding a marble box.
"This is that..."
Seeing that Jiang Cheng couldn't remember his name, Huang Yuqi continued, "Li Tanghu!"
"Oh, right, this kid has grown so tall in just a few months..."
Huang Yuqi smiled and said, "Yes, children grow up fast. The other day, Principal Zheng sent me some pictures of the children at Hope Primary School, and some of them have grown taller..."
When Li Tanghu approached and saw Jiang Cheng, his eyes lit up and his voice rose even higher.
"Brother Jiang Cheng! You're here too!"
He shouted so loudly that the wooden door of the neighboring courtyard creaked open.
Several old women sewing shoe soles peeked out.
His eyes darted between Jiang Cheng and Huang Yuqi a few times, a smile playing on his lips, a hint of amusement in his expression.
"Oh, Yuqi brought a friend back?"
"This young man looks quite dashing, and with so much stuff he's carrying, he looks very presentable!"
Huang Yuqi's cheeks instantly flushed a light red.
After nodding and greeting the elderly women, the two men clutched their clothes and lightly stamped their feet: "Little Tiger, keep your voice down!"
Li Tanghu, a mere elementary school student, has no idea about speaking softly.
"Are you not a fraud prevention volunteer? Have you been promoting this to your classmates at school lately?"
Upon hearing this, Li Tanghu instantly became smug.
Her chest was held very high.
"Of course! Our teacher showed the TV program three times in class last time! Now a lot of students at school know me, and some even ask me for autographs!"
As he spoke, he pulled a crumpled little notebook out of his pocket.
The paper was covered with a few crooked little figures. "Look! I've written them all down. If anyone tells me again, 'I'll take them to the teacher's office!'"
Jiang Cheng couldn't help but chuckle, nodding in praise: "Well done, keep it up."
Seeing Tang Hu's silly demeanor, Jiang Cheng for some reason thought of Annie's quirky little face.
It is said that little girls develop intelligence and mature earlier than little boys.
This is indeed true.
Li Tanghu is already in the third grade of elementary school, but he still looks silly.
He looks like the kind of tiger boy who would be a ride for little girls at school.
Seeing Jiang Cheng praising him, Li Tanghu's eyes darted around as he examined the object in Jiang Cheng's hand.
"Brother Jiang Cheng, are you going to Sister Yuqi's house to propose marriage?"
Huang Yuqi panicked immediately upon hearing this: "What nonsense are you talking about!"
After a muffled groan, Li Tanghu said, "Isn't that right? My cousin's boyfriend was like that during the New Year. Look at all those bags of gifts! My mom said that when a guy brings gifts to a girl's house, it means he wants to be her son-in-law!"
Upon hearing this, the laughter of the elderly women nearby grew even louder.
Huang Yuqi's face turned bright red, almost bleeding, and she reached out to cover Li Tanghu's mouth: "Stop talking..."
Jiang Cheng found Huang Yuqi's embarrassed and flustered appearance quite amusing.
This girl is different from other girls. I don't know if it's because she's too open, or because she has too many thoughts about herself, or what.
Most of the time, she presents herself with a very open and generous demeanor.
This also means that even if Jiang Cheng is a good man, it doesn't mean that he is not a good man.
I also had some selfish motives towards her.
But I would prefer that she live the life she wants, according to her own wishes.
Jiang Cheng rarely had this kind of thought.
The first time I saw her was when I saw her in the simple teachers' building at Hope Primary School. The second time I saw her was when I went to the amusement park with her last time and got the healing card from her.
Jiang Cheng decided then and there that no matter what his future interactions with Huang Yuqi might be, he would ensure her safety and well-being for the rest of her life.
After breaking free from Huang Yuqi's hand, he turned and ran into the depths of the courtyard.
As she ran, she shouted at the top of her lungs, "I'm going to tell my mom that Sister Yuqi brought her boyfriend home..."
The loud voice quickly spread throughout the poorly soundproofed courtyard.
Some doors and windows that were originally closed were pushed open, and many middle-aged women poked their heads out.
Huang Yuqi sighed helplessly and muttered under her breath, "This little tiger, really..."
Before she could finish speaking, a slightly abrupt male voice came from behind the moon gate in front: "Yuqi."
Jiang Cheng looked up and saw a young man in a white shirt standing there.
He was clutching a basketball in his hand, and beads of sweat were still on his forehead.
His brows and eyes held a deliberate gentleness, but his gaze was fixed directly on Huang Yuqi.
"Zhao Bing..."
Zhao Bingshi walked over in a few steps, his gaze sweeping over the supplements Jiang Cheng was carrying.
When she glanced at Jiang Cheng, her gentleness faded, replaced by a scrutinizing look.
"I just heard Xiaohuzi call your name, so I came out to see what's going on?"
Just as Huang Yuqi was about to introduce herself, Zhao Bing looked like he had asked but didn't want to hear it.
He took the initiative, extending his hand to Jiang Cheng with a polite smile, but his words were barbed: "Hello, I'm Yuqi's neighbor, Zhao Bing. Yuqi and I grew up together. When Yuqi isn't home, I take care of her grandmother."
Hearing this, Jiang Cheng smiled.
Zhao Bing's meaning was quite clear.
His relationship with Yuqi is unusual. And where are you from?
Jiang Cheng didn't reach out, but simply nodded.
This attitude froze Zhao Bing's hand in mid-air, and his face darkened slightly.
The elderly women watching the commotion began to whisper among themselves.
"Isn't Teacher Zhao always fond of Yuqi?"
"Yes, he often helps Yuqi's family fix water pipes and change light bulbs, and he also always brings fruit to her grandma."
"Now there's something good to watch..."
Zhao Bing seemed not to hear the discussions, his gaze returning to Huang Yuqi, a smile he thought was gentle curving his lips.
"Yuqi, come to my house for dinner tonight. I bought a lot of groceries this morning."
Upon hearing this, Huang Yuqi refused decisively: "No need, Teacher Zhao, we have guests at home today."
Zhao Bing's expression changed instantly after being rejected.
"Who is he? Your boyfriend?"
Upon hearing this, Huang Yuqi's expression froze for a moment.
Just as he was about to explain "no," he heard Jiang Cheng speak.
"Not yet." Jiang
Cheng's voice wasn't loud, but it traveled clearly to everyone's ears.
He looked at Huang Yuqi with a half-smile in his eyes, "However, I'm working on it."
These words instantly made Huang Yuqi's eyes widen.
She looked up and met Jiang Cheng's deep gaze.
As Jia Jiangcheng stared at her, her heart skipped a beat, and the heat on her cheeks instantly spread to her ears.
Zhao Bing's face darkened completely, and his knuckles, gripping the basketball, turned white.
"Xiao Yuqi is a good girl, not someone you can joke around with."
"Do I look like I'm joking? I came here today specifically to see Grandma. And also... to talk to Yuqi about something."
Zhao Bing glanced at Jiang Cheng again.
Her jealousy was practically overflowing. "Yuqi, what have you thought about what I told you yesterday? It's about going hiking together this weekend. I've already made plans with my colleagues; they all want to meet you."
Huang Yuqi frowned and refused again: "No, I need to pack my luggage and take care of some other things these next few days..."
He saw Huang Yuqi reject him in front of Jiang Cheng.
Zhao Bing grew anxious, and his voice rose a little, "Yuqi, I've liked you for so many years, don't you realize that? Those people outside, they look glamorous, but who knows what they're really thinking!"
Huang Yuqi was startled when she suddenly heard Zhao Bing's confession.
"what!"
She had never thought about this question.
In her eyes, Zhao Bing was just like Principal Zheng of Hope Primary School.
They are friends you can talk to about school and your grandmother; they are like "comrades-in-arms".
He suddenly said he liked me?
Huang Yuqi's mind isn't quite working.
There was even a hint of disbelief and bewilderment in their voices, as if they had heard something out of the blue.
Looking at the blankness in her eyes, Jiang Cheng felt a surge of irritation from Zhao Bing, which had been stirred up by him. In its place, he felt a kind of indulgent urge to laugh.
Huang Yuqi's psychological trauma was genuine; there was absolutely no acting involved...
Jiang Cheng raised an eyebrow, said nothing, and simply placed the tonic in his hand on the stone stool next to him with a soft sound.
She looked at him with a cold laugh.
This small movement made Zhao Bing instinctively shut his mouth.
But seeing Huang Yuqi standing to the side, she still refused to back down: "What? Did I say something wrong? Some men these days, just because they have a little money, think they can..."
Jiang Cheng glanced at the moon gate.
He originally did not want to use his wealth and power to oppress people.
Unfortunately, the Zhao soldier in front of him was an idiot.
"You live here?"
Looking at Jiang Cheng's well-tailored suit, and then at his own dusty shirt, he felt inexplicably ashamed.
“That’s right. From what I know of Yuqi, she’s not a gold digger. You can’t corrupt her…”
Upon hearing Zhao Bing's words, Huang Yuqi immediately blushed slightly.
“Zhao Bing,” Huang Yuqi interrupted him, “Can you please stop saying things like that? It makes me blush. And you’re not allowed to talk about Jiang Cheng like that…”
Seeing how protective she was of Jiang Cheng, Zhao Bing felt even worse. He retorted, "Yuqi, I'm doing this for your own good! What does he do? Do you even know him?"
Huang Yuqi took a deep breath, turned to look at Jiang Cheng, her eyes filled with determination.
Then he looked at Zhao Bing and said, word by word.
"I know him better than you do."
She paused, looked at Zhao Bing's astonished expression, and said clearly, "So what if he's my boyfriend?"
The room fell silent the moment those words were spoken.
Even the elderly women who were watching the spectacle were stunned, and then a louder discussion broke out.
Zhao Bing's face flushed red and then turned pale, his hand gripping the basketball trembled slightly, and he couldn't utter a word for a long time.
Jiang Cheng looked at Huang Yuqi's reddened ears, and the smile in his eyes deepened.
He bent down to pick up the tonic from the stone stool, and smiled faintly at Zhao Bing: "Teacher Zhao, right? Thank you for taking care of Yuqi and Grandma. However, I won't trouble you with these things in the future. Sometimes you need to be more discerning; some people just confuse being a simp with being deeply affectionate..."
After saying that, he gestured with his chin toward Huang Yuqi: "Let's go, don't keep Grandma waiting."
Huang Yuqi nodded, quickly walked to his side, and walked with him into the depths of the courtyard.
Behind him, Zhao Bing stood frozen in place, his face ashen as he looked at the two figures standing side by side.
The basketball in his hand fell instantly.
I saw a group of middle-aged women huddled together discussing themselves.
He instantly forgot all about picking up the basketball and walked inside with red eyes.
"Mom~ I've been dumped!!"
The setting sun cast long shadows of the two of them, stretching all the way to the weathered wooden door of Huang Yuqi's house.
Huang Yuqi glanced at Jiang Cheng beside her and whispered, "Thank you... just now."
Jiang Cheng turned his head, looked at her flushed cheeks, and smiled: "Thank me for what? Thank me for helping you fend off unwanted suitors?"
Huang Yuqi's face turned even redder, and she clutched the hem of her clothes.
"No, I've known Zhao Bing since I was a child. I've even seen him wearing open-crotch pants. I really thought he was like Principal Zheng Qiu. You know, Principal Zheng Qiu treats me like a brother."
Jiang Cheng finally understood why Huang Yuqi was always so open and honest with him.
I even went out of my way to cultivate my conscience for her.
It seems this girl is still quite immature when it comes to relationships!
Zheng Qiu had said before: "Aside from being ugly, Teacher Huang is a really good person."
Given the freckles on her face and her old-fashioned clothes, isn't it normal to treat her like a brother?
If he saw her without her ugly makeup, do you think he could treat her like a brother?
The two walked to the wooden door, and Huang Yuqi took a deep breath and gently knocked on it.
Soon, a series of slightly hurried footsteps came from inside the door, and then the wooden door creaked open.
The old lady standing at the door had gray hair, which was neatly combed. Her face showed signs of illness and was somewhat haggard, but her eyes were bright.
She was wearing a faded navy blue blouse and clutching a rag for wiping tables.
Upon seeing the two people outside the door, the wrinkles on his face instantly blossomed into a smile.
"You are... Xiao Jiang?" Grandma's voice was a little uncertain as she looked at Jiang Cheng carefully.
The last time she fainted due to high blood pressure, Huang Yuqi panicked and called Jiang Cheng, who was far away in Shanghai, in tears.
All she remembers is that many people came to her house that day, and a doctor in a white coat stayed with her all night.
There's also a caregiver who comes to the house every day to clean and cook, running around doing all the chores; it's all arranged by Jiang Cheng.
But she had never met Jiang Cheng in person; she had only heard her granddaughter mention him, saying that he was a very kind-hearted young man.
Jiang Cheng quickly stepped forward, bowed slightly, and said in a gentle tone, "Grandma, it's me. I've come to see you. Are you feeling better?"
He handed over the supplements in his hand and explained with a smile, "I specifically asked the doctor about these. They are mild and nourishing, not greasy, and very suitable for you to take now."
"Oh dear, you child, you've come all this way, why did you bring anything!" Grandma quickly stepped aside to let them in, speaking politely while already taking their hands. "Come in, come in! It's windy outside."