restless mind

The next morning, Zhao Dongchan got out of bed, looking a bit dispirited.

It wasn’t that he couldn’t sleep in a strange bed; it was mainly the blanket… the blanket that Runye had used, which carried a faint, delicate fragrance.

He wasn’t sure if it was Runye’s natural scent or the fragrance of the soap she used.

In any case, Zhao Dongchan tossed and turned all night, unable to fall asleep.

Who could endure such a test? Thinking of Tian Runye’s charming face and graceful figure in the next room… tsk tsk tsk! Zhao Dongchan’s mind was restless, his heart agitated beyond measure… he simply couldn’t get any proper sleep.

Considering his very limited experience in this area, both in his original life and his current one, it was indeed a bit… well, a bit hard for him to control himself!

He only managed to fall asleep in the latter half of the night.

“I was careless. If I had known this would happen, I shouldn’t have tried to be clever yesterday. I should have just booked a room at the guesthouse,” Zhao Dongchan muttered to himself as he got dressed.

“Knock knock knock!”

A knock sounded at the door!

“Dongchan, are you up?”

Tian Runye’s voice came from outside.

“I am! Be right there!”

Zhao Dongchan quickly put on his clothes and then opened the door.

“Breakfast is ready. I’ve made some porridge and there are yesterday’s leftovers…”

Tian Runye said, smiling at Zhao Dongchan.

“How did you sleep last night?” Zhao Dongchan asked her.

Tian Runye looked a bit bewildered.

“Last night… I slept quite well…”

“Well, I didn’t sleep well last night; my mind was full of you…” Zhao Dongchan said, smiling slightly at Tian Runye.

Faced with such sudden sweet talk, Tian Runye was completely flustered. At that time, few people dating were as “smooth” as him!

It was considered good if a boy and a girl on a date could say a few complete sentences without stammering for ages.

There was nothing he could do; Zhao Dongchan had seen and heard too much in his original world. Even if he wasn’t naturally good at these things, a few sweet words at this moment were a “dimension-crushing attack” for Tian Runye!

Tian Runye’s face turned bright red, and she shyly lowered her head. Then, she slowly looked up, her eyes fixed on Zhao Dongchan, and said, “Me too… last night, my mind was also full of you…”

Before she could say anything more… a cough came from the side, and Tian Xiaoxia appeared out of nowhere.

“Time to eat, time to eat! What are you two chatting about?”

She asked knowingly; in reality, she had been eavesdropping for a while. Listening to their sweet nothings, she had been fed a dose of public display of affection and couldn’t help but cough.

She then walked out, pretending not to know anything, and called them for breakfast.

“…”

Zhao Dongchan and Tian Runye exchanged glances… both saw the amusement in the other’s eyes.

Shaking his head helplessly, this Tian Xiaoxia was really… Tian Fujun and Xu Aiyun had already finished eating and gone to work. Only Tian Xiaoxia and Tian Runye were home… along with the retired cadre Xu Guoqiang.

“Little Zhao, how did you sleep last night?” Xu Guoqiang asked with concern, holding his bowl and eating his food.

“Very well…” Zhao Dongchan nodded eagerly.

Tian Runye remembered what he had just said and gave Zhao Dongchan a playful glare, her face flushed with a spring-like blush.

“Hehe!” He could only foolishly slurp his porridge… After breakfast, Tian Xiaoxia went to the educated youth point in the suburbs for “life experience.”

Zhao Dongchan, on the other hand, rode his bicycle to take Tian Runye to County Elementary School for work.

“Runye, this New Year… do you have time? I’d like to take you back to the capital… to meet my parents?”

“Uh… I… it should be fine. I’ll talk to my parents about it later…”

Tian Runye’s answer was a bit hesitant. She herself was certainly fine with it, but the main issue was her father, Tian Futang, who didn’t know about this yet. At the very least, she needed to discuss it with him first, as it was a big matter.

“Okay, then we’ll go back together!”

Zhao Dongchan said, chuckling.

Tian Runye sat on the back seat, her hands wrapped around his waist. Despite the cold winter, she felt incredibly warm.

At the school gate, under the gaze of teachers and students, Tian Runye got off the bicycle.

“I’ll come pick you up at noon…” Zhao Dongchan said, smiling.

“Don’t you need to go back to Huangyuan?”

“It’s fine; it’s okay if I stay a couple more days!”

“Oh… okay!”

Tian Runye waved her hand and, carrying her bag, happily entered the school.

Zhao Dongchan smiled as he watched Tian Runye walk into the school until she was out of sight before turning to leave.

Since he had already visited Runye’s Second Uncle and Second Aunt, it would be impolite not to visit her biological parents.

So, he planned to go back to Shuangshui Village with Runye at noon… Before going, he decided to buy some more gifts.

Thus, Zhao Dongchan rode his bicycle back to the Second Market Store and, to Jin Guangming’s surprise, bought another large pile of gifts.

Jin Guangming stared, dumbfounded.

“You… buying so much?” Jin Guangming asked, puzzled, as he took the few large denomination bills Zhao Dongchan handed him.

“I’m planning to go to Shuangshui Village again, to Runye’s parents’ house. Strike while the iron is hot! So I have to buy more!”

Jin Guangming counted the money and tickets, then gave Zhao Dongchan five yuan, eight jiao, and seven fen in change.

Zhao Dongchan took the items, hung them on the handlebars, put the money back in his pocket, and rode off on his bicycle.

“The Old Tian family has really found a rich son-in-law. These gifts alone are almost equivalent to my month’s salary… truly generous…”

Watching Zhao Dongchan’s departing figure, Jin Guangming murmured to himself… Zhao Dongchan actually had a lot of stock in his spatial storage. The reason he went to Jin Guangming’s to buy things was also to hope that Jin Guangming could spread the word, solidifying his reputation as Runye’s boyfriend, and at the same time, bringing honor to the Tian family.

Tian Futang was a person who valued face… This move could also make him happy. Although Tian Futang had been coveting him as a son-in-law for a long time, why not add flowers to the brocade?

He rode through the streets of Yuanxi County and noticed that the section of Cross Street had sidewalks on both sides, and the road surface had been neatly repaired.

The grass along both sides of the road had been completely cleared.

What surprised him most was that in the center of Cross Street, a traffic command platform had actually been erected.

He had been with Runye yesterday and hadn’t observed closely, but now, looking carefully, he found many differences; it was completely renewed.

“Tsk tsk tsk! I wonder which leader is coming to inspect…” Zhao Dongchan mused to himself. He vaguely remembered such an event, but he had forgotten who exactly was coming.

Never mind, whoever came had nothing to do with him.

Zhao Dongchan first returned to the Revolutionary Committee compound and temporarily stored the gifts at Tian Fujun’s house, which left the old man Xu Guoqiang stunned.

Originally, he had intended to put them directly into his spatial storage and take them out later, but after thinking about it, he decided against it; he was afraid of accidentally revealing his secret… After chatting with Xu Guoqiang for a while and checking the time, he felt it was about right, so he got up to leave and go to County Elementary School to pick up Runye. Before leaving, he also informed the old man Xu Guoqiang that he and Runye were going to Shuangshui Village to visit Tian Futang and would not be returning that night.

This was to prevent them from thinking that Zhao Dongchan had abducted Tian Runye if she didn’t come back!