Chronicle of the 70s
Chapter 102: The sky brightens greatly as the first watch of the night ends at 100 days

Chapter 102: The sky brightens greatly as the first watch of the night ends at 100 days

The night sky was devoid of stars, and the large round moon seemed to follow the vehicle, illuminating the snowy landscape as if it were broad daylight.

The January wind was bone-chilling, and even though the two trucks were fitted with iron frames draped in thick canvas, piercing cold gusts still found their way in like phantom wraiths.

At this moment, Li Xianglu, Qin Xi, and Qin Zhen were all seated on a brightly lit big truck.

This was a freight truck transporting industrial materials to Guanzhong, and then returning with grain and foodstuffs.

Since there was only one seat next to the driver, Mr. Li, with his frail health, was forcibly seated in the front by Li Xianglu.

It was already past midnight, and Li Xianglu was awoken by the whistling wind. Under the moonlight, she saw a cotton-padded jacket on herself, and quickly turned to look at Qin Xi, who was sharing a military coat with Qin Zhen, while she herself was covered with two. Annoyed, she pulled off the extra jacket and climbed up to cover Qin Xi with it.

Qin Xi was a light sleeper and almost woke up as soon as the cotton-padded jacket touched him.

He sleepily opened his eyes and looked towards Li Xianglu, who had an angry expression on her face, and couldn’t help but whisper with a hint of amusement, "What’s wrong? Acting like a little cat, getting upset over nothing?"

Li Xianglu shifted closer to Qin Xi’s side since it was freezing cold, and she couldn’t care less about any reservations. Once close, they both instantly felt warmer. Although they were separated by a military coat, it wasn’t awkward as it wasn’t the same as sharing a bed.

Qin Xi put on the cotton jacket and leaned towards her, then took Li Xianglu’s hand, and shortly felt a cold sensation on his wrist. Li Xianglu was startled, looked down, and saw that it was a Longines watch.

Qin Xi’s voice stood out magnetic and soothing in the night, "Do you know what a watch represents?"

Li Xianglu looked at the luxurious Longines watch on her hand, worth seventy-nine hundred, and smiled, "I know, a watch signifies status!"

Qin Xi’s laughter seemed to come from afar, deep and magnetic, "Yes, a watch signifies status, but do you know what it means when a man gives a woman a watch?"

Li Xianglu paused, then burst into laughter, "It signifies the preciousness of the relationship!"

This time Qin Xi shook his head and chuckled, "It signifies ownership. It tells all those who set their eyes on the watch that this person is taken!"

Li Xianglu’s face flushed. This guy was so shameless!

Qin Xi reached out, pulled her closer to his shoulder, and said, "Sleep now, it’s just past four. Dawn is still far off."

Li Xianglu didn’t resist, leaning on Qin Xi’s broad shoulder, her thoughts drifting far away.

Having too many valuables, they didn’t dare to stay out any longer. Regretfully, Mr. Li informed everyone that they were about to return and had found a truck for transport. It was a direct trip to the county town without the need to transfer vehicles or worry about the crowded train causing trouble.

But it meant suffering through the journey. They got on the truck early in the morning. During the trip, Li Xianglu had spent some time in the co-driver’s seat, but by the afternoon, she firmly insisted that Grandpa Li take her place.

She was young and full of vitality. Despite the truck’s tent made of canvas and the chill, she wasn’t too cold with the military coat. The only scare was the howling wind.

Too tired to think too much, she quickly fell asleep, nestled warmly against Qin Xi.

Qin Xi, who had been squinting, suddenly opened his eyes wide in the night sky, pulled her into his arms, then Li Xianglu raised the military coat higher and he, having stroked her soft hair, closed his eyes and drifted off to sleep.

The truck traveled faster than the train, and they arrived in the county town by eight o’clock the next evening, leaving Li Xianglu feeling like she had been jostled to pieces.

Qin Xi, carrying a large leather suitcase and another big bag, followed by Qin Zhen with a large backpack and a bundle of clothes, and Li Xianglu holding her small cross-body bag and clutching sanitary pads, with Mr. Li carrying only a shoulder bag and walking quickly ahead. The three children were freezing; they needed to rush home and boil water.

The door to their home in the county town was opened, startling the Chen Family next door. Mr. Li briefly explained the situation, then set down his bags and immediately started making fires in the two kang beds.

Still seemingly unfazed by the journey, Qin Xi lit the kitchen stove and boiled a large pot of water, then cooked some rice in another pot.

After washing up, Li Xianglu felt refreshed, wearing her new cashmere sweater, and stretched contentedly on the warm kang bed.

Qin Xi brought in a basin full of watery rice porridge, with Qin Zhen, who had been strong-armed into helping, bringing a basket of two-mixed flour steamed buns – borrowed from the neighbors since the house in the county only had some rice and cornmeal and lacked everything else.

Li Xianglu stirred the thick porridge that could trip someone with its consistency and was surprised to widen her eyes.

Next to her, Qin Zhen took a sip of the rice soup, then turned a bowl of watery porridge into white rice.

Embarrassed, Qin Xi said, "I’m not very good at cooking. Just put up with it for now; we’ll buy some food tomorrow."

Li Xianglu raised an eyebrow and said, "Yeah, I can see that."

Mr. Li coughed at his granddaughter’s candor and said, "Well, it’s not bad, it can be made familiar."

Li Xianglu pouted; her grandpa wasn’t any better at giving compliments than she was.

After dinner, the kang (traditional heated bed) had warmed up. There were only two quilts in the house in the county town, but thankfully, there were also a few new cotton-padded jackets. The kang was burning hot, so it wasn’t too cold at night. In fact, Li Xianglu had many quilts in her Storage Ring, but it wouldn’t be good to take them out, so she had to make do with one of the quilts and went to sleep.

Over at Grandpa Li’s side, three people made do.

They were so exhausted they almost fell asleep as soon as they touched the kang.

In a daze, Li Xianglu heard a commotion and thought she was dreaming, but when Qin Xi’s voice clearly reached her ears, she jolted awake.

People had arrived outside, and seeing the sky bright and clear, Li Xianglu immediately got up and peered out the window.

At that moment, seven or eight people with red armbands were standing in the courtyard, the leader was a familiar face—it was the man with the triangular eyes who had visited Grandpa Lan’s house that day.

Li Xianglu suddenly thought of the items in the room and, without bothering to put on her shoes, quickly placed the big box on the table and all the items on the floor into the Storage Ring.

As for how to explain it later, she’d have to play it by ear—the contents of the box definitely couldn’t be exposed.

Just as Li Xianglu hurriedly dressed, the door was knocked. It was her grandpa.

Mr. Li’s voice was tinged with repressed anger, "Xiangxiang, get up, we have visitors."

Li Xianglu responded with an "Ah" and quickly climbed down from the kang and opened the door.

The doorway suddenly became congested and pitch-black.

With surprise, Li Xianglu said, "Grandpa, are people robbing us?"

Mr. Li replied irritably, "They’re not here to rob us. They’ve come for an inspection. Step aside and let them see if our family has anything worth inspecting."

ps: Thanks to Na Bei’er for the monthly ticket.

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Thanks again to mumu009 for another monthly ticket, love you dear.

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