I Got Rich in Period Fiction
Chapter 194: The Sense of Abstinence

Chapter 194: Chapter 194: The Sense of Abstinence

Qiao Qingyu held He Xiuyu’s briefcase, while He Xiuyu was carrying two large bags, entering the gate of the family courtyard. Just a few steps in, everything around suddenly turned pitch black, then they heard the guard at the door saying, "The power is out."

The base now generates its own electricity. These days, power supply all across Huaxia is very tight—a power outage is a common occurrence.

What Qiao Qingyu remembered most vividly was the evening of New Year’s Eve when she was ten years old. The Qiao Family Team had just gotten electricity; before that, they always celebrated the New Year by candlelight. It was the first time they had electric lights, and the villagers were thrilled.

However, just as everyone was making dumplings, the power suddenly went out, plunging them into darkness. Everyone scrambled to light candles and oil lamps, but such lights were never as good as the electric bulbs hanging from the ceiling. Out of habit, everyone rushed outside, only to see that Hejia Village across the river was brightly lit. Only then did they realize that it was only the Qiao Family Team that had lost power.

The Qiao Family Team had an electrician who was on duty in the control room. When Sun Dazhang, the team leader, found him, he simply said the circuit was broken. Fixes would have to wait until daylight.

The people were extremely disappointed. They had finally gotten electricity for a bright New Year’s celebration, yet they still had to use oil lamps while the electric lights were out, which was frustrating.

The old circuit breakers really were quite similar to knife switches.

Then, Uncle Qiao noticed something seemed off with the circuit breaker. In his memory, it was supposed to face upwards, but it had flipped downwards. He quietly informed Sun Dazhang. After all, they weren’t electricians. Even the team leader didn’t dare to tamper with it lightly—unknown things always brought a certain inexplicable fear.

At that time, Sun Dazhang had just taken office and had a few people at his disposal, so he had Uncle Qiao drive a tractor to fetch the electrician from the commune.

Then, with a simple push upward on the circuit breaker by the electrician, the entire village lit up again.

But by then, it was already past eleven o’clock; New Year’s Eve was nearly over.

At this memory, Qiao Qingyu chuckled.

He Xiuyu carried the two bags in one hand and caught Qiao Qingyu’s hand, asking, "Xiao Qiao, what are you laughing at?"

"Could it be that the electrician pulled the circuit breaker because of the sudden power outage?" she asked.

He Xiuyu said seriously, "Recently, electricity consumption has been high, and supply is insufficient."

Suddenly remembering something, he wore a smile as they walked, saying, "Are you recalling your childhood, when the electrician from your Qiao Family Team, unable to go home for New Year, pulled the breaker out of spite?"

Qiao Qingyu’s eyes widened in surprise. "How do you know?"

"That year, your father and I went to Hejia Village for the New Year. The next day, while going out to pay New Year’s visits, I heard about it..."

By now, several households had started lighting candles.

Despite this, the surroundings remained pitch black. Qiao Qingyu smiled warmly, "You even visited Hejia Village; I went to my aunt’s house every New Year, but I never saw you."

He Xiuyu just smiled, thinking to himself, how could he not have seen him? He ate so much of his candy, yet she had forgotten about him.

Of course, since he couldn’t remember, he wouldn’t bring it up.

The two groped their way inside and lit some candles.

Qiao Qingyu rushed to wash her hands; they still hadn’t had dinner.

Meanwhile, He Xiuyu took out and arranged everything from the bags, one at a time.

Qiao Qingyu picked two tomatoes, heated oil in the pot, and sautéed some chopped onions until fragrant. She then fried the tomatoes and added water. It was too late for a stir-fry or stewed rice, so making some noodle soup was just right.

Qiao Qingyu was particularly experienced at making noodle soup. She kneaded the dough with water, then dumped it into a colander, pressing it back and forth with a wooden spoon. Pearlescent-like noodle pieces began dropping into the boiling tomato soup. The egg was added after all the noodles were pressed, emitting an instant burst of aroma throughout the kitchen.

Qiao Qingyu served the noodle soup in two big bowls, then chopped some sharp peppers and coriander, mixed them with a bit of salt, and set them on the table.

The two dishes together were a perfect match.

Even when the food had cooled down, both of them still sweated profusely as they ate. During the day, Qiao Qingyu had prepared a basin of hot water. Naturally, it couldn’t compare with the hospitality of the headquarters. After a quick wipe, the two sat under the grapevine to cool off.

Above them, there were no grapes, but the leaves were lush and green, covering the entire grapevine.

At that moment, it was utterly silent, and the electricity was still out, making everything around extremely dim. The stars above shone even brighter.

After a full day of activity, Qiao Qingyu was somewhat tired.

She rose and went indoors to prepare for bed, followed by He Xiuyu, who leaned against the doorway with his hair still damp.

Of course, he leaned against the doorway of Qiao Qingyu’s bedroom.

His gaze was intensely fixed on Qiao Qingyu.

Qiao Qingyu arranged her pillow, drew the curtains, then kneeled on the cool mat, looking at He Xiuyu, and dryly said, "It’s late, you should go rest too."

Only then did Qiao Qingyu realize that it was just the two of them left in this house.

What did He Xiuyu’s look mean?

She was naturally aware of the matters between men and women, but she wasn’t ready.

Qiao Qingyu felt her back sweat, and her palms were the same.

He Xiuyu didn’t move; he still leaned by the door, his posture lazy, his facial features handsome, even more attractive than stars decades later.

Especially dressed in the deep blue pajamas, it exuded a profound and ascetic feel.

She knew that his physique under the pajamas was great.

Her throat felt a bit dry.

He Xiuyu’s voice was leisurely, "Xiao Qiao, don’t you have anything to ask me?"

Qiao Qingyu thought for a moment, then hurriedly said, "How is your mother’s health recovery going?"

"She’s been discharged and is recovering well, but you’ve already asked this."

Qiao Qingyu slapped the mat, "What’s going on, He Xiuyu, making everything so mysterious..."

He Xiuyu shook his head, seemingly a bit disappointed, "You really don’t have anything to ask?"

Qiao Qingyu, looking at the bright-eyed He Xiuyu, said, "What do you want me to ask?"

Seeing Qiao Qingyu truly a bit confused, He Xiuyu pursed his lips, "Don’t you want to ask how I’ve resolved the problem between you and me?"

"Did you really resolve it?" Qiao Qingyu blurted out.

"Don’t you trust me, or have you not taken this matter seriously?" He Xiuyu asked somewhat displeased, his voice growing deeper.

Qiao Qingyu quickly said, "Our families’ issues are not small, it’s not that I haven’t thought about it, just that I didn’t think it would be resolved so quickly."

Then curiously asked, "How did you convince your mom and your sister?"

"Lay out the facts, make it reasonable," He Xiuyu said nonchalantly, raising his eyebrows, "This matter is complex if you say it’s complex, yet also simple if you consider it simple; it all depends on how people see it."

Qiao Qingyu agreed deeply, "Exactly, that’s the idea. If you say it’s severe, it’s like a huge mountain lying between us, but if you say it’s trivial, then it’s really just a small ditch one can step right over."