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Chapter 207: Chapter 207: Return to Li City
"Ah, so you’ve been hesitant just to mention this?" Tong Yao recalled that day and found it somewhat funny. "Honestly, when I was carrying you, I wanted to throw you off a hundred times. Despite you looking skinny, you were heavy as hell. I was almost suffocating from fatigue. If I’d known you were just deep in sleep and not unconscious, I wouldn’t have carried you." 𝔫𝖔𝔳𝔭𝔲𝔟.𝖈𝔬𝔪
At the time, she thought Gu Hongwei had a severe fall, only to realize he was just fine. However, she was exhausted from carrying him, almost to the point of death. Luckily, they were not far from Shuitang Town, otherwise, she really would have been worn out.
That being said, the major reason why she took such pains to carry Gu Hongwei at the time was that this fellow was quite decent. Moreover, he was destined to be the future head of the Hengfei Group. So, how could she not save such an important person?
Little did she know, this guy was just deep asleep, resulting in a big misunderstanding.
Seeing Tong Yao’s frank and straight-forward nature, Gu Hongwei also felt more at ease. His previous hesitancies faded. He chuckled, "Regardless, I still have to thank you." It’s hard to imagine the seemingly weak Tong Yao carrying him for a mile. If roles had been reversed and he had to carry her, he would have been exhausted.
Although Tong Yao was not heavy, considering the fatigue after nearly ten days of toil and insufficient food, she was bodies Or might already have been carrying a heavy load. Even walking while wearing shoes felt burdensome, let alone having to carry a person who weighed more than a hundred pounds?
Honestly, without hearing people say it, he wouldn’t have dared to believe that Tong Yao had such determination. A girl born with a silver spoon in her mouth being able to do all this was incredibly impressive.
Such girls are indeed rare.
Having not rested properly in ten odd days, Tong Yao joined the others in feeling drowsy. Hearing Gu Hongwei’s words, she mustered some energy to mumble, "Remember to repay the favor when you rise to the top!"
After uttering these words, she fell asleep.
Gu Hongwei noticed that Tong Yao’s voice was a little off, and turned to look at her, only to find she had already dozed off. The car was slightly hot, making her cheeks rosy. She had tiny beads of sweat on her forehead, and the breeze from the window blew a few locks of hair casually resting on her forehead. She looked like a sleeping beauty.
Just after having stolen a glance at her, Gu Hongwei blushed and shifted his gaze. Though he wasn’t sleepy before, hearing the symphony of snores from the car induced him to doze off. By the time he woke up again, they had already reached Li city.
The crowd bid farewell and disembarked from the bus. Tong Yao called out to Gu Hongwei and then returned home. As soon as Si Xiaohui saw her, she was shocked. Upon recovering, she joyously yelled towards the kitchen.
"Second brother, sister-in-law is back!"
Hearing that Tong Yao was back, Si Boyi didn’t even take the time to put down the ladle in his hand, he ran out of the kitchen. Seeing the filthy Tong Yao, Si Boyi was startled.
"Sister-in-law, why do you look like this?"
Since knowing Tong Yao, she had always been neat and tidy, like a pricess. She was never like those who did fieldwork, covered in dirt. But now she looked as if she was a refugee.
She went to Qing City for some ten odd days and came back looking like this. Anyone would be shocked by the sight of her.
It was then that Si Xiaohui took notice of Tong Yao’s disheveled appearance. Covering her nose, she exclaimed dramatically, "Sister-in-law, did you walk all the way from Qing City? Why do you both stink and look so dirty?"
Tong Yao had not changed her clothes while being in Qing City for the past ten or so days. The spare set of clothes she had brought was given to a girl in earthquake-hit area as that girl’s clothes were torn apart by rocks, leaving her exposed. Without thinking much, she handed over her clothes to the girl.
Upon reaching Qing City, it started raining and she was covered in mud. Since then she had been spending her days digging people out of the debris and sleeping on the ground. There was hardly any time for personal hygiene.
Since she arrived in Qing City, she had always been in a state of exhaustion. Initially, she felt a bit uncomfortable due to her own body odor, but eventually, she got used to it.
Now, back in Li city, Tong Yao felt itchy all over, as if she was infested with lice. She did not bother explaining much.
"I’ll go take a bath first. We’ll talk after I freshen up."
With that, Tong Yao quickly went back to her room to get a change of clothes. She spent a full hour showering just to get clean. During this time, Si Boyi went out and bought some vegetables and meat, and prepared a wonderful meal.
"Sister-in-law, you should eat more, you’ve lost a lot of weight after this trip. We didn’t tell mom about it because we didn’t want her to worry." Si Boyi noticed that Tong Yao had lost a lot of weight. He guessed that she must have suffered a lot during this time. They read the newspaper daily and knew the situation in Qing City was grim.
"You did the right thing by not telling her." Tong Yao was indeed hungry. Ever since sitting at the dining table, she hadn’t stopped eating. It had been ten days since she’d eaten meat and she was craving it.
Having known Tong Yao for so long, this was the first time Si Xiaohui had seen her eat so eagerly. Her eyes wide opened, she asked curiously, "Sister-in-law, did you meet big brother in Qing City? When is he coming back? Why did you return looking as if you were escaping disaster?"
After finishing one bowl of rice, Tong Yao’s belly felt much better. She replied crisply, "I met Ahchen. He’ll be back in a few days. The situation there is grim. Many people have lost their homes. I went there to rescue people, not for a vacation. How could I not look like I’ve fled from disaster?"
The situation in Qing City was too devastating. And Tong Yao did not want to recall it anymore, changing the subject, she asked: "Is the store renovation finished?"
"It’s been done for a few days now. It’s all set to open as soon as the refrigerator is bought." Si Boyi said, excitedly.
The store turned out really good, looked very high-end just like the ones you see on TV. As long as Tong Yao bought a refrigerator, they would be able to start the business.
Tong Yao nodded, "We’ll buy the refrigerator tomorrow."
But Si Xiaohui appeared concerned, "Sister-in-law, we’ve not yet gotten the business permit, right?"
"I’ll go to the Bureau of Industry and Commerce in the morning, then we’ll get the permit in the afternoon."
Tong Yao noticed something was missing since returning home. After a quick scan around, she realized the three dogs were not around, "Where are Xiaohei and the rest?"
"Xiaohei learned to catch mice recently and was borrowed by Aunt Luo’s relative to catch mice." Si Xiaohui said.
A wry smile spread across Tong Yao’s face, isn’t this like a dog worrying about catching mice?
Knowing Xiaohei wasn’t lost, she relaxed. After finishing her meal, she said, "You guys clean up. I’ll rest for a while. Don’t call me for dinner."
She didn’t want to deal with anything at the moment. All she wanted was to lie in bed and sleep soundly. She had already reached her limit. Any important matters would have to wait till she woke up.
"Sister-in-law, you go rest! We’ll handle this." Seeing the severe dark circles under Tong Yao’s eyes, Si Boyi knew she hadn’t been resting well and urged her to go rest.
