It’s a Stepmother, Not a Sister [70s] - Chapter 19: Kindred Spirits

Jiang Shuangling carried the bowl of Mapo Tofu home, covering it with a lid first. She planned to wait for Qi Heng to return and ask him if he wanted to eat it.

Anyway, she… probably wouldn’t eat it herself.

Whether the two children could handle something so spicy, she wasn’t sure.

She dared not move, nor did she dare to taste it.

Judging by the bottle of bean paste, the potency of this bowl of Mapo Tofu was equally formidable.

Jiang Shuangling lowered her head, her raised hand freezing in midair. She barely restrained herself from rubbing her eyes.

For some reason, she felt like her eyelids had become much heavier, with a slight stickiness underneath. It didn’t exactly hurt, but it felt different from usual.

Maybe a nap would help.

She took out six buns and two rabbit-shaped steamed buns from the pot and immediately went to Yao Teacher’s house.

Yao Pinglang took the buns from her hand, casting several curious glances at Jiang Shuangling.

“Yao Teacher, I’ll head back now after delivering the buns,” Jiang Shuangling said, turning around immediately after handing over the buns.

Yao Pinglang didn’t call Jiang Shuangling back but stood at the courtyard gate, his expression somewhat strange.

Had the girl from the Jiang family been crying just now?

Yao Pinglang felt a tremor in her heart. Could it be… that what Lao Zhou had predicted was coming true already? They didn’t even need to wait until tomorrow; her eyes were already swollen from crying today?

Feeling heavy-hearted, she walked back into the house. Zhou Xianyong was sitting there, reading the newspaper. “Zhou, did Qi Heng just come back with you guys?”

“Yeah, he came back with us,” Zhou Xianyong replied.

Yao Pinglang’s sense of foreboding deepened.

“Why are you asking?” Zhou Xianyong inquired.

Yao Pinglang whispered, “It’s nothing…”

Had this young couple had a quarrel?

Captain He hurried home with two large boxes of food in his hands. There was usually no one cooking at his home; they always ate at the canteen.

He had a piece of clothing draped over his arm as he briskly walked forward amidst the aroma of the food, but suddenly he glanced at the tall and slender figure ahead.

The person stood at the intersection, putting on his cap again. He wore military attire impeccably, looking as if he could march straight into a parade. His straight legs stood there, emitting a peculiar charm.

Captain He had always thought he was suited for recruiting soldiers.

When he stood there, everyone wanted to wear his clothes.

Qi Heng noticed his gaze, glanced back, greeted him politely, and then moved aside.

Captain He looked at the direction he was heading, also towards the family courtyard.

He hurried a few steps to catch up with Qi Heng’s pace, his mouth not stopping, “So, are you also going home? Why not go to the canteen… Oh, I forgot, you’ve recently married…”

Qi Heng didn’t stop walking, continuing forward.

“Tell me, how skilled is your wife at cooking?”

Qi Heng stopped, involuntarily recalling the piece of honey cake he had on the train, his handsome brows furrowing slightly.

Captain He, adept at observing subtle cues, immediately caught the slight change in Qi Heng’s expression. Qi Heng, who usually kept his emotions in check, unexpectedly revealed such a look. This indicated that the food was cooked by his wife…

Must be terribly bad, hahaha…

Finally, he found a kindred spirit!!

Captain He patted him on the shoulder. “You don’t need to say anything, I understand, I get you!”

“Let me give you a recommendation; you can have these lunch boxes modified by a chef—”

Qi Heng raised an eyebrow.

Captain He had the look of “I totally understand you.”

Qi Heng: “…”

Captain He chuckled and looked at the handsome young man in front of him, suddenly feeling much more favorable towards someone he had previously found hard to get along with.

After all, they were kindred spirits.

…

The two arrived at the courtyard gate, parting ways and heading into their respective homes.

Captain He hurriedly carried the lunch boxes home, while Qi Heng pushed open the courtyard gate and stepped inside. 

As he saw the clothes hanging on the bamboo pole, his initially stern expression softened involuntarily, and a faint smile crept up at the corners of his peach blossom eyes.

As Qi Heng was about to stride into the house, his gaze caught sight of a corner.

There was a pile of crooked seedlings growing there.

Qi Heng’s steps faltered, freezing him in place.

Captain He returned home with the lunch boxes and handed one to the woman sitting there. “Let’s eat.”

At this moment, back in the house, the smug smile on his face couldn’t be contained any longer.

The woman scooped a little into a small bowl casually. “What are you grinning about?”

“When I came back just now, guess who I bumped into? I saw Qi Heng! Ah—you’re just eating this little? You women are really… I see you, you’re just like that one from the Qi family next door.”

“Just like what?”

“They probably can’t cook. All good-looking but not accustomed to worldly affairs, all raised on dewdrops.”

Captain He rubbed his nose, unable to help but feel relieved. “We’re fortunate to have Qi Heng living next door. If we were living next to Commissar Song, then we’d be in trouble. You know Commissar Song’s wife’s cooking, it’s unbelievably delicious.”

“If we smelled that aroma every few days, it would be torture.”

“Last time I passed by, the aroma was so overwhelming—”

“Oh, right, call the kids out for dinner.”

The woman continued to bring out the food. “I was just at home, and I think I smelled something too…”

“What kind of smell?”

Qi Heng pushed the door and entered the house. Everyone in the hall turned to look at him. Qi Yue called out, “Dad.”

He nodded, taking off his hat.

“Come and eat some buns.” Jiang Shuangling called him over to deal with the food; he was truly a food disposal machine.

Qi Heng raised his eyes slightly and scanned the faces of the three people in front of him. The adult’s eyes were swollen and red, like a rabbit’s. One child had a cat—or was it a tiger?—drawn on their face, and the other had a small white rabbit drawn on theirs…

“……”

He walked over to the square table and sat down, his gaze finally resting on the woman beside him. Her eyes were even redder up close.

It was as if… she had been crying a lot.

“What happened to your eyes?”

“Huh?” Jiang Shuangling remembered her eyes and raised her hand to point at them. “Are they still swollen?”

Qi Yue, who was beside her, said, “They’re red and swollen, like a big rabbit.”

Jiang Shuangling gave an awkward smile. She didn’t even need a mirror to guess how swollen her eyes must be. “Do I look ugly?”

She couldn’t help but raise her hand to touch her eyes, but a hot hand grabbed her wrist.

The other person’s palm was not delicate; it had a rough, uneven texture, likely with many calluses.

This hand was particularly strong; the moment Jiang Shuangling was grabbed, she felt she couldn’t move her hand at all.

“Don’t rub it.”

His voice was in stark contrast to the warmth of his palm.

Jiang Shuangling lowered her hand, and the other person also withdrew their hand. She could still faintly feel the warmth of his palm on her wrist.

“What happened?”

Talking about it made Jiang Shuangling feel a bit embarrassed. “It was the chili bean paste. I ran into Sister Song today, and she gave me a small jar of it. I tasted a bit, but accidentally choked on it, so I rubbed my eyes. Who knew my hands were also covered with it at the time…”

Qi Yue added, “You cried so hard!”

Jiang Che said, “Sister…”

Jiang Shuangling said helplessly, “That bean paste was too spicy!”

Qi Heng: “…”

There was a hint of amusement in his eyes, which Jiang Shuangling caught, making her almost furious with embarrassment. She turned and went to the kitchen to bring out the Mapo Tofu that Sister Song had given her and served it with steamed buns for Qi Heng to eat.

The buns were still warm, but Jiang Shuangling and the two children had lost their appetite. The three of them watched Qi Heng eat.

Jiang Che widened his eyes, Qi Yue curiously looked at the bowl of Mapo Tofu, and Jiang Shuangling… Jiang Shuangling just felt a heart attack coming on.

Qi Heng was eating the delicate buns one after another without stopping. The buns she had painstakingly made were being devoured so quickly, like peonies being chewed by a cow.

Did he even taste the buns?

Jiang Shuangling rested her chin on her hand. “Do you think I made the buns too small?”

“Yes, it seems so.”

He chuckled.

“They’ve really overstepped their bounds.”

“I see.” Jiang Shuangling gave Qi Heng a deep look. “Your son really knows you best.”

Qi Yue: “?”

Qi Heng: “?”

Jiang Shuangling decisively went to bring out the grand finale—the large rabbit bun.

“This is Qi Yue’s special gift. He said it was made especially for his dad.”

Qi Heng’s gaze swept over the plump, chubby rabbit. The red bean eyes seemed to carry a hint of mockery, glaring ahead with an eerie intensity.

A rich, creamy fragrance wafted from it, filled with a sense of melancholy.

Once steamed, it looked like a sorrowful rabbit.

Qi Heng: “…”

He pushed the large rabbit in front of Qi Yue, calmly saying, “Eat it yourself.”

Qi Yue: “?”

Jiang Shuangling dragged the melancholy rabbit back in front of Qi Heng, her eyes smiling as she looked at him. “You can’t disappoint the child’s effort, can you? Don’t you agree, Ah Yue?”

She directed her gaze at Qi Yue. Qi Yue glanced at the large rabbit, then at Jiang Shuangling. He was caught between agreeing and disagreeing. In the end, he turned his head away with a humph, the tiger face on his cheek pointed stubbornly at his father.

Qi Heng: “…”

“Just eat it.”

Qi Heng: “…”

“It even has osmanthus sugar inside.”

Qi Heng: “…”

In the end, Qi Heng ate the large rabbit. Watching him finish it, Jiang Shuangling couldn’t help but turn away and laugh.

Qi Heng glanced at the smile on her face, shook his head in incomprehension, and took a sip of the salty soup to wash down the sweetness in his mouth. However, the corner of his mouth lifted ever so slightly.

After laughing, Jiang Shuangling noticed the radio in the corner and finally remembered what she wanted to ask.

“Qi Heng, how do you use this radio? Where’s the switch? It seems different from other radios…”

She walked over to the radio and observed it from top to bottom, but couldn’t find any switch.

Qi Heng walked over and showed her the switch, which was hidden in a very discreet spot on the base.

Jiang Shuangling, after pressing the switch: “…”

With a switch so hidden, does the manufacturer not want customers?

Who hides the switch here?

“Qi Heng, what kind of switches are these? How do you adjust them? Why doesn’t this have any labels? It’s completely different from the one I saw at Teacher Yao’s place…”

“What brand is this radio? Where did you buy it?”

“I made it.”

Jiang Shuangling was stunned: “?????”

She almost choked on her own saliva. Made it himself???

A handmade radio?

“Did you really make this? That’s… that’s amazing.”

Jiang Shuangling looked at the radio, which had already started operating and was broadcasting clear sounds. The model opera playing inside resonated in her ears.

After Qi Heng explained, Jiang Shuangling found that this radio was actually easier to use than the ones she had seen before.

The sound quality was also quite good.

—But this is a product with no official certifications!

Not from a regular manufacturer.

Jiang Shuangling hesitantly asked, “Qi Heng, do you think… it might explode?”