"Sir, this is ten thousand yuan. It's really our luck today to et you and your family. Thank you so much, we have so things to do, so we won't disturb you further."
As he spoke, Chu Ge placed a stack of bills on the table, smiled at the family of three, and turned to leave.
The family looked stunned for a few seconds. The elderly man picked up the money and quickly chased after Chu Ge, "Child, we didn't do anything, it's you who helped us harvest so much rice. How can we accept this money?"
The elderly woman chid in in agreent, while only Tiger Girl stood there, full of hesitation.
After a long back-and-forth, the elderly couple still couldn't refuse Chu Ge, so they reluctantly accepted the ten thousand yuan, watching Chu Ge, Mu Xiaoting, and Chen Jue leave their small courtyard.
At the entrance, Chu Ge exchanged a few more words with Chen Jue, then got into the Land Rover with Mu Xiaoting.
Mu Xiaoting leaned back in the passenger seat, taking a long breath, "Chu Ge, are we finally heading back to the provincial capital?"
Chu Ge nodded, "Yes, once my friend reaches the village entrance and takes another car, we'll leave."
Mu Xiaoting turned her gaze to Chen Jue's departing figure and murmured, "These past few days feel like a dream."
Chu Ge smiled without responding, and Mu Xiaoting said nothing more. The two waited quietly for a while until the faint sound of another Land Rover leaving the village was heard, prompting Chu Ge to start the car and drive out of the dilapidated village.
Exhausted as she'd never been, Mu Xiaoting leaned back in her seat to sleep, only to find her mind in chaos, unable to relax. She gave up and opened her eyes, gazing at Chu Ge with a complex expression.
"Chu Ge, can I ask you sothing?"
"Go ahead."
"When Tiger Girl said those nasty things, you must've been angry too, right? So why were you able to stay so calm and even offer to help them with the work?"
"I wouldn't say I was angry, just a bit annoyed. But she wasn't wrong. They really didn't need to help us. We're just strangers passing by, and might never et again, so why not? Helping them with the work was a fair exchange."
"Then I'm even more confused. You helped them so much, according to your logic, you didn't need to leave them money but why did you still give them ten thousand yuan?"
Chu Ge smiled, "They didn't have to help us, but didn't the elderly couple help us anyway? If it weren't for them, would we be sitting here full and content in this Land Rover now? Besides, I got to tease Tiger Girl, so we're even."
"You're really sothing. If it were , I wouldn't even bother saying a word to Tiger Girl. You really have a lot of patience."
Chu Ge grinned, "I can't help it, I'm a bit petty. I keep track of how others treat ."
Mu Xiaoting shook her head speechlessly, muttering about how she couldn't understand Chu Ge. Other n would show off their best side all the ti, yet he admitted to being petty so straightforwardly.
"Let's not talk about this. Do you have a place to stay when you get to the provincial capital this ti?"
"Yes."
"Where are you planning to go?"
"You don't need to worry about that."
"When are you going back to Lidu?"
"Depends. I can't say for sure right now."
"You've got so nerve. Aren't you afraid your wife, Shanshan, and your friends will be upset with your grand deception?"
"I'd rather they feel sad than face danger. It's not like I'm actually dead. Maybe I'll be back in two or three days."
"Sigh… You make it sound easy. You're really... I don't even know what to say to you."
"Then just don't say anything, oh and rember, this plan relies on you playing a crucial part. Be careful not to spill the beans when you get back."
Mu Xiaoting gave Chu Ge a sidelong glance and sighed helplessly, "You… sigh! Having to inform Shanshan about your 'death', I can't even bring myself to say it. Just thinking about how upset Shanshan will be gives a headache."
"Alright, aren't all these problems you've caused? You have a headache, and my feet hurt, so let's not make a fuss. That's that."
"You can't bla it all on . I've been through a lot these few days. It's not like I wanted this. Putting yourself in my shoes, you'd see how much I'm struggling…"
Chu Ge turned his head, "Hmm?"
Under Chu Ge's gaze, Mu Xiaoting felt guilty, "I... fine, fine, I got it. I'll try my best."
"It's not just trying, you must perform this part perfectly. Since you're essentially playing yourself, it shouldn't be hard for you."
"What do you an by 'playing myself'? Honestly, do you think I'm just a spoiled, willful rich girl?"
"Isn't it?"
"Is it?"
"Of course, it is."
"You! You bastard!"
"See, I knew it, right?"
"Hmph!"
"Hey, hey, I'm warning you, don't get handsy with . Right now, I don't have a driver's license, nor ID; I'm like a dead man. If the traffic police stop us, it'll be a disaster, so sit quietly on the side!"
"What's your problem? You're so nice to that Ye Li. Can't you be a bit gentle to as well?"
"Gentle my ass, stop bothering . Go to sleep. I'm driving."
They bickered for a while longer, eventually ending with Mu Xiaoting's complete defeat. Mu Xiaoting snorted and leaned heavily against the passenger seat, her pout almost enough to hang an IV bottle from.
The Land Rover gradually rged onto the highway, and Mu Xiaoting's steady breathing started to echo in Chu Ge's ears.
Chu Ge turned his head to glance at Mu Xiaoting's tired yet serene sleeping face, revealing a soft, slightly tender but complex smile. After these more than ten hours, how could he not notice the rits in Mu Xiaoting?
However, his emotional world was already complicated enough; he didn't want this woman, who originally had no intersection with him, to develop any more thoughts about him.
Just as Chu Ge was about to look away, Mu Xiaoting suddenly opened her eyes, sat bolt upright, her pupils contracting sharply, and scread anxiously, "Oh no!"
Chu Ge was startled, "What's wrong with you? You startled , playing dead or sothing?"
Mu Xiaoting turned her head, nervously looking at Chu Ge, "Oh no, oh no, oh no, the dress you made for , I forgot it in the village. Let's turn back and get it?"
Chu Ge rolled his eyes helplessly, "Get it for what? You got addicted to wearing leaves or sothing? I really can't with you, I thought it was sothing big."
"That dress is too beautiful, can't you help , please?"
Chu Ge impatiently glared at Mu Xiaoting, "Stop nagging, or else I'll drop you off right now, and you can go back and get it yourself, figure out your own way back to the provincial capital?"
Mu Xiaoting fell silent, her eyes slightly reddened. Seeing her like this, Chu Ge felt a bit compassionate and shook his head, "Fine, I'll make you another one when I have ti later. It's no big deal."
"Really?" Mu Xiaoting's eyes lit up instantly, full of surprise and delight.
Chu Ge suddenly felt a bit regretful, but since he had said it, he could only nod, "Yeah, really. But only if you can keep quiet starting now."
Mu Xiaoting bead and nodded vigorously.
At four in the afternoon, a Land Rover entered the city of Jiangyun, and Chu Ge found a random place to pull over, taking out three thousand yuan in cash and handing it to Mu Xiaoting.
"Alright, I'll drop you here. Rember the number I'm using now, 185... If anything cos up, you can call , but make sure there's no one else around you."
Mu Xiaoting was taken aback; were they really going to part ways now?
Chu Ge stuffed the three thousand yuan into Mu Xiaoting's pocket, urging again, "Alright, hurry up and go, okay? If you don't contact your dad soon, he might just turn Lidu upside down. I don't want Mu Lingshan, that Tiger Girl, getting involved."
"Mm... Mm, so, I'm leaving then?" Mu Xiaoting forced a smile, her right hand resting on the car door handle.
Chu Ge smiled, "Go on, and don't forget to act well."
Mu Xiaoting opened her mouth, seeming to have a lot to say, yet not knowing where to start. In the end, she simply confird Chu Ge's current phone number a few tis before silently getting out of the car, watching the Land Rover drive off without a trace.
Even though the street was bustling with traffic, Mu Xiaoting's gaze was only fixed on the Land Rover's taillights. Even though she had finally returned to her long-lost, safe hotown, she felt no joy in her heart.
Not until the Land Rover had disappeared for a long ti did Mu Xiaoting let out a long sigh, dragging her weary body to the roadside to hail a taxi back to the Provincial Committee Courtyard.
But throughout the ride, she couldn't stop thinking about Chu Ge. Where would that guy go? How would my father and Mu Lingshan react when I tell them Chu Ge is already dead?
Mu Xiaoting suddenly felt so annoyed. Even when she was cutting rice in the fields, or trekking through slippery forest terrain, she wasn't this troubled. In her heart, a thought suddenly erged that startled her.
If... she and Chu Ge got lost in that primitive-like place and stayed there a few more days, or even longer, wouldn't that be nice too?
Thinking like this, Mu Xiaoting beca entranced, until the taxi driver called out to her several tis, bringing her back to reality. She peeked out, forcing a smile at the guards at the courtyard entrance, allowing the taxi to pass through.
As Mu Xiaoting returned to the Provincial Committee Courtyard, still full of uncertainties, Chu Ge drove the Land Rover through the bustling streets, feeling a bit sentintal about being back in Jiangyun City once again.
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