A charming widow in her 70s married a factory manager and raised his children.

Chapter 178 You Have Something on Your Mind

The curtains on the single bed weren't drawn, and the noise was so obvious that Zhuang Qingxiang couldn't pretend she hadn't heard it.

Looking up, I saw that the man who was just wearing a vest had somehow become completely naked from the waist up.

Under the lights, the man's broad shoulders and muscular build were on full display.

Zhuang Qingxiang quickly looked away.

"Don't misunderstand," Lu Congyue said in a low voice. "I can't sleep, so I'm doing the laundry. You go about your business."

As he spoke, he took off his trousers.

Zhuang Qingxiang tightened her grip on the needle, thinking that she shouldn't have come out; this person was clearly up to something again.

Just as she was about to get up and go back into the house, Lu Congyue, carrying a basin, walked right past her. A moment later, the sound of water could be heard outside.

Zhuang Qingxiang: "..." Is he crazy? Although it's not winter yet, it's already very cold at night, and he just went out like that?

However, this also shows that he really just couldn't sleep and didn't cause any trouble.

Zhuang Qingxiang breathed a sigh of relief and continued with her embroidery.

But as she embroidered, she started to drift off, and this was the umpteenth time she had drifted off tonight.

Thinking of "Uncle Zhang" she met during the day, she felt suffocated and couldn't breathe.

Even a fool could tell that what he asked her to do wasn't a good thing, and his attitude didn't allow her to refuse.

Zhuang Qingxiang felt that she had been given a second chance at life thanks to God's mercy, and she was determined to live well in this life so as not to let God down. If she were to be entangled with this kind of person, her life would be ruined.

She would do anything to survive.

"hiss……"

A sharp pain shot through her finger; she had accidentally pricked it while lost in thought. She quickly threw away the needle and sucked the blood from her finger, but in her mind, she thought that if only blood could solve this, then she would.

She can't kill, but she can try.

Although she had died once, Zhuang Qingxiang was still afraid of death, whether it was herself or someone else. The thought of sending someone to their death with her own hands filled her with an overwhelming sense of helplessness, confusion, and agitation.

Lu Congyue hastily washed a couple of clothes and swayed back into the house shirtless, expecting to receive attention. However, the woman at the table didn't look at him or seem busy; instead, she was lost in thought.

Clearly, she was thinking about something unpleasant; her beautiful brows were furrowed, her eyes were filled with unease, and she was biting her lower lip, looking helpless yet touching.

This woman has a lot on her mind; she just won't tell him.

Lu Congyue coughed lightly, finally bringing the woman back to her senses, and she even glanced at him.

But after just one glance, she quickly lowered her eyes.

Lu Congyue, wearing shorts, strolled over and sat down in front of her.

"You seem to have something on your mind!"

Zhuang Qingxiang shifted her body slightly and frowned: "It's cold, put your clothes on."

"It's not cold, it's very hot. You can feel it if you don't believe me." Lu Congyue puffed out his chest.

Zhuang Qingxiang's face darkened, and she stood up, picked up her things, and was about to go back to her room.

Lu Congyue quickly said, "I was just saying it casually. If you don't want to, that's fine. Hurry up and get to work. I'm afraid you won't be able to finish."

He looked genuinely worried. Zhuang Qingxiang hesitated for a moment, then sat down again, telling herself to focus all her attention on the embroidery.

Just as she finally stopped daydreaming, Lu Congyue's voice suddenly rang out.

"What did those two men from the capital say to you?"

"Hiss..." Zhuang Qingxiang's hand trembled, and she poked her finger again.

Lu Congyue's expression changed, and he grabbed her finger and brought it to his lips: "I'm sorry, did I scare you?"

As she put her finger in her mouth and licked it with her tongue, Zhuang Qingxiang felt a tingling sensation surge from her fingertips. She instinctively tried to pull her hand back, but she couldn't overcome Lu Congyue's strength.

"Let go," she commanded in a low voice.

Lu Congyue, however, seemed to find something amusing. His deep eyes stared at her without blinking, while his lips kissed every one of her fingers.

"Lu Congyue!" Zhuang Qingxiang's bones went weak from the tickling, and her voice, which was clearly meant to be fierce, was soft and dripping with water. She glared at him angrily, "You just swore an oath."

Lu Congyue really liked her. He even liked the way she glared at him. Her big, watery eyes showed no anger, only a captivating charm.

"Xiang..." Lu Congyue called out in a hoarse voice, "Don't treat me like this. I can explain everything. Let's talk this out, okay?"

Zhuang Qingxiang pinched her palm with one hand to make her voice sound normal: "Then let go of me first."

"You promise you won't run away!"

"I promise!"

Lu Congyue then released his grip.

As soon as her hand was free, Zhuang Qingxiang quickly withdrew it, placed it under the table, and pinched her palm.

Lu Congyue glanced at her and knew she was avoiding him because she was afraid he would grab her hand again.

Zhuang Qingxiang swallowed, suppressing the lingering itch in her fingers, and pursed her lips, saying, "Tell me what you want to talk about quickly, I want to sleep."

It's obvious she's been tricked tonight; she definitely can't finish her embroidery now, she might as well go back to sleep.

"Let's talk about those two people from the capital," Lu Congyue said in a deep voice, his expression serious. "They weren't people I brought in."

"I know," Zhuang Qingxiang interrupted him. "If you want to talk to me about this, there's no need. I know they weren't the people you hired."

Lu Congyue felt both happy and sad.

Fortunately, she trusted him and did not misunderstand that he was trying to harm her.

What hurts is that he wasn't there at the time and couldn't protect her.

"Haruka, I don't want to hide it. Although I haven't confirmed it yet, they were probably sent by my father and stepmother. They wanted me to return to the capital for a marriage alliance, but I refused. They thought I didn't go back because of you, so they sent people to deal with you."

Zhuang Qingxiang's eyelashes trembled slightly. She raised her eyes to look at him and said softly, "They're mistaken."

"Yes," Lu Congyue admitted frankly, "I didn't want to go back to the capital because of them, not because of you. Because I didn't know you back then. Now... I have to admit, now you're the majority."

Zhuang Qingxiang frowned slightly.

Lu Congyue wanted to smooth the furrow between her brows, but he was afraid she would leave immediately, so he could only hold back and said seriously, "I have investigated your identity, and there are no problems. You don't need to worry about this, and you don't need to be afraid. I will protect you."

He wished he could say it outright: they could be together openly and honestly, without any problems.

But she didn't want to marry him, nor did she like hearing him say such things, so he could only keep it to himself.

"Don't leave, just stay by my side, okay? Donghua and I can't live without you, and Yueyue and Chenglin can't live without me either. I think our family is doing pretty well now," Lu Congyue said in a lower voice. "My salary is more than enough to support a family of five."

Zhuang Qingxiang remained silent.

To be honest, she was not unmoved by the fact that Director Lu, who was high and mighty in the eyes of others, always acted so humble and submissive in front of her.

He was so wonderful, and she liked him very much.

But he's wrong. Her identity is highly questionable, even though she only found out today.