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

Chapter 219: Highly Vigilant

After breakfast, Niu Jianzhong drove over to pick them up and take them to the county town to catch the train.

They packed everything they could into the car, thanked the employees who came to see them off, and didn't drive out the gate until eight or nine o'clock.

Zhuang Qingxiang looked out the car window at the receding scenery, her face expressionless, but she felt a deep sense of melancholy.

She has lived here for over twenty years, and even died here once; now she is finally leaving.

Once she left this place, her affair with Qian Quan would be completely forgotten, and no one would ever know about it again...

Upon arriving in the county town, they went directly to the train station to wait for their train. While Niu Jianzhong was in the restroom, Zhuang Qingxiang asked Lu Congyue if it was alright to leave like this. Because of Huang Cuilan and Village Chief Qian's matter, she had no mood to wander around for the next two days, so no one contacted her. She didn't know if Officer Meng would be angry.

"Don't worry about it. If they don't contact you, are you just going to wait around? Just do what you need to do," Lu Congyue said in a low voice. "Don't let this bother you."

Since he said that, Zhuang Qingxiang felt relieved.

When the train arrived at the station, the group boarded the sleeper carriage. The two adults and three children occupied three berths, and the other berth belonged to a short-haired, capable woman.

The woman was very welcoming. After greeting them, she looked at the children with great curiosity and asked, "Are these two little ones twins?"

Zhuang Qingxiang smiled noncommittally.

She is now wary of everyone and unwilling to have much contact with anyone.

It takes five or six hours by train from the county town to the provincial capital, and by the time you arrive at the provincial capital's train station, it's already evening.

Someone picked them up by car and took them directly to the guesthouse, saying that their accommodations weren't ready yet and they would have to stay there for a few days.

As soon as she was settled, Lu Congyue said that something had come up at work and he might not be back that night, telling her to stay put and then he left in a hurry.

Zhuang Qingxiang didn't think much of it, but when she went to the restroom, she discovered that the woman from the train had also moved in, right next to their room.

"Big sister, what a coincidence!" the woman greeted warmly.

Zhuang Qingxiang nodded, forced a smile, and hurriedly went back into the house. She talked to Xiao Qianyue for a long time, telling her never to go out without saying hello and never to talk to strangers.

I had just finished giving my instructions when someone knocked on the door.

Upon opening it, I found it was the woman from next door.

"Hey sis, have you eaten? I'm about to go out to buy some food, wanna come along?"

Zhuang Qingxiang was extremely conflicted. According to the mission requirements, she should go out with her to see what she was up to.

But now that Lu Congyue is not around, and there are no reliable adults around, she is worried about her three children.

"No, we brought our own food, so we won't spend the money," Zhuang Qingxiang smiled.

"Oh dear, homemade food just doesn't taste as good as freshly made food. Oh, by the way, are you busy taking care of the kids and can't go out? Then I'll go and get you some, how about some meat buns?"

The woman was so enthusiastic that Zhuang Qingxiang couldn't refuse at all. She left immediately, saying that she could pay and give her food coupons after buying the food.

Zhuang Qingxiang paced anxiously inside the house.

With Lu Congyue not around and no one to talk to, she felt anxious.

Half an hour later, the woman returned, and sure enough, she brought her five large meat buns.

Zhuang Qingxiang couldn't refuse, so she gave her the money and tickets, but didn't eat a single bite of the meat bun.

Although Xiao Qianyue was greedy, seeing that she wasn't eating, she didn't insist on eating either. She was happy just munching on dry food and drinking a cup of malted milk powder.

Zhuang Qingxiang is now unable to cook for her two children and can only feed them milk powder.

That night, Zhuang Qingxiang checked all the doors and windows. Still feeling uneasy, she even used a stool to prop the door shut before finally holding her child to sleep.

It must have been a long day yesterday. The two children cried several times last night, and Zhuang Qingxiang was already worried. With the children making a fuss, she barely got any rest all night.

Unexpectedly, the woman next door knocked on the door early in the morning, saying she had bought millet porridge and fried dough sticks to bring over to them.

Zhuang Qingxiang quickly thanked him and gave him the money and tickets, but she still didn't dare to touch them, hoping that Lu Congyue could come back soon.

But Lu Congyue isn't coming back, so we still need to solve the problem of food; we can't keep going like this.

After thinking for a moment, Zhuang Qingxiang taught Xiao Qianyue to lock the door from the inside and block the doorway with a stool. Then, taking advantage of the fact that no one was in the corridor, she quietly ran out.

The guesthouse and the state-run restaurant were not far apart. Zhuang Qingxiang quickly bought the food and returned. Afraid of being seen by that woman, she dared not make a sound like a thief. She only called her daughter softly when she got to the door. As soon as her daughter opened the door, she quickly squeezed in.

Zhuang Qingxiang bought freshly steamed buns, a serving of braised pork belly with cabbage and vermicelli, and steamed egg custard, enough to satisfy the four of them.

After eating and drinking to their hearts' content, they began to worry about Lu Congyue.

No matter how busy the company is, it can't be this busy, right?

At noon, the woman next door didn't come knocking on the door again, which relieved Zhuang Qingxiang.

In the afternoon, Lu Congyue finally returned.

His eyes were dark and bluish, his stubble was thick, and his face was tired, but there was also excitement in his exhaustion.

Zhuang Qingxiang quickly invited him into the house, asking worriedly, "You've only just arrived and you're already this busy? You haven't slept all night!"

Lu Congyue wanted to hold her hand, but Xiao Qianyue was right in front of them, looking at them expectantly, so he could only answer seriously, "Ah, I'm a bit busy, with so many things to do. I'll go next door to rest for a bit, and then I'll take you to a restaurant for dinner."

"Wait a minute." Zhuang Qingxiang had a lot to say, especially to the woman next door.

She pointed to the cool, airy meat buns, millet porridge, and fried dough sticks on the table and recounted the unusual enthusiasm of the female colleague.

To everyone's surprise, Lu Congyue smiled after hearing this, sat down, picked up a meat bun, and stuffed it into his mouth.

Zhuang Qingxiang was startled and quickly stepped forward to stop her: "You really dare to eat that? Aren't you afraid of getting sick from it?"

"No problem," Lu Congyue said with a smile, "They're our own people."

"what?"

"We specially arranged for someone to secretly protect and take care of you and the children," Lu Congyue said, taking another sip of millet porridge. "Otherwise, why would they be in the same carriage as us?"

Zhuang Qingxiang frowned and snatched the lunchbox away: "At least pour some hot water to warm it up before you eat."

"It's okay, I'm not that delicate." Lu Congyue ate a steamed bun in two bites and a bowl of millet porridge in three bites, eating with relish. It was obvious that he had not only not slept all night, but had also been hungry.

After finishing his meal, Lu Congyue drank a cup of hot water, then opened the door and called over the woman next door.

"Let me introduce you, this is Comrade Dai Hongying."

Su Hongying greeted Zhuang Qingxiang with a smile: "Sister Zhuang, you're really vigilant."

She gave Zhuang Qingxiang a thumbs-up and smiled brightly: "Let's get to know each other again. I'm Ma Ting's junior sister, and your family's nanny."

Zhuang Qingxiang was stunned.

It's understandable that Ma Ting is a junior, but what's with the nanny?

She's the one who's the nanny, not the babysitter.