Gifts (3)

In her previous life, because too much time had passed, the records at the neighboring city's police station were incomplete. Back then, Jiang Ru had only seen in the files that he had teamed up with the police to bust that pyramid scheme, which was described briefly without detail. Jiang Ru didn't know the location of the pyramid scheme or who was involved.

Otherwise, she would have called the police directly.

Now, she truly felt that it was enough that he returned safely.

Li Xiao lowered his head and said hoarsely, "It's nothing, the noodles just choked me a bit."

How could he be choked?

Jiang Ru felt they were just right when she ate them.

Seeing him like this, she thought his self-esteem was hurt and he was embarrassed to say. Although he had gotten caught in a pyramid scheme in her previous life, he had brought back a reward, but in this life, things seemed to have gone differently, and he had encountered other troubles.

She didn't know what kind of luck he had.

Jiang Ru's mind raced with various speculations, wondering if some boss had run off with the money—such things were frequently reported in later generations—so she comforted him, "If you didn't make money, then so be it. The person is what's most important. Eat your fill. You've lost weight. Take it slow; we'll cross that bridge when we come to it."

Li Xiao didn't speak.

After Jiang Ru finished eating, she took the dishes to the kitchen. She didn't wash them, planning to wait for Li Xiao to finish and then have him wash them all.

She took the basin Li Xiao had just used to wash his face, poured in a lot of washing powder, and then brought half a basin of warm water into the main room. When leaving the kitchen, she said somewhat proudly, "Rest well at home these next few days. I told you, I've made quite a bit of money at home, enough to last us a long time."

Hearing this, Li Xiao raised his head to look at her, frowning.

He had also seen the pot of braised pork intestines earlier, but he hadn't asked.

Jiang Ru placed the basin next to the bag Li Xiao had brought back, preparing to soak and wash the clothes he had brought.

She had seen Li Xiao wash clothes before; he really just rubbed them haphazardly. Her clothes were fine since they weren't dirty—just a few rubs and they could be hung up to dry—but Li Xiao's own clothes remained dirty even after washing, and once dried in the sun, they became even harder to clean.

They had to be soaked in washing powder for a while to remove the sweat odor and stains.

Li Xiao, who was eating noodles, saw this but didn't say anything.

Jiang Ru opened the snakeskin bag first, shaking it a few times, and shook out a few smelly, crumpled clothes.

"Ugh!"

She leaned back, quickly using her fan to wave the smell away, then pinched her nose with her left hand in disgust, holding the clothes far away with her other hand as she quickly tossed them into the basin.

This smell was simply suffocating.

Li Xiao finished all the stir-fried noodles and soup in the bowl, leaving only a few vegetables. He leaned back against the chair, drew closer, and picked up the teapot to take a few gulps from a distance. Having eaten his fill, his entire body became lazy.

He even crossed his right leg over his left, swinging it, looking extremely relaxed.

Seeing Jiang Ru choked by the smell of his clothes, he even let out a soft laugh and said, "Look in the other bag."

Hearing this, Jiang Ru raised her head to look at him. He didn't say anything else, wearing a mischievous, half-smiling expression, as if he were keeping her in suspense.

"What good stuff is it?"

Jiang Ru couldn't help but leave the half-searched snakeskin bag and went to open the duffel bag instead. This one had a zipper. Unzipping it, she saw it was packed to the brim. She reached in and pulled out a few items to look at—they were baby clothes, with tags still attached.

Her eyes widened, and she looked up in surprise at the man sitting like a lord.

She never expected he would buy clothes for the baby: "Didn't you say you didn't make any money?"

Li Xiao didn't answer her question, but the corners of his lips curled up: "There's more underneath."