QTIMP -Chapter 268 Character Persona – Vicious (Part 31)

Si Qiu couldn’t help but sigh and continued lowering her head to eat her watermelon.

Lan Qing looked somewhat unconvinced. “Hmph. A single package has you this distracted. This whole first-come, first-served thing really makes no sense.”

Si Qiu glanced at him. “I went to see him off the day he left, and I already made everything clear to him. He’s the only son in his family. I thought the two of us would never have any further contact. Who would’ve thought he’d send another package?”

Hearing this, Lan Qing let out a scoff.

“That guy is even more stubborn than I am. He decided very early on that he wanted to join the navy.

But the navy’s height requirements are stricter than the army’s. Even if there aren’t any explicit regulations, the compartments on ships and submarines are cramped and have low ceilings.

If you’re too tall, you’re constantly bumping your head and it becomes inconvenient to operate equipment and move around efficiently. When he started growing too quickly and was about to exceed the acceptable height range, he actually starved himself.

In a family like the Wens’, he still managed to starve himself to the point of fainting four or five times.

In the end, his father couldn’t stand watching anymore and came up with a solution. He had him graduate as quickly as possible and sent him off before he could grow any taller.

That kid actually skipped grades and graduated early. Then he immediately signed up and left. The fact that he’s over one meter eighty now still surprises me.

You expect someone like that to give up? You’re dreaming. Just wait and see—he’s definitely holding back some big move.”

They had once been friends and were now rivals.

In some ways, they understood each other even better than they understood themselves.

After dinner, Lan Qing cleaned up while Si Qiu went to open the package.

It was a large parcel. Besides the dried fruits and preserved fruits he had mentioned before, there were also some kelp and some agarwood. She wasn’t sure whether he had sent the agarwood as a medicinal ingredient or for some other purpose.

The rest consisted of canned food, military ration coupons, and this month’s allowance.

Si Qiu didn’t immediately put everything away. Instead, she picked up the letter tucked inside the package.

After opening it and reading through it once, she found that Lan Qing had been right.

The contents couldn’t be written too explicitly, but throughout the letter he repeatedly emphasized that he would take care of everything himself and that all Si Qiu needed to do was leave a place for him.

Si Qiu slowly folded the letter.

By then, Lan Qing had finished cleaning up and come back inside. He began gathering the items scattered everywhere and putting each one in its proper place.

“Well? Did that guy write a sob story to make you feel sorry for him?”

Seeing Si Qiu holding up a piece of fabric from the package and comparing it against herself in front of the mirror, Lan Qing couldn’t help walking over.

From behind, he gently wrapped his arms around her.

Only after noticing that Si Qiu didn’t reject him did he gradually settle into the embrace.

Holding her soft body against his chest, Lan Qing let out a satisfied sigh in his heart.

“Most people forget the old when they find someone new. But you? You’re sentimental to the very end.”

Looking at the deliberately aggrieved expression reflected in the mirror, Si Qiu found his already handsome and well-defined features even more vivid.

She turned around and traced his features with her fingers.

“So, would you prefer that I chase after the new and abandon the old?”

Before she could finish speaking, her lips were firmly sealed.

At first it was only a tentative touch, but it soon deepened into lingering kisses, one after another, until neither wanted to part.

Si Qiu didn’t want to get married, but that didn’t mean she intended to live a life of abstinence.

Having experienced so many relationships, she naturally wasn’t opposed to this sort of intimacy.

Sensing her breathing becoming uneven, Lan Qing slowly ended the deep kiss.

However, his lips didn’t leave hers. Instead, he lightly pecked the corner of her mouth twice.

Breathing slightly heavily, he murmured,

“Qiuqiu… Qiuqiu…”

The two of them held each other tightly.

Si Qiu could clearly feel the changes in his body, yet he continued to restrain himself, doing nothing except repeatedly calling her name.

This man was far too slow and hesitant, so Si Qiu took the initiative and pressed her lips to his.

Having received silent permission, Lan Qing would have been a fool not to seize the opportunity.

He was no gentleman. If he insisted on acting like one, he would probably end up eliminated from the game. Ever since the first moment he saw Si Qiu, however…

Every joy, flutter of excitement, and trace of unease in his heart had been stirred by her every smile, every expression, even a single glance.

He had once imagined what it would be like if he suppressed those feelings and cast Si Qiu out of his life.

The waves of tightness and pain in his chest made him realize that he had been poisoned—by a poison named Si Qiu.

Beneath the hazy moonlight, a warm yellow lamp glowed in the room. Lan Qing carried in a basin of warm water to help Si Qiu clean up, then changed the sheets and mattress cover.

It wasn’t that Si Qiu didn’t want to wash up in the bathroom herself. It was just that during their first round, Lan Qing, the inexperienced fool, had gotten far too excited.

He had finished almost immediately.

Si Qiu couldn’t help teasing him.

“Big brother, you’re not very capable, are you?”

Lan Qing’s face instantly darkened.

Hah. Whether he was capable or not could only be proven through practice.

As a result, Si Qiu was pinned to the bed and thoroughly “taught a lesson.”

The bastard was determined to defend his dignity. Gone was his earlier obedience; now he was fierce and relentless.

Even afterward, while being ordered around by Si Qiu, he still wore an indulgent smile on his face.

Once the lights were turned off, the scent of scented candles spread through the room, filling it with a hazy, intimate atmosphere.

Lan Qing pulled Si Qiu a little closer into his arms.

After sleeping for just over two hours, he got up at dawn. Quietly slipping out of Si Qiu’s house, he made a round to buy breakfast before returning openly and without concealment.

His main concern was avoiding trouble for Si Qiu.

Unfortunately, all of this was seen by the Zhou couple while they were lining up to buy rationed grain.

The already gloomy pair exchanged a glance.

Then silently hid themselves from sight.

Si Qiu had been extremely busy these past few days. Combined with the fact that every member of the Si family seemed to have eight hundred schemes up their sleeves, life had been nothing short of chaotic.

The weather had turned cold as well.

She hadn’t returned to the Si family home for quite some time, and now that Saturday had finally arrived, Lan Qing had gone away on a business trip.

Feeling rather bored, she rode her bicycle toward the machinery factory’s residential building.

It was already early winter. Although it hadn’t snowed yet, riding a bicycle in the cold wind was still freezing.

Si Qiu was already filled with resistance at the thought of going back to work afterward.

What she really wanted was to see just how lively things had become with those four people all tangled together.

As expected, she wasn’t disappointed.

The moment she reached the second floor, she heard loud arguing.

Standing outside the crowd for a while, she learned what had happened.

Si Bei’s wife had secretly boiled and eaten some of the family’s eggs.

That morning, Si Xi had discovered it, and the two of them had immediately started quarreling.

The moment Si Qiu understood the situation, she pushed through the crowd and entered.

Knocking twice on the doorframe, she said:

“What are you all arguing about?”

The two families instantly fell silent.

Si Qiu strolled around the room.

The foul stench that had once permeated the place had faded considerably.

With an arrogant expression, she said:

“I heard you’re fighting over eggs?

Each household only gets a pound and a half a month, and you actually have the nerve to eat them yourselves?

Shouldn’t you be using them to nourish the two elderly people?

Looks like none of you have been taking proper care of them.”

As she spoke, she pushed open the door to the old couple’s room.

None of the four people had time to stop her.