QTIMP -Chapter 68 Character Persona – Lazy (Part 16)

After saying this, he didn’t care how others looked at her or what they thought—he just grabbed the person and left. It was no different from slapping someone in the face directly.

Next up were Lu Hongqi and his wife.

But Si Qiu didn’t do what others expected—solving family matters at home herself.

Instead, she directly pointed at Si Lai. “You.”

Then she spread her hand, beckoning back toward the empty space in front of her.

“Come over and apologize. Don’t say you didn’t mean it—just now Yang Fang already said it. She came to settle the score with me only because of your misguidance and deception. If you’re not convinced, Lu Er will take you to the Wen family later to demand an explanation. But right now, hurry over and apologize.”

Si Lai looked as if she had been frightened by her words, trembling as she leaned toward Lu Hongqi. Lu Hongqi’s voice sounded above her head.

“Apologize to sister-in-law.”

His tone was heavy and deep, as if suppressing something, with a slight quiver. His eyes mixed anger with a chilling coldness.

Si Lai bit her lip, her eyes reddened, making her delicate, pitiful appearance even more pronounced. Perhaps because Lu Hongjun and Lu Hongqi were biological brothers, the onlookers didn’t speak up to intervene.

In her heart, she cursed the people around her. Just now, they could plead for Yang Fang, so why not for her? She also cursed Lu Hongqi, thinking him a coward—he didn’t even stand up for his own wife.

Of course, most of her scolding was aimed at Si Qiu. If Si Qiu hadn’t been petty, could she have hinted to Yang Fang while chatting that it was Si Qiu who snatched the fruits she had collected from the sea?

After a long moment, she lowered her eyes, slowly straightened her body, and walked toward Si Qiu.

Shaking, she said, “Qiu Qiu, I’m sorry. I didn’t explain clearly, which caused Yang Fang to misunderstand and come bother you.”

“Pfft!”

Si Qiu didn’t say whether she forgave her. Instead, she turned to look at Lu Hongjun.

“You’re the older brother. Don’t just think about your own little patch of land. Manage your younger brother properly. Cultivate yourself, regulate your family, govern the country, bring peace to the world. If you can’t even handle your own family matters, how can you serve the country? You’re just wasting the organization’s resources.”

Then she turned and returned to the counter. Right now, she hated this couple intensely, because they were the epitome of trouble.

Si Qiu didn’t even want to deal with her own matters, let alone bother with this couple.

At that moment, the director of the supply and marketing cooperative stepped out from the crowd.

“Alright, alright, everyone go home for dinner. It’s this late in the day, and people still have things to do this afternoon!”

Seeing that things were more or less settled, everyone quickly turned and left. But inevitably, people walked with familiar companions and whispered among themselves.

Lu Hongqi awkwardly led his wife outside. Just as they reached the door, Lu Hongjun called out.

“Second brother, training field at one o’clock this afternoon. I’ll be waiting for you.”

Lu Hongqi paused but didn’t reply, continuing on. He knew his brother intended to hit him—to vent his anger on behalf of his wife.

His brother was never one to suffer losses quietly. And besides, his wife’s words earlier were almost explicit: go and give him a good beating so he doesn’t learn his lesson.

After sending everyone away—even those going to the canteen for meals—the director of the supply and marketing cooperative came over to greet Lu Hongjun.

“Captain Lu, you came to deliver food to Xiao Qiu! You really are the model husband of our military district!”

Lu Hongjun quickly shook hands, no longer looking lax as before. “Director Su, sorry to trouble you. My Qiu is still young and a bit lazy, so thank you for taking care of her. I really appreciate it.”

“Oh, not at all. Xiao Qiu is meticulous and serious; she’s never made any mistakes in accounts or measurements.”

After exchanging a few pleasantries, Lu Hongjun handed over a lunchbox to the director and watched him leave.

Only then did he sit across the counter, open all the lunchboxes, arrange everything neatly, and hand the chopsticks to his young wife.

“All right, all right, don’t be angry. You heard everything just now—I’ve already set up with Second Brother. After we eat, I’ll go deal with him.”

Si Qiu wasn’t that angry. Even if she were, she wouldn’t take it out on herself. At most, any anger she showed was for others to see.

So she took the chopsticks and dug in, though she couldn’t resist giving a little reminder. “Then when you go at him, be heavier-handed—don’t spare me any face.”

Lu Hongjun couldn’t help but laugh. “Okay, I’ll really give it to him.”

And true to his word, when Lu Hongqi returned that evening and took off his clothes, he couldn’t help but hiss and laugh—his body was covered in green and purple bruises.

Si Lai’s eyes were red. “How did it get this bad? Should we go to the hospital?”

Lu Hongqi, enduring the pain, raised his arm to hold Si Lai. “No, no, it’s nothing serious. Going to the hospital would just make me a laughingstock. I have some medicated wine—just help me rub it in.”

Si Lai quickly brought over the medicated wine. “Your brother is too harsh. You’re his twin brother. How could he go so hard?”

Lu Hongqi held Si Lai’s hand. “Wife, haven’t you noticed? My brother just listens to his wife. Can’t you just pity your man a bit? Let’s not provoke that couple anymore. I may not earn much, but it’s enough. At least our life is more than comfortable. You think you’re taking advantage of them, but are they the kind to let losses slide? Sooner or later, they’ll take back more—and then we’d be at a bigger disadvantage, right? You’re more capable than my sister-in-law; you know how to manage life. Our life will only get better. If you take too much advantage now, won’t they interfere when we’re enjoying our life later?”

Half-joking, half-serious, Lu Hongqi’s words made Si Lai feel especially happy—and at the same time guilty seeing him lying in bed because of her.

Si Lai quickly nodded. “Okay, I won’t do that again. You just lie down, I’ll make you a bowl of egg noodles.”

Lu Hongqi looked at his obedient wife, as if suddenly finding a way to get along with her.

Thanks to her careful care, the couple entered a new honeymoon phase. Si Lai now avoided Si Qiu whenever she saw her.

Of course, the whole incident spread throughout the military district. Even though Si Qiu was still lazy, no one thought the couple could be bullied.

After all, everyone remembered how fierce she had been with Yang Fang.

Si Qiu felt that both her life and work environment had become much more harmonious.

A few days later, Lu Hongjun had another mission. Among the three battalions, the commander of the Third Battalion had just recovered from an injury, and Lu Hongqi of the Second Battalion had only just gotten back on his feet after being beaten.

So naturally, this mission would be carried out by them. While Lu Hongjun changed and packed, he told Si Qiu about the mission, cheekily planting a kiss on her face.

But Si Qiu could sense from his carefully hidden expression the difficulty and seriousness of the mission. She quickly returned to the room and took out a 10-centimeter-wide canvas belt.

“Tie this around your waist. Inside are some ginseng slices, spare coins, and a type of sedative. It could save your life in a critical moment.”