Chapter 9: Nip the Danger in the Bud

Zhang Hongying looked at Jiang Tang, who was standing to the side with a calm expression, in confusion.

"Little Jiang, did you save someone in the river just now?"

Why was she so tight-lipped?

She hadn't revealed a single word of news.

Zhang Hongying looked at Jiang Tang, her eyes filled with gratification.

With someone so discreet, men could rest easy knowing their home front was secure!

Especially with someone as young and promising as Little Lu; if he had ended up with a wife who couldn't keep her mouth shut, that would truly be a headache.

Jiang Tang didn't know that one was supposed to tell others after saving someone.

Moreover, she didn't even consider it "saving" someone.

Therefore, when Zhang Hongying asked her, she shook her head and pointed to Maodan and the others nearby.

"They didn't have the strength, so I helped them."

It wasn't that she insisted on saving him; she was just helping Maodan and the others.

"Oh? What happened?"

Seeing that Jiang Tang not only didn't claim credit but even pushed the merit onto the children, Zhang Hongying asked for the full story.

As the leader of the group, Xu Hui explained everything clearly under the teacher's questioning.

Jiang Tang's account was correct.

It was because their physical strength wasn't enough that she had gone over to help.

However, since a life had been saved, it was still something that deserved praise.

"Comrade Jiang, thank you, thank you so much." He Wenxun stepped forward and grasped Jiang Tang's hand to thank her.

"This time, you didn't just save me; you saved our entire machinery factory. Thank you, truly, thank you so much."

It turned out that this He Wenxun was a technician at the town's machinery factory. He had just returned from a meeting in the city, carrying registration documents and some very important blueprints.

While passing by the river, he had accidentally slipped and fallen into the water.

He couldn't swim. When he fell in, he desperately threw his briefcase onto the bank before being swept away by the current.

He had thought he had no hope of survival, never expecting to encounter Jiang Tang and be rescued by her.

He Wenxun was an honest man, and he insisted on thanking Jiang Tang, as well as Xu Hui and the others.

"It's just about mealtime now. If Comrade Jiang and the little ones don't mind, let me treat you all to a meal at the canteen."

As soon as these words were spoken, everyone present except Jiang Tang thought this man was quite impressive!

In these special times, anyone who could afford to treat others to a meal was a capable person.

After all, eating out now required not just money, but ration coupons. And everyone's monthly ration coupons were fixed.

For this man to offer to treat so many people at once, it was clear he had plenty of coupons.

Xu Hui and the others were quite happy.

After all, they weren't very old; who wouldn't be happy to be treated as a proper benefactor?

"Comrade Jiang, what do you think?"

He Wenxun looked at Jiang Tang cautiously.

Jiang Tang looked at He Wenxun, seemingly contemplating whether it was appropriate to go eat this meal.

"Comrade Jiang?"

He Wenxun spoke again.

Jiang Tang shook her head and refused.

"I'm not going. I need to weave the fence."

Although the little ginseng was learning to be human for the first time, she had a bit of obsessive-compulsive disorder; today's tasks had to be finished today.

Her reason for refusing was something the onlookers hadn't expected.

Zhang Hongying hadn't expected it either, and at the same time, she felt a faint sense of joy.

Little Jiang was too outstanding; it was normal for her to attract young men. What was rare and precious was that she didn't seem to have any such thoughts.

Zhang Hongying felt happy for Lu Changzheng.

Seeing Jiang Tang turn to enter her courtyard, He Wenxun hurriedly chased after her. "Um, Comrade Jiang Tang, you're weaving a fence, right? I happen to know how to do that too. I'll help you weave it."

As he spoke, he immediately took out money and coupons wrapped in a plastic bag from his inner pocket and handed them to Xu Hui and the others nearby.

He told them to go to the canteen and buy some meat buns.

Six yuan, five catties of grain coupons, and one catty of meat coupons!

That was enough for them to have a good meal.

Xu Hui immediately called two friends to run toward the canteen with him, while Maodan and the other two followed He Wenxun into the courtyard.

Five minutes later.

After He Wenxun wove the fence incorrectly for the umpteenth time, Jiang Tang, who was sitting on a small stool nearby, had her brows tightly furrowed.

The next second, as He Wenxun reached out to grab some reeds, Jiang Tang moved them away.

"You don't know how to do it at all."

"Why are you helping?"

Jiang Tang didn't understand.

Why did He Wenxun insist on helping when his skills were so poor?

The fence he was weaving was incredibly ugly, even worse than Maodan and the others', and Jiang Tang didn't like it one bit.

He Wenxun's face flushed at the blunt remark. He raised his eyes, a look of embarrassment in them.

"Comrade Jiang..."

Lu Changzheng returned from outside and saw several people in the courtyard. His gaze paused on He Wenxun for a moment before he walked toward Jiang Tang.

"Who is this comrade?"

Maodan, who had long since made Jiang Tang his idol, didn't wait for her to speak and blurted out everything that happened today.

"Uncle Lu, you don't know, but Silly Tang was faster than a fish, flying through the water. She raised her hand, *whack*, and knocked Comrade He unconscious, then grabbed his neck and dragged him to the shore."

"I thought he was a goner at the time; it scared the life out of me."

Maodan was a chatterbox, and since his father, Wu Yong, was good friends with Lu Changzheng, he was even more talkative in front of him.

He didn't just talk; he used his hands to gesture, afraid it wouldn't be vivid enough.

A faint smile appeared on Lu Changzheng's face. "Did you kids go playing in the water again today?"

"Are you looking to get a taste of your dad's 'bamboo shoots fried with pork'?"

Maodan was startled.

He had been so focused on showing off in front of Uncle Lu that he had completely forgotten about what would happen when he got home.

Maodan looked at Lu Changzheng with a fawning smile. "Uncle Lu, don't tell my dad, okay..."

"Heh..."

Lu Changzheng gave a light chuckle, not promising whether he would tell Wu Yong or not.

But there was one thing he needed to make clear to Maodan.

"Maodan, Comrade Jiang Tang is my partner, which means she is your aunt. You cannot give your elders nicknames. Do you understand?"

One advantage of a man who was usually stern and humorless was that when he lied, others couldn't tell at all.

His expression was truly natural.

Maodan pursed his lips and snuck a glance at Jiang Tang.

"You haven't held the wedding banquet yet, so it doesn't count as being married."

Maodan was precocious and knew how to use that to corner Lu Changzheng.

Lu Changzheng laughed. "Whether we've held the wedding banquet or not, she is your aunt. That will never change."

After saying this, Lu Changzheng stepped up to Jiang Tang's side. Looking at the fence she had woven, the smile on his face became much gentler than before.

"Are you hungry? Shall we eat first?"

At this moment, he had no intention of keeping anyone for a meal; saying it was time to eat meant he was chasing them away.

Maodan knew it.

The others knew it too.

They stood up, left the courtyard, and ran toward the canteen; they still had big meat buns to eat.

Soon, only three people were left in the courtyard.

Lu Changzheng raised his eyes and looked at He Wenxun, who hadn't left yet. A faint arc appeared at the corners of his lips.

"Comrade He, I won't see you out."