Chapter 9: Are You Waiting for Me?

“I’ve heard about it. I happened to be passing by that day.”
“Did you see it and not go to help?”
“No.”

Qin Feng wasn’t the type to brag about things, and he didn’t think much of it. If the woman hadn’t asked, he probably would have forgotten about the whole incident.

The woman looked at Qin Feng thoughtfully, then smiled and said, “I heard the injured female driver was a great beauty. If you had gotten out to help, maybe she would have fallen for you. See? You missed a good opportunity.”

“That’s not really how it is,” Qin Feng laughed, thinking she was joking.

The woman smiled too, dropping the subject. Instead, she asked, “Are you adapting well to working at the Civil Affairs Office?”

“How did you know I work there?” Qin Feng was surprised.

“Just a guess.”

“You could guess that?”

“Enough. It’s almost time. Are you going to run off?” The woman changed the subject abruptly.

Qin Feng glanced at the time. “Yeah, I should head to work.”

“All right, then, see you!” The woman said before walking away.

Watching her leave, Qin Feng felt a tinge of reluctance. No man could remain indifferent to such a beautiful woman.

What puzzled Qin Feng even more was how cold and disdainful this woman had been toward him just yesterday, full of aversion in her eyes. But today, she seemed like a completely different person. Qin Feng couldn’t make sense of it.

“Maybe women are just fickle,” Qin Feng reasoned to himself.

…

That day, the Civil Affairs Office was suddenly visited by five or six unexpected guests. They immediately ordered all the files to be brought out and began to inspect them.

After listening for a while, Qin Feng learned that this was a surprise audit from the county Civil Affairs Bureau, focusing primarily on poverty alleviation records.

---

Xiao Bo kept fawning and nodding, sweat pouring down his forehead.

Qin Feng hadn’t been at the Civil Affairs Office long and was unfamiliar with many things, but from Xiao Bo’s expression, he guessed that problems had been found.

As more issues were uncovered, Xiao Bo’s sweat increased in urgency.

Yang Delin was grumbling angrily nearby.

The inspection lasted until the afternoon. Xiao Bo followed the inspectors closely, speaking in their favor until they finally left.

After they left, Xiao Bo immediately rushed upstairs toward Xu Guoli’s office.

Yang Delin’s expression darkened when he saw Xiao Bo go upstairs. He followed, heading to the township chief Wang Yunfei’s office.

The others in the office whispered and discussed quietly.

“This time it looks like they’re really serious about the inspection.”
“Yeah, it seems someone might be held accountable.”
“Someone definitely has to take responsibility. The previous records were all fake.”
“Who do you think’s going to be unlucky this time? Yang or Xiao…”

Only Qin Feng sat there clueless, still unsure what was going on.

The next morning, Qin Feng got up early to go for a run as usual. When he arrived at the track, the woman hadn’t shown up yet. Something compelled him to stand there and wait until she appeared.

She was just as beautiful as ever, leaving Qin Feng a little dazed.

“Morning!” Qin Feng greeted her with a smile.

“Were you waiting for me?” the woman asked.

“Ah… no… I just got here too.” Qin Feng denied it, but the blush on his face betrayed him.

“But I saw you standing here waiting when I came downstairs.”

Qin Feng’s face turned even redder, feeling embarrassed.

The woman couldn’t help but laugh at his awkwardness.

She started running, and Qin Feng followed.

As they ran, they chatted and gradually became more familiar with each other.

After the run, the woman turned to leave.

“I still don’t know your name,” Qin Feng called after her.

“Just call me ‘Sis’!” she said, waving at him.

As Qin Feng was lost in thought watching her retreating figure, she came back and asked, “Do you know how to fix a clogged drain?”

“A drain?”

“The drain at my place suddenly got clogged. I don’t know how it happened, and I can’t find anyone to fix it…”

“Sis, I can do that.” Qin Feng nodded.

“Don’t say yes so quickly, you’re making me think you have ulterior motives…” she teased with a smile.

“I don’t… I just…”

“Okay, just kidding. Please help me check it out.”

Qin Feng followed her into her home.