Shen Qiao thought to herself that at least Zheng Zhong was more competent than her. She gave a somewhat polite smile and said, “Thank you as well.”

The two smiles seemed similar at first glance, but upon closer inspection, there were subtle differences.

Zheng Mingguang, unsure whether it was just his imagination, felt like Shen Qiao was warmer toward Zheng Zhong. He looked at the situation, hardly believing it himself, and said, “We need to get to work now.”

Shen Qiao sighed in relief and said, “Goodbye.”

She mentally calculated how many people had likely overheard their brief exchange, knowing that in this place, where there were no secrets, it would soon spread everywhere.

She could tell that Zheng Mingguang had some interest in her, and she had seen this kind of admiration many times over the years. But young men couldn’t always express their true intentions. The older generation of the brigade usually favored girls who were hardworking and capable.

Her appearance, in this environment, wasn’t necessarily the most practical asset.

Shen Qiao didn’t feel much toward Zheng Mingguang—she saw him as someone she didn’t want to get too close to. Now that his intentions were so obvious, she thought with a sigh that she would have to make her stance even clearer, or else people would start saying she was leading him on.

She was fiddling with something in her hands when she suddenly noticed two stones that looked like eggs. Well, they seemed like eggs—if you were to call them that, it’d almost give the wrong impression.

She reached out and poked them. The "stones" rolled to the side.

Now, they looked even more like eggs.

Shen Qiao wasn’t one to doubt her own eyes, but the thing was, people in this brigade didn’t just throw things like that around.

Her first thought was of Zheng Mingguang, so she glanced in the direction he had walked off toward. Even if she planned to return the stones, now wasn’t the right time—there were too many people around.

She slipped the stones into her pocket, unsure of what to do. She felt a little frustrated about the trouble other people had caused her.

She channeled that irritation into her work, which seemed to make her go faster than usual. As it neared the end of the workday, she waved to the scorekeeper and left early.

From a distance, Zheng Zhong spotted her and assumed she had come because of the eggs. He had already thought of what to say. The simplest response seemed to be, “Here’s your cookies back.” That sounded reasonable, especially since he couldn’t fully explain how he felt about it.

But Shen Qiao only smiled at him and looked past him.

It was clear—she was looking for Zheng Mingguang.

Zheng Zhong, frustrated, thought to himself that this was wasting time. He could have done everything himself without needing a partner.

Zheng Mingguang, feeling a little off-balance, was about to speak up when he noticed something and said, “Zheng Zhong, your pants are torn.”

It wasn’t a small hole—it was a big one, and you could even see the color of his underwear.

Zheng Zhong instinctively reached down to feel the hole, wondering how it had torn so easily when he had just sewn it up. He had used so much thread, it was really irritating.

Though it was just the three of them, it was still awkward. Zheng Zhong’s face didn’t reveal much, but Shen Qiao could tell it must have been embarrassing. If it had been her in that situation, she probably would have found a well to jump into.

She tried to act like she hadn’t heard, but she couldn’t help herself. “Zheng Zhong, can you sew?”

She said it with the most neutral expression, as if it were a perfectly normal question.

Zheng Zhong couldn’t detect any hint of mockery in her face, but he hesitated before answering, “No, I can’t.”

If he could, he wouldn’t have ended up with a torn pair of pants two days in a row.

Shen Qiao had thought he was capable of anything, but seeing him dressed in just a thin shirt, she decided to take off her own coat and said, “Then go change. I’ll sew it for you.”

The weather had been decent lately, and under her coat, she was wearing just a short-sleeved shirt. The wind made it a little chilly.

But Zheng Zhong, in his current situation, had no better options. After all, it was broad daylight, and people were everywhere.

To avoid feeling guilty, he asked, “Did the eggs taste good?”

Boiled, they all had the same taste.

Shen Qiao was a little surprised and asked, “You made these for me?”

Zheng Zhong nodded, thinking he really should say something, but he wasn’t sure how to start.

While they were talking, Zheng Mingguang, feeling a little uncomfortable with the situation, couldn’t hold back anymore. He said, “Shen Qiao, you’re a girl. Isn’t it improper for you to sew his pants?”

Shen Qiao immediately reacted, disliking the way he spoke. It felt like there was something more behind his words.

She thought for a moment and replied, “A lot of seamstresses are women.”

If that was the case, then by his logic, everything would be inappropriate. It was just a simple act of helping, but he had made it sound like something else.

She wasn’t happy and retorted, “Doesn’t your mother sew for you?”

Zheng Mingguang was caught off guard, stumbling over his words. “You… well, she’s not his mom…”

Shen Qiao, realizing her slip-up, quickly apologized to Zheng Zhong. “I didn’t mean it like that.”

Zheng Zhong almost laughed, but quickly stopped himself. He wrapped her coat around his waist and said, “Wait for me.”

Shen Qiao’s purpose for coming here had already shifted, so she said, “Just give it to me tonight.”

She turned to leave.

The space between them was wide enough for two more people to stand, but there was still an unspoken closeness between them.

Zheng Mingguang clenched his fists, feeling defeated. He thought to himself that if Shen Qiao chose Zheng Zhong, she would regret it eventually.

However, Shen Qiao was still completely unaware of what was going on. She called out as she turned the corner, “I’m going back now.”

Zheng Zhong responded with just a grunt, his mind racing. After all, Shen Qiao’s coat was still wrapped around his waist, and he was standing there in his torn pants in broad daylight.

He picked up the pace, but just as he took a few steps, Shen Qiao called him again, saying, “Open your mouth.”

Without thinking, Zheng Zhong turned around with his mouth slightly open, and before he knew it, something round and soft was placed in his mouth.

He didn’t even need to bite down to know it was an egg. He looked at her with a slightly dazed expression.