Era: Starting with the struggle to refuse being taken advantage of

Chapter 330 Gratitude
Xia Mingyue warmly welcomed Wang Chengpeng in, then wiped her face, restoring her pretty appearance to a clean and charming state.

After wiping herself off, Xia Mingyue said somewhat embarrassedly:
"Comrade Wang, we owe you a lot for this incident."

"It's just that my place is really quite simple, I don't even have a cup of water to offer you, I'm really sorry."

Xia Mingyue was extremely grateful to Wang Chengpeng.

The other party not only lent me a lot of valuable books, but also helped me a lot in my daily life.

The most important thing is that in Luo Wenbin's case, strictly speaking, Wang Chengpeng can be said to have saved Xia Mingyue's life.

Despite Xia Mingyue's courage to rush into the fire to save books, once that courage faded, all she felt in the face of the raging flames was fear.

Especially in the pitch-black night sky, the raging flames resembled a demon, baring its fangs and claws, trying to devour Xia Mingyue.

Faced with such terrifying flames, she couldn't help but wonder if she would still be standing here unharmed if the fire hadn't been discovered in time and she were still in the inferno.

That is why Xia Mingyue was actually very grateful to Song Sixi for saving her.

Upon hearing Song Sixi say that Wang Chengpeng had asked him to keep an eye on Luo Wenbin, and recalling how Wang Chengpeng had solemnly told her yesterday to be careful of Luo Wenbin, Xia Mingyue felt deeply grateful to Wang Chengpeng.

Looking at the flustered Xia Mingyue, a hint of guilt flashed in Wang Chengpeng's eyes.

In my previous life, Luo Wenbin never snatched the book, and naturally, the educated youth settlement was never burned down.

Strictly speaking, Wang Chengpeng's rebirth is a major factor contributing to Xia Mingyue's current miserable situation.

Of course, there was nothing wrong with his act of lending the book to Xia Mingyue; the only one who was wrong was the selfish, despicable, and shameless Luo Wenbin.

However, for some inexplicable reasons, Wang Chengpeng still felt indebted to Xia Mingyue.

Thinking this, he took out the envelope he had prepared beforehand and immediately handed over the bulging envelope.

It contained some money and tickets. Although it wasn't much, it was enough to ensure that Xia Mingyue would have enough to eat and wear in the days to come.

He even felt that this was not enough, and said, "Xia Zhiqing, you don't have to be so polite."

"This envelope contains a small token of my appreciation; please accept it."

"By the way, you've been to my warehouse before. I have plenty of books."

"With the college entrance examination just around the corner, studying is the most important thing."

"Don't worry about the books that were burned before. I also brought you some textbooks when I came. Take a look at them first, and don't let this kind of thing delay your studies."

Xia Mingyue pushed the envelope back and said gratefully:

"Comrade Wang, I appreciate your kind intentions, but I cannot accept this gift."

"You've already helped me so much, how could I be so ungrateful as to keep taking your things?"

"You don't need to worry too much. I've already written home, and they'll send the money and tickets soon."

"As for books, you're right, studying is indeed more important right now, so I'll shamelessly ask you to lend me some more."

"Don't worry, I will compensate you for the books that were burned. You will definitely not suffer any loss."

At this point, a hint of annoyance flashed in Xia Mingyue's eyes, and she said regretfully:

"Comrade Wang, this whole thing is my fault for being careless and not taking your advice to heart."

“You told me to be careful of Luo Wenbin a long time ago, but I was still so careless, otherwise such a disaster would not have happened.”

Xia Mingyue may have listened to Wang Chengpeng, but she wasn't just a robot, and her family didn't have dogs like Wang Chengpeng, so she couldn't guard against Luo Wenbin's malice.

After all, there's no such thing as a thief who can be a thief for a thousand days without being able to guard against thieves for a thousand days.

Faced with the envelope Xia Mingyue pushed back, Wang Chengpeng pushed it back again, smiling as he said:
“Xia, the one who did wrong is Luo Wenbin, and he will be punished accordingly. This matter has nothing to do with you, the victim.”

"Even if your family does send you money and tickets, the journey is long and it won't be enough to quench your immediate thirst. It will be a long time before the things arrive."

"How about I consider these notes a loan to you? You can keep them for now and return them to me once you receive the notes from your family."

Looking around at her extremely simple room, which lacked many daily necessities, Xia Mingyue ultimately decided not to be coy and accepted Wang Chengpeng's envelope, keeping her gratitude to him in her heart.

After hesitating for a moment, she gritted her teeth and continued:

"Although I know I have gone a bit too far, Comrade Wang, I would like to ask you for another favor."

"I have left a very important item at the educated youth settlement and would like you to help me find it."

"Although the fire was large, the timely rescue efforts prevented it from causing too much damage."

"Although most of the things were burned to charcoal, I kept that one item in excellent condition, so it may not have been damaged by the fire."

Asking Wang Chengpeng for help was a last resort for Xia Mingyue.
If it were an ordinary item, she wouldn't be in any danger, even if it were left in the fire and picked up by someone.

However, that item is somewhat shady, so it's best to retrieve it.

Even if it can't be found, Xia Mingyue still needs to confirm that the item was indeed destroyed in the fire.

However, Xia Mingyue was, after all, a woman. Although she had been raised in the countryside and was not a weak scholar, she still found it difficult to move the heavy debris from the fire scene.

Although she wanted to find someone to help her, the matter was something that couldn't be done in the open, so she could only turn to Wang Chengpeng for help again, thinking that she was more worried than worried about being in debt.

Since he already felt that he was the one who had harmed Xia Mingyue, Wang Chengpeng naturally wouldn't refuse her request. He immediately agreed to Xia Mingyue's request and went with her to the educated youth settlement.

When we were looking for a place for Xia Mingyue to stay, we had considered the distance. So, the place she lives now is not far from the original educated youth settlement.

Led by Xia Mingyue, Wang Chengpeng soon arrived at Xia Mingyue's former residence, which was now in a mess.

That already simple wooden house is now just a pile of charred remains, emitting a pungent, burnt smell.

The wooden house's frame had mostly collapsed, with a few charred beams leaning precariously in the ruins, like withered trees struck by lightning.

At this time, the male educated youth at the settlement were all busy in the fields, and no one paid attention to the arrival of the two. Looking at the miserable scene before her, Xia Mingyue squatted down, her fingers trembling as she brushed aside the ashes and pulled out a warped enamel mug. The red characters on it, "Vast countryside, great potential," were already blurred.

Following the location she remembered, Xia Mingyue pointed ahead and said to Wang Chengpeng:
"It should be that spot. That's where my bed is, and the things should be there."

Following Xia Mingyue's pointing finger, Wang Chengpeng only saw a pile of collapsed, charred wood.

Even after being burned, these charred logs still had an extremely heavy weight, making them something that Xia Mingyue could not easily move.

However, this was not a problem for Wang Chengpeng, who exercised regularly. He only had to exert a little effort to clear out a slightly more open space at the location designated by Xia Mingyue.

There was just too much black and gray, which turned Wang Chengpeng into a big gray rat.

Seeing that there didn't seem to be any treasures nearby, Wang Chengpeng turned to Xia Mingyue and asked:
"Xia Zhiqing, can you see where this thing is?"

“You don’t have many clothes right now, so don’t get them dirty. I’ll take care of it; just point out the place.”

Although he was a little embarrassed, Wang Chengpeng was telling the truth.

She only had this one set of clothes on, and if she got it dirty in the ruins, she would really have nothing to wear.

He immediately looked at Wang Chengpeng with a face full of apology and said:
"Comrade Wang, thank you so much for your help."

"Once I've tidied up the house a bit, I'll invite you over for dinner. Don't refuse."

"As for my things, I think they should be in this location, in a metal box, so they shouldn't be completely destroyed in the fire."

Following Xia Mingyue's directions, Wang Chengpeng quickly found a black iron box among a pile of charcoal.

Through the thick layer of black ash, he could vaguely make out the exquisite appearance of the box, which was once decorated with extremely beautiful patterns.

Despite being ravaged by flames, the iron box was only slightly bent, demonstrating its extremely solid quality.

After thinking for a moment, Wang Chengpeng handed over the box and said:

“Xia Zhiqing, should I give you this box directly, or should I wash it first and then give it to you?”

Having decided to ask Wang Chengpeng for help, Xia Mingyue didn't have many reservations and spoke directly:

"Then I'll trouble Comrade Wang to help me wash it."

"I'll go get you some water, and you can wash yourself while I'm at it."

"I'm so sorry that you've made me look so disheveled after helping me."

If she could, Xia Mingyue even suggested that Wang Chengpeng take off his clothes, wash them herself, and then return them.

However, this kind of thing is too sensitive. If it were seen by someone with ulterior motives, not only would she want to play around, but Wang Chengpeng would also be implicated.

In that case, it would be better to avoid any unnecessary complications and wait until the money and tickets from home arrive before properly expressing her gratitude to Wang Chengpeng.

Although the temperature is still relatively high, the well water is still very cold.

After being rinsed by the well water, the black ash on the outside of the iron box was removed, and its original appearance was quickly revealed.

Although much of the paint had been scratched off, Wang Chengpeng could still barely make out from the remaining pictures and text on the box that it was probably the packaging of some kind of high-end candy from abroad, which the thrifty Xia Mingyue had used as a storage box.

After handing over the cleaned tin box, Wang Chengpeng washed his face again, restoring his original clean appearance. Looking up, he saw Xia Mingyue diligently breaking the box apart.

The box had indeed been ravaged by flames; the iron box, which was originally very easy to open, now seemed to have been welded shut, and Xia Mingyue was unable to open it even after using a lot of effort.

Looking somewhat embarrassed, Xia Mingyue glanced around and, finding no one nearby, handed the tin box back, saying apologetically:
"Comrade Wang, you've gone all the way to help me. Could you please open the metal box again so I can check if anything inside is damaged?"

Wang Chengpeng didn't refuse this small favor. He took the iron box, examined it briefly, and then found a stone to tap and tinker with it.

As Wang Chengpeng continued to strike, the twisted and deformed iron box gradually returned to normal. Although it still had some irreparable fatal damage, it could now be opened easily.

Wang Chengpeng had no intention of prying into Xia Mingyue's personal belongings, nor did he open the tin box. He simply returned it, saying:
"I did some simple work on the tin box, and it should be easy to open now."

“Xia Zhiqing, since this iron box is so valuable, you should put it somewhere that no one can find it.”

Before Wang Chengpeng could finish speaking, he noticed that Xia Mingyue had already opened the iron box and taken out an exquisite wooden box from the middle.

The wooden box was visibly damaged by the high temperature, but its overall structure remained intact and should not have been affected.

As expected, Xia Mingyue easily opened the wooden box.
After carefully examining the items and seeing that they were all intact, she finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Xia Mingyue closed the wooden box, carefully put it away, smiled sweetly, and thanked Wang Chengpeng once again:
"Comrade Wang, I really owe you a lot for this incident. Otherwise, I really wouldn't know what to do."

"I won't thank you enough. If you ever need any help in the future, just let me know and I'll do everything I can to help you."

Although it was just a fleeting glance, Wang Chengpeng was able to tell from the metallic glint that the wooden box contained a gun!

No wonder Xia Mingyue asked me for help to find the iron box. If someone else found it and it got out, Xia Mingyue would be in deep trouble.

However, the other party just opened the wooden box so openly in front of him, which was a bit too careless.

Was it intentional or accidental? Wang Chengpeng leans towards the former.

Xia Mingyue is not such a careless person. The reason she did that was actually to indirectly tell herself that she had the ability to keep her promise.

Although he knew perfectly well what was going on, Wang Chengpeng pretended not to know and casually said:
“Okay, if I really need Xia Zhiqing’s help, I will definitely not hesitate to ask.”

"Alright, I've found the item for you. I have other things to do, so I won't stay any longer."

"Xia Zhiqing, you should get some rest too. You've just moved, and you must have a lot to do. I won't bother you any longer."

Seeing that Wang Chengpeng was determined to leave, Xia Mingyue ultimately did not stop him, letting him walk away from her and into the distance.

After Wang Chengpeng had completely disappeared, Xia Mingyue gave a bitter smile and murmured:

"Comrade Wang, oh Comrade Wang, why do I just feel like I don't understand you at all?"

(End of this chapter)