Winter Returns

Chapter 77 Gu Qiu Mian's Secret
My eyes quickly adjusted to the bright light, the indoor heating was on full blast, and the breeze from the central air conditioning made my cheeks itch.

Following the principle of not causing trouble for others, Zhang Shutong first bent down and brushed the snow off his trouser legs. However, he had no say in the matter; since he was on the young lady's turf, he naturally had to follow her arrangements.

"Put your schoolbag down first, isn't it heavy?" she instructed, carrying her little boots.

Zhang Shutong put down his schoolbag as instructed.

"Take off your coat, so you don't catch a cold."

The young lady took off her scarf and then gave the order.

He reluctantly complied, thinking to himself, "You're really meddling."

"Hang it here." Gu Qiumian nodded in satisfaction and pointed to the hook on the cabinet.

Zhang Shutong felt somewhat flustered, but as a guest in someone else's home, he decided to follow the host's lead.

"Then it's time to change shoes, let me look..."

She was wearing light gray tights today, had taken off her boots, and was only wearing a thin layer of fabric on her feet as she tiptoed to find her slippers.

Gu Qiumian muttered:

"Hey, could you please get this for me? I can't reach it, it's on the first shelf of the cupboard..."

Before she could finish speaking, Zhang Shutong had already reached over her head and taken out a pair of slippers from the second shelf. They were just the right size.

He knew the guest slippers were kept here.

Gu Qiumian was stunned:
"Have I finished speaking?"

“I’m taller than you, I can see you,” Zhang Shutong teased her.

The nanny watched the two people at the door with a smile.

"This is Aunt Wu."

Gu Qiumian then introduced him to someone else.

Zhang Shutong greeted her, and the woman said, "Don't be so polite. You two must be freezing. Come and eat."

The young lady then gave instructions:
"Don't forget to wash your hands..."

Without her prompting, Zhang Shutong walked briskly towards the restroom. He turned on the brass faucet, and hot water at a comfortable temperature immediately flowed over his skin, making him sigh with relief.

Amidst the rushing water, Qiu Yu's expression in the mirror was as if she had seen a ghost.

"Did I tell you where the restroom is?" she asked, her eyes wide. "How do you know it so well?"

"I guessed."

Zhang Shutong chuckled inwardly.

He thought to himself, "I even knew you had a burgundy nightgown. If I told you, you'd be scared to death." But Zhang Shutong wasn't a pervert; he only thought about it.

The two dried their hands and headed towards the restaurant.

The bowls and chopsticks are already set out.

Under a bright crystal chandelier, there is an impressive square dining table. At a glance, the marble tabletop is dazzlingly shiny and can accommodate as many as eight people.

The head of the table was empty; Old Song and the nanny sat on one side, and Zhang Shutong and Gu Qiumian sat on the other.

Dinner was very plentiful:
The milky white crucian carp soup, lotus root and pork ribs, stuffed green peppers, and crystal meatballs were served in small portions, but all were meat dishes.

The continuous autumn rain is indeed a carnivore's symptom.

The remaining two dishes were added later:
Stir-fried eggs with tomatoes and tofu with scallions.

Zhang Shutong muttered to himself:
How come her family's casual dinners are always better than the meals I eat at restaurants?
Even so, while serving soup to everyone, Aunt Wu, the nanny, apologized to Old Song:
"It's a bit simple, please forgive me."

Old Song quickly grabbed the soup spoon, saying that this was better than my meals for a week, and that restaurant dishes weren't this elaborate. He added that he was the one causing trouble for Old Song.

Zhang Shutong knew this was necessary courtesy, so he followed his mentor to express his gratitude and took the soup spoon from him.

"We also have to thank Qiu Mian; in a way, we both benefited from her influence." Old Song has extremely high emotional intelligence.

"I'm benefiting from your help." Zhang Shutong, with her high emotional intelligence, served Miss Gu a bowl of soup.

Gu Qiumian snorted, barely satisfied.

After some pleasantries, everyone picked up their chopsticks. Zhang Shutong picked up a crystal meatball, which was covered in glutinous rice and filled with minced meat mixed with water chestnuts. He had only seen it on his phone and had never eaten it in real life.

It was impossible to expect his mother to cook such laborious dishes. She only knew how to stew, and Zhang Shutong hated eating her stir-fries, which were either burnt or watery.

He then picked up a piece of stuffed green pepper, coated with a slightly sweet and savory sauce. The sauce was rich and flavorful, the green pepper was crisp, and the meat filling was soft and tender.

After a couple of bites, he no longer craved the duck noodle soup.

Sometimes you crave something simply because you haven't tasted anything better.

The only problem was that he and Gu Qiumian were a bit "fighting".

Zhang Shutong then realized that she was left-handed, and the girl was sitting to his right. The young lady's chopsticks were ceramic, looked expensive, and were heavy and long. The tips of their chopsticks had already touched twice.

Zhang Shutong moved the stool to the side, but she was still unhappy and glared at him.

Zhang Shutong continued to work hard to master the ceramic chopsticks. Sometimes, to judge whether a person is rich or poor, one should not look at external things such as cars, clothes, and bags, but rather at the smaller details of their life.

Take tableware for example. His family is quite well-off, but they never use tableware in sets. They just grab whatever they can find and use whatever they want. Sometimes it's a plate, sometimes a bowl, and sometimes a dish.

In contrast, at this dinner, each person had a soup bowl and a plate in front of them, as well as a small dish for spitting out bones.

These items and the serving dishes are a complete set, with a blue glaze and delicate patterns, and even the chopsticks and spoons complement each other perfectly.

Zhang Shutong discovered several similar sets of tableware while washing dishes that day.

And the chandelier overhead—Zhang Shutong initially thought it was a bit too bright, but who would have thought that the retro-craft-like thing could actually be adjusted in brightness and even had a matching small remote control.

The light was warm and gentle, and the glaze on the tableware shimmered with a translucent luster. Exquisite, yet it didn't overshadow the food's natural colors. As Zhang Shutong ate his rice, he thought to himself, "The autumn rain is usually unassuming, but in reality, we're all very far apart, living in two different worlds."

The meal was eaten very quickly.

Although the nanny was a very good cook, he was not materialistic and would only take a small bite of even the most delicious food. Therefore, he put down his chopsticks after eating only six or seven tenths of his fullness.

Old Song wanted to eat but couldn't. He muttered that he should have just eaten those three grilled sausages to fill his stomach.

Gu Qiu Mian didn't eat much today, just sipped her soup.

The nanny went to the kitchen to wash the dishes, so the three of them moved to the living room.

Gu Qiumian asked them if they wanted tea or coffee, and Old Song waved his hand:
"You should get some rest, I won't bother you anymore. Besides, I still need to take Shutong home, right, Shutong?" As he spoke, he turned his head, "Wait, where is she?"

But he discovered that his beloved student had vanished without a trace.

Zhang Shutong is studying the door of the villa.

The front door was equipped with a combination lock that could be opened by card or fingerprint, so Zhang Shutong felt that it was unlikely to be breached from the front.

There is also a side door—the villa's balcony has a huge floor-to-ceiling window that faces the backyard.

A small sliding door was opened next to the floor-to-ceiling window.

There was a corridor outside, where he used to talk to Qingyi on the phone. Zhang Shutong turned the lock on the door and bent down to look at the lock cylinder.

If it's locked, it can't be opened from the outside.

But in terms of sturdiness, it certainly can't compare to a security door.

Did they forget to lock the door that night?
A solid wood platform was laid under the floor-to-ceiling window. He kicked off his slippers and stepped on it, making almost no sound.

"What are you doing, you little rascal?"

At that moment, a silent voice rang out.

Looking back, he saw Lao Song and Gu Qiumian staring at him in confusion.

Zhang Shutong said he wanted to visit the various places. It was his first time here, and he was curious.

"Hey, are you coming or not?" Old Song grinned.

"No rush, please sit down for a while and have some water."

Zhang Shutong casually replied and then ran to the elevator.

"Qiu Mian, look at this kid, he really doesn't think he's an outsider." Old Song crossed his legs and chuckled.

Gu Qiumian pretended not to hear and asked impatiently, "What do you want to drink? I'll go get it."
"I'm not drinking anything, don't worry about me, hurry up and show him around, the sooner we go, the sooner we'll be back."

Gu Qiumian sighed upon hearing this, saying that he was such a troublesome person.

As she said this, she walked a few steps to the elevator, put her hands behind her back, and blinked.
"What trouble are you causing now?"

"Can we go up and take a look?"

Gu Qiumian nodded and pressed the door open button.

The two entered the elevator, but Zhang Shutong paid attention to the noise of the elevator in operation. As expected of a high-end model designed for villas, it was almost silent, only making a sound when the elevator doors opened and closed.

They arrived on the second floor and stepped into the long, narrow corridor covered with a dark carpet. Gu Qiumian said there were three rooms on this floor: her bedroom, a music room, and a guest room.

"Where's your father?"

He's on the third floor.

Well, Zhang Shutong couldn't understand the quirks of wealthy families; the whole family didn't even live on the same floor.

It is said that some expensive wool carpets have sound-absorbing properties, and even if they don't, this floor has been specially soundproofed. The two walked through the quiet corridor, and even the sound of their footsteps was completely absorbed.

Zhang Shutong walked ahead, pretending to wander aimlessly, but actually heading towards Gu Qiumian's room.

He hadn't gone more than a couple of steps when Gu Qiumian called out to him.

"what happened?"

"That's my room, you're not allowed to go there!" she scolded.

"When I parked earlier, I saw a window from the front door. Was it in your room?"

Zhang Shutong thought for a moment and then said:
“When I was at the police station today, I heard the police say that Zhou Ziheng’s father originally wanted to call people to come to your house to cause damage. I was wondering which way they would start without being discovered.”

"Alright then." Gu Qiumian hesitated for a moment before slowly saying, "But you are only allowed to look from the doorway."

Zhang Shutong readily agreed, then stepped aside to let Gu Qiumian walk ahead. When they reached the door, she reminded her again:
"You're not allowed to go in."

Why would I go into your room if I have nothing better to do...?

Zhang Shutong thought helplessly.

Then Gu Qiumian pushed open the door and turned on the light.

As the lights came on, the first thing that caught my eye was a floor-to-ceiling window, which turned out to be a balcony with a terrace covered in a layer of snow.

Zhang Shutong remembered that Gu Qiumian had poked her head out from the second floor and spoken to her that night. It turned out she had been speaking from the terrace.

Behind the floor-to-ceiling window was a desk, its surface neat and tidy, with stationery, documents, and some girl's figurines on it.

He wasn't interested in Gu Qiumian's personal belongings and was about to ask if the terrace was locked when he heard her exclaim "Ah!" Zhang Shutong was startled again, thinking there was an emergency. Before he could react, Gu Qiumian hurriedly pushed him aside, rushed into the house, and slammed the door shut.

what's the situation?
Is my low blood sugar acting up again?

Zhang Shutong was completely dumbfounded.

(End of this chapter)