Chapter 17
Fu Jingqiu seemed somewhat surprised as well. He lifted his eyes and glanced at him. Their gazes met for around ten seconds, and for some reason, Jiang Qingyu felt even more awkward, so embarrassed he almost wanted to dig his toes into the floor.
Fu Jingqiu said, “A little. Is there anything I can help with?”
Jiang Qingyu quickly waved his hand. “No, no need. You’re, um, still injured. Rest first. I’ll be done soon.”
But Fu Jingqiu still looked as though he wanted to come over and help, so Jiang Qingyu could only say, “There isn’t much space here. I’m familiar with all these things. You mean well, but your good intentions might end up causing trouble.”
Seeing the slightly dejected look on the other man’s face, Jiang Qingyu could not help adding, “It’s fine. I’ve made all these many times before. I’ll be quick. You’re injured right now.”
Only after hearing this did Fu Jingqiu stop insisting, though he still said thank you again.
The living room and kitchen inside the small RV were connected. Jiang Qingyu did not want to make anything too complicated. Considering Fu Jingqiu still had wounds on his body, he did not use seafood and instead made a pot of green vegetable congee with deboned meat.
Besides that, there were two baskets of beef paper-thin shumai, a large basin of stir-fried steamed bun with beef and glass noodles, and a dish of tofu skin in chicken soup.
Jiang Qingyu thought to himself that with Fu Jingqiu’s build, he definitely was not someone who only ate a little. On top of that, this person had probably only drunk water from this morning until now, so he must be very hungry. Jiang Qingyu therefore made the portions a bit larger.
He moved very quickly. Once the delicious food was served, the booth seating was tidied up again, and the two of them sat down.
Meimei had been placed by Jiang Qingyu in the bedroom and would not be interacting with Fu Jingqiu for now. Although the space was a little small, they could still sit. Jiang Qingyu calmly picked up his chopsticks while secretly observing the person sitting opposite him.
His eyes were very clean. Judging by his appearance, he was the kind of person who looked very upright. It was just that no one knew what he had encountered. Between his originally resolute brows, there was a trace of desolation, and seeing it made Jiang Qingyu feel oddly uncomfortable.
This person, Fu Jingqiu—what exactly had happened to him?
Could it be that his teammates had abandoned him?
He tried to analyze it rationally.
Fu Jingqiu had come from the direction of the depths of the desert. At the time, his condition had not been good. Together with the fact that he had cut himself, it was very possible that he had done it to keep himself awake.
If the people in that RV were people he knew, Jiang Qingyu could not imagine why they would leave him alone in the desert.
Besides, that place was an uninhabited area. Out of basic humanitarianism, even if some earth-shattering conflict had occurred and they had to part ways, they should at least have left him by the roadside.
Unless this was an utterly vicious person.
But looking at him, he did not seem like one.
Jiang Qingyu was lost in thought and unconsciously stared at Fu Jingqiu for quite a while, until the other man noticed his overly probing gaze and looked over in slight confusion. Only then did Jiang Qingyu come back to himself and hurriedly say, “Eat more, eat more. Tell me if it’s not enough.”
Fu Jingqiu really had been starving. Although his table manners were not crude, most of the pot of congee entered his stomach. Most of the shumai and stir-fried steamed bun were also finished by him, while Jiang Qingyu himself did not eat much.
He finished first, went to the refrigerator to get a cup of juice, and drank while playing on his phone. Taking advantage of the gaps, he continued buying things and sending them to his next destination. The shipments would be sent out one after another, and by the time he arrived there, he could sign for them.
After Fu Jingqiu finished the food, he stood up and took the initiative to say, “I’ll wash the dishes.”
Jiang Qingyu lifted his head following his movement. Seeing him slightly bend at the waist and lower his head to look at him, he immediately felt a little embarrassed. “Exactly how tall are you?”
Fu Jingqiu said, “189. Why?”
“Nothing.” Jiang Qingyu muttered, “So much taller than me.” He beckoned to him. “I have a dishwasher here. You don’t need to do it by hand. Besides, I saw that your hands are injured too, so don’t touch water.”
Fu Jingqiu gave a soft “mm” and did not insist. He sat back down and thanked him again.
If he had pushed his luck and spouted nonsense, Jiang Qingyu could have instead righteously driven him out of the vehicle with peace of mind. But he was courteous and polite, thanking him every time he opened his mouth. Such a big man holding several bowls and saying he wanted to help with chores instead made Jiang Qingyu feel both amused and helpless.
Jiang Qingyu quickly and neatly put the tableware into the dishwasher, then returned to the booth seating. Fu Jingqiu had already wiped the table clean, looking as if he were prepared for battle.
This scene made Jiang Qingyu’s eyelid twitch. He had a feeling that the other man might be about to explain some things.
Sure enough, after Jiang Qingyu sat back down, Fu Jingqiu took the initiative and said, “Is there anything you want to ask me?”
…What a strange opening line.
Jiang Qingyu scratched his cheek. “Actually, I’m just a little curious. Of course, this is personal privacy, so if you don’t want to say it, it doesn’t matter. As long as you didn’t do anything bad, the rest isn’t that important to me.”
Hearing him say that, a faint smile appeared on Fu Jingqiu’s face, almost too subtle to notice. But it lasted only a second or two before quickly disappearing.
He said, “You’re saying it so bluntly. Aren’t you afraid I really am a bad person?”
What good person, bad person? His tone sounded a little like he was talking about a fairy tale.
Jiang Qingyu was a little confused. “So are you? Let me say this first—my vehicle is parked right across from the police station.”
Fu Jingqiu looked as if he wanted to laugh again.
What was he laughing at? He had not said anything wrong.
“I’m not.”
Thank heavens, Fu Jingqiu finally spoke seriously.
He stared into Jiang Qingyu’s eyes and calmly stated, “My phone, ID card, bank cards, and everything else that can prove my identity have all been taken away. But I promise you, I have not done anything illegal or anything that violates public order and morality.”
If some other stranger said this, Jiang Qingyu might not necessarily believe them. But when these words came from Fu Jingqiu’s mouth, they were highly credible.
There was no helping it. This person looked too righteous. Ordinary people did not have this kind of bearing. It was not as if Jiang Qingyu was ignorant of the ways of the world; at least this much, he could still see.
Jiang Qingyu thought for a moment. “Were you ever a soldier?”
Fu Jingqiu seemed surprised that he would ask this, but still nodded. “Yes. I was once a soldier.”
As expected.
And judging by Jiang Qingyu’s impression, Fu Jingqiu might even have once been a soldier of fairly high rank. It could be seen from the way he spoke and carried himself.
It was just that he was so young, so why was he already using “once”?
This made Jiang Qingyu very puzzled. But in the end, it was someone else’s private matter, so it was not appropriate to ask further. He stopped there and pulled the topic back.
Now that the other party’s identity had been laid out, Jiang Qingyu no longer hid anything either. In a few brief words, he told him exactly what he had seen last night and what he had thought at the time.
After hearing it, Fu Jingqiu could not help sighing. “I really was lucky.”
Most people would not meddle in this kind of affair. Even if they saw it, they would not think too much about it, much less follow to confirm someone’s safety.
And after failing to see the vehicle, to even turn back and confirm things—he was truly kind-hearted and responsible.
Being praised by him made Jiang Qingyu’s face feel a little hot. After all, the vehicle had not been driven by him. All he had done was stay up through the night.
Accepting the praise made him feel a little guilty, but he also could not talk about the RV system. So he simply changed the topic again and asked, “So, were the people in that white RV people you knew?”
Fu Jingqiu hesitated for a long while before saying, “They are… my family.”
Jiang Qingyu’s eyes instantly widened. “What?”
Seeing Fu Jingqiu look as if it was hard to speak about, Jiang Qingyu had originally been wondering whether he had asked too much. He had not expected the other man’s answer to be this.
He shot up from his seat. “What does that mean? Don’t they know that if they left you in that place, you very likely wouldn’t make it back alive?”
Fu Jingqiu said calmly, “They know.”
“…” Jiang Qingyu was instantly choked silent.
Of course. Any normal person would know that.
Jiang Qingyu also remembered something else and hesitated slightly. “When I saw you at the time, you seemed groggy, and your condition was very poor. Was it because, um…”
He found it a little hard to continue.
It was so strange. Was he supposed to directly ask Fu Jingqiu whether someone had fed him sleeping pills or something else?
Fu Jingqiu’s social manners were clearly very good. When he spoke, he kept looking into Jiang Qingyu’s eyes. Seeing this, he seemed to guess the unspoken meaning behind his words and said without holding anything back, “Your guess is correct. I was indeed drugged.”
Jiang Qingyu let out an “ah.” “Then do you want to go to the hospital for a checkup? It should still be possible now.”
“No need.” Fu Jingqiu said, “I should know what the other party gave me. After tonight, it should be almost fully metabolized.”
Jiang Qingyu once again did not quite know what to say. He slowly sat back down, his expression somewhat blank.
Mainly, Fu Jingqiu’s attitude was very strange.
He seemed to understand everything clearly, yet he was unmoved by his family’s betrayal.
Earlier, Jiang Qingyu had already felt that he seemed terribly desolate. After being saved, he did not show the joy of surviving a disaster that one might imagine. Aside from politeness, there was only faint melancholy.
Looking at his current attitude, he did not even seem to have any intention of pursuing the matter.
This was a society ruled by law… huh? No, wait.
If he really had been betrayed by his family, and there were no cameras in that place, then with insufficient evidence, there would be no way to convict anyone, right?
That was… somewhat upsetting.
Jiang Qingyu scratched his ears and cheeks, unable to think of any good solution. In his heart, he also faintly felt frustrated at Fu Jingqiu for not living up to expectations—those people had tried to harm him, so why was he still unmoved? Did he not plan to fight back at all???
Fu Jingqiu met his gaze, as if he could see through everything. “Yes, there is no evidence. Even an upright official finds it difficult to settle family matters. They are two people, there are no eyewitnesses, and it would be treated as a family dispute, with mediation as the main approach.”
Jiang Qingyu’s lips moved, as if he wanted to say something.
Fu Jingqiu immediately continued, “It’s no use. After all, you didn’t see the whole thing happen. Your testimony would be invalid.”
Jiang Qingyu scratched his hair. “How do you know everything I’m thinking?”
Fu Jingqiu said, “It’s not hard to guess.” Many of his thoughts were written directly on his face.
Jiang Qingyu looked at him with a complicated expression. “You’re so calm.”
Fu Jingqiu said, “Because when I first woke up, I had already thought everything through.”
Even then, he should still have some emotions.
But Fu Jingqiu’s current state looked more like his heart had turned completely cold.
Jiang Qingyu thought for a moment. “Then do you need a tree hole right now?”
