Chapter 11: Eyes Meeting

"Alright, time's up. Time to get to work." The woman abruptly changed the subject.

"My name is Lu Hao. What should I call you?"

"Just call me Xiaoyue."

As she spoke, she was already running out of the playground.

Lu Hao didn't think much more about it. After returning to his dormitory to wash up, he headed to the township government office.

That morning, six or seven uninvited guests suddenly descended upon the Poverty Alleviation Office. As soon as they entered, they ordered all the poverty alleviation files to be brought out, and then they began their inspection.

Strangely, everyone in the office except Lu Hao was incredibly nervous.

After listening for a while, Lu Hao realized this was a surprise inspection by the county's poverty alleviation audit team, focusing specifically on the documentation.

Song Bo, the office director, accompanied them throughout the entire process, but beads of cold sweat were streaming down his forehead.

Lu Hao had only just arrived at the office and was unfamiliar with many past affairs, but judging by Song Bo's expression, he could guess that the audit team had likely uncovered some serious issues.

As the auditors kept pressing with questions, Song Bo’s face grew increasingly pale, and he kept wiping his brow.

Niu Dashan, who was also present, was muttering under his breath, looking visibly agitated.

The surprise inspection lasted until the afternoon. Song Bo trailed behind the audit team, his lips parched from constant explaining.

As soon as the auditors boarded their vehicle and left, Song Bo hurried toward Zhao Gang's office. Things had taken a turn for the worse, and he needed to find a scapegoat immediately, or he would be the one finished.

Seeing Song Bo's actions, Niu Dashan’s face darkened, and he headed upstairs as well, though he went to the office of the Township Head, Li Haotian.

The remaining staff in the Poverty Alleviation Office began to whisper among themselves.

"Looks like the county audit team caught wind of something, otherwise they wouldn't have come for a surprise inspection."

"Someone is definitely going to be held responsible this time; after all, a lot of those files were faked."

"Who do you think is going to be the unlucky one? Niu or Song?"

Listening to these comments, Lu Hao realized there was a lot more to this situation than met the eye.

Anxing County was an impoverished area, and every year, significant sums of poverty alleviation funds were distributed to the various townships. It was impossible that corruption wasn't involved, and it seemed Fangshui Township had finally been targeted by the auditors.

After work, when Lu Hao returned to the township school, he ran into Xiaoyue at the gate once again.

"What a coincidence. What did you buy?" Lu Hao asked with a smile, noticing the bag in her hand.

"Just some vegetables and a tool to unclog the drain. My bathroom sink is blocked for some reason. By the way, do you know how to fix that? Could you come and help me clear it?" Xiaoyue asked, looking a bit embarrassed.

"Sure, I'll give it a try."

"You agreed so readily; anyone who didn't know you might think you had ulterior motives for coming to my place."

Seeing Xiaoyue laugh, Lu Hao felt his cheeks flush. "Don't talk nonsense. If you keep accusing me like that, I won't go."

"Alright, alright, I'm just teasing you. Let's go."

Xiaoyue smiled faintly and walked into the school with Lu Hao.

She didn't live in the school dormitory, but in a residential building built by the school years ago, where some teachers had bought apartments.

Once inside, Lu Hao found that her place was a two-bedroom apartment, nearly ninety square meters, with nice decor and all the necessary furniture and kitchen appliances.

The place was clean, and the living room carried a faint, pleasant fragrance—the same scent that lingered on Xiaoyue herself.

As they approached the bathroom, Lu Hao caught a whiff of a foul odor.

Seeing Xiaoyue about to open the door, Lu Hao stopped her. "Don't go in. I'll handle it; no need for you to get dirty."

"Then I'll leave it to you, thanks."

"It's nothing."

Lu Hao picked up the plunger Xiaoyue had bought and pushed open the bathroom door.

The drain was indeed blocked and backing up, filling the room with a terrible stench.

Just as he was about to start, he inadvertently caught sight of some of the woman's intimate apparel resting on the washing machine.

Lacy, hollowed-out, black leggings—very trendy and quite alluring.

Lu Hao stared for only a few seconds before the bathroom door suddenly swung open, giving him a start.

"I knew you'd be staring. Do you want me to give them to you?" Xiaoyue said teasingly.

"The bathroom is so small, and you left them in such an obvious spot; it would be hard not to notice," Lu Hao argued, his face burning red.

Xiaoyue rolled her eyes and gathered the clothes.

Lu Hao felt embarrassed; he felt like he always came out on the losing end of their verbal exchanges.

Ten minutes later, Lu Hao finally cleared the drain. The dirty water flowed away, and he helped clean the bathroom until it was spotless.

Once he finished, he realized he was covered in grime and smelled terrible.

"Damn it, how am I supposed to leave like this?"

Lu Hao cursed under his breath. He was disgusted with himself; if he left now, he would surely leave the apartment smelling just as bad.

He decided to strip off his shirt, rinse it under the faucet, and take a quick shower himself, planning to head home in his damp clothes afterward.

Just as he started showering, the bathroom door was suddenly pushed open.

"How's it going? If you can't fix it, forget it. If it really doesn't work, I'll find a professional tomorrow..."

Xiaoyue said as she walked in.

The next second, their eyes met.

Lu Hao was stunned. He tried to cover himself but couldn't cover everything, so he frantically turned around, presenting his back to her.

"You've already started showering... you really do treat my home like your own," Xiaoyue realized, her ears turning red, and she hurriedly shut the door.

Lu Hao’s face was beet red; he wished he could just vanish down the drain. He cursed his own stupidity for not locking the door.

He didn't even bother to check if he was properly cleaned, hurriedly wringing out his clothes and putting them back on before walking out.

Seeing Xiaoyue sitting on the sofa, Lu Hao didn't dare to look her in the eye. "I... I'm going to head off now to change my clothes."

"Oh? Still feeling shy?" Seeing his disheveled state, Xiaoyue couldn't help but burst into laughter.

Lu Hao felt even more awkward and bolted for the door.

"Hey! Once you've changed, remember to come back for dinner. I'll treat you to some meat-sauce noodles tonight."

"Alright!"

Lu Hao shouted back, running even faster.

Half an hour later, he returned to Xiaoyue's place. As soon as he entered, he was greeted by the rich aroma of meat sauce, which made the already hungry Lu Hao’s mouth water.

"Eat while it's hot. I also made some stir-fried tomato and eggs," Xiaoyue said, smiling as she greeted him and poured two glasses of juice.

Seeing that Xiaoyue acted as if nothing had happened, Lu Hao stopped feeling so embarrassed and began to eat.

The noodles were light yet savory, and the tomato and eggs were a perfect, salty complement. Everything tasted wonderful.

During the meal, Lu Hao looked around the apartment.

An oven, a bread maker, a juicer, and even a coffee machine—many things one would only expect to see in a big city were all here. They seemed somewhat out of place in the poverty-stricken Fangshui Township.

"Xiaoyue, you're not from this county, are you?" Lu Hao asked.

Just as he finished speaking, his phone rang. It was Fang Jing, which made Lu Hao instinctively tense up.

But thinking that there was nothing between him and Xiaoyue, he answered the call calmly.

"Lu Hao, I've finished transferring all my paperwork to the county middle school. I'll start teaching there tomorrow," Fang Jing said excitedly over the phone. "Now it's up to you. You must find a way to get promoted to a deputy section-level position. That's the only way my parents will approve of you, so we can get married and have a future together."