Time Travel: My Comfortable Life After Going to the Countryside

Liu Xiangyang took out the envelope containing his salary and some receipts and handed it to Xue Bingbing. "From now on, you'll be my housekeeper."

Upon hearing the words "housekeeper," Xue Bingbing rushed over with tears in her eyes, jumped into his arms, hugged his neck, and gave him a sweet kiss.

"Why are you so excited?" Liu Xiangyang asked, holding Xue Bingbing in his arms.

"I'm so happy," Xue Bingbing buried her face in the crook of his neck, her voice muffled and nasal, but she hugged him even tighter.

"From childhood to adulthood, no one has ever given me a home to manage. Now that you're saying this, it means you're handing over your home and yourself to me."

She looked up, her eyes still red, but her gaze was surprisingly bright as she looked straight into Liu Xiangyang's eyes: "This envelope."

"Xiangyang, I will take good care of this family and you too."

Liu Xiangyang's heart burned with desire. He tightened his grip on her arm, deliberately rubbing his chin against her smooth forehead, and chuckled, "So, does that mean I'll have to hand over my salary on time to get pocket money, my dear boss?"

Xue Bingbing burst into laughter through her tears and gently punched him: "That depends on how you perform! But..." Her voice softened, her fingers unconsciously tugging at his collar, "But what makes me even happier is that you make me feel like I have roots here, that I'm no longer drifting. We are truly a family now."

"We've been family for a long time," Liu Xiangyang said, his joking expression fading as he looked at her seriously. "We've been family since the moment I sat next to you on the train, and we always have."

Xue Bingbing didn't say anything more, but just leaned back into his arms until she smelled something burning.

"Oops, the food's burnt!"

Xue Bingbing suddenly jumped up from his arms, her tenderness instantly replaced by panic, and turned to run to the kitchen.

She ran to the door, then remembered something, turned back, wrinkled her nose at Liu Xiangyang, but couldn't hide the smile in her eyes: "It's all your fault! You had to say those things, making me forget there were still vegetables in the pot!"

Liu Xiangyang watched her back and followed with a smile. Fortunately, there wasn't much smoke in the kitchen. Xue Bingbing had already used a rag to support her hands and lifted the iron pot off the stove. The edges of the cabbage in the pot were indeed a bit black and wilted.

Xue Bingbing looked at the food in the pot and glared at Liu Xiangyang with a hint of annoyance.

"Looks like the housekeeper of my Liu family is starting her first fire quite well," Liu Xiangyang joked, leaning closer to her and peering into the pot.

"You're still laughing! I'll make another one."

"It's alright," Liu Xiangyang said, taking the chopsticks from her hand and picking out the edible parts from the pot.

"If the housekeeper burns the food, doesn't the head of the household have to eat it too? That's called sharing the good times and the bad times."

"You're always talking nonsense. Let's eat." Xue Bingbing smiled and lightly punched him.

"Remember not to eat too much later."

"You just called me a housekeeper, and now you won't even let me eat my fill?"

"Because I'm going to give you lots of milk later!" Liu Xiangyang said with a mischievous grin.

That evening, Xue Bingbing drank seven or eight bottles of milk, which made up for her regret of not having eaten enough for dinner.

The next morning, before dawn.

Liu Xiangyang stood on the kang (a heated brick bed) and watched Xue Bingbing sit up and clean the kang.

"Don't get up, just rest. You must be exhausted. Let's see if you'll ever try to be strong again. I can set off by myself," Liu Xiangyang said as he put on his clothes.

"Hmm, I can't hold on any longer, so I'm going to sleep now. I've left all my things there for you." Xue Bingbing fell asleep as soon as her head hit the pillow.

Liu Xiangyang put his luggage on the back of his bicycle, tied it up, locked the gate from the outside, and then rode his bicycle toward the county town.

When I was still a block away from the bus station, I found a quiet spot, stored my bicycle in my spatial storage, and walked to the bus station empty-handed. I bought a ticket to Harbin and boarded the bus.

The seats weren't full yet, so I found a window seat and started catching up on sleep.

When the car arrived at the Harbin bus station, it was noon. Liu Xiangyang, who had slept for a few hours, was full of energy again.

As Liu Xiangyang walked out of the station, carrying a small package containing smoked meat, he was about to ask someone for directions to the Municipal Bureau when he looked up and his gaze froze.

Amidst the bustling crowds at the station square, beneath an old locust tree, stood a graceful figure in pale blue.

The well-tailored wool coat she wore accentuated her exceptionally tall and slender figure. With her head slightly tilted, she revealed her fair and charming profile and a graceful silhouette. Her gaze swept over her, and she looked at her with delight.

"Xiangyang, over here!" Chen Jie waved her hand, ran a few steps, then stopped and walked quickly toward him.

"Godmother, what are you doing here?" Liu Xiangyang took two steps to greet her and reached out to hold Chen Jie's hand. "You've been waiting for so long in this cold weather."

Chen Jie's hand was grasped, and she excitedly looked around. Finding that no one cared about them, she turned around and tightly grasped Liu Xiangyang's hand.

After a long pause, he said, "I heard about the patrol officer training a few days ago, so I went to inquire about it and found your name on the training list. I guessed you would come a day early, and I was worried you wouldn't have anywhere to go, so I came to pick you up."

"Godmother, you're being too reckless. What if I only come tomorrow? Wouldn't I have been freezing for nothing? What if I get frostbite?"

"Godmother guessed right, didn't she? Come on, let's go home. Is this all you brought?" Chen Jie was about to pull Liu Xiangyang away when she noticed that he was only carrying a small cloth bag.

"Uh, I thought it was just training, as long as you showed up, that was enough. I only brought you some smoked meat, but we'll give you everything else." Liu Xiangyang quickly made up an excuse.

"You're really clueless! A man can't do without a woman to take care of him. If your godmother doesn't come to pick you up today, you'll be freezing tonight."

"It's okay if you didn't bring it, your godmother will prepare something for you." Chen Jie took Liu Xiangyang's hand and led him towards the parking shed.

Here, take the car keys, let's go home.

Liu Xiangyang took the keys from Chen Jie, pushed the car out, and patted the back seat: "Godmother, get in the car."

After Chen Jie sat down comfortably, Liu Xiangyang got on his bike and rode towards Chen Jie's house.

"Godmother, put your hands in my pockets and hug me tight, that way your hands won't be cold," Liu Xiangyang said, turning around.

"Okay, so you do care about your godmother." Chen Jie put her hands in his pockets and hugged his waist, feeling like she was hugging a hot stove.

"Of course, women are meant to be cherished by men, especially a beauty like you, godmother."

Upon hearing this, Chen Jie recalled the last time, when Liu Xiangyang rode his bicycle and took her home, and then the two of them got drunk...

Chen Jie tightened her grip on Liu Xiangyang's waist, pressing her face against his back. "Well, then don't find me annoying in the future."

Chen Jie took a deep breath, feeling her mind filled with the taste of that night.