Chapter 166

Chapter 166

Wang Qinghe tied one end of the rope to an old willow tree nearby and held the middle part himself, providing a double safety measure.

"Wang Ge, I'll go down first?" Xiao Zhang looked at the green water, feeling a bit uneasy, but he was reassured by the presence of the rope.

"Okay." Wang Qinghe gripped the rope even tighter to prevent any slippage.

Bai Xiuxiu stood nearby, keeping watch to make sure no one saw them, as that would render their efforts futile.

After Xiao Zhang went down, he resurfaced less than a minute later.

He shook his head at Wang Qinghe and Bai Xiuxiu. "I didn't see anything here; I'll check over there."

The pond was not small, deep, and stagnant, making it unsafe to stay in for too long.

Wang Qinghe pulled Xiao Zhang back up and moved to another spot.

After repeating this process more than ten times, Bai Xiuxiu began to doubt whether she had guessed wrong when Xiao Zhang finally found something.

Xiao Zhang swam up, his face beaming with excitement. "Wang Ge, Sister-in-Law, there really seems to be something down there—it's a large box."

The hiding spot was quite tricky; the box was nestled among a pile of tree roots at the bottom of the pond.

If someone wasn't looking carefully, they wouldn't find it.

"I'll go down again, Wang Ge, make sure you hold the rope tight."

With that, Xiao Zhang dove back in.

Using the position he had identified earlier, Xiao Zhang quickly retrieved the object, and Wang Qinghe swiftly pulled him back up.

"Cough, cough!"

Once on shore, Xiao Zhang tossed the box aside and started coughing violently.

It was a box made of yellow pear wood, adorned with traditional longevity patterns.

Due to prolonged exposure to water, the box had somewhat deteriorated.

The lock was golden, indicating its value.

"This looks like something from a wealthy household. Wang Ge, Sister-in-Law, should we take it with us?"

Xiao Zhang was shocked; he had come here just for fun, never expecting to find anything.

He wondered where Wang Ge got the information, but decided not to ask, knowing it would be inappropriate.

"Alright, let's go back."

Wang Qinghe and Xiao Zhang tied the box to Xiao Zhang's bicycle, while Wang Qinghe carried Bai Xiuxiu on his own bike.

"You go to my place first; Xiuxiu and I will pick up the kids." Wang Qinghe said before leaving.

Xiao Zhang was stunned. "Wang Ge, aren't you worried...?"

Before he could finish, Wang Qinghe had already left with Bai Xiuxiu.

Xiao Zhang secured the box and headed to Bai Xiuxiu's house.

Meanwhile, when Bai Xiuxiu and Wang Qinghe returned to pick up the children, it was just getting dark.

Jinhua Auntie and Miao Miao were chatting in the Women's Federation office, while Liu Xiaohui had hurried home.

Seeing Bai Xiuxiu and Wang Qinghe arrive, Chen Jinhua was surprised. "Xiuxiu, where have you been?

When I came back, Miao Miao said you had gone out on some errand without the kids. Did something happen?"

Chen Jinhua looked at the couple with concern.

The two children ran over to Bai Xiuxiu and Wang Qinghe from Miao Miao.

Miao Miao, seeing her return, quickly said, "I've been waiting for you, Xiuxiu Jiejie. I'm heading home now."

"Thank you today, Miao Miao. I'll bring you something to eat next time!"

Bai Xiuxiu expressed her gratitude.

After Miao Miao left, Bai Xiuxiu wanted to explain to Chen Jinhua.

"Auntie, I..." Bai Xiuxiu was about to give an excuse.

But Wang Qinghe interjected: "Auntie, I asked Xiuxiu to help clean a friend's house who was moving.

I switched shifts in the afternoon, and Xiuxiu rushed back to the county to meet me.

We couldn't bring the kids along while working."

Wang Qinghe provided an explanation.

Chen Jinhua felt relieved. "That’s good; nothing happened. Oh, Xiuxiu, when I went to the commune's Women's Federation today to report to Director Wang, I mentioned you.

She was very impressed with you.

And there is actually a suitable job for you. It's just..."

Chen Jinhua hesitated.

"How is it, Auntie? We can speak frankly between us." Bai Xiuxiu was also feeling uneasy, wondering if there was an issue.

"No, I reported your work to Director Wang and mentioned that you have a good education. Director Wang also felt it was a waste for you to be in the village.

However, there are no vacancies at the Women's Federation of the commune. I was about to leave.

Then Director Wang suggested a position at the street office.

It's in the county, where Director Wang's aunt is the head of the street office, overseeing their area. Recently, one of her young staff members moved to the Women's Federation.

So there's an open position now.

The area overseen by Director Wang's aunt has many issues and is quite chaotic.

She's extremely busy, so she wants to find someone suitable this time to help with the workload and reduce the burden on their street.

I mentioned that you're already living in the county, so it would be perfect if you could take the job.

Director Wang agreed to discuss it with her aunt, who will review your recent work before making a decision."

After Chen Jinhua finished speaking, she still felt uncertain.

After all, how far had they gone to ask for this favor?

Bai Xiuxiu hadn't expected such an opportunity either.

"Auntie, regardless of whether this works out, we owe you a great debt of gratitude," Wang Qinghe said gratefully.

"What are you talking about? You've helped me so much too. Without your help, my sister would still be struggling.

How could she be as comfortable as she is now?

It's getting late; you two should go home. I need to head back as well."

Chen Jinhua hurriedly packed up her things.

Bai Xiuxiu and Wang Qinghe then took the children home.

When they arrived, Xiao Zhang had been waiting for a while. He stood in the courtyard wearing only a sweater, his coat draped over the bicycle seat, covering the box.

Seeing them return, Xiao Zhang's tense mood finally eased a bit.

"Brother Wang, Sister-in-law, you're finally back. I've been waiting for a long time, feeling quite nervous!"

Xiao Zhang pushed the bicycle over, waiting for them to open the courtyard gate.

Once inside, Bai Xiuxiu first put the children in their room and brought out some snacks from her space.

Then she joined her husband and Xiao Zhang to open the box.

The golden lock on the box was also valuable, and they didn't want to damage it.

After studying it for a while, they finally managed to remove the lock.

Upon opening the box, the contents nearly blinded the three of them.

Xiao Zhang's eyes widened, and his mouth gaped wide enough to swallow an egg.

Staring at the box, he almost couldn't speak.

"This... Brother Wang, Sister-in-law, are we dreaming?"