The first time he had seen her was on the kang bed in that courtyard.
"You saw me lying on the kang bed, but you didn't act? Did you already know there were explosives buried in the courtyard?"
Gu Zheng looked down at Song Ning and said, "I noticed Xiao Guang's fingers. He'd been handling explosives for years! They'd captured you, but they hadn't stationed more people in the courtyard. I figured they must have a backup plan, and I couldn't risk your safety!"
Only then did Han Xiao chime in from the front. "After Li Gang escorted you back to the village, he reported what had happened. When Boss heard it was a man and a woman, and that the woman had been carried back, he immediately grew suspicious! But your appearances and ages didn't match at all, so no one dared be certain! Disguises never occurred to us, either! The village-wide search afterward was just a cover so we could openly search the courtyard you were in."
Song Ning looked up at Gu Zheng again. "The kerosene lamp was so dim, and I was wearing a face mask. You weren't inside for long, either. How did you know it was me?"
Gu Zheng reached out and stroked her head.
"Your eyes! We only met eyes once, but a farm woman who'd been ill for years wouldn't have that calm yet intense emotion in her gaze! And... there were tears on your face when I came in. Zhou Yuanhang quickly wiped them away, but they still made me suspicious."
Song Ning smiled and stuck out her hand to give him a thumbs-up.
Gu Zheng simply pressed her hand back down and wrapped her in the military coat again.
"Then how did you recognize me this morning after they changed