Chapter 20: The Soldier Brother Came Again

“Captain, you’re back! Quickly, quickly, return to your place, don’t leave a trace.”

Silence instantly fell over Dorm 108.

Those reading, read.

Those practicing calligraphy, practiced.

Those doing push-ups, continued.

Everything was as before.

“I’m back, brothers.”

Zhou Xingze, driving through the night, returned to the military dormitory before nine o’clock.

He hummed a cheerful tune.

With a confident stride, he entered the dorm.

“Captain, you must be tired from your journey. Here’s some water, it’s just the right temperature.”

Xiao Jian, smiling slyly, offered a porcelain cup from the desk.

Zhou Xingze hadn’t even properly grasped the cup before he sensed something was amiss. It was already nine o’clock. In the past, these three would have been asleep like dead dogs. Why were they acting so strangely today?

“How did you know I was tired from my journey? Or did you three already know about my business?”

Sun Ming put down his book.

Zhao Weiguo stopped his pretense of doing push-ups.

“Captain, you’re so perceptive! Amazing!”

“Stop it. Since you all know, let’s save the talk and go to sleep.”

Zhou Xingze went to his bunk, bent down, took out his army green enamel basin, threw a towel over his shoulder, and was about to leave the room.

“Wait! That’s not very nice of you. When I was dating, I generously shared my experiences with you. Now it’s your turn, and you’re just stealing my hard-earned wisdom, then abandoning me. That’s not fair!”

Zhao Weiguo used reverse psychology.

“Yes, yes, that’s extremely unfair!”

“Captain, you have a girlfriend now, so you prioritize romance over friendship. I’m very disappointed in you!”

The three of them had clearly planned this, one after another, teasing him.

It was simply outrageous.

“You, each and every one of you, just you wait! After I wash up, we’ll have a long talk.”

Zhou Xingze, acting supremely confident, carried his basin and left.

Sun Ming watched his triumphant back and couldn’t help but exclaim.

“Tsk tsk tsk), a man with a girlfriend is different. He even walks with a different air. Old Zhao, don’t you think so?”

Zhao Weiguo leaned against his bed, missing his wife in the countryside.

He wasn’t sure if his name would be on the next housing allocation list.

He prayed that he would get a house this time, so he could bring his wife to the city to enjoy a better life.

Xiao Jian leaned close to Sun Ming, whispering, “Look, he’s feeling sentimental, missing his wife.”

………………………

“Sister, let me go this time. My leg is almost healed. You just recovered from a serious illness; you need more rest.”

Ruan Xiaohai dutifully picked up the hoe, acting like a responsible man, ready to shoulder the burden for the family.

“It takes a hundred days to recover from a bone injury. Be obedient, stay home and rest. You can go back to work when you’re fully recovered.”

Ruan Xiaotang took the hoe from his shoulder. “The brigade is organizing the digging of an irrigation ditch today; a hoe isn’t very useful. A shovel is more handy.”

She put down the hoe and picked up a shovel. Removing the blue scarf around her neck, she crouched down, covered her head with the scarf, and tied a secure knot under her chin.

She picked up the shovel and headed out the door.

Ruan Xiaohai tried to follow, but his mother stopped him.

Liu Guifang, with tears in her eyes, watched her daughter’s frail figure.

Her heart was filled with mixed emotions.

She looked at her daughter again and again, her heart aching.

“Mom, am I useless? I’m not a capable man at all.”

“Don’t talk nonsense. Listen to your sister. Wait until your leg is healed before going to work. Then the family will depend on you.”

Ruan Xiaohai gritted his teeth.

He raised his head with determination.

Ruan Xiaotang quickly arrived at the work site.

The foreman was shouting, assigning tasks to the villagers.

“You few go to the far west, starting from that big willow tree. You few go to the far east and clear away the rotten leaves.”

Immediately, someone was unhappy, complaining, “The west side is rocky, it’s much harder to dig than the soft yellow earth in the middle. That’s not fair.”

The foreman wasn’t deaf. “It’s comfortable lying in bed; if you don’t like it, go lie at home.”

“Xiaotang and the other girls, dig here.”

“Divide the work yourselves, one section per person, don’t fight.”

“The person who does the best work on this irrigation ditch today gets an extra pound of good pork.”

Hearing this reward, the villagers immediately started digging with renewed vigor, competing for that extra pound of pork.

From east to west, the sides of the ditch were lined with people, men, women, and children, working diligently.

Ruan Xiaotang got a three-meter-long section with relatively soft soil.

Each shovelful was easy.

Next to her was Ruan Xiaomei.

Her luck wasn’t as good as Ruan Xiaotang’s.

With one shovel, she hit a rock.

She had to squat down and dig out the rocks by hand, throwing them to the side.

After picking up a few rocks, her tender fingertips were cut, and blood flowed.

Ruan Xiaomei frowned in pain.

In those days, nobody paid attention to such minor details.

Women in those days wouldn’t cry over a small injury.

The women of that era were tough and hardworking.

If someone was too delicate, they would be looked down upon and wouldn’t be well-liked.

Ruan Xiaomei stubbornly sucked the blood from her fingertip, took out a white handkerchief, wrapped it up, and continued digging with renewed effort.

Her eyes kept glancing at Ruan Xiaotang. She wanted to surpass her, to dig faster and better.

She worked hard, the white handkerchief on her fingertip stained bright red with blood.

“Let me do it. Go rest in the shade over there.”

“Why are you here? Isn’t the army busy?”

Ruan Xiaotang looked up in surprise, meeting his gaze, then shyly lowered her eyes.

“Not busy.”

Zhou Xingze took the shovel from her.

He gently offered his strong arm to help her up.

He rolled up his clean shirt sleeves to his elbows. His wheat-colored forearm showed well-defined muscles. His large, strong hands effortlessly grasped the shovel handle. With a downward thrust of his 44-size army green rubber boots, he easily dug up a shovelful of earth. With a flick of his wrist, the shovel head lifted, and the earth was thrown to the side of the ditch.

It seemed like he wasn’t moving earth, but fluffy cotton.

He was a well-trained soldier.

In less than half an hour, he had dug a meter forward neatly.

His efficient and skilled work attracted the attention of many villagers.

Ruan Xiaomei was closest.

She saw every move he made.

At that moment, she understood the meaning of “heroic” and “handsome.”