Chapter 31.3

Honestly, when she opened the door and saw Lu Yan’s pig-like face, she was a bit shocked.

Lu Yang didn’t hold back at all.

The injuries were real.

Ruan Mingfu hadn’t expected Lu Yang to be so serious, not sparing any effort.

Huh, is this really an older brother?

But seeing Lu Yan stubbornly sticking out his neck with a rebellious look, Ruan Mingfu truly felt the beating was well deserved.

For someone like Lu Yan, he needed to be given good thrashing.

Ruan Mingfu added a final jab. “Comrade Lu, it’s better not to. Even if he’s willing to apologize, I don’t want to accept it.”

It’s unclear what Lu Yang threatened him with, but Lu Yan stopped making a fuss.

She shot him a glare.

She was about to pour out a whole bottle of oil, but she heard Lu Yang’s cold voice.

“Stop making a scene. Apologize to Ruan Mingfu now, or I’ll bring my sister-in-law over tomorrow.”

When Lu Yan heard this, his eyes flickered with struggle.

After a long time, as if resigned to his fate, he sighed and said in a low, gruff voice, “I was wrong yesterday. I hope Comrade Ruan can forgive me.”

Ruan Mingfu stared at him for a long time.

It was only when Lu Yan was about to lose his temper that she finally withdrew her gaze.

“Alright,” Ruan Mingfu said. She didn’t understand why Lu Yang insisted on her forgiveness but didn’t want to deal with the Lu family any longer. “The matter is settled, and the apology has been made. You can leave now.”

“Comrade Ruan, I’ll drive you to the train station the day after tomorrow.”

Ruan Mingfu really didn’t want to see the Lu family anymore.

“No need. I have someone to take me.”

Lu Yang thought for a moment before continuing, “Comrade Ruan, take care of yourself…”

Before he could finish, Ruan Mingfu closed the door.

Ugh, so annoying!

She glanced at the envelope in her hand when Xie Yanzhao walked out from the wardrobe, his deep gaze falling on the train ticket. “Are you leaving?”

“Yes,” Ruan Mingfu responded lightly, “I have to leave eventually, so it’s better to go early.”

She had obtained a visiting certificate from the brigade commander.

This document had a time limit. If she didn’t return by then, she would be classified as a vagrant. And the fate of vagrants was to be sent to remote agricultural farms for re-education.

If the man didn’t marry her and she couldn’t join the army, she naturally had to go back.

Xie Yanzhao: “…”

He had really forgotten about this.

Already feeling frustrated, Ruan Mingfu’s words felt like a stab to his heart.

Xie Yanzhao pressed his lips together, wanting to say something but unsure how to start. His hands clenched tightly, struggling to contain the growing desire within him, almost bursting out.

“I’ll leave first.”

He left those words behind and quickly ran away.

Ruan Mingfu: “…”

Tsk, this is what men are like~

*

After all the commotion, the sun had risen. Ruan Mingfu, now unable to sleep, decided to change into a dress and go downstairs.

As she reached the second floor, she saw the landlady sitting at a table with a troubled expression.

Having scolded the man earlier, Ruan Mingfu felt somewhat better.

She brought a bowl of porridge over and said, “Good morning, comrade.”

The landlady looked at her mechanically, slowly responding.

“Morning.”

Ruan Mingfu ate the porridge in small bites. Her appetite was remarkably good.

“Comrade Ruan, you can still eat?”

The landlady’s face was pale, and she couldn’t help but admire Ruan Mingfu’s mental fortitude at such a young age. Unlike her, in her forties, still so afraid.

Her hands were trembling.

“What’s wrong?” Ruan Mingfu said, looking at her in confusion.

Seeing her bewildered expression, the landlady’s thoughts shifted, and she blurted out, “You must not know, right?”

Ruan Mingfu was even more puzzled.

“Know what?”

The landlady sighed in relief, unsure whether to continue.

Still, Ruan Mingfu was curious. “Old… comrade, what exactly happened?”

The landlady’s face grew even paler.

“Do you remember the mother and daughter I told you about yesterday?”

Ruan Mingfu nodded.

The impression was so strong that she couldn’t forget. She had even met them briefly; how could she forget after just one night?

The landlady sighed again.

“This morning, they found the mother had already died.”

When she found them, the body was already cold. Recalling that scene made the landlady’s face even whiter.

Ruan Mingfu lost her grip.

The spoon fell into the porridge, splashing some rice soup onto her delicate hand. Fortunately, the porridge was warm, so she didn’t have to worry about burns.

“How could this happen?”

When she saw the mother and daughter yesterday, they were thin but in decent health. How could they have…

As if knowing what Ruan Mingfu was thinking, the landlady continued.

“She committed suicide.”

Ruan Mingfu was truly shocked.

“Why? The husband’s pension was in hand, and they were about to have a good life…”

“It’s not that simple,” the landlady said, showing some patience as she spoke with Ruan Mingfu. “You young folks still have a lot to learn. Don’t forget how they ended up like this. Even with the pension, the mother and daughter had to return to their hometown.”

Those relatives dared to bully them because the mother’s family had no one, and she had only given birth to a daughter.

The mother and daughter couldn’t stay in the military.

But going back meant falling into the hands of those predatory relatives.

Their situation would be worse than before.

Now that the mother is dead, the daughter becomes an orphan. The military would definitely take over. They would at least arrange for reliable foster parents, and with the pension left behind, the daughter would be able to grow up safely.

The mother was seeking a path for her daughter even in death.

The landlady felt some sentimentality at this point.

The mother was strong-willed but had bad luck, encountering a pack of wolves.

Ruan Mingfu’s heart trembled.

To reach such an extreme, they must have felt there was no other way. Otherwise, who would gamble their life away for an uncertain future?

“Then… what about the child?”

“Poor thing,” the landlady sighed again. “The child kept crying and couldn’t be consoled. Afraid of something happening, they sent the child to the hospital.”

Ruan Mingfu pressed her lips together.

Suddenly, she understood the man a bit better.

It was understandable that Xie Yanzhao had such concerns. Even if she had encountered such a situation herself, she probably wouldn’t have handled it any better than that mother.

Ruan Mingfu looked at the bowl of porridge in front of her and suddenly lost her appetite.

“Marrying a soldier is like this. It’s really tough.” the landlady said, looking at Ruan Mingfu. “By the way, don’t you have a soldier you’re engaged to? How’s that going? Are you still planning to get married?”

Ruan Mingfu: “…”

She was feeling very confused right now and didn’t know what to do.