Chapter 55: Late-night Visit

On the way back.

Su Yi and Xu Bin walked in front and behind, separated by a distance.

It was peaceful at first.

But as they were about to reach the dormitory building, Xu Bin suddenly quickened his pace and caught up, “Comrade Su, can I ask you something?”

Su Yi turned around and looked at him in surprise, “Comrade Xu, please go ahead.”

“Are you really dating Commander Zhou?”

“No.”

“Then would you be willing to be my partner?”

“No.”

“…”

Faced with Xu Bin’s sudden confession, Su Yi was taken aback. Without thinking, she instinctively blurted out a refusal.

Only after she said it did she realize it wasn’t very tactful.

But then again, she thought it was better to be direct and clear.

But she was truly puzzled. Did all men in this era act so directly? Or did all soldiers like to go straight for the goal?

Zhou Jinchuan was one thing.

She had only met Xu Bin two or three times, and they hadn’t exchanged many words.

It was just a coincidence that they had dinner together today.

How could he have such a thought?

Faced with Su Yi’s rejection, Xu Bin was stunned for a moment, then awkwardly nodded, “I understand. Be careful going upstairs.”

Su Yi pulled at the corner of her mouth, “Comrade Xu, thank you for your liking. I hope you find the right person soon.”

She couldn’t help but soften her words a bit.

After saying that, Su Yi went straight upstairs.

After returning, she turned on the light, changed her clothes and washed her face. Suddenly, she heard a knock on the door.

Who could it be at this hour?

Su Yi was startled and thought it was Xu Bin, who was being stubborn and came back to ask again.

She cautiously asked, “Who is it?”

There was a moment of silence outside the door.

Su Yi heard no response and her heart jumped, “I won’t open the door if you don’t speak.”

Just as she finished speaking, she heard two words from outside, “It’s me.”

Hearing that familiar voice, Su Yi was stunned.

Zhou Jinchuan?

……

An hour ago.

Zhou Jinchuan had just returned home when he saw Ye Xiaowu bring up a plate of steaming food.

“Uncle, this is dinner Sister Su made. Do you want to eat some?”

Zhou Jinchuan took a look. It was simple white rice with a side of fragrant fried tofu and a side of sweet and sour pork.

“Have you two eaten?”

“We’ve eaten. This is for Uncle.”

Zhou Jinchuan had only eaten a few bites in a hurry during his busy evening, and he was actually a little hungry now.

Seeing that the two children had eaten, he sat down and ate.

Ye Xiaowu, seeing that he was willing to eat the food Su Yi had made, happily brought over the photos.

“Uncle Zhou, you haven’t had a chance to look at the photos yet, have you?”

He handed the photos to Zhou Jinchuan.

Zhou Jinchuan glanced at the photos on the table, “You and Nuannuan look great.”

Ye Xiaowu grinned, “Uncle Zhou and Sister Su look good too. Sister Su helped us clean and cook this afternoon, and she forgot to take the photos when she left. Uncle Zhou, after you finish eating, why don’t you go out for a walk and drop them off for Sister Su?”

Zhou Jinchuan looked outside the door.

Although the rain had stopped, it was late. Going out for a walk?

But he still nodded in agreement, “Alright, you two go back to sleep. I’ll go drop them off later.”

Hearing this, Ye Xiaowu couldn’t help but let out a long sigh of relief.

He was worried sick all day long.

Zhou Jinchuan saw that it was getting late, so after finishing his meal, he didn’t bother to tidy up and went out with the photos.

When he reached the bottom of Su Yi’s dormitory building, he looked up and found that the lights were off.

Usually, when he passed by at this time, he could always see the lights on.

Could it be that she had already gone to sleep?

Zhou Jinchuan waited downstairs for a while, but the lights were still off, so he turned around and prepared to leave.

But just as he turned, he saw Su Yi walking out from the small path, with a man standing not far away.

He was watching her go upstairs.

Zhou Jinchuan squinted his eyes for a moment, and with the keen eyesight he had trained in the dark, he immediately recognized the man as Xu Bin.

How could they be coming back together?

After thinking for a moment, Zhou Jinchuan walked over.

Xu Bin was still staring at Su Yi’s back in a daze, when he suddenly saw someone approaching. He was about to leave, but then he recognized who it was!

“Commander Zhou, what are you doing here?”

Zhou Jinchuan said in a deep voice, “I’m going home. Why are you still here so late?”

Xu Bin stood at attention nervously, “Reporting to the Commander, I was just passing by, I’m going back now.”

Zhou Jinchuan looked at his face in the streetlight, “This isn’t training, there’s no need to be so serious.”

Xu Bin was confused by him and could only smile awkwardly.

Zhou Jinchuan looked at his profile, and didn’t see any dimples.

Could it be that the “Bin Ge” Su Yi mentioned wasn’t him?

This discovery made Zhou Jinchuan inexplicably relieved.

“It’s late, hurry back!”

Xu Bin, relieved to be dismissed, wished he could disappear on the spot.

After the man left, Zhou Jinchuan looked up at the second floor.

Seeing that the light was still on, he hesitated for a moment, then went upstairs.

After finally knocking on the door, the person on the other side immediately said, “Why are you here?”

Zhou Jinchuan looked around. In this weather, no one would linger outside.

He then took out an envelope from his pocket, “Xiaowu said you went back this afternoon and forgot to take the photos. He asked me to bring them to you.”

Su Yi suddenly understood. Seeing that he wasn’t leaving immediately,

She quickly opened the door, “Do you… want to come in and sit for a while?”

Zhou Jinchuan hummed in agreement and walked in.

Originally, when Su Yi lived alone, she thought the room was spacious enough.

Now that he came in, she suddenly felt like it was too small to turn around.

“Chief Zhou, please sit down. I’ll get you a glass of water.”

There was only one chair in the room, so Su Yi sat on the bed after bringing the water.

There was a moment of silence in the room.

Zhou Jinchuan was the first to speak, “I saw Xu Bin downstairs just now. Did he send you back?”

Su Yi awkwardly nodded.

[He was there too? Doesn’t that mean he heard Xu Bin’s confession to me?]

Zhou Jinchuan:  There was a confession?

Su Yi gave a dry laugh and quickly explained, “He went to the kitchen to find Xu Xiaoqin tonight, and it happened that he was going back the same way, so we came back together.”

Zhou Jinchuan made a sound of acknowledgment, “What do you think of Xu Bin?”

Su Yi looked at him in surprise, “Heh, he’s pretty good.”

[What kind of question is that? What does it have to do with me whether he’s good or not?]

Zhou Jinchuan’s lips curved slightly, “I heard from Xiaowu that you cooked for them and helped clean up. Thank you. I’ve been a little busy these past few days.”

Seeing that the topic had finally become normal, Su Yi breathed a sigh of relief, “It’s nothing. I’ve been a little busy in the canteen these past few days, so I haven’t been able to take care of them much.”

“It’s fine, Xiaowu is getting older now, you don’t have to worry too much.”

“Yeah.”

The room fell silent again. Zhou Jinchuan twisted his fingers and continued the conversation, “The rumors in the compound have died down, and the Chief hasn’t said anything more. You don’t need to worry anymore, just go on as usual.”

Su Yi nodded.

Then she heard him say, “I was careless about what happened last time. I hope it didn’t cause you too much trouble.”

Su Yi saw that he had suddenly changed his tone, and she was a little uncomfortable.

It made the incident last time seem even more abrupt.

She had been a little shocked at the time, but it was over now.

“It’s fine, I’ve almost forgotten about it!”