Chapter 13

There were no direct trains to the northern city from where they were, so they first had to take a bus to the provincial capital before boarding the train.

As soon as they arrived at the bus station, Wen Nuan spotted Mother Wen waiting outside, clearly there for her!

Gu Qinghan was busy moving luggage, and when he saw Mother Wen, he greeted her.

Mother Wen actually quite liked Gu Qinghan as her son-in-law. Not only was he handsome and well-paid, but he also seemed cold and unsociable, which made him somewhat intimidating.

Thinking about how Wen Wenkang had received a harsh lesson from him, she felt the need to seek justice for her son.

However, she understood that her son had indeed been in the wrong a couple of days ago, and now he was planning to ask Wen Nuan for help, so she had to hold back her feelings!

Mother Wen nodded at Gu Qinghan and then adopted the tone of a mother-in-law, smiling as she said, “Good son-in-law, let me have a word with our Wen Nuan.”

Upon hearing Mother Wen’s words, Wen Nuan realized that Mother Wen certainly had ulterior motives, but since Gu Qinghan was there, she wasn’t worried that anything dramatic would unfold.

Wen Nuan said to Gu Qinghan, “You go ahead and move the luggage; I’ll talk to Mom for a moment.”

Seeing this, Mother Wen flashed a pleasing smile at Wen Nuan and pulled her aside to a small pavilion, speaking softly, “Wen Nuan, why didn’t you let Mom know you were following your husband to the military compound? This is all so sudden!”

Wen Nuan couldn’t help but sneer inwardly when she listened to Mother Wen’s ramblings. She had originally intended to leave quietly, but unexpectedly, Mother Wen had caught the news.

Wen Nuan smiled and replied, “Qinghan just got a couple of days off; this was a sudden decision.”

Mother Wen looked at Wen Nuan’s fair and delicate face and feigned concern as she advised, “Xiao Nuan, I’ve heard people say that winters in the northern city are very cold and that it even snows. Are you really planning to go to such a faraway place with your husband? If something happens, you won’t be able to find anyone to help you.”

“Here, your Dad, Mom, and your brother are all so close. If anything comes up, you just need to call out, and we can rush over to help right away.”

Listening to Mother Wen’s words made Wen Nuan want to vomit. She used to drain her resources, and now she had the gall to say she would help her in the future.

Wen Nuan clearly remembered that back when “Wen Nuan” was in confinement, she had asked Mother Wen for help with her postpartum care and to buy groceries because Zhao Wuzhu wasn’t much help.

And what happened then?

The money had been taken, but half of it was swallowed by Mother Wen and she only bought her a few stalks of green vegetables and rarely any eggs.

Wen Nuan felt speechless. “Qinghan needs someone to take care of him too.”

Mother Wen pursed her lips, clearly not believing that Wen Nuan was going to the northern city for Gu Qinghan. She laughed and said, “Alright, since you two have discussed this, I won’t say much more. This morning, I boiled a few eggs for you to take along for the journey.”

Wen Nuan had no intention of accepting her offering. She didn’t know how many times she would have to repay this debt for a few eggs in the future!

“That’s alright; Qinghan has already prepared some rations,” she replied.

Mother Wen acted as if she hadn’t heard, glancing at the busy Gu Qinghan before quietly imparting her “secret technique” to Wen Nuan. “Xiao Nuan, in the past, when Qinghan was in the army, he managed his allowance all by himself. Once you get to the northern city, you can’t let him continue to act like that. A woman needs to have some money; otherwise, life will be tough. You don’t have a job, and you’ll have to ask him for money just to buy salt and vegetables. How undignified!”

“So, when the time comes, you should tell Qinghan to give you his monthly allowance to manage. You should take charge of the family,” she advised.

Wen Nuan didn’t want to listen to her brainwashing any longer. Annoyed, she replied, “That’s his allowance; I have no right to interfere.”

Mother Wen grinned even more cunningly. “Are you silly? You’re husband and wife. If he refuses to give you the money, just cry and throw a tantrum. If that doesn’t work, escalate it to his superior and say he’s withholding money and mistreating his wife and child. I can’t believe he wouldn’t care about his reputation!”

Wen Nuan’s little face scrunched up at that. No wonder “Wen Nuan” loved to cause a scene all the time; it seemed she couldn’t escape the influence of this unreasonable mother.

Moreover, Mother Wen wanting her to control the family finances was merely a way for her to make it easier to drain her in the future.

Even if Gu Qinghan did give her his allowance, there was no way she would share a single word with this bloodsucking mother!

Wen Nuan didn’t want to waste any more time with her. “The bus is about to leave. If there’s nothing else, just write to me later.”

Mother Wen watched as Wen Nuan turned to leave and quickly grabbed her arm, her expression growing increasingly unsightly. “You child, I haven’t finished speaking yet. If you really have money in the future, don’t forget your mother! Remember, I’ve already given you some cash and tickets before; you can’t be a white-eyed wolf!”

Wen Nuan truly did not know there could be such a shameless person. Wasn’t that cash and those tickets actually hers?

She simply wanted to get them back!

A thought suddenly flashed through Wen Nuan’s mind, and she smiled at Mother Wen, asking, “You gave me cash and tickets?”

“Of course! I gave you both cash and tickets. Have you forgotten?” Mother Wen answered loudly.

“Mom, you’re so nice.” Wen Nuan smiled and waved at Gu Qinghan. “Qinghan, come here. Mom said since we need to go to such a distant place, and she’s worried we won’t have enough money, so she wants to give us some cash and tickets!”

As soon as the words fell from her lips, Mother Wen’s expression changed. How could she not know that Wen Nuan was doing it on purpose?

Moreover, it was exactly like last time—she was trying to trick her out of money again!

Wen Nuan’s voice was a bit loud. Although Gu Qinghan felt a slight doubt, she quickly placed the last bag of luggage onto the car and then jogged over to Mother Wen, nodding her head. “Thank you, Mom.”

This time, Mother Wen would not fall for Wen Nuan’s tricks again. Ignoring her pride, she said directly, “That’s not true. Wen Nuan misunderstood. I was just reminding you to be careful on the train and not to lose the tickets and money.”

Wen Nuan let out an “oh” and replied, “Maybe the bus was too noisy, and I heard it wrong.”

Then she turned to Gu Qinghan again and said, “But my Mom has money. The bride price you gave me before hasn’t been spent yet, and she said that if we have difficulties in the future, we can write to her for help.”

This time, Mother Wen’s face turned completely dark, her expression resembling a spilled palette of colors, shifting from black to red and then to green, her chest rising and falling with agitation.

She never expected Wen Nuan to be so shameless!

Wen Nuan didn’t plan to get any money back from Mother Wen. As long as she didn’t come to bother her in the future, she would be grateful.

After sending Mother Wen away, Wen Nuan and Gu Qinghan got into the Bus.

Gu Qinghan gazed at the scenery flying by outside and turned to look at Wen Nuan, who was staring out the window. “Are you okay?” she asked.

Wen Nuan tightened her arms around her daughter, shaking her head. “She probably knows I’m going to join the army and came to ask for money.”

Gu Qinghan leaned past her and pulled up the curtain, blocking the sun from shining on her still-sleeping daughter.

In a muffled voice, he said, “If you don’t want to deal with them, you can let me handle it in the future.”

Wen Nuan turned her face to meet Gu Qinghan’s deep, dark eyes and smiled. “Okay.”

—o—o—o—

After sitting in the car for over an hour, they finally arrived at the train station in the provincial capital.

The train station of the 1970s was not as spacious as those of later years, and it was incredibly crowded.

Everyone was dressed in blue and black fabric clothing, making it hard to distinguish one person from another.

Moreover, the station was quite small; as people jostled together, there was little room to move around, and one could easily bump into someone while turning around.

Carrying several large bags of luggage, Gu Qinghan looked at the sea of dark figures and expressed a hint of worry. “Stick close to me; don’t get lost.”

Wen Nuan didn’t consider herself directionally challenged, but when she saw that everyone was wearing the same color of clothing and sporting similar hairstyles, it felt like everyone looked the same.

The most uncomfortable part was the smell. The southern winter wasn’t particularly cold, and even with some movement, they would break a sweat. In the waiting hall, a mix of odors lingered that was quite unpleasant for her.

The little one, who had slept through the entire car ride, was now awake at the train station, her big eyes curiously surveying the unfamiliar surroundings.

Wen Nuan was genuinely afraid of losing track of Gu Qinghan. With her eyes darting around, she decided to grab the strap of one of Gu Qinghan’s backpacks, walking along behind him.

The tall Gu Qinghan was leading the way with a pile of luggage in her arms. Feeling the backpack behind him grow heavier, he instinctively turned his head to look back. When he saw Wen Nuan, a sense of relief settled in his heart.

“Have you ever taken a train before?” Gu Qinghan suddenly turned around to ask her.

Wen Nuan initially wanted to say she had, but it seemed “Wen Nuan” had never done so, so she shook her head. “What’s wrong?”

“I’ll go buy you some dried plums. You and the child wait for me here.” With that, she dashed off toward the state-run store but quickly returned, holding a paper bag of dried plums and a small bottle of balm.

“The salesperson said the balm is more effective,” she explained.

Wen Nuan noticed a light sheen of sweat on Gu Qinghan’s face, and his breathing was slightly uneven, clearly indicating he ran from there to Wen Nuan.

Although Gu Qinghan wasn’t very talkative, he was attentive, and Wen Nuan felt a bit touched for some reason.

Back in her university days, she had dated a junior from the same school, but Wen Nuan often felt like a mother figure.

Sometimes she had to make him breakfast, and when they went to the study room, she would help him secure a good spot.

Wen Nuan realized she wasn’t as attentive and considerate as Gu Qinghan.

She took out the handkerchief she always carried with her and handed it to Gu Qinghan. “Wipe your sweat first.”

Seeing Wen Nuan offer the small handkerchief, the little one recognized it as something she usually used and quickly reached out with his tiny arms to grab it.

Noticing this, Gu Qinghan wiped his face with her sleeve, saying, “No need; I might get it dirty.”

The little one managed to snatch the handkerchief, beaming with joy as she tugged at it excitedly. She made a couple of cheerful sounds toward Gu Qinghan as if showing off her victory.

Wen Nuan watched the little one’s antics and smiled. “You little rascal, why are you being so stingy? Can’t Daddy use it for a bit?”

The little oneseemed to understand Wen Nuan’s words. She hurriedly tucked the handkerchief into her bosom and then looked at Gu Qinghan with a cheerful smile.

Gu Qinghan had intended to reach out and give her a hug, but the broadcast station had already announced that their train was ready for ticket inspection.

“Let her play; let’s get our tickets and board pass first,” he said. As soon as the announcement played, a sea of people surged toward the ticket gate. Seeing this, Gu Qinghan turned to Wen Nuan and said, “Stay close to me; there are too many people.”

Wen Nuan looked at the crowd, feeling that at least eighty percent of the waiting room seemed to be on the same train.

There were so many people!

She thought for a moment, then stood on her tiptoes and leaned close to his shoulder: “There are too many people. I’m afraid I won’t be able to keep up with your pace. Let me hold onto your sleeve.”

With that, she reached out and grasped the sleeve of Gu Qinghan’s military uniform.

A wave of unfamiliar warmth rushed over him—it was itchy yet it felt good. Gu Qinghan caught a whiff of her unique fragrance, and his ears instantly turned red. The pounding of his heart seemed to drown out the noise of the crowded waiting hall.

Gu Qinghan ignored the sudden feeling of unfamiliarity and led Wen Nuan and their child through the throngs of people, finally reaching the long line at the ticket gate.

However, the noise at the ticket gate attracted quite a few onlookers who paused to watch.

They saw a tall man holding a baby around six months old, and the infant was wailing loudly, seemingly resisting being held.

As a result, the ticket inspector and a member of the inspection team stopped him at the ticket gate.

The ticket inspector asked harshly, “Why is this child crying so much? Are you even related to the child?”

The tall man explained gently, “Comrades, I’m the child’s second uncle. This is my nephew. His grandmother has passed away, and there’s no one to take care of him. His parents are working in the North, and I just happen to be passing through, so I volunteered to take him there.”

“Look, I have the child’s family registration booklet and an introduction letter. There’s no way I could be deceiving you!”

The man was indeed tall and had worn tattered clothing. Although he wore a pair of black-rimmed glasses, his unkempt hair made him look rough and disheveled.

In short, he didn’t seem like a trustworthy person.

The soldier standing nearby maintained a stern demeanor and continued to question him, “If that’s the case, why can’t you provide the child’s parents’ information and their workplace?”

The tall man looked as if he were about to cry, feeling both anxious and helpless. “Comrade, I swear on my life, I am not a child trafficker!” he exclaimed, then patted the crying child.

However, the baby clearly did not have much familiarity with him and showed signs of resistance.

Wen Nuan glanced at Gu Qinghan who was in front of her, she noticed that he was also watching the situation closely.

She then looked at the child whose face had turned a bit pale from crying and couldn’t help but suggest, “Why don’t you go and check the situation?”

Gu Qinghan glanced at her.

With a determined expression, Wen Nuan continued to analyze, “I think it might be a misunderstanding. Look at that man; he has a bag of clean diapers in his hands, and beside him, there’s an unopened can of milk powder and a baby bottle.”

If he were truly a child trafficker, he wouldn’t have gone through the trouble of preparing a bunch of diapers and milk powder!

In this day and age, buying milk powder required special allocation tickets; ordinary people couldn’t even get their hands on it.

Gu Qinghan’s expression turned thoughtful. After hearing Wen Nuan’s words, he stepped forward toward the man and the ticket inspector.