Chapter 3: Ji Yun

Upon seeing the newcomer, memories of her immediately resurfaced for Su Nianmei.

Ji Yun, the commander’s daughter from the western district, was currently a nurse at the Fourth Affiliated Hospital of the Western District Army.

In fact, the original owner’s death was indirectly caused by her.

On the surface, the military compound appeared harmonious. Still, behind the scenes, it was divided into two factions: the city wives looked down on the country wives, believing them to be rustic, while the country wives dismissed the city wives as pretentious.

Yet, the two factions maintained a delicate balance under certain mutual interests.

Ji Yun’s presence just happened to satisfy the needs of both sides: a city wife marrying a countryman, resulting in a win-win situation for everyone involved.

The city faction saw potential in Gu Xichao, while the country faction secretly felt a sense of pride, leading to widespread support for this seemingly tenuous romance.

It wasn’t until five years ago, with Gu Xiaobao’s arrival, that the compound’s residents ceased to mention this matter.

However, five years later, the original owner’s return stirred up some waves in the daily lives of the gossiping women of the compound.

After the original owner arrived, she acted recklessly, offending the country faction that sought to win her over while ignoring the city faction altogether. This quickly made her the target of both groups.

Somehow, the “old flame” between Gu Xichao and Ji Yun reached the original owner’s ears, embellished and exaggerated, deepening her despair regarding her life.

Su Nianmei instinctively tightened her grip on Gu Xiaobao’s hand.

She had never been a “white lotus,” nor was she a soft and easily bullied dumpling.

Whether or not she had feelings for Gu Xichao, he was still her nominal husband, and she would defend her marriage.

With one hand cradling Gu Xiaobao, she walked over to Gu Xichao’s side.

She took a deep breath and reached for Gu Xichao’s shoulder, but she quickly realized her miscalculation regarding the original owner’s height when she couldn’t reach it.

Without missing a beat, she slid her hand down his back from his waist to his arm, effortlessly wrapping her arm around him.

Su Nianmei smiled brightly at Ji Yun and then looked up at Gu Xichao with an innocent expression.

From her angle, she could just see Gu Xichao’s long, thick eyelashes fluttering with each blink.

Su Nianmei steadied her nerves and used her sweetest voice to ask, “Ah Gu, who is this beautiful nurse over there?”

She felt a shiver run down her spine at the sound of her own voice.

In the 1980s, calling someone a “beautiful” person felt somewhat offensive. Upon hearing this, Ji Yun’s face suddenly flushed bright red, and her watery eyes were looking toward Gu Xichao.

Gu Xichao, who was “enjoying” his wife’s “affection,” also rummaged through his memories and frowned slightly, genuinely unable to recall anything about this woman.

After a moment, he asked, “Miss, who are you?”

Su Nianmei nearly burst into laughter at this; after all that, it turned out Gu Xichao didn’t even recognize Ji Yun.

She could imagine Ji Yun’s frustrations—she must want to stamp her feet in anger.

She couldn’t help but feel a pang of sympathy for the original owner’s past.

Ji Yun bit her lower lip and looked up at Gu Xichao, her big eyes shimmering with tears. “Brother Gu, you really don’t remember me?”

“I took care of you six years ago when you were injured.”

“It’s me, Ji Yun.”

Gu Xichao looked at her, and it seemed like something clicked in his mind, and he responded with a “Hmm.” However, his brow remained furrowed.

The performance felt so deceitful that Su Nianmei could barely watch.

Ji Yun, being a resilient person, continued, “A few years ago, I was transferred to the Central Military District. Brother Gu, you might not remember me very well, but now that I’m back, if you have time someday, you must come to my house for a meal.”

Gu Xichao, feeling a bit hot from the gentle touch on his arm, replied bluntly, “Since I don’t remember you, your caring for me six years ago was a matter of duty, and I’ve recovered now. Therefore, it’s best if our relationship ends there.”

Gu Xichao paused momentarily and said: “I think it’s unnecessary for us to meet again.”

He did not pay attention to Ji Yun’s reaction but lowered his head to look at Su Nianmei.

His phoenix eyes were full of affection, appearing as if they held rippling water and felt like a gentle spring breeze. He said tenderly, “It’s getting late; we should head home.”

Su Nianmei turned red at his gaze and felt a little confused—she could even see deep affection in those eyes.

Looking at the sky, which had just passed noon, she thought that it indeed was getting late.

This little Captain Gu was unexpectedly good at cutting off emotional ties.

If she hadn’t known about the original owner’s experiences, she might have fallen deeply into that gaze.

Striving to present herself as a virtuous assistant, Su Nianmei caught that pleading look and turned to Ji Yun with an apologetic expression. “Little sister, my husband was worried when he saw I got hurt and hurried back to check on me. From now on, he’ll probably only be able to stay with me.”

“If you want to have this meal, why don’t you come over to our house sometime? My Brother is quite good at cooking.”

Ji Yun’s face turned pale at those words. She hurriedly said her goodbyes and turned to leave. As she walked away, the medical box in her hand swayed, and her parasol seemed on the verge of falling.

Su Nianmei felt a wave of guilt for bullying the beautiful girl.

What a sin! She had sinned!

Yet her excitement grew. Every word Gu Xichao had just spoken was like a dagger aimed at the young girl, stabbing her one by one, as if he feared that he wouldn’t stab her deeply enough.

—o—o—o—

After Ji Yun left, Gu Xiaobao, who had been mostly silent, sought to assert his presence.

He leaned toward Gu Xichao, stretching out one hand to touch Gu Xichao’s ear while the other hand fanned him gently as if to say, “Dad’s ears are red too; he must be too hot.”

Su Nianmei suddenly remembered that she was still linked to Gu Xichao’s arm and instinctively tried to retract her hand.

However, Gu Xiaobao continued leaning toward Gu Xichao. In a moment of excitement, Su Nianmei’s disheveled hair caught on the button on Gu Xichao’s chest.

Su Nianmei tried to untangle her hair with one hand, but it only became more knotted. Gu Xiaobao noticed the problem, too, and with his chubby little hands, he joined in to help. However, the hair tangled even more when both of them were working together.

Su Nianmei tugged at her hair, wincing in pain and letting out a sharp “hiss.”

Gu Xichao said. “Don’t rush.”

He crouched down slowly in sync with Su Nianmei, placing the little dumpling on the ground before standing back up. Then, he reached out to help untangle Su Nianmei’s hair, his movements gentle and devoid of any irritation.

Su Nianmei’s head was just close enough to rest against Gu Xichao’s chest, and she could even hear the sound of his heartbeat, thumping loudly in her ears, “thump! thump!”

Her heart raced once again.

As Gu Xichao carefully worked on Su Nianmei’s hair, the silky strands slipped through his fingers. Despite usually being steady-handed when holding a gun, Gu Xichao’s hands trembled slightly now, and he felt himself growing warmer.

On the ground, Gu Xiaobao also wanted to contribute, calling out in his sweet little voice, “Dad, you can do it! Dad, you can do it!”

In this strange yet harmoniously amusing atmosphere, Gu Xichao finally freed Su Nianmei’s hair, letting out a long breath of relief.

As he withdrew his hand, he noticed a thin layer of sweat forming in his palm.

It felt sticky and wet.

Gu Xiaobao clapped his hands in excitement, holding onto Dad with one hand and tugging at Mom with the other as the three of them headed home together.

Most people were still taking their afternoon naps, so they encountered no one on their way back.

However, Su Nianmei felt like a lot of time had passed since they reached the courtyard.

Gu Xichao’s dormitory was on the third floor, well-lit and spacious, covering around sixty square meters. It had two bedrooms, one kitchen, and a living room but no bathroom; a shared toilet was in the northwest corner of the yard.

Gu Xichao stepped into the bedroom first and closed the door behind him.

Su Nianmei was still wandering outside, curiously examining the entire house. She peeked here and touched there while Gu Xiaobao successfully transformed into a little shadow, following closely behind her.

As Su Nianmei reached their bedroom door, she seemed to remember something. Without thinking, she opened the door and rushed inside. “Wait!”

Though the original owner often threw tantrums after arriving at the military district, she was inherently simple-minded. She had diligently cleaned the living room and Gu Xiaobao’s little room, leaving only her and Gu Xichao’s bedroom in disarray. As for the result, it was somewhat hard to describe.

Gu Xichao had not anticipated Su Nianmei would suddenly burst through the door. His hand, which was in the process of removing half of his military green shirt, froze in mid-air.

Su Nianmei quickly turned her head, eyes tightly shut, her face burning, and her breathing became rapid. “I didn’t mean to!”

The room fell silent for a moment.

Upon entering, she had seen Gu Xichao in the midst of taking off his clothes, revealing glimpses of his abdominal muscles beneath his shirt.

The bed was scattered with various items, among which the original owner’s large floral underwear lay starkly on the bed, particularly eye-catching.

Su Nianmei immediately wanted to turn and leave, but she was blocked by Gu Xiaobao, who was coming in from behind, leaving her in a dilemma.

Gu Xiaobao’s little head peeked over Su Nianmei’s shoulder, squeezing through the gap to enter the room. With wide eyes, he looked at Gu Xichao, confused. “Dad, why do you have those bumps on your belly?”

—o—o—o—