Chapter 27: The Flower of the Military Wife (Part 1)

Chen Yufeng had been sitting cross-legged on the bed but instinctively stretched her legs to put on her shoes. “No, I’ll go to my room.”

Han Chao’s brow twitched slightly. His hand trembled, causing the needle to slip, but he quickly said, “Alright.”

Chen Yufeng then asked, “And what about your mother? What do we do about her?”

Han Chao sat steadily on the edge of the bed, knees apart, calmly sewing the pillowcase. His stitches were tight, even, and as precise as if they had been made by a sewing machine.

And despite his large, rough hands, they maneuvered the fine embroidery needle with remarkable dexterity.

By contrast, Chen Yufeng—who had never practiced needlework thanks to Wang Guoguo and Zhou Yafang helping out—was worse at it than her husband.

The quilt she had sewn was his, and when she compared it to his needlework now, hers looked like a mess of ants crawling everywhere.

A sudden thought struck her—

Was this man sewing his own pillowcase because he thought hers was too ugly?

If the people of Guihua Town saw this, they’d surely scold her for being lazy and call him a weak, henpecked husband. Even Zhou Yafang and Wang Guoguo would be stunned.

After all, the men in Guihua Town only did three things—drink, gamble, and beat their wives.

But Han Chao?

Not only did he not drink, gamble, or hit his wife, but he could also sew!

Yet watching him now, his sharp brows relaxed, his large hands working the fabric, Chen Yufeng found the sight oddly soothing.

After finishing the pillow, Han Chao picked up the photograph and examined it closely.

As for Wang Guoguo, this is what he knew—

When she last came to the capital for surgery, fearing she wouldn’t survive, she had confided in Han Chao about her past. She vaguely mentioned her origins, saying her original name was “A’mi” and that she was from Yunnan. Her father had once been a tusi (a local chieftain).

As for why she later became “Guoguo”—it was simply because her Yi name, when translated into Mandarin, meant “fruit”(Guozi)

So, it was confirmed—she was “Xiao A’mi.”

But she had never mentioned assaulting young revolutionaries.

After she fled to Guihua Town, she married Han Chao’s father, gave birth to Han Feng and Han Chao, and dedicated herself entirely to her small family.

As for the deaths of Ma Lin and Commander Xu’s daughter, Han Chao had heard Commander Xu mention it before. Commander Xu had once had a daughter in Yunnan, but she had been killed.

Connecting the dots—

Clearly, not only did rumors link Wang Guoguo to the case, but even Commander Xu and Ma Lin believed their daughter had been murdered.

They must have suspected Wang Guoguo—otherwise, why would they be so persistent in asking about Han Chao’s mother?

Since this involved his own mother, Han Chao had to get answers from Commander Xu directly.

And proving Wang Guoguo’s innocence would be simple.

During the 1960s, under the agricultural commune system, in 1962, Han Feng was one year old, and Wang Guoguo was pregnant with Han Chao. Han Chao’s father had fallen in with Qi Cailing’s father, gambling and drinking every day. To provide for her children, Wang Guoguo had stayed in Guihua Town, working in the fields daily to earn work points.

In fact, Han Chao had been born in the fields.

The commune’s work log was still kept in the town’s archives.

All they needed to do was retrieve it, and it would prove she had never left Guihua Town.

She had never left, so how could she have harmed Commander Xu’s daughter?

Guihua Town and Mengzi were separated by several provinces—countless mountains and rivers in between.

Han Chao said, “I’ll ask Commander Xu when I report for duty in a few days, and then we’ll talk.”

Chen Yufeng suggested, “Since Mom is coming soon, why don’t we just take her to see Commander Xu and Director Ma and clear things up?”

Han Chao immediately refused. “No. When she arrives, we need to have her health checked first. She already had a stroke before, and the doctor said she can’t be agitated. I’ll ask Commander Xu about this privately.”

Wang Guoguo had once suffered from a blood clot in her brain, which had pressed on her optic nerve and caused blindness.

The doctor had advised that she must rest and avoid any emotional distress; otherwise, her life could be at risk.

Back when she was just a teenager, her family had been destroyed by a group of radical Red Guards, forcing her to flee far away. She had lived a quiet life ever since, never harboring hatred toward anyone. If she were to learn that she had been falsely accused of murder for nearly thirty years…

With her temper, she would probably explode on the spot.

Fortunately, for now, she was still in Guihua Town and hadn’t arrived in the capital yet.

Han Chao finally finished sewing the two pillowcases. He turned them inside out and held them up to the light for inspection.

Chen Yufeng had sewn the quilt cover herself, and she had been quite pleased with it—until she compared it to Han Chao’s flawless stitches, which looked like they had been done by a machine. Suddenly, her work seemed embarrassingly amateurish, making her want to smack Han Chao over the head in frustration.

Since the man remained silent for a long while, Chen Yufeng said, “Well, I’m going to sleep now.”

With a flick of his wrist, Han Chao tossed the pillow onto the bed with a crisp thud. “Okay.”

Chen Yufeng was puzzled. What was this man thinking? Was he waiting for her to make the first move?

“This bed is nice. It’s wide enough for two people,” she commented, running her hand across it.

Han Chao hummed in acknowledgment and held up the empty pillowcase, comparing it to another pillow. The size was a perfect match.

Still, he made no move.

Seven years ago, Chen Yufeng had climbed through a window to find this damn man. The first time, she jammed her fingers. The second time, she hit her head. The third time, she scraped her knees so badly that the bruises lasted for weeks.

She had waited for him for seven whole years.

Now, with the two girls asleep and no distractions, wasn’t it time for him to take the initiative? Maybe not as dramatically as the books described, with a passionate embrace and a kiss, but surely he could at least pull her onto the bed?

Yet, he did nothing.

Chen Yufeng reached for the empty pillowcase again. “This fabric feels nice. Why don’t we fill it with buckwheat hulls and try it out?”

That was a clear hint—she wanted a pillow, which meant she intended to stay.

But Han Chao said, “The buckwheat hulls I got from Xu Liang’s house are dusty. I’ll wash them tomorrow before filling the pillow.”

Chen Yufeng was so stunned she almost forgot to close her mouth.

So, at most, he was just leaving the door open? He wasn’t even going to invite her in?

A true steel-hearted man.

Fuming, she stormed out of Han Chao’s bedroom. She had intended to head straight back to her own room, but then she noticed a few handkerchiefs tossed carelessly on the sofa—one filled with melon seed shells, another with chewed-up gum, probably the work of the two little girls.

She picked them up to wash them. When she noticed Han Chao’s bedroom door was still open, she walked in and draped the clean handkerchiefs over the back of his chair.

As soon as she stepped inside, the damn man sat up abruptly.

His white tank top outlined the muscles in his arms. Under the glow of the lamp, he radiated raw strength—almost intimidating. But he was her man. Though a little nervous, Chen Yufeng told herself she had no reason to be afraid.

After hanging up the handkerchiefs, she turned to leave, but accidentally bumped her leg against the bedframe, letting out an ow.

At that moment, Han Chao reached out to support her. Instinctively, she pulled away.

He immediately retracted his hand.

Damn man. He might as well sleep alone for the rest of his life—serves him right!

The next day was the weekend. Normally, the entire military district would have the day off, with no official business.

But early in the morning, the loudspeakers blared an announcement about the details of the shop rental policy.

It also informed all interested military personnel to collect the official notice from the logistics office.

The notice listed all available rental spaces within the military district, including their addresses, locations, and sizes.

Since the logistics department had already posted a notice the day before, many people were already aware of the policy.

Next door, Captain Zhao’s wife, Mrs. Bao, also planned to rent a shop, so she had gone early to line up for the notice.

By the time Chen Yufeng was ready to go, Mrs. Bao had already returned, notice in hand.

“Sister Bao, can I take a look at that notice?” Chen Yufeng asked.

Mrs. Bao replied, “Sure! If you’re thinking about going into business, I have a great recommendation. Look at this—there’s a shop on Wangfujing Street, 200 square meters, right on the ground floor facing the street. If you sell clothing there, you’ll make a fortune.”

Han Chao, who had just finished washing the buckwheat hulls and was spreading them out to dry, overheard this. He took the notice and asked Chen Yufeng, “Do you want to rent this shop?” Given his seniority in the military, he had first pick of the available spaces.

Because of that book she had read, Chen Yufeng already knew that shop would be rented by Qi Cailing.