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Hu Ouhua turned around, ready to go downstairs, when the door behind her suddenly opened. Before she could react, a hand grabbed her and pulled her into the room…
She turned her gaze and saw Lu Yuetang’s eyes were unfocused. A dark, winding vein ran along his arm, looking shockingly black under the light, stretching all the way to his heart.
He was seriously unwell.
“Commander Lu, maybe you should go to the hospital?” Hu Ouhua suggested softly, her breathing heavy.
Whoosh.
Lu Yuetang suddenly pressed her against the wall, his whole body damp. He leaned against her without any guard, and when she tried to push him away, he grabbed her wrist.
With a swift motion, he pinned her arms high against the wall, firmly holding her in place.
“Commander Lu, what are you trying to do?”
Hu Ouhua panicked.
She noticed that his eyes were unfocused—this must be the “blackout” he had mentioned before. Right now, he probably didn’t even realize what he was doing…
“You need to wake u—”
Before she could finish, her lips were captured in an intense, relentless kiss. He pressed down, taking her breath away, overwhelming her senses so completely that her mind went blank.
Time passed, second by second.
It wasn’t until he released her lips and began moving downward that her reason snapped back. She lifted her foot and kicked him hard. Caught off guard, Lu Yuetang groaned in pain, momentarily regaining clarity.
Then, before Hu Ouhua could react further, he gritted his teeth and pushed her out of the room, locking the door behind her with a click.
“Comrade Ouhua, you—”
Shen Fubai had just come upstairs when he spotted her from behind. Before he could finish greeting her, his eyes caught on her damp clothes and, when she turned around, her swollen lips. His face instantly burned with embarrassment.
“Ah, right… sorry, I didn’t mean to interrupt.”
Mumbling awkwardly, he turned on his heel and hurried downstairs.
But before he reached the exit, Hu Ouhua’s voice called him back.
“Commander Shen… Could you check on Commander Lu? He’s not in good shape, and he hasn’t eaten dinner.”
Without waiting for a reply, she turned and disappeared into her small room.
She hadn’t brought any spare clothes when she left home. Even though Lu Yuetang had paid her in advance, she didn’t want to waste money on new ones. Since her clothes were wet, she had no choice but to crawl under the blanket and wait for them to dry by morning.
Lying there, Hu Ouhua slowly became aware of lingering sensations on her body. Her lips still burned, a reminder of what had just happened. It was absurd, but given the situation, he probably hadn’t done it on purpose…
The thought left her restless.
She made up her mind: from now on, no matter what, she would never go upstairs while Lu Yuetang was taking his medicinal baths.
Midnight, 12 AM.
Inside the dimly lit room, cigarette embers flickered in the dark.
Shen Fubai nudged Lu Yuetang’s foot and said meaningfully, “Lu, what’s going on with you? You can’t string women along like this, leading one on after another… not good. I think Comrade Hu is a nice girl.”
Moonlight streamed through the window, casting a pale glow over Lu Yuetang’s brooding figure.
He took a deep drag from his cigarette, then exhaled a slow stream of smoke. As the cigarette pressed against his lips, a faint sting reminded him of what had just happened.
“Hmm, she is a good comrade,” he muttered.
Frustration churned in his chest.
“We need to visit the apothecary tomorrow. This medicine isn’t working anymore,” he added in a low voice.
In the past, whenever his condition flared up, the military doctors would come by to give him an anesthetic injection, sending him into an unconscious sleep. It wasn’t until he went to Ningcheng for treatment that his poisoning came under control, allowing him to gradually return to work.
But two relapses in a row… that was rare.
“Then you should explain things to Comrade Hu properly, so she doesn’t misunderstand,” Shen Fubai advised, stubbing out his cigarette.
“Yeah.”
That was the right thing to do.
The next morning.
By the time Lu Yuetang came downstairs, the breakfast table was already set with fried dough sticks, steamed buns, porridge, a plate of pickled vegetables, and two boiled eggs.
Hu Ouhua, wearing an apron, was wiping down the stove.
Her rounded arms moved back and forth in an effortless rhythm. The apron was tied a bit too tightly, accentuating the graceful curve of her waist.
Unlike other women at the time, Hu Ouhua exuded a fresh, peach-like allure. She was full-figured, and even a simple white shirt hugged her frame snugly.
She had a beautifully shaped head—tall and full—and even with her long hair draped down her back, there was an undeniable elegance to her.
Lu Yuetang’s mind flashed back to the hazy sensation of soft lips against his own. His heart skipped a beat.
Taking a deep breath, he forced himself to calm down.
“Commander Lu, breakfast is ready. If there’s nothing urgent this morning, may I go out for a bit?” Hu Ouhua finished wiping the stove, rubbed her hands on her apron, and looked up at him.
“You may.”
Lu Yuetang hadn’t planned on eating, but for some reason, he found himself sitting down at the table. He picked up a fried dough stick, broke it in half, and dunked it into his porridge.
“Have you eaten?” he asked without looking up.
“I already have. I just didn’t see your laundry…” Hu Ouhua glanced around the first floor and was about to head upstairs.
“It’s in my bedroom. You can grab it later—I have something to say to you first.”
Hu Ouhua silently approached the table.
She had been deliberately keeping herself busy to avoid eye contact, hoping to brush off last night’s awkwardness. He, on the other hand, seemed completely unfazed…
“What happened last night was my fault. I sincerely apologize.”
Lu Yuetang put down his chopsticks and stood up, his gaze carrying a natural authority as it landed on her.
“I noticed you’ve been reviewing high school material… This is a set of notes I wrote before. If you find them useful, they’re yours. And here’s a Chinese dictionary.”
He had stayed up all night writing those notes.
Hopefully, they would be helpful to her.
Hu Ouhua accepted the notebook and dictionary, flipping through the pages. Her eyes widened in delight.
“Wow, these notes are so detailed! There’s a collection of mistakes, plus multiple ways to solve problems—this is amazing!”
This was a hundred times better than Li Weiguo’s notes.
Seeing the genuine joy in her bright eyes, Lu Yuetang unexpectedly felt a quiet sense of satisfaction.
He exhaled slowly. “Last night’s incident—I promise it won’t happen again.”
Still buzzing from the excitement of receiving such valuable notes, Hu Ouhua had already let go of the previous night’s mishap. She waved her hand with a smile.
“Alright, I’ll believe you this time.”
When Shen Fubai arrived to pick up Lu Yuetang, he immediately noticed the change in his demeanor—gone was the gloom from the day before, replaced by a faint hint of a smile.
Curious, he asked, “What happened? You seem… happy.”
Lu Yuetang’s expression cooled. He pulled the seatbelt over his chest and replied flatly, “Nothing.”
Then, a thought struck him—Hu Ouhua had brought nothing when she arrived for the job. Since the first day he met her, she had been wearing the same outfit…
“Take me to the supply cooperative first. I’ll take a bus back afterward.”
Shen Fubai didn’t question it and simply agreed.