Chapter 25

Before departing for the Military Unit, Lin Qingping took Second Sister to go through the name-change procedure, removing the character “Qing” from her name, and she became Lin Qingyun. Her Second Sister—no, now she was called Qingyun—had barely managed to complete her middle school education.

However, at that time, the college entrance exam was not as difficult as it would become decades later. Regardless, Lin Qingping was determined to send Qingyun to university. If one year wasn’t enough, then two; if two years didn’t work, then three.

After assigning Qingyun her study tasks and leaving Zhiyuan some homework, Lin Qingping set off for the Military Unit. It was indeed a long journey.

The train ride lasted two days and one night. During the ride, it started raining, and the weather suddenly became much cooler. Indeed, it was about time for autumn…

This time, Lin Qingping had managed to get a seat, and it was a window seat. Every time the train stopped at a station, someone would push a cart selling food outside the window.

After so many years, seeing these scenes again, she still thought the brightly colored chicken legs looked delicious. But she didn’t buy any; she had brought her own food. Mother-in-law Liu Fen and Gu Youlian had cooked a jar of meat dishes, a jar of pickled vegetables, and rolled up some flatbreads for her to eat on the road.

Traveling alone, one always carried some unease, but by nightfall, she couldn’t keep herself awake anymore and fell asleep leaning against the train window.

As a result, she was woken up by the cold. Late at night, the temperature dropped even lower, and someone must have opened the window and forgotten to close it.

Cold wind mixed with fine rain poured inside, leaving her feeling frozen to the bone. She hurriedly closed the window, but no matter how she tried, it wouldn’t seal properly, leaving a gap.

She could only wrap her clothes tighter to fend off the cold wind coming through the crack, but it seemed to have little effect.

After enduring the long journey until daybreak and then sitting until evening, Lin Qingping finally reached her destination and was able to disembark.

Only then did she realize that her feet had swollen from sitting for so long, and she felt a bit dizzy as well. She picked up her luggage and merged into the bustling crowd at the train station.

However, the train did not go directly to the Military Unit’s location; she still had to take a bus, but by this time, there were no more buses available. Holding her introduction letter, she found a guesthouse to stay in.

Having been on the train for two days and one night, she felt utterly foul, her body reeking with the scent of travel. She could not allow herself to meet Gu Juncheng in such a state. She desperately wanted a shower.

The guesthouse had a dedicated bathhouse, but that evening, the water was barely warm. She managed to wash her hair and body with the little warm water available, dragging her exhausted body back to her room to sleep.

The next day, she had to make it to the Military Unit, so she woke up early and headed to the bus station, focused entirely on her journey, not paying much attention to the discomfort in her own body.

After several more hours on the bus, she finally arrived at the county town where the Military Unit was located. The weather had turned even colder, and Lin Qingping wrapped herself in all the clothes she had, but it was still chilly.

To her surprise, someone was holding a sign with her name at the bus station, a young soldier. The sight of the military green immediately gave her a sense of reassurance.

She waved her hand vigorously and, carrying her luggage, moved toward the soldier. The soldier quickly ran over, took her luggage, and asked: “Sister-in-law, are you Lin Qingping?”

“Yes, yes, it’s me. What’s your name? How did you know I was coming at this time?” Lin Qingping had a moment to free her hands and wrapped her clothes tighter around her body.

“Commander Gu said you should be arriving today. Sister-in-law, you can call me Xiao Tian. Our car is parked outside.” the young soldier said, carrying her luggage and walking briskly ahead. Lin Qingping quickened her pace to catch up.

Once they got into the car, Lin Qingping felt a bit warmer. Xiao Tian drove toward the Military Unit. At that moment, it was the most peaceful Lin Qingping had felt in the past two days, as if she could finally relax. She leaned against the seat and dozed off, drifting in and out of sleep. 

She slept soundly until Xiao Tian called her, waking her up. She opened her eyes, feeling a bit of a headache. 

“Commander Gu hasn’t returned yet. I’ll take you to where you’ll be staying. Sister-in-law, you can rest for now.” Xiao Tian glanced at her. “You’re dressed too lightly. Don’t catch a cold.” 

Lin Qingping realized she had indeed been careless. A few days ago, when they were selling clothes in the Provincial Capital, she was still wearing light clothes. Who would have thought that a heavy rain would bring autumn so suddenly, and here, it already felt like winter.

“Mm, thank you, Xiao Tian.” she said, wrapping her clothes tighter. The strong wind made her feel lightheaded, as if she might be blown away at any moment. Xiao Tian led her to a temporary Family Residential Compound, placed her luggage down, and left. 

The dormitory in the Family Residential Compound was neat and orderly. Lin Qingping sat for a while, feeling a bit dazed.

She had originally thought she would meet him as soon as she arrived at the Military Unit, maybe go to his barracks to help him with something, but everything turned out differently from what she had imagined.

Still, at least she had arrived. She smiled to herself and began unpacking her belongings. 

As soon as she finished organizing her things, Xiao Tian returned, bringing her a bowl of noodles. 

“Sister-in-law, you didn’t eat lunch, right? Have some noodles to warm up.” Xiao Tian said, quickly placing the bowl down and leaving, as if he were in a hurry to avoid talking to her. 

Lin Qingping was indeed hungry. She sat down and, with the warm bowl of soup noodles in front of her, ate it all, feeling warmer inside.

In this era, there were no mobile phones, no internet. She sat alone in the room, unsure of what to do. Eventually, she simply crawled into bed and fell asleep, drifting into a deep slumber.

“Lin Qingping! Lin Qingping!” She was awakened by a sharp and urgent call. She opened her eyes, squinting at the bright light. Under the glaring illumination, she vaguely saw a dark, handsome face. 

“Gu Juncheng!” she cried out joyfully, attempting to sit up. However, what she thought was a loud shout came out as a hoarse, soundless rasp.

As she tried to sit up, her entire body was weak, and her ears buzzed. She collapsed back onto the bed. What was happening to her? She stared at Gu Juncheng, her mind buzzing: “Gu Juncheng… you’re back?”

She tried speaking again, but was it her voice? It sounded so rough, so hoarse, and her throat was in agony.

Gu Juncheng’s eyes seemed to burn with fury. Without a word, he ripped the blanket off her. 

“Don’t… it’s cold…” Lin Qingping immediately curled up, reaching for the blanket. 

“You still know it’s cold, you…” Gu Juncheng stopped himself from finishing the sentence. He glanced around but couldn’t find any thick clothes for her.

Without further hesitation, he wrapped her tightly in the blanket, bundling her up like a cocoon, and lifted her in his arms, heading for the door.

“Gu Juncheng, where are we going? I don’t want to go…” She was still groggy and disoriented, the only thing clear to her was that Gu Juncheng had returned. Being carried in his arms, she felt like she was floating, drifting in the clouds. 

Afraid he might drop her, she instinctively reached out to hold onto his neck. But as soon as her arm was half stretched out, she felt a wave of cold.

“Quick, pull it back! And tuck your head in!” 

It was so dark outside, and in the darkness, he looked so fierce. She obediently curled up in the blanket, feeling like a cocoon, and lay her head on his chest. 

“You’re scolding me again… I traveled so long to see you, and you’re still scolding me…” she murmured with a pout.