Chapter 007

Zhenzhen hadn’t changed much over the past five years. Shi Huaiming recognized her at a glance.

After greeting her, he looked around and asked,
“Where’s Mother?”

Snapped back to the moment, Zhenzhen quickly reached into her pocket and pulled out the letter Zhong Minfen had written, handing it to him.

Shi Huaiming took the letter, unfolded it, and quickly read through its contents.

He didn’t ask anything else. Folding the letter, he said to Zhenzhen,
“Let’s go.”

Zhenzhen was still a bit dazed, simply doing whatever Shi Huaiming told her to do.

She followed behind Shi Huaiming, carrying her bundle on her back, her breathing still unconsciously restrained.

This place was completely unfamiliar, and even the Shi Huaiming before her felt like a stranger. She was so nervous she thought she might burst.

In a daze, she had no idea how long he had been leading her.

When they finally stopped, she found herself standing next to a green military jeep.

Shi Huaiming reached out to open the car door and said, “Get in.”

Get… in the car…

She had only ever seen vehicles like this in the movies—never in her life had she imagined she’d not only see one in person, but actually ride in it.

Zhenzhen’s legs went a little weak, but still she held her bundle tightly and, holding her breath, climbed inside.

Once she was seated, Shi Huaiming closed the door for her from outside.

Zhenzhen sat stiffly in her seat, back straight as a rod.

She watched as Shi Huaiming circled around to the driver’s side, opened the door, and sat down next to her.

She remained tense, clutching her bundle tightly to her chest.

Fastening his seatbelt, Shi Huaiming told her, “Buckle your seatbelt.”

Zhenzhen turned to look at him abruptly, her voice stumbling: “Seat… seatbelt? What’s that?”

Shi Huaiming glanced at her and opened his mouth to explain, but then thought better of it.

Without saying another word, he unbuckled his own seatbelt, leaned over toward Zhenzhen, and reached out to pull her seatbelt across.

As he leaned in close, Zhenzhen shrank back instinctively, face instantly flushed from the scent and presence of him.

But Shi Huaiming didn’t notice. He buckled her in, then re-fastened his own seatbelt, released the handbrake, eased off the clutch, and stepped on the gas.

Now focused on driving, he didn’t look at her again.

Zhenzhen, half-hiding her face behind her bundle, kept her head turned toward the window, overwhelmed and nervous.

Her mind was a complete blur, blank and floating.

Once they got on the main road and the ride stabilized, Shi Huaiming spoke again: “Nervous?”

Zhenzhen jumped at his voice, then quickly realized what he had asked and answered, “N-no… not nervous.”

Shi Huaiming didn’t press the issue.

He asked, “Is Mother’s health not doing well?”

Zhenzhen replied quietly, “She’s usually pretty strong, but lately… it seems like it’s gotten worse.”

Shi Huaiming kept his eyes on the road. “I want to go home, too, but I haven’t been granted leave yet.”

To reassure him, Zhenzhen quickly said, “Mother and Big Brother don’t blame you. They understand—it’s the army. You can’t just do what you want.”

Shi Huaiming simply said, “Mm.”

They had written those words to him in letters many times before.

It had been years since they last met. There were things to talk about—after all, they were family.

Shi Huaiming asked again, “How’s everything been at home all these years?”

Zhenzhen nodded. “Everything’s been good. After the land reform, we peasants got our own land. Big Brother and Sister-in-law work with the production team every day. Mother and I stay home sprouting beans and selling roasted snacks to earn a little extra. Lingling is twelve now—already a young girl. Xingguo’s nine. They’re both well-behaved and loveable…”

Shi Huaiming kept his attention on the road, but listened closely as Zhenzhen rambled on about home.

Even though most of what she said had already been mentioned in letters, hearing her say it in person gave him a real and steady sense of reassurance.

As she spoke, Zhenzhen stole glances at Shi Huaiming’s profile, watching him drive, her heart pounding faster than ever.

She thought to herself: He really has changed so much—he’s become someone so good, so outstanding, that she could only look up to him from afar.

She didn’t know how long the car had been driving.

When they entered a large gate, Shi Huaiming said, “We’re here.”

Zhenzhen looked out and asked softly, “Is this your unit?”

Shi Huaiming replied, “It’s a military academy.”

Zhenzhen didn’t understand and turned her head to look at him.

He explained further, “After the army was reorganized, I was assigned here. It’s considered advanced literacy training.”

Zhenzhen understood now—Shi Huaiming was currently studying at a military academy.

Whether it was a military school or “advanced literacy,” it all felt so distant and unreachable to her.

The deeper the car drove into the campus, the more out of place she felt.

When the vehicle finally came to a stop, Shi Huaiming turned off the engine, unfastened his seatbelt, helped her unbuckle hers, then got out and opened the door for her.

As she stepped out, he closed the door and said, “Let’s eat first.”

Zhenzhen didn’t know where they were going, so she simply followed behind him with her bundle on her back.

She was still dazed, her mind too foggy to think, following him purely on instinct.

As they walked, she kept her head down, as if afraid of drawing attention.

But whenever Shi Huaiming greeted one of his comrades, she would lift her head.

No matter how nervous she was, she knew that when meeting people, she had to be presentable—she couldn’t embarrass Shi Huaiming.

Shi Huaiming led her all the way to the cafeteria.

Once inside, he had her sit at a table while he went to get food.

When he returned, he set down the trays and handed her a pair of chopsticks.

Zhenzhen took them from him.

In front of her, there was a bowl of white rice and two dishes—braised pork and braised fish.

Staring at the food, she didn’t even know how to start eating.

Seeing her hesitate, Shi Huaiming asked, “Don’t like it?”

Zhenzhen quickly shook her head and explained, “It’s just… this is too good…”

Back in the countryside, they could only eat food like this during New Year celebrations. On normal days, a bowl of rice with salty meat was already a treat.

Shi Huaiming said, “The cafeteria has a lot of options. Whatever you like, just come and get it.”

Zhenzhen replied softly, “Okay.”

Then she froze for a moment—Come and get it later?

The cafeteria was crowded, so she didn’t dwell on it. She lowered her head and started eating.

After the meal, Shi Huaiming got up and cleared the dishes from the table.

Zhenzhen felt a little embarrassed, but since she wasn’t familiar with the surroundings, she didn’t say anything.

After they left the cafeteria, she continued to closely follow behind Shi Huaiming.

They walked to a row of buildings, where Shi Huaiming stopped outside one unit and pulled out a key to unlock the door.

Standing beside him, Zhenzhen asked, “Is this your place?”

Shi Huaiming gave a quiet “mm” and led her inside.

The apartment had everything: kitchen, bedroom, bathroom.

Knowing Zhenzhen and Zhong Minfen would be staying, Shi Huaiming had already made all the preparations for the room.

He showed Zhenzhen around, explaining, “This is the kitchen—where you cook. That’s the bathroom—for using the toilet and washing up.” Knowing she’d likely never seen such a toilet before, he even demonstrated how to flush and use it.

After showing her the whole place, he brought her to one of the bedrooms and said, “You can stay here for now.”

Zhenzhen nodded, showing no objections. “Okay.”

The bed was already made, with new quilts and pillows.

Once everything was explained, Shi Huaiming added, “You must be exhausted from the long train ride. Get some rest. I’ve got to head to class now. We’ll talk more when I’m back.”

Zhenzhen obediently nodded. “Alright, go ahead.”

After Shi Huaiming left, the apartment quieted down—Zhenzhen was alone at last.

Finally able to relax, she let out a long breath as soon as he was out the door.

With her nerves eased a bit, Zhenzhen set her bundle down in the room, then wandered around the apartment to explore.

Everything looked so nice—houses in the city really were different. She didn’t even dare touch anything.

When she first walked in, she was afraid her shoes might dirty the floor.

She gently pushed open the door to the adjacent room and saw another neatly made bed, along with a wardrobe, a desk, and a lamp.

Standing in the doorway in a daze, she quickly realized—this was Shi Huaiming’s room.

After a moment’s pause, Zhenzhen took a deep breath and gently closed the door.

She had already mentally prepared herself for this. It wasn’t a surprise.

Back in her own room, she sat down on the wooden chair by the writing desk.

She hadn’t slept well for two nights—the night before on the train, and the night before that at home. She was completely exhausted.

Leaning on the desk, her eyelids fluttered as sleep overtook her.

Just as she was about to fall asleep, she startled herself awake and sat up.

She considered it for a moment—there was nothing else she needed to do, and she was truly tired.

So after a brief hesitation, she carried the thermos into the bathroom and washed up.

Once back in her room, she took off her outer cotton clothes, climbed into bed, pulled up the quilt, and fell asleep almost instantly.

The blankets and mattress were soft and fragrant—completely different from what she used at home.

The room was utterly silent.

Only the faint sound of her steady breathing could be heard once she was asleep.

…

“Alright, that’s it for today’s lesson.”

The elderly instructor closed his book at the lectern and stepped out of the classroom.

The room wasn’t filled with young students—none of the faces looked particularly youthful. Everyone wore military uniforms.

A man, exuding both the sharpness of a soldier and the air of a scholar, pulled out a few books from under his desk and placed them on Shi Huaiming’s desk.

He gave them a light pat and said, “Here you go—your elementary school textbooks.”

The man handing over the books was Shi Huaiming’s comrade, He Shuo.

He Shuo was a local from Xicheng, and Shi Huaiming had borrowed the books from him.

Shi Huaiming accepted them with a nod of thanks. “Appreciate it.”

He Shuo looked at him curiously. “I’m still wondering—what do you need these for? I mean, sure, you never got a formal diploma from school, but with your level of education, you could breeze through high school material. Why go back to elementary school?”

Shi Huaiming was straightforward. “My wife’s here. I want her to study.”

Upon hearing that, He Shuo let out an “Oh,” suddenly intrigued. “Yeah, I heard—your wife’s pretty good-looking.”

Shi Huaiming glanced at him. “Who told you that?”

He Shuo grinned. “Old Zhou. You greeted him at the cafeteria with your wife, didn’t you?”

True enough, they had greeted Old Zhou.

Shi Huaiming hadn’t expected Old Zhou to be such a gossip.

…

Zhenzhen had never slept in such a soft bed before, and she slept deeply.

After all the travel and stress, she ended up sleeping much longer than she’d expected.

She was roused by the sound of knocking.

As her mind slowly cleared, she also heard Shi Huaiming’s voice: “Zhenzhen?”

Shi Huaiming… military school…

Those two words popped into her mind, and Zhenzhen immediately sat up.

She responded, her voice still nasal from sleep, “Coming!” She quickly got dressed and left the room.

By the time she came out, Shi Huaiming had already set the table.

He turned to grab chopsticks from the kitchen and said, “Wash your hands and come eat.”

“Oh.” Zhenzhen responded and rushed to the bathroom to wash her face and hands.

When she returned, she sat down and picked up her chopsticks to eat with him.

Shi Huaiming didn’t speak, so she stayed quiet too.

She didn’t know what she could say—worried he wouldn’t like her talking, or that she might say something foolish.

Halfway through her steamed bun, Shi Huaiming suddenly said, “I have something to talk to you about after we eat.”

The tone in his voice immediately made Zhenzhen tense up. She lowered her head, her body stiffening slightly.

That tone—was he going to talk about getting a divorce?

Zhenzhen steadied herself and gave a small nod. “Okay.”

She had always been prepared for this.

After the meal, she steeled herself even more, putting up a thick emotional wall inside.

If he brought up divorce, she’d smile and agree—then go back home and live her own little life.

After clearing the table, Zhenzhen sat by it, waiting for Shi Huaiming to come over and talk to her.

Hearing the sound of his approaching footsteps, she braced herself and looked up at him.

Shi Huaiming sat down across from her and placed a stack of books on the table.

With his usual serious and composed demeanor, he looked at Zhenzhen and said, “Now that I have some free time, I borrowed a set of elementary school textbooks from a classmate. Starting tomorrow, I’ll teach you how to read.”

“?”

Zhenzhen blinked in confusion. “Huh?”

Shi Huaiming met her puzzled gaze. “What’s wrong?”

Zhenzhen hesitated for a moment before gathering her courage to ask, “Aren’t… aren’t you going to divorce me?”

“Divorce?” Shi Huaiming looked at her. “When did I ever say I wanted a divorce?”

True, he had never actually said that.

Zhenzhen bit her lip slightly and didn’t respond.

Shi Huaiming tried to gauge what she was thinking. “Do you want to divorce me?”

Me?

Zhenzhen froze, then quickly shook her head. “No… I don’t…”

Shi Huaiming looked at her a little longer, then said after a moment of thought, “Since I agreed to marry you, I won’t casually divorce you. I understand what it means to take responsibility. Sleeping in separate rooms is also part of that responsibility—I don’t want to do anything without feelings…”

He stopped mid-sentence.

Zhenzhen’s face suddenly flushed red.

Shi Huaiming, however, remained calm and continued, “We’ll have plenty of time in the future. Let’s spend time together, and feelings will come as we go. Don’t you think so?”

She think?

Zhenzhen nodded immediately, her voice soft. “I think you’re right.”

Shi Huaiming went on to explain his intention: “Teaching you to read and write is partly to help you improve, and partly to build our relationship. It’s not because I look down on you for being illiterate. I just think learning to read and write would be better. What do you think?”

Zhenzhen nodded again. “I think everything you said is right.”

That settled it, then.

Shi Huaiming pushed the textbooks toward her. “Take today to rest. We’ll start tomorrow.”

Zhenzhen nodded again and gathered the books into her arms.

After their conversation, she carried the books and was about to return to her room. But suddenly remembering something, she stopped and turned back.

Looking at Shi Huaiming, she said, “Mother told me to write a letter home once I arrived, just to let them know I’m safe.”

Shi Huaiming stood from the table. “Mm. I’ve already sent one.”

All right. Now there really was nothing left to worry about.

Zhenzhen hugged the books and returned to her room. She placed them on the desk, then turned and closed the door.

Once the door was shut, she bit her lip and sat at the desk.

But biting her lip couldn’t hide her joy. The happiness swelled inside her, and after a moment, she raised her hand to cover her face, trying to hide the uncontrollable smile spreading across it.

Since Shi Huaiming wasn’t going to divorce her, she would give it her all.

If he was willing to spend time teaching her, then she would work hard to learn—to gain knowledge, to grow, to become someone worthy of him.

She wanted to improve together with him.