Chapter 19:

Han Zecheng was stationed in the Biyang Military District, located in the neighboring province of S Province.

Coincidentally, that was also Su Ruo’s home province.

The car continued heading north.

Su Ruo hadn’t slept much the previous night, and now it was only around 3 or 4 a.m. Not long after getting in the car, she fell asleep.

Guo Guo had been excited at first, even asking his dad if he could drive. His father simply replied, “Wait another ten years or so.” Guo Guo immediately felt he’d been underestimated.

But once Su Ruo fell asleep and the outside world was still cloaked in darkness, he didn’t last much longer before dozing off too.

When Su Ruo woke up, dawn had already broken.

At first, nothing seemed unusual as she looked out the window. But after a while, the scenery started to look familiar.

“Brother Han, where are we?” she asked.

“Nancheng,” Han Zecheng replied in a deep voice without turning around.

Nancheng.

That was where she had been born and raised.

She had still been living in Nancheng before waking up in Han Family Village.

A strange feeling welled up in her heart.

After waking up and seeing the journal, she knew her father had cut ties with her due to her political status. So ever since then, she hadn’t asked Han Zecheng anything about her father or her family. She didn’t want to.

But now, passing through her old hometown stirred some emotions.

In a low voice, she asked, “Brother Han, do you know… do you know how my father and the others are doing now?”

Han Zecheng turned slightly to glance at her and said, “There were a few tough years in between, but nothing too bad. They got through it. Earlier this year, he became the principal of Nancheng Technical School.”

He didn’t care much about them.

But when they got married, he’d investigated her family and found out they had publicly severed ties with her.

Since then, he checked in on their situation every year. But because she never asked, he never brought it up.

Su Ruo was stunned for a moment after hearing that.

That was… pretty good.

She remembered the stack of letters she had sorted through—aside from two sent right after she was sent to the countryside, there hadn’t been any others from her father in recent years. That left a small pang in her heart, but she still managed a smile and asked, “What about my younger brother, my stepmother, and her daughter Su Jia? Do you know what happened to them?”

She asked casually.

Deep down, she clearly hadn’t fully let go.

After all, who could truly be unaffected by something like that?

Still, she didn’t expect him to know anything.

But unexpectedly, he did say a few things: “Not long after you were sent down, your brother also went. He insisted on it himself. A few months ago, your father arranged for him to return to the city. He’s now working as a clerk at the technical school. Your stepsister works at a provincial architectural design institute.”

Architectural design institute?

Oh, right. She had taken her place in university.

She probably even studied the same major Su Ruo had originally chosen.

“How do you know all this?” she asked him.

“Political screening. Even though they’ve officially severed ties with you, the army still checks these connections every year.”

He didn’t want to say he had someone check deliberately, so he gave a simple explanation.

Su Ruo responded with an “Oh” and didn’t press further.

But she still wanted to ask about Su Jia and Yuan Chengyang—had they gotten married?

Yet thinking of Yuan Chengyang… If Han Zecheng knew about her family’s current situation, then didn’t that mean he might also know she had once been engaged to Yuan Chengyang?

What a tangled mess.

Forget it. They were cut off anyway, and it had already been five years. She should just let the past go, focus on getting into university, and straighten out her current life.

Back then, her father had pulled strings to get her that university spot.

If he wanted to give it to Su Jia, so be it.

Now, she could rely on her own abilities to get into college. Wasn’t that even better?

Thinking of that lifted her mood again.

She even felt a bit grateful for her memory loss. She didn’t know how she had managed to survive those five years, and just thinking about it made her heart ache.

But after waking up, it felt like everything had started to head in a better direction.

From Hanjia Village to the Biyang Military District normally takes about ten hours by car, but Han Zecheng drove fast, so they arrived before noon that day.

He drove straight to the guesthouse outside the military family compound.

Many people there recognized him, and as soon as he got out of the car, quite a few people greeted him.

Originally, everyone just saluted or said hello before moving on, but when Su Ruo got out of the car holding Han Guo’s hand, the crowd lingered. Curious eyes all turned in their direction.

Han Zecheng opened the car trunk and turned to ask Su Ruo, “A-Ruo, which luggage do we need for the next two days? We’re only staying here briefly—no need to bring everything inside.”

Su Ruo nodded and pointed to a suitcase. “Just bring that one.”

Han Zecheng lifted the suitcase. “Let’s go.”

He led them into the guesthouse. Once inside, he told them to rest while he took the introduction letter and household register to check in.

“Xiao Han? Huh, what are you doing here? Is someone in your family visiting?”

Su Ruo, sitting in the lounge with Han Guo, was explaining where they were and why they were staying there, when a middle-aged female voice sounded nearby.

Su Ruo looked up and saw a few more people had appeared in the lobby.

The speaker was a tall, elegant woman in a trench coat.

Beside her stood a young woman with two thick braids. She was quite pretty and very fashionably dressed in a wool skirt and leather shoes—clearly from a well-off family.

Behind her were a middle-aged couple.

The young woman glanced shyly at Han Zecheng while the middle-aged woman spoke.

Han Zecheng didn’t answer right away, only nodded and said, “Aunt Zeng.”

The young lady shyly and formally greeted, “Deputy Commander Han.”

At that point, the couple behind her stepped forward.

The man, with the air of a government official, looked Han Zecheng up and down and said with a restrained smile, “Qianqian, is this Deputy Commander Han you spoke of? So young, and indeed very capable!”

The woman next to him was more enthusiastic, smiling warmly. “So young and already a deputy commander. Truly promising, Deputy Commander Han.”

As they spoke, the young woman—Qianqian—blushed deeper with shyness.

Su Ruo, curious about the noise, had been watching this interaction. Something about the vibe felt… off.

The middle-aged woman—“Aunt Zeng”—smiled and introduced, “Xiao Han, this is my eldest brother and sister-in-law, Qianqian’s parents. They’re staying here for two days.”

Then she picked up her earlier question. “What brings you here? Is someone visiting from your family?”

Han Zecheng remained his usual serious self.

He gave a faint nod to the couple, then turned to Zeng Yaohong and said, “Not visiting. My wife and son are here. We’re staying temporarily.”

That one sentence struck like lightning.

Smiles froze on the faces across from him, then cracked.

Han Zecheng, as if oblivious to the stunned reactions, turned and called out to Su Ruo, who had been watching them with interest, “A-Ruo, come here. This is Aunt Zeng, greet her.”

Su Ruo came over slowly, holding Guo Guo’s hand.

Han Zecheng introduced, “Aunt Zeng, this is my wife Su Ruo and our son, Guo Guo.”

Then he turned to Su Ruo and added, “A-Ruo, Aunt Zeng is the administrative director of our military district hospital and the wife of our commander, Commander Gu.”

Su Ruo smiled politely. “Director Zeng.”

Zeng Yaohong quickly composed herself, putting on a gracious smile as she looked at Su Ruo—but froze again.

Meanwhile, Zeng Qianqian and her parents were staring at Su Ruo, their expressions turning even uglier.

Zeng Yaohong was stunned because Han Zecheng’s “wife” was far too young.

And far too beautiful.

Not just ordinary beauty—her skin was like porcelain, and she exuded a quiet pride and scholarly air.

How could an average family raise such a girl?

Zeng Yaohong was Commander Gu’s second wife. Commander Gu had been comrades and old friends with Han Zecheng’s father, Han Hehuai.

She knew her husband valued Han Zecheng highly and often praised his calm, courage, and precision—calling him an outstanding soldier with a bright future.

She also knew Han Zecheng had a wife back home.

But she’d heard it was a village marriage arranged by his rural mother.

Han Zecheng never mentioned this wife at the Gu family home or in the military district.

Even the money he sent home each month went to his mother, not to his wife.

Zeng Yaohong had assumed he didn’t care for that village wife his mother chose.

Of course not—he was handsome, a military academy graduate, and already a deputy commander. His future prospects were limitless.

What kind of wife could his mother find in a rural village?

As his rank rose, a backward village wife wouldn’t be suitable.

So when her niece Zeng Qianqian took a liking to him, she didn’t object.

In fact, she wanted to see if it could work.

After all, she had no children of her own.

Her husband’s children didn’t truly accept her.

If Qianqian could marry Han Zecheng, her status in the Gu family would improve significantly.

Moreover, Qianqian was a dancer in the provincial city’s cultural troupe.

She was beautiful, stylish, and had an alluring figure.

She had assumed that Han Zecheng’s rural wife must be worlds apart from her…

But now, seeing Han Zecheng’s so-called “rural wife”… all she felt was a burning pain on her face.

And thinking of how proactive her niece had been, all her shy smiles just now, along with her brother and sister-in-law’s words… If she didn’t have a strong mentality, she wouldn’t even be able to maintain a smile and continue the polite small talk.

This time, she had really lost face.

And her husband’s sons and daughters-in-law were no easy crowd either.

They already looked down on her. Once they found out about this, they’d despise her and her maiden family even more…

At this moment, Zeng Yaohong truly regretted everything.

She blamed herself for not properly restraining her niece and allowing others to laugh at them.

The more she thought about it, the more uncomfortable she felt inside.

Even though the smile on her face was still courteous, it was visibly forced.

At this moment, Su Ruo had already pulled Han Guo closer and said, “Guoguo, greet Director Zeng.”

Han Guo didn’t particularly like this woman whose smile looked so fake.

Moreover, the way she looked at his mama was unpleasant… very much like how his grandma looked at his mama.

He politely said, “Hello, Grandma Zeng.”

Su Ruo: …

Zeng Yaohong’s face twisted momentarily.

She was actually only thirty-nine this year, not even forty yet.

Han Zecheng was already thirty-one, and he called her “Aunt Zeng” merely because she was Commander Gu’s second wife.

She took a deep breath and forced herself to fix her expression and state of mind.

It was just her niece’s own interest—what did it have to do with her?

In a situation like this, the more upright she stood, the less others could look down on her.

She gave Guoguo a small smile and said, “This child looks really spirited.”

Then she turned to Han Zecheng and said, “Xiao Han, I didn’t expect your son to be this big already. So this is your rural wife, huh? Are you just visiting this time?”

Han Zecheng said, “No. I’m preparing to apply for them to follow the army officially. They’re staying for good this time.”

Zeng Yaohong was stunned again, then smiled and said, “That’s great. Your Uncle Gu will definitely be happy to hear it. How about this—if you’re free tomorrow, come to our place for a meal. Let your Uncle Gu meet your wife and child.”

Han Zecheng looked at Su Ruo.

Su Ruo smiled and said, “I’m free. Thank you for the invitation, Director Zeng.”

After exchanging a few more pleasantries, Zeng Yaohong turned to call over her dazed niece and the extremely embarrassed brother and sister-in-law to leave.

Given the way those three looked, staying any longer would’ve just been more humiliation.

As they exited the building, Zeng Yaohong saw her niece glancing back, and she couldn’t help but follow her gaze.

She saw Han Zecheng standing to the side with the suitcase, while his wife was squatting down and talking to little Guoguo.

From afar, a strand of hair fell as she bent slightly, making her profile look even more delicate and beautiful.

Zeng Yaohong felt a flash of doubt in her heart… She had already sensed something earlier, but hadn’t thought it through. Now she seemed to have grasped something.

But when she turned and saw her niece’s tearful, pitiful face, she grew irritated again and shoved that suspicion aside.

She lowered her voice and scolded Zeng Qianqian, “Hurry up! What are you still looking at? Haven’t you embarrassed yourself enough?”

Zeng Qianqian’s tears almost burst out from being scolded.

She held them in until they walked past the reception building and into a secluded corner, then finally let her tears fall.

“Qianqian!”

Madam Zeng was heartbroken. She rushed forward to hug her daughter and said angrily to Zeng Yaohong, “Sister-in-law, what are you doing?!”

Then she hugged her daughter tightly again and said, “What is this? Qianqian, did that bastard trick you? He looks all proper, but how could he do something so disgusting?!”

Mr. Zeng’s face was dark as he turned to Zeng Yaohong and said, “That Vice Commander Han—if he already had a wife, how could he still lead my daughter on? Isn’t that playing with her feelings?! Yaohong, you must report this to Commander Gu and make sure this is dealt with seriously. He can’t be let off lightly!”