Chapter 25: Pure Gold, First-Class Merit

“I don’t think it’s little. You can always save more money over time. Besides…” Chu Yue neatly stacked the scattered bills together, curled her lips into a smile, her brows full of pride. “I have money.”

As she spoke, she reached into her pocket.

It wasn’t an ordinary pocket, but one hidden deep within layers of clothing. From the innermost hidden pouch, she carefully took out the money.

One bill, two bills, three bills.

A full thirty yuan.

Lu Zhanlin’s eyes flickered slightly as he looked at her, a bit surprised. He hadn’t expected his wife to be a little rich woman.

“Strictly speaking, this money isn’t really mine—it’s yours.”

Lu Zhanlin frowned slightly. “Mine?”

“The money you’ve been sending home over the years, it was definitely more than thirty yuan. But my stepmother and Chu Yaoyao spent most of it over time. I couldn’t get all of it back—this is the most I could manage. It’ll be enough for us to get by for a while, so don’t worry about our finances.”

Chu Yue’s tone was calm and matter-of-fact. She didn’t bring up how difficult it had been to retrieve that money—like pulling teeth from a tiger.

Lu Zhanlin looked at the money, then at Chu Yue again. A mix of emotions churned in his chest.

Thirty yuan was no small amount. If Chu Yue hadn’t said anything, he never would’ve known. She could have easily kept it for herself as private savings—no one would have blamed her.

He watched as Chu Yue placed the thirty yuan together with the remaining thirteen yuan and eight cents from earlier. The way she arranged the money, it looked just like a small family of three, lined up neatly and closely.

Lu Zhanlin spoke in a low voice, “Mm. I’ll listen to you.”

As the young couple were discussing their finances, a loud voice came from outside the door.

“Reporting! Commander Lu!”

Outside, Song Qi stood at attention, saluting sharply. His youthful face was serious and solemn.

With just a glance, Lu Zhanlin immediately understood what was going on. He stood up and stepped outside. Song Qi whispered something in his ear, and Lu Zhanlin’s expression turned cold and stern.

He came back inside, picked up his military cap from the side, and said to Chu Yue, “Something’s come up with the unit. I have to go now. I’ll return as soon as the situation is handled.”

“Okay, go ahead,” Chu Yue replied.

And just like that, she watched Lu Zhanlin leave.

She gathered all the money and various ration coupons, putting them back into the envelope. Then she suddenly noticed there was still something heavy inside. Because it wasn’t cash or a coupon, she had overlooked it earlier.

Chu Yue felt it through the envelope—round, hard, and cold. It seemed like… some kind of metal plate?

Why would Lu Zhanlin put something like this in the envelope? Surely it wasn’t something he carried close to his body for bulletproofing?

Chu Yue picked up the envelope and tipped it upside down. A clink sounded as the metal item fell onto the table.

A flash of golden light flickered before her eyes.

It was—a medal.

Startled, Chu Yue quickly picked it up to examine it closely. The medal was shaped like a multi-pointed star, with the bold characters for “First-Class Personal Merit” engraved on it.

This thing did have something to do with bullets—just not for stopping them. It was something earned by them.

That bullet that once grazed Lu Zhanlin’s scalp, nearly taking his life… the face covered in blood… the fight between life and death over ten long days… all of that had resulted in this shining gold first-class merit medal.

And!

The first-class military merit medal was made of pure gold!

Chu Yue weighed it in her hand. Heavy—at least thirty grams.

Gold, in any era, was an expensive and stable form of currency. Even in a post-apocalyptic world, it would retain its value.

Coupled with the honor of a first-class military award, this medal was no ordinary item—it was extremely valuable.

And yet, Lu Zhanlin had casually placed it in an envelope and handed it to Chu Yue without even mentioning it.

“He trusts me that much? He’s not afraid I’ll sell this for its gold value?”

Chu Yue looked at the gleaming medal, thinking of Lu Zhanlin’s reserved demeanor earlier. She couldn’t help but chuckle softly—but she also had to admit, this kind of quietly affectionate gesture from him warmed her heart.

She looked at the medal for a long while, then gently wiped it clean, took out a handkerchief to carefully wrap it up, and put it away.

Then, she began cleaning every corner of the house.

Since it was already afternoon and winter days turned dark early, there wasn’t much time left. It wasn’t realistic to clean the entire house thoroughly, so she started with the kitchen and the bedroom first.

The kitchen needed to be used for boiling water and cooking, and the bedroom was where they’d be sleeping tonight—those were the most important.

As for the rest, it could be cleaned little by little afterward. Eventually, it would all be tidy.

…

While Chu Yue was busy, the people in the compound weren’t idle either.

Outside Wang Chunling’s home, a crowd of people had gathered. They weren’t there to see Wang Chunling or the child, but were waiting for He Meijiao to come out.

“The medic who came is He Meijiao? Of all people, why her? What if she runs into the regimental commander’s wife and they get into a fight?”

“Now you’re worried? Isn’t it a bit late for that? I just saw He Meijiao coming out of the new house assigned to the regimental commander! Didn’t you see? Her eyes were red.”

“She cried? No way, He Meijiao isn’t the type to cry. Did she lose an argument? Or was she bullied by the regimental commander’s wife?”

“Very possible! Don’t forget what happened this morning…” one of the military wives raised her arm and mimed a sharp slap, gritting her teeth.
“The regimental commander’s wife just did this, and knocked out old Madam Li.”

At the memory of Chu Yue’s cold and decisive action, all the military wives gasped involuntarily, as if Chu Yue had slapped them instead.

On her very first day in the compound, Chu Yue had firmly established the image of a fierce tigress in their minds.

Just then—

“She’s out! She’s coming out! He Meijiao is coming out!” someone shouted.

He Meijiao stepped out of Wang Chunling’s home, wearing a white coat and carrying a medical kit. As soon as she walked out of the yard, someone grabbed her wrist and pulled her to the side.

After all, Wang Chunling needed to rest—it wouldn’t be right to gossip at the door of a woman who had just given birth.

“What are you doing? Why are you pulling me?” He Meijiao frowned delicately, her face full of disdain.
“Don’t tug on me! You’re wrinkling my clothes.”

The military wife who pulled her quickly apologized,
“Sorry, Sister He, I’ve got rough hands and too much strength—I didn’t mean it.”

Someone nearby, unable to suppress their curiosity, quickly asked,
“He Meijiao, is it true the regimental commander has a wife from the countryside who joined him? She just arrived today—did you see her?”

“Hmph. So what if I saw her? So what if I didn’t?” At the mention of Chu Yue, He Meijiao let out a cold snort.
“She’s just a woman from the countryside.”

Her words made the other military wives smile awkwardly.

After all, most of them had also come from rural villages. He Meijiao mocking Chu Yue’s background was the same as mocking them.

But since He Meijiao’s father held a special status—known not just throughout the compound but across the whole military district—they didn’t dare speak up, even if they were angry.

He Meijiao held her chin high, scanning the circle of women with narrowed eyes.

She was the first to ask,
“You’ve all seen her, then? What do you think?”

“Um… Compared to you, Sister He, she doesn’t compare. But if the regimental commander likes her, she must be special. When Wang Chunling had a difficult labor today, it was the commander’s wife who delivered the baby.”

“Yes, yes! She’s the one who did it. That bloody scene—I was scared just looking at it, but she stayed calm, completely unshaken.”

“If it weren’t for her, both Wang Chunling and the baby might not have made it today.”

The more He Meijiao listened, the deeper her frown became. She interrupted,
“What did you just say? The one who helped deliver Comrade Zhou’s wife’s baby was her?!”

The military wives all nodded.
“We all saw it with our own eyes.”

Impossible!

No way!

He Meijiao couldn’t believe it. She denied it outright in her mind.

She had just examined the surgical incision on Wang Chunling’s abdomen—a clean and precise cut, expertly placed. Even the stitches were neat and orderly.

That was the level of a doctor with four to five years of clinical experience. How could Chu Yue, an ignorant country woman, possibly have done that?

He Meijiao refused to believe it no matter what. She sneered aloud,
“She’s just a seductive little vixen who knows how to hook men. There’s no way she could perform surgery and save lives. I don’t believe it!”