Chapter 36

Early the next morning.

Xu Wanchun requested leave from school.

She didn’t go back to Xujiatun, but went straight to the post office.

Though she was worried about her master and mistress, she hadn’t lost her cool.

According to the mail delivery schedule, it would take at least two or three days for them to receive the letter.

By then, she could just take a week off and be home in advance to soften the blow.

But right now, there was something more urgent to take care of.

Wanchun originally intended to send an express letter to her senior brother, but mailing would take too long—it was better to make a phone call.

Special circumstances called for special measures. Speed was what mattered most now. What was a little extra money?

But… no one told her that making a long-distance call was this much of a hassle.

Just lining up and filling out the call request form took nearly half an hour.

She had to clearly fill in the recipient’s city, workplace, and the main topic of the call, plus estimate the call duration.

Even after paying, it wasn’t like she could just make the call. What came next was an endless wait.

And that was no exaggeration!

To make this one call, Xu Wanchun waited from 8 a.m. until noon—four whole hours.

When the operator finally called her name, a man who frequently made calls looked at her enviously and said, “Young lady, you’re lucky. That was fast.”

Wanchun walked to the booth with heavy steps… Senior Brother, you have no idea what I’ve been through.

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Meanwhile…

Cao Jingliang had been on his way to the cafeteria when the loudspeaker called his name for a phone call.

As he ran toward the communications office, he thought of many people—just not the little girl.

So when he picked up the receiver and, through the scratchy noise, heard a soft “Senior Brother,” he froze for several seconds.

“Senior Brother! Can you hear me?”

The girl’s voice came again, and for some reason, Cao Jingliang suddenly felt very flustered, but still replied gently, “Taohua?”

Finally connected, Xu Wanchun let out a huge sigh of relief and began speaking at lightning speed: “Senior Brother, the operator told me just now that long-distance calls can be unstable and might cut off anytime, so you just listen first, okay?”

Cao Jingliang quickly replied, “Okay, go ahead.”

Wanchun continued, “I got your letter. You said you’re going to support the frontier—I personally support it, and Master and Mistress probably won’t object either. But about the fact that you might not be able to come back—we have another solution… What if we persuade Master and Mistress to go to Shanghai to see you? It’s been seven years since you last met, and they really miss you… What do you think?”

Cao Jingliang had considered this before, but he didn’t want his parents to travel far.

As if she’d read his mind, Wanchun immediately added, “Compared to the exhaustion of a week-long journey, I believe Master and Mistress would rather see you in person.”

This girl… she seemed even smarter than she was as a child, and much more assertive. Cao Jingliang found himself recalling what it felt like to be around his little junior sister seven years ago, and he smiled. “Of course I want them to come. I’ll be counting on you, Taohua.”

“Don’t worry. We’ll be on break this week—I’ll do my best to talk to them,” Wanchun said, glancing at the time. Seeing she had about two minutes left, she moved on to another topic: “Senior Brother, about that engagement thing—I really don’t mind… buh… buh…”

Before she could finish, the call cut off with a burst of static.

The young female operator, who had just been called “missy,” cheerfully said, “Little sister, the signal cut out. If you want to call again, you’ll have to queue up all over.”

Xu Wanchun: “…No need, thank you.”

She walked out of the post office in defeat, practically fuming.

Aaaaaaaghhhhh—!

She had just been about to say that she didn’t mind the engagement, but it was mainly to keep the elders happy. Everything else could wait until he returned from the frontier.

After all, she had no intention of getting into a relationship any time soon. This way, her mother could stop worrying about her marriage for a while.

But of all times for the call to cut out—it had to be then!

Of all things, the call had to cut off right after such a misleading line.

Would Senior Brother start overthinking it?

Would he think she liked him?

Aaaaaaaaahhhhhh—! Someone help her!

The more she thought about it, the more Xu Wanchun panicked. At this point, the good doctor was inwardly howling—she really couldn’t keep her cool anymore!

Forget it!

By the time she kicked the tenth snow pile by the roadside, Xu Wanchun had finally calmed down.

It wasn’t that big a deal. She’d just clarify everything in a letter later.

As for how confused Senior Brother might be in the meantime… heh heh, well, that wasn’t her problem.

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Cao Jingliang was confused.

To be precise—he was more shocked than anything else.

That one sentence—“I don’t really have any objections”—kept looping in his head.

It wasn’t until the communicator reminded him that the line had dropped that he finally put down the phone and walked away, still dazed.

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It was the day their daughter returned from school again.

Early that morning, Xu Hehua took a plump hen over to Aunt Wu’s place next door to ask for soup-making tips. She wanted to make something nourishing for her girl.

Around noon, she began pacing back and forth to the gate, peeking down the road every few minutes.

Fortunately, just as Xu Hehua had predicted, a familiar sled soon appeared on the horizon.

After half a month away, Xu Wanchun received a very warm welcome.

She hadn’t even stepped through the front door before her mother and her master’s wife had already dragged her over to the Cao household.

Wanchun kept a close eye on her master and mistress’s expressions—and quickly confirmed from their cheerful faces that they hadn’t received Senior Brother’s letter yet.

Xu Hehua helped her daughter put her belongings on the kang and smiled, “We’re eating lunch here today. After that, you can take a nap. I’ll pack your things for you, so you can make it back to school before two o’clock.”

Yes, students only got one day off each week, so every time Xu Wanchun came home, she barely had time to share one warm meal before rushing back to school.

But today, she hadn’t mentioned that she’d taken the whole week off—she figured it was better to enjoy a peaceful meal first.

On the table was not only the chicken soup made by Aunt Wu, but also Wanchun’s favorite—sauerkraut and pork bones.

After half a month of eating nothing but cornmeal porridge, pickled vegetables, radish, and steamed cornbread, her cravings were thoroughly satisfied.

When she was stuffed full and being nagged to go rest, Xu Wanchun finally admitted that she had taken a week off from school.

“Huh? Why’d you take time off?” Xu Hehua instinctively looked her daughter over from head to toe. Seeing no signs of illness, she finally relaxed.

Cao Xiu and Su Nan also looked over in concern.

Wanchun quickly waved her hand, “I’m fine! It’s just… Senior Brother wrote me a letter.”

Could it be about the engagement? Xu Hehua and Su Nan exchanged a glance, their eyes instantly lighting up as they asked in unison, “What did he say?”

The words that followed would definitely not be what her master and mistress were hoping for.

But even if she didn’t say anything, they were bound to receive his letter within a day or two anyway.

So Xu Wanchun didn’t hesitate much and directly told them about Senior Brother’s decision to support the frontier.

No matter what, she had taken a whole week off—she’d find a way to coax everyone into being happy about it.

“Supporting the frontier? Going to Xinjiang? And he won’t be back before he leaves?” Su Nan’s smile vanished completely, and her face went pale.

Cao Xiu’s expression wasn’t great either. As a doctor, he could understand his son’s ideals—after all, years ago, he had agreed to let him go off to war for three years.

But they only had one child. They hadn’t seen him in so long… how could they not miss him?

And now he was going even farther away—to the remote borderlands—for at least five years…

“Master, Mistress, I spoke with Senior Brother on the phone,” Xu Wanchun quickly cut in before they could spiral, “He said he really wants to come back, but just can’t get away. So he asked me to tell you—he hopes you two can come visit him in Shanghai.”

Sure enough, Su Nan’s focus shifted instantly. “Go to Shanghai? Won’t we disturb his studies?”

Cao Xiu also turned to his disciple, already considering the feasibility. “What exactly did your Senior Brother say?”

Wanchun linked arms with her mistress and explained, “We only talked for about two minutes before the signal cut off. But we agreed—if you two are willing to visit, we’ll send an express letter to Senior Brother. He’ll ask someone to help arrange the train tickets.”

Cao Xiu snorted, “I can buy my own train ticket. No need for his help.”

Xu Wanchun’s eyes lit up. She playfully huffed, “Then when are you planning to go, Master and Mistress? I need to start making a list. There’s so many things I want you to bring back for me!”

“Pfft… You little rascal, always so clever. Who said we were going?” Su Nan poked the little girl’s forehead, pretending to be annoyed.

Cao Xiu, on the other hand, chuckled, “Write it down—write a lot. Make your Senior Brother pay for everything!”

Seeing that Nan-jie and Doctor Cao had already cheered up, Xu Hehua also relaxed and chimed in with a grin, “Don’t mind her, Nan-jie. This girl’s been thick-skinned since she was little.”

Xu Wanchun took pride in it rather than shame, lifting her chin and declaring, “That’s not my fault—you all spoiled me!”

Her words sent the adults into another round of hearty laughter.

Although they still felt reluctant to let their son go off to support the frontier, the thought that they’d get to see him soon filled Cao Xiu and Su Nan with a sense of joyful anticipation.

Xu Wanchun also took the opportunity to encourage them to make the most of the trip.

Even if Senior Brother was too busy with his studies to accompany them for long, they could still enjoy themselves. Her master and mistress had been cooped up in the countryside for too long anyway.

—

Just as everyone was chatting and laughing, Xu Wanchun suddenly remembered something. She opened her bag with a grin and said, “Mom, Master, I brought you gifts!”

Xu Hehua and Cao Xiu looked up, full of anticipation.

Su Nan, feeling a little left out, playfully pouted, “What, nothing for your Mistress?”

Grinning cheekily, Xu Wanchun didn’t answer right away. She pulled out two notebooks and handed them to her mother and master respectively.

Then, seeing the two of them looking puzzled, she beamed like a little fox. “These are homework booklets I made for you and Master.”

Xu Hehua instinctively flipped hers open, and the moment she saw the contents, her face fell. “This… There’s so much! How many questions are there?”

Xu Wanchun looked a bit regretful, “I ran out of time. I only prepared 100 questions for you, Mom. I’ll make more next time…”

Xu Hehua nearly blacked out on the spot. She couldn’t find the words. How was this a gift? Could she return it?

Su Nan immediately stopped feeling jealous. Eyeing the noticeably thicker notebook in her husband’s hand, she swallowed nervously. “Then… your master’s book…”

“Oh, that one has two hundred Western medicine review questions. I spent half a month preparing it.”

Cao Xiu… silently recalled how he used to push his son and this very girl when they were younger.

So… was this karma coming full circle?

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