Chapter 15

“I know it’s hard for you to accept this right away, but let me take you somewhere.”

Leng Xue wanted to bring Gu Beilu into her space. Inside, there was a spiritual spring—something from the underworld, and thus, guaranteed to be miraculous.

If she used the spring water to rinse Gu Beilu’s eyes, it likely wouldn’t take many applications before he regained his sight.

Perhaps the spring water could even help him recover his memories.

“Enter.” Leng Xue closed her eyes and silently chanted in her mind. But when she opened them again, they were still in the room.

That shouldn’t have happened.

Frowning, Leng Xue kept her eyes open and tried again, “Enter.” Still no change—nothing moved.

Could it be broken?

Leng Xue summoned the small light orb in her mind and asked through her thoughts, “Why can’t I enter the space?”

This time, there was no advertisement—just a direct message:

“Only you can enter, or someone who is legally your spouse.”

Leng Xue raised her eyebrows. In their previous life, she and Gu Beilu hadn’t even had a chance to be intimate. In this life, they were even further from that. It seemed she would have to wait.

“Beilu, we’ll go there another time, but what I told you is the truth.”

Leng Xue tried to choose her words carefully, hoping to convince Gu Beilu of something as unbelievable as past lives.

“This is our first time meeting in this life, so I have no reason to lie to you. You really were my fiancé.”

“Comrade Leng Xue, please don’t say things like this to anyone else,” Gu Beilu said, a bit seriously.

Although the policy of sending educated youth to the countryside had now ended and people wouldn’t be punished for mentioning such things, it would still attract gossip. If Leng Xue went around talking about past lives, people would just think she was lovesick or desperate. It wouldn’t be good for her reputation.

“You just don’t believe me.” Leng Xue’s eyes reddened with grievance, and in a flash, tears fell down her cheeks.

Gu Beilu’s heart clenched sharply. For a moment, it hurt so badly he could hardly breathe.

“Don’t cry.”

He forced himself up, grabbed a handkerchief, and awkwardly wiped her tears. “Don’t cry.”

Leng Xue wasn’t the kind of woman who cried easily. But seeing Gu Beilu struggling to stand, sweat beading on his forehead as he balanced on one leg, she quickly stopped crying and helped him back into his wheelchair.

“If you don’t believe me, then why try to comfort me?”

Gu Beilu didn’t dare speak his true feelings, so he stayed silent.

So silent that even the sound of a water snake catching a frog by the pond outside could be heard.

The frog’s suffocating despair mirrored the state of Gu Beilu’s heart.

Why did I have to meet such a wonderful woman after becoming disabled?

“You don’t need to say it—I already know.” Leng Xue huffed. “You just can’t bear to see me cry.”

Gu Beilu, unable to lie, just lowered his head and stayed quiet.

“Comrade Leng Xue, are you there?”

Just then, a young woman’s voice rang out from outside the courtyard.

“Yes, I’m here.” Leng Xue stood up and said to Gu Beilu, “It’s probably Wang Li, the other educated youth. I’ll go check.”

“Okay.” The usually quiet man nodded.

Leng Xue stepped outside, stopping in a corner of the main room. She dabbed her eyes with water from the spiritual spring—after a few seconds, her eyes felt clearer, and the redness was gone. No sign of her having cried remained. Only then did she open the door and go out.

“Comrade Leng Xue, want to cook dinner together tonight?”

Seeing Leng Xue, Wang Li raised the large grass carp in her hand. “I just traded a yard of cloth ration for it. How about grilled fish tonight?”

Grass carp meat wasn’t very tender, but Gu Beilu had a special recipe for grilled fish that made it delicious.

“Comrade Wang, the team leader asked me to make dinner for Comrade Gu Beilu, who just arrived.”

“Huh? We’re still getting new educated youth?” Wang Li asked, confused. Wasn’t the “Down to the Countryside” movement already over?

When Gu Beilu had arrived earlier, Wang Li had just gone out the back door to trade for the fish, so she didn’t know who he was.

“He’s not an educated youth—he’s a retired soldier, and he’s settling down in our brigade,” Leng Xue explained.

“Then let him join us too. This fish weighs four or five pounds—we three girls can’t finish it all.”

At that time, soldiers were highly respected—and honestly, they were in any era.

Wang Li was from the city. Her parents favored sons over daughters. She had been sending money home for years while working in the countryside, only to be refused when she asked for help returning to the city.

Since then, she had stopped sending money and used her ration coupons for herself. Who knew when she’d return to the city? Might as well eat and live well now.

Her family didn’t love her, and her brothers treated her badly. She had seen through all that. What nonsense was “family affection” compared to finding like-minded friends?

Leng Xue, who had decisively cut ties with her family, was exactly her type. A veteran would surely be a good person too.

“Invite Comrade Gu too. We’re all young—it’ll be more fun eating together,” Wang Li offered again.

“I’ll ask him.” Leng Xue thought for a moment and said softly, “Comrade Gu was injured on the battlefield. He has trouble walking, and one of his eyes is still bandaged.”

She warned Wang Li, afraid she might react with pity or curiosity when she saw him.

“That’s an honorable wound—he got it serving the country,” Wang Li said firmly. “Comrade Leng Xue, I won’t look at him any differently.”

Leng Xue nodded, reassured, and turned to ask Gu Beilu for his opinion.

She knew he was once the pride of the army, but now, suddenly reduced to having nothing—not even a healthy body—it was natural for him to feel some inferiority.

Leng Xue wanted to help him slowly reconnect with people, do things again, and pull him out of his depression.

“Comrade Gu, can you grill fish?”

Wang Li was outside, so Leng Xue didn’t call him by his first name.

“Yes.” Gu Beilu nodded, not even asking why she was asking.

“Then how about grilled fish tonight? Comrade Wang provides the fish, I’ll bring rice and vegetables, and you’ll provide the cooking skills.”

Gu Beilu shook his head and pulled out a wad of money and ration coupons from his pocket—savings from the army and his demobilization allowance.

“I’ll cook the fish, and I’ll also contribute money and coupons.” He pulled out a few grain coupons and a ten-yuan note and handed them to Leng Xue.

“Comrade Leng Xue, take these for now. If it’s not enough, just ask me for more.”

In the countryside, vegetables came from personal gardens, and rice didn’t cost much. Giving ten yuan was quite generous. But Leng Xue didn’t reject it or even politely decline.

After all, soon all of this would be hers anyway.

“Alright. I’ll go tell Comrade Wang, then we’ll clean the fish and prep the veggies. I’ll come get you later to grill it.”

“Okay.” Gu Beilu nodded. Leng Xue hadn’t called him “Beilu” just now, and that made him a little disappointed—but maybe it was better this way.

Until he recovered, it was probably best if they continued calling each other “comrade.”