Chapter 29: Awkward

Finally, amidst the children’s accusations, he found an opening to speak.

His words brought a moment of silence to the break room. Su Yuanyuan and the two children looked at him in bewilderment.

“Mom, isn’t this Daddy?” Lu Mingzhu and Lu Siyuan looked from Han Xiao to Su Yuanyuan.

Su Yuanyuan’s mind was a blank. Wasn’t it?  She didn’t know! She’d never met Lu Zhengan.

She had no memories of the original owner and relied entirely on her knowledge of the original story to interact with people.  Of course, she couldn’t let anyone see that she didn’t recognize Lu Zhengan.

Su Yuanyuan nervously clutched her bag, looking conflicted. “Daddy went back to his unit a few days after he married Mom. Mom hasn’t seen him for years, so I don’t quite remember what he looks like.”

By the end of her sentence, Su Yuanyuan’s voice was almost inaudible.

Coming to the city to find her husband, only to find the wrong person, was incredibly awkward.

It wasn’t just her; everyone felt awkward.  A collective silence fell as they realized the huge misunderstanding.

The guards straightened their posture, their eyes fixed ahead, their stances impeccable.

The orderly quickly interjected to explain, fearing the company commander’s wrath.

“Yes, ma’am, you’ve got it all wrong. This is Han Xiao, Company Commander Han.”

Su Yuanyuan and the two children’s faces flushed red. Lu Siyuan and Lu Mingzhu quickly released Han Xiao’s legs and bowed to apologize.

“Uncle, we’re so sorry! We…we didn’t know what Daddy looks like. We’ve never met him before.”

They nervously fiddled with their clothes, worried they had offended the soldier.

“Commander Han, I’m sorry. My husband and I haven’t seen each other for years. He left home a few days after our wedding, and I didn’t recognize him at first.  I made a fool of myself. I’m truly sorry.”

Su Yuanyuan wanted to disappear.  Her gaze and words had been mortifying.

Han Xiao and the others, initially embarrassed by the misunderstanding, felt a pang of sympathy upon hearing Su Yuanyuan and the children’s apologies.

The children had never met their father, and their mother, who had waited for years, had forgotten what her husband looked like.

How much courage did this thin woman have to bring two children to Beijing to find him?

“I’m so sorry for the misunderstanding.”

Seeing Han Xiao remain silent, Su Yuanyuan apologized again.

The two children, realizing their mistake, also apologized.

“Sorry, Uncle.”

Han Xiao pursed his lips, waving his hands repeatedly. “It’s alright, it’s alright. I’m a comrade of Old Lu’s. He asked me to take you to the family quarters when you arrived.”

Family quarters? Su Yuanyuan glanced behind Han Xiao, seeing no one else.

“Where’s Zhengan? Why isn’t he here?”  Calling Lu Zhengan by his name felt strange, but calling him “my husband” or “Captain Lu” in front of his comrade would be even stranger.

Su Yuanyuan had hoped to use this opportunity to explain about the two children to Lu Zhengan.

This was awkward. When Lu Zhengan saw the two children suddenly appear, he’d have a lot of explaining to do.

Han Xiao scratched his head. “Old Lu only received your two letters this morning and learned you were coming to Beijing. But he had to leave on an urgent mission and wasn’t sure when he’d be back.  He wasn’t comfortable leaving you and the children, so he asked me to look out for you.”

Han Xiao wanted to explain that Lu Zhengan had been incredibly busy these past few years, constantly working.

But this wasn’t the time.  Old Lu was busy, and his wife and children had suffered just as much.

Consoling her at this moment would feel like saying, “You’ve suffered, but your husband had no choice.”

So he was on an urgent mission. Su Yuanyuan had briefly entertained a melodramatic thought that Lu Zhengan was avoiding her, but he was the male lead of the original story, so he should have some basic decency.

“Family quarters? He never mentioned having a house in the family quarters in his letters.” Su Yuanyuan remembered he always lived in the barracks.

Could it be that she had altered the original story’s plot, bringing the children to Beijing and triggering some hidden white moonlight plotline?

For example, temporarily taking care of her and letting her stay in the family quarters.

Su Yuanyuan was brainstorming when Han Xiao realized her misunderstanding and quickly explained.

“It was approved recently. Old Lu asked me to settle you in the family quarters. I’ll take you there now. Sister-in-law, let me take your bag.”

Seeing how thin the mother and children were, Han Xiao took the bag from her.

Su Yuanyuan didn’t refuse; the original owner’s small frame looked incapable of carrying anything.

“Uncle, Daddy has a house here? Is it for us?” Lu Mingzhu didn’t understand.

Although they had a house back home, Grandma and Grandpa, along with their aunt, said it wasn’t theirs. If they didn’t work hard, they’d be kicked out.

Han Xiao led the mother and children towards the family quarters, pausing upon hearing the child’s question.

“Of course, it’s for you. When your father applied for housing in the family quarters, he intended for you to come here and join the military.”

Han Xiao glanced at Su Yuanyuan, continuing his explanation. “Your father planned to bring you here after he finished his current tasks. He’d already applied for the housing, and you arrived sooner than expected.”

Following Han Xiao and the children, Su Yuanyuan learned that Lu Zhengan had applied for housing and planned to bring her to join the military.

“Commander Han, thank you for picking us up. I know Zhengan has it tough. He sends so much money home every month because he worries about me. I understand.”

Su Yuanyuan smiled, her long hair neatly braided, her smile gentle and bright.

She seemed kind and understanding, making Han Xiao relieved. Old Lu’s wife seemed nice, not angry or resentful.  That was good.

Many wives who came looking for their husbands were there to discuss divorce, and he had been worried for Old Lu.

That was good.

Unaware of Han Xiao’s unspoken relief, Su Yuanyuan was thinking about something else.

Lu Zhengan didn’t know about the twins, but he was planning to bring the original owner to join the military. It seemed he hadn’t returned home in three years because he was too busy.

The original owner was in poor health, and he knew his parents’ personalities. How well could Su Yuanyuan have lived in the village?

As long as he cared for the original owner, there was still room to play the victim.

Su Yuanyuan had heard Han Xiao mention two letters from home. The first letter she sent was before she boarded the train, sent along with another letter from the Lu family.

She could guess what the letter said about her, and that it wouldn’t mention the children.

Li Hua and the others probably didn’t expect Su Yuanyuan, an illiterate woman, to be so bold as to bring her children to Beijing.

For a while, she and the children would have to endure hardship, eating only half-full meals, to make their plight more believable when Lu Zhengan returned from his mission.

Seeing is believing. The children’s and her thinness and malnutrition couldn’t be faked; they were the result of long-term hunger.

Han Xiao helped them register their identities, complete the paperwork, and then took them to Lu Zhengan’s assigned housing.

The military compound had more than a dozen large, ten-story buildings of uniform height.

Lu Zhengan’s apartment was at the end of a long corridor, a two-bedroom, one-living room unit.

The door opened, revealing a layer of dry dust.

Su Yuanyuan coughed violently, choking on the dust.

The apartment had a few old pieces of furniture, untouched and covered in dust.

Han Xiao put the bags down, asking Su Yuanyuan and the children to wait, and went to the next apartment and knocked.

“Who is it?”

“Sister-in-law, it’s me. I need to borrow a feather duster, broom, and cleaning cloths to clean Old Lu’s apartment.”

A young woman opened the door, her gaze falling on Su Yuanyuan and the children.

“Oh my, they’re Captain Lu’s wife and children?”

The children, especially the boy, looked just like Captain Lu.