CHAPTER 3

Su Yin never expected that the moment she stepped into the Gu family’s home, she’d run into such a scene.

She tried her best to shrink into the background, listening quietly until she roughly pieced together the story. The people barging in to complain were also from the military compound — the mother and wife of Commissar Hou from the Fifth Regiment, dragging along their son, whose face was beaten black and blue. They were here to demand justice from the old master, asking him to rein in Gu Cheng’an.

Su Yin stole a glance at the commissar’s son. Bruises mottled his face in shades of purple and blue — clearly, the beating had been no small matter.

Thinking of what she’d read in the book about Gu Cheng’an’s short temper, Su Yin instinctively hunched her shoulders.

Old Madam Hou clutched her grandson and wailed, “Commander, you have to do something! Your Gu Cheng’an’s been a bully since he was a kid — how many times has he beaten our Jianguo already? We’re all good, upstanding comrades, so how can he be so heavy-handed?”

With Hou Jianguo’s hiss of pain adding to the drama, even Su Yin had to admit — the boy really did look like he’d been hit hard.

Commander Gu Hongkai, once famous for his iron will, had always been strict and incorruptible. In his prime, no matter who made a mistake, he would punish them without mercy, and no amount of pleading would sway him.

But now, age had sapped some of his vigor. After enduring the noisy complaints for a while, he coughed, and the Hou family’s voices instantly softened. One sharp sweep of his eyes, and all three fell silent.

Su Yin was quietly impressed. The man’s authority was still formidable.

“Enough of this racket!” Gu Hongkai’s voice rose, deep and forceful like a war drum. “We’ll get to the bottom of this. If Cheng’an really had no reason to hit you, rest assured — I’ll deal with him myself!”

The Hou women’s faces brightened at once. Only Hou Jianguo seemed uneasy, shrinking his neck at the promise.

—

Around four in the afternoon, the sun was still blazing. Liu Maoyuan, tasked with finding Gu Cheng’an, felt a pang of dread. It looked like the Gu household was in for another stormy night.

This wasn’t the first time. Whenever Gu Cheng’an caused trouble, the old master would discipline him the old-fashioned way — with a stick. Madam Gu would then rush to plead for mercy, and Mr. Gu, having grown up under the same strict hand, would stay out of it. Usually, only the grandmother could rein things in… but she wasn’t home today.

So the pattern was predictable: Cheng’an would end up bruised, his parents would quarrel, and peace would be nowhere in sight.

Having hunted the young man down many times before, Liu Maoyuan knew his habits well. After striking out at two likely spots, he finally found him — loitering outside the supply and marketing cooperative with a group of compound lads.

The tallest among them, standing in the middle with a strikingly bold face, was Gu Cheng’an.

His friends were ribbing him mercilessly.

“An-ge, I heard from my mom that your little country wife’s coming soon. Is that true?”

“I heard it too! So you’re getting married, huh? Unbelievable — the rest of us are still single, and you’re the first to land a wife!”

“Haha! We’ll have to crash your wedding night!”

Gu Cheng’an, a blade of grass dangling lazily from his lips, flicked his eyes up, his narrow phoenix eyes glinting with disdain.

“Get lost. Who said anything about me getting married? Who said anything about marrying some country girl, huh?”

“Come on, everyone knows about it — the childhood engagement your grandpa arranged,” Han Qingwen, his good friend, said with a grin, giving him a playful slap on the shoulder.

“Yeah, how could your grandpa pick you a wife from the countryside? With your family’s standing, isn’t that just wasting good resources?”

This last remark came from He Songping, a round-faced fellow who’d grown up with him. It was exactly what he thought — after all, the Gu family’s background was nothing short of enviable.

His father was a senior officer, his mother the factory director at the military dependents’ factory, and her own family’s status was impressive. With such credentials, half the compound’s mothers were eyeing Gu Cheng’an as the ideal son-in-law.

But Old Master Gu was the sort who brooked no argument. Everyone in the compound had long known he’d arranged a rural match for his grandson — and they’d all shaken their heads in sympathy.

That said, Cheng’an was already twenty and there had been no sign of this so-called fiancée, so people’s hopes had revived.

He Songping’s mother, in particular, was counting on her son’s friendship with Cheng’an to set him up with her daughter. And He Songping himself? He had no desire to see his friend marry some country girl.

The group’s teasing grew louder, until Cheng’an’s brows drew together in irritation. His voice cut through their chatter, sharp and uncompromising.

“Alright, enough! You have way too much time on your hands. Who am I, Gu Cheng’an? Remember this — I can’t stand people arranging my life for me, especially telling me to marry some childhood fiancée. Forget it! I hate those old feudal ‘arranged marriage’ ideas more than anything!”

The words had barely left his mouth when he heard a voice calling out — one he knew all too well.

“Cheng’an!”

“Uncle Liu?”
When Gu Cheng’an saw Liu Maoyuan, he immediately pulled back his lazy, unruly demeanor and strolled over with a cheeky grin. “What brings you here? Buying something nice for Auntie?”

Today was Liu Maoyuan’s wife’s birthday, and Gu Cheng’an, knowing the couple had a good relationship, casually teased him.

Liu Maoyuan couldn’t help but smile at the boy’s banter, but his face quickly turned serious. “Cut the nonsense and come home with me—your grandfather’s looking for you.”

“What for? The old man’s missing me already?”

“You got into a fight, didn’t you?” Liu Maoyuan lowered his voice, knowing Gu Cheng’an wasn’t the kind to pick fights without a reason. “Hou Jianguo’s family came to lodge a complaint.”

“That bastard…” Gu Cheng’an clenched his jaw, a dangerous glint flashing in his eyes. “Guess he hasn’t had enough of a beating yet.”

“Watch your mouth! If your grandfather hears you talking like that, he’ll grab a stick on the spot!”

Liu Maoyuan led him back, lecturing along the way, reminding him to speak properly to the old man. Whether the advice actually sank in was anyone’s guess.

—

At the Gu Residence.

Hearing commotion outside, everyone in the living room looked up and saw Liu Maoyuan bringing Gu Cheng’an in.

The Hou family’s daughter-in-law and her mother-in-law instantly sprang to their feet. “Old Leader, here he is! Ask your grandson if he laid hands on our Jianguo!”

Old Master Gu kept his composure. He merely gave the Hou family a cool glance before fixing his gaze on his grandson.

Gu Hongkai had five children in all. The fourth had died on the battlefield at just twenty-four, leaving no descendants. Now, the eldest was serving in the Northeast army, the second was the director of a steel mill in the capital, the third was Gu Cheng’an’s father, Gu Kangcheng, and the youngest was stationed on a southeastern island.

Out of those four surviving children came eight grandchildren—Gu Cheng’an was the only one without siblings, and the one who most resembled Old Master Gu in both looks and temperament.

Facing this grandson who had inherited his own bullheadedness, the old man felt both pride and exasperation.

“Comrade Gu Cheng’an, explain yourself!”

At that moment, Su Yin was upstairs. Since it was her first day here and trouble had broken out, Old Master Gu had asked Aunt Wu to take her upstairs, put down her bundle, and keep her out of the matter.

Still, his thunderous bark carried upstairs, startling Su Yin.

Surely they weren’t going to start fighting, were they?

“I’d better go see.” Aunt Wu, who had worked for the Gu family for over twenty years and watched Cheng’an grow up, spoke with concern. “Didn’t he say he was just going to check on his cousin? How’d it turn into a fight? If he angers the old man, he’ll get another good beating. That boy’s so stubborn. You have a look around first—if it does come to blows, I might have to call for backup.”

The “backup,” of course, was Gu Cheng’an’s mother, who worked at the military district’s family factory.

Su Yin’s eyes flickered with realization—this scene felt oddly familiar.

In the original novel, the plot was already set in the late 1980s. By then, the male lead’s uncle, Gu Cheng’an, was no longer the brash youth of today. Still, a few stories from his teenage years had been mentioned, and today’s scene… was eerily similar.

“Aunt Wu, since Comrade Gu Cheng’an went to see his cousin, why not bring her here to mediate? It’s easier for the younger generation to speak up for each other.”

Aunt Wu thought it over and nodded. “True!” She slipped out immediately.

Once Aunt Wu left, Su Yin couldn’t hold back her curiosity and crept to the top of the stairs to listen. The book’s description had painted Gu Cheng’an as a deep, steady, and ruthless man—but right now, he didn’t sound like that at all.

“He had it coming, that’s all.”

The lazy drawl instantly set Old Master Gu off. The enamel cup in his hand slammed onto the table with a loud bang.

“What kind of attitude is that?” Old Master Gu barked. “If you can’t give me a reason, then I’ll just deal with you the same way you dealt with him! Liu Maoyuan, bring me the stick!”

“Old Master!” Liu Maoyuan tried to intervene, but one sharp look silenced him.

“I asked you for an explanation, and you gave me nothing! However you hit him, that’s how I’ll ‘discipline’ you today!”

The thick wooden stick in his hand made Su Yin’s heart race. She didn’t know Gu Cheng’an well, but she hated to see anyone beaten.

She turned her head just in time to see him, chin tilted up, his side profile sharp and edged with youthful arrogance.

Couldn’t he just swallow his pride and say a few conciliatory words?

“Grandpa!”

The crisp voice of a young girl rang out just as the stick was about to fall.

Gu Chenghui came running in and planted herself between her grandfather and Gu Cheng’an. “Grandpa, why are you trying to hit Fourth Brother?”

“Your fourth brother’s being disobedient. I need to teach him a lesson.”

But Gu Chenghui had already heard the whole story from Aunt Wu on the way here, and she was fuming. She turned and shot the Hou family a fierce glare, leaving them puzzled.

“Grandpa, you want to know why Fourth Brother hit Hou Jianguo? Because he was talking bad about me behind my back—filthy things that would make anyone’s ears burn. Fourth Brother was standing up for me.”

Silently listening from upstairs, Su Yin thought, Just like in the book.

In the story, Gu family’s cousins had overheard Hou Jianguo and some other compound boys making lewd remarks, picking apart Gu Chenghui from her face to her chest to her backside, every word crude and disgusting.

Naturally, Gu Cheng’an couldn’t tolerate it and beat him up.

But when Hou Jianguo got home, his grandmother and mother had egged him on to come complain. Knowing Gu Cheng’an’s temper, he was sure the latter wouldn’t repeat those vulgarities in public and risk sullying his cousin’s name, so he figured he’d take the beating in silence and still get some revenge by tattling.

“Hou Jianguo!” Old Master Gu’s voice was sharp with anger. “Did you talk trash about Huihui behind her back?”

The man who had once faced enemy fire on the battlefield now bore down on Hou Jianguo. The young man’s legs nearly gave way.

“I… I…”

“It’s either yes or no!” Old Master Gu barked. Years of interrogating enemy agents had made him a master at breaking people down—and Hou Jianguo was no match. In no time at all, he crumbled.

“Y-yes… but—”

Crack!

The stick in Old Master Gu’s hand—meant for Gu Cheng’an—came down squarely on Hou Jianguo’s back instead.

Hou Jianguo jolted from the pain. The old man was already in his seventies, his strength not what it used to be, but his strikes still carried weight. Before Hou Jianguo could react, whack—two more blows landed in quick succession.

“Old Leader—! You… you hit me?!” Hou Jianguo’s mother wailed.

“Why shouldn’t I?” Old Master Gu tossed the stick to the floor, voice booming. “Dare to slander my granddaughter? How do you Hou people raise your boys? Even if your son Hou Bing were here, I’d thrash him too!”

Hou Bing’s regiment commander and brigade commander had both served under Old Master Gu back in the day. Everyone who knew him respected him—and feared him.

At that, Hou Jianguo’s mother and daughter-in-law deflated on the spot, half-dragging him toward home. Outside the Gu family gate, they lifted his shirt and hissed in dismay—an angry red welt ran clear across his back. The old man hadn’t gone easy; it hurt to even look at.

Inside, Old Master Gu—always strict but fair—knew his grandson had been trying to protect his cousin’s reputation. Still, this kind of stubbornness would bring him trouble someday.

“You brat, you have no idea how much that temper of yours will cost you.”

Gu Cheng’an just smiled faintly, helping his grandfather into a chair. “Isn’t it the same temper as yours?”

“You calling me stubborn?!” Old Master Gu barked a laugh, then straightened his face. “Good job, though. That Hou Jianguo was asking for it. Nothing but filth out of that mouth.”

As they talked, Gu Cheng’an was still wondering how his cousin had arrived so quickly to save him from the stick. He soon learned it was Aunt Wu who had tipped her off.

“Cheng’an, I didn’t mean to meddle—no, actually, I should thank Comrade Su Yin for the reminder,” Aunt Wu said, glancing upstairs.

“Comrade Su Yin?” Family visiting?

Following her gaze, he saw no one at the landing.

“Your childhood fiancée! Just arrived today,” Aunt Wu explained.