Chapter 30.2

Inside the kitchen, there were many dishes, all of which weren’t typical for this place or season.

Guan Yue called out, “Xiao Ma, how did you all manage to come out here in this cold weather?”

Xiao Ma said with a grin, “Hehe, the sanatorium is having a reunion dinner and invited you both, but you didn’t come. So, Minister Li asked me to bring you two dishes.”

“Thank you! You’ve come such a long way. Wait a moment, I’ll bring two dishes for you to take back.”

Xiao Ma quickly said, “No need, no need. You two eat slowly, we’ll leave first.”

Before Guan Yue could go to the kitchen to get the dishes, Xiao Ma shoved the basket into her hands and turned to leave.

Guan Yue closed the gate, this time locking it securely.

In the kitchen, Gu Sui had just finished stir-frying the last dish. When he saw the basket in her hands, he asked, “What’s inside?”

“Mm.”

Gu Sui opened the basket and found a bowl of twice-cooked pork and a bowl of chicken with potatoes, both meat dishes.

Gu Sui said, “The dishes got cold on the way up the mountain. Let me steam them for a bit, and when you want to eat, I’ll serve them up for you.”

“Alright.”

Finally, they could officially start eating. There were eight dishes on the table. Though each portion wasn’t much, it looked particularly abundant.

“Let’s eat!” Guan Yue eagerly picked up her chopsticks and dug into the food.

Ten minutes later, Guan Yue slumped back in her chair, exclaiming, “Ah, I’m so full!”

Gu Sui was eating slowly, with a slight smile on his face. “You’ve been sneaking bites all afternoon. I thought you’d be hungry enough to eat a whole cow, but now you’re giving up already? There are still two dishes in the kitchen, should I bring them out?”

Guan Yue leaned back in her chair, rubbing her stomach. “Leave them for now. We’ll eat them tomorrow.”

Gu Sui served her a bowl of soup. “You’ve eaten enough, so just stay and eat with me.”

Guan Yue took a sip of the soup and said to Gu Sui, “This is the second Chinese New Year we’ve spent together.”

“Mm,” he replied, “In the future, we’ll spend many more New Years together, until…” Until the day we die.

Guan Yue asked, “Until what?”

Gu Sui replied, “Until the end of time.”

Guan Yue laughed heartily, “Gu Sui, you’re so sentimental.”

Gu Sui chuckled along with her, “Let’s stay up until midnight and set off fireworks. Will you stay here to sleep?”

Guan Yue thought for a moment. “Alright, it’s too late. I don’t want to go back to the treehouse.”

Gu Sui’s smile grew wider. “Don’t worry, it’s just as safe here. I’m here with you!”

Guan Yue rolled her eyes. “What can you do? You should rely on me. I’ll protect you.”

“I can be protected by you too,” Gu Sui said, unbothered by admitting his weakness, not at all concerned with losing face as a man.

Guan Yue was satisfied. She picked up some food and placed it on his plate. “Eat more, it’s all because you worked so hard.”

The two of them chatted and laughed, as if they had spoken about many things, yet also as if they had said nothing. Time passed by unnoticed.

The hands of the clock pointed to twelve o’clock. Guan Yue covered her ears, and Gu Sui lit an incense stick, then set off the fireworks.

At the same time, firecrackers went off from the mountain below.

Guan Yue jumped in fright and stomped her feet. Gu Sui hugged her, and she wrapped her arms around his waist, pressing her ear against his chest, her face turning red with joy.

A gentle breeze blew by, and the sounds of the firecrackers marked the end of the old year. The spring breeze brought warmth as it entered the wine.

Guan Yue looked up at him, and Gu Sui looked down at her.

It was summer in 1966 when she had met him, and now it was already 1968.

The smell of gunpowder from the fireworks added to the festive atmosphere. Even though there were only the two of them, it didn’t feel lonely at all.

In that moment, everything felt so heart-stirring.

Guan Yue tiptoed, her arms instinctively reaching around his shoulders, pulling him into a kiss.

Gu Sui quickly responded, tightening his embrace, holding her so tightly that he almost wished to become one with her.

The moon and stars above, they didn’t know whether they had seen this pair on the ground, their breaths intertwining, their faces flushed with warmth.

Love, it should be like this—fiery and intense.

The kiss that night was like the sunlight dispersing the mist in the winter woods. The way they interacted became clearer, more certain, and open.

It was that kind of open affection—kisses and embraces without restraint.

Holding hands and hugging weren’t enough to express the restlessness and joy inside.

They snuggled and hugged, laughing foolishly. The first and second days of the New Year passed by without them even realizing how.

On the third day of the New Year, Deng Baishu came to notify them, saying that the patients would be arriving in the afternoon. The two of them still hadn’t fully processed it.

It had only been three days since they last saw each other, but Deng Baishu could already feel that the atmosphere between them had changed. “What’s going on with you two?” he asked.

Guan Yue replied, “What’s going on? Alright, alright, I know what you’re saying. I’ll go down in the afternoon. You can leave now.”

Deng Baishu’s question hadn’t been answered, yet he was immediately dismissed by Guan Yue.

Gu Sui stood in the yard, smiling. “Hurry up, let’s hug a little longer.”

“Hug? Fine, I’ll hug you.”

Guan Yue opened her arms and jumped into his embrace. Gu Sui kissed her fair cheek. “Minister Li said he’s already contacted your teacher. When your teacher comes, I’ll propose to him.”

Guan Yue immediately jumped out of his arms. “Why propose? I’m still so young, I don’t want to get married.”

Gu Sui’s face darkened. “Then when do you want to get married? Don’t say thirty, that’s not realistic, and I won’t agree.”

Guan Yue pulled at his sleeve, acting coquettishly. “Then when do you want to get married?”

“This year.”

They had kissed already, and still didn’t get married? How could that be? If his parents found out, they’d beat him to death.

Guan Yue let go of him. “This year won’t work, let’s wait five more years.”

Guan Yue generously offered a compromise.

Gu Sui snorted with a smile. “We’ll get married in the second half of this year.”

Guan Yue replied, “Wait four more years!”

Gu Sui said, “We’re getting married this New Year, no later.”

Guan Yue responded, “Wait three more years, that’s my bottom line.”

Gu Sui cupped her small face. “Guan Yue, are you interested in someone else? You’ve already kissed me, are you planning to drag this out and keep observing other men?”

Guan Yue stomped her feet. “No, I’m not keeping you hanging!”

Gu Sui asked, “Then tell me, are we getting married this year or not?”

Guan Yue gritted her teeth. “Let’s wait two more years. In two years, we’ll get married.”

“Alright!” Gu Sui immediately agreed, guessing that this was really her bottom line.

Gu Sui casually asked, “Why two years?”

“Because two years from now will be 1970, it’s a round number. It’ll be easy to remember our wedding anniversary.”

Gu Sui was speechless, while Guan Yue burst into laughter.

Gu Sui took her hand and led her to the kitchen. “From now on, when you introduce me to others, I’m not just your boyfriend. I’m your fiancé, understood?”

Guan Yue shot him a disdainful glance. “Why are you so petty? Before we get married, what difference does it make what kind of relationship we have?”

Gu Sui replied, “It makes a difference. A fiancé is a step closer than just a boyfriend.”

Before, when it was just the two of them on the mountain, it didn’t matter. Now that there were so many young male doctors and soldiers coming down from the mountain, he needed to claim his territory in advance.

Guan Yue groaned, “I miscalculated. So you’re actually a jealous type.”

Gu Sui laughed. “What if I start chatting sweetly with the other female doctors and nurses every day, and stop cooking for you? Can you stand it?”

Guan Yue turned into a fierce mother tiger. “You dare!”

“Haha, I don’t dare. What do you want to eat for lunch? I’ll make it for you.”

Guan Yue felt at ease. That was exactly the kind of thing she liked to hear.

Gu Sui was still someone who knew how to behave. They could play around at home, but once they were out in public, he was very careful. When they interacted, they appeared close, but there was little physical contact.

To outsiders, it was clear that they were a couple.

In the afternoon, while everyone was resting in the office, Director Zhang joked, “So, when are you two planning to have a wedding banquet?”

Guan Yue replied, “No rush, let’s wait for two more years.”

Director Zhang glanced at Gu Sui, who was pouring hot water for Guan Yue. “Oh, our Vice Director Gu, such a young and energetic man, still not rushing to settle down? You’re going to wait another two years?”

Gu Sui answered, “No rush, I’ll follow her lead.”

Instantly, everyone in the office burst out laughing, teasing Gu Sui if he had been in the Southwest too long and turned into a henpecked husband.

Gu Sui smiled but didn’t respond.

At that moment, a nurse ran in. “Director, the patients have arrived.”

Director Zhang stood up. “Let’s go, let’s see our patients first.”

The first batch of patients, a total of sixty-seven, had arrived. According to the classifications by Director Zhang and the others, eleven of them were listed as first-tier patients, all of whom were in the first-tier ward, waiting for Guan Yue.

Gu Sui, Deng Weimin, and the doctors and nurses under their command left. Deng Baishu, holding a stack of medical records, followed Guan Yue closely.

Among the eleven patients sent to Guan Yue, none of them walked into the clinic on their own; they were all carried in.

Some couldn’t move their legs, some had injured their backs, and others were unconscious the entire time.

As Guan Yue took the patients’ pulses, Deng Baishu briefly explained each patient’s condition. A nurse stood nearby with the box of silver needles for Guan Yue.

For most of the patients, the injuries were obvious, and they were all very suitable for acupuncture treatment. Guan Yue treated three patients in a row, and soon the silver needles ran out.

The nurse quickly brought over two more boxes of needles. “We have backups.”

Guan Yue nodded. “Go ahead and check on the next one.”