Chapter 61.1

Wen Nuan and her colleagues from the Kitchen Team admired the moon and ate mooncakes before heading home.

Gu Qinghan who was holding the drowsy Lele, walked ahead, while Wen Nuan yawned and slowly followed behind.

Sister Guihua, who was walking beside Wen Nuan, also yawned several times and said to Wen Nuan: “I ate too much tonight. Looks like I’ll have to rest a bit before I can sleep when I get home. But I see that little Lele seems to be getting sleepy already. You usually put her to bed early, don’t you?”

Wen Nuan glanced at Sister Guihua, who yawned again and smiled, “It depends. Sometimes, even after turning off the lights for a while, she still doesn’t want to sleep.”

Wen Nuan looked ahead, and the little Lele was already leaning on Gu Qinghan’s shoulder, dozing off. She would probably fall asleep soon.

Sister Guihua then remarked, “I’m so envious of Lele. She falls asleep almost as soon as her head hits the pillow.”

Sister Guihua, who was used to going to bed early, said a few more words to Wen Nuan before heading home.

—o—o—o—

When Wen Nuan arrived at her own yard, she noticed Yang Xiaomei following behind her, looking dejected. She couldn’t help but ask, “Sister Xiaomei, why are you coming over so late today? Is everything alright?”

When Yang Xiaomei heard Wen Nuan’s question, she immediately lifted her head and replied: “Nothing, really. Just got delayed by some things at home.”

“Oh, I see.” Wen Nuan observed her expression and then said, “I noticed earlier that you didn’t eat much. I thought maybe you were down again.”

Moreover, Yang Xiaomei had always been someone who could liven up the atmosphere. Sister Juxiang once said that she was the life of the Kitchen Team—she was always cheerful and laughing as if she had no worries.

This time, Wen Nuan guessed that Yang Xiaomei was probably upset again because of her secret boyfriend.

Wen Nuan didn’t know that man, Ding Guoli, nor whether he was reliable.

However, anyone who could leave someone as lively and outgoing as Yang Xiaomei feeling exhausted and heartbroken had likely done something quite over the line.

Yang Xiaomei paused for a moment after hearing Wen Nuan’s words, then murmured gloomily, “It’s not that big of a deal, really. I just had an argument with Ding Guoli tonight.”

Wen Nuan slightly raised her eyebrows, trying to comfort her, “It’s not serious, is it? What did your boyfriend say?”

Yang Xiaomei glanced around and noticed that everyone from the gathering had gone home, and no one was paying attention to them. She then said to Wen Nuan, “What happened is I’ve been feeling like Ding Guoli has been acting a bit strange lately, so I went to see him tonight to find out what he’s been up to. But out of nowhere, he lost his temper and said I was being annoying, always asking too many questions and being paranoid. I couldn’t hold back, so I yelled at him, too. I even told him to introduce me to his family tonight, but that jerk just turned around and walked away, saying it’s not the right time yet.”

Wen Nuan perked up and listened carefully to Yang Xiaomei’s story. She got the feeling that Ding Guoli might be hiding something, but since she didn’t know him, it was hard to say for sure. All she could do was offer some comfort: “It’s not your fault. Don’t overthink it.”

“Yeah, it’s fine. After the argument, I actually feel better. It’s much better than keeping it bottled up.”

Yang Xiaomei forced a smile. As she noticed the lights in Wen Nuan’s house were already on, she suddenly recalled how, during the gathering, Gu Qinghan had been taking care of Wen Nuan in every little way. Even the way he looked at her was filled with warmth, which was quite different from the usual impression she had of him.

As soon as Yang Xiaomei thought about her own boyfriend, she felt like cursing out loud.

Wen Nuan chuckled and said, “Mhm, anytime you’re feeling down, you can talk to me. Don’t keep it all bottled up.”

Upon hearing this, Yang Xiaomei finally gave her first genuine smile of the evening and said to Wen Nuan, “Sister Nuan Nuan, you should head back. Deputy Commander Gu and Lele are waiting for you.”

Wen Nuan glanced back at her house, and sure enough, Gu Qinghan had already turned on the light in the living room, casting a warm yellow glow.

So, she said to Yang Xiaomei, “You should head home early and get some rest, too. See you tomorrow.”

—o—o—o—

After returning to the house, Wen Nuan thought about giving Lele a bath before bed. Even though the weather was a bit cold, if they closed all the doors and windows tightly, it wouldn’t be too bad.

They had eaten too much barbecue tonight, and she couldn’t shake the feeling that they all carried the smell of grilled food. Not taking a bath felt uncomfortable.

However, as soon as she stepped into the room, she saw that Gu Qinghan had already placed the sleeping Lele on the kang. Lele, as soon as she hit the bed, instinctively found a comfortable position and fell back into a deep sleep.

Wen Nuan lowered her voice and said, “I was thinking of giving her a bath.”

Hearing his wife’s voice, Gu Qinghan turned his head and replied, “Forget it. She’s already asleep now. I’ll go get some hot water and wipe her hands and feet.”

Wen Nuan smiled, “So, you’ll wipe her down?”

Gu Qinghan looked at her with a relaxed tone, “Yes, I’ll handle it. There’s hot water in the pot. You go ahead and take your bath first.”

Before long, Gu Qinghan had fetched a basin of hot water with Lele’s towel inside while Wen Nuan went to the closet to find a change of clothes for herself.

Just as she was stepping out of the room, she heard Gu Qinghan say, “Wait for me a bit. After I wipe Lele’s hands and feet, I’ll bring you hot water.”

The water buckets at home were made of wood and were particularly heavy. Wen Nuan usually only carried half a bucket, as anything more would be too heavy for her.

Wen Nuan turned back, meeting Gu Qinghan’s gaze, and couldn’t shake the feeling that there was something more behind it.

But she was indeed tired today, so she simply responded with a soft “mm” and then asked, “By the way, do you know the younger brother of the commander from the 25th Battalion, Ding Guoli?”

“The commander of the 25th Battalion? He’s a mechanic with our Flight Crew. But as for his brother, I don’t know him,” Gu Qinghan replied, slightly frowning. He had never heard Wen Nuan ask him about another man before, so he gave her a questioning look: “What’s going on? Why are you suddenly asking me about some other guy?”

Wen Nuan noticed the displeasure in his eyes and retorted with a bit of annoyance, “What kind of look is that? This is about a colleague’s boyfriend on our kitchen team. I’m just asking if you know what kind of person he is.”

She didn’t want to mention that Ding Guoli was Yang Xiaomei’s boyfriend, considering that Sister Xiaomei hadn’t told her family yet, and it was still a secret relationship.

Gu Qinghan was visibly relaxed, wringing out the towel in his hands, and said, “I’ve only seen him a couple of times, and I’ve never spoken to him. Why?”

Wen Nuan’s curiosity got the better of her, so she asked, “Do you think it’s normal for someone in the military to keep a relationship secret and not tell anyone?”

Gu Qinghan let out a small snort, gently wiping Lele’s palm with the towel, and said, “It’s not normal—whether in the military or anywhere else.”

Wen Nuan agreed with Qunghan’s words, and in this day and age, it was indeed unusual. Since Gu Qinghan didn’t know much about Ding Guoli, she didn’t pursue the matter further, but her thoughts aligned with his—there was definitely something off about the guy.

Wen Nuan took her clothes and then headed to the bathroom without waiting for Gu Qinghan.

By the time she brought the hot water to the bathroom, Gu Qinghan had somehow followed her in, carrying another bucket full of steaming water.

Wen Nuan muttered, “Why would I need so much water? I’m not washing my hair tonight, and it’s too late.”

Whenever Wen Nuan wanted to wash her hair, Gu Qinghan would always prepare an extra half-bucket of water for her. But tonight was too late, and if she washed her hair now, who knew when it would dry?

Gu Qinghan met her sparkling eyes, then smiled and said, “I’ll take a bath with you.”

“?”

—o—o—o—

The next day, Gu Qinghan returned to the Flight Crew with a cheerful expression on his face.

As he walked in, he bumped into their captain, Liang Guoan, who immediately asked him, “Old Gu, are you getting ready to head out for test flights at Factory 112 again?”

Gu Qinghan nodded and said, “Next week. What’s up?”

Noticing Gu Qinghan was in a good mood, Liang Guoan responded, “Oh, it’s about recruiting new pilots. The commander should’ve mentioned it to you, right? When you go to the flight school, see if you can scout a couple of students. Our team is too short-staffed. We need to bring in more people to expand the squad.”

Gu Qinghan nodded again and said, “Yeah, it came up during yesterday’s meeting with General Lu and the others. But those students are still pretty green. They can’t even read the instrument panels properly. Only a few of them have the patience to take proper flight notes, but even then, it’s not looking too promising. Maybe next year, when you have time, we can go check it out together.”

Liang Guoan felt a headache coming on, but he pressed on, “You’ll need to teach them hands-on. Otherwise, who knows when they’ll be ready?”

Gu Qinghan thought for a moment before adding, “You should meet with the commander soon and work out a plan to select a batch of soldiers from our air force for additional training. The school doesn’t have enough planes, and the students don’t get enough flight time. But if we train them directly in the military, let them get their hands on the controls a few times, they should pick it up faster.”

“…”

Liang Guoan could only sigh.

If a few touches could make someone capable of flying a fighter jet, would there still be a need to study for years to master it?

If it were really that easy, their pilots wouldn’t have to be selected from among thousands of candidates. Right now, there were so many fighter jets in the military, but only about thirty pilots—clearly not enough.

Liang Guo’an snorted, “Do you really think everyone is like you, Gu Qinghan? It’s easy to talk when you’re not the one dealing with it!”

Talent and hard work were truly different things.

Just like him—though he had more flying experience than Gu Qinghan, so what?

His skills weren’t as good as Gu Qinghan’s. Thinking back to the plane crash, if it had been him, he probably wouldn’t have survived.

Gu Qinghan smiled slightly: “It’s because they don’t put their hearts into it.”

Liang Guo’an put his hands on his hips: “Why don’t you just say they’re stupid?”

Gu Qinghan gave a faint smile: “You said that, not me.”

Liang Guo’an: “…”

He felt like he had been set up.

As soon as the words were spoken, Ding Guocheng came over. Seeing Gu Qinghan, he immediately smiled and said, “Vice-Captain Gu, here’s yesterday’s maintenance report. Please take a look.”

Gu Qinghan glanced at Ding Guocheng and nodded slightly, “Hmm, leave it there. I’ll look at it later.”

Ding Guocheng didn’t leave the office. After hesitating for a few seconds, he asked, “Vice-Captain Gu, I just heard you mention that the Flight Crew is recruiting pilots, right? I have a younger brother who’s only 20 years old. Do you think he could apply?”

Gu Qinghan furrowed his brow, remembering how Wen Nuan had asked about Ding Guocheng’s brother last night, and the question had been quite odd.

He replied indifferently, “The recruitment hasn’t started yet, but if he meets the requirements, we’d certainly welcome him.”

Before Ding Guocheng could respond, Gu Qinghan picked up the report without lifting his head, saying, “You can leave now. Close the door behind you.”

Liang Guo’an knew that Gu Qinghan was angry. Not only had Ding Guocheng overheard their conversation, but he had also walked right into a sensitive situation.

If thua Ding Guocheng had paid attention to their words, he could have guessed that the pilot recruitment wasn’t even confirmed yet.

Ding Guocheng was eager to make his presence known in front of Gu Qinghan, but without him knowing, he was only digging his own grave.

Ding Guocheng rubbed his nose and tried to open his mouth as if he was about to say something, but seeing Gu Qinghan’s cold attitude, he didn’t dare continue.

He turned around and quietly closed the door behind him.

—o—o—o—