Chapter 7: Calling the Unit’s Political Commissar to Cancel the Engagement

Fu Tingzhou asked her, “Would you like some fruit? I can peel it for you.”

Li Zhi glanced at the fruit plate full of various fruits and said, “I’d like some pear, please.”

“No problem.”

Fu Tingzhou was very skilled with a fruit knife. He peeled the pear without breaking the skin from start to finish, then cut it into quarters and then into smaller pieces.

After finishing the pear, Li Zhi checked the time—it was 4:00 p.m. She figured there was still time to go out and make a phone call.

“Commander Fu, I’d like to go out shortly to call the unit and report the cancellation of my engagement. Could I trouble you to help me dial the political commissar’s office line?”

Fu Tingzhou nodded. “Sure.”

Li Zhi went to the bathroom and changed into clothes she had brought from home—a light yellow knitted sweater and a mid-length beige layered skirt.

At nineteen, she was in the prime of her youth. Her fair, porcelain-like skin and delicate features, paired with almond-shaped eyes that were bright and clear with slightly upturned corners, gave off a subtle charm. Her nose was tall and straight with a slightly upturned tip, adding a playful touch.

Her long, smooth black hair flowed down her back, and her slanted bangs gently rested on her forehead.

Her looks were a perfect blend of purity and allure—like a cold, pristine gardenia flower that made people want to protect her.

Even someone like Fu Tingzhou, who had seen countless beauties, was momentarily stunned by her appearance.

When he came back to his senses, he shifted his gaze to her clothing bag and noticed a hat inside. “Put on a hat—the doctor said your head can’t be exposed to the wind.”

Li Zhi hesitated. “But it’s so hot these days, wearing a hat would be unbearable.”

In the southern part of the country, July was like living in a furnace.

She knew her own body—she didn’t actually have a concussion.

Fu Tingzhou picked up the hat and was about to help her put it on, but felt it wasn’t appropriate. Instead, he handed it to her. “Wearing it will block the wind and the sun. You can take it off once you’re indoors.”

“…Alright.” Unable to refuse him, Li Zhi obediently put it on.

After informing the nurse, they left the hospital. They headed out first to make the phone call, worried that the office staff might be off duty soon.

Since the reform and opening up, Yangcheng—being a key economic hub and frontier of openness in the South—was full of phone booths all over the city center.

Fu Tingzhou inserted coins and dialed directly—no transfer was needed within the same city.

“Old Wu, this is Fu Tingzhou.”

“Commander Fu?” The man on the other end sounded surprised, then joked loudly, “Aren’t you on vacation? Rare to get a call from you while on break. What’s the matter?”

“I’m not the one looking for you. A comrade has something to discuss with you—a female comrade. Lower your voice a bit, don’t scare her.”

Political Commissar Wu had a hearty, booming voice.

Hearing Fu protectively mention a woman, Wu Xiangqian immediately picked up on the unusual tone. Something was up. His voice rose with excitement. “What comrade? Your girlfriend? Are you submitting a marriage request? That’s great! Commander Leng has mentioned introducing you to someone a few times. No matter how capable you are, if your family’s unstable, it’ll be hard to rise in rank.”

“You misunderstood. She’s not my girlfriend.”

(At least not yet—who knows about the future.)

Li Zhi took the phone and began, “Hello, Political Commissar Wu. My name is Li Zhi. I’m the fiancée of Lu Yanzhi, the commander of the third battalion in the third regiment. He submitted our marriage request half a month ago. I wonder if you remember it?”

“Yes, yes. Your photo left a deep impression. Everyone said Lu Yanzhi was lucky to marry such a beautiful young lady.”

“I heard the marriage request has already been approved, but I no longer wish to marry him. I’d like to cancel the engagement.”

Commissar Wu glanced at the calendar on his desk, his brow furrowing. “You want to cancel the engagement? Commander Lu is on marriage leave to get married. The wedding should be around this time. Why cancel now? Did something happen? If you’re comfortable sharing, we can try to help.”

“Yesterday was the scheduled wedding date, but the ceremony didn’t happen. A child of one of his fallen comrades fainted during the wedding, and he interrupted the ceremony to take the child to the hospital. The wedding didn’t go through, and I no longer want to marry him.”

Wu Xiangqian got visibly angry just listening. Abandoning the bride at the wedding to take a kid to the hospital?

That’s just thoughtless. No wonder she wanted to back out.

Wu directly criticized, “Commander Lu really mishandled this. There were plenty of people who could’ve taken the kid—what was he doing getting involved as the groom? He was out of line. I’ll be sure to reprimand him and have him apologize to you. How does that sound?”

It wasn’t entirely wrong to help someone—it was a martyr’s child—but it showed poor judgment.

Still, if it could be salvaged, they would try. The organization always preferred reconciliation over separation.

“That was only part of it.

The second issue is that my parents never agreed to the marriage. They want me to continue my studies, and I regret not listening. I want to go back to school. They said if I insisted on marrying, they’d cut ties with me. A parent’s love is above all else—I can’t abandon my family just to get married.

Third, his mother argued and fought with me. She pushed me down and injured me pretty badly. The police already came to mediate. There’s no hope between us. I must cancel the engagement. He refuses, so I’m afraid he’ll go to you to collect the approved marriage report and register without my consent.

Please don’t give him the report. Once I’m discharged, I’ll write a formal withdrawal request and bring it to you in person to explain everything clearly.”

“I understand your concerns. I won’t give him the report. I’ll keep it with me for now—unless both of you agree, it won’t go anywhere.”

Li Zhi thanked him. “Thank you very much, Commissar Wu.”

“No need for thanks—it’s my duty.”

She hung up.

Turning to Fu Tingzhou, she said, “Commander Fu, it’s almost dinner time. Let me treat you to a meal.”

Fu Tingzhou replied, “I’ll treat you.”

How could he let a female comrade pay?

“You’ve helped me so much—I should treat you. I can still afford one meal. It won’t cost much.” Li Zhi insisted.

Fu Tingzhou didn’t want to argue and let her have her way.

They went to a restaurant and ordered three dishes and a soup.

Before the food arrived, Li Zhi, feeling a bit bored, looked around—and suddenly spotted two familiar figures walking through the entrance.