Chapter 32

Provincial Hospital.

When Gu Xiangqian woke up, everything was pitch black.

The nurse wiped his dry lips with a cotton ball and noticed he weakly tried to speak.

She leaned in to listen, but couldn’t make out his words. “Comrade Commander, what did you say? I can’t hear you!”

Gu Xiangqian’s memory was fragmented, sometimes he was at home, other times, he was at the front lines.

In a weak breath, he asked, “What’s the date? What time is it? It’s so dark, why haven’t the lights been turned on?”

The nurse quickly and steadily reported the date and time: “It’s 8 o’clock in the morning.”

After reporting the time, she suddenly realized something was wrong. She gasped and waved her hand in front of Gu Xiangqian’s eyes. The sharp and decisive commander’s eyes didn’t move at all.

Gu Xiangqian said, “Are you sure you didn’t get the year wrong? How many years have I slept?”

The nurse was so shocked that she nearly dropped the tray she was holding. In surprise, she immediately called the doctor.

The doctor in charge of Gu Xiangqian’s condition was a professor over fifty years old, very experienced. After checking his vital signs, he took a few brain scans and discussed the treatment plan with his disciples.

Yao Chunyu heard the news and felt as though the world had turned upside down.

“He’s a battle hero, still so young! How could he go blind like this?”

The doctor patiently explained, “This leader has a blood clot in his head, temporarily pressing on his nerves. Once the clot dissolves, his vision should return. The blindness is only temporary. He’s young, and his physical condition is strong, he will recover.”

So it was only temporary! Yao Chunyu finally felt relieved.

Temporary blindness was actually a blessing! Without sight, and having suffered psychological trauma at the front, he would certainly be very dependent on others right now.

Upon hearing that Gu Xiangqian had woken up, Yao Chunyu would visit his hospital room when she wasn’t busy, chatting with him for a few moments. She had assumed that since he was married, he would likely avoid her, just like when he had woken up in the hospital last time—distant and silent, as if she were just an ordinary passerby.

To her surprise, he responded a few times and occasionally even took the initiative to ask her questions. During this period, whenever she had free time, Yao Chunyu would visit Gu Xiangqian’s room to chat and pass the time.

Gu Xiangqian’s counterintelligence abilities were sharp. In just a few days, he had gotten from his old classmate, Yao Chunyu, that it was indeed 1960, and that his mother had passed away the year before.

Gu Xiangqian was so distressed he couldn’t say a word and fell silent for several days.

Yao Chunyu noticed that Gu Xiangqian had become quiet again, as if he had something on his mind. He had been in the hospital for half a month, and yet Su Ye had not come to visit him. Perhaps that was what was troubling him.

Yao Chunyu tried to comfort him. “Are you thinking about Su Ye?”

“I’d definitely be a nervous wreck if I had a husband on the front lines. I really envy her calmness, he’s like a real soldier…” Gu Xiangqian’s brow twitched, and he didn’t even bother to rest his eyes.

The name “Su Ye” flashed through his mind, feeling vaguely familiar, but as soon as he thought of her, his head began to ache.

Yao Chunyu sighed. “The families of injured soldiers have been here to keep watch for a month. You must be feeling very lonely. Should I give her a call?”

She quickly covered her mouth. “Don’t worry, Gu Xiangqian. She must have received your message already, something must have delayed her. Although I haven’t met her, your mother’s last wish was for you to marry her. She must be a good person for your mother to leave such a wish.”

Yao Chunyu’s implication was clear—she hadn’t come to see you in a month, wake up to reality.

Arranged marriages and parental consent were old-fashioned now, in this new society where such feudal remnants no longer existed.

Gu Xiangqian idly thought, so Su Ye wasn’t just a girlfriend, she was his wife?

As he listened to these words, Gu Xiangqian began to form an initial impression of Su Ye. It seemed that she might not be very concerned about him. However, upon further reflection, the way his old classmate had mentioned her calmness, it felt somewhat odd… hard to explain.

Seeing that Gu Xiangqian still had a calm demeanor, Yao Chunyu realized that she had been a bit impatient today. She stopped mentioning Su Ye and instead took care of other things—she fetched him warm water, ran errands for him, brought him his meals, read the daily newspapers to him…

She did everything the nurse would normally do, and with a soft, gentle touch and patience. All the patients in the ward couldn’t help but praise her kindness.

Yao Chunyu wanted to take advantage of Gu Xiangqian’s apparent dislike for Su Ye to encourage him to divorce her as soon as possible, but he seemed to have lost all hope and was unwilling to discuss Su Ye any further.

Gu Xiangqian was not the only one in the hospital, a few of his comrades from the front line were also there.

Ning Xingdou and Zhang Yifeng were among them. When Xingdou saw that only a young nurse was tidying up outside Gu Xiangqian’s room, he couldn’t help but sigh.

Zhang Yifeng’s mother and wife had already come to visit him, and he had enjoyed the warmth of family. Now, seeing Gu Xiangqian alone, it made him angry.

These two had been soldiers who had stayed on the front line and hadn’t been back to the military district for over half a year, so they had never met Su Ye.

Zhang Yifeng’s wife, Niu Cuihua, stopped him when he was criticizing Su Ye, saying, “Wait, that’s not how it is! You’ve never seen her, but Su Ye is actually impressive.”

“Either she catches a whole basket of fish in one go, or she catches a wild boar every time she picks something up. Her job is respectable, and everywhere she goes, people call her ‘Teacher Su.’“

“Even though she only has a primary school education, she’s a middle school teacher now. Think about that for a second.”

Zhang Yifeng asked how Su Ye was so impressive, and Niu Cuihua started talking about her fishing and catching wild boars. Zhang Yifeng, however, only heard trivial stories.

Wasn’t fishing easy for anyone? The trap for the wild boar was also set by Gu Xiangqian—what did it have to do with Su Ye?

The only thing Su Ye really accomplished was getting a teaching position. She was sharp-tongued, managed her brother’s salary, and her brother even bought her meat buns—two of them, which she ate, while he had to settle for cornmeal cakes. Zhang Yifeng thought his friend had made a terrible choice in marriage.

Considering that Su Ye hadn’t shown up for over a month, Zhang Yifeng became even more uncomfortable.

In his eyes, Gu Xiangqian was perfect—strong and hardworking, one of the best talents in the army, well-educated but humble. At the age of twenty, he had passed all the exams for the army’s National Defense University, handsome but never thought much of his looks… It would not be an exaggeration to say he was praised like a flower.

Ning Xingdou didn’t speak. He understood Gu Xiangqian’s character. He was not the kind of person who would suffer in silence. After hearing Niu Cuihua’s account, he secretly asked his own mother and figured it out.

He said to Zhang Yifeng, “Stop worrying about their marriage. Let’s hope for the best. This is like ^[1]“Zhou Yu and Huang Gai” refers to a famous story from the Romance of the Three Kingdoms, where the two generals from the Wu kingdom pretend to deceive each other in order to defeat their … Continue readingZhou Yu and Huang Gai—one wants to beat, the other wants to be beaten.”

“Maybe she really got delayed by something.”

In the military district compound.

Su Ye returned Zhou Honghan’s drawing to her exactly as it was. The blueprint was rolled up, so its appearance wasn’t clear until it was unfurled.

When Zhou Honghan saw Su Ye, she merely lifted her eyelids slightly and, with no particular concern, said, “Just leave it on the table.”

Su Ye hesitated, then withdrew her hand and didn’t place it down.

She suspected that as soon as she left, Grandma Zhou would toss the drawing into the trash or burn it as firewood without a second thought. Su Ye pulled her hand back and her eyes darted around.

“I’ve drawn your blueprint exactly as it was, Grandma Zhou, don’t you want to take a look?”

Zhou Honghan’s expression remained indifferent. “You’re still a child, you don’t understand. Don’t talk about drawing it exactly as it was, I’d already thank the heavens if you don’t cause me any more trouble.”

Su Ye’s professional skills were insulted? That was unacceptable.

She shook her head, disapproving, and said, “Talent isn’t determined by age, many great figures showcased extraordinary abilities when they were young. Judging a person by their age is a clear mistake of empiricism.”

She cleared her throat lightly, smiling, and said, “Grandma Zhou, you should open it and take a look. If you keep acting this way, it’ll surely become a joke. If this isn’t the original blueprint, considering the way you insulted me just now, you’ll need to promise me something.”

Zhou Honghan was the type of person who didn’t care about flattery, but if someone questioned her, she’d feel slightly moved (and angry).

Heh…

What an attitude.

Zhou Honghan thought that Su Ye wasn’t even ashamed of destroying the blueprint and now she was still asking for more. Gu Xiangqian’s wife was quite irritating. Zhou Honghan couldn’t even be bothered to see her humiliated.

When it came to academic matters, she couldn’t close her eyes and just agreed without conscience. After stern criticism, she’d probably have to say a few words of encouragement to maintain peace. It was a difficult position to be in.

But if she didn’t do that, and Su Ye got angry, what would happen? After all, she wouldn’t be sending over snacks every few days anymore. Being an elder was exhausting.

Zhou Honghan untied the string and slowly unfolded the blueprint that Su Ye had drawn.

She suddenly froze.

Zhou Honghan took out her reading glasses, put them on, and then rummaged through the drawer for a magnifying glass. She carefully examined whether each line was connected to the right place, and if every component was in the correct position.

No, this wasn’t right. There were too many components—dozens of them—and it was easy to get them mixed up. She took out her own draft and, not believing it, checked it again.

It… was completely identical?

Zhou Honghan was getting older and had grown lazy in her old age. This design was requested by a few young people, and she had promised to hand over the draft by summer. She had plenty of time, so she wasn’t in a hurry even if the blueprint was ruined.

But what was this? Su Ye had actually drawn it correctly?

After a long pause, Zhou Honghan finally said, “Fine, I’ll agree. Now, tell me, what is it you want?”

Su Ye smiled and said, “I’m not sure about that yet. I’ll know later. Grandma Zhou, please just keep it for me for now.”

Zhou Honghan muttered to herself. Could it be that she was going to help take care of their child? But Su Ye hadn’t even had one yet, so how could she be so sure?

—

After handling Grandma Zhou’s blueprint, Su Ye received a message from the front lines asking the military families to go accompany the soldiers. She set aside her other tasks, took leave from school, and reluctantly said goodbye to the children.

With the train ticket issued by the military, Su Ye headed for X City. Her backpack was packed with food, as she had heard that there wasn’t much food at the front lines and there was no meat available in the market. Bringing some meat for Gu Xiangqian to replenish his strength was her way of doing her best.

How moving! If her old friends knew she was doing all this for a stinky man, they’d probably laugh at her!

At mealtime, passengers pulled out their food in small groups—some had coarse grain buns, others had green vegetable leaves, and some just had warm water. Su Ye quietly ate a marinated egg on the train, with everyone in the compartment watching her, their throats visibly moving as they tried to swallow their own saliva.

Those glowing green stares seemed to be filled with curiosity about how Su Ye had an egg to eat.

Su Ye quickly finished the egg, and the greedy gazes finally disappeared.

She held the letter of introduction, and as soon as she got off the train, she met the soldier sent to greet her. The two of them headed to Gu Xiangqian’s hospital room together.

As soon as Su Ye pushed open the door to the room, she heard a gentle female voice reading, “Farewell to Cambridge,” by Xu Zhimo. “I leave gently, just as I came gently, I wave gently to bid farewell to the clouds in the western sky.”

In the room, there was a woman dressed in a snow-white coat, with delicate, bright features, her eyes filled with emotion, her gaze like autumn, her breath like orchids. She had fair skin and long, slender legs.

Gu Xiangqian, on the other hand, had bandages wrapped around his head, and one of his feet was in a cast, suspended in the air with a brace.

This harmonious and beautiful scene left Su Ye momentarily stunned.

The soldier suddenly blushed and said, “Sister-in-law, do you think Dr. Yao is beautiful? The first time I saw her, I had the same expression as you.”

Su Ye turned her head away, curling her lips in disdain. This… is considered beautiful?

Soon, Su Ye realized that she was no longer the same delicate little fairy she once was. If she still looked like she did before, would anyone else even have a chance?

Su Ye walked up to Gu Xiangqian’s bed, scratched his palm, and took out a bottle of milk from her bag. She inserted a straw and handed it to him.

“Drink it. I kneeled in the rain and begged the comrades at the milk station for a long time before I got this.”

Gu Xiangqian, out of breath, let out a laugh with a soft “pfft.”