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Ye Zhi didn’t even know how she made it home. The whole way, she felt as if she were floating, as though everything that had just happened wasn’t real.
But when she looked at the wooden box in her hands, holding a brand-new, precious badge inside, she was reminded that it was all real.
Lu Wei had asked her to become his revolutionary partner.
And she had said yes.
He had also mentioned that, due to time constraints, they would likely be leaving for Qiongzhou Island in just a couple of days.
As she approached her house, Ye Zhi carefully put away the badge and slowly stepped through the front door.
The first thing she did upon arriving home was fetch some water to wash her face, wipe her neck, and rinse her feet.
Even though the night air was cool, she still felt like her face had been burning the entire time. It was probably still red.
After washing up and hanging the towel, she began thinking about how to break the news to her family.
But before she could figure out what to say, as soon as she wiped her hands and stepped into the main hall, Zhang Xiaomei asked, “Girl, why are you back so early? Where’s Comrade Lu?”
Ye Zhi was slightly surprised. “Mom, how did you know he came?”
Just then, her eldest sister-in-law walked out of the kitchen, carrying a plate full of meat, and said with a smile, “Captain Lu arrived at our commune around three in the afternoon. But since he knew you were still working, he told us not to disturb you and went to wait for you at the textile factory’s entrance. Look, this meat was brought by Captain Lu—it smells delicious.” As she spoke, she lifted the plate slightly to show off the food.
Zhang Xiaomei beamed. “So? How did the talk go with Comrade Lu?”
Ye Zhi frowned slightly. That meant Lu Wei had waited at the factory gate for several hours.
If she had known, she would have come out right after work instead of dawdling.
Seeing her daughter lost in thought, Zhang Xiaomei grew anxious. “Girl, Captain Lu said he would come back, and he really did. That means he’s a man of his word. If things work out between you two, I’d be relieved. A young and promising man like him is definitely better than that widower with three kids, don’t you think?”
Her eldest sister-in-law chimed in, “That’s right! Captain Lu is not only an officer, but he’s also handsome. When he arrived at the commune today, the female workers stared at him so much, I thought their eyes were going to pop out! Little sister, if you don’t fancy Captain Lu and still consider that widower with three kids, you really should go see a barefoot doctor and get your eyes checked.”
Zhang Xiaomei immediately scolded, “Eldest daughter-in-law, that’s not right! If she doesn’t fancy him, she doesn’t fancy him—what does that have to do with her eyesight?”
Knowing her mother-in-law’s temperament, the eldest sister-in-law shut her mouth right away.
Meanwhile, Ye Zhi actually agreed with her sister-in-law—maybe she really did need to get her eyes checked.
At that moment, her second sister-in-law walked out of her room after hearing Ye Zhi return. “Little sister, how did the meeting with Captain Lu go?”
Hearing everyone’s eager questions, and to prevent another argument, Ye Zhi pursed her lips, smiled slightly, and lowered her head.
“It’s settled.”
For a moment, everyone stared at her in disbelief. “Settled? Really?”
Ye Zhi nodded. “Really.”
Zhang Xiaomei clapped her thigh. “Oh my, all that effort wasn’t wasted after all!”
Her eldest sister-in-law laughed. “Good, good! Little sister found herself a great match! Captain Lu is a regiment commander, good-looking, and when he stands next to our little sister, they look like a perfect couple—truly pleasing to the eye.”
Zhang Xiaomei then asked, “So, did Comrade Lu leave tonight? Why didn’t you invite him over for dinner?”
Ye Zhi replied, “He said he has an old friend here and is going to meet them tonight. He’ll come visit another time.”
In truth, Lu Wei had actually said—
“I’ll prepare the betrothal gifts and come straight to propose.”
Of course, he did have an old friend here, though Ye Zhi didn’t know who it was.
But since the marriage was already agreed upon, she wasn’t in a rush for a day or two.
From what Lu Wei had mentioned, his assigned mission was complete, and he would probably be heading back to Qiongzhou Island soon, meaning he wouldn’t be staying here for long.
Zhang Xiaomei smiled. “Alright then. Since it’s settled, there’s no hurry. He’s still in town, so you’ll get to see him again.”
The older children, having overheard Ye Zhi’s engagement, excitedly asked, “Auntie, is your fiancé the soldier who bought us peach crisps and White Rabbit candies?”
Ye Zhi saw their mouths still covered in crumbs and chuckled. “Yes, it’s him.”
“Wow, I like this uncle-in-law!”
Ye Zhi made a funny face at them. “So he won you over just by giving you some snacks? You guys are too easy!”
The house was soon filled with laughter, with everyone excitedly discussing her upcoming marriage to Lu Wei.
The small home buzzed with warmth and joy, as the family celebrated the good news.
At dawn, Ye Zhi returned to the textile factory—to resign.
Since Lu Wei had said they would be leaving for Qiongzhou Island soon, she needed to quit her job first.
She was only a temporary worker, so the resignation process was quick and easy.
Li Xueling was quite reluctant. “Even though I know you’re going to marry that Navy officer, and I’m really happy for you, I still can’t help but feel a little unwilling to part with you.”
Such a beautiful young woman—who knows if she’ll ever see her again?
Ye Zhi smiled. “I don’t want to leave either. I’ve lived in this town for so many years.”
Hearing this, Li Xueling understood and asked, “So, after you get married, you’ll be following him as a military spouse?”
Ye Zhi nodded. “Yes, he and I are in agreement on this.”
She couldn’t accept the idea of separating from her husband right after getting married.
Even though their marriage might not be entirely based on love, Ye Zhi felt that Lu Wei was someone she could rely on.
Even as a military spouse, Lu Wei would never mistreat her.
Besides, she wanted to personally take part in the construction of that beautiful island.
To her, it held great significance.
Li Xueling nodded. “Alright then, in that case, I wish you both a happy marriage and a lifetime of harmony. If you have time, remember to write to me. I’ll send you some fabric so you can make some clothes or bedding—consider it a wedding gift from me.”
“Alright, thank you, Sister Xueling.”
Ye Zhi thought about how, in the original story, her foot injury had caused Li Xueling to fall off the stage, leading to a deep-seated grudge.
Now, however, she had gained a friendship instead, which was quite comforting.
After leaving the textile factory, Ye Zhi went straight home to wait for news from Lu Wei.
Somehow, it seemed like the entire neighborhood already knew about her engagement to Lu Wei.
As soon as some of the older women saw her, they commented, “Xiao Ye, your fiancé is really handsome. You two make such a great couple.”
“That’s right! I heard he’s a soldier. Ye Zhi, you’re so lucky.”
“Your future kids will be so good-looking! When are you getting your marriage certificate and holding the wedding banquet?”
Ye Zhi answered each question briefly, sighing at how houses were built so close together in this era—there was no such thing as a secret.
Once she entered her home, Li Ermei, who had been lurking sneakily in a corner, emerged.
She went up to the women who had just spoken with Ye Zhi and asked, “Who did Ye Zhi register her marriage with?”
One of the women responded, “Isn’t it with that soldier? Why? Aren’t you her third aunt? How come you don’t know about this?”
She chuckled afterward—everyone knew that Li Ermei had always been at odds with Zhang Xiaomei.
Li Ermei cleared her throat and, pretending to be mysterious, said, “Who said I didn’t know? I’m just wondering—can Ye Zhi, such a delicate girl, really follow a soldier’s life?”
The woman was puzzled. “Huh? So Xiao Ye is really going to be a military spouse? Isn’t her fiancé a Navy officer? And isn’t he stationed on some remote island that’s just being developed? Would Ye Zhi’s mother even agree to this?”
Li Ermei gritted her teeth—so that wretched girl really did end up marrying the fiancé from the arranged childhood betrothal!
This was infuriating!
Hadn’t Ye Zhi already ruined that engagement?
How did it suddenly work out, and they were about to register their marriage?
A few days ago, Li Ermei had gone to the commune’s matchmaking office to inquire.
That arranged fiancé was from a military family. His parents were high-ranking officers, and they were stationed in the provincial capital. His mother was even a doctor in Yangcheng, the capital of a southern province, living in a grand house there!
Thinking about this, she blamed Zhang Xiaomei for spreading nonsense the other day, accusing her daughter, Hongying, of doing something shameful. When she looked into it, she found out—
Her daughter, Ye Hongying, had somehow been influenced by Ye Zhi and decided she wanted to marry that engineer with three kids!
It must have been Ye Zhi’s fault, corrupting her daughter. Otherwise, why would her daughter be stupid enough to willingly become someone’s stepmother?!
Li Ermei no longer had the patience to chat and hurried off to the commune’s reception office, hoping to run into that Navy officer.
But when she asked at the front desk, she was told that the officer had already left.
Most likely, he was headed to Ye Zhi’s house.
Li Ermei then rushed over to Ye Zhi’s home. Before she even stepped inside, she heard Zhang Xiaomei’s cheerful laughter, which immediately irritated her.
She strode into the Ye family’s house and demanded, “Zhang Xiaomei, is that Navy officer here?”
Hearing Li Ermei call her by her full name, Zhang Xiaomei got annoyed and shot back, “What are you yelling about? What ‘Lu officer’ or ‘Qiao officer’? If you’re looking for someone, go to the commune! What are you doing at my house?”
Li Ermei put her hands on her hips, knowing she couldn’t win against Zhang Xiaomei in a verbal fight.
So instead, she turned to Ye Zhi, glaring at her pale, porcelain-like face, and accused, “Ye Zhi, you liar! How did you trick that Officer Lu into marrying you? Aren’t you afraid of divine retribution?!”
Hearing Li Ermei insult her daughter, Zhang Xiaomei was so furious that she lunged forward, ready to fight, but Ye Zhi stopped her.
Ye Zhi looked at Li Ermei coldly and asked, “Third Aunt, what do you mean by that?”
Li Ermei was usually fierce, but she wasn’t even as tall as Ye Zhi.
Now, this delicate young girl was staring at her with icy eyes, and for some reason, it sent a chill down her spine.
But then she thought about how this wretched girl was about to marry into a prestigious military family and live a life of luxury in Yangcheng, while her own daughter had been brainwashed into becoming a stepmother.
Her heart hardened, and she spat, “What do I mean? You dare to ask? First, you climbed into that engineer Gao’s bed, and now you’ve tricked Officer Lu into marrying you! You shameless little hussy!”
Li Ermei was convinced that the arranged betrothal was never specifically meant for Ye Zhi. She believed her older brother and sister-in-law had secretly contacted Lu Wei’s family in an attempt to climb the social ladder.
At first, she wasn’t too upset when the engagement fell through.
But now, waking up to the news that Ye Zhi was about to register her marriage with Lu Wei—she couldn’t just sit back and let that brat snatch such a golden opportunity!
Just thinking about how Ye Zhi was going to marry the leader of a military family while her daughter was going to settle for the man Ye Zhi didn’t want—and be a stepmother to three children—Li Ermei’s anger flared up uncontrollably.
It was Ye Zhi who had first seduced that man, Gao!
Her daughter Hongying was led astray by Ye Zhi, which is why she even considered marrying that Gao guy!
Ye Zhi’s face instantly darkened, but Zhang Xiaomei, ever quick, grabbed a broom and rushed toward Li Ermei—
At that moment, a tall and imposing figure stood outside the door.
Everyone instinctively turned their attention toward him.
Lu Wei stood at the door, his expression dark, his gaze icy as he scanned Li Ermei