Chapter 11

After dinner, it was the liveliest time at the family compound.

Especially the open space near the entrance, where it seemed like everyone in the family compound, men and women alike, had come out. Some were sitting, some were standing, forming several circles, gathered together, talking and laughing.

The children also clustered together in groups, some swinging on swings, some playing marbles, some kicking shuttlecocks. It all looked very lively.

As the He family of three entered, a man called He Dongchuan over for a chat, and children called He Yan over to play, but no one called Su Ting, which made her unable to avoid doubting her place in life.

The He family’s father was cold, and the son wasn’t much warmer either. For a family of three, shouldn’t she be the one with the best social connections? Why did everyone else have someone to talk to, yet no one was calling out to her?

Luckily, Su Ting wasn’t entirely unpopular. After He Dongchuan walked into the group of men and He Yan went to watch the filming, finally someone called her name, asking her to join in for a chat.

The person who greeted her was Chen Shaomei, one of the two military wives Su Ting had met when she first arrived.

As soon as Su Ting walked over, she heard Chen Shaomei ask: “When did Colonel He return?”

“This afternoon.”

Chen Shaomei dragged out the sound of “Oh.” and then said: “That’s been quite a while. You didn’t prepare something nice for him to eat?”

Su Ting felt that the way she phrased it sounded a little strange, but the implication was different from Wang Lixia’s direct criticism, so she replied calmly: “The canteen food is pretty good.”

“We’ve known each other for a while now, so don’t try to brush me off with your words.” Chen Shaomei nudged Su Ting’s arm and lowered her voice to ask: “Be honest with me, do you really think the canteen food is good, or is it that after Colonel He came back, you were too busy to cook?”

Su Ting thought, so what if He Dongchuan came back? What would she be busy with? Just as she was about to speak, she turned her head and saw the teasing look in Chen Shaomei’s eyes. Suddenly, a thought struck her.

… Didn’t they say people from the 70s and 80s had simple minds?

Su Ting put on a serious face and said: “I really think the canteen food is good. It’s better than what I cook.”

Clearly, Su Ting’s words were not believed by Chen Shaomei. She opened her mouth to speak, but then saw He Dongchuan walking over from the group of men, calling out: “Xiao Su.”

To be honest, Su Ting didn’t immediately react.

Before time travel, Su Ting worked at a foreign company where everyone called each other by their English names. Hardly anyone ever called her Xiao Su. After traveling into the book, most people she met called her Comrade Su, and some closer ones might call her by her first name, but no one had ever addressed her this way.

Although she had already spent several hours meeting He Dongchuan and they had briefly chatted in between, they had not yet formally addressed each other. So when she suddenly heard him call out to her like that, Su Ting was a bit stunned, feeling like he wasn’t calling her.

However, she was only stunned for about three or four seconds, quickly turning to ask: “Are you going back?”

He Dongchuan said: “I’m going to get a haircut later, so I need to go back first.”

“A haircut?” Su Ting reflexively looked up at his head: “Your hair doesn’t look long.” It still looked like a crew cut.

“Needs to be cut even shorter.”

Upon hearing this, Su Ting looked behind He Dongchuan, where the circle of men all had crew cuts, and their hair seemed noticeably shorter than his.

It was clear that there was a difference between crew cuts.

Su Ting nodded, saying: “Then you go ahead.”

He Dongchuan nodded in response, saying: “Keep an eye on Xiao Yan.”

Su Ting turned her head to look at the group of children playing marbles.

The game of marbles was simple: dig a small hole in the ground and use your finger to flick marbles, aiming to knock others’ marbles into the hole. The opponent’s marbles would then belong to you.

Since it was a ground game, the players usually knelt down to complete the flicking. Sometimes, when they got really into it, they stayed kneeling the whole time. The onlookers often did the same, forgetting everything else once the game got exciting.

So when Su Ting looked over, she saw that all the children, including He Yan, were kneeling on the ground.

This showed that no matter how mature or cleanly dressed the children appeared in daily life, they still got caught up in the game.

Su Ting thought to herself, then turned to He Dongchuan and said: “Okay.”

After she spoke, He Dongchuan took his lunch box and left. However, being tall, he walked fast and was back before long. He didn’t speak to Su Ting, just pointed at the entrance of the family compound when she looked over, then made his way through the crowd.

……

The barbershop was located on the street outside the compound, between the Supply and Marketing Cooperative and the vegetable stand. Its storefront looked increasingly narrow.

The space inside wasn’t very large, just about ten or so bottles’ worth. On the right wall as you entered, two mirrors were hanging, and beneath them, a narrow rectangular table was placed, covered with various hair-cutting tools.

The barbers were two veterans. Because they had no family back home, they had stayed on Pingchuan Island after being demobilized and were gradually assigned to work at the barbershop.

The shop’s customers were mainly soldiers from the base. So, aside from new recruits arriving, the two barbers were usually busier on holidays. After dinner and before the shop closed, there were occasionally some customers.

He Dongchuan happened to arrive at a good time when there were no other customers in the shop. One barber was folding dry towels, and the other was sweeping up hair clippings from the floor.

The two of them had been working in the shop all day, so they weren’t very up to date with the news. They didn’t recognize He Dongchuan at first, but when he spoke, one of the barbers, Master He, hesitated and asked: “Colonel He?”

He Dongchuan responded: “It’s me.”

Master He quickly put down the towel he was holding and went up to ask: “Did you just return from a mission?”

“Just came back today.” He Dongchuan sat down in front of one of the mirrors at Master He’s invitation.

Master He walked over, picked out the necessary tools from the table, and made small talk. “You’re back for a good rest, huh?”

“Two days off.”

“That’s great.” Master He said as he chose the tools: “Do you want the same cut as before?”

He Dongchuan nodded, then paused for a moment before adding: “Please shave my beard as well later.”

Master He joked: “What? Did your wife complain?”

He Dongchuan thought of Su Ting. When he saw her this afternoon, she hadn’t shown any clear dislike, but from the unfamiliar expression on her face, it was obvious she hadn’t recognized him. He said calmly: “My son complained.”

Originally, he had planned to catch up with his son this afternoon, to bond and reconnect, but because He Yan was too focused on his changed appearance, he had to put it off.

Otherwise, during the conversation, he feared he wouldn’t be able to maintain the image of a loving father.

Master He laughed heartily: “Wait here. I’ll make sure I shave you clean!”

……

Su Ting used to watch TV dramas, and every time there was a scene where someone changed clothes and transformed into a swan, she found it awkward. Was a change in hairstyle and clothes really that big of a transformation?

In the non-mainstream era, everyone was a “Shamate.” but that didn’t stop people from discovering beautiful women and handsome men!

But now, Su Ting felt that everything had its reason for existing.

Although she had never seen a “ugly duckling” transform into a beautiful swan after changing clothes, she had witnessed firsthand how shaving off a beard could turn someone into a handsome man.

To be honest, this description wasn’t quite accurate. Before shaving, He Dongchuan wasn’t unattractive. His brow bone was well-structured, his eye sockets were slightly sunken, his eyebrows were sharp, and his eyes looked both passionate and detached. His nose was straight and well-proportioned, neither too big nor too small, and everything about him looked just right.

The problem was that she couldn’t appreciate a big beard. So, even though she theoretically knew that he was probably good-looking, it was hard for her to admit it emotionally, and she couldn’t muster any feelings of attraction.

But with the contrast, when she saw him after shaving, walking towards her in the dimming light, backlit by the glow, Su Ting couldn’t help but swallow hard. The only thought in her mind was—

Danger!

A warning alarm blared in her head, but the other military wives around her were looking at her with envy.

It wasn’t that they had any particular thoughts about He Dongchuan. It was just that everyone had an appreciation for beauty. Who didn’t want their partner to be tall, handsome, and charming?

In fact, none of the men standing in the open space near the entrance were short. Many had well-proportioned features. But there was a difference between just having good features and actually being handsome. There were only a handful of men with the height and looks of He Dongchuan.

With his height and appearance, He Dongchuan was the most eye-catching one wherever he went.

Especially since before he went to the barbershop, he had been scruffy, and after returning, he not only looked much cleaner, but also seemed to have shed several years off his age. This transformation made many of the military wives’ eyes light up.

Chen Shaomei bumped Su Ting with her shoulder and teased: “Staring, are we?”

Su Ting snapped out of it. “No!”

She realized she had been a little out of it.

Earlier, she had been puzzled. It was just one man, so why was the original self so eager and forward?

Now, she slightly understood the original self’s behavior. Of course, that didn’t mean she supported what the original self had done, but at least she understood why the original self had been so obsessed with love.

At the same time, she found herself wondering if she could resist temptation over the next three years.

Thinking of this, Su Ting couldn’t help but sigh. She walked up to He Dongchuan and asked: “Did you shave your beard too?”

“I shaved it while getting my haircut.”

Su Ting made a small “oh” sound, glanced up at him, then quickly looked away.

Noticing her reaction, He Dongchuan couldn’t help but touch his chin. “Is it weird that I shaved my beard?”

“No, it’s very fitting.” Su Ting quickly shook her head, then, realizing her response wasn’t entirely sincere, added with a not-so-pure motive: “I just think your beard looked pretty good too.”

He Dongchuan: “…”

He realized that his wife was really good at telling lies with a straight face.