CHAPTER 11

Lu Zhi said, “When we were kids, we went to Hongxing Commune together. After Chen Zhiqiang bullied me, I thought it was you who beat him up. From then on, I clung to you and liked playing with you.”

“But it turns out, that might not have been the case. The one who did it that day… was Zhou Cheng’an.”

She looked at him. “I was just a kid, didn’t really understand what liking someone meant. I probably did some things that gave you the wrong idea.”

Outside, a jeep had just pulled up.

Lu Zhi glanced out the window and gave a polite nod to the Li family.

“No wonder.”

“Back in high school, so many boys liked Lu Zhi.”

“That’s right! I remember there was even one from the capital who was crazy about her, but she never agreed to date him. I always thought it was because she and Li Yu were childhood sweethearts, otherwise she wouldn’t have liked him.”

“I’m telling you, Li Yu, what you did back then was really unfair.”

Li Yu’s face turned red. “I didn’t know! I really didn’t know!”

Lu Zhi’s big brother said, “You didn’t know? If you didn’t know, then why do you look so guilty? I always wondered what was going on with my little sister. Our whole family spoiled her, loved her, and she ended up chasing after you.”

To say nothing of how many times he and his wife had been jealous over Lu Zhi always wanting to hang around Li Yu.

And in the end, it had all been one big misunderstanding. The more they thought about it, the angrier they got.

Chu Tong, mortified, turned and ran off, crying “Wuwuwu—” all the way home.

She’d thought marrying Li Yu meant she’d won.

But it turned out Lu Zhi had married someone even better. And all those feelings she had for Li Yu… were just a misunderstanding.

….

Lu Zhi and Zhou Cheng’an’s things had all been packed onto the jeep.

Li Lan held her daughter’s hand. “Call home once you arrive, okay? And if anything happens, go find your second sister, got it?”

Zhou Cheng’an stood straight and tall. “Dad, Mom, Big Brother, Sister-in-law—don’t worry. I’ll take good care of her.”

Li Lan nodded. With a daughter this wonderful, it’d be strange if Zhou Cheng’an didn’t like her.

Lu Zhi hugged Li Lan, then her sister-in-law, then her big brother and Lu Xiangde.

Her little niece, Lu An’an, looked up and clung to Lu Zhi’s leg. “Auntie!”

Lu Zhi stroked her hair. “When Auntie has time, I’ll come visit you, alright?”

Lu An’an nodded hard. “Okay!”

Zhou Cheng’an opened the car door. The jeep was a bit tall, so he helped Lu Zhi climb in.

She and Zhou Jun sat in the back, while Zhou Cheng’an sat in the front passenger seat.

As the car started up, the Lu family was still standing outside.

Lu Zhi looked at them through the window and waved. “You guys should go back now.”

Li Lan couldn’t hold back her tears and wiped her eyes, but kept smiling.

Li Lan said, “Okay, okay, we’ll head back.”

Better to go now, or they’d all start getting emotional.

….

Lu Zhi felt a little low.

She also suddenly felt a pang of heartache for her second sister. They didn’t live that far apart, but her sister was braver than she was.

Then she felt a chubby little hand slip into hers.

Zhou Jun leaned over and whispered, “I’ll protect you.”

Zhou Cheng’an said, “Pull over up ahead.”

Then he climbed into the back seat.

Three people in the back weren’t as comfortable as two, but it wasn’t too cramped either. Lu Zhi had her own space, and Zhou Cheng’an and Zhou Jun didn’t crowd her at all.

The jeep drove steadily along.

Zhou Cheng’an slipped a piece of candy into Lu Zhi’s palm and calmly started introducing the places they were passing.

Driving up front was Jiang Dong, who looked like he was about to cry. It was over. He’d lost the bet. Now he had to wash socks.

None of them had expected Zhou Cheng’an to actually get married.

Yesterday, everyone had placed bets—was Zhou Cheng’an going to act all cold and stoic even in front of his own wife?

It was incredibly lively.

“Do you even need to ask? Of course he had a cold face.”

“But still, better than how he treats us.”

“I wonder what our sister-in-law is like.”

Everyone started placing bets.

Losers had to help wash a pair of stinky socks.

One of the more simple-minded ones scratched his head. “But if Deputy Commander Zhou doesn’t like her, he wouldn’t have married her, right?”

Feng Jianshe might just be the biggest winner in their dorm!

Their Deputy Commander Zhou handed his wife candy!

He didn’t look the least bit serious about it!

Ahhhhhh—they really didn’t want to wash those stinky socks.

So jealous of Feng Jianshe.

….

As the jeep approached the dock, Lu Zhi saw the ocean.

She rolled down the window. The sea breeze blew in, waves dancing on the water’s surface.

It was Zhou Jun’s first time seeing the ocean. He stared out the window without blinking.

Lu Zhi simply pulled him into her arms—one big, one small—and the two of them gazed outside together.

A ship was heading toward the shore.

Zhou Jun shouted, “Sister-in-law, it’s a ship! It’s a ship!”

That’s right—it’s a ship!

Lobsters, oysters, swimming crabs, mantis shrimp, giant squid!

Island life was about to begin!

When they got out of the car, Lu Zhi, who had been sitting for over two hours, felt a bit weak in the legs. She stood outside for a bit before feeling much better.

She stood at the dock and watched as the ship approached.

Dressed in a navy-and-white sailor-style dress, with fair skin and waist-length hair fluttering in the breeze, Lu Zhi reached up and tucked her hair behind her ear.

Some people couldn’t help but sneak a glance.

Whoa!

This girl—she’s really beautiful!

After the passengers on the ship disembarked, it was their turn to board.

Following behind Lu Zhi were Zhou Cheng’an, Zhou Jun, and Jiang Dong, who had come along with them.

Lu Zhi boarded first, feeling the subtle stares from the people around her.

Someone who recognized Zhou Cheng’an couldn’t help asking after a long moment, “Deputy Commander Zhou, is this your wife?”

Zhou Cheng’an looked over and answered, “Yes.”

Lu Zhi gave them a polite smile.

There were seats inside the cabin, but Lu Zhi didn’t go in. She stood on the deck, looking out at the sea. Zhou Cheng’an and the others stayed with her.

As the ship started moving, the sea breeze grew stronger.

And it felt especially refreshing.

No one knew how long the ship had been sailing when Zhou Cheng’an pointed to an island still far off in the distance. “That’s the place.”

Lu Zhi looked in the direction he pointed, then turned to him with a smile.

About an hour later, the island grew closer and closer.

Lu Yue stood on the shore, waving her arms excitedly when she spotted Lu Zhi. She even stepped forward a few paces. “Zhizhi!”

Lu Zhi waved back. “Second Sister!”

Finally, the boat docked.

As soon as Lu Zhi got off, Lu Yue strode over and hugged her tightly.

Lu Yue said, “You’re finally here! I made tons of delicious food. Come home and eat!”

Zhou Cheng’an greeted her, “Second Sister.”

Even little Zhou Jun, despite being so young, followed suit and called her “Second Sister” just like Zhou Cheng’an.

Zhou Jun stood up straight and called out seriously. It was almost unbearably cute.

Lu Zhi said, “Second Sister, I want to call home first.”

Lu Yue replied, “Right, right, of course you need to call home. I’ll take you to the phone—everyone’s probably waiting to hear from you.”

At a glance, it was clear the island was a large one.

Lu Zhi wasn’t in a rush. She figured she’d get familiar with the layout later. For now, calling home was more important.

They went to the island’s communications room, but there was a line—quite a few people were waiting to use the phone.

Even after dialing out, she had to wait for Li Lan and the others to call back.

Soon, the call connected, and Lu Zhi heard the voice on the other end.

“Zhizhi, is that you? Have you arrived?”

“Did you see your second sister yet?”

“Are you used to life on the island?”

“Oh, listen to me—asking if you’re used to it when you just got there.”

“Zhizhi, guess what? After you left, the Li family next door got into a fight. Chu Tong went back to her parents’ place!”

Lu Zhi listened carefully, but she couldn’t stay on the phone for too long.

“I’m here,” she said. “The scenery is amazing. Don’t worry about me. I’ve already seen Second Sister too!”

They chatted a little longer.

Lu Zhi added, “Don’t forget to write me letters.”

Li Lan laughed, “Write you letters? Just me alone could fill dozens of pages.”

Everyone laughed.

….

The military family compound was in a newly built section of the base. Zhou Cheng’an had secured them a house there. It wasn’t far from where Lu Yue lived—just a few dozen meters.

Lu Zhi’s brother-in-law was away on a mission. While Lu Yue had gone to pick up Lu Zhi, her one-year-old daughter had been left in the care of a helpful neighbor.

After picking up her daughter, Lu Yue took everyone home.

“This is your niece, Tuantuan,” she said, teasing the baby. “This is your Auntie. This is your Uncle. And this is your little Uncle.”

Six-year-old little uncle Zhou Jun stood up straight, trying his best to act grown-up. Already a little uncle at such a young age.

Tuantuan waved her chubby arms and smiled at Lu Zhi.

Lu Zhi poked Tuantuan’s cheek, and the baby giggled even harder.

She turned to Zhou Cheng’an and said, “She’s so fun!”

Zhou Cheng’an smiled.

That night, Lu Yue made a huge platter of steamed seafood.

No doubt about it—this was island life!

She also made sauerkraut with pork belly and vermicelli, stir-fried pork with scallions, and shredded potatoes with green pepper.

“You guys should just stay here tonight,” Lu Yue said. “I already helped clean up your place a bit, but I haven’t had time to buy everything yet.”

Lu Zhi replied, “It’s fine. We’ll go back and stay at our place.”

She was still a little excited about the place she was going to be living from now on.

Lu Yue smiled, “Alright, alright, if you say you’re going back to stay, then back you go.”

The more Lu Yue looked at her little sister, the more beautiful she thought she was.

“My little sister has always been beautiful since she was a child, obedient and sensible. When she grew up, everyone said, whoever marries my little sister is really lucky.”

Lu Zhi, munching on a juicy oyster: “…”

Lu Yue went on, “She was also great at studying. Even the teachers used to praise her.”

By the time they were getting ready to leave, it was already dark outside.

Lu Yue carried Tuantuan in her arms and walked them out, handing them a flashlight to use for the time being.

Lu Zhi walked ahead, and soon they arrived at their new home.

Lu Zhi turned and said, “Second Sister, I’ll head back first.”

Lu Yue stuffed a red envelope into her hand. “Take it. It’s a little something from me.”

It was part of Lu Yue’s wedding gift for her.