CHAPTER 17: Reunion (Revised)

At long last, she survived those grueling five minutes. Su Yuan left the stage with a smile, amidst a wave of warm applause.

But her slightly uneven steps betrayed the truth—she wasn’t nearly as calm as she appeared.

Backstage, people immediately gathered around. Shen Qing teased her, “We all heard what you just said! So you two are childhood sweethearts? Knowing each other inside and out—ah, that’s the kind of love people envy!”

“Comrade Su, tell us more about the details!”

Right now, Su Yuan’s smile was strained. She felt like she couldn’t even explain her way out of this if she tried.

If she had known, she would never have agreed to join the military–civilian gala.

The women’s director didn’t notice anything amiss. She stepped forward proudly. “You should be thanking me for this! It was my idea to add that interview segment. Now everyone knows your man’s name is Fu Mobai—maybe he’ll even get noticed by the leadership in the Southern Military District!”

“The interview could reach the Southern Military District?” Su Yuan froze, cold sweat breaking out on her forehead.

The women’s director thought she was just shy and patted her shoulder reassuringly. “I only said it’s possible. Don’t be afraid—it’s a good thing! Why keep it a secret?”

“Better to keep a low profile.”

As long as the news didn’t reach the Southern Military District, it would be fine…

Su Yuan silently breathed a sigh of relief. She didn’t even dare imagine what kind of expression Fu Mobai would have if he did find out.

Probably he’d glare at her, brow furrowed, before giving her one of his stern, long-winded lectures.

Outside, the performance continued; backstage was bustling with people coming and going.

Their part was done, and staying would only get in the way. The women’s director suggested they head to the department store for a stroll.

Remembering her broken fountain pen that needed repair, Su Yuan immediately agreed. The others nodded in excitement too.

Just then, a soldier approached and stopped right in front of Su Yuan. After giving a crisp salute, he said, “Comrade, our battalion commander would like to see you.”

“See me?” Su Yuan blinked. She couldn’t recall knowing any battalion commanders.

“You’re sure?”

“Yes, absolutely certain.”

The soldier’s upright demeanor was reassuring.

Su Yuan thought for a moment before asking, “Where is he?”

“In the courtyard out back.”

Since it was a public place, there didn’t seem to be any danger. After telling the women’s director a few words, she followed him out of the backstage area.

They walked down a long corridor. The soldier stopped, pointed to a rockery in the distance, and said, “Our battalion commander’s right over there. Please, go on.”

Then he gave her a smile with an odd meaning behind it—one she couldn’t quite decipher.

Unconsciously, Su Yuan curled her hands into loose fists, mentally reviewing every move of the military boxing drills she knew.

The closer she got, the more a strange, uneasy feeling grew in her chest. Soon, she saw a sliver of army-green fabric peeking out from behind the rockery. She asked cautiously, “Hello, were you the one looking for me?”

The next moment, that army green stepped out from behind the rocks. His strides were steady and powerful, his tall figure even more striking under the sunlight.

Su Yuan’s eyes went wide. She froze in disbelief.

“What are you doing here?”

Fu Mobai caught her reaction and the corner of his lips quivered upward. The icy peak melted into something warm and bright.

He stepped forward until they stood face-to-face.

In a low voice, he said, “If I didn’t come, how would I know I suddenly had a fiancée?”

“??”

Looking into those smiling eyes, Su Yuan nearly fainted on the spot. But unwilling to give in, she asked, “You were in the auditorium just now?”

“Mhm. I heard everything you said.”

Resistance was futile. Su Yuan steadied her nerves and rushed to explain, “When I first went to the countryside, I told a little lie. Then that lie kept growing… and it turned into what you heard on stage just now. Don’t be angry—I can clear things up with everyone. It won’t affect your future marriage prospects.”

Seeing her with head lowered and voice meek, Fu Mobai felt a pang of tenderness. “Forget it. With the relationship we have, there’s no need to explain to anyone. And I don’t have any marriage prospects for you to ruin.”

Remembering the rumors Xiao Qi had mentioned, she tried to sound casual as she asked, “While you’ve been in the south, hasn’t any girl liked you?”

“No. But there’s one in the north.”

Her face dimmed. “Really? Do I know her?”

Fu Mobai caught every flicker of emotion in her eyes. Deliberately slowing down his words, he said, “I heard from Sun Xiaohu—one day, someone confessed to me right in front of Xiao Qi, saying… she liked me, and she’d only ever like me in this life.”

The more Su Yuan listened, the less right it sounded. Suddenly she remembered—those were her own words! She quickly went on tiptoe, reaching out to cover his mouth. “Don’t listen to his nonsense. That wasn’t real!”

Her soft palm pressed against his thin lips, carrying a faint fragrance. Fu Mobai’s ears slowly turned red. He cleared his throat and changed the subject. “Hungry? I’ll take you to eat.”

The topic shift was so sudden that Su Yuan almost couldn’t keep up. Tilting her head, she asked, “About that explanation just now—do you believe it or not?”

He simply pointed to the hand still covering his mouth, his eyes full of quiet helplessness.

Su Yuan quickly let go, a faint blush creeping onto her cheeks as she lowered her gaze.
“Forget it. It’s fake anyway, so don’t believe it.”

Afraid she’d be scared off, Fu Mobai answered softly, “Alright.”

A trace of unspoken ambiguity lingered between them. Struggling to restrain his feelings, he asked again, “It’s been so long since you last saw me—won’t you look at me?”

Su Yuan lifted her head in a quick glance, meeting those handsome phoenix eyes of his just as he said,
“Come on, let’s go eat.”

“How about tomorrow instead? I still have something to do today.”

She needed to calm down and sort through this tangled mess of events.

Having grown up together, Fu Mobai knew exactly what she was thinking. He simply nodded.
“Alright.” He handed her his contact information.

“How did you end up in Qingshan City? Weren’t you supposed to stay in Beijing?”

Seeing the genuine concern on her face, his mood lifted.
“Looks like you care a lot about where I go. But your intel’s wrong—my superiors transferred me here. Probably won’t get back to Beijing for a few years.”

Su Yuan felt sorry for him, her expression turning slightly unhappy.

Fu Mobai slipped her a liquor-filled chocolate, just like he used to back then, and said gently,
“Don’t be upset. I like it here—it’s a good place.”

She accepted the candy. Thinking back on the past, a faint smile finally appeared on her face.
“With the friendship between us, I’ll always be here with you.”

Just like when they were children.

Fu Mobai looked at her steadily, silently taking it as a different kind of promise.

It had been a long time since they last met. Alongside the old, ingrained familiarity, something else—indefinable—now hovered between them.

Su Yuan felt her ears burn under his gaze and quickly turned her head away, uneasy.

At that moment, the sound of shuffling footsteps grew nearer, accompanied by Shen Qing’s voice, chatting and laughing.

Snapping out of her shyness, Su Yuan’s heart skipped a beat. She hurried to push Fu Mobai behind the rockery. But the man’s solid, muscular frame wouldn’t budge.

“What’s wrong?”

“Hide! My friend’s coming!”

“?”

The whole thing looked suspicious no matter how you saw it. Fu Mobai frowned.
“Why should I hide?”

Su Yuan explained in a rush, “Everyone knows my boyfriend’s name is Fu Mobai. If they see you, our relationship will be set in stone—no chance to back out later. To avoid trouble, it’s better if no one knows.”

“You want to back out?”

“What? No—just go in!”

Like an ant on a hot pan, she kept shoving at him until he finally disappeared from sight. Only then did she relax.

Just then, Shen Qing and the others walked up.

“Yuan Yuan, who was looking for you? Why’d it take so long—and where is he?”

Su Yuan instinctively stepped forward to block the rockery, forcing a nervous smile.
“That was a relative of my godmother. She asked him to bring me something.”

No one thought much of it; everyone’s mind was on going to the department store. She quickly coaxed them along without stopping.

Behind the rockery, Fu Mobai let out a quiet chuckle. She really had grown up—lying came to her so naturally now.

—

It was National Day, and every work unit had the day off.

The department store was packed with people, but Su Yuan wandered through absent-mindedly.

Shen Qing, holding her arm, asked, “Ever since we left the cultural center, you’ve been in a daze. Tell me—what’s going on?”

Su Yuan didn’t dare tell the truth, but she did want to know the answer, so she made something up halfway:
“I have a relative who lied and ended up causing trouble for a friend. What do you think she should do?”

“What kind of trouble? Sent to the cowshed*?”
(*A punishment during the Cultural Revolution)

“…Not that bad. Just… it might hurt his reputation. Maybe even keep him from getting married.”

By the end, Su Yuan was feeling distinctly guilty.

“First, tell me—are they the same sex or opposite?”

“Opposite.”

At that, Shen Qing perked right up.
“Oh, if it’s opposite sex, that’s easy! If he can’t get married, your relative should just marry him herself~”

Su Yuan’s steps faltered, and she thought back to Fu Mobai’s teasing words. Her cheeks heated instantly.

“And if she doesn’t want to marry him?”

“Then give him a sum of money for a bride price as compensation. That’d make him ecstatic.”

But the Fu family, though in decline, was still well-off. That plan wouldn’t work.

“Any other options?”

“This won’t work, that won’t work—then she’s just not sincere. That man’s unlucky to have met her.”

“…”

Su Yuan almost choked on her frustration.

—

The village chief had promised that if they completed their tasks, they could stay in Qingshan City for an extra day.

They planned to return to the village on October 3rd.

On the 2nd, while Shen Qing and the others went to the park to row boats, Su Yuan used the excuse of repairing a fountain pen to go find Fu Mobai.

Following the address he’d given her, she arrived outside a certain military district. She stood at the gate for a long time, calming herself, before asking the guard to notify him.

Five minutes later, Fu Mobai strode out from inside. With his strong, handsome features and military uniform, he radiated an unstoppable presence.

Such an outstanding man—and yet, at twenty-five, he’d never dated anyone.

Su Yuan’s mind flashed to something an old childhood friend had once said: Fu Mobai’s face was the most deceptive thing about him. He looked refined and upright, but he was really a fierce wolf. Anyone who provoked him would end badly.

Now, she had provoked him. But Su Yuan believed that, with their years of friendship, he wouldn’t treat her that way.

The October breeze brushed lightly past.

When Fu Mobai reached her, the first thing he saw was her distracted expression.

He stopped in front of her, blocking a good deal of sunlight.

“Where are we going now?”

Su Yuan came back to herself and pulled a fountain pen from her shoulder bag.

“I broke the pen Grandpa Fu gave me. Come with me to get it fixed.”

Fu Mobai stared at the pen, his Adam’s apple shifting.

After a long silence, he said, “I didn’t think you’d still kept it. If Grandpa knew, he’d be very happy.”

Grandpa Fu had passed away five years ago. After that, Fu Mobai became an orphan.
He still had a few relatives in the capital, but they hardly kept in touch.

Afraid she might get upset thinking about it, Fu Mobai quickly composed himself, picked up the fountain pen, and said with certainty,
“I know a shop with really good craftsmanship. Let’s go there and get it fixed.”

“Alright.” Su Yuan nodded, feeling a pang of regret for her carelessness—she’d ended up stirring his memories.

Fu Mobai then led her to a jeep parked nearby, opened the passenger door, and gestured for her to get in.

Su Yuan looked over the vehicle. It seemed… familiar.
“This is your car?”

“Mm. Issued by the military district.”

Considering that jeeps all looked alike, she didn’t dwell on it.

Once she climbed in, Fu Mobai got into the driver’s seat, stepped on the gas, and headed straight toward the Children’s Palace.

Inside the car, Su Yuan chatted about amusing things in Baiyun Village and the notice she’d received from the town’s middle school, the corners of her lips curved in a smile the whole time.

Fu Mobai listened quietly, his usually sharp gaze softening as he watched her.

When she started to sound a bit hoarse, he handed her his canteen.
“It’s new. I haven’t used it yet.”

Su Yuan took it, a little embarrassed.

She normally wasn’t so talkative, but Fu Mobai spoke so little that she had to keep the conversation going all by herself.

The jeep wasn’t going very fast. They talked idly, and for a moment it felt as if they’d gone back five years.

Before long, they reached the Children’s Palace. Fu Mobai parked on the roadside, opened the passenger door for her, and said,
“Come on. Turn into that alley and we’ll be there.”

Su Yuan glanced toward it and joked, “You’re not planning to sell me, are you?”

“No. I couldn’t bear to.”

Before she could react, he added, “A fiancée this good is hard to come by.”

“…”