Guo Huixiu sighed. “Exactly. Your uncle is good looking and outstanding, and he’s always handled social situations and interpersonal relationships very well. Who would have thought that when it came to marriage, he would actually drag it out until he was twenty eight? Judging by the way he is now, I reckon he won’t even have marriage on his mind after he turns thirty. Your eldest aunt is terribly anxious about it.”
Meng Jixue asked indirectly, “Is it that the women aren’t interested in him, or that he isn’t interested in them? Or is there some other incompatibility that keeps things from working out?”
Guo Huixiu said, “How could they not be interested in him? Take the last woman your eldest aunt introduced, for example. I remember she was from the theater company. She was quite beautiful and well proportioned. After hearing about your uncle’s circumstances, she didn’t mind his age and was even quite proactive. Your eldest aunt arranged a meeting for them, but do you know where your uncle chose to meet her?”
From the way she said it, it obviously wasn’t somewhere ordinary.
Meng Jixue thought it through logically. “Could it have been the military district?”
Guo Huixiu looked at her in surprise. “You actually guessed right. It was in a small conference room in the military district. Tell me, is that any place to go on a blind date? Your eldest aunt brought the woman there. The woman was fairly easygoing and thought your uncle was busy, so she was willing to make do. But once she got there, anyone ordinary would have felt restrained.”
“Your uncle has such a stern, cold face. After your eldest aunt finished introducing them, he immediately acted as though he were handling official business. His very first words were, ‘Hello. My basic circumstances should have already been explained to you by my sister-in-law. I don’t have much time, so let’s get straight to the point.’”
Meng Jixue imagined the scene and instantly found it unbearable to picture.
If she were the woman, and she had no reason to seek anything from him, she would definitely have turned around and walked away.
Living with someone like this would surely be incredibly dull.
Meng Jixue felt that Zhou Hanzhang was truly a tough nut to crack. But she had no choice. At present, she had no better option than Zhou Hanzhang, so she could only continue asking.
“And then?”
Guo Huixiu clicked her tongue, apparently having heard the story told so vividly by her mother-in-law that it had remained fresh in her memory.
“Then came the triple blow.”
Meng Jixue’s curiosity was piqued.
Guo Huixiu sat up straight and imitated Zhou Hanzhang, her face cold and serious.
“On a daily basis, I get up at 4:50 a.m. and report for morning drills at 5:20. Hoping to rest before midnight is a luxury. I may spend four days a week at the military base, and emergency missions may interrupt my rest at any time. Can you accept that?”
“I have strict requirements for my future wife. She is not allowed to interfere in any work related matters, including making inquiries or passing along messages. If she needs to accompany me when I am stationed with the military, she must cooperate with any transfer without conditions. Household expenses will be subject to auditing. Can you abide by these requirements?”
“For the next five to ten years, my primary goals will be military development and completing the various tasks assigned by my superiors. To me, a family is a stable rear base that needs to function properly, not a place where I need to devote a great deal of emotional energy. In other words, I most likely won’t be able to provide companionship or emotional care in the conventional sense. Can you understand that?”
Meng Jixue: “…”
She immediately imagined what Zhou Hanzhang must have looked and sounded like while saying those words. With that attitude, it would be a miracle if he ever succeeded in a blind date.
Now Meng Jixue finally understood why, despite being so outstanding, Zhou Hanzhang had remained unmarried throughout her previous life.
To be honest, someone like him had already decided to devote himself to the country. Perhaps not marrying really was the better choice for him.
Seeing Meng Jixue’s expression, Guo Huixiu couldn’t help bursting into laughter. “That scared you? We’re not finished yet.”
Meng Jixue widened her eyes. “There’s more?!”
Guo Huixiu nodded. “After saying all that, your uncle directly took a copy of An Outline of Military Theory from the drawer and handed it to her. He said that if she was interested in military life, she could read it and familiarize herself with it in advance.”
Meng Jixue: “…”
It was supposed to be a blind date, but it had turned straight into ideological education.
What woman could possibly accept that?
After a long while, Meng Jixue finally sighed and tactfully remarked, “Uncle… is quite patriotic.”
Guo Huixiu laughed. “I think he simply hasn’t figured it out yet. Your uncle has a strong sense of principles. Until he meets someone who can break through those principles, he won’t allow anything or anyone to disrupt the life he has established for himself. Anyway, after going through this several times, your eldest aunt’s only requirement for his potential wife now is that she can tolerate your uncle’s temper.”
They couldn’t exactly look for women from particularly prestigious families anymore.
Women from good family backgrounds usually had strong personalities of their own. How could they possibly put up with him? But Zhong Youyi wouldn’t approve of women from families with poor conditions either. So they could only look among women from ordinary families with clean backgrounds and gentle, good natured personalities.
Unfortunately, there were very few women brave enough to handle him. After several attempts, some had even been frightened to tears by Zhou Hanzhang’s imposing manner.
Listening to this, Meng Jixue gained a much clearer understanding of Zhou Hanzhang.
But she had never been seeking a warm and affectionate marriage in the first place. Instead, she could calmly analyze his coldness and demands.
It seemed that what Zhou Hanzhang needed was a partner who could stand on equal footing with him.
Then she would have to show him that she could be that person.
Perhaps Zhou Hanzhang was also troubled by his eldest aunt’s well meaning matchmaking. Her appearance could solve that problem for him.
What should she do next?
Meng Jixue fell into thought.