After the power outage, the train was lit only by the dim twilight.
The chief attendant carried a handheld lamp, moving from carriage to carriage to make announcements.
“Dear passengers, due to an incident, this train has lost power and is out of service. A new train has arrived to take you to your destination…”
Su Yemang gathered her luggage, carrying Su Yixin, and followed the crowd off the train.
In the neighboring carriage, Yun Ruo and her colleagues also joined the flow of passengers.
“Woo ”
White steam from the train curled into a billowing cloud, like a thick, lingering mist shooting up into the sky.
The replacement train had arrived.
Su Yemang looked ahead along the tracks, at a line of workers.
Her eyes immediately found that familiar tall figure.
As dusk deepened, the stalled train stretched behind the workers, a dark, continuous line.
Xiao Ye’s kerosene lamp cast a weak glow, lighting his sharply handsome features.
Her heart surged.
She wondered if his back… still hurt.
Su Yemang closed her eyes and imagined that, if she hadn’t broken her promise to that person… if Xiao Ye could forgive her…
In the darkening evening, she forced back the tears in her eyes.
“Everyone, quickly board the train at the back! Passengers, please watch your step,”
The chief attendant, holding a transistor megaphone, guided everyone onto the new train.
The crackle of the megaphone jolted the winter travelers; crying children shivered.
Su Yemang held her son’s hand and stepped onto the other train.
The air was bitterly cold, and her son’s asthma flared slightly.
She quickly took a thermos, letting him inhale the hot steam, and gave him a compound licorice tablet…
Su Yixin felt better and rested on her lap. “Mom, I feel comfortable now.”
She swallowed hard, feeling guilty.
Su Yixin blinked. “Um… Uncle Xiao Ye?”
Su Yemang covered him with an anti mite blanket. “Uncle Xiao Ye is a soldier. He went onto the tracks to help.”
“Will we see him again?” Su Yixin asked, tilting his small head.
“Mom… I don’t know…” Su Yemang said, her voice hoarse.
“Whoosh ”
The new train started moving…
Su Yemang placed her hand on the glass, touching the distant figure on the tracks.
He had his back to her train.
As the horn blew, he was still adjusting the overhead lines.
“Clang clang.”
The new train began its journey.
When it passed behind Xiao Ye, Su Yemang’s breath caught; her heart chilled to ice…
Two days later.
The train arrived in Dan City, Liaoning Province. As soon as she got off the platform, Su Yemang led her son straight to a book stall, pretending to browse.
A jeep was parked by the roadside, a soldier walking past, scanning the area.
Suddenly, he picked up a copy of Dream of the Red Chamber and murmured to himself, “Good book… just the paper has yellowed, hard to read.”
Su Yemang whispered immediately, “I have a Gengchen edition, with illustrations of the Twelve Beauties of Jinling in the upper volume.”
The tall soldier instantly grew serious.
The code words had matched.
He whispered, “Hello, comrade!”
He handed Su Yemang a paper mission file stamped in red.
She took it quickly. “Hello, comrade.”
The soldier then showed his officer ID. “Professor Su! I’m Xu Gu from the Liaodong Military District Academy of Military Science, secretary to the director. I’m here to escort you to the military district.”
Su Yemang checked and nodded. “Thank you, Comrade Xu Gu.”
The wind lifted her hair; her bright face and brown eyes shimmered like autumn water, tinged with a trace of worry.
Xu Gu felt a little embarrassed.
Remembering he had just discussed marriage matters today, he quickly coughed and picked up Su Yemang’s luggage, inviting her and Su Yixin into the vehicle…
The jeep drove on.
From just after 1 p.m. until 3 p.m., they traveled steadily, arriving at the Liaodong Military District.
At the district gate, the sentries carefully checked Su Yemang’s face and documents, scrutinizing her introduction letter.
Su Yixin’s big curious eyes looked at the rows of soldiers inside.
After a moment, the sentry waved them through excitedly. “Professor Su! Please enter…”
As soon as Su Yemang and her son entered, soldiers running drills slowly turned to glance at them.
Whistles and gunfire echoed in alternation.
Su Yemang held her son’s hand and followed Xu Gu along a straight, wide road.
“Hey ha!”
“Again!”
“Uh ”
Suddenly, a powerful, guttural shout came from ahead, like a group of men fighting.
Su Yemang startled, looking toward the sound.
Her eyes immediately landed on the figure in the yellow mud: the nine foot tall man.
Xiao Ye?
He was shirtless, standing in a horse stance. “Ugh!” he grunted, throwing a burly soldier to the ground.
“Screech!”
The friction of military boots on the dirt as the soldier hit the ground made a sharp sound.
Su Yemang’s pupils immediately widened.
He… what is he doing here?
He’s… part of this military district?
“Uncle Xiao Ye!” Su Yixin shouted excitedly.
The wrestlers all turned their heads, gossiping as they looked at Xiao Ye.
With a single glance from him, they immediately fell silent.
Su Yemang’s eyes traced his swollen, flushed muscles, moving down to his eight pack streaked with dirt.
Sunlight hit his sharp, sculpted face, so handsome that Su Yemang grew nervous…
Xiao Ye glanced back at her, then quickly looked away.
Su Yemang immediately recalled that day’s kiss.
In the train duty room, he had helped her breathe again.
Her face had flushed instantly.
Xu Gu pointed toward the wrestling field. “Oh, this is the 29th Division’s Special Reconnaissance Battalion.”
“Mm,” Su Yemang nodded.
Xu Gu cleared his throat lightly. “Alright, let’s head to the Military Science Academy quickly.”
“Okay,” Su Yemang said with a polite smile.
She was smiling smiling at that kid, Xu Gu.
Xiao Ye saw it.
He was irritated. He had just reported Shen Yuetao, the daughter of Liaoning’s deputy commander, for drugging someone and now the report had been intercepted.
Now he was even more annoyed.
He was training with a new recruit, and in a wrestling move, he used extra force.
“Ah!”
The new recruit screamed in pain…
Military Science Academy.
Director Lin signed and stamped the paperwork. “Xiao Su, if you don’t want special housing, just go to the main compound. Rest first; work begins in three days.”
Su Yemang nodded. “Thank you, Director Lin.”
It was 5 p.m.
Su Yemang and her son followed Xu Gu to the compound.
Passing the cultural troupe, Su Yemang noticed a tall figure.
It was Yun Ruo.
Yun Ruo was rolling her eyes at a female leader. “Are you serious? You’re giving me the worst dorm and the lowest allowance?”
The woman leader replied coldly, “Comrade Yun, you know your family background. It’s already good that we even let you join the troupe!”
Yun Ruo’s heart skipped a beat.
She gritted her teeth. “I competed at the provincial level, won first prize in the army’s individual performance! And you still say my background is bad?”
The female leader frowned. “Your solo dance Snow Plum was excellent, but we also have to consider the implications… if your background is poor…”
Again… poor background?
Yun Ruo froze.
Her family theater had been confiscated. Since childhood, she had been insulted as a capitalist daughter, bullied at school, ostracized at work.
And the man she loved most had abandoned her and married a woman with a “good” background.
Tears welled in Yun Ruo’s eyes, and she tilted her head back to hold them in.
Su Yemang had wanted to intervene, but she knew Yun Ruo was strong willed; anyone seeing her cry would get scolded.
“Can we go now, Professor Su?” Xu Gu smiled.
Su Yemang snapped out of her thoughts. “Yes… alright, let’s go…”
After passing the cultural troupe, they finally reached the No. 1 family housing compound, hidden by trees.
Two rows of long, single story houses.
They stopped at the house at the far end.
Xu Gu handed over the keys and introduced with a smile, “This will be your residence from now on. You’ll be neighbors with Captain Xiao. If you need anything in daily life, ask him.”
Su Yemang took the keys. “Alright.”
“Wait… Captain Xiao?”
She was puzzled, when the green wooden door next door creaked open.
Xiao Ye emerged, steam rising from his freshly washed body.
The wrestling marks earlier left a small scar on his neck.
“Heh…” Su Yemang exhaled lightly.
Su Yixin’s eyes lit up. “Uncle Xiao Ye!”
Xu Gu smiled and stepped forward, standing beside Xiao Ye.
“Let me introduce you,” he said, giving a military salute. “Captain Xiao, this is Professor Su, newly assigned to our Military Science Academy.”
Xiao Ye draped a towel over his shoulders, glancing coldly. “Professor Su Yemang.”
Su Yemang’s breath caught.
Xu Gu was surprised. “Oh, you know her?”
Xiao Ye said lightly, “Yes. She owes me a debt.”