Yun Shui had never won anything in her entire life. Shocked, she said, "I won!?"
The supermarket employee excitedly brought her to claim the prize: "First prize!"
A few minutes later, the employee processing the prize looked more carefully and shook their head: "This isn't first prize. This is no prize. Not drawing any prize is a slash; drawing first prize is a circled number 1. They're different, you see. Although the odds of getting no prize are also very small, haha."
The employee looked at her apologetically.
Yun Shui: …I knew it.
The unlucky one trudged away dejectedly, but before leaving, she couldn't give up and asked, "Really? Are you sure? What is the first prize anyway?"
The employee wore an unassailable, compassionate smile: "We're sure. It's like this. The first prize is a super comfortable bean bag sofa. The event lasts a week—feel free to come draw again!"
As Yun Shui walked out carrying her big bag, the weather suddenly changed. The sun had just set, and the quiet night was, without any warning, split by a bolt of lightning. Immediately after, a torrential downpour came crashing down without a moment's notice.
Raindrops poured noisily from the eaves, falling mercilessly and with abandon. Yun Shui stood fearfully at the supermarket entrance, where many long, semi-transparent plastic door curtains were whipped by the wind into a clattering racket, like flat rice noodles being stir-fried in a giant wok.
The sky darkened in an instant, and little light remained on the ground. Looking into the distance, car headlights melted into a blur of flowing, luminous fragments through the distorted refraction of the rain.
Yun Shui always carried a very light mini umbrella in her bag. It wasn't heavy and could normally shield her from the sun or a light drizzle, but against this overwhelming, ferocious "hero of the rain," it was helpless. It could barely manage to protect her head—her shoulders, pant legs, socks, and shoes would all inevitably be doomed.
The employee who had just handled the prize draw had probably gone to the restroom, so Yun Shui temporarily borrowed her seat. Sitting down, she opened the weather app, which wasn't always accurate. The app showed, "Rain is expected to gradually stop in about 45 minutes."
She flipped through the hourly forecast. Every hour for the next several hours had a heavy rain icon beneath it, accented by a small annotation of over 80% probability.
Yun Shui didn't want to wait. She'd rather go back and take a quick shower. So she resolutely took out her umbrella and charged into the rain.
The moment she stepped into the wet puddles, her mesh sports shoes—notoriously hard to clean—were splattered with mud. The flimsy umbrella was no match for the torrential downpour.
She clutched her shopping bag and small purse tightly to her chest, feeling her ankles and pant legs immediately soaked by the water cascading off the umbrella.
If only she'd worn those ugly crocs today!
Yun Shui trudged forward with difficulty, sensing the flashing headlights and blaring horns along the road. At a glance, everything had turned into the red of brake lights, like a pair of eyes burning with resentment.
Without any warning, amid the gloomy, indistinct sky and the rain lashing down from above, a pair of icy, damp hands suddenly grabbed her forearm!
In that instant, Yun Shui's scalp went numb, and her hairs stood on end beyond her control. She whipped around abruptly to find a pair of cold, dark eyes staring straight at her.
…Walk the night road often enough, and sooner or later you'll meet a ghost.
The man was drenched from head to toe, his dark, sunken eyes washed into an even more startling intensity. Rainwater streamed from his hair all the way down to his pant legs—he looked exactly like a water ghost running rampant.
This ghost clung to Yun Shui's arm and pulled her backward. She instinctively struggled violently, finally catching a glimpse of his stern brow and nose bridge in the dim line of light beneath the streetlamp—a familiar, handsome silhouette. His face looked especially gloomy in the rain curtain as he pushed her into the open car door with an unyielding force.
Yun Shui was scared out of her wits by him, trembling as she said, "General! Could you please not act like a human trafficker villain?!"
The Fleet Commander placed her into the back seat. Yun Shui hurriedly folded her umbrella, and the car door was shut.
The Fleet Commander said coldly, "Then how long did you want me to stand in the rain? I called your name and you didn't answer, honked the horn and got no reaction. You charged into the rain clutching that explosive bundle and your flimsy paper umbrella—off to die a heroic death, were you?"
Yun Shui: "…"
Her mud-stained sneakers trembled as they stepped onto the spotless little floor mat. The back seat was impossibly spacious, and the plastic bag was inevitably soaked, water droplets about to fall onto the expensive cushion of unknown material.
Yun Shui looked around nervously, genuinely allergic to this kind of precious vehicle where a single scratch would cost her an entire year's salary. Her spine stiffened as she watched through the rain curtain outside as the bedraggled water-ghost gentleman sat into the driver's seat and closed the door.
Yun Shui pulled several tissues from the box between the front seats and handed them to him: "General, thank you. Your injuries…"
The Fleet Commander took them and casually wiped his hands, head, and face.
She belatedly realized—the Fleet Commander had done a good deed today. Passing by and seeing her, he'd actually taken pity and tried to give her a ride. And because she wouldn't respond when called, he'd personally run out into the rain to drag her over. Getting himself completely soaked in the process, turning into a drowned rat.
Yun Shui was at a loss for words, momentarily unsure how to speak, especially given how bizarre their relationship had become and how she still owed him a suicidal confession and clarification.
Jiang Xie adjusted the air conditioning temperature. Looking through the rearview mirror, Yun Shui sat upright in the corner, her eyes bright and watery, looking deeply concerned—half worry, half gratitude. So the corner of his mouth temporarily softened by one pixel: "I've already received full repair in the Medical Pod. All injuries are healed. Pass me a towel from the back."
He'd originally thought Yun Shui would come help wipe his hair, but Yun Shui was truly an unqualified lover—she merely looked at him with a deeply moved and extremely adoring expression and handed over the towel. Jiang Xie felt somewhat disappointed.
Yun Shui had too many boundaries with him. Jiang Xie figured they probably hadn't been in the relationship for long and decided to gradually correct that later.
The car was warm and comfortable. Yun Shui gradually relaxed, like taking refuge in an ark beneath a leaking sky.
She stammered, testing the waters: "General, what about your memories?"
The Fleet Commander's gentleness lasted only a moment before his face immediately stiffened.
Yun Shui's heart trembled like a prisoner awaiting immediate execution. She saw the Fleet Commander say, somewhat displeased: "Although my memories haven't recovered, I haven't lost my wits either. Seeing everyday matters, I naturally handle them fine."
He then remembered something, his expression turning sour, and said in a somewhat accusatory tone, "Yun Shui, why don't I have your private contact? Did you block me?"
Yun Shui's heart pounded with fear: "I—I—"
I'm innocent!
The Fleet Commander pulled up his private messaging interface and said with authority: "Add me back. Don't make me say it twice. You're not obedient at all."
Her clarification still couldn't be spoken, like a mute gourd, she silently added him to her contacts.
The Fleet Commander became even more certain: "We've argued before, haven't we? You really don't like having your picture taken—there isn't a single photo of you saved in my terminal's cloud drive."
Yun Shui didn't know why he so easily led her astray. Now that the crisis had passed, a belated rebelliousness surfaced, and she said very quietly, "What do you mean 'obedient'? If it's a love marriage, how can one person listen to the other? Since you were blocked, you must have made a mistake first."
The Fleet Commander: "I can't make mistakes."
Yun Shui was stunned by his confidence.
The Fleet Commander: "You must be using your amnesia to pin false charges on me."
Yun Shui: "…" Aren't you just so clever!
The Fleet Commander stubbornly insisted: "You were terrible today. You made three mistakes."
Yun Shui remained silent. Wasn't that the truth? She'd poked a hole in the sky itself, and now it was beyond her power to fix—she wanted to just give up on treatment.
Amidst the rhythmic swish of the automatic windshield wipers, the Fleet Commander questioned her point by point: "The flowers I gave you—why didn't you take proper care of them, just sticking them carelessly in a pen holder? Why didn't you call me after work? Why didn't you let me pick you up in the rain? Why haven't you proactively shown me any concern for days, and instead of repenting, you turn the blame around on me?"
Yun Shui froze, like an incompetent husband: "I… I… I…"
Am I just that damn awful?
Jiang Xie focused on driving, patiently waiting for Yun Shui to apologize.
But no response came from the back seat.
He glanced back while waiting at a red light—Yun Shui's lashes caught a patch of orange streetlight, her eyes slightly unfocused, but she was obediently watching him the whole time.
Jiang Xie grudgingly forgave her and said, "You've moved into the staff dormitory? Which building?"
Yun Shui startled awake as if from a dream: "Ah, Building 12."
Jiang Xie was a bit surprised, because Building 12 was the one on the edge, not too far from the command center suite where he lived—about a fifteen-minute drive.
The Fleet Commander: "I'll park in your building's garage, and you can take the elevator straight up."
Yun Shui hesitated for a moment: "General, would you like to dry your hair before you go?"
He was soaked through. The black shirt clung to his body, vaguely outlining extremely lean and fluid lines across his chest and abdomen. His brows and eyes were slightly cold, making him seem a bit aloof.
Beneath the sleeves rolled up to his elbows, the muscles of his arms were clearly defined. When he applied slight force to the steering wheel, the veins on his forearms and the backs of his hands stood out.
The rain had soaked his shirt almost transparent.
Yun Shui tried desperately to restrain her impolite gaze, but the wet fabric adhered to the curves of his muscles, and even the contours of his abdominal muscles became clear—she estimated at least six-pack, possibly more. Looking further down, it was even more mountainous terrain.
She stiffly looked away.
She felt that even with amnesia, the Fleet Commander was still persistently seducing her.
Yun Shui thought mournfully that she might never go back. Her expired, pure and beautiful girlish feelings were now mixed with an adult's lust at first sight, shameless greed.
The Fleet Commander replied: "If that's alright. Is it convenient for you?"
Yun Shui: "It's convenient."
The car drove into the underground garage. Just as the car was locked, Yun Shui vaguely heard people conversing in the distance, echoes reverberating.
Her expression changed drastically. In a panic, she shoved the Fleet Commander behind the car… but he didn't budge. Finally, the Fleet Commander clicked his tongue impatiently, and gracefully allowed himself to be pulled along by her.
Yun Shui began frantically rummaging through her bag until she found a single mask, one she habitually kept in the inner compartment.
The mask had been squeezed so that one corner was folded over. Yun Shui carefully smoothed out the nose wire, then awkwardly held up the crumpled plastic packaging in front of the Fleet Commander. "General, put this on to cover up, please, please."
The Fleet Commander's expression darkened. "Am I that embarrassing to be seen with, Yun Shui?"
Yun Shui lowered her voice and said matter-of-factly, "General, this is the staff dormitory! Anyone could walk into the elevator at any moment and see you. If someone recognizes the two of us together, I'm done for!"
The Fleet Commander was displeased. "How would you be done for?"
Yun Shui's eyes widened. "I'd just be done for. In this work environment, we see each other every day—it would be so awkward. Nothing stays secret here, and I don't want to become the subject of gossip. Put it on now."
The Fleet Commander was reluctant, speaking with overbearing arrogance. "Who would dare talk behind our backs?"
Yun Shui tore open the mask packaging without further ado, ready to put it on him. "Everyone would dare. Every single person. They wouldn't just gossip—they'd spread rumors and file reports too."
Jiang Xie looked down at her with disdain, thoroughly annoyed, but Yun Shui was insistent. Seeing how anxious and flustered she looked, almost pitiful, he could only grudgingly comply.
He was holding Yun Shui's shopping bag, which made it hard to maneuver, so he could only slowly lower his noble head and let Yun Shui hook the mask over his ears.
"Wait a moment," Yun Shui instructed him with the caution of a scout. "Let me first check if anyone's in the elevator lobby."
Jiang Xie: "…"