At the residential area of the military compound, Song Hongmei charged forward and began grabbing and scratching wildly, as if she intended to fight Zhou Weidong to the death.
The commotion quickly drew nearby residents, who gathered to point and whisper.
Zhou Weidong kept dodging in embarrassment, feeling humiliated, but still gritted his teeth and said word by word:
“Auntie, I must respectfully refuse. I am not committing marriage fraud…”
“I truly love Xuezhi. We love each other. In this lifetime, I will marry her no matter what!”
This forceful declaration only sparked more discussion among the crowd.
Relationships between men and women were conservative in this era; people rarely spoke openly about love. For Zhou Weidong to shout it so loudly was practically damaging the girl’s reputation…
This made Song Hongmei even angrier. She grabbed a nearby household’s chamber pot and was about to splash it on him.
“You dare call me ‘mom’ again? I’ll kill you, you damn bastard!”
“Hey hey, my chamber pot…”
Zhou Weidong dodged in time, but a bit of the liquid still splashed onto his clothes. Looking at the yellowish mess and smelling the pungent odor, he could only retreat helplessly.
“Auntie, I’ll come visit another day.”
Seeing this, Song Hongmei wanted to chase after him again, but he had already run off.
“And this is supposed to be a soldier? I think he’s just a coward!” she cursed while rolling up her sleeves and picking up her broom again.
As for the scattered fruit candies on the ground, after being soiled, she no longer wanted them. Nearby children rushed in and snatched them up.
In order to gain public support, over the past two days, Song Hongmei had been spreading exaggerated rumors everywhere about Zhou Weidong and his sister, twisting white into black and green into yellow.
After learning the full story, the neighbors sympathized with Song Xuezhi and angrily criticized him.
“This kind of man is no good! A total ‘sister-devoted man’—he even gave the marital house to his sister’s child to live in. If your daughter marries him, she’ll suffer for sure!”
“He might be playing both sides—your daughter will be wronged sooner or later…”
As Song Xuezhi helped her mother back to the rental room, she saw that Song Hongmei had taken her medication again, her heart feeling complicated.
Song Hongmei glanced at her reproachfully.
“What, now you feel sorry for that man?”
While standing up for her daughter, she also lectured her:
“I don’t see anything good about Zhou Weidong. He’s just a regiment commander. Today I saw him in person—he’s not even one-tenth as good-looking as Commander Li. He’s not as tall either. How did you even fall for someone so rough and violent?”
“Mom, I don’t feel sorry for him,” Song Xuezhi quickly denied.
Of course, she admitted she had been blind before.
But could Commander Li really be compared to an ordinary man?
Even among ordinary people, Zhou Weidong was still outstanding.
“You better not,” her mother huffed.
Time was tight—she wouldn’t stay long here—so she planned to settle everything quickly.
She intended to go to the military base or the compound again the next morning to make a scene.
Meanwhile, unaware of her mother’s plan, Song Xuezhi went to work as usual the next day.
The state-run restaurant business remained as quiet as ever.
Old Xie said the previous dishwasher, Aunt Wang, had been fired because there was almost no work—she simply got laid off.
As for Li Daming, he didn’t show up for work either.
This made Song Xuezhi a little nervous—she wondered if she was about to lose her job just days after starting.
She was truly poor right now, and Zhou Weidong still hadn’t returned her money.
Having no money always made people feel insecure.
“Ah, my stomach… it suddenly hurts so badly…” Old Xie clutched his abdomen.
“Did you eat something bad? Should you go to the clinic? I can handle things here.”
Just as she thought there wouldn’t be any customers for a while, footsteps suddenly sounded at the entrance.
Thump, thump.
Firm military boots stepped across the floor.
When the glass door opened, a copper bell let out a dull chime.
Three young soldiers in uniform stepped inside first. They quickly formed positions on both sides, backs straight, right hands resting on their belts.
She was startled by the scene.
A tall man stepped through the doorway, the brim of his cap casting a shadow over his brow.
His dark green uniform fit perfectly across his shoulders and back, and the five-pointed star on his chest glinted coldly.
When he removed his cap and tucked it under his arm, a faint scar on his brow was revealed—like an unsheathed blade cutting across his sharp features.
“Com-Commander Li?” Song Xuezhi leaned forward in surprise. “Why are you here?”
“To eat.”
Li Chengyuan walked straight to the innermost table. His escort immediately wiped the surface with a white cloth and rinsed bowls and chopsticks with boiling water from an enamel mug. The entire dining hall fell silent except for the faint sounds of movement.
Old Xie suddenly doubled over, clutching his stomach.
“Xiao Song, I think I ate something bad…”
Seeing the kitchen curtain still swaying and Old Xie’s painful expression, the uniformed man tapped his knuckles on the table. His wristwatch gleamed faintly under his sleeve.
“Comrade, I’d like to order.”
Song Xuezhi quickly turned to Old Xie and asked in a low voice, “Master Xie, should I ask them to go somewhere else?”
Old Xie had already seen the commander outside and forced himself to respond:
“No… it’s rare for a commander to come here. If we chase him away, this place might not survive tomorrow.”
“Damn it… why did Daming have to take leave today? Xiao Song, can you cook? Why don’t you make a couple of dishes first?”
“Me?” she pointed at herself in shock.
Old Xie was already in pain, red-faced:
“Just tell me—can you or not? Even a simple bowl of noodles, right?”
“I… I can…” she said softly.
She had helped cook at home before and was fairly skilled. Moreover, after the prophetic dream, it felt as if she had experienced a future life as a housewife, and many new recipes came to her mind.
“Then you’ll handle it,” Old Xie said before rushing off.
Left with no choice, she walked out with paper and pen and asked Li Chengyuan, “What would you like to eat?”
The blackboard listed today’s items: plain noodles, vinegar-cabbage stir-fry, di san xian, and dumplings.
Because business was poor, there weren’t many ingredients.
Li Chengyuan glanced at it and said calmly, “One bowl of plain noodles.”
As for the escort soldiers, they would have dumplings.
Those were easier; they were already pre-made in the kitchen.
She finally relaxed a little and asked softly, “Um… our chef is not feeling well right now. Your order is simple—can I cook it for you instead?”
Li Chengyuan looked at her in silence.
Under his gaze, she suddenly felt nervous and swallowed unconsciously.
“Alright,” he nodded slightly. His deep eyes were calm and unreadable.
“Then I’ll taste your cooking.”