Originally, Lu Zheng’an had planned to finish this mission and then submit a leave request to his unit once he returned. But now, it seemed he would have to wait a while longer.
The last ray of sunlight disappeared over the horizon. Lu Zheng’an pulled himself out of his thoughts and walked toward the railway station with a resolute expression.
At ten o’clock that evening, the train slowly pulled into Jingbei Railway Station.
Since there weren’t many trains bound for Jingbei, there were still plenty of passengers even though it was already so late.
Jingbei Railway Station was bustling at ten at night. There were even small roadside stalls selling food. Many passengers were already hungry, and as soon as they spotted the vendors, they gathered around.
Su Yuanyuan bought two ears of corn for the children to eat, then held one child’s hand on each side as they walked out of the railway station.
Looking at Jingbei in the 1980s, it was still far from the prosperity and luxury of the era she had come from. Yet there was a different kind of vigorous vitality and a rich cultural heritage that seemed to hit her in the face.
Su Yuanyuan found it fascinating.
The same place could have its own unique charm in different eras.
Lu Siyuan and Lu Mingzhu had lived in the village for three years and had never seen such a large place before.
“Jingbei is so pretty! It’s so big! Is that a car driving on the road?” Lu Siyuan stared at the passing automobiles, finding everything incredibly fascinating.
“Yes, that’s a car.”
Su Yuanyuan looked around.
Taxis weren’t nearly as convenient as they would become in the future. To get somewhere, they needed to take a bus, but the buses had already stopped running at this hour.
Apart from the passengers who had just gotten off the train, the area outside was rather quiet. And at this time of year, Jingbei was surprisingly cold.
The original owner didn’t have the address of the male lead’s unit, and Su Yuanyuan didn’t know exactly where Lu Zheng’an’s military base was located.
After thinking it over, Su Yuanyuan decided to take the children to the nearest guesthouse for the night.
She booked a small room and brought the children inside. After locking the door securely, Su Yuanyuan took the two children into her dimensional space.
The humidity and air inside the space were always maintained at the most comfortable levels. Su Yuanyuan rubbed her face, and the dryness and tightness in her skin finally eased.
She heated up some boxed meals she had stored in the space earlier. The three of them ate a warm meal before filling the tub with water and taking baths.
Both children had learned to take care of themselves from a young age, so Su Yuanyuan brought them into her room and let them bathe on their own.
After the two children finished bathing, Su Yuanyuan went to wash herself.
While they were in Banan County, Su Yuanyuan had bought two clean sets of clothes for the children.
However, she still had a long journey ahead with the children. If they dressed too well, they might attract unwanted attention. So while outside, she had them continue wearing the old clothes they had brought from the village. They would change into the new clothes once they entered the space.
After coming out of the bath, Su Yuanyuan was exhausted. She carried the two little ones back to bed.
Just as she was about to close her eyes, Lu Mingzhu beside her asked in her soft, childish voice,
“Mommy, can we see Daddy tomorrow?”
The two little ones smelled sweet and fresh after their baths, soft as little milk buns. Su Yuanyuan kissed each child on the forehead.
“Probably not tomorrow. Mommy doesn’t know exactly which military base Daddy is at. Tomorrow, Mommy will first find out where the main military bases are.”
Technology wasn’t nearly as advanced as it would be later, but one thing hadn’t changed: Jingbei was huge, and there were many military bases.
Even letters were sent to a centralized mail distribution station, after which the mail clerks from each military base would collect the letters belonging to their respective bases and deliver them to the recipients.
At this thought, Su Yuanyuan’s eyes lit up.
Right! She could simply go to the mail distribution point where the previous letters had been sent and ask which military base Lu Zheng’an was stationed at.
If that didn’t work, she could search for the bases one by one. Although she wouldn’t be able to bring the children to see Lu Zheng’an immediately, it would only take a little more time. She would find him eventually.
“Wouldn’t that be really tiring for Mommy? It feels like we can’t help you with anything.”
Lu Siyuan was a little dejected. On this trip away from home, he had wanted to help his mother with lots of things.
But all the way to Jingbei, it had been their mother who bought the tickets, took them on the train, and found a place to stay. In reality, they didn’t understand anything and couldn’t really help her with anything.
A warm feeling flowed through Su Yuanyuan’s heart.
She pulled both children tightly into her arms. After spending an entire train journey taking care of two children, only now did she finally feel truly at ease.
Taking care of children was tiring enough, let alone two at once.
Fortunately, both children had been incredibly well-behaved throughout the entire journey. They hadn’t thrown tantrums or cried, and their maturity was heartbreaking.
Whether it was her daughter or her son, both could recognize how difficult things were for her and understand her hardships. That made everything much easier for Su Yuanyuan.
She was tired, but her heart was content.
She only hoped the children’s father wouldn’t steal them away from her once they met him.
“It’ll be a little tiring, but you two have been amazing. You stayed right beside Mommy the whole time. You didn’t run off or wander around. You were both super good. Thanks to you two sticking close to me, I was able to concentrate on reading the signs and finding our way.”
As she spoke, Su Yuanyuan kissed both children on the cheeks again, making an exaggeratedly loud mwah sound.
Lu Siyuan felt a little embarrassed and muttered with a flushed face,
“Mommy, I’m a boy.”
“I’m a girl! Mommy, kiss me, kiss me!” Lu Mingzhu giggled and leaned closer.
Su Yuanyuan was amused by the contrast between the two little ones.
She felt as though she wasn’t raising children at all, but carrying around two fragrant little milk buns. Whenever she got tired, she could just squish them a little, and she’d instantly be full of energy again.
The three of them hadn’t slept well on the sleeper berth. Once they returned to the space and collapsed onto the soft bed, they played around for a while before falling asleep.
Meanwhile, Lu Zheng’an didn’t return to Jingbei Railway Station until midnight.
At this hour, the railway station was nearly deserted. Even the vendors had packed up and gone home.
As soon as Lu Zheng’an walked out of the railway station, he saw a military jeep parked outside.
He walked over, greeted the person waiting for him, then opened the door and got inside.
“Why did they send you to pick me up?”
Lu Zheng’an sat in the back seat and raised a hand to rub his brow.
He had just finished his previous mission and rushed back to Jingbei overnight. A faint trace of fatigue lingered in his eyes.
“I happened to be passing by after dropping someone off, so the unit told me to come pick you up. This mission is urgent. We have to pack tonight, and we’re leaving tomorrow at noon for Qingzhou Island.”
Song Han turned the steering wheel at the intersection and explained as he drove.
He and Lu Zheng’an had enlisted in the same year. The two had carried out many missions together and had been through life-and-death situations side by side. They were comrades-in-arms as well as friends.
“Mm. What’s the situation over there? Why do we suddenly need to go on a mission?”
This mission had come completely out of the blue. Lu Zheng’an hadn’t received any information beforehand.
“I don’t know the specifics either. All I was told is that we’re leaving tomorrow at noon. Someone will brief us once we get there.”
The car fell silent.
Both men had been in the military for many years, so they understood exactly what this meant.
A highly classified secret meant high risk.
“But once this mission is over, as long as we make it back safely, your leave request will definitely be approved. You haven’t been home in three years.”
Song Han glanced at Lu Zheng’an through the rearview mirror.
Lu Zheng’an hummed in response.
He had never been a man of many words, and Song Han was already used to it.
There was still some distance to the military district, so Song Han continued making casual conversation with him.
“Hey, what does your wife look like? It’s been more than three years, and I don’t think I’ve ever heard you talk much about her.”
Song Han was actually quite curious.
Lu Zheng’an frowned.
He could barely remember what Su Yuanyuan looked like.
He had been extremely busy in the military these past three years and hadn’t had time to think about things at home.
He had left home not long after marrying Su Yuanyuan and hadn’t seen her since.
Thinking about this, Lu Zheng’an’s eyes flickered.
It seemed a little wrong that he couldn’t even remember what his own wife looked like.
Seeing that Lu Zheng’an didn’t answer, Song Han thought of some gossip he’d recently heard.
“Have you heard? Old Zhang’s wife ran off with another man. Though there’s not much to say about it. He’s got a terrible temper, and apparently he often beats his wife. He’s hardly ever home either. It’d be strange if she didn’t run away.”
Once Song Han started gossiping, he became extremely talkative.
“You know, your wife—”
Lu Zheng’an’s expression darkened.
“If you don’t know what to say, then shut up.”
“Hey, Brother Lu, that’s not fair. I was going to say that you really should go home and take a look. A woman living in the village without her husband by her side can’t have an easy life.”
Song Han was amused by Lu Zheng’an’s reaction.
After that, the two fell silent again.
After a while, Lu Zheng’an finally spoke.
“I’ll go home after this mission.”
There was another mission the next day, and by the time he returned to the barracks, it was already very late.
After taking a shower, Lu Zheng’an went straight to bed.
Before dawn the next morning, the wake-up call sounded.
Lu Zheng’an immediately got up, washed up, and went to the mess hall for breakfast. Afterward, he and his comrades began gathering their equipment.
Once everything was ready, they would take a military truck there. Jingbei wasn’t far from Qingzhou Island, only a few hours away. Once they arrived, they would begin the operation immediately.
Lu Zheng’an had just finished packing when someone called for him from outside.
“Two letters for you. I brought them over.”
Lu Zheng’an had just reached the doorway when Song Han handed him two letters.
“Letters?”
Seeing Lu Zheng’an’s surprise, Song Han explained,
“They’re both from your family, apparently. And they were mailed separately. Is there something urgent?”
Normally, his family only sent letters when they needed money. Lu Zheng’an had good relationships with the people around him, but he had been so busy recently that he hadn’t been exchanging letters with anyone.
Two letters from home, mailed separately, most likely meant that something had happened.
Thinking of how poor Su Yuanyuan’s health was, Lu Zheng’an frowned. He walked aside and opened the top letter.
Song Han tactfully waited nearby. The letter might contain some private family matter, so it wouldn’t be appropriate for him to look over.
The first letter Lu Zheng’an opened was from his family.
The very first sentence he saw was that his wife had been behaving improperly for the past two years, and the family had been keeping an eye on her. But a few days ago, she had apparently stolen everything in the house with some wild man and secretly run away in the middle of the night.
The rest of the letter went on about how difficult things were for the family and asked him to find a way to replace the money his wife had supposedly stolen.