As Zhu Hong’s words fell, Ye Sheng noticed that only Zhou Yanshen appeared composed, while Qin Yuandong and Wang Ying, who had just emerged carrying milk tea, wore expressions of not just astonishment but also intense restraint, as if they were trying to conceal a massive secret.
Zhou Yanshen’s expression was calm, but the words that came out of his mouth were as piercing and icy as icicles: “Zhu Hong! If it weren’t for Wang Changjiang, would you be sitting here?! If it weren’t for Beibei, do you think you’d still have the audacity to appear before me?!”
Zhu Hong’s face instantly turned deathly pale. Her lips trembled several times, but she couldn’t manage to utter a single word. As she stood up, tears were already streaming down her face. She rushed over, snatched Beibei from Zhou Yanshen’s arms, and bolted out of the house.
Wang Ying let out an “oh no,” quickly set down the milk tea, and chased after her.
Ye Sheng struggled to suppress her shocked expression, thoroughly enjoying the drama unfolding before her. She wished she had a handful of melon seeds to snack on while watching the show.
Qin Yuandong observed cautiously for a moment before speaking up: “Chief, don’t you think what you said was a bit too harsh? Zhu Hong is, after all, a young woman, and she’s Beibei’s mother.”
Zhou Yanshen’s brow was heavy and dark: “Mother? Does she deserve that title?”
He suddenly turned to look at Ye Sheng: “Do you want to go to the Art Troupe?”
The topic shifted so abruptly that Ye Sheng was caught off guard for a moment before quickly nodding: “Ah! No, no, no, I don’t want to go to the Art Troupe. I’m quite busy as it is.”
Are you kidding me? The original owner of this body was the star performer of the Art Troupe, but she certainly wasn’t.
Zhou Yanshen let out a derisive snort: “Yes, quite busy indeed.”
Ye Sheng kept her mouth shut, realizing that this man showed no consideration for anyone’s feelings. If she said even one thing wrong, he would latch onto it relentlessly.
Wang Ying soon returned, walking in as if nothing had happened, and cheerfully urged everyone: “Come on, eat up! Mutton buns are best enjoyed while they’re hot. Ye Sheng, you should eat too. I added some malted milk powder to your milk—try it and see how it tastes.”
Zhou Yanshen acted as if nothing had occurred, smiling as he said: “Sister-in-law, your cooking keeps getting better and better. It’s even better than what they serve at restaurants in town.”
Wang Ying’s smile deepened: “You’re just flattering me. How could my cooking possibly be better than a restaurant’s? But your suggestion that Zhu Hong take Beibei back to the provincial capital is the right call. You have no idea how dangerous it was today when none of you were here. If Ye Sheng hadn’t climbed up to rescue Beibei, I don’t even want to think about what could have happened.”
She then launched into a vivid retelling of the morning’s events, embellishing the story with dramatic flair, describing how agile Ye Sheng had been and how courageously she had saved Beibei.
Ye Sheng couldn’t stop her even if she wanted to, and she almost didn’t dare look at Zhou Yanshen. After all, the original owner of this body was notoriously delicate and pampered—how could she possibly have climbed up high to save someone?
Zhou Yanshen gave Ye Sheng a meaningful look but said nothing, which surprised her a little.
Qin Yuandong, as clueless as ever, played along: “Sister-in-law is that impressive? Wouldn’t have guessed it.”
Wang Ying shot him a glare: “What did you think?” Then she turned back to Ye Sheng with a beaming smile: “Ye Sheng, let me tell you, you should just stay here with us. Our Art Troupe here needs people too, though the conditions aren’t as good as in the city. But if you stay here, you and your husband won’t have to live apart anymore.”
Ye Sheng forced a smile, genuinely at a loss for how to respond. She couldn’t very well tell the warm and kind-hearted Wang Ying that she had come here to get a divorce, that she wouldn’t be staying long, and that she definitely wouldn’t be joining the Art Troupe.
Zhou Yanshen downed the rest of his milk tea in one gulp and stood up. “Are you done eating? If you’re done, let’s go.”
Ye Sheng stood up quickly, as if relieved. “I’m done.”
Wang Ying looked puzzled. “I didn’t see either of you eat anything. Why are you leaving so soon?”
Ye Sheng quickly said her goodbyes. “Sister-in-law, I’m really full. We’re going to buy some things first.”
Hearing that the young couple was going shopping, Wang Ying didn’t want to hold them back. “Then you two go ahead. If you don’t have anywhere to eat lunch, come to my place.”
Ye Sheng thanked her again before hurrying out the door after Zhou Yanshen.
After Zhou Yanshen went downstairs and walked a short distance, he turned back to look at Ye Sheng walking beside him. “You’re going out dressed like that?”
Ye Sheng was equally helpless. “Last night my clothes were drying on the balcony, and the wind blew them away.”
Zhou Yanshen gave her a slightly sympathetic look. “It’s quite impressive that you’ve managed to survive this long.”
Ye Sheng didn’t want to say anything. She felt Zhou Yanshen was right—the original owner had indeed survived this long, but it hadn’t been easy, given how she did everything without thinking.
After leaving the family compound, a jeep was parked by the roadside. Zhou Yanshen walked around and got into the driver’s seat.
Afraid of being criticized by Zhou Yanshen again, Ye Sheng quickly got into the passenger seat. Only then did she have a chance to look around. It should be the military camp—everywhere were square training grounds and uniform buildings.
Even the poplar trees lining the asphalt road in front of them were all equally tall and straight. Each tree had white lime painted at the same height on its trunk, as if measured with a ruler, all on the same horizontal line.
Everything was square, neat, and uniform.
While Ye Sheng was still marveling at this, Zhou Yanshen had already started the engine and shot off like an arrow.
Ye Sheng nearly cursed out loud from the sudden jolt.
Only after they exited the camp gate did Ye Sheng realize that the camp and the outside world were completely different. She had always thought that by 1992, the economy had already started developing, so even rural areas shouldn’t be too bad.
But the streets before her were lined with low, squat houses, pothole-riddled gravel roads, and pedestrians in plain clothes driving horse-drawn carts and donkey carts. There wasn’t a trace of prosperity, though the faces of the passersby were all brimming with happiness and contentment.
Zhou Yanshen seemed able to read her mind. “Do you think it’s especially desolate here?”
Ye Sheng nodded honestly. “I really didn’t expect it. It is a bit desolate.”
Zhou Yanshen raised an eyebrow. “After you live here for a while, you’ll find there are places even more desolate and backward than this. So the clothes later might not be as nice as you imagined. Just make do for now.”
Ye Sheng hadn’t expected Zhou Yanshen to say so much—it turned out he was giving her a heads-up to prevent her from being disappointed later.
This man—sometimes his tongue was as sharp as a bee’s stinger, but other times he was exceptionally attentive, never letting anyone feel embarrassed. She wondered if he had a split personality.
The car stopped not far ahead. Zhou Yanshen gestured with his chin toward a shop nearby. “There’s a clothing store over there. Buy a set to make do for now. I can see you get along well with Sister-in-law Wang Ying. Later, you can ask her to take you to the county town to shop.”
Ye Sheng looked over. Among a row of shops, there was one with a white signboard painted with red characters: Yaya Clothing Store.
Seeing that Zhou Yanshen had no intention of getting out, Ye Sheng thought to herself—he was her ex-husband now, and driving her to the clothing store door was already going above and beyond. She got out of the car briskly.
Standing by the roadside, she thought she should at least thank Zhou Yanshen and say goodbye. But just as she raised her hand halfway, Zhou Yanshen, as if he couldn’t wait any longer, floored the gas pedal and the car shot straight out.
Blasting a face full of exhaust fumes at Ye Sheng.
Ye Sheng nearly let out another string of profanities, but then she remembered something even more important—she hadn’t brought any money!