“Bah! Cut ties, my foot. Su Man is nothing but an ungrateful wretch. She won’t even acknowledge the parents who raised her, so how can anyone expect her to treat the children in our compound well?”
Beside the communal washroom in the military compound, several women had gathered to do their laundry, their voices rising as they gossiped.
The speaker was Sister-in-law Zhang, who lived in the front courtyard. She had a broad, horse-like face, high cheekbones, and a pair of narrow, triangular eyes that gave her a sharp and spiteful look.
As she vigorously scrubbed the bedsheet in her hands, she shot a vicious glance in the direction of Su Man’s home.
“You should’ve seen the spectacle that day. A military jeep led the way, and he had a gun in his hand. He beat her stepmother until she was crawling around on the ground.”
“That woman is vicious, all right. Commander Lu has simply been blinded by her beauty. Just wait until the novelty wears off. Let’s see how she gets rid of those two little fatherless brats!”
Sister Li, who was beside her, hesitated as she wrung out a piece of clothing.
“Surely not? I think Sister Su Man is quite kind. Last time, she even made Braised Pork for Erbao. The smell drifted through the entire compound.”
Sister-in-law Zhang let out a cold laugh and slammed the bar of soap into the basin.
“What do you know? That was all an act! She was putting on a show for Commander Lu!”
“How many stepmothers are actually good? Look at Dabao. He’s been hiding whenever he sees people these past few days, and his eyes are always so gloomy. Who knows how much suffering he’s endured at home?”
“If you ask me, the Lus’ marriage won’t last long!”
Su Man happened to be walking past with a basket of vegetables and heard every word.
She didn’t even slow down, much less spare the group of gossipy women a glance.
Getting angry over people who did nothing but wag their tongues behind others’ backs would only be a waste of her life.
Right now, all her thoughts were on the yellowed photograph in her pocket.
When she returned home, Su Man closed the door and carefully hid the redwood box at the very bottom of the wardrobe.
Lu Zhan’s background, along with that “Lu Residence” plaque, remained like a cloud of mystery hanging over her heart.
But this was not the time to investigate it.
The moment Lu Zhan stepped through the door, his expression was grim. His brows were tightly furrowed, and an aura of deadly seriousness clung to him.
“Wifey, I’ve got an emergency mission.”
As he spoke, Lu Zhan quickly packed his belongings, stuffing a few changes of clothes into his military-green canvas bag.
“The regiment headquarters just issued an order. There’s been some friction along the border, so I have to take a team over there. Mainly reconnaissance.”
Su Man’s heart tightened. She walked over and helped straighten his collar.
“How long will you be gone? Is it dangerous?”
Lu Zhan paused.
Looking at his little wife’s worried face, the hard place in his heart softened.
He raised his large hand and gently rubbed her cheek with his rough fingertips.
“I don’t know how long. It could be three days, or it could be half a month.”
“Don’t worry. I’m an old soldier. Even the King of Hell wouldn’t dare take me.”
“But you…”
Lu Zhan lowered his head to look at her, his tone turning serious.
“There’s been a lot of gossip around the compound these past few days. I know you’ve heard it.”
“While I’m gone, don’t get into it with those women. If they wrong you, keep a record of it. When I get back, I’ll deal with every one of them.”
“And those two little brats—if they dare give you trouble, don’t spoil them. Scold them when they deserve it, and hit them if you have to.”
Warmth spread through Su Man’s heart.
She rose onto her toes and took the initiative to wrap her arms around his lean, muscular waist.
“Don’t worry, Brother Zhan. I’ll take care of things at home.”
“Just focus on your mission. Come back safely.”
Lu Zhan gazed deeply at her, as if he wanted to etch her image into his mind.
Then, without another word, he picked up his bag, turned around, and strode out of the courtyard.
The roar of the military jeep soon faded into the distance, disappearing beneath the gloomy sky.
With Lu Zhan gone, it felt as though one of the pillars holding up the household had been removed, leaving the home strangely empty.
And the weather was no help.
By evening, the already overcast sky suddenly seemed to split open.
The wind howled, lightning flashed, and thunder boomed.
Hail-sized raindrops came crashing down, pounding against the tiled roof with a frightening rhythm.
It was an unexpected cold snap in early spring, and the chill forced its way desperately through every crack around the doors and windows.
Su Man shut the doors and windows tightly, then went to the kitchen and made a pot of ginger tea.
“Dabao, Erbao, come over and have some ginger tea. It’ll warm you up. This awful weather makes it easy to catch a cold.”
At the mention of food, Erbao came running out and eagerly gulped down his entire bowl.
But Dabao, who had been awkward and distant with Su Man these past few days, remained completely silent.
Su Man carried a bowl over to the door of the west room and knocked.
“Dabao? Are you in there? Come out and drink some tea.”
There was no response.
Su Man frowned and pushed the door open.
Under the dim light, Dabao was curled up beneath the quilt, wrapped up so tightly that only a tuft of messy hair was visible.
Thinking he was merely throwing a tantrum, Su Man sighed helplessly and walked over, intending to pull back a corner of the quilt.
“Dabao, stop being stubborn. Your dad isn’t home. You’re the older brother, so you need to set a good example…”
Before she could finish, her fingers had barely touched Dabao’s forehead when she immediately recoiled as if she had been burned.
He was scorching hot!
This wasn’t a child throwing a tantrum at all. He was practically a blazing furnace!
Su Man’s heart jolted.
She quickly pulled back the quilt.
Dabao’s face was flushed bright red, his lips dry and cracked, his eyes tightly shut, and his brows twisted painfully into a deep furrow.
His entire body was trembling violently, and his teeth were chattering.
“Dabao! Dabao, wake up!”
Su Man patted his cheek, a trace of panic entering her voice.
Dabao opened his eyes hazily. His gaze was unfocused, unable to settle on anything.
He looked at Su Man, but it was as though he were seeing someone else through her.
“Mom… Mom… I’m so cold…”
“Don’t leave me… Don’t abandon me…”
He was delirious with fever!
Su Man’s heart sank.
Medical care was severely limited in this era. A high fever in a child could be life-threatening. It could easily develop into pneumonia or meningitis.
She quickly rummaged through the cabinet, pulled out a thermometer, shook it down, and slipped it under Dabao’s arm.
Five minutes later, Su Man checked the thermometer.
39.8°C!
In this medically underdeveloped era, a temperature this high was enough to cause serious complications, even brain damage.
“Erbao! Get dressed!”
Su Man shouted toward the main room, her voice so sharp that it broke.
Erbao, who had been playing with marbles, jumped in fright and hurried over.
“What happened? What happened?”
“Your brother has a fever. We need to go to the hospital.”
As she spoke, Su Man quickly searched for warm clothes for Dabao.
Outside, the rain was coming down harder and harder, while thunder roared as though it were about to shake the entire house apart.
At this hour, with the weather this terrible, the compound’s shuttle bus had long since stopped running.
Lu Zhan had taken the jeep.
The only way to reach the medical unit several kilometers away was—
to walk.
But Dabao was burning with fever. There was no way he could walk.
Su Man glanced at the pitch-black rainy night outside, then at Dabao, who was groaning in pain on the bed.
She clenched her teeth, and her gaze became resolute.
“Erbao, go get the biggest raincoat we have. And find the flashlight, too.”
“I’ll carry your brother on my back.”
Erbao was terrified. Looking at his brother, who was burning with fever and barely conscious, tears welled up in his eyes.
“Mom… Is Brother going to die?”
“Pah, pah, pah! Don’t say such unlucky things!”
While pulling a pair of padded trousers onto Dabao, Su Man glared fiercely at him.
“Your mom is here. Even the King of Hell can forget about taking your brother!”
She helped Dabao sit up and guided him onto her back.
An eight-year-old boy, though thin, had already developed a sturdy frame. He weighed more than sixty pounds.
On Su Man’s slender body, he felt like a small mountain.
Su Man gritted her teeth and summoned every ounce of strength in her waist.
“Up!”
She staggered to her feet.
Dabao’s feverish body pressed against her back, burning like a red-hot iron.
“Erbao, hold on to my clothes. Whatever you do, don’t let go.”
“Let’s go!”
Su Man kicked open the door and plunged into the raging storm with the two children.
The moment they stepped out of the courtyard, a fierce gust of wind mixed with icy rain slammed into them, nearly knocking Su Man to the ground.
She steadied herself, drew a deep breath, and took her first step.
The compound at night looked like a giant monster with its jaws wide open.
The women who usually spent their days gossiping were all hiding beneath their warm quilts.
Only this mother and her two children, with no blood relation between them, were struggling through the cold rain and howling wind simply to survive.
“Dabao, hang in there. Don’t fall asleep.”
As she walked, Su Man shouted loudly into the storm.
“If you dare fall asleep, I’ll throw you into a mud pit and let the turtles eat you!”
There was no response from Dabao on her back.
Only his scorching breath, one hot puff after another, brushed against the back of Su Man’s neck.
Su Man’s heart sank to the bottom.
This battle was going to be much harder than she had imagined.