At the guesthouse.
Qin Yue’e was busy tidying up the room with her two children.
Calling it “tidying” was actually a bit of a stretch. There wasn’t much to organize in the first place.
The guesthouse at the unit looked like it hadn’t had anyone staying there for years. The empty room contained only a large bed, a wooden table, and several long wooden benches.
And this was actually the better room that the guard, Comrade Li, had helped her choose.
The other rooms were either falling apart because the beds were broken, or the doors were damaged.
At least this one was still reasonably intact.
As for the three of them, they barely had any belongings at all.
They had nothing but a bamboo basket used to carry the children.
They didn’t even have a change of clothes.
Li Youtian scratched his head awkwardly.
“Sister-in-law, please don’t mind the conditions. Just stay here for now! Our unit is pretty remote, and we haven’t had anyone come here for a family visit in six or seven years. I… I’ll go ask the logistics department to prepare some things for you!”
Qin Yue’e didn’t show any sign of disgust. She simply smiled.
“Then I’ll trouble you, Comrade Li.”
“No trouble at all! Not at all!”
Li Youtian’s face immediately turned red from nervousness. He hurriedly waved his hands.
“Sister-in-law, just call me Xiao Li! I’m the company commander’s guard. I only became his guard this year. I’m nineteen this year…”
The more he spoke, the redder his face became.
He was actually quite a nice young man.
Qin Yue’e fought back a laugh.
“You became the company commander’s guard at nineteen? You’re pretty impressive, Xiao Li!”
“Ah… haha! Really?”
Xiao Li scratched his head and gave a silly grin.
It took him a moment to realize that Qin Yue’e might have been teasing him.
His face instantly turned bright red all the way to his neck.
Then he turned around and ran.
“Sister-in-law, I’ll go get someone to help you!”
What a cute kid.
Qin Yue’e smiled and lowered her head, continuing to sort through their things.
The guards had provided a palm-fiber sleeping mat, two sets of coarse-cloth bedsheets, and a quilt.
Qin Yue’e looked them over.
They were all slightly used, but the quality was surprisingly good. They were sturdy and durable.
Considering the conditions of the unit, she guessed these probably belonged to Company Commander Liu.
She would have to find a way to thank him later.
The little girl, who had been sitting in the carrying basket, suddenly spoke.
“Mommy, are we going to live here from now on?”
“Mm-hmm.”
The little girl’s soft, sweet voice made Qin Yue’e’s heart ache with affection.
She reached out and gently rubbed her daughter’s head.
“We’ll live here for now. We’ll leave once your dad gives us enough money.”
The two children didn’t have names.
In the original novel, they weren’t given names until He Jiaojiao arrived at the unit to pay a visit and came up with names for them.
That alone showed just how little Huo Guangji cared about his own children.
But calling them “little girl” and “little boy” all the time clearly wasn’t going to work either.
Qin Yue’e simply picked up both children and smiled.
“How about Mommy gives you names today?”
“Names?”
The little girl looked at Qin Yue’e with her big eyes, completely confused.
“What are those?”
“It’s… a kind of blessing.”
Qin Yue’e’s eyes stung a little, but she forced a smile.
“Mommy hopes you’ll grow up quickly, so I’ll give you a special name.”
“I want a name!”
The little girl immediately smiled, her eyes narrowing happily as two tiny canine teeth peeked out from the corners of her mouth.
The boy saw his sister laughing and began giggling too.
Qin Yue’e thought for a moment.
Chasing the Moon with the Breeze.
It was a little poetic, perhaps even a bit cheesy, but she preferred it to the common names used at the time—flowers, grass, phoenixes, and so on.
Names like those always sounded delicate, as if the person carrying them were meant to be weak and easily bullied.
Her children would never be bullied, no matter where they went.
Qin Yue’e carefully asked,
“Guigui, how about you’re called Zhuyue, and your little brother is called Qingfeng? Qin Zhuyue and Qin Qingfeng. What do you think?”
The little girl clearly understood much better than her brother.
She immediately nodded.
“Mommy, from now on, I’m Qin Zhuyue!”
Then, like a little big sister, she patted her brother on the head.
“Qin Qingfeng, I’m Qin Zhuyue now, okay?”
“Ah-ba, ah-ba—”
The boy grinned happily.
Just as the three of them were chatting, the half-closed door was pushed open by two middle-aged women.
One of them entered with a smile.
“Are you Comrade Qin Yue’e? My husband, Old Liu, asked me to come over and see if there’s anything you need help with!”
Qin Yue’e looked up.
The woman was also wearing a military uniform. Judging by the insignia on her shoulder, her rank was certainly no lower than Company Commander Liu’s.
Qin Yue’e quickly put down the children and stood up.
“You are…?”
The other middle-aged woman who had followed her inside hurriedly introduced her with a smile.
“This is our Company Commander Liu’s wife, Section Chief Wei from the Propaganda Department!”
“So you’re Section Chief Wei! Please, have a seat!”
Qin Yue’e quickly pulled over a stool.
Wei Wenjie was clearly a cheerful and outgoing woman.
She immediately took Qin Yue’e by the arm, looking her over from head to toe. Then she turned to look at the two children, who were staring back at her with their huge eyes.
Her eyes immediately reddened.
“Goodness, how did things get this bad? I know the country isn’t wealthy right now, but this isn’t a famine year anymore. Sister, you’ve really suffered!”
When she first heard Liu Shutong tell her about the situation, Wei Wenjie could hardly believe her ears.
Little Huo simply wasn’t the kind of person who would do something like this.
But the facts were right in front of her, and there was no way she could deny them.
Wei Wenjie clenched her fists.
“Sister, don’t worry. Stay here as long as you need. If that Huo Guangji brat ever dares bully you, come straight to me. I’ll teach him a lesson myself!”
Qin Yue’e lowered her head, her expression darkening slightly.
After meeting everyone in the unit, she had to admit that they all seemed like genuinely good people.
But she couldn’t help wondering whether these people would still be on her side once He Jiaojiao arrived.
After all, she was the original wife who supposedly “couldn’t even read a single character.”
Maybe it really was better to leave as soon as possible.
She had absolutely no talent for fighting over a man.
Qin Yue’e kept those thoughts hidden and smiled politely.
“Section Chief Wei, I just arrived and don’t even have a cup of water to offer you. I’m sorry you had to come all this way.”
“What are you talking about? That’s nothing!”
Wei Wenjie grabbed Qin Yue’e’s hand.
“Our unit certainly won’t let the three of you go hungry! I’ve already asked them to prepare your daily necessities. They’ll all come from Little Huo’s allocation. I also had them prepare two sets of clothes each for you and the children. They’re being made right now! So don’t worry about using them. They’re all part of the family!”
Qin Yue’e finally relaxed a little.
After traveling through the mountains for so many days, the clothes on her body had become unbearably stale. Even she could barely stand the smell whenever she looked down.
The children were no better.
She was honestly impressed that Wei Wenjie could stand this close to her.
As they talked, Wei Wenjie’s attention shifted to the two children.
The children were blinking their big eyes at her.
The little girl was bolder, her eyes filled with curiosity, while the boy was much more timid.
Still, both children were quite handsome.
They had big eyes, thick eyebrows, and even at such a young age, their straight, prominent noses were already noticeable.
After their faces had been washed clean, their eyes looked especially lively.
When they looked around, there was actually quite a bit of Huo Guangji in their features.
“What are the children’s names?” Wei Wenjie asked affectionately.
“I’m Qin Zhuyue! And this is my little brother, Qin Qingfeng!”
Before Qin Yue’e could answer, Zhuyue proudly announced their names.
Wei Wenjie’s expression froze for a moment.
She looked slightly awkward.
“Qin… Qin?”
She had already heard from Old Liu that Qin Yue’e had demanded a divorce from Little Huo as soon as she arrived.
Now that she heard the children had taken their mother’s surname, her heart sank.
This girl must have already made up her mind.
Just then, a tall figure appeared at the doorway carrying a large bundle of things.
Huo Guangji walked inside.
His eyes swept over Qin Yue’e before landing on the children.
Then, unexpectedly, he said,
“Huo Zhuyue and Huo Qingfeng. Those are pretty good names.”