After all, Liang Feng was an extremely selfish and arrogant man.
He certainly wouldn’t want Zhong Yi to live a better life without him.
Of course, Zhong Yi had no idea Liang Feng could harbor such a shameless thought. If she had known, she would have spat right in his face.
What a despicable little man.
With Meng Lina returning the remaining one thousand yuan, Zhong Yi’s savings now amounted to 1,500 yuan. Apart from that sum, she also had a few dozen yuan in loose change that the original owner had saved up.
She had originally intended to return this money to Zhong Huilan as well, but Zhong Huilan felt that her daughter had suffered too many grievances over the years and insisted that she keep it.
Although Zhong Yi accepted the money, she knew she couldn’t feel entirely comfortable keeping it.
There were four children in the family. Apart from Zhong Qiang, that heartless fellow who had left with Ji Mingxuan, there were Zhong Shu, herself, and Zhong Wan.
Zhong Huilan usually covered the household expenses and also gave each of her three children five yuan every month. Since Zhong Wan was still in school and ate fewer meals at home, Zhong Huilan gave her a little extra so she could eat more nutritious food and stay healthy.
When Zhong Yi was still in school, she had received the same treatment.
The money from the Liang family was different. It had been given as additional compensation out of gratitude for Liang Feng saving Zhong Yi’s life.
Strictly speaking, now that the money had been returned, she should have given it back to Zhong Huilan to keep.
Even if it was meant to be her dowry, the same principle applied to the others. When Zhong Shu got married, the expenses would be even greater, while Zhong Wan should also receive a dowry of equivalent value when her time came.
It wasn’t that Zhong Yi wanted to calculate every little thing so precisely. But even within a family, obvious favoritism when it came to money could drive siblings apart.
It would be better to use the 1,500 yuan as startup capital and make some money first. That way, whether she eventually returned the money to Zhong Huilan or not, the financial impact on her would be much smaller.
That was the plan, anyway.
But how exactly was she supposed to make money?
Zhong Yi couldn’t help biting the end of her pen.
Finding a job wouldn’t be particularly difficult for her at the moment. She had a high school diploma and could probably pass a recruitment examination. If all else failed, she could even pay to secure a job.
However, she probably wouldn’t be living here permanently in the future. Besides, she needed to devote more of her time and energy to studying for her upcoming exams.
On top of that, she was pregnant. As the months passed, her belly would grow bigger and bigger. After all, she was carrying twins, so the pregnancy would certainly be more difficult.
According to the original novel’s plot, the original owner had suffered a difficult labor while delivering the twins. She had endured an entire day and night of agony before finally giving birth to a boy and a girl.
She needed to keep a close eye on her health. The last thing she wanted was to suffer complications during childbirth and die. That would truly be a tragedy.
Just as she was thinking through her options, she heard Zhou Yue calling from outside.
“Zhong Yi! Zhong Yi! Are you home? My dad asked me to tell you to go to the brigade office. He said there’s a phone call for you!”
Zhong Yi excitedly put down her pen.
Could it be Zhou Xu?
Counting the days, he had been back at his military unit for nearly twenty days. Perhaps his mission had ended, and after returning to the unit and seeing the message she had left for him, he had called her.
“Did Uncle Zhou say who the call was from?” she asked as she opened the door and stepped outside.
Zhou Yue replied, “I don’t know. My dad didn’t say. He was in a hurry to go to the county town to pick up fertilizer with the tractor, so he only told me that much and asked me to inform you. He didn’t mention anything else.”
As she spoke, Zhong Yi opened the door wider and invited Zhou Yue inside.
Zhou Yue waved her hand. “No, thanks. I’ve already arranged with my mother to help with the farm work.”
As she spoke, she glanced quickly at Zhong Yi. It was obvious that she wanted to say something but was hesitating.
Zhong Yi saw through her immediately.
“Is there something you want to tell me?”
Zhou Yue wasn’t the type to beat around the bush. Besides, there was no real need to hide her little secret. Most of the villagers already knew about it.
“I just wanted to ask… If you’re going to join Zhou Xu at his military unit or go looking for him, could you take me with you? I won’t disturb the two of you. I just want to find the person who saved my life.”
Zhong Yi actually knew a little about this matter.
In fact, Zhou Yue was a year older than her. Zhong Yi was already engaged, but Zhou Yue still wasn’t.
It wasn’t because Zhou Yue was unattractive. Quite the opposite, actually. She had a pleasant, appealing appearance. Her father was also the village chief, and she had three older brothers who doted on her.
With family circumstances like hers, it wouldn’t be an exaggeration to say that there would be a long line of men at the Zhou family’s door hoping to marry her.
Over the years, plenty of people had tried to introduce potential partners to Zhou Yue, but she hadn’t taken a liking to a single one.
Ultimately, it was because she had never stopped thinking about the military man surnamed Lu who had once saved her life.
Perhaps it was just like that saying:
You should never meet someone too extraordinary when you’re young…
That was exactly the situation Zhou Yue found herself in now.
Seeing that Zhong Yi was staring at her without saying anything, Zhou Yue’s eyes reddened slightly. She turned her face away.
“I know none of you understand me. Sometimes, I don’t even understand myself. But I just can’t get the image of him out of my mind. My mother says I was too young back then to understand love and that I should let it go. But I just can’t.”
Zhong Yi patted her shoulder.
“You’ve been asking Zhou Xu to help you look for that soldier surnamed Lu all these years. Have you heard anything?”
Feeling terribly wronged, Zhou Yue bit her lip and shook her head.
Zhong Yi sighed sympathetically.
“I know that no matter what I say to persuade you, you might not listen. But I’ll keep this in mind and help you look for him.”
Zhou Yue asked again, “I’ve heard my dad say that Zhou Xu’s rank allows him to have his family live with him in the military residential compound. If you go to join him there, couldn’t you take me along? I won’t freeload or expect you to support me. I can earn money, and I can help with the housework, too.”
By the end, her voice had grown increasingly anxious. She genuinely wanted to go to the military unit herself and search for the man.
Zhou Xu was the only connection she had within the military. Now, Zhong Yi might have become another one.
Zhong Yi couldn’t bear to see the young woman’s eyes turning red. Her heart ached just looking at her.
“That’s not it. Don’t misunderstand me. I don’t have anything against you. I just mean that I won’t be joining him at the military unit anytime soon.”
She still had some family matters to settle here. Even if she decided to join the military, it wouldn’t happen so quickly.
Besides, she still didn’t know what Zhou Xu thought about the matter!
Zhou Yue immediately stopped crying and broke into a smile.
“That’s fine! I’m not in a hurry. I’ve already waited so many years. Once you’ve decided to join him and everything has been arranged, I can go with you then.”
A moment ago, she had been full of worry, but now she had cheered up again.
Knowing that Zhong Yi needed to go to the brigade office, and that the Zhong family’s bicycle wasn’t at home, Zhou Yue even offered to lend her own bicycle.
She said it was too hot outside and that riding a bicycle would be much faster.
Zhong Yi didn’t refuse.
After all, in those days, communication basically meant shouting across distances, while traveling usually meant walking. It was genuinely exhausting.
When Zhong Yi arrived at the brigade office and explained why she was there, someone led her to the telephone.
“The number is written here. You can call it yourself.”
Zhong Yi glanced at the number and immediately suspected that the call hadn’t come from Zhou Xu. The number simply didn’t match what she expected.
Sure enough, when she dialed it, the person who answered was Guan Shujun.
Guan Shujun had left the school’s telephone number. She was currently in her office.
“The enrollment materials for the night college that I asked a friend to send you have arrived. I originally wanted to deliver them to you personally, but the school has arranged for me to attend a training program in another city, and I’m leaving soon. As it happens, Zhou Yue’s father is going to the county town to pick up fertilizer, so I’ve asked him to bring the materials back to you.”
“I’ve also consulted my friend about your situation. Since you’re a military dependent, you’ll receive certain preferential treatment and policy support. Of course, the final admission result will still depend on your actual exam scores.”
“As for registration, as long as you prepare all the required supporting documents, there’s a good chance you’ll pass the application review. However, it’s best to handle these procedures in person. When would you be available to go over there? I’ll ask Zhou Xu’s father to help you buy a ticket.”
Guan Shujun was clearly pressed for time. She spoke quickly and explained everything in one breath.
Zhong Yi understood what she meant. Her fingers tightened unconsciously around the telephone receiver.
Was she being asked to go to the military unit to find Zhou Xu?