At noon, Li Wanqing didn’t go out to buy ingredients and cook again. Instead, she got some food from the hospital cafeteria.
Thanks to Nuo Nuo’s adorable performance that morning, the portions were noticeably more generous.
They had even specially prepared a non-spicy steamed meat patty for her, and the little girl happily dug in.
Cheng Baichuan was still eating the patient’s meal, which was bland and practically tasteless.
Li Wanqing and her daughter ate to their hearts’ content, but for some reason, they could sense a faint aura of resentment.
When Li Wanqing looked up…
All right. The wounded man did look rather pitiful.
“Once we move into the family housing compound, I’ll find a way to make some good food for you,” Li Wanqing said helplessly.
“Can I have spicy food then?” Cheng Baichuan asked eagerly.
Whether in Hunan or Sichuan, people loved strongly flavored, spicy dishes.
He had been lying in bed for so long that it had been almost two years since he’d tasted chili.
Li Wanqing put on a stern face and glared at him.
“No!”
What was he thinking?
During rehabilitation, he needed to pay attention to nutrition and avoid certain foods. Spicy food was absolutely out of the question.
Cheng Nuo hesitated for a moment before pushing her steamed meat patty toward Cheng Baichuan.
“Daddy~ Ah~”
Cheng Nuo gently patted his hand. Her daddy was so pitiful.
But what was so good about spicy food anyway?
Her meat patty was the best!
Cheng Baichuan’s eyes filled with tears of emotion.
His daughter was so thoughtful. She was much better than Old Liang’s daughter.
Cheng Baichuan pushed the meat patty back and gently stroked his daughter’s head.
“Daddy doesn’t want it. Nuo Nuo, you eat it.”
No matter what, he couldn’t compete with a child for food, right?
Cheng Nuo lowered her head slightly, looking a little disappointed.
She had finally wanted to share something with her daddy, but he had refused.
Li Wanqing glanced at her and deliberately put on a sad expression.
“Nuo Nuo only wants to give it to Daddy?”
Cheng Nuo immediately lifted her head with a “whoosh,” her eyes shining as she looked at her mother.
“Mommy~ Eat~”
Her tiny hands pushed the meat patty directly in front of Li Wanqing. She grinned brightly, her eyes full of anticipation.
Li Wanqing used her chopsticks to take a small piece and put it into her mouth. She immediately exclaimed,
“Wow! Nuo Nuo’s meat patty is so delicious!”
Hearing that, the little girl’s eyes narrowed happily.
Having Mommy around felt so good!
Watching the warm and intimate interaction between mother and daughter, Cheng Baichuan was incredibly envious.
If nothing had gone wrong, could he have had such a good relationship with his daughter too?
After comforting the little girl, Li Wanqing looked up and happened to see the loneliness on his face.
She couldn’t judge how Cheng Baichuan had treated the original owner.
But over the past two days, he had been quite good to Nuo Nuo. At least for now, it seemed that he genuinely wanted to be a good father.
“When a child willingly shares something she likes with someone, it means she really likes that person.”
Li Wanqing kindly reminded him. If possible, she still hoped her daughter could grow up in a happy environment.
And for that to happen, Cheng Baichuan’s role as her father should ideally not be missing.
Cheng Baichuan seemed to understand, but there was one thing he definitely understood.
That was…
His daughter liked him!
He hadn’t been there for his daughter’s birth or her childhood. It must have been because Li Wanqing had taught her so well that the little girl didn’t feel any sense of estrangement toward him.
Thinking of this, Cheng Baichuan was filled with gratitude and guilt toward Li Wanqing.
Li Wanqing: ……
Had this guy taken the wrong medicine?
Why was he suddenly feeling guilty?
If he knew that his daughter’s closeness to him came entirely from her previous life, would he feel even guiltier?
“Mommy~ Daddy~”
Nuo Nuo grabbed her mother with one hand and her father with the other. Her soft little voice instantly melted Li Wanqing’s resolve.
Fine, fine.
It was good that he felt guilty.
That way, he would treat the mother and daughter better in the future!
While the father and daughter were taking their afternoon nap, Li Wanqing wrote a letter to He Mei.
She briefly explained the situation here and reminded her to make sure she personally delivered the letter to Doctor Meng.
Besides that, there was one other thing she wanted He Mei to help investigate.
The post office wasn’t far from the hospital. Li Wanqing told Xiao Wu she was going out and then left.
Xuancheng was located on the border between Sichuan and Yunnan. She had visited the place while traveling in her previous life.
But compared with what it looked like now, the place had changed completely.
Its current appearance was more like the old district she had visited back then.
The state-run shops were full of the atmosphere of the era, and slogans could be seen everywhere on the walls, giving the whole place a strong sense of history.
The stamp and envelope cost twelve cents. Li Wanqing also bought some writing paper and envelopes and stocked up on some stamps.
In total, she spent one yuan and fifty cents.
She had originally wanted to call He Mei directly, but then she remembered that they hadn’t arranged a time. There was no point calling if she couldn’t find her.
However, she left a phone number in the letter. She had gotten it from Xiao Wu—the number for the military district service station.
When Li Wanqing returned to the ward, Cheng Baichuan and Nuo Nuo were both awake.
Xiao Wu was playing with Nuo Nuo nearby, while Cheng Baichuan was discussing something with several people.
Li Wanqing recognized two of them. One was Commander Yu, and the other was Political Commissar Feng.
She didn’t know the other two, so Yu Guohua introduced them.
Li Wanqing was slightly surprised when she learned that one of them was actually Cheng Chi, a senior commander of the Southwest Military Region.
Wasn’t Cheng Baichuan only a battalion commander?
Did he really have this kind of backing?
But his appearance…
Wasn’t he a little too similar to Cheng Baichuan?
Could she be imagining things?
Seeing her surprised expression, Yu Guohua laughed.
“Comrade Xiao Li must think this kid looks a bit like the commander too, right?”
Li Wanqing nodded.
So it wasn’t just her imagination.
“When this kid first joined the army, people even mistook him for the commander’s son. He ended up attracting quite a bit of unwanted attention.”
Yu Guohua laughed shamelessly.
“Later, everyone found out it was just a misunderstanding. Otherwise, he would’ve had plenty of trouble on his hands.”
Back then, Cheng Baichuan had been a rather clueless young man. He was also handsome, and with that misunderstanding going around, quite a few people had tried to get close to him.
The guy found it extremely annoying, so he deliberately kept a cold expression on his face.
Even after the misunderstanding was cleared up, there were still some people who refused to give up. As a result, that brat’s expression became even colder.
Having his embarrassing past exposed, Cheng Baichuan suddenly felt inexplicably guilty.
Why did the commander have to bring up whether he attracted people or not?
Couldn’t he see that his wife’s expression had already changed?
Cheng Chi smiled helplessly.
“What kind of commander sets traps for his own soldiers like this?”
As he spoke, Cheng Chi turned to Li Wanqing.
“Commander Yu has already told me about your situation. You’ve had a difficult time these past two years.”
“With a military wife like you, those of us serving in the army can charge into battle and defend our country without worrying about what’s happening behind us.”
Li Wanqing: ……
That was quite a lofty compliment. She felt a little guilty hearing it.
After all, the person who had actually suffered wasn’t her. She wasn’t nearly as noble as he made her sound.
Regardless, since the commander had spoken to her, all she could do was respond humbly.
Cheng Chi had come this time for two reasons.
First, he happened to be in the area for a meeting and had stopped by to take a look.
Second, he wanted to give Cheng Baichuan some encouragement—to rest properly, actively participate in rehabilitation, and strive to return to his unit as soon as possible.
Now that everything had been taken care of, it was naturally time for him to leave.
Before leaving, he even picked Nuo Nuo up and gave her a hug.
The little girl wasn’t shy at all. She boldly planted a kiss on the commander’s face.
The strange thing was, the commander wasn’t angry in the slightest.
He actually seemed to enjoy it.
After seeing everyone off, Li Wanqing turned to look at her daughter.
Was there really no hidden story here?
Uh…
The little girl was busy playing with a small cloth doll and didn’t spare her mother even a glance.