The Feeling of Suffocation
Jiang Ning woke up in the terrifying sensation of being strangled to death.
An iron-hard arm lay across her neck, as rigid as a steel bar, clamping down tightly on her windpipe. The air in her lungs was being squeezed out little by little, and black spots were already beginning to dance before her eyes.
There was no tender moment, no romantic intimacy.
When she opened her eyes, she found herself staring into a pair of bloodshot eyes blazing with murderous intent.
Gu Ci was awake.
It was a conditioned reflex. The instinct he had developed on the battlefield meant that when he suddenly found a living creature in his arms, his first reaction wasn’t to embrace it, but to strangle it.
“L-Let… go…”
Jiang Ning struggled to force two words out of her throat. Both hands clutched Gu Ci’s forearm desperately, her fingernails digging into his flesh.
Gu Ci’s pupils contracted violently.
His reason struggled against his murderous instincts.
Something about the sensation was wrong. It was too slender, too fragile, like a bundle of dry sticks that would snap with the slightest pressure.
It wasn’t an enemy.
That familiar, faintly medicinal, cool fragrance drifted into his nose, clearing his muddled mind for a brief moment.
It was that crazy woman.
Gu Ci abruptly released her, then immediately kicked her.
BANG!
Jiang Ning was sent flying off the bed like a discarded rag doll. Her back slammed heavily against the concrete floor with a dull thud.
“Cough, cough, cough…”
Jiang Ning curled up on the floor, clutching her neck as she coughed violently. Tears streamed from her eyes from the sheer physical distress.
That kick had been vicious. She felt as though her internal organs had been knocked out of place.
“Who told you that you could get into my bed?”
Gu Ci sat on the bed, his chest heaving. His expression was so sinister that he looked ready to devour someone alive. He stared at his own hands, seemingly regretting why he had let go of her just now—or perhaps furious with himself for lowering his guard the previous night.
Jiang Ning took a long while to recover. Only then did she slowly get to her feet, using the edge of the bed for support.
She didn’t cry or make a scene.
She simply looked coldly at Gu Ci and rubbed the bruised skin around her neck.
“Commander Gu, is your bed made of gold?”
Her voice was hoarse, carrying a trace of mockery.
“You were the one who carried me inside last night. What, now that it’s morning, you’re refusing to take responsibility? Is this how you soldiers behave?”
Gu Ci’s expression stiffened for a moment.
His memories returned.
Those icy hands, that shivering figure curled up inside a tattered coat… It was true. He had somehow lost his mind and brought her inside himself.
“That was to save the dog.”
Gu Ci spat out the excuse stiffly. He swung his legs off the bed, quickly fastened his uniform collar, and returned to his usual unapproachable demeanor.
“Black Panther needs peace and quiet. You were shivering like a sieve in the outer room. You were noisy.”
“Oh.”
Jiang Ning brushed the dust off her trousers.
“So I’m just a human hot-water bottle. In that case, my medical fees need to be doubled.”
“Get lost.”
Gu Ci grabbed his military belt and buckled it on, not sparing her a glance.
“If you dare climb into my bed again, I’ll break your legs.”
With that, he strode out and slammed the door behind him.
No matter how one looked at it, his retreating figure carried the awkward air of someone fleeing in defeat.
Silence settled over the room once more.
Jiang Ning touched her still-aching throat, her expression dark and unreadable.
That man was seriously ill.
For a split second just now, he had genuinely wanted to kill her. That pure, emotionless murderous intent hadn’t been something he could fake.
If she wanted to survive beside this lunatic, the little tricks she had used last night, such as massaging him, wouldn’t be enough. She needed to gain control over the actual medication as soon as possible—or make him completely unable to live without her.
“Whimper…”
A faint whine came from the outer room.
Jiang Ning pushed her thoughts aside and walked out.
Black Panther was lying on the military quilt. When it saw her, it struggled to wag its tail. Its condition was much better than yesterday. Although it still couldn’t stand, its eyes had regained their focus.
“You’re lucky to be alive.”
Jiang Ning crouched down and examined Black Panther’s eyelids and mouth. Most of the toxins had been metabolized. Now, all that remained was recovery.
BANG! BANG! BANG!
Someone pounded on the door.
“Sister-in-law! Sister-in-law, are you there?”
It was Wang Dayong.
Jiang Ning walked over and opened the door.
Wang Dayong was holding a mesh bag containing two aluminum lunchboxes and a package wrapped in oil paper.
“Good morning, Sister-in-law!”
He beamed at her, then peeked into the room.
“Has the commander gone out for morning drills? His face was as black as the bottom of a cooking pot, so I didn’t dare greet him. I brought you breakfast from the mess hall.”
He handed Jiang Ning the bag, then pointed at the oil-paper package.
“This is rice broth for Black Panther. I made sure they didn’t add any oil or salt.”
Jiang Ning accepted everything. “Thanks.”
“Aw, don’t mention it.” Wang Dayong scratched his head, looking as though he wanted to say something but didn’t know how to begin.
“Um… Sister-in-law, if you don’t have anything important to do today, you’d better stay inside.”
“Why?”
“People outside… aren’t saying very nice things.”
Wang Dayong glanced at the shirt Jiang Ning was still wearing. It was stained with dog blood and grime, and she hadn’t had a chance to change it yet.
“After what happened in the mess hall yesterday, and with you dressed like this… those women in the compound love to gossip. They’re saying all sorts of things. Some are even saying…”
“Saying what?”
“They say you know black magic, that you’re… you’re…”
Wang Dayong’s face flushed red.
“A fox spirit in human form! They say you specialize in sucking the life force out of people, and that you used some kind of spell to make Black Panther sick.”
Jiang Ning raised an eyebrow.
Black magic? A fox spirit?
Those people certainly had vivid imaginations.
“Got it.”
Jiang Ning turned around and was about to close the door.
“Wait!” Wang Dayong hurriedly blocked it with his hand. “Sister-in-law, the commander also told me to pass on a message.”
“Go ahead.”
“The commander said… he said…”
Wang Dayong hesitated, struggling to repeat the words.
“He said that if you dare embarrass him in front of those gossiping women, he’ll send you straight back to your hometown.”
Jiang Ning let out a mocking laugh.
“Tell him that a person’s dignity is earned, not handed out by someone else. If Commander Gu has to rely on me to protect his reputation, then he might as well resign as commander.”
SLAM!
The door shut.
Wang Dayong rubbed his nose, which had nearly been caught in the door, and smiled bitterly.
Those two really were something. Every word that came out of their mouths was sharper than the last.
Inside, Jiang Ning poured the rice broth for Black Panther into a chipped bowl and pushed it toward the dog’s mouth. Starving, Black Panther eagerly extended its tongue and lapped up the broth.
Jiang Ning opened her own lunchbox.
Rice porridge, pickled vegetables, and two steamed buns.
It was nowhere near as good as last night’s braised pork, but at least it would fill her stomach.
As she ate, she began making plans.
Her clothes were filthy beyond saving, and this was the only set of lightweight clothing she owned. Winter in the Northwest was approaching fast. If she didn’t get some proper clothes soon, she would freeze to death even without Gu Ci lifting a finger.
She had two hundred yuan in her pocket, taken from Li Cuihua.
In the 1970s, that was an enormous sum of money.
But in this military compound, money alone wasn’t enough. She needed ration coupons—fabric coupons, cotton coupons, and industrial product coupons.
Gu Ci undoubtedly had some, but he wouldn’t give them to her.
“I need to figure something out.”
Jiang Ning chewed on a steamed bun, her gaze settling on the radio Gu Ci had smashed.
He had thrown it to the ground during one of his fits of rage yesterday. Its casing was cracked, and the components inside were exposed.
She walked over and picked it up for a closer look.
Fortunately, the core components were intact. A wire had come loose, and the speaker’s soldering had broken.
In her previous life, she had been a surgeon. Repairing delicate equipment like this was basic work. Her hands might not have much strength, but they were steady.
Jiang Ning searched around the room and found a rusty screwdriver among the pile of junk, along with half a roll of black electrical tape.
Half an hour later, a crackling electrical sound filled the room. Then, from the radio that had supposedly been beyond repair, a clear, authoritative news broadcast rang out.
“Fixed.”
Jiang Ning dusted off her hands.
Radios were highly sought-after goods in this era. A new one could cost more than a hundred yuan, and buying one also required industrial coupons.
She held the radio in her arms and glanced at Black Panther, which was still licking its bowl clean.
“Guard the house.”
Jiang Ning threw on the military overcoat, tucked the radio into her arms, and pushed open the door.
Since people were calling her a fox spirit, she might as well go and meet these women herself.
And while she was at it, she would make a deal.