Chapter 46
Xu Wen was silent, not knowing what to say for a while
Her sister-in-law thought Xu Man was too embarrassed to speak, and encouraged her: “What’s there to be embarrassed about? I’m not bragging, there’s no one I don’t know in this compound Let’s see who’s so lucky to be married to a fairy-like girl”
Seeing that she couldn’t hide anymore, Xu Man could only answer, “His name is Lu Yuanzheng”
Xu Man’s sister-in-law, who had been chatting with her, dropped her dumpling skins on the panel with a loud ah
Her voice was so loud that it drew the attention of everyone who had been chatting
Xu Man lowered his head uncomfortably
“Lu Yuanzheng? Lu Lian? You’re Lu Lian’s wife? That’s not right! He was still single the last time I saw him! When did you guys get married?”
“Just the summer when he went back on vacation”
“Aigoo!” The sister-in-law looked up and pointed across the street at the equally surprised brothers-in-law, “You guys do a really good job of keeping secrets in this road company! No wonder he refused to marry me last year It turns out that there is such a beautiful fiancée at home! Lu Lian was not kind enough to quietly get married without giving us a piece of candy”
Xu Wen wanted to say that they just met this year and got married, but felt that to say this sister-in-law will be embarrassed, and swallowed the words back, only said: “Just married he was recalled, should not have time to say it?”
Everyone seemed to be very interested in Lu Yuanzheng’s personal affairs, and threw one question after another at Xu Qi
“Sister-in-law, how did you and Lu Lian meet?”
“Sister-in-law, weren’t you scared to tears the first time you met Lu Lian?”
“Sister-in-law, is Lu Lian awake now?”
Xu Wen simply couldn’t interject an empty reply
“Xu Man”
Xu Man turned around, Lu Yuanzheng was sitting in a wheelchair being pushed by his communication soldier, and a thin bamboo pole was tied to the armrest of the wheelchair to hang an infusion bottle
Xu Man: “”
You still insist on coming out in this shape, what is the point?
After all, he still put down the rolling pin, patted the flour on his hands, and walked towards Lu Yuanzheng
When he got to the front, Lu Yuanzheng asked Xu Man in a low voice: “They didn’t give you a hard time, did they?”
“Are you usually not well liked?”
Lu Yuanzheng raised his eyebrows, “Huh?”
“Then what are you afraid of?”
Lu Yuanzheng gave a heave, “I’m afraid that if you don’t feel comfortable and try to help you out, you’ll criticize me”
“Okay! Thank you”
“I see you’re adapting well Then you play with them for a while, I’m going to have a meeting”
“Why do you still have a meeting after all this?”
Lu Yuanzheng smiled, “Well, there’s something”
His smile was faint
Xu Wen guessed that it had something to do with the fallen soldiers, so she didn’t say anything more, only telling Lu Yuanzheng to be careful with his wounds and to take time off to come back if he felt uncomfortable
With the power of many, the dumplings were quickly wrapped
The rest of the noodles were made into hand-rolled noodles by a sister-in-law who also came from the north
By the time they finished their work, the cooking class was almost ready for the New Year’s Eve dinner
The soldiers moved some tables and chairs and set them up on the roadside square
Every six wooden square tables were put together with newspaper laid on top to become one big long table
One company had a group of tables, and all but those who needed to stand guard sat around the table
Xu Wen sat next to Lu Yuanzheng’s wheelchair, and she noticed that although there was food and wine on one of the tables, there was no one there
Xu Wen asked Lu Yuanzheng in a low voice, “Which company is this that hasn’t come yet?”
Lu Yuanzheng followed her line of sight and lowered his eyes, “It’s those brothers who couldn’t come this year”
Xu Wen just counted the seventeen pairs of dishes on that table, and immediately reacted to the fact that he was talking about the soldiers who sacrificed their lives this time, and busily apologized, “I’m sorry!”
Lu Yuanzheng shook his head, “What’s there to be sorry for? Sorry is inevitable, but their deaths are pride in themselves!”
Xu Man nodded and didn’t say anything else
The atmosphere at the dinner table was good, and Xu Man’s first time attending this kind of group New Year’s Eve dinner felt quite fresh
After a while, Song Xueqin arrived
The company men were busy getting up to offer him a seat
Song Xueqin waved his hand and only took the wine that was handed to him, “Good New Year everyone!”
“Good New Year to the battalion commander!”
“I’ve come today to make two announcements Because it will also involve the families that’s why I’m taking this occasion to announce it But before announcing the main event, let’s first toast our fallen comrades”
All the warriors all stood up
Many family members followed suit and stood up
“Help me down” Lu Yuanzheng spoke in a small voice
Xu Wen and another warrior set Lu Yuanzheng up
One of Lu Yuanzheng’s legs had a plaster cast on it, and the other leg had just had its wires removed, so this stand alone made him straighten his body and suck in a breath
Xu Man heard him grunt, swayed twice, stood still, let go of Xu Man’s hand, and straightened his back
Song Xueqin waited for Lu Yuanzheng to stand before ordering, “Salute!”
The hundred or so soldiers, in unison, saluted towards the empty table
“Toast!”
Song Xueqin took the lead and poured the wine on the ground
The others did the same
Seeing that Lu Yuanzheng’s hands were starting to shake, Xu Wen helped him sit down
“Although it was our warriors who took their lives in exchange for the total victory of the archipelago But I’m not here today to discuss merits and rewards, I mainly want to inform you of two things
The first thing is that Comrade Lu Yuanzheng has repeatedly made meritorious achievements since he joined the army During his tenure, he was also highly decorated and performed very well This time in the Archipelago War, Comrade Lu Yuanzheng has made even more achievements So the organization announced the promotion of Comrade Lu Yuanzheng to Commander of our 1st Battalion The notice of appointment will be issued after New Year’s Eve, and the entire army will be notified at that time”
Loud applause rang out from the scene
Xu Wen looked sideways at Lu Yuanzheng
There was no semblance of joy in his brows
“The second thing has something to do with everyone present, including the sisters-in-law and children accompanying the army After the New Year our battalion will be responsible for taking over one of the islands Not only is it a deserted island, it’s not easy to get in and out of, and supplies are in short supply The only thing we can guarantee is that there won’t be another war for some time to come
Although the conditions here are not good, at least we have a few houses that can protect us from the wind and rain, and it’s close to the village, so it’s only half an hour to get to the city if something happens But on the island there are no such conditions at all, everything starts from scratch
So whether you want to continue with the army, whether it is a soldier cadres or family members with the army, you all go back to discuss it
Okay, that’s all I have to say You guys eat and drink first! I still have to go around to the other battalions”
After Song Xueqin left, the people on the several long tables were unusually silent
Next to Xu Man sat the sister-in-law who had chatted with Xu Man in the afternoon, only to hear her let out a long sigh, “Old Lu has left, and I should leave as well I just didn’t expect that once he left, this place we lived together didn’t even leave a thought behind Alas!”
Xu Wen abruptly turned his head to look at her
Only then did he realize that his sister-in-law was sitting next to her with her child in her arms, and then next to her was another sister-in-law, who was sitting next to a warrior, presumably that sister-in-law’s husband
In other words, everyone was sitting together as a family, and this sister-in-law had no one with her
Generally speaking, if family members are present, comrades with family members will not be assigned to stand guard at times like this
So, this sister-in-law’s husband, the Old Lu she spoke of, was also at that empty table?
Xu Man didn’t know what to say, and only called out to her, “Sister-in-law ”
Sister-in-law looked at Xu Man, wiped her eyes, and smiled, “I’m fine You’ve just gotten married and have not been a military wife for long, so you shouldn’t be used to this kind of occasion yet I’ve gotten used to it long ago, and there’s such an empty table every year I’m always prepared every time Lao Lu goes out He came back I was like picking up money, no, than picking up money is several times more happy If he can t come back ”
Sister-in-law choked a little, pursed her lips, smiled bitterly: “This time is not not back! The knife that has been hanging in my heart for several years has finally fallen Instead, I’m down to earth”
Her words were so, but her expression was obviously not so, the tears on her face were like broken beads
Xu Man took out a handkerchief from his pocket and handed it to his sister-in-law, but didn’t know how to persuade her
The sister-in-law waved her hand and wiped her face with the back of her hand, ”Why do you think Old Lu couldn’t hold out one more time? Just one more time and he’ll be able to go to the island! There will be no need to fight in the future! Why won’t he come back!”
Xu Man wiped his sister-in-law’s tears with a handkerchief and patted her on the back
Xu Man hadn’t experienced this kind of thing and didn’t know what to say, but he could appreciate this sister-in-law’s feelings
The knot in Lu Yuanzheng’s throat rolled & rolled, bending down and bowing towards his sister-in-law, “I’m sorry, it’s my incompetence, I wasn’t able to bring the group back safely”
“Lu Lian, aren’t you slapping me in the face for saying that?” Sister-in-law shook her head, “You almost couldn’t come back yourself! Alas! I’m not blaming you or Old Lu He was a soldier when I married him, and I had to prepare my heart for this day when I followed him I’m just just a little hard”
It’s hard for anyone!
Even if it is the first time to come to the compound, the first time to spend the New Year like this, Xu Wen, her heart is blocked and her throat is stuffed
She was just a freshly initiated military wife, yet she had briefly felt what it was like to be a widow because of Lu Yuanzheng
She and Lu Yuanzheng’s feelings were so shallow that she would be very sad, not to mention that this Lu family’s sister-in-law had a good relationship with her husband and wife at first glance
After a while, her sister-in-law calmed down her emotions and waved her hand, “Let’s not talk about this in the New Year! Come on, let’s eat and drink”
Still no one moved their chopsticks
“Rely on me!” Sister-in-law smiled to herself, “I couldn’t control myself for a while Don’t be like me! If they were alive, they wouldn’t want us to be in such a sorry state on New Year’s Eve, right? Besides, this is the last New Year that our group will spend together After New Year’s, I’ll take Old Lu back to my hometown I’m afraid I won’t see you again Many of you will change jobs and may not see each other again So let’s not cry, let’s just have a happy New Year! Come on, I’ll take the lead and toast everyone first”
My sister-in-law finished her toast
The others raised their glasses one after another
These others included Lu Yuanzheng
Xu Wen put his hand on the back of Lu Yuanzheng’s hand, a gesture of disapproval
Li Daoming said that Lu Yuanzheng couldn’t drink right now
Lu Yuanzheng didn’t say anything or resist, just looked at Xu Man with a pleading look
Xu Wen bit his lip and let go of his hand
There are times when people know they shouldn’t do something, but they still can’t help but do it
It has nothing to do with right or wrong, it’s just that the emotions are there
While Xu Man was still immersed in his sadness, the others quickly adjusted their emotions and began to eat and drink and chat
If it wasn’t for the fact that the empty table was still there, Xu Wen would even have had the illusion that she had just been dreaming for a few moments
She looked over her shoulder at the Lu family’s sister-in-law
Her eyes were still a little red, but she had already begun to smile and popularize her parenting experience to her sister-in-law, who had only just become a mother next to her
Xu Wen looked on, somewhat enlightened
It wasn’t that they weren’t sad, but they were just able to quickly gather their sorrows and cherish the moment
After all, every time together could turn out to be the last, and no one wanted to think of this day with nothing but tears
That’s why everyone desperately tries to bury their sadness into their hearts and pass on their happiness to the others
Lu Yuanzheng had not yet recovered from his serious injuries, and after tossing and turning for half a day, and standing and drinking a glass of wine, it was obvious that both his spirit and body were about to be unable to support him
Xu Wen didn’t disturb the people who were singing and drinking and chatting, and pushed Lu Yuanzheng back
They were the only two people there, and they didn’t call Dongsheng
When Lu Yuanzheng said that Dongsheng would sleep with the company’s men at night, Xu asked and did not object
The family building is a one meter and a half double bed, if Dongsheng also come back three people will be very crowded
Normally, it’s just a matter of time, but Lu Yuanzheng is still a seriously injured person
Dongsheng is a restless sleeper, and it would be bad if he touched Lu Yuanzheng
Back in the room, Xu Wen helped Lu Yuanzheng move from the wheelchair to the bed, and both of them were covered in sweat
Xu Man made a basin of clean water, brought over the medicines that needed to be changed, and carefully read the instructions Li Daoming had written to her
Before Li Daoming left, he pulled Xu Man and instructed her a few more times
He said that Lu Yuanzheng would not follow the doctor’s advice, and would definitely get out of bed, would definitely get up, and would definitely drink, so in case the wound opened up again, Xu Man would still have to help deal with it
If Xu Man can’t handle it, he’ll have to find a medic in the infirmary
Xu Man thought to herself, “Don’t bother others if you can’t” She carefully read the instructions and felt that she could not help herself
She carefully read the instructions and felt that she should be fine
Technically speaking, she had no problem, but psychologically, she still had some
Especially since some of Lu Yuanzheng’s wounds were more hidden, the kind that involved the male and female genders
Xu Wen’s face was red, staring at the gauze on the edge of Lu Yuanzheng’s thighs, hesitant and embarrassed to make a move
Lu Yuanzheng wasn’t much better
It was already embarrassing enough for him to be lying in bed unable to take care of himself, and although Xu Wen was his wife, she was actually no more familiar with him than the neighbor girl
A flash of red appeared on his face, which was so white from pain, and he discussed with Xu Man, “Why don’t you help me go to the infirmary and call someone?”
“Why don’t you let people rest on New Year’s Day? Besides, this doesn’t involve professional medical knowledge, anyone can do it to change a medicine and wipe your body If I call someone, will they laugh at you or me?”
Lu Yuanzheng stopped talking
He thought to himself that being laughed at is better than being lynched by your gaze
“That sister-in-law just now is surnamed Li, her husband’s name is Lu Weipeng” Lu Yuanzheng suddenly opened his mouth, he just wanted to change the topic to get Xu Man’s attention away from his thighs
Sure enough, Xu Wen twisted her head to look at him with a serious listening expression
“Guess how they met?”
Xu Man shook his head
“One time we went to the North Sea when we needed to maneuver with a sister unit Took advantage of the break for everyone to wander ashore We happened to rescue Sister Li, who had been trafficked to the northeast Sister-in-law Li is a southerner, and illiterate at that time the whole human traffickers tortured a bit bewildered, scared and afraid of words do not understand, her home address we can not ask out
But we can’t just throw people out on the street after we’ve saved them We said we were resting at the time, but in fact, we also had a mission, it is not convenient to disclose our identity to the local police station, so we had to take Mrs Li back first”
With this distraction, Xu Wen really forgot about the embarrassment and naturally sat down on the edge of the bed and began to undo the bandage on Lu Yuanzheng’s leg
“Our unit is special, there are especially few female soldiers, and even the sanitation company has more male soldiers So you can think about bringing a woman back, the family is dumbfounded and doesn’t know how to settle down Old Song, it was Song Xueqin who said that whoever saves people is responsible
At that time I was not yet twenty years old, everyone else was about the same, only Lao Lu is Lu Weipeng slightly older, we voted to take care of sister-in-law Li
They were of similar age, and they fell in love with each other over time”
Xu Wen wrung out the towel and wiped it clean along the vicinity of the wound, fanning his hand to try and get the remaining droplets of water to dry quickly, and also lowered his head to gently blow on it a few times
This was actually a relatively normal action
But the position was wrong
From this angle, what Lu Yuanzheng saw was Xu Man with her head lowered, her long eyelashes half-lowered, and her lips pouting as she whistled softly at his thigh
He was a man of blood and vigor, even if he was seriously injured, it wasn’t as if his physiology had no reaction, a thin layer of red quickly spread along the tip of Lu Yuanzheng’s ear to his neck
Seeing Xu Man focusing on being busy, Lu Yuanzheng quietly pulled the thin blanket around him to cover his waist and abdomen to hide his embarrassment
Xu Man suddenly looked up
Lu Yuanzheng instantly tensed up, forgetting to even breathe for a moment
It was three times more tense than being held by an enemy with a gun to his head
Xu Man blinked and asked in confusion, “What happened afterward?”
Why did this person stop talking in the middle of his sentence?
Lu Yuanzheng: “”
He took a deep breath and exhaled slowly, then continued, “Later on, of course, we stopped by to send Sister Li home when we went south”
“Then how did they become husband and wife?”
“There was a situation when sending someone home Don’t look at Sister Li as she is now, her family is actually very well off The fiancé’s family is a respected local family But the more this happens, the more troublesome it is As soon as the fiancé heard that Mrs Li had been abducted by human traffickers, he came to the door to withdraw from the marriage on the grounds that Mrs Li’s wife would be the first to be gossiped about if he married her The mother’s family was also reluctant, thinking that if the story of Mrs Li’s abduction by traffickers got out, her reputation would be tarnished It would also involve the family’s unmarried siblings ”
“It’s not sister-in-law Li’s fault!” Xu Man was indignant, “Why is her family like this?”
Lu Yuanzheng’s face turned white, and after enduring and enduring, he still couldn’t help but speak, “Ask, I’m not a human trafficker, so lighten up”
Xu Wen realized that she was so excited that the cotton swab poked Lu Yuanzheng’s wound, and apologized, “I’m sorry! It hurts, doesn’t it? I’ll blow on it for you”
Lu Yuanzheng’s heart became even more bitter, busy stopping her, “Don’t, don’t, don’t need to blow on it I’m not Dongsheng, I’m not afraid of pain”
Afraid that Xu Man would say something else, he continued, “Sister Li is also a very angry person, so she unbuckled her pants on the spot and wanted to hang herself! My brother Lu saved her again and told the Li family, ‘You all dislike her, but I treat her like a treasure!
At that time, we were all confused, not to mention the Li family
After some communication, the Li family agreed to marry Mrs Li to Brother Lu
The Li family didn’t even ask for a bride price, nor did they choose an auspicious date, and hastily arranged for the two of them to marry
Later on, Sister Li followed to accompany the army, and didn’t return home even once for so many years, about to have her heart broken”
“Ah! No wonder she was so sad just now and couldn’t let go of this place”
“Well, this place is her home to her, and it’s also the place where she and Old Lu lived together So if she really has to move out, her sadness won’t be any less than ours”
“Military wives are really great!” Xu Wen sighed
Lu Yuanzheng reminded her, “You’re also a military wife now”
Xu Man didn’t say anything
Lu Yuanzheng thought for a moment, “But you still have a chance to regret it”