Chapter 141

Chapter 141

This matter was indeed brought up by Xu Yuqing. Xie Junli had lived in the Military District for so many years and stayed in the barracks, never thinking about putting up couplets.

However, this reminder came to Xu Yuqing during her chats with the military wives.

Xie Junli and He Xiang quickly put up the couplets. He Xiang, who was only a little over five feet six inches tall, was a head shorter than Xie Junli. He held the bottom as he watched Xie Junli easily reach up on his tiptoes to stick the couplets in place.

The old, peeling wall was now covered by red paper. Looking at the red paper, He Xiang felt a sudden sting in his eyes.

This was the family area; once he left, this place would eventually be reassigned.

But he hoped it would happen later rather than sooner.

The lines drawn with pebbles along the wall, the dried mountain grapes in the corner, the small stool—these were all his memories. "When I leave, if this place gets reassigned, remember to help me clean up."

"I'll give you the key later."

He said solemnly.

Xie Junli was taken aback, looking at He Xiang, silently sighing in his heart. "Don't worry, this place won't be reassigned. There's a new family compound being built, but whether it will be demolished is uncertain."

But it definitely wouldn’t be demolished anytime soon. The Military District was vast and didn’t have the resources for such tasks right now.

With a calm voice, He Xiang unconsciously let out a breath of relief, becoming more enthusiastic about helping with the cleanup.

It was better to be demolished than to be occupied by someone else.

"Alright, let’s go eat."

"Okay."

The lunch was simple: Xu Yuqing stir-fried some noodles and made a soup. The main event was tomorrow night's New Year's Eve dinner. If not for Yan Lan returning to her parents' house, Xu Yuqing would have invited her to join them.

More people meant more energy. For three people, they could only prepare fewer dishes.

"I'm full. I’m going to rest."

As Xu Yuqing put down her chopsticks, she couldn’t help yawning. She could barely stay awake and walked back, feeling sleepy. Xie Junli followed her, cleaned her bowl and chopsticks, poured her a cup of water, placed it beside the bed, and then returned to continue eating.

He Xiang watched in surprise, wanting to say something but not knowing what. He silently thought to himself, is getting married this tiring? Following your wife around like a puppy dog.

Disgusted, he turned away, washed the bowls and chopsticks himself, and on his way back, it started snowing. White flakes fell from the sky. For the first time in years, He Xiang reached out to catch the snow, clenching it tightly, watching as the snow melted into water.

Back in the old house, lying on the old bed, there was an inverted "Fu" character on the door, written by him.

Crooked and uneven, He Xiang smiled, burying his face in his arm before falling asleep.

The next day, New Year's Eve, the atmosphere in the family compound seemed different. Those who hadn’t gone home were bustling about cooking meals. No matter how frugal they usually were, they would always find a new outfit for their children.

Even Xu Yuqing and Xie Junli had changed into new clothes.

In a pink cotton jacket, she twirled around in front of Xie Junli. "How do I look? Nice?"

"Very nice." Xie Junli’s face softened, his gaze fixed on her.

Xu Yuqing happily pulled out something from her chest, red in color. It was something she secretly prepared when Xie Junli went to wash up last night. "Here, for you, Commander Xie. Work hard in the new year to support me."

After saying that, she stuffed it into his hands and suddenly felt a bit awkward, walking out quickly.

Xie Junli stood there, bewildered, carefully picking it up. The red envelope was glued together, and he could still see grains of rice at the edges. For some reason, his eyes welled up, his knuckles turning white as he gently opened the envelope.

Inside were five large denomination notes and two one-yuan notes.

Fifty-two? Completely baffled by the significance of this number, Xie Junli was shocked by how much Xu Yuqing had given him. At the same time, warmth surged within him like boiling water, his lips tightly pressed together, unsure how to express his emotions.

After a while, he finally moved, his heart pounding like a drum. He rushed to the kitchen where Xu Yuqing was, joy surging in his chest, almost overwhelming him.

Like grabbing onto a lifeline, he tightly hugged Xu Yuqing, burying his face in her shoulder, taking a deep breath. Opening his mouth, he felt lost for words, unable to convey his excitement.

They stayed like that for a minute. Xu Yuqing, holding a handful of bean sprouts, tried to push him away, but the next moment, he grabbed her chin, his passion overwhelming her.

"Mmm..." Xu Yuqing frowned, the bean sprouts breaking in her hand, some falling to the ground, others on his clothes.

Pushing harder, she faced even more intense advances. Finally, Xu Yuqing gave up resisting, letting Xie Junli vent his excitement.

Her tongue tingled, and after an unknown amount of time, she was finally released. The next second, she was tightly embraced again. Both of them breathed heavily, Xie Junli closing his eyes, trying to regain his composure. He then quickly returned to the room.

...

Xu Yuqing looked at the bean sprouts in her hand, now squeezed out of juice, and the mess on the floor. Sighing, she squatted down, gradually calming herself as she began cleaning up.

Before she could finish, Xie Junli approached again. Instinctively, Xu Yuqing quickly tossed the items in her hand into a nearby empty basin and rinsed her hands.

Sure enough, the familiar constriction came again. Xu Yuqing laughed and patted Xie Junli’s back, feeling his rapid heartbeat and joy. "Why are you so happy about receiving a red envelope?" she asked, amused.

Good thing He Xiang wasn’t here; otherwise, it would have been inappropriate.

Xu Yuqing was lost in thought, while Xie Junli, having just calmed down, felt his cheeks flush again upon seeing her. He took something out from his chest. "This is my red envelope for you."

"Hmm?" It was bulky. What was inside?

Xu Yuqing took it, feeling its hardness. In a hurry, Xie Junli hadn’t sealed it properly, folding it twice. She opened it easily, revealing a dark object.

"What is this?"

Xie Junli carried a sense of unease as he looked at Xu Yuqing. He had originally intended to give her some money, but all the money in their household belonged to his wife. After searching the room thoroughly, he finally produced this item.

"This is a bullet."

Xie Junli picked it up, "It's the first bullet I ever fired."

Soldiers often keep mementos like these, but Xie Junli had only ever kept this one.

This bullet had completely separated him from his identity as the eldest son of the Xie family. He was now part of the People's Liberation Army, a soldier.

"I've kept it for many years. I didn't know what else to give you, so here it is." He swallowed hard, his eyes fixed intently on hers, his fingers trembling uncontrollably, as if controlled by some mysterious force that left him feeling weak.

Xu Yuqing looked at the bullet, reached out, and touched it, simultaneously taking his hand. "I like it very much."

Their hands intertwined, the warmth from her body transferring to his. Xie Junli felt as if his entire being was ignited. Just as he was about to pull her closer, she pushed him away.

"Alright, enough sentimentality. If you keep this up, we won't get anything done for the rest of the year! Go wash the vegetables; I'll be back in a moment."

Her lips curved upward, her eyes crinkling with a smile, as she walked past Xie Junli. As their shoulders brushed against each other, her hair swayed and brushed against his face. Xie Junli instinctively wanted to catch it, but she had already moved past him.

Xie Junli pursed his lips, wanting to follow her but hesitating. After a moment's pause, he squatted down and picked up the basin, washing the vegetables earnestly.

As he washed, he couldn't help but smile, his face filled with tenderness as he looked at the vegetables. If anyone saw him, they would surely be shocked.

In the room, Xu Yuqing found a small ball of unused yarn in the closet and took out knitting needles. She pursed her lips, picked up the needles, and her hands moved swiftly, creating a tiny knitted pouch. She placed the warmed bullet inside, pulled the yarn tight, and the bullet nestled securely within.

A cute little yellow pouch, which Xu Yuqing cherished as she stroked it. Perhaps infected by Xie Junli's love-struck mind, she couldn't bear to take it off. In the end, she pinned it to her belt with a safety pin, hidden under her cotton coat.

Satisfied, she patted it and walked out briskly. Xie Junli was squatting on the floor, looking silly. Xu Yuqing approached and gave him a quick kiss on the cheek. "Good boy! Keep it up, and I'll give you something delicious later!"

With that, she walked toward the storage room.

Although it was still morning, Xu Yuqing was already preparing for the evening meal. Last night, Old Lady Yan had indeed sent Yu Wenyao over to deliver fish. It was late, and Xie Junli and Xu Yuqing were about to go to bed when Yu Wenyao arrived, carrying a basket full of goods. Seeing Xie Junli, he couldn't help but feel envious. He had accidentally let his child catch a cold, and for days, he hadn't been able to hold his son or receive any affection from his wife.

Even the old lady who used to treat him like a son no longer looked at him properly.

She seemed to have completely forgotten about her son-in-law in favor of her grandson.

He was nothing more than a tool.

Seeing Xie Junli, he grumpily put down the basket. "Get me the basket from last time! Hurry up." He said harshly.

Xie Junli raised an eyebrow, turned around, and fetched the basket for him. The moment he handed it over, the door slammed shut. Xie Junli silently brought the basket inside.

Inside the basket was a large fish, already cleaned, weighing about two or three pounds. At this time of year, finding such a big fish was quite rare. She took a knife and cut three pieces of ribs, lean meat, frozen tofu, and some preserved ham and sausages saved for the New Year.

She gathered everything together and placed them in the basket. With a strong grip, she lifted the basket and headed for the kitchen.

"We'll eat lunch early today, save our appetite for the New Year's Eve dinner."

"Okay."

"Where's He Xiang? Hasn't he come over yet?" Xu Yuqing looked towards the door, wondering why he was so late today.

Hearing Xu Yuqing's words, Xie Junli paused while washing the vegetables and shook his head. "Later, he went to see his father."

"......Oh." Xu Yuqing closed her mouth, thinking of He Xiang, her heart softening. He was still a kind-hearted child.

She sighed, shifted the knife slightly to the left, and cut off another piece of meat.

For lunch, they would simply stir-fry some meat sauce and have noodles. If He Xiang were there, he could help roll the noodles. Although Xie Junli knew how to make dumplings, he wasn't skilled at kneading dough or rolling noodles, making him rather clumsy.

Pouring two large bowls of flour into a basin, she added water and stirred. Just as she was about to start kneading, a voice came from the doorway, "Let me do it!"