Chapter 103: First Update

Chapter 103: First Update

Much to the combined opposition of his wife and sister, Third Brother Qin regretfully abandoned his plan of raising lizards. He could only visit others' homes to satisfy his curiosity. "That guy raises them exceptionally well, not the ordinary ones you find on the street. He even made leather clothes for them and walks them with a rope. What a T-Rex!"

Dinosaurs were already ancient extinct creatures, whereas lizards, in Qin's eyes, were like miniature versions of dinosaurs, some even resembling the ancient five-clawed golden dragon, which looked very "cool" to men.

In Third Brother Qin's view, such pets were highly cost-effective. Up north, you'd never see them, but on the island, you could easily catch one by the roadside and feed it nothing but cockroaches and worms—perfect for living out your 'dinosaur-raising' dreams.

"That person not only raises dragons but also snakes, and they're well-raised, though there's a strong fishy smell."

Qin Yao hesitated to comment, "He's quite a talent."

On this point, Third Brother Qin reminded Qin Yao that the zoo wasn't just home to cute fluffy creatures like red pandas but also reptiles like lizards and cobras.

Admittedly, raising lizards and snakes was cost-effective, with low costs.

Some lizards were quite handsome, and with a bit of dressing up, they could pass as miniature five-clawed golden dragons, which was as tempting to men as beautiful women.

Girls preferred to watch butterflies. In a greenhouse, raising a bunch of colorful butterflies, once they died, they could be made into specimens for sale and collection.

If Qin Yao could open a zoo now, she would love to meet this expert in raising "reptiles" that Third Brother Qin spoke of.

But for now... she didn't have the courage to go to someone's house to see "snakes."

"What's this person's name?"

"Xu Fresh."

"What?"

"Xu Fresh, lives at the overseas Chinese farm, returned from Southeast Asia."

Qin Yao: "..."

"Oh, apparently he has a foreign name, a long one, I can't quite remember, but domestically, on his household registration, he's called Xu Fresh. Not the 'Xian' as in immortal, but the 'Xian' as in seafood. He changed his name himself. When people ask his name, he feels connected to snakes, so he calls himself Xu Fresh."

Unless they have a family tradition, many overseas Chinese choose their own names when they return, often using just a surname and a personal choice for a given name.

However, there aren't many people with the Xu surname here. It's possible this 'Xu' was just made up, or maybe his family originally came from Suzhou or Hangzhou, where ancestors moved to Southeast Asia during the late Qing dynasty and are now returning as overseas Chinese.

Qin Yao noted down the name "Xu Fresh." It was such a name that even if she wanted to forget it, she couldn't. A clear image of a handsome young man involuntarily popped into her head.

Xu Fresh? How ridiculous. Will he find a wife named Bai Suzhen next?

Qin Yao found it amusing and later shared this unusual story with Gu Cheng in a hushed voice in the bedroom.

"His name is Xu Fresh, and he likes raising snakes and reptiles. Pretty wild, right?"

Even though Gu Cheng spent little time at home, after two years of marriage, they had discussed everything personal. In their marriage, aside from physical intimacy, most of their conversations revolved around the kids.

This was why many marriages gradually become routine. The couple knew everything about each other, leaving little to talk about, lacking freshness, with life becoming like lukewarm water, repeating the same days.

As the weather heated up, Gu Cheng went shirtless in the room, showing off his muscular chest. He wore dark blue pants, and his hair, freshly washed, still glistened with droplets that slid down his temples.

His skin wasn’t too light or too dark, more of a honey tone that changed with the seasons—lighter in winter, darker in summer. Qin Yao preferred the deeper shade in summer, finding it sexier.

Outside, Gu Cheng generally didn't casually change to shorts. Haha, because his thighs were really pale.

Sure, he had a bit too much leg hair, but his legs were long and well-shaped. Qin Yao wanted to shave his leg hair, but Captain Gu looked at her strangely and firmly refused.

"Don't tempt me." Gu Cheng put on a vest and turned around to see Qin Yao wearing short sleeves and shorts, braiding two pigtails at home. Her face looked fresh and radiant, like a young woman in her prime.

Married women generally didn't braid two pigtails; they either bun their hair or leave just one at the back. But Qin Yao didn't care much about that at home. Her hair was long, and it was hot, so it was most comfortable to simply braid two loose pigtails on the sides.

Qin Yao tugged at her two braids. "Is this even tempting?"

After two years of marriage, she had already become quite relaxed, wearing baggy pajamas and braiding two pigtails. Could this really be considered temptation?

Was her current look really that sexy? Qin Yao propped her chin with her hand and looked at her reflection in the mirror.

The woman in the mirror was as luscious as a ripe peach, stunningly attractive. Her peach blossom eyes had a faint pink at the corners, and her gaze was captivating.

A woman who had given birth was different. Even though her waistline had returned to its original shape, her chest had grown several sizes larger.

Qin Yao quite appreciated her body as a woman. It was a pity she hadn't given birth to a daughter. She pinched her own chest and thought it felt soft and pleasant to the touch.

"You said you wanted to keep lizards, like little dinosaurs." Third Brother Qin was a pioneer, and Gu Cheng had thought he was raising lizards. He had wanted to check it out himself, but now the opportunity was gone.

Hearing about Xu Xian keeping reptiles and snakes made him envious.

Perhaps every man had been interested in dinosaurs as a child.

In the military, some people secretly kept lizards. Gu Cheng had stumbled upon it and had been curious, though he hadn't kept any himself.

Qin Yao stared at her reflection for a moment, then subconsciously said, "Don't use a word like 'tempt,' it's too suggestive. This is at most... enticement."

Gu Cheng nodded. "Alright, entice me."

"I... I entice you?" Qin Yao stood up, suddenly feeling a surge of anger. "After two years of marriage, there's a big wife right in front of you, but you find lizards more enticing than me?"

Gu Cheng chuckled. "I didn't say that."

Qin Yao threw a pillow at him and turned her back on him, too lazy to pay him any mind. His words were getting weirder and more suggestive.

"Mad? Are you really mad, wife? Weren't we just talking about Xu Xian and reptiles and snakes?"

Gu Cheng laughed and gave her a kiss on the cheek. "I misspoke. That just now wasn't enticement, this is."

"Tempt me, come on and tempt me."

Qin Yao was speechless. "Don't be so shameless, Captain Gu."

Qin Yao reached up and twisted his face. It had been two years of marriage, and this guy, with his handsome face, was becoming more and more shameless. How despicable.

"Your face, when not serious, looks sunny and handsome, like a spoiled rich kid; when serious, it's like a distant beauty. Whether it's the rich kid or the distant beauty, neither would ever say something so shameless."

Gu Cheng hugged her from behind. "All men are like this."

"This is shameless? There's something even more shameless..."

Gu Cheng rubbed his face against hers. Sometimes he felt helpless. Outside, he had an image to maintain, and even in front of his wife, he had an image. "I casually say something genuine to you, and you remind me, 'Captain Gu, you shouldn't say something like that.'"

"Yaoyao, what do you think of me when I'm with you?"

Qin Yao waved her hand in front of her nose, pretending to be disgusted. "It stinks, it stinks. There's the smell of a middle-aged man."

"Please stay away from this early-twenties beauty. We have an age difference."

Gu Cheng immediately darkened his face, pretending to blow his beard and stare, pulling her into his arms, kissing her all over. "It smells, huh? All that middle-aged man smell."

Qin Yao wiped away the saliva from her face and offered a stern critique: "Immature."

"Are you really comparing saliva with your son? Typical immature middle-aged man."

Gu Cheng lowered his head and bit her nose. Captain Gu was furious, but his anger had no effect. He couldn't hit or scold the woman in front of him. Even if he glared at her, she wouldn't flinch, deliberately pushing his buttons.

She was both lovable and infuriating.

He couldn't resort to any other tactics except leaving saliva marks and tooth imprints, with no other "punishments" in mind.

"I'm going to become vicious," Gu Cheng said coldly.

Qin Yao: "..."

Do soldiers really talk like this?

Gu Cheng whispered into Qin Yao's ear, offering a malicious blessing: "When your son grows to be four or five years old, he'll be spoiled enough to bring back a few lizards to keep as pets and make you catch cockroaches to feed them every day—"

Qin Yao covered his mouth with her hand. "You're so vicious."

This was pure evil incarnate.

Qin Yao kicked him several times before swiftly running out of the bedroom. She washed her face and then went to find their two little ones.

The two toddlers were over a year old, walking unsteadily like small penguins. The elder son, Rui Rui, was obviously more obedient, exhibiting an elegant demeanor at a young age, sitting very nicely.

Mingming, on the other hand, resembled the foolish son of a wealthy family, his milk teeth emerging, his white teeth giving him a naturally dull smile.

Despite looking just like his father, Mingming had a completely different personality.

"Mom!"

Qin Yao kissed her younger son, feeling her mood lifted by this silly kid, temporarily forgetting his "vicious" father.

Qin Yao played with her son while Gu Cheng helped her review the manuscript, adding details and fixing bugs.

Qin Yao had learned a lot from Second Aunt Gu, but as a liberal arts student, she inevitably made some factual errors in her writing. Gu Cheng, a military enthusiast and an expert in military chess, was very familiar with many things, and his meticulous revisions made the story more realistic and moving.

The protagonist's image became increasingly clear.

As her younger brother, Gu Cheng added "a lot of spice" to the protagonist—quite realistic "dirt," which could also be considered embarrassing stories.

This abundance of dirt pieced together a more authentic character.

In October 1975, the nearly 400,000-word book *"Towards the Blue Sky"* was completed, and Qin Yao first sent it to her second sister.

After finishing it, Qin Yao was filled with a sense of accomplishment, intending to keep it as a personal collection. However, after letting Lan Baiyu and the others at the cultural center read it, they were astonished, and a publishing house on the island rushed to publish it, leaving Qin Yao both amused and embarrassed.

"Whether it should be published is something we need to discuss with Second Aunt first."

*

Meanwhile, Gu Qing received Qin Yao's draft and was stunned. "So much? So thick?"

Qin Yao had been writing for several months without mentioning that she had finished. Gu Qing had assumed she couldn't finish it. However, she wasn't too concerned because the first few tens of thousands of words were already excellent for collection.

Six months later, Qin Yao finished the manuscript and sent it over. Gu Qing had thought it would be around 100,000 words, which seemed like a lot to her. But... just how much did Qin Yao write?

The protagonist in Qin Yao's *"Towards the Blue Sky"* was named "Gu Qing." When Gu Qing opened the manuscript, she was immediately captivated, her cheeks flushed and her heart raced as she read halfway through.

Anyone who knew her would realize this book was about her, but was she really that remarkable?

As she continued reading, Second Aunt Gu blushed and found herself becoming engrossed.

It was a story she was familiar with, based on her as the model, so why did she find it so captivating and full of twists?

When she finished, Second Aunt Gu was hooked—she wanted more!

At the back was a small card that read—to be continued.

Second Aunt Gu blinked in confusion. "What do you mean, 'to be continued'? Is there going to be more?"

“Not necessarily, Second Aunt. After all, your story is still unfolding, right?”

Second Aunt Gu smiled. "You’ve got a point. Ending it here works for now."

After hanging up, Second Aunt Gu excitedly spread the word, passing the story around to her disciples and younger generations.

At first, others were hesitant, but not wanting to rain on Second Aunt Gu’s parade, they pretended to eagerly read. "I want to read it."

"Let me read it first!"

"One at a time, everyone."

Initially, they didn’t take it seriously, but soon everyone was hooked, fighting over who got to read next. Some even started making handwritten copies!

Back then, books were rare, especially novels, so when a good one came along, people devoured it from start to finish.

And the main character? She was awesome—inspiring, fun, and totally immersive. This book was seriously addictive!

The novel became a hot commodity. Second Aunt Gu had another message for Qin Yao: "Sister-in-law, the story you wrote is so good that the old unit contacted me. They want the military district to publish it for propaganda."

“Alright, that works. The publishing house on the island wants to publish it too."

Qin Yao and Second Aunt Gu had discussed it, leaving the rest to the publishers and handling specifics separately.

At this point, publishing was quite troublesome, and it would take until at least the second half of next year before it officially appeared in Xinhua Bookstore.

Barring any issues, Qin Yao could expect a few thousand yuan in royalties—an unexpected delight, though the exact amount was still undecided.

While Qin Yao wasn’t worried about the publishing process, Second Aunt Gu had already printed a few copies, sending them to friends and mailing a couple back home.

When the Gu family received the manuscript, they were confused.

Old Master Gu was chatting excitedly with his old war buddies about the memoirs he had written, which were set to be displayed in a memorial hall.

“It’s not much. It should take up two or three pages at most.”

Chen Baozhen’s grandfather, also known as Old Master Qin, had been writing his autobiography and memoirs for several years, intending to leave them as a legacy for his descendants. So far, he had only written thirty to forty thousand words.

Old Master Gu teased him, "At your snail’s pace, you’ll never finish, even if you live forever!"

“I don’t want to write any autobiography. There’s nothing special about my life.”

At the family dinner table, Old Master Gu appeared nonchalant.

“Auntie has a biography. She’s so amazing,” said little Gu Miaomiao, the first in the Gu family to read the manuscript. As the only student in the family, she had plenty of free time.

At her literacy level, her teacher encouraged her to read longer novels.

Old Master Gu waved it off. "Please, what kind of biography could she possibly have?"