Chapter 73 Zhu Cheng

Chapter 73: Zhu Cheng

Jiang Huaiyan settled down here.

The home Zhu Shinian and his grandmother shared in the 29th District was a small two-bedroom apartment, but it was simply and warmly decorated.

Jiang Huaiyan declined the offer from Zhu Shinian and his grandmother to give up their room for him. Instead, he simply moved a bed into the study and rearranged it a bit.

The study faced south as well, just slightly smaller, but it was sunny, warm, and dry.

Grandma was diligent about airing out the quilts. Whenever it was a clear, sunny day, she would put them out in the sun. Every time he lay down in bed, the quilt carried the faint scent of sunshine.

The Jiang family had never lacked money. After taking the place of the real young master, Jiang Huaiyan had lived in many places—apartments, villas, estates, and hotels—but this was the first place that truly felt like a home.

Unfortunately, both Zhu Shinian and Jiang Huaiyan were very busy and rarely came home. They saw each other more often at the military headquarters than at home.

Zhu Shinian would make sure he ate on time, took his medicine after meals, and didn't work too late. Even when Jiang Huaiyan went to the front lines, Zhu Shinian would send him a telegram every week.

When Jiang Huaiyan forgot to eat, Zhu Shinian would bring meals to his office, sometimes even peeling shrimp for him one by one, and cutting fruit into pieces for him.

Zhu Shinian was obedient and always giving him whatever he asked for in front of him. Zhu Shinian was too good to him.

But all this tenderness and care were given to "Zhu Cheng."

Memory is far too essential a part of who a person is. Jiang Huaiyan had no memory of the past. The person named Zhu Cheng felt both strange and enviable to him.

Last time he went to the 26th District, he had asked around about what happened back then.

The 26th District was poor and peaceful, with little migration or change over the years. It wasn't hard to find an old neighbor and ask about the past.

He introduced himself as a classmate of Zhu Shinian from the military academy. When the neighbor casually mentioned Zhu Shinian's older brother, he feigned surprise, saying he never knew Shinian had an older brother. The neighbor naturally continued.

Zhu Cheng was originally named Song Cheng, a child of the Song family. The Zhu family adopted him and initially didn't plan to change his surname, but when he started school and needed a household registration, they changed it to Zhu.

They said Zhu Cheng was a very good child—warm, honest, kind, and devoted to family. He never argued or fought with anyone. Unfortunately, he had a tough life. He hadn't enjoyed many good days. Whenever Grandma was taken to the capital by Zhu Shinian, she couldn't help but cry when mentioning him.

Warm, honest, kind, and devoted to family.

So that's what Zhu Cheng was like.

But Jiang Huaiyan was sharp-tongued, vengeful, and two-faced. Words like "warm" and "honest" had almost nothing to do with him.

Was he really Zhu Cheng? Jiang Huaiyan seriously doubted it.

Even though he had irreverently dug up his biological father's grave, the DNA test on the remains confirmed it.

But if he was Zhu Cheng, why did he have to put on another mask every day just to play himself?

It felt like he was always taking over someone else's life and living under their identity. First Jiang Huaiyan, now Zhu Cheng.

Before, he played Jiang Huaiyan and gained the Jiang family's power and wealth. Now, he played Zhu Cheng and took over the care and love that belonged to his family.

But when Zhu Shinian looked at him, his eyes sparkled, with concern and care almost spilling out. So Jiang Huaiyan could only, despicably, continue to play the role of the warm and honest "Zhu Cheng" in front of Zhu Shinian as best he could.

"Sir?" the volunteer called him again.

Jiang Huaiyan heard it and immediately looked up, smiling apologetically.

"Sorry, I'm listening. Please go on."

Jiang Huaiyan's tone was polite and gentle, and the volunteer didn't take his brief, unintentional lapse to heart.

"Sir, though I'm no expert, I must remind you that this way of seeing your past self and your current self as two completely different people is something you need to correct."

The person sitting across from Jiang Huaiyan was a very young psychologist, seemingly fresh out of school, or maybe still studying, and volunteering here in his spare time.

He had to admit, Tao Juan was really good at this. He could always win over the people in the Resistance Zone. Young alphas who had just turned of age wanted to enlist, young students volunteered whenever they had free time, and merchants who had finally made some money would come to the Civil-Military Joint Committee to donate money and supplies.

"Not only is this unhelpful for recovering your memory, but it could also cause schizophrenia. You should seek professional medical support to recover your memory. Everyone in the psychological counseling room is a psychology student volunteer, many are still students, so they might not be able to help you much on this point."

"Personality isn't simply good or bad. You're being too harsh on yourself. Since you changed your personality after losing your memory, it means this personality is beneficial for your personal development. Your family's love for you is unconditional, regardless of your personality or whether it's before or after your memory loss."

"Thank you for your advice," Jiang Huaiyan smiled, stood up, and shook the volunteer's hand. "Assessment complete. You did well."

The young volunteer's face lit up with joy. Kids his age couldn't hide their feelings. He happily thanked him several times.

The Resistance Army wasn't like the old tyrant landlords. Sure, they could get by for a while, but they couldn't keep these volunteers working for free forever.

After the new year, the Resistance Army had collected taxes, and the treasury had become more abundant. So they started recruiting volunteers again. Those who passed the assessment would be formally hired and paid.

This young volunteer was very patient, and his advice was quite professional. Though it was a bit superficial, such questions were indeed too difficult for temporary staff like him.

The psychological counseling room didn't usually handle such professional and extreme cases. As long as they could comfort soldiers suffering from PTSD, they were considered qualified.

Jiang Huaiyan stood up and walked toward the door. The volunteer who had passed the assessment was very enthusiastic and offered to see Jiang Huaiyan downstairs.

"Actually, I didn't expect you to be the one testing me today. I was a bit nervous at first, so I didn't speak very well—kind of stuttered. I really admire you. I'm from the 15th District. You once gave a speech there, and I was very impressed..."

Jiang Huaiyan smiled warmly. The young volunteer took the initiative and opened the door of the psychological counseling room for him.

"General?" The young volunteer was startled when he saw the visitor, momentarily speechless. "You, you're also here for... psychological counseling?"

The young general, Zhu Shinian, shook his head. He was even more handsome in person than in the news or on TV, like someone who stepped out of a movie.

"I'm here to see Director Jiang about something."

The volunteer was a bit dazed. In just one day, no, one afternoon, he had seen both Director Jiang of the Civil-Military Joint Committee and General Zhu, who had just been promoted to Lieutenant General.

He didn't notice that Lieutenant General Zhu seemed to be in a bad mood.

"...C-could I take a photo with you? If not, it's fine."

"Sorry, probably not." But even when in a bad mood, Zhu Shinian rarely lost his temper. He smiled gently and apologetically. "That would feel a bit like a personality cult. I don't think that's appropriate. Congratulations on passing the assessment."

When he heard Zhu Shinian congratulate the volunteer on passing the assessment, a flicker of stiffness appeared on Jiang Huaiyan's face, but it vanished in an instant.

"Oh, oh, sorry, General. Sorry for the trouble," the volunteer said, worried that Zhu Shinian had come to discuss work with Jiang Huaiyan. "Then you two talk. I won't see you out."

Zhu Shinian nodded. When the volunteer's figure disappeared at the end of the stairs, he quietly turned to look at Jiang Huaiyan.

"Just got back?" Jiang Huaiyan asked casually, reaching out to take Zhu Shinian's bag. "How was the front line? How long will you be staying this time? Your bag is bulging—did you bring me a gift?"

He showed no signs of anything unusual. Zhu Shinian had probably only just arrived, and his hearing was poor; he likely hadn't heard anything.

"Oranges," Zhu Shinian said softly. "They're a specialty from the 12th District. Really sweet."

"You used to really like oranges from the 12th District," he had wanted to say.

Mom used to bring us oranges from District 12. You really liked them. I thought this would make you happy.

But now you might not like them anymore. You've probably tried a lot of good things by now.

"Can I have one now?"

"They were meant for you and Grandma anyway." Zhu Shinian picked the brightest yellow one from the bunch. "I'll peel it."

Zhu Shinian quickly peeled the orange, found a nearby trash can to toss the peels, and when he came back, as if it were an afterthought, he took a slice. Jiang Huaiyan watched him and couldn't help but smile.

The orange was very juicy, but it wasn't as sweet as in Jiang Huaiyan's memory—no different from the ordinary oranges Gu Zhen had bought him in the capital.

Maybe the oranges Mom brought back then weren't really that special. It's just that back then, they hadn't had much good food, so the flavor became unforgettable.

Maybe Jiang Huaiyan didn't actually like them that much either.

Zhu Shinian handed him the orange. "Seems... it's not really that good. If you and Grandma don't particularly like it, I'll give it to the neighbors or Nie Hang and the others."

"Was I the one who really liked them before?" Jiang Huaiyan asked.

Zhu Shinian neither nodded nor shook his head. He lowered his gaze, as if he didn't want to answer the question.

Zhu Shinian wasn't really a very clever person. His experiences over the years had taught him to get by through reading people, but when faced with someone like Jiang Huaiyan—who could hide his emotions so well, even making his acting seem natural—he was completely defenseless.

Why hadn't he noticed earlier that Jiang Huaiyan was unhappy? Zhu Shinian felt nothing but self-blame.

"I'm sorry, I'm so stupid," Zhu Shinian said softly. "...You're great. You're great just the way you are. Please don't be upset."

"I'm not unhappy," Jiang Huaiyan said quickly, but explaining at that moment felt futile no matter what. "That was just... a test."

"You haven't gotten any worse. You've always been wonderful."

"You don't have to do things that make you unhappy. As long as you're happy and at ease, anything's fine. No matter who you are, you'll always be the most important person to me."

Author's note: