“That Lao Fang... what's he bawling for, seriously? A grown man!” muttered Captain Lao. With hands on his hips, he stood by the door for a while to compose himself, waiting until the stinging in his nose faded before daring to step outside.
By habit, he did a round through the equipment room.
On his way out, he happened to run into Qi Rourou returning from individual training.
“Captain,” Qi Rourou greeted him as he walked past.
In truth, Captain Lao getting married made Qi Rourou feel just as joyful inside as everyone else. But that was simply his personality—he had always kept that cool, aloof tone, preferring to keep to himself.
Every year, his most frustrating period was when new recruits arrived. Regardless of whether they were men or women, there was always a phase where they mistook him for a woman, a pretty older sister, and eagerly took the initiative to cozy up to him.
“Wait a second, Rourou,” Lao Jian called out from behind him.
Qi Rourou turned back. “Hm?”
“I've got something to discuss with you, hehe,” Captain Lao said, sidling over with a brazen, wheedling grin. “Do you still have that antique phoenix coronet? The one Plague Chicken and the others brought back for you when they raided the Yu family.”
“Yes.” Qi Rourou nodded. “Does Sister-in-law want to wear it?”
“No.” Lao Jian's gaze flickered guiltily. “Well, you know, a lot of people will be coming on my wedding day, right? Here in the deep mountains and old forests, Lao Fang just happened to mention offhand whether it'd be nice to have some entertainment. Like back in the countryside, when people got married, they'd hire an opera troupe to sing a...”
“No way.”
“...Oh.”
Captain Lao gave a feeble nod. As he turned away, he muttered ruefully, “What a waste.”
He meant a waste of talent. Everyone knew Qi Rourou had studied opera for over a decade before enlisting, and had been a reputable young huadan in a certain province. Yet ever since arriving in Azure, he hadn't performed for the squad even once.
And that gorgeous antique phoenix coronet was going to waste too.
“I just heard the comms room folks say that the Second Research Institute's outreach troupe might be coming this time. So you don't need to worry about having no entertainment or the place not being lively enough, Captain.”
Seeing that Captain Lao seemed disheartened, Qi Rourou spoke up from behind.
“Really?!” Captain Lao turned back, pleasantly surprised, though also a bit bewildered. Strictly speaking, he didn't know them. “What, do I really have that much pull?”
“Han Qingyu's pull.”
“...Oh.”
“He seems to have some history with them,” Qi Rourou said.
“History?! Well, fine, history.” Captain Lao muttered under his breath. He thought for a moment and tried once more. “The outreach troupe is one thing, Rourou. Speaking of which, it's been four years now, and you know everyone in the squad has always wanted to hear you sing just once...”
“I'll sing when they come back,” Qi Rourou said.
“What?!”
“When the people who gave me the phoenix coronet return, I'll sing.”
Having said that, Qi Rourou felt a bit awkward, so he hurriedly turned and walked into the equipment room.
Got him!
Captain Lao couldn't say it outright, but he stood behind him, snickering to himself.
This day was May 7.
The next day, May 8, 1994, early morning.
Captain Lao had already gone out and returned, placing a bag of green bayberries on the table. Then he sat to the side, watching Shang Nianhua eat them... After watching for a while, he said, “Hey, Nianhua.”
“Mmh, what is it?” Shang Nianhua turned her head, a green bayberry tucked in her cheek.
“Sour?”
“Sour, but I just crave sour things.” Swallowing the bayberry, Shang Nianhua offered an embarrassed smile. “My teeth are set on edge, yet I still want more.”
“Oh. Well, have you heard that saying—sour for a boy, spicy for a girl?”
“Mhm, I've heard it.” Shang Nianhua nodded. Looking up, she brought another green bayberry to her lips, only to pull it back down, her expression souring. “What, is Captain Lao scheming already? You want a son so it's easier to send him off to the battlefield later, is that it? You...”
“No, that's not what I meant.”
“Not what you meant? Humph! Then I insist on having a daughter. Go on, fetch me some chili peppers. I'll eat them right in front of you. I'm going to have a daughter with an F-grade degree of fusion whether you like it or not!”
Since becoming pregnant, Shang Nianhua's temper had become much like a little girl's.
Lao Jian smiled dotingly. “I actually want a daughter. An F-grade degree of fusion would be great too.”
“Huh?” Shang Nianhua looked into his eyes, judging that he wasn't lying. “Really?”
“Yeah. Back then, Han Qingyu was swindled into Azure's combat units by me—I told you about that, right? Later on, I rode his coattails the whole way. At that time, the regimental commanders joked that if I had a daughter, I ought to marry her off to Qingzi. I thought about it, and if it really turned out that way, it wouldn't be half bad, would it? Truth be told, I even thought that if he dared refuse, I'd force him to marry her.”
Lao Jian laughed as he spoke. In truth, he brought this up largely because the boy would soon return. He had been reminiscing a lot lately, and the thought just struck him.
Yet Shang Nianhua calculated the numbers seriously and said, “I wouldn't object either, but isn't Qingzi twenty-two or twenty-three this year? Wouldn't the age gap be a bit wide?”
“That's true. Come to think of it, if I'd married earlier and had a daughter sooner, it really might have worked out...”
Lao Jian mumbled away, completely oblivious to Shang Nianhua's face gradually darkening beside him. It wasn't until she tossed aside her green bayberry in a huff and abruptly sprang to her feet that he noticed.
Only then did Captain Lao look around. “What's wrong, Nianhua?”
“...Nothing.”
“Oh, good. For a second I thought something was wrong.”
“...Something *is* wrong!”
“What's wrong?”
“I...! From what you just said, you're regretting meeting me so late and marrying me, aren't you?! Regretting you didn't meet someone else earlier and get married sooner, right?!”
Lao Jian stammered, “No, that's not—”
“And here I was, always thinking that even though it came late in life, being able to meet you and marry you made all those years of waiting worth it!”
Shang Nianhua bowed her head, tears of grievance instantly spilling down.
May 9.
Still early morning. Lao Jian stood atop the mountain guard post for more than two hours before climbing down.
Vice Captain Qin Guowen sat alone at the base of the stairs, smoking a cigarette.
“Finished coaxing Sister-in-law?”
“Her anger blew over on its own, heh.”
“Regimental Commander Li is coming this time, right?”
“Yes, all of them are coming.”
“So you were up there watching the helipad behind the mountain?”
“Yeah, just having a look.”
“Qingzi and the others haven't arrived yet?”
“Yeah...” Lao Jian turned his head and gave a wistful reply. Then, pausing, he quickly turned back to correct himself. “Wait, Qingzi and the guys are coming back? Who said that?”
“Drop the act.” Qin Guowen looked up with a helpless look. “It's too obvious, Captain Lao. Could those old fellows like the regimental commander make you stare out longing like this every day?”
Rising, Qin Guowen patted Lao Jian on the shoulder and said as he walked off, “If you're not allowed to talk about it, then act a bit more nonchalant, Captain. Otherwise, any veteran squad member is going to see right through you.”
“Ah, right,” Lao Jian muttered guiltily.
“So they're really coming back?!” Qin Guowen spun around with a wide grin, excitement shining in his eyes.
Lao Jian: “...”
Confirming it once more from Captain Lao's expression, Qin Guowen was certain now. “Don't worry, Captain, I won't breathe a word. And you don't need to come up here later—I'll keep watch for you. Don't worry, I'll crouch in a ditch.”
Crouching in a ditch was Squad 1777's time-honored specialty.
Chapter 555