Early summer.

"Dad, my sister is being discharged from the hospital today. Will you be able to make it back in time?"

After receiving an apologetic denial on the other end of the phone, Yu Lian sighed, "Actually, it's not a big deal. She just ran around and got scared. You have work to do, so don't worry about it. My mom and I can handle it."

After hanging up the phone, Yu Lian went upstairs to her room, tidied herself up briefly, and then left with her bag.

The driver her father had arranged was waiting at the door of her house; he was a young man about her age.

Good morning, Xiao Wu!

"Good morning, Comrade Xiao Yu. Get in the car and let's head to the hospital."

Xiao Wu always handled things strictly by business, like he was following orders and rarely spoke. Yu Lian was used to it and sat in the back row reading a book.

Upon arriving at the hospital, the mother and daughter were already waiting at the entrance. Xiao Wu ran over to take the luggage.

"Thank you for your help, Xiao Wu."

"No trouble at all, please get in the car, I'll take you back."

Yu Xin's face was still a little pale, and her short, ear-length hair was a mess. She rubbed it haphazardly, which only made her look worse.

Wang Meixia said disdainfully, "You're like a tomboy all the time. I told you not to run around, but you insisted on going out to sketch in the countryside. I think you're trying to drive your mother crazy!"

Yu Xin chuckled, "Mom, how could that be? I just wanted to exercise a bit, which will help me recover."

"Recovery? You had surgery years ago, what were you doing all this time? Don't make a big deal out of nothing, from today onwards you're staying home and resting! Everything unrelated to your recovery is confiscated!"

Wang Meixia's tone was forceful, giving her daughter no chance to argue. Unable to refute, Yu Xin could only look out the window, her expression betraying her resentment.

She returned home half an hour later. As soon as Yu Xin entered the house, she went to her room and lay down.

"Yu Xin! Who told you to go upstairs! Take your medicine before you sleep!"

Seeing her sister's utterly hopeless expression, Yu Lian had no choice but to say, "Mom, give me the blanket and medicine, I'm going upstairs."

Before Wang Meixia could hand over the cup, Yu Xin appeared at the bottom of the stairs.

"Give it to me."

She was bold and unrestrained, and downed a few pills and a glass of water in one gulp.

"You're behaving abnormally. If you're thinking of climbing over the wall again, I'm telling you this beforehand so you don't waste your time. You're on the wanted list for all three entrances to the compound. I won't feel bad if you get bitten by military dogs while trying to climb over the wall. And don't mention any of our family's names, especially your dad's. We can't afford to lose face like that. If you don't believe me, just call your dad and ask him. It won't take more than a few minutes."

With her way out suddenly blocked, Yu Xin sat down listlessly: "When are we eating?"

I've been busy taking care of Yu Xin these past two days, so no one at home has been able to buy groceries.

"Mom, I'm going to the cafeteria to get two meals. You and Yu Xin can listen to the radio."

Having understood the deeper meaning, Yu Xin looked at her sister standing opposite her and her expression turned sour.

Yu Lian didn't care about this crazy girl. Grabbing her lunchbox, she slowly walked towards the courtyard canteen.

There weren't many people in the cafeteria at the moment, and Yu Lian ran into an acquaintance.

"Oh dear, Xiao Lian, I heard you just got back a couple of days ago. I haven't seen you at all. Did you go to the hospital to take care of your sister?"

"Yes, I'm back."

Speaking of Yu Lian, Director Wang of the logistics department of the compound said with some regret, "Let's not talk about it anymore. You and your father have brought honor to your Yu family. Although you can't continue to shine in the army in the future, you have the ability to shine anywhere."

These past two days have been busy with her sister's hospitalization, and Yu Lian hasn't thought about it for a long time. She injured her left foot while saving someone; although it doesn't affect her walking normally, this incident has completely shattered her dream of joining the military.

"Aunt Wang, I'm done typing. I'm leaving now."

"Okay, is your mom home? I need to talk to her."

"Yes, I'm here. You can come right away."

Seeing that Yu Lian had walked away, Director Wang said to another neighbor from the compound who had come to find him, "What do you think of our chief of staff's son? Although we didn't grow up together, we know each other well."

The woman next to him said awkwardly, "If you dare to offend her father, then go ahead and say something. He treats his two daughters like precious jewels. Last time, someone casually mentioned it, and Deputy Commander Yu said the children were too young to rush. That person thought he was just being polite and went on to say he wanted to introduce so-and-so's child to Yu Lian. He was immediately scolded by Deputy Commander Yu, who said he was meddling in other people's business."

Director Wang also knew about this: "That's why I told Meixia before he came back."

"You'd better be careful, what if this gets to the leader's ears..."

"Okay, okay."

The person speaking could see that Director Wang simply wanted to introduce his nephew to the Yu family so that she could also benefit from it. No one knew about this. Sister Xiang, a longtime friend of Director Wang, knew; years ago, when they were drinking together, Director Wang had drunkenly revealed the truth to her. But as a good friend, she understood Wang Zhu's predicament and had never mentioned it. People strive for higher positions, and she didn't look down on such behavior. After all, Staff Officer Si's son was indeed outstanding, renowned throughout the compound and even the military region.

The Yu family.

After dinner, Yu Lian took her younger sister upstairs to rest. Because of her daughter's reminder, Wang Meixia had been cleaning the first floor; no one had lived in the house for the past two weeks.

She heard a knock at the door while she was cleaning. Opening it, she saw Director Wang. She just couldn't understand why he wanted to see her.

"Teacher Wang, I need to talk to you about something. Please come out."

Director Wang waved to Wang Meixia. She put down the mop in her hand, walked out, dried her hands on her apron, and opened the door.

"Director Wang, what's wrong...?"

"Oh, it's just that I wanted to talk to you about Si Qin. You know how outstanding Si Qin is, it's obvious to everyone. Why don't you tell Yu Lian about it?"

Wang Meixia had heard someone mention it before, but she never expected that Director Wang would actually come looking for her.

"The Si family asked me to speak to them, and I couldn't refuse. Actually, nothing was agreed upon; they just wanted the two kids to sit down and have a good talk. If they didn't like each other, they didn't like each other."

It might not seem like a big deal, but it was actually quite difficult for Wang Meixia.

"My husband will be furious if he finds out, so maybe..."

"I've found out everything. They won't be back until the day after tomorrow. Let the young people chat at that state-run restaurant on Xiaogou Street tomorrow at noon. Nobody will know if you don't tell them."

Wang Zhusheng was afraid that Wang Meixia would refuse because of the men in her family, so he turned and left after saying that.

Wang Meixia watched Wang Zhu walk away, her face showing no good expression. She bolted the door and turned to see her daughter standing on the second-floor balcony. Just as she was wondering what to say, her daughter spoke first.

"Mom, I'll go take a look tomorrow."

Thinking her daughter had changed her mind, Wang Meixia didn't say anything—it was just a meeting, nothing more.

What she didn't know was that Yu Lian was preparing to completely break ties with Si Qin this time. Si Qin had been secretly writing to her, but Yu Lian hadn't replied to a single letter. At first, out of respect for her elders, she politely and distantly expressed her desire not to be disturbed, but Si Qin simply wouldn't give up. Even after she returned, she would occasionally receive things from Si Qin. She didn't want her father to encounter interpersonal problems at work, so she had been enduring it. She was taking this opportunity to finally make things clear.

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