Dusk descended as the sun sank in the west.

Outside the border station, verdant mountains stood tall, with a fading sunset glow lingering around their peaks. The horizon was crimson, and that warm light spread over Lu Huaizheng’s shoulders, captivating her in countless ways.

In this world, there are always some people who wade through turbulent rivers, traverse treacherous mountains, and guard in corners unknown to others—not for fame or profit, but for the faith in their hearts.

Lu Huaizheng leaned against the wall, hands in his pockets, one foot slightly raised and pressed against the wall, tilting his head back with a sigh: “Life is moved by sentiment, who still speaks of fame and fortune? That was the integrity and breadth of mind of our ancestors, something we cannot emulate.”

Yu Hao lowered her head with a bitter smile.

She suddenly felt that in her twenty-eight years, every step she had taken seemed to follow the rules while walking alone through mountains and waters, but in reality, she had been living in ignorance.

While Lu Huaizheng, who seemed to live recklessly, was more clear-headed and perceptive than anyone else.

“But it’s good that heroes’ tombs preserve their names,” Yu Hao said.

Lu Huaizheng suddenly tilted his head, his gaze still looking forward, but his breath reached her ear. As the burning heat of the sunset retreated, she heard him say: “For me, only the boudoir of tenderness is a hero’s tomb.”

There he goes again.

Serious talk never lasted more than three sentences.

After speaking, he put his foot down, stood up straight, and patted the back of her head, smiling as he said: “Time to go.”

“Get going then.”

“Did you remember what I said?”

“Huh?” Yu Hao deliberately teased him. “What did you say?”

He frowned. “So I was talking to the air just now?”

She blinked, intentionally: “You mean when you said you’d worry about me?”

Lu Huaizheng paused for a second, turned his head away, and smiled. “The sentence before that.”

“Before that, you said ‘I’ll be in Beijing,'” she repeated.

With his hands in his pockets, he raised an eyebrow. “The sentence before that.”

Only then did she smile, without saying more, “I’ll wait for you to come back.”

That evening was the cultural troupe’s final performance. To send off these girls and welcome the two new ones, Tang Mingliang had the kitchen make dumplings for dinner. He also asked Lu Huaizheng to send a few soldiers to help after combat training; otherwise, such a large pot of dumplings wouldn’t be ready to eat until midnight.

Hearing this, Zhao Dailin also pulled Yu Hao to join in.

After busy work in the kitchen all afternoon, Yu Hao hadn’t managed to wrap a single dumpling and ended up with flour all over her face—on the tip of her nose, forehead, chin, cheeks… patches here and there. Zhao Dailin teased her: “My, that cat face of yours took quite some effort. May I ask which of these dumplings were made by you?”

Yu Hao was embarrassed. She didn’t know how to wrap dumplings, so she helped the chef knead the dough instead. But with dumplings for hundreds of people, she couldn’t even turn over that large lump of flour. The chef hurriedly told this young lady to find somewhere cool to stay put.

At five o’clock, Lu Huaizheng entered wearing his training uniform.

Yu Hao had just been shooed out of the kitchen by the flour-kneading chef, her face covered in flour spots, and bumped into a pair of smiling eyes.

Only after those eyes stared at her face for three seconds did she suddenly realize her flour-covered, muddled appearance. She covered her face and turned to run away.

She normally wore light makeup, just a thin layer to enhance her complexion. After washing her face with clear water, her face was bare, clean, and fair—like a fresh lotus emerging from the water, as clear as a peeled egg. After washing her face, she didn’t rush out but steadied herself at the sink.

She needed to adjust her attitude. Men are fickle; what if he changed his mind after returning from Beijing? She couldn’t appear completely under his spell.

But Senior Sister Zhao had already revealed all her cards.

How could she save face now?

When Yu Hao returned to the dining hall,

Lu Huaizheng had already taken off his cap and sat down. He was methodically rolling up the sleeves of his training uniform, revealing his fair arms. He reached out to pick up a dumpling wrapper and laid it in his hand, impressing several soldiers from his unit who watched in amazement, repeatedly shaking their heads in admiration: “Captain Lu truly excels both in formal settings and in the kitchen.”

Even the chef in the white hat, who had been focused on making dumplings, couldn’t help looking up, remarking with surprise: “Looking at Captain Lu’s technique, you must make them often at home. Does your wife not cook?”

The soldiers quickly said: “Captain Lu isn’t married yet. He doesn’t have a wife, not even a girlfriend.”

Lu Huaizheng finished wrapping a dumpling, placed it in the dish, and continued to take another wrapper. Without responding to them, he took a spoonful of filling, lowered his eyelids, and said: “The unit used to make dumplings often. Captain Sun from next door can do it too. No need to envy.”

The chef smiled: “It’s a real shame a good man like Captain Lu hasn’t found a girlfriend yet. Left hand carrying a gun, right hand making dumplings—how harmonious.”

“Captain Lu just doesn’t want to find one. Captain Sun has mentioned several times that he wants to introduce girls to him—”

Lu Huaizheng interrupted with a smile: “Enough. Your Captain Sun is a poor soul himself; how can he introduce anyone to me?”

This was a joke, a moment of camaraderie, a joke between men.

Yu Hao walked over and pulled out a chair to sit across from him. The soldiers continued their banter, making a few more jokes, their laughter becoming increasingly unrestrained. Just as they were about to venture into off-color jokes, Lu Huaizheng shot them a look, and they immediately realized there were two young women present and stopped in time.

The lively atmosphere suddenly quieted down.

Yu Hao picked up a dumpling wrapper and tried to learn from the chef. The chef’s movements were skilled and quick—placing a wrapper on his hand, adding filling, twisting his hand, and when he opened it, a perfectly formed dumpling appeared as if by magic, leaving her dumbfounded.

The chef deliberately teased her, “Impressive, right? A family-inherited skill—you can’t learn it.”

“…”

This made Yu Hao’s face alternately red and white with embarrassment, yet she was still very happy. Smiling, she reached for another dumpling wrapper and, as if deliberately, wrapped it even faster than before, then proudly placed the dumpling in the dish.

Yu Hao: “…”

Everyone at the table burst into laughter, even Zhao Dailin couldn’t help but smile.

“Thud.” A chair was placed on the ground.

Lu Huaizheng had pulled a chair from somewhere and put it beside himself. Without looking at Yu Hao, he kept his head down, twisting the dumpling in his hand, but his words were directed at her: “Come here, I’ll teach you.”

The chef nudged her with a smile: “Captain Lu has spoken. What are you waiting for?”

Yu Hao moved over. Lu Huaizheng’s movements were slow; occasionally, he would look up at her, and wait for her to follow along, and after she shaped the dumpling, he would slightly adjust it before casually placing it in the dish.

Yu Hao learned very attentively.

Finally, Lu Huaizheng smiled and said, “No need to learn so seriously. It doesn’t matter if they’re not well-made. Just get the general idea.”

Yu Hao looked up in confusion. “Why?”

“In the future, having one person at home who knows how to make them is enough.”

After he said this, he placed the last dumpling in the basin. Indeed, many hands make light work; the dumpling wrappers had unconsciously run out. The chef called out as he stood up to carry the basin into the kitchen.

Yu Hao’s heart pounded at his words, sweat forming on her skin.

Like a spring cocoon, her heart was tangled like a mess of threads, wild with emotion yet unable to contain it—like a delicate red veil, inadvertently igniting a fire in her heart.

When she looked up at him again,

He was calm and unconcerned, having stirred up a pool of spring water without knowing it. By now, he had already put on his cap, rolled down his sleeves, and led the group of soldiers directly out.

Zhao Dailin leaned in and gossiped in her ear: “Looks like my worry was unnecessary. Seeing the state between you two… what did he just whisper in your ear?”

Yu Hao’s face burned hot, turning to glare at her: “Senior Sister, why did you tell him about the marriage thing?”

This junior sister was very agreeable when she wanted to be, but if she decided to argue, she could be quite stubborn. Zhao Dailin pretended not to hear, hurriedly gathering her things and standing up. “I just remembered Professor Han asked me to send him an email… I need to go first.”

That evening was the cultural troupe’s last performance. After finishing the dumplings, the soldiers moved chairs to gather at the square.

Before the performance, Sui Zi came to find Yu Hao.

Yu Hao had just closed the office door when she turned to see Sui Zi standing under a bare magnolia tree not far away. She wore a black windbreaker over a black tight-fitting dance costume, her figure graceful as she waved.

Yu Hao wore a white coat with her hands in her pockets. Underneath was a white silk shirt and black trousers. As she walked, the wind gently lifted the hem of her coat. Sui Zi thought she looked spirited and valiant.

“Sister Yu Hao.”

Yu Hao stood facing the wind in front of her. “Looking for me?”

Sui Zi: “I have something I want to tell you.”

“Go ahead.”

“You said Xiao Hui didn’t take the thing, but I accused her publicly. Later, Huaizheng-ge told me that when you suspect someone but don’t have enough evidence, you shouldn’t accuse them in public because the harm it causes is unpredictable. This morning, Xiao Hui wasn’t in good form during rehearsal. Everyone seems to be keeping their distance from her because of this incident. I don’t know if she took it or not. I just thought since she likes to peek at my diary, I felt… now I… feel very guilty.”

Sui Zi looked embarrassed, visibly genuinely remorseful.

Yu Hao thought for a moment and said straightforwardly: “In this matter, you indeed did wrong. Feeling guilty is appropriate.”

“…”

“…”

Sui Zi’s eyes widened like copper bells, round and bright, wanting to ask: Are you a psychologist?

Yu Hao wasn’t good at comforting people. Her usual work involved helping people with psychological barriers analyze and discover problems, questioning that struck directly at the soul, and pulling out the darkest parts from deep within, all very directly.

The work of comforting and soothing had always been done by Zhao Dailin. Plus, with Sui Zi’s girlish thoughts, Yu Hao couldn’t claim to be professional.

Sui Zi persisted and asked a couple more questions.

“Sister Yu Hao, is there no way?”

Yu Hao looked at her. “What kind of way are you looking for?”

“To reduce guilt, or to make everyone not treat Xiao Hui that way.”

Yu Hao said: “Sui Zi, words once spoken and water once spilled—hasn’t your ‘Huaizheng-ge’ taught you this principle?”

“Fine, I’ll be more careful with my words in the future.” Sui Zi resigned herself. “I know everyone gossips about me behind my back too. To be honest, Sister Yu Hao, at first I was a bit happy, thinking she was finally tasting what it’s like to be slandered and disparaged. But then I realized that this makes me no different from her.”

“People aren’t that different from each other; it’s people and pigs that are different,” Yu Hao said without blinking, trying to comfort her.

“…”

At the square.

Lu Huaizheng was leaving tomorrow. After Sui Zi and her group finished their program, a few soldiers got carried away and volunteered to go on stage to sing. They said it was to celebrate Captain Lu’s departure and at the same time celebrate their liberation from Lu Huaizheng’s demonic training, declaring they would now go into Captain Sun’s embrace.

Sun Kai, also fond of jokes, played along to tease Lu Huaizheng: “Captain Sun’s embrace is always open to you.”

Lu Huaizheng sat below on a folding stool commonly used during training. His legs were spread, both elbows resting on his thighs, arms loosely hanging, with an absent-minded smile on his face as he watched the soldiers being rowdy on stage.

Yu Hao sat next to him, trying to take up as little space as possible, thinking this scene was rare.

It was clear they had a good relationship. Of course, since high school, who didn’t he get along with? He seemed to get along well with everyone. Even Director Tang couldn’t help saying from the side, “You guys have such a good relationship. I’ve never seen leaders and soldiers joke around like this.”

Lu Huaizheng smiled self-deprecatingly: “What kind of leader am I?”

Director Tang waved his hand dismissively, letting it go with a laugh.

As the atmosphere built up, even the usually quiet squad leader grabbed the microphone from someone else’s hand and said to Lu Huaizheng below: “Captain Lu, a song for you.” After saying this, he turned and waved to the soldier in charge of the music: “Music!”

This routine must have been rehearsed, as it was too smooth a transition.

As the familiar music started, Lu Huaizheng knew these guys were going to pull something on him.

Four or five soldiers stood in a row, arms around each other’s shoulders, singing into the microphone. Originally a tender song, but in their hands, it became something neither song nor tune.

“Most apt to forget ancient poets’ verses “Most disdainful of longing thoughts “Guarding love, fearing others’ laughter “Also fearing others seeing clearly “Spring comes again to see red beans bloom “Yet lovers are nowhere to be seen gathering them “Fireworks embrace romance, but true feelings are gone…”

When Yu Hao heard this song, her heart caught, and she turned to look at him while holding her breath. Amidst the chaotic singing, Lu Huaizheng looked back at her. The moonlight gently outlined his features, and his eyes held an uncommon uneasiness not seen in his usual demeanor.

Sun Kai hooked his arm around Lu Huaizheng’s neck and leaned over to explain the story behind the song to them, while Lu Huaizheng, in the dim light, extremely uncomfortably turned his face away.

He seemed a bit…

Shy.