Chapter 55

Ye Qingshui sat on the sleeper berth, her gaze sweeping across the surroundings.

There were only five or six passengers in the entire carriage.

It wasn’t as crowded or noisy as she had imagined; everything was orderly and calm. Of course, this was the same train as in her previous life. Back then, it was Ye Qingshui’s first time traveling far by train, and everything felt so new and exciting.

Like a cheerful little bird, she had chirped endlessly to Xie Tingyu.

At that time, Ye Qingshui had asked him, “Why didn’t they board the train with us?”

Xie Tingyu had simply replied, “They bought their tickets late.”

Now, as Ye Qingshui looked at the serious faces of the passengers around her, she realized this must be a special train reserved for leadership.

It clearly wasn’t a matter of when tickets were bought. The Xie Tingyu from her past life had really known how to fool people.

Beside her, Xie Tingyu was busy arranging their luggage and buying lunch. He entered the carriage and handed her two steaming hot boxed meals.

He wiped the chopsticks he carried with him and warmly invited her, “Come, try the lunch?”

The meals on the special train were incredibly rich: braised prawns, red-braised pork ribs, stir-fried lettuce with pork, a small dish of pickles, and two pieces of fruit. The lavish spread stood in stark contrast to the bland fast food usually found on trains. Xie Tingyu had paid for the boxed meals. Although Ye Qingshui technically had no say over his money, she couldn’t help but think it was a bit wasteful.

She had actually packed dry rations, enough to last a few days.

Xie Tingyu had no idea the young girl before him was thinking so much.

He simply said, “Eat. It may not be as tasty as what Shui’er makes herself, but the journey is still long. Eat well and take a nap.”

Ye Qingshui picked up her chopsticks and took a few bites. The food was actually pretty good—she hadn’t had shrimp in a long time. The prawns were sweet and fresh, the meat firm and bouncy. She couldn’t help but smile with her eyes.

Xie Tingyu wiped the sweat off his forehead and casually took off his black overcoat.

Watching Ye Qingshui eat contentedly, and finally take a bite of an apple, her cheeks flushed like the fruit itself. Her pearl-like teeth sank into the fruit flesh, radiating a kind of indescribable cuteness.

Xie Tingyu gently touched the ends of her hair, his thumb unconsciously twirling it, as he began talking to her about his family.

“My dad is fifty this year. He doesn’t talk much and rarely smiles, so don’t take it personally when you meet him. He’s not very approachable. As for my stepmother and younger sister, Shui’er, just greet them politely. That’ll be enough… And Shui’er,”

Ye Qingshui interrupted, “Why are you explaining everything so clearly?”

She looked at Xie Tingyu’s proud and confident smile, and she couldn’t help wanting to deflate his ego. If he knew she was still thinking about divorce, wouldn’t he go mad?

But seeing the anticipation in Xie Tingyu’s eyes, she hesitated and decided not to say anything hurtful.

So this is what it feels like to be cautiously cared for by someone.

The surrounding passengers looked at the young couple and exchanged knowing smiles.

A man said, “He’s explaining so much because he’s afraid you’ll be nervous visiting his home for the first time.”

“Every bride has to meet the in-laws eventually.”

The northern man’s accent from the capital and the southern girl’s soft voice intertwined, evoking memories of their own youth in the hearts of other passengers.

…

The special train traveled faster than regular trains, with very few stops along the way. Within a few days, they arrived in the capital.

After getting off the train, Xie Tingyu instinctively picked up all the luggage.

Ye Qingshui held her own backpack. “This one’s fine.”

Xie Tingyu tugged her braid and forcefully took it from her with his other hand. “Give it to me. What’s the point of wasting perfectly good labor? Shui’er, are you worried about tiring me out?”

“After sitting on the train so long, I’m tired too.”

An older man getting off the train with them chuckled, “Young man knows how to take care of his wife!”

Ye Qingshui turned her head away. Xie Tingyu took her by the hand and led her to a bus. After a long ride, they finally arrived at the military family compound of Military District B. There were guards every few steps, the quiet air occasionally broken by the chirping of birds.

The gate guard was tall and imposing. He repeatedly checked Ye Qingshui’s identity before letting her in.

Xie Tingyu squeezed her hand and noticed how cold and clammy it was. “Cold?”

Ye Qingshui shook her head. “Just a little carsick.”

At the Xie household.

Xu Maofang was feeling restless that day. She paced back and forth at home, muttering, “Why isn’t Tingyu back yet? Should I go to the station to pick him up? It is his first time bringing home a wife, after all.”

Xu Maofang, deep down, didn’t really want to go. But Old Xie had surprisingly come home early today, so as a stepmother, she had to show some courtesy.

Xie Jun sat on the sofa, stiff-faced and silent, reading the newspaper.

Xie Dongmei turned her head away, uninterested, and continued watering her plants. She understood her mother’s thoughts clearly. Her brother had always been kind to her. After being apart for nearly a year, she did want to go greet him—but when she remembered that uncultured, ignorant country girl her brother had married, Xie Dongmei almost fainted from disgust.

She’d heard that rural people were difficult and unreasonable. Thinking about that uncle in the military who had married a country girl, Xie Dongmei completely lost any enthusiasm for welcoming her new sister-in-law.

She quietly asked her mother, “What’s for dinner tonight?”

Xu Maofang raised her voice warmly, “Let’s wait for Shui’ya to arrive and ask if she has any dietary restrictions, right, Old Xie?”

Xie Dongmei curled her lips and whined, “I want sweet and sour fish.”

Just as Xu Maofang was about to say, “Sure,” the doorbell rang.

She hurried excitedly to the door, but the smile on her face froze.

What kind of person had Xie Tingyu married from the countryside?

That question had lingered in everyone’s mind—not just in the Xie household, but throughout the entire military compound. After all, Xie Tingyu had always been the most promising and well-mannered young man in the compound.

Countless eligible young women had inquired about him over the years.

And this year, they finally heard he had gotten married! But to everyone’s shock, it was to a girl from the countryside where he’d been sent down!

The neighbors were all watching with anticipation—some with schadenfreude, some with regret, and most with curiosity.

After reading a letter from her daughter’s friend, Xu Maofang had formed an image in her mind of a plain, simple country girl—probably with perpetually dirty fingernails, shy and mumbling, totally unpresentable.

The moment she saw Xie Tingyu’s wife, her smile stiffened.

She hadn’t expected Shui’ya to be this unappealing.

“‘Shui’ya?” she blurted out in surprise.

The woman who rang the bell appeared to be about twenty-five, her complexion sallow and her lips pale. Her fingers were red and swollen from the cold. The moment she saw Xu Maofang, she asked:

“Excuse me, is this Commander Xie’s residence?”

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