Chapter 317
After washing up, Si Nian walked out and asked curiously, "What's so funny? What are you talking about?"
Yu Dong was about to speak, but Zhou Yueshen interrupted in a deep voice, "Nothing much. You must be hungry, let's eat first."
Si Nian had originally thought to wash up and then come out to help him, but she didn't expect the man to be so quick, having already changed everything.
His bandaging skill was no worse than a hospital nurse's.
It seemed he was used to treating his own wounds.
She walked over, pulled up the small table, and opened the things Yu Dong had bought.
Inside were five or six steamed buns the size of a man's fist, millet porridge, some stir-fried cabbage, and a few eggs.
It looked simple and ordinary, but the portions were generous.
Yu Dong had packed it from the cafeteria; the troops basically ate these things every day.
Si Nian peeled an egg for Yao Yao to eat, and peeled another one for Zhou Yueshen, placing it in his bowl.
Zhou Yueshen finished it in two bites and added some cabbage to her bowl.
The military canteen food wasn't bad; the nutrition was balanced.
It was just that the flavor was a bit lacking, no spiciness.
The Second Child noticed his father's action and also stretched his bowl over, "Dad, I want some too."
Zhou Yueshen gave him a chopstickful as well, and also added some for Zhou Zedong and Yao Yao.
The Second Child didn't eat quietly, chattering excitedly about his fun experiences at school while eating.
The whole ward was lively and bustling.
Meanwhile, in the single room next door, a nurse had also delivered breakfast.
Fu Yang, pale-faced, was half-leaning against the headboard, his head turned to look at the scenery outside the window. His complexion was poor, and he had lost weight, the arrogance and aloofness he had when he first arrived gone.
The cheerful laughter and liveliness from the children next door made his room seem even emptier and quieter.
He looked somewhat pitiful.
It was said he had applied to switch to a private room from the shared ward overnight.
Originally, everyone thought this young master from the city was unwilling to lower himself to share a room with others, but now she seemed to understand a little.
The nurse carried the food in, "Regiment Commander Fu, I've brought your breakfast."
Fu Yang looked out the window, but his eyes were vacant, as if not really seeing anything, his thoughts elsewhere.
The nurse called twice before he heard, coming back to himself somewhat dazedly, "Just put it there."
The nurse glanced at him again. There was no denying that Regiment Commander Fu was indeed handsome with an exceptional aura. When he first arrived in their northwest region, he had caused quite a stir, with many people wanting to catch a glimpse of his extraordinary looks.
Back then, he just seemed different from their regiment commanders here. Their commanders were rough and burly. But this commander seemed like a true officer, his bearing clearly indicating he came from a prominent family, lofty and unattainable.
Yet, just over a month later, this favored son of heaven seemed to have suffered some great blow. His skin had darkened, his face looked terrible and pale, he had become terribly thin, and his whole person was filled with a sense of despondency.
Could it be that the failure of the no-man's-land mission and his injuries had dealt him too heavy a blow?
It was said when he was rescued, his life was hanging by a thread.
If Regiment Commander Zhou and the others had arrived any later, perhaps Regiment Commander Fu wouldn't have made it back.
It was said before that there were rumors from the troops about some friction between Regiment Commander Fu and Regiment Commander Zhou. Now, having been saved by Regiment Commander Zhou, he probably didn't feel good about it either.
Him showing such an expression now was somewhat understandable.
For the next two days, Zhou Yueshen's ward remained very lively.
Every day there was the children's cheerful laughter and the delicious smell of food.
Si Nian thought that since Zhou Yueshen's place had cooking facilities, she might as well buy some nourishing ingredients herself so his wounds would heal faster.
Staying in the hospital all the time wasn't ideal anyway.
She seasoned her cooking well, and every day when she carried it into the hospital, the aroma wafted everywhere.
Especially for Fu Yang next door, who now looked at the cabbage and plain porridge in his own bowl and found it utterly tasteless.
His expression grew colder and gloomier.
Things he once disdained and wouldn't give a second glance were now forever out of his reach.
Fu Yang's state of mind was complex, filled mostly with a tearing pain.
He never knew he could feel this way because of one person.
Even when Si Nian and Zhou Yueshen showed affection in front of him before, he only felt somewhat uncomfortable.
He didn't think he felt uncomfortable because he liked Si Nian; he just felt displeased seeing his former fiancée being intimate with another man before his eyes.
But that night, waking from a deep sleep and hearing that familiar voice, he knew immediately it was her. He was even pleasantly surprised, thinking that Si Nian had come to see him.
Then he thought it impossible; the northwest was so far away.
Until he heard Zhou Yueshen's voice and realized she had come from thousands of miles away, not for him.
Although Si Nian gave him a different feeling now, Fu Yang still felt she was very much like before. When she was good to someone, she gave her all, willing to do anything for them.
It was like that before, and it was like that now.
Only the object of her affection was no longer him.
Before coming to the northwest, he was aloof, cold and detached, and alone.
He looked down on matters of love between men and women.
But now, witnessing it firsthand, he realized how truly lonely he was.
It was as if everything around him was cold and dark, with only their family enveloped in warmth and happiness.
He saw Si Nian walk past the door of his ward carrying things without looking back, and he heard her clear, tinkling laughter from time to time, or her sweet nothings with the man.
The happiness on her face wasn't fake.
It was just that he had been blinded by his own pride, truly believing someone would spend their whole life considering him irreplaceable.
A clear realization was the most deadly.
He was unwilling to believe it, yet had to admit he had long lost to Zhou Yueshen, both in ability and in love.
Something everyone else knew, only he had been deceiving himself.
Si Nian had long since had no place for him in her heart...
In the past, Fu Yang would have certainly thought it didn't matter at all.
But he didn't understand why, on the day Si Nian truly didn't like him anymore, he would feel such pain.
As if something very important had completely disappeared from his world...
When Mother Fu and Fu Qianqian rushed to the military hospital, it was already noon.
When she saw her son lying alone on the worn-out hospital bed, his face gaunt, her heart ached and tears streamed down her face.
"Xiao Yang, are you okay? Mom's here, Mom came to see you, wuwuwu..." She hurried over, took her son's hand, and cried.
Fu Yang's once slender, fair hands were now covered in scars, which broke her heart.
Although her son had grown up in the military, he rarely got injured.
Let alone lying in bed now, unable to get up, covered in wounds.
Mother Fu knew the living conditions for soldiers in remote border areas were the harshest and most brutal, but seeing it with her own eyes was still hard to bear.
Fu Qianqian, usually loud and sharp-tongued, was quiet now, calling out softly, "Brother."
Fu Yang collected his thoughts and looked at the two of them.
Their arrival brought some life and warmth to this lifeless ward.
Fu Yang managed a slight twitch at the corner of his mouth.
Only someone who has faced death knows how important the people who care about you are.
He used to find it bothersome, but now he feels its warmth and preciousness.