Chapter 36 My savior? What do you have to offer me to compete with that?!

In Gu Beichen's office, the smell of smoke and gunpowder mingled together.

He was staring at a map of Hainan Island, studying the possible escape routes of the "Rat" gang, his brows furrowed into a deep frown.

"Report!"

Xiao Wang pushed open the door and entered, his face filled with barely suppressed excitement.

"Commander, I think... I think I've found my savior!"

Gu Beichen raised his head, his deep eyes showing no emotion.

Xiao Wang embellished his account of what he had just seen at the hospital, focusing on the mark on Shen Qingqing's hand, her trip to Shanghai, and her hesitant reaction.

"Commander, the time and place match up! Dr. Shen, she..."

Gu Beichen's brows furrowed even more.

Shen Qingqing?

The image of Shen Qingqing's face, always tinged with jealousy and scheming, flashed through his mind, contrasting it with the woman in his memory who had saved his life in the darkness...

wrong.

Something feels completely wrong.

The woman had clear, calm eyes and carried a cool, herbal scent. Her movements were so professional that even he, who was used to seeing life and death, was startled.

Shen Qingqing, on the other hand, always carried that cloyingly sweet perfume scent, and her eyes always held a cunning glint.

The grace of saving a life is as great as the heavens.

If it really is her, he must repay this kindness.

But the thought of having to be grateful to someone like Shen Qingqing made Gu Beichen feel inexplicably irritated.

He looked up and gazed out the window toward the small courtyard where Su Yue lived. Those clear, slightly mischievous eyes appeared before him once again.

I felt incredibly conflicted.

"Go check."

Gu Beichen withdrew his gaze, his voice icy cold.

"I need a detailed report of her activities in Shanghai last month, including who she met and what she did. I need the most detailed report possible, and I need it quickly."

Regardless of whether it is true or not, he wants a definite answer.

...

The next day, the weather was fine.

Su Yue was in a rare good mood; the wound on her left arm had mostly healed thanks to the spiritual spring water and ointment.

She hummed a tuneless little tune as she prepared to go to the service store to buy some fresh meat and fabric to make two new outfits for Gu Beichen.

That man, despite his high position and great power, wore only a few different clothes, and the collars of his clothes were even a bit worn.

As we passed the training ground, deafening slogans echoed through the air.

Su Yue glanced over instinctively, but her steps suddenly stopped.

Under the sunlight, at the edge of the training field, under a large tree, Gu Beichen stood tall and straight, while opposite him, Shen Qingqing was holding his arm, crying with tears streaming down her face.

"Brother Chen, I know you only have Su Yue in your heart, but I... I really didn't mean anything by it, I just wanted to see you..."

As Shen Qingqing sobbed, her peripheral vision kept her eyes fixed on Su Yue, who was not far away.

It's here!

Overjoyed, she seized the opportunity, her legs gave way, and she collapsed weakly into Gu Beichen's arms.

"Brother Chen, I feel so dizzy..."

Gu Beichen instinctively reached out and caught Shen Qingqing before she fell.

A soldier's instinct made it impossible for him to stand by and watch a woman fall down in front of him.

This scene was witnessed by Su Yue in its entirety.

Men are tall and strong, while women are weak and helpless.

The two clung tightly to each other.

It's like a painting that's both incredibly harmonious and incredibly jarring.

The smile on Su Yue's face froze little by little, and finally disappeared without a trace.

She said nothing, did nothing, simply turned around expressionlessly, took a step, and walked away without looking back.

My heart felt as if it were being gripped by an invisible hand, slowly sinking into the icy depths of the sea.

On the other side, the moment Gu Beichen helped Shen Qingqing up, a strong, pungent perfume scent rushed into his nostrils.

This smell was completely different from the cool, herbal scent he remembered from his savior!

His gaze instantly shifted from an instinctive act of helping to a chilling coldness and suspicion.

He shoved Shen Qingqing away with such force that she staggered back several steps and almost fell again.

"Dr. Shen, please have some self-respect."

Gu Beichen's voice was as cold as the winter wind.

His sharp gaze swept over Shen Qingqing's calculating face before abruptly turning towards the direction Su Yue had left.

But there was no one there anymore.

All that remained was the dust blown by the wind and Shen Qingqing's face, twisted with the pain of her successful plan.

Overnight, the entire military compound changed its political climate.

Yesterday, everyone envied Commander Gu's fiancée, but today she has become the object of everyone's sympathy.

"Have you heard? Commander Gu was seriously injured in Shanghai, but someone else saved his life!"

"That's right! It's Dr. Shen from the military hospital! She's beautiful and comes from a good family. She and Commander Gu are a match made in heaven!"

"Hey, I knew it! How could that capitalist's daughter be worthy of our Commander Gu? I saw Dr. Shen and Commander Gu talking over there at the training ground yesterday. They were so affectionate, and Dr. Shen even fell into the commander's arms!"

Rumors grow wings and fly faster than anything else.

When Li Sao and Zhang Sao saw Su Yue again, their eyes changed. Their previous warmth turned into obvious sympathy, and they even looked at her with a hint of schadenfreude.

Su Yue carried a bucket to fetch water, and they immediately fell silent, exchanging meaningful glances.

Su Yue was too lazy to pay attention to these gossipy women.

In her small courtyard, the few herbs that had been moved from the space were lush and green, growing vigorously thanks to the water from the spiritual spring.

She was squatting on the ground, carefully loosening the soil around a fern, when a deliberately raised voice came from outside the courtyard gate.

"Sigh, there's really nothing we can do. Brother Chen is just too sentimental and too stubborn."

It was Shen Qingqing's voice.

She wore a brand new pink dress today, with exquisite makeup on her face, and looked radiant, like a peacock spreading its tail feathers.

She was surrounded by several familiar military wives, who listened to her "complaints" with envy.

“Brother Chen insists on repaying my life-saving grace. I said it was nothing and not worth worrying about, but he wouldn’t listen. He even said… he said he couldn’t let me suffer. I really don’t know what to do with him.”

Although Shen Qingqing said "there's nothing I can do," she couldn't hide the smugness in her eyes. Her gaze, like a hook, kept glancing at Su Yue, full of boasting and provocation.

Su Yue stopped loosening the soil.

A life-saving grace?

Shanghai Stock Exchange?

Embracing on the training ground?

Several keywords strung together caused something to explode in Su Yue's mind.

She remembered that this kind of innocent, self-righteous character was popular in period dramas, wasn't it?

Last month, I saved someone in an abandoned old house in Shanghai; that person was Gu Beichen.

Shen Qingqing also went to Shanghai and is now claiming to be her savior.

Ah, I see.

Once Su Yue understood the situation, she felt no more emotional turmoil and even found it somewhat amusing.