Chapter 41 has been revised...

Chapter 41

January 26, 1971, was Lunar New Year's Eve. For some reason, this Spring Festival was destined to be anything but peaceful.

Because Jiang Lai decided to use the Illusion Pearl to solve the spy problem, and even chose to do so during the New Year's Eve dinner, this was bound to leave a deep impression on everyone. Given the wide range of people involved at this time and place, it was impossible not to be impressed.

Because some family members weren't eating in the cafeteria, Jiang Lai couldn't think of a good solution no matter how hard she tried. Finally, she realized how foolish she was to insist on doing everything herself.

Yes, Jiang Lai doesn't need to do it herself. She can easily get others to come up with a solution. As long as the Illusion Pearl is released and the leaders of the military region see the effect, they will find a way to get everyone to appear in the canteen. They have far more methods at their disposal than Jiang Lai does.

Having made up her mind, Jiang Lai was no longer in a hurry and waited for Ye Anguo to come and pick her up.

At four o'clock in the afternoon, Ye Anguo arrived with his three brothers, Ye Wenyu, and Ye Anguo.

"Grandpa, Grandma, Aunt Jiang Lai, we're here!" The youngest, Ye Zhangpeng, was the first to speak, followed by Ye Lixin and Ye Wenyu.

"Hey, Pengpeng, slow down, be careful not to fall." You Maidong quickly went to meet him.

Nine-year-old Ye Wenyu and eight-year-old Ye Lixin looked a little more mature than five-year-old Ye Zhangpeng, but not by much, as could be seen from their equally hurried steps.

"Aunt Jiang Lai, the new clothes are so pretty..." The three children excitedly twirled around in front of Jiang Lai, wearing the new clothes she had made for them.

"It really looks good. Lai Lai's hands are so skillful." You Maidong was very happy. Before this, she didn't know that Jiang Lai had made clothes for Ye Wenyu and the other two and brought them over. Moreover, judging from the fabric and the solid stitching, she knew that a lot of effort had been put into it.

"It must have been hard on you, Lai Lai. Making several sets must have taken a long time." Jiang Lai was very attentive to Ye Anguo and his son. You Maidong also felt sorry for Jiang Lai: "Look, these stitches are still hand-sewn. You shouldn't make them by hand when you have so many children. I'll buy you a sewing machine later, that would be easier, but it will still be hard on you."

"It's alright, I don't have anything to do at home anyway. But I'll accept whatever Auntie is worried about me, thank you Auntie." Jiang Lai wasn't being coy. If the Ye family promised to give her something, she would accept it; she wouldn't refuse.

Ye Wenyu, the eldest and most sensible, was deeply moved by You Maidong's words: "Aunt Jiang Lai, we all have clothes to wear, you don't need to work so hard."

Ye Lixin, who is a year younger than him, also said after hearing this, "Jiang Lai, you've worked hard."

Five-year-old Ye Zhangpeng also chimed in, "Thank you for your hard work, Aunt Jiang Lai."

"I'm glad you like them. I'll make you a few more sets when I have time so you can change into them." Everyone feels good about a grateful child, and Jiang Lai is no exception.

Watching the family enjoying themselves, Ye Anguo felt a surge of happiness in his heart. He thought to himself, "This must be the sense of security my comrades talk about after marriage."

Ye Yuanliang and You Maidong's thoughts were even simpler: what parents want most is for their children to be a loving and harmonious couple.

Like before, when Ye Anguo adopted Ye Wenyu and the others, although Ye Yuanliang and You Maidong did not object, Ye Anguo made his marriage a huge problem because of this. How could they not worry? They even turned a few hairs white from worry.

Now that Ye Anguo and Jiang Lai are together, and Jiang Lai is very caring towards Ye Anguo and his four sons, how could they not be happy? If Jiang Lai were to look back at the three of them now, she would see them grinning with their big white teeth.

However, Ye Anguo's joy wouldn't last long, as he still had a lot to do that evening. So he said, "It's almost time, Mom and Dad, Lai Lai, let me take you to the cafeteria first."

"Okay, do you need me to bring anything?" Jiang Lai had already made up her mind.

"You don't need to bring anything, just show up."

"Don't you need to help make dumplings or something? The cafeteria staff must be very busy today because it's Chinese New Year."

“Military families who are willing to help can also go, but since you have Wen Yu and the other two with you, you can look after them if there are too many people.” Ye Anguo couldn’t bear to let his frail little girl go to the kitchen to help.

"It's okay, they have their uncles and aunts to help watch over them. I'll go help in the kitchen. I'm not very good at rolling dough, but I'm pretty fast at making dumplings."

Jiang Lai didn't give Ye Anguo a chance to refuse and said directly, "Wait for me a moment, I'll go back to my room to get some arm sleeves."

As soon as she turned around, Jiang Lai said to Jin Nian in her heart, "Jin Nian, release the Illusion Pearl now, before we reach the cafeteria."

"Okay, where should we put it?" Jin Nian didn't ask why, but directly asked about the location.

"Didn't you say last time that the illusion of the Illusion Pearl could contain the entire cafeteria? Then let's use the entire cafeteria. Place the exit at the main entrance of the cafeteria. People who can pass through can come out from the main entrance, and those who can't pass through can also be placed at the main entrance, but they can't be made to wake up."

"No problem." Jin Nian finished speaking and went to get busy, while Jiang Lai actually went to get the arm sleeves and went to the cafeteria with Ye Anguo and the others.

This was the first time Jiang Lai and her group had gone out since arriving at the military region. On the way, Ye Anguo explained to her, "The family compound is just over there. It's divided into four sections: east, south, west, and north. If we're getting housing, it'll be in the south section..."

"That's the military region over there, you can't just go there casually. If you need to find me, you can only ask the comrade on guard at the gate to pass on the message. The canteen on this side is not usually open. It's only open on holidays like now when everyone eats together, or when there are performances. If family members want to go to the canteen, they can only go to the family canteen. And in order to reduce waste, the supply is limited, first come first served."

Ye Anguo pointed them out to her one by one, and Jiang Lai carefully memorized them, since she would be living here for a very long time if nothing unexpected happened.

"The food at Aunt Jiang Lai's family canteen is delicious," Ye Wenyu added. Aunt Jiang Lai is so beautiful, and her father said that her health isn't very good, so Ye Wenyu felt that it would be better to eat at the canteen like before, and she couldn't bear to see Jiang Lai work so hard to cook.

"Yes, yes, Aunt Jiang Lai, the braised pork in the cafeteria is especially delicious. I can eat two bowls of rice with it," Ye Lixin said, swallowing her saliva as she spoke.

"Braised pork ribs are delicious, and so is braised fish." Unlike his two older brothers, Ye Zhangpeng could control himself; his mouth was watering, showing how much he was craving it.

"I can tell now, all three of you are little gluttons and foodies." Jiang Lai chuckled, taking a handkerchief to wipe Ye Zhangpeng's face.

"We're not little foodies..." Ye Zhangpeng, though only five years old, was already shy and became unhappy when Jiang Lai called them little foodies.

"Okay, Auntie will cook something delicious for you later, do you want some? Braised pork ribs and braised pork belly are the most basic dishes. What about Li Xin and Wen Yu? Do you want some?"

Ye Wenyu, Ye Lixin, and Ye Zhangpeng all swallowed hard and said in unison, "Eat!!!" They said the word "eat" with such force that they were afraid the delicious food would fly away if they said it too late.

As they were talking, they arrived at the cafeteria entrance. Jiang Lai glanced around but didn't notice anything different. In fact, Jiang Lai couldn't see anything wrong with the naked eye.

As everyone stepped into the cafeteria, they were instantly transported into different dreamscapes, except for Jiang Lai, of course.

This illusion was something Jiang Lai and Jin Nian had planned long ago. It wasn't the kind of illusion specifically designed to test human nature, but rather it amplified all the selfish desires in everyone's heart. Once inside the illusion, what they saw were either what they wanted most at the moment or what their future would be like.

For example, Ye Anguo, after entering the illusion, saw that they had captured spies, cracked down on foreign forces, and that China was militarily strong. He saw that he and Jiang Lai had married, had a daughter, and that his parents and family were healthy, his family was harmonious and stable, and the country was prosperous. Just as he was enjoying his happiness, he stepped out and returned to the cafeteria entrance. Everything that had just happened seemed like a dream, and of course, it was indeed a dream.

However, he soon realized something was wrong. There were many other people in the same situation as him, and people kept walking out of the cafeteria with smiles on their faces and appearing in front of them. And to his left, there were a few other people.

Moreover, it was obvious that the other side, where the lines were clearly drawn, was not in a normal state. Their faces were full of silly grins, almost like greedy people who had found gold. Ye Anguo's first reaction was that they had not yet left the illusion.

Yes, Ye Anguo was now certain that everything he had just experienced was an illusion.

"Regiment Commander Ye, look, those people haven't come out yet? And isn't it a problem to separate them into one place?" The speaker was Wang Yubo, the commander of the 6th Regiment, who was also a regiment commander like Ye Anguo.

"Are they still trapped in the illusion and unable to escape?" Ye Anguo wasn't the only clever one; clearly, everyone had reached the same conclusion.

"I think we should go closer and listen to what they're saying," Ye Anguo suggested.

Normally, this kind of thing should be reported immediately, but it's not appropriate to do so now that we haven't figured out the situation of those people over there. After discussing it, they decided that some people would go to report, Ye Anguo and the others would go to the other side to check the situation, and the rest of them would stay where they were.

Their past decisions were certainly correct. Before they even got close, they could hear those people cheering and celebrating, their faces full of fanatical delusion, and the strange yet familiar language spoken by some of them.

"Damn those Japanese devils." Having all been through the illusionary space, Ye Anguo and his companions immediately understood that the illusion in the cafeteria was there to help them catch spies, and these people were clearly spies.

Ye Anguo and the others who knew about the spy incident were excited. They exchanged glances and instantly understood each other's meaning.

People who had passed through the illusion kept coming out of the canteen. Soon everyone was out, including military families and children, and Jiang Lai and others were also mixed in.

Jiang Lai had always known that the state apparatus operated quickly, but this was the first time she had ever seen how fast China's infrastructure was built. When she came out, she found that the spies that Jin Nian had found had been surrounded—literally surrounded. In such a short time, what was originally an open space had become a high wall, with heavily armed soldiers standing guard.

Everyone in the cafeteria had come out. Jiang Lai thought for a moment and said a few words to Jin Nian. Then, the Illusion Pearl suddenly appeared in Ye Anguo's hand, along with a letter.

Jiang Lai intends to give away the Illusion Pearl, and then she won't care how it's used afterward.

Why was Ye Anguo chosen? It was Jiang Lai's special selection, and also another test for Ye Anguo.

With today's events, and considering that Ye Anguo's group was the first to enter the illusion space, Ye Anguo's future is definitely bright. It all depends on whether Ye Anguo can still treat her the same way.

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Author's note: I've added some numbers.