Nothing happened

After returning to Shandong, Zhang Chenglin enjoyed a few peaceful days.

Finally, one quiet night, together with Ji Yuxing, we received a letter from Shanghai.

The two letters were written by Sheng Dongsheng himself. In just a few words, he described the increasingly tense situation in the country and explained the decision of the Party Central Committee to have high-ranking officials select elite personnel from various regions to return to Shanghai to await further instructions from the Central Committee.

Without hesitation, Zhang Chenglin and Ji Yuxing, along with Xin Jie and Zhou Zhu, took the next available flight to Shanghai.

At that time, China's heavy industry was not advanced, and the noise from imported airplanes was extremely loud, almost deafening.

Ji Yuxing sat by the window, staring intently at the clouds outside.

When Zhang Chenglin turned his head for the seventh time and saw that he was still in the same position, he couldn't help but ask, "What are you doing?"

"Look at Shandong." Ji Yuxing turned to look at him reluctantly. "Every look is one less. What if that look is the last?"

Zhang Chenglin frowned upon hearing this and remained silent.

After Zhang Chenglin and Ji Yuxing arrived in Shanghai, they were placed near the Central Committee of the Party organization in the alleyway of Xiangdong, along with other people who had been transferred back from various places, so that they could step in whenever something happened.

After spending two days in Shanghai, at noon that day, after Xin Jie finished talking with Zhang Chenglin, Zhang Chenglin suddenly remembered something and wrote a letter to Ji Ruqiong, who was still in Shandong and had not yet returned to Shanghai. He gave the letter to Xin Jie and asked him to mail it.

Upon receiving the letter, Xin Jie went to the post office without hesitation.

The post office was very quiet today; apart from the staff, there wasn't a single person there to conduct business.

Following the staff's instructions, Xin Jie filled out the mailing form step by step, affixed stamps to the envelopes, and watched as the staff completed the final distribution work before turning around and leaving the post office with peace of mind.

But shortly after he mailed the letter and left the post office, someone came out from the corner of the wall and entered the post office.

Yi Boyan walked straight to the mailing counter, took out a work ID from his inner pocket, flashed it in front of the staff, and said in a low voice: "Shanghai Mail Confidentiality Office, we received a notice from our superiors that the letter that was just delivered contains classified information and needs to be taken away for investigation."

The mail security office oversees all mail shipments, and all post offices must cooperate if any classified information is discovered.

The post office staff, naturally, dared not slack off and handed the letter that Xin Jie had just sent to Yi Boyan.

Yi Boyan took the letter back to the alley in his hometown, and only opened it under the lamp when he returned to his residence.

The contents of the document are about asking Ji Ruqiong to help redeem Fengyue from her servitude at Huayuelou.

Yi Boyan held the letter in his hand, a sinister smile curling at the corner of his mouth. Finally, he used the kerosene lamp to illuminate one corner of the letter, watching as the dark yellow paper burned to ashes under the lamplight.

Some things always happen by chance, and some people are destined to part ways and never meet again. Feng Yue understood this principle well, and Zhang Chenglin understood it just as well.

Neither of them was good at expressing their feelings, and they never understood the love that the other had written in their hearts.

Feng Yue never knew, even in death, that Zhang Chenglin had "saved" her from that ordeal.

*

Meanwhile, in Shandong.

Feng Yue and Ji Ruqiong were seeing Chai Feixue off at Zaozhuang Railway Station.

Seeing Ji Ruqiong's expression as if she was about to cry, Chai Feixue smiled and comforted her, "Alright, alright, maybe we'll see each other again soon."

Ji Ruqiong knew that the possibility of what she was talking about was extremely slim, so she pursed her lips and didn't reply.

“Our Ah-Qiong is just like her brother, destined for great things. How can she cry here over such a small farewell?” Chai Feixue hugged her, gently patted her back, and then let go of her: “Alright, I really have to go.”

"You guys should go back quickly," Chai Feixue said with a smile as she walked into the station, "Bye-bye."

Ji Ruqiong still pouted, but simply waved her hand at her.

Fengyue smiled beside her and said, "Bye-bye."

“My brother and Lin-ge are leaving, and we don’t know when they’ll be back.” On the way back, Ji Ruqiong suddenly asked, “Will you be sad?”

Feng Yue lowered her eyes, gently shook her head and smiled, saying only, "He has his own world."

"Then if..." As if knowing what Ji Ruqiong was going to ask, Feng Yue interrupted her before Ji Ruqiong could ask the question, and said with a smile, "Asking me this question is really putting me in a difficult position."

Ji Ruqiong stopped herself from speaking, and just looked up at her without saying a word for a long time.

She knew nothing about romance and wasn't particularly familiar with it, but at this moment, she truly couldn't understand it.

Ji Ruqiong was also recalled to Shanghai a week after Ji Yuxing and Chai Feixue left Shandong.

Yi Boyan and Ji Yuxing came to pick them up at the airport. Ji Ruqiong was naturally happy to see them and greeted them with a smile: "Brother, Ayan."

"Welcome back." Yi Boyan smiled gently and handed her a large bouquet of flowers.

"Wow," Ji Ruqiong took the flowers with both hands and hugged them tightly in her arms, "There are still flowers to collect when you come back."

The three of them got into the car outside the airport. Ji Ruqiong straightened her expression and asked Yi Boyan and Ji Yuxing, "How's Shanghai lately?"

"For now, nothing has happened." Yi Boyan spoke first. "The Party leaders are holding meetings every day. The situation in the north must be very serious, but I don't know why we haven't received any news."

“The people they’ve sent out have come and gone in batches, but none of them have encountered any particularly difficult problems, so I guess the higher-ups won’t be able to make a decision anytime soon,” Yi Boyan said, before suddenly changing the subject, “But judging from Mr. Sheng and Mr. Tan’s condition these past few days, I guess it’ll be over in the next couple of days.”

"We won't be staying in Shanghai for long."

After hearing Yi Boyan's words, Ji Ruqiong looked at Ji Yuxing with a worried expression.

Ji Yuxing happened to be looking at her and, seeing the worry on her face, comforted her, "It's okay, we can just go back together then."

"Okay." Ji Ruqiong nodded, but the worry in her eyes wouldn't go away.

As they had always anticipated, the war would eventually begin in the north, and the Northeast, being the northernmost part of China, would be the first to suffer.

But their home is there, with their relatives and loved ones.

After Ji Ruqiong left Shandong, Fengyueren was in a daze, unable to eat anything, and had little strength. It seemed like she had caught a cold, but not quite.

But life had to go on, and she couldn't stay in this state forever, so on a sunny day, she went to the health center alone.

The nurse performed various examinations on her, and finally took her pulse, remaining silent for a long time in deep thought.

Feng Yue felt a little scared and asked, "Doctor, what's wrong with me?"

"You're pregnant."

The nurse spoke very quickly, uttering each four words without any hesitation.

So fast that Fengyue thought she had misheard, "Pregnant?"

“Yes,” the nurse nodded, writing something on the medical record, and then added, “It’s been more than a month. You need to pay attention to your diet and avoid strenuous activity. You need to take good care of your body.”

He handed her the completed medical record, saying, "I've written down some precautions for you. Take a good look at them when you get home."

"Remember, never do heavy work."

The nurse looked her up and down and said, "You're dressed so elegantly, you probably don't need to do housework at home. Remember to go back and take good care of yourself."

The woman was in a daze, and hesitantly nodded, "Okay, thank you, doctor."

After saying that, he took the form and left the health center.

The bright sun in the sky had been partially obscured by dark clouds at some point. The weather in mid-February was still a bit chilly. A gust of cold wind blew by, and Fengyue subconsciously pulled her coat tighter around herself.

The things in this world are just too ridiculous. Why did it have to be this time? How could it have to be this time?

Fengyue didn't know where to go, or even where she could go, so she could only keep moving forward until she finally stopped in front of the Zhang residence.

Seemingly noticing the commotion at the door, the old butler opened the door from the inside.

Seeing that it was her, he greeted her with a smile: "Miss Fengyue?"

"May I come in?" Feng Yue was somewhat lost in thought and didn't laugh, but simply asked.

“Yes, yes,” the old butler nodded repeatedly. “Of course, please come in.”

Because Zhang Chenglin was not there, the fireplace in the house had been extinguished, and it was cold and deserted, without a trace of his presence.

"I might... stay here for a while."

Feng Yue spoke up, expecting the old butler to refuse, but to her surprise, the old butler said, "The master specifically instructed that you can stay here as long as you wish."

Feng Yue nodded, "Thank you."

After a while, the old butler came back in and lit the fireplace for her, and the cold room instantly became warm.

After finishing his work, the old butler didn't linger in the room; he turned around and went to where he was supposed to be.

Fengyue casually sat down at the table, took out the medical record from her coat pocket, and carefully read it word by word... and an entire afternoon passed by.

She didn't come to her senses until the old housekeeper came in and knocked on the door: "What is it?"

"Miss Fengyue, I'm going out to shop now. Is there anything you need me to bring back?"

"Just buy some groceries."

"OK."

The old butler agreed and turned to leave.

Fengyue watched him close the door, then turned to look at the unchanged furnishings in the room. After being in a daze all afternoon, she finally began to come back to her senses.

Without realizing it, she reached out and touched her flat stomach. She had actually... had a child with him.

But when will he find out?

How would he react if he found out?

If he comes back, will they be able to have a home together?

These questions are unknown and unsolvable to Feng Yue now. How can one person possibly understand the matters between two people?