Howard seemed not to hear the doorman's invitation and remained motionless.
Only the long piece of cigarette ash, finally unable to bear the weight, broke silently and drifted onto his military trousers.
The night was as thick as ink that couldn't be dissolved.
The cold wind whipped up the withered leaves on the ground, swirling them around and making a whistling sound.
The lights in the research institute building were almost all off, with only a few windows letting in light, like silent eyes.
Suddenly, the tightly closed side door of the research institute creaked open.
Howard's fingers, holding a cigarette, twitched almost imperceptibly, and his gaze beneath the brim of his hat instantly sharpened like a hawk's, precisely targeting the doorway.
A tall, thin figure wearing dark blue overalls and glasses hurried out, still carrying a thick stack of documents under his arm. It was none other than Xiao Zhao, the technician from earlier that day.
He hunched his shoulders and walked hurriedly, clearly having just finished his work.
However, he did not leave immediately. Instead, he looked around and then quickly walked towards an old bicycle parked by the roadside.
Just as he bent down to unlock the car, his movement stopped.
He seemed to have remembered something extremely important, and his face showed an anxious and annoyed expression. He suddenly slapped his forehead.
Then, without hesitation, he turned around and hurriedly ran back to the gate of the research institute!
Old Li from the gatehouse clearly recognized him and didn't stop him too much.
Xiao Zhao's figure quickly disappeared through the crack in the reopened door.
Howard's gaze was fixed on the side door that had been closed again, and his brows under his hat furrowed more and more.
The half-smoked cigarette between his fingers was unconsciously squeezed out of shape.
Why did he go back so late?
Xiao Zhao ran back to the research institute building, headed straight for the black crank telephone in the duty room, his heart pounding. He grabbed the receiver, his fingers trembling as he dialed Zhang Mingyuan's number.
“Dean Zhang… it’s me! Xiao Zhao from the Technical Department!” He said in a low voice, his voice slightly breathless.
"Something terrible has happened! I...I just went out and saw at the door...Commander Huo! It's Comrade Mingzhao's lover! She's still waiting in the car at the door! It's already past midnight!!"
On the other end of the phone, Zhang Mingyuan, still groggy from being startled awake by the ringing, sat bolt upright upon hearing the name "Commander Huo." "Damn it!" he slapped his thigh, all sleepiness gone. "I completely forgot about it! I was so focused on the momentous matter at the Red Star Factory that I forgot to inform Commander Huo!"
"Xiao Zhao!" Zhang Mingyuan's voice was filled with frustration and urgency. "Hurry up! Go to the main gate! Tell Commander Huo that Comrade Mingzhao has been staying at the Red Star Machinery Factory these past few days! Tell him not to wait! Don't worry! He's safe and sound, it's just that the task at hand is urgent!"
"Okay! I'll be right there!" Xiao Zhao felt relieved after receiving confirmation, and rushed out after hanging up the phone.
Outside the institute's gates, the cold wind howled even stronger. Inside the jeep, Howard's cigarette had long since burned out, leaving only a cold butt. The shadow beneath his hat concealed all his expressions, except for his jawline, taut like a drawn bowstring.
"Commander Huo! Commander Huo!" Xiao Zhao wrapped his thin work clothes tighter around himself and ran to the car against the cold wind, his breath instantly turning into white mist. "I'm so sorry to have kept you waiting!"
Howard slowly turned his face, his sharp and calm gaze under the brim of his hat landing on Xiao Zhao's face, which was red from the cold, and said nothing.
Xiao Zhao felt a little intimidated by his gaze and quickly said, "I just...I just confirmed with Dean Zhang! Comrade Mingzhao...she's been staying at the Hongxing Machinery Factory these past few days! The mission is extremely urgent, Dean Zhang, please rest assured!"
Howard was silent for a few seconds. The night wind whistled through the car roof. His fingers on the steering wheel tightened almost imperceptibly, his knuckles turning slightly white.
"I understand." He finally spoke, his voice low and steady, devoid of any emotion, like a stone thrown into a deep pool. "Thank you."
After saying that, he rolled up the car window decisively. The engine let out a low growl, the Jeep suddenly turned around, its headlights piercing the dark night, and sped off towards the residential compound, quickly disappearing at the end of the road.
Standing in the cold night wind, watching the taillights of the departing car, Xiao Zhao felt a chill run down his spine for no apparent reason. Commander Huo's "thank you" sounded... far too calm.
The jeep sped along the deserted road. Outside the window, darkness was impenetrable, with only the headlights piercing a small patch of flickering light ahead. A biting wind seeped in through the cracks in the windows.
Howard's face was hidden in the shadows of the driver's seat, expressionless. Only his hands gripping the steering wheel showed his knuckles, which were unusually prominent from the force of his grip. He pressed the accelerator much harder than before.
A sense of loss, like a cold tide, silently crept in, seeping into every part of his body. He thought she was just working late. He even thought about taking her out for something warm when she came out... A new wonton stall had opened near the entrance of the residential compound; he'd heard it was quite good.
And what was the result?
She went to the Red Star Factory. She stayed there for a few days.
Her husband was the last to know. He learned it from a stranger, a technician.
The wheels rolled over the potholes, and the car lurched violently. Howard pursed his lips. He recalled the scene he'd witnessed in the Red Star factory workshop earlier that day. The technician named Xiao Zhao, looking at Mingzhao with such focused, fervent eyes, like a believer gazing upon a god. And the old worker named Wang Dachui, looking at Mingzhao with a gaze a mixture of shock and awe…
Her world is unfolding at an astonishing pace.
That world was filled with cold machines, intricate blueprints, visions ahead of their time, and... countless people drawn to her abilities and brilliance.
And what about him?
He was just a man who got her out of the National Security Bureau, "tied" her to his side with a marriage certificate, and thought he could protect her.
It seems that he even needs someone to tell him where she is.
An unprecedented sense of powerlessness and alienation weighed heavily on my chest.
What he considered "home" might have been merely a point of reference for basic survival in her eyes? Like a research institute, like the break room at the Red Star Factory?
The jeep swerved roughly into the gate of the residential compound, the screeching of its brakes particularly jarring in the quiet night. Its headlights swept across the tightly closed doors and windows of No. 17 Xiangyang Compound, a completely dark space.
Howard turned off the engine and removed the key. He didn't get out of the car immediately, but simply sat quietly in the driver's seat, looking at the darkness that belonged to "home".
The carriage was deathly silent, except for his suppressed breathing, which mingled with the howling wind outside the window.
After a long while, he took out a cigarette case from his pocket, pulled one out and put it in his mouth. The lighter clicked, and the pale blue flame flickered, illuminating his tightly pursed lips and the unfathomable melancholy in his eyes.
He lit a cigarette and took a deep drag.
The pungent smoke filled my lungs, but it couldn't suppress the churning bitterness in my heart.
She doesn't need him to wait. Perhaps... she doesn't even need him anymore?
This thought was like a poisonous thorn, piercing deep into my heart.
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