Chapter 164 Arrival in the Capital
The dim morning light shines through the gaps in the curtains onto the desk.
The aroma of millet porridge wafted from the kitchen, mixed with the burnt aroma of fried eggs. Gu Qiuyue walked into the kitchen and saw Xie Shiyu wearing her floral apron, frantically flipping the fried eggs in the pan. Her mother-in-law Wang Xiulan was sitting at the dining table with Shuangshuang and Huahua, sipping porridge in small sips.
"Mom!" When the two children saw her, they immediately put down their spoons and rushed over.
Gu Qiuyue squatted down and hugged the two little ones in her arms: "Listen to Daddy and Grandma at home, Mommy will be back soon."
Huahua asked with red eyes: "How fast is fast?"
"Mom will be back when the pomegranate tree in the yard blooms." Gu Qiuyue said softly, gently wiping away the tears from the corners of her daughter's eyes.
Xie Shiyu came over with fried eggs, his eyes gentle: "Are you ready?"
"Yes." Gu Qiuyue stood up and took the plate from his hand. "I've prepared enough food coupons for you and the children to last for a month. They're in the drawer. I've also talked to Mom, and she'll be here this afternoon."
Xie Shiyu took out a small cloth bag from his pocket: "Take these with you. The expenses in Beijing are high, so don't treat yourself badly."
When Gu Qiuyue opened it, she saw neatly stacked food coupons and cash, which was a lot more than what she usually received.
After breakfast, Xie Shiyu pushed his bicycle to take her to the station. Gu Qiuyue sat on the back seat, her arms gently around his waist. The morning breeze blew her hair, and the poplar trees on both sides of the road rustled.
"Call me when you get there." Xie Shiyu's voice carried on the wind. "I've already made arrangements with the communications team. I can transfer you at any time."
"I know." Gu Qiuyue pressed her face against his broad back. "You should also take care of yourself. Don't always spend all day at the training ground forgetting to eat."
The train station was bustling with people, the green train was puffing white steam, and the platform was crowded with people coming to see her off. Xie Shiyu helped her carry her luggage into the carriage and found a seat by the window.
"Just send it here." Gu Qiuyue took the luggage. "Doesn't the army have a meeting?"
Xie Shiyu nodded, and suddenly reached out to hold her in his arms. The hug was strong and short, but it made Gu Qiuyue's eyes red in an instant.
"Come on." He whispered in her ear, then turned around and got out of the car.
The train started slowly, and Gu Qiuyue saw through the window his tall figure standing on the platform until he turned into a small black dot.
After more than ten hours of bumpy ride, the train finally arrived at Beijing Station. Gu Qiuyue got off the train with her luggage and was immediately surrounded by a familiar yet unfamiliar atmosphere.
Soon she found her parents in the crowd. They were craning their necks to look inside. Father Gu pushed his glasses down and spotted his daughter. He quickly waved to her, "Yueyue, this way!"
Gu Qiuyue walked towards her parents excitedly. Her father quickly took the luggage from her hands and said, "Let's go home."
After putting down my luggage, the first thing I did was to find a public phone.
The call was transferred several times before it was connected to Xie Shiyu's office. Hearing the familiar voice on the other end of the phone, Gu Qiuyue's heart finally settled down.
"I'm glad they're here." Xie Shiyu's voice was tinged with laughter. "The kids were just asking if Mommy had arrived yet. Shuangshuang got a little red flower in kindergarten today and said she wanted to leave it for Mommy."
Gu Qiuyue held the receiver, the corners of her mouth unconsciously raised: "Tell them that mom misses them very much. You also need to remember to eat on time and remember to take the stomach medicine I put in the drawer."
After hanging up the phone, Gu Qiuyue felt full of strength again.
She called Professor Zhu again, and Professor Zhu asked her to go to the Academy of Social Sciences to wait for him.
The next day, Gu Qiuyue stood outside the gate of the School of Social Sciences of Jingcheng University, watching the scholars coming in and out, and felt an indescribable excitement in her heart.
"Comrade Gu?" a familiar voice called from behind. Researcher Li came over, pushing his bicycle. "You're here really early! The tutoring class doesn't start until the day after tomorrow."
Gu Qiuyue quickly turned around and said, "Hello, Researcher Li, I'm here to see Professor Zhu, who was my teacher in college."
"That's perfect," Researcher Li said with a smile. "There's a small academic salon tonight, hosted by Professor Zhu. Would you like to come and experience the atmosphere in advance?"
Gu Qiuyue nodded in surprise: "Great! Thank you for giving me this opportunity."
At seven o'clock in the evening, Gu Qiuyue arrived at the classroom that Researcher Li mentioned on time. There were already about ten people sitting inside, most of them wearing glasses and having a strong scholarly air. Everyone was discussing the problems encountered in the reform of the dual-track pricing system. The atmosphere was warm and free.
Gu Qiuyue sat quietly in the corner, listening carefully to everyone's speech.
After the salon ended, a young scholar wearing glasses came over to say hello: "Are you new here? I haven't seen you before."
"My name is Gu Qiuyue, and I'm here to attend the postgraduate entrance exam preparation class."
"Oh, you're my junior sister. I'm also Wang Wei, a graduate student under Professor Zhu's supervision. I'll be in my second year soon." The young man pushed his glasses and said enthusiastically.
After returning home, Gu Qiuyue was still immersed in the excitement of the salon. She opened her notebook and quickly recorded her gains tonight.
The moonlight outside the window sprinkled on the desk, and the notebook with the mysterious note lay there quietly.
It was late at night when the quiet but distinct sound of an argument echoed from downstairs, shattering the night's stillness. Gu Qiuyue initially paid no attention; it was common for neighbors in a compound to occasionally argue. That was until the keywords "price reform" and "data model" drifted faintly through her window on the night breeze.
Her attention was drawn to these words, which were highly relevant to the research direction of her recent preparation for the examination at the Institute of Economics of the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences, and seemed particularly abrupt. She subconsciously walked to the window, gently parted the curtains and looked down.
Not far downstairs, under the dim light of the street lamp, there were two figures. They seemed to be deliberately lowering their voices, but when they were emotional, their words would still float up intermittently.
The silhouette and gestures of one of the men made Gu Qiuyue feel strangely familiar, but the light was dim and the distance was not close, so she couldn't be sure.
“…the validity of the sample must be re-verified…it cannot be cited as it is…”
"...but the simulation results have shown...the risks are controllable..."
She concentrated to listen more carefully, but the two people seemed to have reached some kind of temporary compromise, or realized that it was inappropriate to argue outdoors. They suddenly stopped talking, quickly separated, and walked towards different buildings, soon blending into the shadows of the buildings.
Gu Qiuyue lowered the curtains, but a trace of doubt arose in her heart. The familiar feeling lingered, but she could not grasp the exact clue.
She shook her head, walked back to her desk, and gently brushed over her course schedule, her eyes gleaming with anticipation for the future. A new journey was about to begin, but she had a vague feeling that the challenges ahead might go beyond just the written exam.
The night grew darker, but she had no desire to sleep. She sat down under the desk lamp again and spread out her review materials, but her eyes unconsciously glanced at the closed notebook with the mysterious note inside.
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