Chapter 25 Visit...
Just then, a rapidly moving figure appeared in the rearview mirror.
The driver glanced at the rearview mirror with annoyance, then at the not-full carriage, and hesitated whether to step on the gas.
Wu Wei ran all the way from the steel plant, his breathing steady, and immediately noticed Ren Qingbai standing at the station entrance.
He immediately realized that the battalion commander's family must have gotten into the car across the street.
He immediately covered his mouth with both hands, and with the force of someone shouting commands in the army, yelled at the car:
"Wait! Wait!"
At the same time, when Wu Wei passed by Ren Qingbai, he didn't forget to call him to follow.
Ren Qingbai looked at Wu Wei, who had suddenly appeared, with a puzzled expression. Wu Wei was Qingsong's comrade-in-arms, and the two were quite familiar with each other at the steel plant.
But this whole ordeal this morning still left him completely bewildered.
Ren Qingbai followed Wu Wei's steps without understanding why.
During the high-speed chase, the driver finally agreed to switch his foot to the accelerator.
Before the bus had even come to a complete stop, the ticket seller flung open the door and stuck her head out, shouting, "Buy your ticket and get on!"
Wu Wei stopped in front of the car door and saluted as usual. "Comrade, I need to see a military family member. I won't take the car."
These days, soldiers are respected the most. Upon hearing this, the ticket seller immediately stepped back, and her expression turned respectful.
"Comrade, please."
Upon hearing Wu Wei's answer, the people on the bus all looked around, trying to see which one of them was a military family member.
Ren Qingbai didn't understand Wu Wei's meaning, but he still helped by pointing out his uncle and aunt.
“Wu Wei, those are my brother Qingsong’s parents and older brother.”
"Hello, Uncle and Aunt!"
Ren Fugui and Cui Dani had no impression of Wu Wei, especially when their son's life was at stake, what did it mean that he suddenly stopped them?
"Hello, Comrade Wu."
Ren Fugui glanced at his wife and son, then frowned in response.
Wu Wei knew that the other party was worried about the battalion commander's health, so he immediately spilled all the information he had just received.
"My name is Wu Wei. I used to train and fight under the battalion commander. Someone just called the factory from the army and asked me to pass on a message to you two."
"What news?"
Cui Dani suddenly became tense and leaned her upper body out of the car window, her eyes full of anxiety.
Although it wasn't so obvious, Ren Fugui and Ren Qingshan subconsciously leaned their bodies towards the outside of the car.
"The person on the other end of the phone said she was the battalion commander's sister."
"Miya!"
"It should be Miya!"
The Ren family immediately realized the identity of the visitor and the telegram sent in Miya's voice.
Wu Wei nodded and added, "They said the battalion commander has woken up. Please don't rush to visit him; he's waiting for you at the army base."
Upon hearing this, the Ren family, who had been anxious all night, could finally breathe a sigh of relief.
He's awake now, at least not in a state of life or death uncertainty.
On her way here, Cui Dani was extremely anxious, fearing that San'er would have already left before she even reached the military base.
She patted her rapidly beating heart and asked without thinking, "How is San'er now? Is he alright?"
Upon hearing this, Wu Wei's face immediately tightened, and he said somewhat embarrassedly:
"I'm sorry, Auntie, I didn't have time to say more. But from what my sister said, the battalion commander's health should be fine, and he'll recover soon."
Ren Fugui glanced at his wife and said gratefully:
"Thank you for going out of your way to find us, Comrade Wu. We are relieved to hear the good news."
"Uncle, you're too kind. The battalion commander saved my life. He's just relaying a message; it's nothing."
Thank you, child!
Even so, Cui Dani also thanked her.
The matter has been discussed, and it's not good to delay the vehicle's departure time and the time it would take for everyone to reach the county town.
With Wu Wei and Ren Qingbai watching them go, the Ren family of three embarked on their journey to the county town.
After learning that their son was alright, the family was filled with mixed emotions in the car.
Cui Dani was still worried about her son's injury and hospitalization. Miya was still a child and probably didn't know how to take care of San'er, so she had to go there in person.
However, Ren Fugui and Ren Qingshan had other ideas.
After the three of them got off the bus and arrived at the train station, Ren Fugui and Ren Qingshan did not buy tickets immediately.
Cui Dani looked at her eldest son with suspicion and urged, "Why aren't you going to buy the tickets? If the tickets are sold out, we'll have to waste another day at the county guesthouse."
"Mother," Ren Qingshan hesitated for a long time, but still decided to speak his mind.
"Mother, according to what Qingsong's comrade said, Qingsong should be out of danger now and is fine. I think I won't go to the army."
"Having one more person go will not only delay the work in the fields, but also waste money."
This was what Ren Qingshan said after much deliberation.
Finally, this year there has been some rain, which is a good time for the village to shake off the gloom of the drought of the previous three years.
Since his third brother is alright, he should focus on working in the fields.
He touched the homemade cigarette in his hand, took a couple of puffs without lighting it, and said, "I think you should go and see the mother of the child. The third child should be able to pull through."
"It's finally a bit better for the fields this year, and it's spring planting season, so I need to keep an eye on things in the production brigade to make everyone's lives a little better."
Cui Dani never imagined that in just a short while, both men in her family would change their minds.
He immediately turned around, his face cold, and retorted, "What do you two mean? At the last minute, you're going back on your word and don't want to see San'er anymore, are you?!"
“Mother, that’s not what I meant,” Ren Qingshan said anxiously, waving his hands repeatedly, worried that his mother would misunderstand.
The third brother is of course important, as he is the pride of the family.
But now the news from the army is that my third brother has recovered, while the situation in the fields is what every farmer who makes a living from the land cares about most.
"I'm not going. It's the same for you two, Father and Mother, to go. It's perfect that my third brother hasn't been home for more than a few days in all these years. It would be good for you two to go see him together."
After saying that, Ren Qingshan glanced at his father.
Ren Fugui hadn't expected his eldest son to abandon him like this, and immediately retorted:
“What do you know about farming skills? It’s up to our generation to take care of things, otherwise I won’t feel at ease about the village.”
Cui Dani glared at her husband, who refused to admit he was getting old. Even though he had already relinquished his duties in the village, he still worked so diligently.
"What are you worried about?"
Considering the importance of the land, she didn't urge the two any further. Anyway, she was determined to go to the army this time, and she would also visit Miya. Maybe she could help Miya find a suitable family member in the army.
As a result, the number of people who traveled from their hometown to visit Ren Qingsong at the military base changed from three to just his mother.
Before getting on the bus, Ren Fugui and his son Ren Qingshan repeatedly reminded their wives/mothers not to trust outsiders and to make sure they arrived at the military base safely.
"Do you think I'm a young girl like Miya? I'm an old hag, who would even look at me?"
Cui Dani rolled her eyes at the two of them, then turned and got into the car.
On the other side, after Miya told Ren Qingsong about the phone call, Ren Qingsong, who had just woken up and was still weak, fell into a deep sleep again.
Miya shared the good news with Aunt Liu, who had come to visit, and also asked where she could buy things to nourish her body.
Upon hearing this, Liu Limei glanced at the sky outside and said remorsefully:
"At this time, the meat stalls that the supply and marketing cooperative specially prepared probably won't have much good stuff left. If I had known Qingsong would wake up today, I would have gone to the supply and marketing cooperative early this morning."
"How can you blame your sister-in-law?" Miya said with a face full of shame. "Third Brother woke up last night, but I didn't have time to tell your sister-in-law and Zhou Tuan."
Knowing that his third brother must have lost a lot of blood from his injury and urgently needed to recover, I realized that he needed to replenish his strength.
The meat she bought from the market was salted and not suitable for the patient. The chicks she bought were not yet fully grown and could not be used either.
Now we can only pin our hopes on the military supply and marketing cooperative.
Miya was lucky; when she arrived at the supply and marketing cooperative, there were still a few bones left inside.
Although there's not much meat on the bones, at least after long stewing, it still retains some meaty flavor.
Miya took out her money and tickets, bought all the bones, and took them home to make soup.
She also added some naturally grown radishes from her garden to the bone broth, which, when stewed together, created a unique flavor.
Add to that stir-fried cabbage with sliced meat and scrambled eggs, and this meal can be described as quite expensive.
Ren Qingsong couldn't hide the surprise in his eyes when he saw it, but he still asked first, "Have you eaten, Miya?"
"Don't worry, Third Brother, I've already eaten at home."
"That's good," Ren Qingsong said, relieved, but still couldn't help asking, "Where did you buy all this meat?"
"The bones were bought from the army's supply and marketing cooperative, and the eggs and meat were bought by Sister Liu and me when we went to the market. The market here is really lively; they sell everything."
"Sister Liu helped me snag more than two pounds of meat. I've salted it, and since it's not hot now, it can last for a few more days."
Hearing this, Ren Qingsong felt relieved and ate the food in his mouth.
The bone broth was delicious and savory, the radish inside was tender and flavorful, the cabbage was sweet, and the sliced meat was salty and fragrant; even the eggs were tender and had a wonderful aroma.
Before he knew it, Ren Qingsong had eaten all the food he had prepared in one go.
Miya was happy with her cooking skills and Ren Qingsong's support, but Ren Qingsong was also a little embarrassed. He quietly changed his lying position, not wanting Miya to see his slightly protruding belly.
After delivering the food, Miya didn't want to disturb Third Brother's rest, so she picked up the lunchbox and prepared to leave.
But just as she stepped out of the ward, she suddenly encountered a young woman, dressed in a nurse's uniform, just like Chen Zhenzhen before her.
Miya didn't recognize the other person and instinctively turned her foot to avoid them.
Unexpectedly, the other party took the initiative to speak.
"Hello, I'm Xu Ying, a nurse at the hospital. I heard you're Battalion Commander Ren's sister. Battalion Commander Ren is a brave and skilled warrior, renowned and admired by all. His sudden injury is worrying. Could you please tell me about Battalion Commander Ren's current condition?"
Listening to the person in front of her, Miya's brows furrowed deeper and deeper, not understanding what the other person meant.
"You're a nurse, it shouldn't be hard for you to find out, right?"
Upon hearing this, Xu Ying's smile froze. "Battalion Commander Ren has a special identity, and not just anyone can inquire about him."
"Since that's the case, then I can't say anything more, it wouldn't be good to break a taboo."
Xu Ying was surprised that Ren Qingsong's sister was so clueless. She was just using this as an excuse to start a conversation, but she was mistaken for someone who was deliberately trying to find out information.
She gritted her teeth and maintained the smile on her face.
"I was being presumptuous. Please don't take offense, sister. I'm genuinely concerned about Battalion Commander Ren's health."
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