The Eve of Chapter 9
The eve of Chinese New Year in 2057 is actually January 29th of 2058 in the Gregorian calendar.
On the 29th, because of a wedding, half of the Western Region No. 1 Base was immersed in a celebratory atmosphere.
The next day is Lunar New Year's Eve. When the cannons are set off in the evening, many people wait by the Feng River. Once the cannonballs break the ice, they rush forward to cast their nets and catch fish.
Bringing a fresh carp home and stewing it will bring good fortune and ensure abundance year after year.
Qi An spent the New Year at the new base.
Throughout the entire Lunar New Year holiday, everyone was in a very excited mood.
The same thing happened the following year. Qi An went to the new base around the time of the Chinese New Year.
At that time, the new base also had a small nuclear fusion power plant. Qi An went to see it and also visited the newly completed giant steel plant.
The smelting furnace resembled a giant, demonic fruit born from magma, with a black, cold peel and terrifyingly fiery flesh!
The thriving industry and the magnificent creations of human wisdom also inspired awe in Qi'an, this "god-like being".
The new base was so prosperous, and as a military industrial center, it was incredibly wealthy. That year, during the Lunar New Year, they set off a total of 99 cannon salutes, which reportedly destroyed half a river!
The reason it is said to be "it is said" is because Qi An did not spend the Chinese New Year at the new base.
On New Year's Eve that year, she had a reunion dinner with her mother and Uncle Xu on the island.
That year, she traveled to all the bases on the mainland and healed many wounded soldiers and civilians.
The human body is complex, and the causes of diseases are complex. Before treatment, Qi An would thoroughly understand the patient's condition to ensure that no mistakes were made.
Having seen and treated many cases, Qi An gained a deeper understanding of the "human body," a system more intricate than any machine.
On one occasion, a close-quarters defense force from the North Base 1 went on an expedition and wiped out a group of more than 3,000 Fallen Insects.
At the height of the battle, a soldier suffered a severe penetrating wound.
The weapon that pierced him was a rusty iron pestle, with a diameter of five centimeters!
Due to the violent impact, the iron pestle pierced through his body.
A jet of blood spurted directly from the soldier's wound!
Even military doctors couldn't get there in time, and even if they did, they couldn't stop the massive bleeding.
Qi An happened to pass by that battlefield and casually strangled a white priest to death.
One of her eyes also spotted the wounded soldier in the chaos, hesitated, and then extended a tentacle into his wound.
The tentacles branched out into fine, silk-like branches, burrowed into his internal organs, found the splenic artery that was causing the main bleeding, wrapped it up, and then repaired it.
The soldier survived.
Qi An essentially performed a surgical procedure with "superpowers" under it, but it was also quite complex!
After that, out of interest, Qi An learned more about this subject and even went into the operating room several times.
By the end of the year, without relying on pollution, she was able to complete a cesarean section under the guidance of an experienced doctor, solely through her tentacles, which could differentiate at will and could become hard or soft!
In every sense, Qi An can be called "Dr. Qi"!
However, not many people actually call her that.
More and more people are worshipping her as a deity.
The top leadership in the North is suppressing this belief and is working hard to prevent the formation of organized sectarian groups.
But she has followers in every base across the continent.
Qi An has always had a fan website.
It was initially built by a purification master who greatly admired her after the defense of the Central Plains Base No. 3.
Later, as the website expanded, it added some elite special forces soldiers who had fought in the mutated forest, and later a large number of military and civilian soldiers from the newly established base poured in.
The photo on the fan site's homepage was taken by Zhang Zhongjing; the photographer is unknown.
In the photo, Qi An is wearing a tattered and disheveled field uniform, his face covered in blood and mud. He sits under a tree, sternly gazing into the distance.
When Qi An saw it himself, he was shocked by the woman's gaze in the photo, which was hard to describe as either sharp or mournful, and then he recognized that this was after the battle in the mutated forest.
She was in great pain, both physically and mentally, but she insisted on staying until the logistics personnel from South China retrieved Feng Xu's body.
The photos are so well captured; the subject's charm shines through the screen. It's the perfect homepage for a fan website.
However, this photo was replaced with a portrait in the latter half of 2058.
The painting style is half modern and half ink painting, with a distant and ethereal composition.
That living warrior, in the hearts of many, ultimately became an untouchable god.
When Qi An went to the new base again to visit his friends and to receive a new round of treatment for the injured, it was another snowy night.
Instead of wearing his imposing military uniform, Chen Yuezhou, dressed only in a cashmere coat and a light-colored knitted scarf, cornered Qi An under a deserted streetlamp.
He is thirty-one years old this year, and has been favored by time. His face has the charm of a mature man, but he does not look old at all.
"If I continue to think about it, I probably won't even have the chance to see you alone like this and talk to you face to face."
His voice was bitter, and his eyes seemed to still hold a certain hatred, yet there was also a great deal of love and greed in them.
Ye Xuanming, the commander-in-chief of the new base and Chen Yuezhou's superior, asked Chen Yuezhou if he had any plans to start a family.
After asking many questions and hearing numerous denials, Ye Xuanming gradually came to understand Chen Yuezhou's thoughts.
"Really...who would have thought that a man like you would suffer setbacks in love?" Ye Xuanming sighed.
"I have fallen in love with the gods," Chen Yuezhou thought.
He took Qi An's hand again, but this time his touch was gentle.
Despite his gentle demeanor, a fire burned in his eyes!
"If Chen Xi can do it, why can't I?" He leaned closer to her and asked in a hoarse voice.
......
The wind and snow were extremely fierce that night, and heavy snow was common that winter.
The following year, the spring scenery in the Northwest was more lush and vibrant than ever before!
Both new bases, one in the Central Plains, yielded a bumper harvest of all crops.
So in 2059, there were even more cooking tutorials on video websites.
Qi An also came across an advertisement for retired close-in defense soldiers leading groups of civilians without combat capabilities to explore outside the base, return to their hometowns to sweep tombs, or simply go sightseeing.
"With the tourism industry, people's lives are really getting better," Xu Zhuoxing said leisurely, fanning himself with his fan.
He wasn't fanning himself because he was cold; it was already New Year's Eve, and the wind was still fierce on the island.
But it wasn't cold inside their little house; the stove in the kitchen was burning brightly.
Xu Zhuoxing's large palm-leaf fan was used to fan the fire.
"The fire doesn't need to be turned up any higher, the dumplings are cooked," Qi An reminded them.
She lifted the pot lid, releasing the thick white steam, and ladled out two large plates of plump dumplings.
"Our lives are getting better." Qi An glanced at the table full of delicious dishes, smiled and sighed, and then wondered:
"Uncle Xu, what's wrong with you today? What medicine did you take? Why are you being so diligent?"
Half of the dishes on this table were prepared by Xu Zhuoxing.
He not only cooked, but he also cleaned the house in the morning!
Qi An returned from the small dock with the supplies and entered Xu Zhuoxing's first-floor living room. He almost thought he was dreaming!
That "pigsty" became cleaner than her and her mother's house!
"Aren't people allowed to reminisce about the past and develop an interest in tidying up their own homes?" Xu Zhuoxing slowly distributed the chopsticks.
Ye Xiao first placed a boiled prawn on Qi An's plate, "Eat this, baby, I made it, it's so fresh!"
"Thank you, Mom!" Qi An's eyes immediately curved into a smile.
Three years later, her mother's condition is similar to that of Xu Zhuoxing back then. Although there are still times when her will is suppressed, she can control it immediately.
Her mother's current self-stability is around 80%.
“Your Uncle Xu is 99.9% sure. He’s going to make one last gamble to be completely free.” Ye Xiao glanced at Xu Zhuoxing.
Qi An was stunned, and almost dropped the shrimp meat on his chopsticks!
“Uncle, you…” Qi An also stared at Xu Zhuoxing.
"Yes, it's time." Xu Zhuoxing smiled, picked up a piece of braised pork with preserved mustard greens with his chopsticks, and put it in his mouth.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com