The doctors and nurses in the same department secretly watched the two from a distance.
No wonder Mao Xiangling refused to accept anyone's advances.
It turns out she already had a boyfriend, who was a military officer.
Mao Xiangling asked her supervisor for a day off, and the supervisor readily agreed when she heard that her boyfriend was coming.
They also told her she could take two more days off, which would be a way to make up for the long period of rest she had voluntarily worked overtime.
After leaving the Peking Union Medical College, the two strolled around Chang'an Avenue, visiting Tiananmen Square and the Forbidden City.
This was Yuan Qiang's first time in Beijing, and many of the things he had only seen in newspapers before were very novel to him.
Mao Xiangling then became his guide, leading him around all day and showing him almost all the famous attractions.
Yuan Qiang carried a camera and asked passersby to take pictures of him wherever he went, so he could keep them as souvenirs.
After the two finished dinner that evening, Yuan Qiang escorted Mao Xiangling back to her dormitory.
These days, you can't open a hotel without a letter of introduction, and since the two aren't a couple, no hotel will give them a room.
Mao Xiangling's dormitory at Peking Union Medical College Hospital was a three-story old building facing the street. Yuan Qiang watched her enter the dormitory gate and felt very reluctant to part with her.
I simply sat on the flower bed downstairs in the dormitory, thinking that I could stay close to her and spend the night with her before my train back the next day.
He had been in Beijing for a week, and the military training was closed off, so he specially applied for an extra day before he came so that he could see Xiangling.
Mao Xiangling stood in front of the window and looked through the gauze curtain at the back of a figure under the dim yellow light at the entrance of the dormitory building. Her heart ached.
She opened the window and called Yuan Qiang's name softly, waving her hand to signal him to go back to the hotel to rest.
She knew he had to catch the train back tomorrow.
But no matter how much she urged Yuan Qiang to leave, he just smiled, waved his hand, and sat still, quietly telling her to get some rest.
Mao Xiangling's feigned anger and stomping her feet were to no avail.
Hearing the noise, my roommate turned over and muttered:
"Xiangling, why aren't you asleep yet? You have an early shift tomorrow."
Fearing that she would keep everyone awake, Mao Xiangling simply put on her clothes and quietly slipped out.
Yuan Qiang watched her leave the dormitory building and urged her on:
"Why aren't you sleeping? What are you doing down here? Go back to sleep!"
"Then why don't you go back to the hotel? Why do you insist on sitting downstairs?"
"I'm leaving tomorrow, and I don't know when we'll meet again. I want to spend more time with you."
It's close to you here, it's okay. For us soldiers, not sleeping all night is no problem.
Mao Xiangling felt heartbroken and couldn't bear to see Yuan Qiang continue speaking:
"That won't do either! You'll catch a cold if you do that tonight."
She took Yuan Qiang's hand and led him toward the hospital's inpatient department.
"Come with me!"
Yuan Qiang led her behind him.
Mao Xiangling found the old man on duty on the first floor of the inpatient department and asked him for an empty room.
Because Mao Xiangling often worked shifts, she would occasionally bring the old man fruit and a box of cigarettes, and they got along better than the other classmates.
Upon hearing that it was her boyfriend who had come and that he was a military officer, and that he had nowhere to stay if it got late, she readily agreed.
"You've come at the right time. Several of our colleagues have taken leave to go home, so we have a few single rooms available. You can let your partner stay there."
After settling Yuan Qiang in, Mao Xiangling returned to her ward and found a new washbasin and toiletries.
They took a new set of quilt covers and went back to Yuan Qiang's room to make the bed.
"Soak your feet in hot water; there's a hot water room at the end of the corridor."
Yuan Qiang took a basin outside, fetched a basin of hot water, and put it on the ground when he returned.
"Xiangling, please sit down?"
"What's wrong?"
Mao Xiangling was puzzled.
"Sit down, I'll wash your feet!"
"No, no, I can't let you wash my feet."
Mao Xiangling lowered her head shyly.
Yuan Qiang took her hand, lowered his head, and said:
"I'm leaving tomorrow, and I don't know when we'll see each other again. Let me give you a wash."
"I'm your partner, why can't your partner wash your feet?"
Mao Xiangling sat on the bed, and Yuan Qiang helped her take off her shoes and socks.
He placed her feet in a basin of warm water and gently massaged them.
"This is so nice, it's like an old married couple."
"After we get married, I'll wash your feet every day."
"Wouldn't that make your parents complain about me, saying that I treat you like a foot-washing servant every day?"
"No, my parents are very open-minded and wouldn't say that."
Besides, I can spoil my wife however I want.
After Yuan Qiang washed Mao Xiangling's feet, he washed his own feet again, went out to empty the water, and came back.
The room was unusually quiet at this moment, and neither of them spoke.
Amidst the shy and awkward atmosphere, Yuan Qiang sat on the bench, unsure of what to say.
Mao Xiangling sat on the bed, looking at Yuan Qiang with her eyes closed, unable to speak.
After a while, Yuan Qiang asked:
"Xiangling, how about we all sleep here?"
He looked at Mao Xiangling and asked softly.
Mao Xiangling paused cautiously for a moment, then nodded.
Yuan Qiang stood up and scratched his head, unsure of what to do first.
"I'll go get a cup of hot water. I'll be thirsty tonight and there won't be any water to drink. You lie down first."
As Mao Xiangling watched Yuan Qiang leave, her cheeks suddenly felt hot, as if they were burning.
She took off her coat and trousers, leaving only her underwear, then covered herself with the blanket and lay down.
A moment later, Yuan Qiang came in with a cup of hot water and placed it on the bedside table.
He sat with his back against Mao Xiangling for a moment to ease the atmosphere, then unbuttoned his military jacket and shirt and placed them on the chair next to him, leaving only his military green vest on his upper body.
He paused for a moment, picked up the glass, and took a sip of water.
But the water in the cup was too hot, and it almost burned his mouth.
Mao Xiangling, lying on the inside of the bed, looked at his clumsy movements and softly called out:
"Yuan Qiang, turn off the lights and get some rest. Don't you have to catch the train tomorrow?"
"Okay!"
Yuan Qiang replied with his back to her.
He stood up, walked to the door, locked the door, and pulled the light cord to turn off the room light.
He groped his way to the bedside in the dark; the room was so quiet he could hear his own breathing.
Yuan Qiang unbuckled his belt, took off his military trousers, and placed them on the chair.
He lay down on one side of the bed, wearing only shorts and lifting a corner of the thin blanket.
He covered himself with the blanket, leaving a small distance between them.
Mao Xiangling reached out and grabbed Yuan Qiang's large hand.
The two held hands tightly, remaining silent for a long time.
Yuan Qiang's body was tense; he was wide awake and quietly savored this little moment of bliss.
Perhaps this is the kind of night I've been longing for in countless dreams.
Mao Xiangling gritted her teeth, leaned closer to him, and rested her head on his shoulder.
His skin was cool, just the right temperature.
"Yuan Qiang, are you hot?"
Mao Xiangling leaned on his shoulder and asked.
"Xiangling, I'm hot!"
Are you hot, Xiangling?
"I'm fine."
Yuan Qiang, I don't want you to leave~~
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