Zheng Shengli arrived at the military hospital early in the morning to visit Zhou Bingchen.
"Old Zhou, I heard you're insisting on being discharged? Your wound is still bleeding profusely. Aren't you just making things up?" Zheng Shengli started criticizing Zhou Bingchen as soon as he saw him.
"Commander, I'd like to ask for a few days' leave to go home," Zhou Bingchen said.
"Old Zhou, you really can't leave for the next two weeks. To tell you the truth, the higher-ups are going to send someone to ask you a few questions about this mission in a few days. So, I really can't approve your leave." Zheng Shengli had no choice but to reveal some information.
"I obey orders." Zhou Bingchen had no choice but to shut up.
Zhou Bingchen thought that his injuries would be mostly healed in half a month, and then he could ask for leave to go home.
“Old Zhou, you can’t go back in person right now, but you can call home! I’ll talk to the doctor later and ask the hospital to provide a phone for you to make the call. This time, the phone bill won’t be deducted from your account; the troupe will cover it,” Zheng Shengli said.
"Thank you, Commander." Zhou Bingchen's face showed surprise and delight.
There are telephones in the hospital, but they can only be used for official business and cannot be used casually.
Zhou Bingchen was injured and couldn't go to the city center just to make a phone call.
With Zheng Shengli's words, Zhou Bingchen felt relieved of half his worries.
"By the way, if there's anything you can't handle at home, remember to let me know. If necessary, I'll call the local government on behalf of the regiment and ask for their help," Zheng Shengli said after thinking for a moment.
The last time Zhou Fugui called, Zheng Shengli answered.
Zheng Shengli recalled that Zhou Fugui sounded quite anxious at the time, saying that something terrible had happened at home.
"Thank you, Commander. I'll call my Pearl right away." Zhou Bingchen smiled.
In Zhou Bingchen's last dream, Zhao Tianyu would be imprisoned in a little over two months, and Zhao Qingshan and his wife would die one after the other.
Before setting off on the mission, Zhou Bingchen was unsure whether his dream had any warning significance.
Now, Zhou Bingchen believed it.
Zhou Bingchen wanted to remind Zhao Zhenzhu to ask her parents to keep a close eye on her brother-in-law and prevent him from making the same mistake he had in his dream.
As long as Zhao Tianyu doesn't get into trouble, Zhao Qingshan and his wife should be able to live a good life.
"Old Zhou, I didn't expect you to be afraid of your wife. Your dad wants you to make a phone call back, are you going to talk to your wife about what to say first?" Zheng Shengli couldn't help but tease him.
A few days ago, Zheng Shengli's face was scratched by his wife He Xiaolian, and Zhou Bingchen happened to see it.
In front of Zheng Shengli, Zhou Bingchen boasted about how gentle and virtuous his wife, Zhao Zhenzhu, was.
Zheng Shengli was very unconvinced, and now that he had a chance, he wanted to make fun of him back.
"My dad called? Commander, you didn't tell me!" Zhou Bingchen was speechless.
"Look at my memory." Zheng Shengli slapped his forehead and said regretfully, "I told Xiao Jiang from your battalion to tell you that I forgot you went to the hospital after your mission and haven't seen Xiao Jiang yet!"
"Commander, did my dad say he wanted to see me about something?" Zhou Bingchen asked.
“No, he just said something terrible had happened at home and that I should call home as soon as I got back from my mission,” Zheng Shengli said.
Something terrible has happened at home?
Such a thing has never happened in my dreams!
Zhou Bingchen frowned.
"Old Zhou! Call and ask first. You don't know the specifics right now, and there's no rush," Zheng Shengli said, patting Zhou Bingchen on the shoulder.
"Mm." Zhou Bingchen nodded.
The dream from last night kept lingering in Zhou Bingchen's mind.
Zhou Bingchen's feelings for Zhou Fugui are currently conflicted.
"Old Zhou, I have some good news for you in advance. Your performance this time was outstanding. I estimate that your promotion notice will be coming soon." Zheng Shengli gave Zhou Bingchen a compliment before leaving.
Zheng Shengli didn't dare to make a definitive statement.
Originally, based on Zhou Bingchen's past achievements, he should have been promoted to regimental level after the New Year.
With this achievement, he might be promoted ahead of schedule. Perhaps, an even brighter future awaits Zhou Bingchen.
Zheng Shengli admired Zhou Bingchen's luck, but he wasn't jealous at all.
Zhou Bingchen's future was something he earned by risking his life time and time again.
After Zheng Shengli left, Zhou Bingchen sat on the edge of the bed, trying to process his excitement.
Zhou Bingchen was certainly happy about the promotion, but what made him even happier was that his promotion would allow him to provide a better future for Zhao Zhenzhu and her son.
A few minutes later, Zhou Bingchen slowly stood up and walked towards the doctor's office.
Zhou Bingchen didn't know that Zhao Zhenzhu had gone back to her parents' home, so he called the Zhoujia Village brigade headquarters.
The person who answered the phone was Zhou Dazhu.
"Captain, this is Zhou Bingchen. Could you please ask my dad and Pearl to come over and answer the phone?" Zhou Bingchen said.
“Bingchen! Pearl isn’t in the village. She had a fight with your mother a few days ago and took the children back to her parents’ home. Your father is probably here. I’ll send someone to call him over,” Zhou Dazhu said.
Did Pearl and his mother have a fight? Why?
Zhou Bingchen frowned and pondered.
On the other end of the line, Zhou Dazhu's loud voice came through: "Bingqiang, put down your work for now and go home to ask your dad to come and answer the phone. Bingchen called back."
As Zhou Bingchen listened to Zhou Dazhu's enthusiastic voice, he felt a momentary daze.
Will his dream really come true?
Will Zhou Dazhu really join forces with his father to take his life someday?
He's a military officer.
He died while visiting family; the military should send someone to investigate.
Once the truth comes out, Zhou Dazhu will certainly face the death penalty.
Zhou Dazhu killed someone for a mere few dollars; such a thing is truly absurd.
"Captain, I'll call you back in ten minutes." Zhou Bingchen was about to hang up when Zhou Dazhu called out to him.
"Bingchen! It's been a long time since we last saw each other. Let's chat for a bit today since we have some free time!"
Without waiting for Zhou Bingchen's response, Zhou Dazhu began to ramble on.
"Bingchen! Your family has been quite the handful lately, one thing after another, making you a laughingstock in the village."
“You should write a letter to Pearl when you have time. Although your mother can be unreasonable sometimes, accusing Pearl of stealing and then chasing after her demanding filial piety, it's understandable that Pearl would throw a tantrum and take the child back to her parents' house for a few days. However, when your mother saw Pearl eating wontons with her child at the market and asked her to buy two more bowls, Pearl refused to pay a cent. That's a bit much. Your mother is, after all, an elder, right?”
"And your mother, that stupid idiot, dared to throw a tantrum in front of the police, and ended up getting arrested and 'educated' by them. Your mother's arrest affects more than just your family; our village's 'advanced worker' award this year is definitely out of the question. What kind of mess is this?"
"And then there's your dad. He usually seems pretty capable. After your mom was arrested, he said he'd go to town to pull some strings, but what happened? He went to town, made a quick trip, and came right back. He didn't get anything done, and when he came back, he yelled at your two older brothers, forbidding them from bringing your mom food and bedding, saying he wanted to let her go hungry for a few meals in the police station to clear her head. Your mom really suffered this time!"
Zhou Bingchen kept a straight face and didn't say anything.
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