Chapter 10 Worship
Nan Zhiyi simply watched quietly as Gu Xiao paid for the tickets and bought these lavish gifts.
Gu Xiao carried the heaviest net bag in his own hands, and handed her only a small bag containing candy and cookies: "Take this."
The two returned to the Zhang family home.
Feng Xuemei and the other two had already prepared the meal and were waiting.
Seeing the two of them come in carrying large bags and small packages, Feng Xuemei scolded, "Oh dear! Commander Gu! What are you doing! This is too extravagant! We have everything we need at home!"
Gu Xiao put the things aside: "It's just a small token of my appreciation, nothing more."
Nan Zhiyi softly echoed, "Aunt Feng, please accept it."
Zhang Jianguo invited everyone to sit down.
The table was laden with food: a small pot of braised pork, a steamed fish, several seasonal side dishes, white wine, and soda.
Zhang Jianguo was about to pour Gu Xiao a drink.
Gu Xiao waved his hand: "I have to drive this afternoon, so I can't drink."
So everyone had a bottle of soda placed in front of them.
At the dinner table, Feng Xuemei enthusiastically served food to Gu Xiao, then couldn't help but ask, "Zhiyi, what's next...?"
“I’m going with the army,” Nan Zhiyi replied.
"It's good to be with the army! It's good to be with the army!" Feng Xuemei said repeatedly, her face beaming with joy.
"Sister!" Zhang Yueran exclaimed anxiously, "Don't come with the army! Stay at my house! Fifth Brother stays in the dormitory every day anyway, it's much better if you stay at home! I can talk to you every day!"
Feng Xuemei glared at her silly daughter: "Zhang Yueran, shut up!"
She glanced at the pretty and well-behaved Nan Zhiyi beside her and the tall and upright Gu Xiao, and smiled, "It's good that you two are living together behind closed doors. It's better than anything else! I think you two are a perfect match!"
Upon hearing the words "close the door," Nan Zhiyi's face instantly turned bright red, and something inexplicable came to mind.
Gu Xiao glanced at Nan Zhiyi and nodded: "Okay, Aunt Feng, I will take good care of Zhiyi."
Nan Zhiyi quickly chimed in, "Aunt Feng, I... I understand."
Feng Xuemei said, "Then we'll move over once the application for the family compound is approved. We'll stay here for now."
Gu Xiao: "The housing for the family members has been approved. The logistics department is also ready to move in at any time."
As he spoke, his gaze never left Nan Zhiyi, and his eyes carried an invisible pressure.
Nan Zhiyi put down her chopsticks and looked at Gu Xiao, "I'll listen to Fifth Brother."
Feng Xuemei felt that Gu Xiao's arrangements were swift and efficient. Although he was a bit cold, this sense of responsibility and efficiency was exactly what Nan Zhiyi needed right now.
She grinned from ear to ear, "Okay, when is Zhiyi going?"
Gu Xiao: "I'll go back to your place this afternoon to pack my things, and I'll move there tomorrow."
Nan Zhiyi nodded; she knew she'd have to move there sooner or later anyway.
Zhang Yueran's mouth was practically agape by now: "Sister..."
Feng Chunmei picked up a piece of meat and stuffed it into her daughter's mouth.
She said softly to the young couple, "The situation is special now, so we won't be holding the wedding banquet. I'm sorry to trouble you two. Commander Gu, Zhiyi has a delicate nature. If she does something wrong in the future... don't blame her. I'll talk to her, okay?"
Gu Xiao replied earnestly, "Okay."
"We'll be at ease knowing you two will live happily ever after," Feng Xuemei said, silently wiping the corner of her eye.
I wonder if Brother Nan and Sister-in-law Nan can rest easy in the afterlife...
Oh, fate is truly cruel.
Feng Xuemei forced a smile and gestured for everyone to raise their glasses, "Let's use soda instead of alcohol to wish the young couple a prosperous and peaceful life together!"
Zhang Jianguo smiled and raised his glass: "Commander Gu, Zhiyi, have a good life from now on."
Gu Xiao picked up his glass, clinked it against Zhang Jianguo's, and said in a deep voice, "Hmm."
Finally, the five glasses gently clinked together, and tiny bubbles rose from the orange soda.
Zhang Yueran's eyes were still red, and she also touched it hard.
After the meal, although Feng Xuemei was reluctant to part with them, she urged them to set off early while it was still light.
Nan Zhiyi hugged Zhang Yueran tightly: "Yueyue, I'm writing to you and Aunt Feng."
Zhang Yueran pouted and nodded vigorously.
The jeep sped away from the military camp.
As they approached Jian'an City, Gu Xiao said, "Shall we go and pay our respects first?"
Nan Zhiyi understood and told him the location of her parents' graves.
So instead of heading directly to the city center, the car drove towards a cemetery on the outskirts of the city.
As dusk settled, the autumn wind rustled softly.
The two new graves looked particularly lonely.
Nan Zhiyi's eyes reddened as soon as she got out of the car.
Gu Xiao followed behind her, his steps steady.
Nan Zhiyi knelt before the grave, tears silently streaming down her face.
Just as she was about to say something, she heard the sound of fabric rubbing against gravel beside her.
She turned her head in surprise and saw that Gu Xiao had also bent his knees, one knee touching the ground, kneeling on the yellow earth beside her.
His posture remained upright as he faced the grave: "Dad, Mom, Zhiyi, from now on I'll take care of her. I'll make sure she's well taken care of."
There were no grand vows, only a weighty promise.
Two streams of tears flowed down Nan Zhiyi's face.
A warm and strong hand gently landed on her back, which was trembling from crying.
Nan Zhiyi's body stiffened.
He is Gu Xiao, the son of Commander Gu, and he has the ability!
But when the words reached her lips, they turned into silent trembling and surging tears.
She bit her lower lip hard.
cannot.
What is she?
An orphan girl with a tainted family background who has just married into the Gu family.
For Gu Xiao to marry her was already a risky move.
What right does she have to drag him into this mess? One wrong move and the entire Gu family will be implicated.
Wait, wait a little longer.
She lowered her head, letting her tears fall into the soil beneath her feet.
Gu Xiao didn't speak, but his hand lingered on her back for a long time until her sobs gradually subsided.
When the worship ceremony ended and we returned to the deserted little house of the Nan family, it was already completely dark.
The pale moonlight shone on the dusty furniture.
“That’s fine,” Nan Zhiyi said, looking at the dark alley. “It saves us from having to put up with those people’s attitudes.”
Her tone was calm, with a hint of relief.
Gu Xiao stood in the center of the living room, raising his arm as if to comfort her…
But in the end, he simply said softly, "Go pack your things."
Nan Zhiyi nodded and quickly went upstairs.
She opened her wardrobe, which was filled with many brightly colored dresses.
She carefully placed a small rosewood box, hidden in the bed frame, into her suitcase.
Suddenly, she remembered the things her parents had left her.
She went downstairs to find Gu Xiao and saw him standing at the door of the study, quietly looking at the dusty empty bookshelves and the papers scattered on the floor.
Nan Zhiyi felt a pang of sadness; that was her father's favorite place, and all the books inside were gone...
"All done?" Gu Xiao turned around when he heard footsteps.
"No, Fifth Brother, help me dig something up."
Gu Xiao raised an eyebrow and followed her into the desolate garden.
That once vibrant rose bush now has only a few withered branches left.
Nan Zhiyi stretched out her foot and tapped the ground with the tip of her shoe: "Under here, Fifth Brother."
Gu Xiao picked up the shovel and walked over.
After a few strokes, the shovel hit a hard object.
A tightly wrapped oilcloth package was unearthed.
He led Nan Zhiyi into the house before unwrapping the oil paper package.
Inside were neatly arranged yellow croakers, next to several bankbooks, several property deeds, and a box of valuable jewelry.
This was the Nan family's last savings, the wealth of an ordinary person for several lifetimes.
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