Chapter 24 Come Back and Let Me Hold You for a While
The sound was vague and unclear.
But it does exist.
"Wait!" He waved his hand, signaling everyone to stop.
Turning around, I saw a pale skirt appearing and disappearing among the waves fifty meters away.
A pregnant woman, about twenty years old, was half immersed in the water, her long wet hair stuck to her face, her belly bulging high. She clung tightly to the half-sunken window frame, blood seeping from the cracks of her nails, and her cries for help were quickly lost in the howling rain.
He Chengze was surprised: "Found it, it's right there!"
Chen Lang's eyes widened. "There really is someone there, and she's a pregnant woman. Let's go save her!"
He Chengze shouted loudly: "Hold on, we will come to rescue you soon."
The pregnant woman didn’t know whether she heard it or not, but the cry for help gradually became weaker and the situation was very critical.
He Chengze tied the life rope around his waist: "Chen Lang, get me a life jacket."
Chen Lang was anxious: "Captain, I'll go."
My sister-in-law is still pregnant, and the flood is very turbulent. What if something happens to the captain?
He Chengze shook his head: "You and the others still have tasks to complete, don't delay, keep moving forward!"
Chen Lang: "Captain!"
"Get out of the way!" He Chengze roared and pushed away Chen Lang who tried to stop him.
There is no distinction between high and low positions when it comes to saving lives, everyone should do their part.
Without hesitation, he plunged into the raging flood, his orange life jacket fluttering in the turbid waves like a tattered but resolute flag.
The water flow carried sharp pieces of wood and stones, like countless sharp blades, constantly hitting his body.
A floating piece of broken wood hit his shoulder hard, causing him to groan in pain, but he just gritted his teeth, turned his head, and continued to swim hard towards the pregnant woman.
Every step forward required a tremendous amount of effort to fight against the current. His arms drew powerful arcs in the water, and his muscles bulged high with the movement and then quickly tensed.
The surrounding scene seemed to have become blurred, and He Chengze had only one goal in his mind, which was to save people.
Deafening thunder rolled over my head, as if the whole sky was about to collapse.
He was getting closer and closer to the pregnant woman, close enough to see her pale face, wet long hair and confused eyes.
Her figure overlapped with Jiang Xueyi's.
He Chengze couldn't imagine what he would do if it was Jiang Xueyi who died at this moment.
"Hold on!" he shouted loudly, but his voice was trembling without him even noticing.
When we approached the pregnant woman, she was already in a semi-conscious state, but out of her instinct for survival, she still clung tightly to a floating wooden board.
He Chengze put his arm around her waist, but was almost choked by her sudden struggle.
"Don't be afraid, we are here to save you!"
Perhaps she heard He Chengze's voice and the pregnant woman stopped struggling.
The flood was getting more and more violent. It was challenging enough to be up and down in such turbulent waves, let alone carrying a pregnant woman.
The rain slapped He Chengze's face as he tried hard to find a glimmer of hope.
I don’t know how much time has passed.
Finally, he saw the flickering flashlight beams in the distance. It was his comrades coming to support him.
He used up his last bit of strength to swim towards the light. Every stroke of his arms felt like cutting his own muscles.
"Captain, this! This!" Chen Lang shouted loudly, waving his arms.
He quickly ordered his comrades to drive the assault boat closer to He Chengze, and everyone breathed a sigh of relief when they pulled the two of them onto the assault boat.
Liang Xiaodong couldn't help but give a thumbs up: "Captain, you are really this."
Chen Lang laughed and scolded, "Do you even need to tell me that?"
He Chengze took a short rest and contacted other comrades through the walkie-talkie.
He smiled and said, "We just received news from the Third and Fourth Regiments. Most of the villagers have been evacuated, and the breach in the dam has been sealed. They are just waiting for us to take the remaining troops and reunite with them."
"good!"
"marvelous!!"
"Everyone is great."
Cheers came one after another, and everyone couldn't help but smile.
He Chengze was just about to command the soldiers to retreat when a deafening thunder sounded and lightning flashed across most of the sky. He suddenly felt a little uneasy.
I always feel like something is wrong.
He remembered the story he told Jiang Xueyi before leaving.
Details, details, details determine success or failure.
He couldn't help but look up, and another thunder sounded.
A dull "boom" sound came from a distant valley. The sound was mixed in with the thunder and did not attract attention, but it made his heart tighten suddenly.
He Chengze narrowed his eyes and looked in the direction of the sound. He saw the vegetation on the distant hillside shaking violently without any strong wind, as if being stirred by an invisible big hand.
The ground beneath his feet suddenly trembled slightly, and he immediately knelt on one knee, his palms pressed against the wet ground.
The vibration became more and more obvious, accompanied by the "clattering" sound of rolling stones, coming from deep underground.
Suddenly, a lot of white water streams appeared on the mountain. Several trees as thick as bowls tilted and fell down without warning. The crisp sound of broken tree trunks pierced the rain curtain.
It's a mudslide!
He Chengze's eyes were bloodshot, and he suddenly turned his head to look at his comrades who were still laughing. He picked up the walkie-talkie and roared, "Everyone pay attention, everyone pay attention!!"
"There are signs of a mudslide! Stop the current mission immediately and move to higher ground! I repeat, move to higher ground!"
As soon as he finished speaking, a huge hole seemed to be torn in the mountain in the distance. Muddy mud wrapped around boulders and trees, pouring down like a roaring yellow dragon with an overwhelming force. Wherever it went, everything was swallowed up mercilessly.
-
The big pendulum clock at home was ticking. Jiang Xueyi leaned on the bench, flipping through the book left by He Chengze, her fingertips unconsciously stroking the notes he left in blue pen on the pages.
Suddenly, the book in her hand fell to the ground with a thud. She covered her chest with her hands. Her heart beat violently without warning, as if it was going to break through her ribs and burst out.
It was a sunny day outside the window, but I shivered for no reason. The hairs on the back of my neck stood up, and a sharp pain spread from my temples.
"Could it be...could it be that something happened..."
Jiang Xueyi muttered to herself in the empty living room.
The baby in the belly seemed to sense something and kept kicking the belly with its little feet.
Jiang Xueyi subconsciously touched her bulging belly, as if she could feel her mother's uneasiness. Her little fists hit her palms again and again, making her eyes sore.
She stood up suddenly, without even having time to change her shoes, and stumbled to Zhao's house.
His knuckles trembled for a long time as they hung above the door panel, and finally he knocked hard, his voice filled with uncontrollable panic.
The moment the door opened, Liu Lu, who was wearing a floral apron, was still smiling. However, upon seeing Jiang Xueyi's pale face, her smile froze. "What's going on? Come in quickly."
"Hey." Jiang Xueyi responded.
When she entered the room, her knees went weak and she stumbled. Fortunately, Liu Lu was quick to help her.
Jiang Xueyi sat on a stool, holding the hot brown sugar water Liu Lu had just brewed for her. She couldn't hold back her tears any longer, and they fell into the cup. "Liu Lu... I, I'm so panicked..."
She choked with sobs, her voice intermittent: "Since this afternoon, my heartbeat has been extremely fast, and the baby has been moving very violently..."
She grabbed Liu Lu's hand as if grabbing a life-saving straw: "Do you think...will it be..."
Liu Lu quickly interrupted her: "Pfft, pfft, what unlucky words are you saying."
Jiang Xueyi's eyes were red: "I'm just very worried."
"Silly girl," Liu Lu said, "As military wives, who among us doesn't live in fear every day? Every time our old Zhao goes on a mission, I can't sleep well at night."
She pointed to the family photo hanging on the wall. The men in the photo looked heroic in their military uniforms. "But you have to believe them. They are soldiers. They are blessed with good fortune and will definitely come back safely."
Jiang Xueyi nodded, her voice firm, "They are people in military uniforms, and God will always protect them."
Even if she doesn't trust anyone, she should trust He Chengze.
Nothing will happen to him!
In the next few days, whenever Jiang Xueyi was free, she would go to Zhao's house to find Liu Lu.
Being alone, she was afraid that she would start to have wild thoughts.
It's good to have someone to talk to, it can also divert your attention.
"Liu Lu, I want to make some bibs for my baby. What do you think?" Jiang Xueyi's eyes sparkled. "I've looked in the clothing stores in department stores, but they either don't have bibs or the fabrics they do have aren't absorbent. After much thought, I think it's better to make them myself."
Liu Lu didn't react at first, what is a bib, after Jiang Xueyi finished describing, she finally understood: "You want to make a bib, right?"
She added, "That's perfect. I have a lot of cotton here. It's absolutely absorbent and won't prick the baby's skin when they wear it."
Jiang Xueyi took a pair of small silver scissors and gestured on the fabric: "Let's cut a circle first, and then sew on the cute laces. The baby will definitely be adorable when wearing it."
The two of them did what they said.
Jiang Xueyi was responsible for outlining the semicircular outline of the bib on the fabric with a pencil. From time to time, she needed to lean back slightly to adjust her posture because her belly was in the way.
Liu Lu sat in front of the sewing machine, and with the sound of "da da da", pieces of cloth gradually took shape.
Jiang Xueyi then embroidered various patterns on the bibs that had already been sewn, including fruits, little swans, little lions... She also embroidered a Q version of Xiaomi on one of the bibs.
The round body is covered with white fluff, like a freshly baked bun.
Liu Lu held up a blue bib she had sewn, with a tiny whale embroidered on it in silver thread, and couldn't help but sigh, "You have such a clever hand."
She showed it to Zhao Xiaorui: "Look, isn't your Aunt Jiang's cooking skill top-notch?"
Zhao Xiaorui nodded like a little chicken pecking at rice: "It's really beautiful." She pulled Jiang Xueyi's clothes and said coquettishly, "Aunt Jiang, please give me one. I want to wear it too."
Liu Lu chuckled, "You silly girl, this is for babies to absorb saliva. You're already an adult, wearing this to school, aren't you afraid that people will laugh at you?"
Zhao Xiaorui put her hands on her hips and said, "It's a joke, I'm not afraid." She continued to act coquettishly, "Aunt Jiang, please give me one."
Jiang Xueyi smiled and said, "Where's the bib? I can't give it to you."
Zhao Xiaorui's face immediately fell, and Jiang Xueyi changed the subject, "But when your mother makes you a new skirt, I can sew other beautiful patterns for you."
Zhao Xiaorui's expression immediately brightened up, and she almost jumped up: "That's settled, thank you Aunt Jiang!"
As we were talking, Qian Man came.
"Are you talking?"
Liu Lu went forward to greet her: "What brings you here?"
Qian Man said, "I'm running errands for our Lao Zhu. He said there's a bottle of wine at your Lao Zhao's place and asked me to come get it."
Liu Lu slapped her forehead and said, "It's the bottle of baijiu with a panda on it."
Qian Man nodded.
Liu Lu: "I'll get it for you right away."
She brought the wine, Qian Man thanked her, turned around and wanted to leave, but was stopped by Jiang Xueyi.
She smiled and said, "Sister Qian, now that you're here, sit down and talk."
She had a good impression of Qian Man and Captain Zhu. When Hu Genhua embarrassed her at the gathering at Captain Qi's house, the two of them also showed expressions of disapproval.
Qian Man looked at Jiang Xueyi, then at Liu Lu: "This..."
Liu Lu also smiled and said, "Captain Zhu, please don't be in a hurry to get that bottle of wine. Come and chat with us. You have nothing to do anyway."
Qian Man couldn't refuse the kindness: "Well, then I'll sit down."
She picked up a bib and looked at it. "You're making bibs for babies."
"Yeah." Liu Lu laughed, "Xueyi even gave it a fashionable name, Bib!"
Qian Man smiled and picked up the bib to gesture: "This is a good name. It's just a bib."
She touched the fabric and said, "The fabric is good too. It's made of cotton, right? It's not prickly and is very soft."
"It's made of cotton cloth." Jiang Xueyi smiled. "If our old He saw this, he would definitely say I was wasteful and told me to take apart his old camouflage uniform and make a small camouflage bib for the baby."
When mentioning He Chengze, a trace of loneliness flashed across Jiang Xueyi's eyes, but she quickly recovered.
He Chengze would definitely not say that she was wasteful, but he had to say that. After all, many people advocate frugality these days. If she said that her family was not afraid of waste and spent money without hesitation, people would criticize her.
Speaking of this, Qian Man became interested: "Xiao Jiang, I ran into your team leader He at the vegetable market last time."
It was very rare for men to go grocery shopping these days, so she was deeply impressed.
Jiang Xueyi smiled and said, "Really? He feels sorry for me because I'm overweight, so he often goes to the market to buy vegetables for me. It's not surprising that you ran into him."
"Because of this, those military wives have been gossiping about Xueyi, saying she's a lazy woman who loves to order her husbands around." Liu Lu said, "In my opinion, they're just jealous of you because they can't get enough grapes. There aren't many men like Captain He who are willing to help with housework. They're burning the candle at both ends, having to take care of the children and serve their husbands. They're jealous of you."
"It's not just the military wives who gossip. The butchers and vegetable vendors at the market love to gossip, too," Qian Man said. "They say Captain He is a henpecked husband who's dominated by his wife. He comes to buy groceries on time every day, but if he comes home late, you'll punish him by making him kneel on the washboard."
There are fewer entertainment activities nowadays, so it’s a novelty if someone’s hens lay an extra egg. What’s more, something like He Chengze buying groceries has been talked about behind his back for a long time.
Jiang Xueyi burst into laughter. If she hadn't been concerned about the baby in her belly, she would have laughed even more heartily: "How can they describe me as a hag?"
Qian Man kept the question a secret and said mysteriously, "That's not important. Guess what Captain He said at the time?"
Liu Lu's eyes were full of gossip. "What did they say?" She added, "If someone said that about my old Zhao, I would definitely roll up my sleeves and fight them."
"That's a bit too narrow-minded," Qian Man said with a smile. "Captain He said that Xiao Jiang's pregnancy was tough, and there's nothing wrong with him sharing more of the burden as a husband. He's letting those who laughed at him laugh at him again when they finally understand how to care for their own wives."
Qian Man: "Everyone in the vegetable market is so envious of you now."
Jiang Xueyi touched her red cheek with the back of her hand and said angrily, "What are you talking about?"
The whole night passed by while we talked and laughed.
Jiang Xueyi said goodbye to Liu Lu and Qian Man and went home with the finished bibs.
As she touched the fine stitching of the bib, she couldn't help but think of the description of the baby in her belly in the original novel.
As an illegitimate child with a mother who has a low level of education and works as a dishwasher in a restaurant, Xiao He’s life can be imagined.
The clothes he wore were all small enough for the neighboring children. Unfortunately, he inherited He Chengze's tall stature. Even at a young age, he was taller than children who were one or two years older than him. Therefore, his clothes were often too short, revealing his ankles and part of his calves, making him look very shabby.
Because of this, I was often bullied by other students in school.
But, things are different now.
She is not the original owner and will not let the child in her belly fall into that state.
Xiao He will not only have exquisite bibs made by herself, but also various cute little clothes. She will no longer have to pick up clothes that others don't want to wear.
She folded the bibs one by one and placed them on the bedside.
Before going to bed, I touched my belly.
I really hope to meet Xiao He soon.
At three o'clock in the morning, the sound of rain wrapped in moisture seeped into the window cracks. Jiang Xueyi held her waist and sat up from the bed. The fetal movement beat like drums in her lower abdomen.
She touched her bulging belly, felt a little thirsty, and wanted to go to the kitchen to get a glass of water.
As she walked barefoot across the cold floor through the dark living room, she suddenly caught sight of a tall, dark figure huddled on a bench.
"Who?!" Jiang Xueyi subconsciously reached for the stick behind the door, but her fingertips stopped instantly when they touched the stick.
The tall black figure was wearing a soaked camouflage uniform, his epaulettes shining coldly in the moonlight. Raindrops dripped from his soaked trouser legs onto the floor, forming a small puddle that revealed the secret before any words could.
The shadow sat up suddenly and reached for the incandescent light switch with his muddy hands.
In the warm yellow light, the man's bloodshot eyes shone frighteningly bright, and a blade of grass still clung to his prickly chin. "Did I wake you? I took off my shoes outside the door..."
Before he could finish his words, he was tackled by someone.
Jiang Xueyi hugged him tightly, biting her lower lip, tears dripping from her eyes onto his camouflage uniform.
He Chengze's body stiffened, and his broad palm rested on Jiang Xueyi's back for a moment. He patted her gently and coaxed her softly, "Why are you crying? I'm back."
Jiang Xueyi raised her head, her eyes red like a little rabbit, and choked up, "Do you know how worried I was during the past few days when you were gone? I couldn't eat or sleep well, and I lost a lot of weight."
She punched his chest hard, but the force was as soft as a ball of cotton: "I don't care, it's all your fault, it's all your fault."
He Chengze smiled and said, "Okay, it's all my fault, it's all my fault."
He suddenly gasped and started coughing violently.
Jiang Xueyi's expression changed, and she asked nervously, "What's wrong?"
He Chengze: "It's okay, I just choked."
"I don't believe it." Jiang Xueyi grabbed his mud-stained collar and choked with sobs, "Take it off."
He Chengze's Adam's apple rolled as he tried to argue, but his eyes met her red eyes and he sighed, "Okay, I'll take it off. But first, I'll tell you, you can't be angry."
His slender fingers slowly touched the buttons of his camouflage uniform. Every time he unbuttoned one, the subtle sound of metal friction was particularly clear in the silent room.
When the last button was undone, he took a deep breath and slowly took off his camouflage jacket.
The white shirt inside had long been soaked with sweat and blood, sticking tightly to his chest, outlining the outline of the bandage, and dark red bloodstains spread across the fabric.
The most serious wound was located above the left chest. A hideous crack was faintly visible between the gaps in the bandage, and the skin and flesh were turned inside out, with an abnormal purple-red color.
Jiang Xueyi's eyes instantly filled with tears. She gently placed her fingertips on the wound, wanting to touch it but not daring to. "Does it hurt?"
"It doesn't hurt, not at all."
"How did you get hurt?" Her voice suddenly rose.
"When the rescue work was almost complete, the mountain suddenly gave way, and a mudslide carrying rocks rushed down." He Chengze's voice was hoarse, and his eyes became a little hazy, as if he had returned to that terrifying night. "The soldiers and some of the affected people had not yet evacuated. When the alarm sounded, the mudslide was almost reaching us."
"There was an old lady with limited mobility who refused to leave, saying she hadn't had time to take any of her belongings with her." The memory made his Adam's apple roll violently, and the wound beneath the bandage seemed to start burning again. "The roar of the mudslide was already hurting my eardrums. I didn't bother to persuade her and simply carried the old lady onto my back. She pounded on my shoulders and cried and screamed. As soon as we reached higher ground, the mudslide flooded the area where we were standing."
"The situation was so urgent at the time. When we were evacuating, I just felt something hit my chest hard," he said. "Only after we got them to the resettlement site did we realize I had such a big gash on my chest. But it's okay. I've applied some medicine and it should heal in a few days."
He Chengze: "Don't say so much, give me a kiss first, I miss you so much."
He put his arms around Jiang Xueyi's waist and kissed her on the cheek.
"Your beard..." Before he could finish his words, Jiang Xueyi was tickled and laughed out loud. She pushed him and said, "How long has it been since you shaved?"
He Chengze put his chin into her shoulder and gently rubbed it, "Let me hold you for a while."
"Yeah." Jiang Xueyi nestled in his arms, careful not to touch his wound.
The two of them enjoyed the quietness of the moment.
He Chengze said, "You don't know, I took out that photo of us and looked at it eight hundred times a day. My comrades laughed at me and said I might as well glue the photo to my hands."
"Liang Xiaodong said that I had worn the photos to pieces."
"And, and, that guy Chen Lang is even worse. Before every meeting, he always asks me, 'He Tuan, how many times have you watched this today?'"
Jiang Xueyi was stunned at first, then burst into laughter.
There was a hint of bitterness in her smile. She knew that He Chengze was telling jokes to make her laugh in order to divert her attention.
She laughed in agreement and said, "You grown men, you act so majestic and impressive when you're out there rescuing people, but you're still harboring these little tricks behind the scenes." She added, "Things like grinding photos into patina, 'sticking photos to your hands with glue', you're the only ones who can come up with such ideas."
He Chengze: "That's right. If you ask me, they don't look like they're going there for disaster relief. They're clearly there to tell jokes. If you give them a clapperboard and a stage, they can even sing it on the spot."
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
