In 1978, street lights were ordinary tungsten filament bulbs, and the light was a dim warm yellow, even the silhouettes of people on the ground had a warmth.
The two shadows, one tall and one short, snuggled together, looking very warm.
In fact, there was still a wide gap between Jiang Shiyue and Chen Shanhe, and she was slightly half a step behind Chen Shanhe.
I could hear the lively singing and laughter from the small square.
The two of them walked for a long time in silence. Chen Shanhe didn't say anything, so Jiang Shiyue had no choice but to ask him, "What do you want to talk about?"
"I'll tell you later."
Jiang Shiyue never expected that Chen Shanhe would bring her to the work area of the repair camp.
The repair area is a separate courtyard with a guard post at the door.
Jiang Shiyue looked at the warning sign on the gate and didn't know what to say for a moment.
The warning sign read: Military area, no entry for unauthorized persons.
Chen Shanhe, who was walking in front, hadn't seen Jiang Shiyue catch up for a long time, so he turned around and waved at her, "Hurry up!"
Jiang Shiyue repeated to herself three times, "I can't argue with a drunkard!" before she could maintain her composure and asked him, "Is this a place I can come to?!"
What kind of crime would it be to trespass into a military stronghold? She couldn't bear it anyway.
However, Jiang Shiyue looked at the sentry standing at the gate strangely.
Chen Shanhe was drunk but he was not, so why didn't he stop himself?
The drunk Chen Shanhe was slow to react. It took him a while to understand what Jiang Shiyue meant. He walked back and pulled Jiang Shiyue inside without saying anything. "Don't worry! I know my limits."
Jiang Shiyue didn't believe him and turned to ask the sentry, "Can I go in?"
The sentry looked at Chen Shanhe and nodded.
Jiang Shiyue: “???!!!”
My heart was instantly filled with ecstasy.
It feels like winning a huge lottery.
Can you enter a military stronghold?!
She is not a military fan, but she can't help but be curious about such a sacred place.
He quickly followed Chen Shanhe into the courtyard.
Compared to the entire compound, the small courtyard is actually not small.
How could a place for repairing airplanes be small?
There are several rows of workshops in the yard.
Jiang Shiyue estimated that one workshop could accommodate an airplane.
However, under normal circumstances, the machine will not be repaired, and parts will usually be disassembled for repair.
Chen Shanhe stopped at the door of one of the workshops and called Jiang Shiyue, "Come here!"
Jiang Shiyue came over and looked at Chen Shanhe eagerly, waiting for him to take the key to open the door.
Chen Shanhe pointed to the slightly wider gap between the two doors and said, "Why are you looking at me? Look inside!"
Jiang Shiyue: “…”
Jiang Shiyue: “!!!”
No wonder the sentry let her in.
So she was just peeking through the crack of the door under the guidance of Chen Shanhe?
While I felt disappointed, it wasn't surprising. How could someone like Chen Shanhe, who had military rules etched into his bones, do something against the rules?!
Out of curiosity, Jiang Shiyue followed Chen Shanhe's example and looked through the crack in the door with one eye.
There is a fighter jet parked in this workshop.
"This is J7. I was the one who test-flew it before it went into formal production." Chen Shanhe said.
Jiang Shiyue listened quietly. She knew that what Chen Shanhe needed at this moment was to be listened to.
Chen Shanhe seemed to be unable to stand. He slid down the thick iron gate and sat on the ground, leaning his head back against the gate, bending and stretching his long legs. His right elbow rested on his bent knee.
It was a very rough sitting posture, but Jiang Shiyue's heart skipped a beat when he saw it.
"During my last test flight, the J7 had some problems. Although I landed safely in the end, I couldn't fly the J7 again. Not only the J7, but I started to feel unable to face any aircraft, whether it was a fighter or a transport plane. I couldn't fly any of them."
"I know every button and every part of the J7 by heart. I know it better than my own body, but I just can't control myself and fly it into the air like I used to."
"They said I was a deserter. They said I was scared by the accident during the J7 test flight. I don't think so, but I can't prove it."
"The team took special care of me and found many doctors for me. One of them said I had PTSD."
"Do you know what PTSD is? It's post-traumatic stress disorder."
Jiang Shiyue knew about post-traumatic stress disorder, but she felt that Chen Shanhe's symptoms were not similar.
He is emotionally stable.
Of course, it is also possible that due to his profession, his psychological quality is too strong, so he does not show obvious or even no reactions that a normal person with PTSD would have.
"The military doctor prescribed some medicine, but it didn't help much. I still couldn't fly the J7, or any other aircraft. Eventually, I was grounded."
"Everyone calls me a coward and a wimp." Chen Shanhe said and suddenly smiled, "In fact, I have to thank you."
"Three years ago, when I was at my most broken, you were driving me crazy every day. You were making trouble for me, for the company, and for your boss, insisting on marrying me. Surprisingly, I didn't have any nightmares during that time." After thinking for a moment, he added, "It wasn't really a nightmare."
Jiang Shiyue heard that patients with post-traumatic stress disorder would have frequent dreams, in which scenes related to the trauma would involuntarily appear, and even recur.
She whispered, "What do you dream about?"
Chen Shanhe recalled and shook his head, "I don't remember clearly, but I often dream about my master."
"Your master..." Jiang Shiyue stopped asking halfway.
Chen Shanhe understood what she meant and nodded. "Yes, my master died. It was the day when I had an accident while test-flying the J7."
"Ah!" Jiang Shiyue couldn't help but exclaimed.
She had heard that being a test pilot was dangerous, but she hadn't expected the accident rate to be so high.
Chen Shanhe chuckled.
He looked very handsome when he smiled, but Jiang Shiyue felt that this smile looked bitter.
"Actually, it was my master's turn to test-fly the J7. He was our team's top and most accomplished test pilot, so it was only natural for him to do the final test flight before production.
I was young and ambitious at the time, always striving for excellence. I also wanted to test-fly the J7. Taking advantage of his appreciation for talent, I pestered him daily to get it. Later, my master switched with me, and he flew the Q3, which I was supposed to be flying. I never came back.
"Tell me, if I had flown the Q3 and he had flown the J7, would we have both returned safely? Or would he have been alive and well?"
The last few words were trembling.
Jiang Shiyue sat down cross-legged beside Chen Shanhe, and turned her head to see a crystal tear rolling down.
Men don't shed tears easily, but they do when they are sad.
Jiang Shiyue took out a clean handkerchief with a white background and blue edges from his pocket and gently put it into Chen Shanhe's hand.
She didn't know what to say.
Anyone who dies is a tragedy.
Suddenly, Jiang Shiyue thought of a possibility and asked him, "Have you told your psychiatrist about the dream you had about your master?"
Chen Shanhe shook his head.
"They did ask me if I ever dreamt about my accident or the other way around. I said no and they never asked again."
Jiang Shiyue nodded, "Chen Shanhe, shall we go see the psychologist again tomorrow? We can also take Yangyang for a follow-up checkup."
Chen Shanhe shook his head, "No."
"Why?"
"You have the college entrance exam tomorrow!"
Jiang Shiyue: “…”
I forgot about it again.
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