"Yes, Regimental Commander Gu! After Song Ning finished Elder Zhou's acupuncture treatment, she asked me to bring her to regimental headquarters!"
"What is Song Ning coming to headquarters for? Isn't Lu Changqing still in the hospital?" Chief of Staff Xu asked, puzzled.
Wang Ze smiled. "She came to pick up a change of clothes for Lu Changqing!"
Chief of Staff Xu paused, then clapped his hands together and said happily:
"Well! That means they've cleared up the misunderstanding! All that speculation was just us worrying over nothing!"
Gu Zheng stared steadily at Wang Ze and asked:
"You're saying Song Ning asked to come to headquarters to pick up a change of clothes for Lu Changqing?"
"That's right!"
Wang Ze smiled. "I told her it was getting late and that I'd arrange a car for her tomorrow, but she couldn't wait! She insisted on coming with me today! Han Xiao has already taken her to the dormitory! Once she's finished packing, I'll arrange a car to take her back to the city!"
Chief of Staff Xu burst out laughing.
"Ah, now I can finally stop worrying! Looks like we'll be celebrating another wedding in our regiment before long!"
He turned to look at Gu Zheng. "Gu, you still need to give us your decision on how to handle this! We can't keep putting it off!"
Gu Zheng rubbed his temples and said in a low voice:
"Handle it as you see fit, Xu. I have no objections."
"All right! Then I'll find a moment to ask Song Ning what she thinks before we finalize it. As far as I can see, it's practically settled! Oh... Gu! You don't look too well. Is your headache acting up again...?"
Gu Zheng turned and picked up the jacket hanging over the back of his chair. "Carry on without me. I'm going to check on their training."
With that, he walked out.
The older man and the younger man watched him leave, both feeling that something was off.
Unexpectedly, Gu Zheng suddenly came back. "Oh, Wang Ze! It's dinnertime! Have Song Ning eat at the mess hall before she leaves! We mustn't neglect our duties as hosts!"
"Yes, sir!" Wang Ze answered loudly.
A moment later, he scratched his head. "Chief of Staff Xu! If it's dinnertime, whose training is the commander going to check on? Wouldn't everyone be... eating at the mess hall right now?"
In room 216 of the dormitory building.
Using the key, Song Ning opened the bottom drawer on the left side of the desk.
Inside was a tin that had once held some kind of biscuits.
The tin contained a stack of banknotes in various denominations, totaling roughly a hundred yuan.
Beneath the banknotes lay a bankbook.
Song Ning picked up the bankbook but did not open it, because there were several envelopes underneath.
She picked up the envelopes and was startled when she saw the sender's name.
These were letters from Song Huaide, the original Song Ning's grandfather, to Lu Changqing.
Grandpa Song had been the village's barefoot doctor, writing prescriptions and dispensing medicine every day, so Song Ning knew his handwriting well.
She unfolded the stationery. Sure enough, it was Grandpa Song's handwriting.
Song Ning took out all the letters and read them in chronological order, her expression growing grave.
The earliest letter had been written in October 1975, and the last in November 1976.
Grandpa Song had passed away in December 1976.
Apart from everyday greetings, expressions of concern, and a few brief mentions of Song Ning, Grandpa Song had repeatedly told Lu Changqing not to send him money and praised his performance in the army.
More often, he had asked about Lu Changqing's progress on the "mission," telling him not to get distracted or worry about his health, since he could still hold on for now! He had even encouraged Lu Changqing, saying that he was still young and would definitely succeed as long as he did not give up!
As long as Lu Changqing could complete this "mission," his death would be worthwhile, and he could rest in peace!
Grandpa Song had also stated more than once that, whether the "mission" succeeded or not, Lu Changqing must never tell Song Ning.
In the final letter, Grandpa Song had instructed him not to write again for the time being unless he received another letter from him.
From these letters, Song Ning could draw several conclusions:
First, Song Huaide and Lu Changqing had indeed been working together on a "mission." It was a difficult one that might take many years to complete.
Second, Lu Changqing had not only kept in touch with Grandpa Song and reported on his circumstances, but had also sent him money. Their correspondence had ended only because Grandpa Song had passed away.
Third, Grandpa Song, and even Lu Changqing, had known that Grandpa Song would "die." Moreover, they both seemed able to accept that outcome.
Fourth, the mission was "dangerous." Otherwise, Grandpa Song would not have feared dragging her into it or repeatedly insisted that Lu Changqing must not tell her.
In the original Song Ning's memories, what had happened that year was-
Many places had been hit by disaster, and the dams of many reservoirs had collapsed!
There had been terrible floods, and many people had died!
Her grandfather and many other villagers had gone to help in the disaster area. They had stayed for two or three months, and when he returned, he had happily told her that he had met an outstanding soldier during the relief efforts and arranged an engagement for her.
Now, considering the timing, Song Ning could roughly deduce which disaster it had been.
It matched a historical event.
In August 1975, Super Typhoon Nina had pushed deep inland and collided with a southward-moving cold air mass, bringing torrential rainfall of a magnitude rarely seen in history and causing the deadliest reservoir dam failures in Hua Country's history.
According to the official figures released at the time, 26,000 people had died in the disaster. Only years later had the true figures been made public: the actual death toll had reached hundreds of thousands, with more than ten million people affected. Over a hundred kilometers of the Beijing-Guangzhou Railway had been washed away, transportation had been disrupted for more than a month, and losses had amounted to ten billion yuan.
She remembered her history teacher saying that this had been one of the worst dam disasters in the world.
That year, grateful for the help they had received from across the country when "a hundred tigers surrounded the village," many people from Yakou Village had joined the county town's emergency response team to help in the disaster area. Song Huaide had been one of them.
According to the letters, Lu Changqing had been a soldier ordered to assist in the disaster relief efforts.
He and Song Huaide had met during those efforts. But only Lu Changqing knew exactly what had happened and how they had come to take on a mysterious "mission" together!
Still, these letters did prove that Lu Changqing had not lied about the matters involving her grandfather.
After her grandfather's death, Song Ning had sorted through his belongings but found none of the letters Lu Changqing had sent him.
There was only one possibility: Grandpa Song had destroyed every letter he received!
His purpose had been to keep it secret.
After all, the village was not an army base. If he kept the letters, they could be discovered at any time.
This also showed how cautiously Grandpa Song had treated the matter.
This mysterious "mission" might be more important than Song Ning had imagined.
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