Seeing that the corners of Han Yao's mouth were dry and chapped, Political Commissar Lu picked up the teacup on the table and handed it to him.
"Drink some water to moisten your throat first."
After getting off the train and rushing around for Lin Ruo for half a day without even a sip of water, Han Yao only now began to feel thirsty.
Taking the teacup from Commissar Lu, Han Yao tilted his head back and drank, his Adam's apple rolling up and down as he swallowed.
He finished half the teacup in two or three gulps, then placed the empty cup back on the table.
Commissar Lu had already sat back down in his chair.
"I heard your wife came from the countryside to join the army, and I also heard she's here to divorce you. Han Yao, what are your thoughts on this?"
Han Yao replied firmly:
"Commissar, I don't want a divorce. I just want to live a good life."
Commissar Lu sighed heavily, his slightly weathered face full of concern and care for Han Yao. Han Yao's personal problems had already become the leaders' top concern.
Han Yao was the most valued soldier by the army leaders, the most capable fighter in the Jicheng Military Region, and a hot commodity other regions were eager to recruit.
For such an outstanding soldier, Commissar Lu had to do a proper job of ideological work, ensuring the stability of his rear area while also considering his future.
"If you're getting a divorce at this critical juncture, rumors will certainly spread about your poor lifestyle. This is a matter of great importance to your future—you must absolutely not be foolish.
With your abilities, you'll only achieve greater things in the future. I hope you can think it through. Go back and talk properly with the girl. If things don't work out, the military can intervene and persuade her if necessary."
Han Yao pressed his lips tightly, standing motionless at the table. He waited for Commissar Lu to pause before revealing his ultimate goal.
"Commissar, when can my application for family housing be approved?"
Having his own place would give him more reason to keep Lin Ruo by his side.
Commissar Lu finally smiled, his wrinkles reaching his ears.
"Do you even need to tell me? I've been thinking about this since I heard your wife was here.
Captain Zhang of the Fourth Battalion, Third Regiment, retired the day before yesterday, leaving his compound vacant. Have someone clean it tomorrow, and you can move in.
The opportunity is already given to you. Whether you can keep people here depends on your ability. Write the application for the family housing now, and leave after you finish.
Ah, I'm afraid I'll have a few more white hairs because of you."
Lu Zhengwu took out a pen and paper and slapped them on the table.
Commissar Lu said earnestly:
"On your wedding day, you were urgently summoned by the army before you even entered the bridal chamber. You've been gone for three years. It's understandable that the girl is angry.
In fact, this is what the army owes her. But as soldiers, it is our duty to obey orders and defend our country. We must protect the country before we can have a home.
If you want to go on a mission, then you can only be sorry for the girl. You must endure her scoldings and resentment.
You need to make up for what you owe her in these past three years. Privately, we hope you can live a happy life. Publicly, you will definitely be promoted for your great contributions in this mission."
Meanwhile, Lin Ruo took out enough food from the lunchbox for herself and began eating with big mouthfuls.
The taste of the food, made from natural and pollution-free ingredients with advanced technology, was good. But of course, it couldn't compare with the meals she cooked herself.
Not long after Lin Ruo finished her meal, there was another knock at the door. It was Han Yao.
"Eat first. If you wait any longer, the food will get cold. We'll talk after you eat. I haven't touched the food—it's clean."
To Lin Ruo, this sounded like an ordinary sentence. But in Han Yao's ears, it was as if Lin Ruo cared for him, worried that he might feel uncomfortable eating cold food.
Han Yao was indeed very hungry, and upon hearing this, he picked up his chopsticks and started eating.
He ate quickly but not rudely, without the bad habit of smacking his lips.
He finished all the remaining food in just ten minutes.
He covered the empty lunchboxes and put them back neatly into the net bag, one by one.
When Lin Ruo turned around, the man was standing right in front of her.
Lin Ruo looked up at the man, who was a head taller than her, and suddenly felt the atmosphere become tense and oppressive.
She pressed her lips together and encouraged herself in her heart.
She wasn't wrong, and the other person wasn't a monster—there was nothing to be afraid of.
"Han Yao, when are you going to file for divorce? Let's settle it quickly."
When Han Yao heard the word divorce again, his deep eyes narrowed.
"I don't agree to divorce. Since I married you, I have to be responsible for you until the end. I never once thought about divorce from the beginning."
"Responsible for me?" Lin Ruo snorted and laughed bitterly.
"Being responsible means ignoring me for three years? Not replying to my letters, not even making a single phone call?"
The grievances in her heart surged up. Lin Ruo couldn't hold back any longer, and with red eyes, she began to tell this man how he had been responsible.
"Where were you when I worked like a slave in your house, tirelessly and endlessly?
Where were you when I had to wash clothes for the whole family in the middle of winter?"
"Where were you when your mother beat and scolded me because I wanted to boil water to wash clothes in the cold?
Where were you when I cooked for the entire family, yet had to stand at the table and drink only wild vegetable soup?
Where were you when I was so hungry every day that I had to dig grass roots at the foot of the mountain and gnaw on tree bark?
Where were you when I finished my own work during the busy farming season, and still had to share the burden with your parents?
Where were you when your family members called me a lowly bastard who climbed into your bed whenever they were dissatisfied?
Where were you when I was penniless and angered your mother by asking for a single dime, and she beat me half to death?
And you still say you want to be responsible for me? Is this what you call responsibility?"
Only when Lin Ruo felt a chill run down her face did she hastily wipe it away, sniffing hard, before continuing her accusations.
"Han Yao, if I hadn't come here, would you have already forgotten you even had a wife at home, the one you've been married to for three years?
Since our marriage was a mistake, I'm setting you free now.
File for divorce. Once you get the divorce certificate, I'll leave immediately and never appear before you again.
From now on, we'll have nothing to do with each other."
Lin Ruo's words blazed out like machine gun fire—rapid, sharp, and merciless—leaving Han Yao no chance to speak.
After venting all the grievances buried in her chest, Lin Ruo felt the air in the room fresher, as though her heart had been unclogged.
As she spoke, her whole body trembled with anger, as if she were surrounded by burning flames.
Her hands clenched into fists, and her body shook with fury.
Her arms swung as if ready to strike Han Yao at any moment.
By the end, Lin Ruo hadn't even noticed the tears streaming down her face.
Tears pattered to the ground like beads from a broken string, soaking the floor beneath her feet.
When people can't hold it in, they need to vent it out.
Only after venting will they feel a little relief when others are unhappy.
No matter who you are, or how high your position, this is your first time as a human being—
why should you force yourself into suffering just to accommodate others?
Only by venting your emotions occasionally, even going a little crazy, can you realize that life can actually be beautiful.
A series of accusations left Han Yao completely speechless.
He opened his mouth, but it felt as though his throat were stuffed with cotton—he couldn't spit it out, and he couldn't swallow it down.
Han Yao had never expected his family would bully Lin Ruo like this, nor that she had suffered such a miserable life for the past three years.
He thought she would live comfortably in the village with the money he sent.
But reality had slapped him hard.
She had been living like this for three whole years.