"Then why don’t you come home for lunch!" Shen Xianjun blurted out, leaving Qin Nian speechless. What kind of nonsense was this?
Seeing Qin Nian’s expression, Shen Xianjun rubbed his nose and fell silent, pretending he hadn’t said anything.
The couple remained quiet the entire way back until they reached the family compound.
"Mom, the doctor said Xianjun’s injury needs a follow-up check in half a month."
"Half a month? That’s fine. It’s not urgent anyway. He can manage simple activities, right?" Yang Yufen was still worried about her son.
"No problem. The doctor said he’s recovering well."
"Good." Yang Yufen nodded.
"You’ve been burying yourself in studying these past few days. Since Nian is free now, get those questions of yours sorted out. Otherwise, you won’t have answers when your father-in-law quizzes you later."
Shen Xianjun felt a pang in his chest. Why did his mother treat him so differently?
Still, he had been studying diligently, especially mechanical principles—the more he read, the more fascinated he became.
Yang Yufen watched the young couple finally finding common ground, then grabbed her vegetable basket and headed out. It had been a while since she last called the village, and someone should be at the brigade office by now.
"Aunt Yang, perfect timing—your call is here."
Yang Yufen had just arrived when the call came through.
"Yufen, is that you?"
"Gui Xiang, what’s wrong?"
As soon as Yang Yufen picked up, she heard muffled sobs on the other end.
"Yufen, the old man and our second son went to work in the mountains and fell into a ravine. Their bones are broken, and… and his head was hit too. The village helped send them to the hospital, but the county hospital can’t treat them, so they were transferred to the city. The city doctors said they can’t perform the surgery and told me to take them somewhere better. I don’t know who else to turn to, I…"
Gui Xiang broke down, covering her mouth. Her husband and son were both severely injured. If there was a way to save them, she’d sell everything she had. But the doctors said the hospital lacked the equipment.
"Don’t panic. See if the hospital or the brigade leader can help arrange their transfer. I’ll find a hospital here. Remember when Tiedan was nearly dead from his injuries? He was saved. I’ll go back and ask for help right away. Don’t worry about the money—lives come first. Can you still take calls at this number later?"
"Yes, this is the hospital’s phone."
"Alright, let’s not waste time. We’ll figure out how to get them here."
Yang Yufen hung up, paid for the call, and had the number written down before sprinting home.
"Xianjun, Aunt Gui Xiang’s family is in trouble. Uncle and their second son fell into a ravine in the mountains. Their local hospital can’t treat them—they need to come here. Do you have a way? If it weren’t for Uncle back then, you’d have died in those mountains."
Yang Yufen was drenched in sweat from anxiety.
"Mom, don’t worry. I’ll make some calls. We’ll find a way. I’ll even trade my military merits if I have to."
Shen Xianjun abandoned his book and stood up immediately.
When he was ten, he’d foolishly gone hunting in the mountains and encountered a wolf. Uncle had fought it off, saving him despite being bitten on the arms and legs. He’d nearly died himself, and Shen Xianjun had never forgotten it.
"Mom, send them to the military hospital. I’ll go find my eldest brother. Professor Wen’s house has a phone—it’ll be faster."
Seeing how frantic her mother-in-law and husband were, Qin Nian spoke up.
"Yes, yes! Nian, thank you."
The three rushed to the Hu family. Professor Wen had been home lately, looking after Xiao Bao, so someone was always there.
"What’s going on?" Professor Wen opened the door.
"Mother-in-law, we need to use your phone. It’s urgent—someone’s life is at stake."
Shen Xianjun spoke quickly, and Professor Wen stepped aside to let them in.
The Hu family’s phone wasn’t locked. Shen Xianjun immediately dialed his commanding officer’s number.
The call connected in less than three minutes, reaching the office directly.
"Sir, this is Shen Xianjun. There’s an emergency at home…"
He swiftly explained the situation—his relatives were at the city hospital in critical condition.
"Sir, I know using military resources for personal matters is wrong, but I’m willing to trade my merits for this. If Uncle hadn’t saved me back then, I wouldn’t be alive today."
"Kid, it’s good you remember your debts. Don’t move. I’ll make some calls to arrange things."
Professor Wen, overhearing, understood the gravity of the situation.
"Here’s the hospital’s number. Call your Aunt Gui Xiang first and tell her not to panic."
Yang Yufen handed over the number, and Shen Xianjun dialed immediately.
"Yes, yes. Thank you so much. I truly didn’t know what else to do."
Gui Xiang’s tears hadn’t stopped since answering.
"Auntie, don’t say that. Just hold on a little longer."
Shen Xianjun comforted her briefly but hung up quickly, not wanting to miss his commanding officer’s callback.
Qin Nian noticed Shen Xianjun clutching his abdomen and hurried to support him.
"Did you pull your wound? Sit down."
"It’s nothing. Just the tension."
Shen Xianjun kept his eyes fixed on the phone, fearing any delay.
Fortunately, the call came soon.
"It’s settled. Kid, you focus on recovering and get back to the army soon. My soldiers never disappoint."
The call ended abruptly. About forty minutes later, the phone rang again.
"The patients are being transferred immediately. There’s a doctor accompanying them…"
A suitable train was leaving the city soon—faster than a car. With connections, they secured sleeper berths, but someone needed to receive them to avoid missing the critical treatment window.
Professor Wen called Zhou Ang, who promptly helped with arrangements.
Back home, Yang Yufen gathered all the money she had.
"We’ve already troubled your superiors. We’ll cover the expenses ourselves."
She handed the money to Shen Xianjun, who turned to Qin Nian.
"Wife, I’ll need to use our savings for Uncle’s treatment first. I’ll give you all my future allowances."
Qin Nian also took out her savings, understanding the urgency.
"Saving lives comes first. If it’s not enough, I have more."
"Mom, Political Commissar Zhao asked me to give this to you earlier. I’ve been too busy and forgot."
Two envelopes, combined with Yang Yufen’s money, brought the total to five thousand yuan.
The train would arrive the next afternoon. Hu Jun took leave to drive Shen Xianjun to the station. Qin Nian went to work, while Yang Yufen cleaned up the spare house outside the compound for Gui Xiang’s family to stay.
With injuries this severe, they couldn’t leave right after surgery, nor could they stay in the hospital indefinitely—broken bones took months to heal.
Once the house was ready, Yang Yufen rushed home to cook. Timing it right, she carried lunchboxes to the hospital to wait.
"Yufen."
"Gui Xiang, everything will be fine. Eat something first."
The patients were wheeled straight into surgery.
"Alright."
"Brigade Leader, here, have some food too. You’ve had a long journey."
Yang Yufen had prepared two meals.
The brigade leader was indeed hungry. Gui Xiang ate absentmindedly but forced herself to finish, not wanting to waste Yang Yufen’s kindness.
