Chapter 4: " The resurrected ex-wife who once cast me aside"

He Chunli stayed in the guesthouse for one night and was not happy because the conditions of the guesthouses 20 years ago were not good. There was no private bathroom, air conditioning, or water dispenser, making it inconvenient to drink water. This made He Chunli, who was used to the convenient life in later times, extremely uncomfortable.

There were also mosquitoes in the room, buzzing all night long and leaving several bites on her body. After not sleeping well that night, He Chunli was not in good spirits when she went to the hospital to take care of Lin Laoshi the next day.

In the morning, when Lin Laoshi was receiving an infusion, she sat aside and yawned frequently.

Lin Laoshi took a look at the dark circles under her eyes and the two small mosquito bites on her left cheek, and roughly guessed the reason.

"Didn't you sleep well last night? Are you scared of staying in a guesthouse

alone?" He Chunli looked at him strangely. The guesthouse was a state-owned unit. There was someone watching the front desk downstairs 24 hours a day, and only people with status or relatives could stay there. What was there to be afraid of?

However, men seem to like women who are coquettish and dependent. He Chunli bit her red lips: "I'm not afraid, I'm just worried about you. Besides, there are mosquitoes in the guesthouse. They buzz around my ears all night long. It's so annoying..."

Lin Laoshi stared at the small bag on her face for two seconds, then said: "There is money in the drawer of the bedside table. Take it and buy mosquito coils!"

He Chunli opened the drawer, and there was a stack of Big Unity bills neatly placed inside, roughly estimated to be about ten. A hundred dollars is just a drop in the bucket for people twenty years later. He Chunli had just returned and her thoughts were still in the future, so she didn't take the money too seriously. What's more, Lin Laoshi was her husband and his money was hers, so without Lin Laoshi saying anything, she took all the money and put it in her own pocket.

When Lin Laoshi saw this, he didn't say anything. He just said, "My IV will take most of the day. You don't have to stay here. Go buy some mosquito coils!"

He Chunli wanted to leave, but she had not forgotten her mission here. Looking up at the bottle of medicine that was almost finished, she said, "It's okay, I'll keep an eye on it for you. You can go after the drip is finished."

Lin Laoshi didn't insist anymore, changed the subject and asked about the family's situation.

He Chunli was in a daze after her rebirth. Before she had time to sort out the situation, she received a telegram saying that Lin Laoshi was in trouble. Then she rushed to the military hospital in a hurry, but had no idea how her relatives were doing.

But she agreed to everything Lin Laoshi asked. In her memory, nothing serious happened to Lin Laoshi's relatives this year.

The two chatted idly, and as they were chatting, He Chunli found that Lin Laoshi was distracted again and immediately became unhappy. She came thousands of miles to take care of him, and he treated her like this, lying in the hospital bed with nothing to do, not even having the time to listen to her?

She wanted to see what could divert his attention again and again, making him ignore his lovely wife who was guarding his bedside. He Chunli stopped talking, pursed her lips, and looked sideways, following Lin Laoshi's gaze. The next moment, her face turned red, and her anger turned into embarrassment.

Because she found that Lin was staring at the small hole next to the hem of her dacron top. The hole is very small, about the size of a finger, and is located at the hem of the clothes, so it is relatively hidden and cannot be found without careful observation.

But this guy Lin Laoshi is not careful when he should be careful, and is as delicate as a hair when he should not be careful. Facing her embarrassed and angry eyes, he actually blinked innocently and said, "Your clothes are damaged!"

She was not blind, she could see, who needed him to remind her! He Chunli was extremely embarrassed. When she saw her husband for the first time after her rebirth, she was wearing only a pair of tattered clothes.

In fact, these days, it's no big deal if a hole in clothes exists. Just patch it up. Even ordinary city dwellers won't stop wearing good clothes made of Dacron just because they have a hole in them.

In the final analysis, it was because she had such a bad life in her previous life. Facing the "promising" Lin Laoshi, He Chunli felt inferior. She needed to dress up beautifully to boost her confidence.

Her hand slid down and her palm hastily covered the hole. She then stood up and glanced at the bottle: "The water is almost gone. I'll go call the nurse."

After a minute or two, only the young nurse came in and quickly replaced the medicine bottle and hung it up.

After she finished cleaning and stood up with the tray, Lin Laoshi asked, "Xiao Jiang, where is Chunli? Why didn't she come back with you?"

The young nurse glanced at Lin Laoshi with what she thought was a hidden look of sympathy, and said sullenly, "She said the sun is not very strong right now, so she went out to buy mosquito coils and will be back soon. I'll leave the door of the ward half open for you. Call me if anything happens."

Lin Laoshi didn't say anything, just nodded, closed his eyes and dozed off. This body is still too weak and needs sufficient rest to recover. He Chunli is making a lot of noise here, so I'd better take a good nap while she's away.

However, this gesture was interpreted by the young nurse as loss and sadness. Yes, my wife said she came to take care of him, but she did things in a clumsy way. She neither stayed with him at night nor watched him when he was getting an IV. What kind of care is this?

Back at the nurses' station, the young nurse sighed to her colleagues: "Sister Zou, no one is watching Captain Lin's IV. I just changed a 500 ml bottle of medicine for him. You guys should keep an eye on it in a while. Go check it out in advance, lest the blood is restored after the IV is finished."

Sister Zou had just returned from the ward and was busy sorting out medicines in another ward. Upon hearing this, she said without raising her head: "Isn't his wife here?"

The medicine prescribed by the doctor contained sleeping pills, and Lin Laoshi was very sleepy because his body was severely injured and needed rest to repair. The time for an IV drip is long and boring, and the patient is in low spirits, so relatives are often needed to watch over him/her to prevent the needle from running, blood from returning, the medicine from running out, or the patient from having adverse reactions.

The young nurse curled her lips: "Don't mention it. She said she wanted to buy mosquito coils while the sun is not too strong. When can't mosquito coils be bought? I told her this morning that Captain Lin has to have an IV drip all morning. Can't she go in the afternoon? I wanted to call her, but she ran away in a flash."

Sister Zou frowned, said nothing, nodded and said: "Then I'll tell all the nurses on our floor later, so that they won't forget Captain Lin when they are busy."

....

He Chunli covered the hole on the hem of her clothes and walked out of the ward. Along the way, she met many medical staff and patients' families. When passing by each other, she always felt that these people were staring at the holes in her clothes and laughing at her in secret.

With this self-righteous idea in mind, she hurriedly left the hospital and ran to the department store.

At this time, goods were much more abundant than in the 1970s, but still far from the prosperity of later generations. He Chunli looked around this gray city and felt somewhat disdainful of it, but even though she disdained it, it was the life she longed for at the moment.

After arriving at the department store, He Chunli bought some mosquito coils and was about to leave when she saw two young girls who looked like students. They were wearing white skirts that were cinched at the waist. They were as pure and fresh as white lotuses blooming in a pond in the early morning. Her feet seemed to have taken root and she could no longer move.

After hesitating for a few seconds, He Chunli turned around and went back to the department store.

It was not until noon that He Chunli returned to the hospital.

The young nurse watched her change into a bright red silk dress. This dress is very beautiful and well-cut. It shows off He Chunli's good figure and matches her skin tone very well. It seems as if it was tailor-made for her.

After putting on this dress, He Chunli instantly seemed like a different person, transforming from an ordinary country girl into a modern and fashionable one.

He Chunli was very happy when she saw the young nurse's astonished look. As expected, clothes make the man. After changing her clothes, she, He Chunli, was no worse than these city people. He Chunli walked into the ward with her head held high and her chest puffed out with high spirits.

As soon as the door was closed, the young nurse came to her senses, turned around and asked Sister Zou: "Did you see it? She...she is exaggerating!"

Sister Zou didn't say anything, but several family members of the patients looked at her and shook their heads: "This is not how they live. That skirt of hers must have cost dozens of dollars, which is equivalent to an ordinary person's annual salary."

Another one also frowned and sighed: "Captain Lin is so seriously injured, she must take good care of herself after being discharged from the hospital, otherwise her body will be damaged. There will be many places to spend money in the future. She is so extravagant, and when she loses her income in the future..."

The remaining family member didn't say anything, but everyone understood what she meant. Captain Lin is a soldier from the countryside. His family is not well off. Captain Lin's monthly allowance is probably the largest source of income for his family. But he was injured so badly that he would definitely be discharged from the army after being discharged from the hospital, and he would have no money in the future. He Chunli was so extravagant that she probably couldn't even afford to buy a chicken to make soup for Captain Lin to replenish his body.

He Chunli, completely unaware of what everyone was thinking, walked into the ward happily wearing her new dress. Then she held the hem of her skirt on both sides, spun around, and said to Lin Laoshi with a smile on her face, "Shi, am I beautiful?" When asking this, He Chunli was actually very confident. She was so overwhelmed by her own beauty when she looked in the mirror. Wouldn't that shock Lin Laoshi, a straight man?

Sure enough, Lin Laoshi nodded affirmatively: "Beautiful!"

He didn't mention the money at all, and neither did He Chunli. She sat excitedly beside the bed and told Lin Laoshi what she saw and heard in the department store today. She then proudly described how she stunned passers-by in a red dress, and that someone even invited her to "cut skirts" in the park.

She was still talking when the nurse came in to remove the needle.

The young nurse glanced at her, carried the tray back to the nurses' station and complained to Sister Zou: "Captain Lin has been on an IV and hasn't had any water for a long time, and his lips are dry and cracked. She didn't even pour Captain Lin a glass of water or go to get him food, but just sat there showing off. Is this how she takes care of patients?"

Sister Zou looked at her unhappily with a stern face: "Okay, go get Captain Lin food. Taking care of patients is our job. Don't talk about the right and wrong of patients' families."

Okay, Sister Zou is strict. The young nurse pursed her lips and obediently went to the cafeteria to get food for Lin Laoshi.

The next few days were calm and most of the work of taking care of Lin Laoshi was done by the young nurse. Seeing her rushing to do it, He Chunli was happy to relax. Every day, after Lin Laoshi finished his IV drip and took a nap, she would go out for a stroll, buy shoes, hairpins and the like, and dress herself up beautifully, outshining all the dusty family members and the nurses who wore white nurse uniforms every day.

He Chunli was very proud.

By this time, Lin Laoshi's injuries had gradually recovered and he could barely stand up. Although he still couldn't walk, he could take care of himself.

At this time, his application for discharge was approved, and the army sent Xiao Yang to help him with the relevant procedures so that he could go home directly to recuperate after being discharged from the hospital after his body recovered a little.

Xiao Yang had visited Lin Laoshi several times before, especially on the first day Lin Laoshi was injured. He stayed outside the ward with red eyes all night, so the medical staff all knew him.

Seeing him coming in with a brown paper bag, the young nurse raised her hand and greeted him: "Xiao Yang, are you here to visit Captain Lin?"

"I'm here to handle the captain's discharge procedures." Xiao Yang said dejectedly.

Hearing this, the young nurse also fell silent.

The two looked at each other, and Xiao Yang said with a wry smile, "I'll go in first."

At this moment, Sister Zou, who had been seldom talking, suddenly called Xiao Yang: "Wait a minute, Xiao Yang, come here, I need to report some information about Captain Lin to you. Xiao Jiang, the patient in 304 needs to change the dressing, go quickly!"

The young nurse looked at them curiously and left with the medicine.

After there was no one at the nurses' station, Sister Zou said, "Xiao Yang, your Captain Lin was seriously injured this time. As the saying goes, it takes a hundred days to heal a broken bone. Being discharged from the hospital does not mean that the body has fully recovered. You must go to the hospital for follow-up examinations and get medicine in the future. The nutrition must also be kept up during the period of recovery."

Xiao Yang nodded in agreement: "Oh, thank you Sister Zou for the reminder."

It seemed that he didn't react at all. These soldiers are so straightforward. She could only remind him bluntly: "Check-ups, recuperation, and nutritional supplements all require money. Ask your captain how much allowance he has left from last month and this month!"

Xiao Yang was confused and asked casually as soon as he entered the ward: "Captain, how much allowance do you have left?"

Lin Laoshi pointed to the cabinet beside the bed and said, "It's all in there. What's the matter? You've spent all your allowance this month again and you're asking me for help?"

When had he ever asked the captain for help in an emergency? Xiao Yang was about to refute, but the next second his attention was attracted by the empty drawer: "Captain, there is nothing."

He Chunli was a little embarrassed, but before she could make things difficult, Lin Laoshi said: "Oh, no, then your sister-in-law must have taken it. I put the two months' allowance in here, and I gave it to your sister-in-law after she came. She came in a hurry and didn't bring anything. She needed to buy everything..."

Xiao Yang had no intention of listening to what Lin Laoshi said next. He glanced to the side and saw He Chunli wearing a light yellow button-front skirt. She was graceful and beautiful, but this was not the way to spend money. She had spent more than 100 yuan in less than half a month, which was three or four months' salary for an ordinary worker.

The captain was injured in the line of duty, so he doesn't have to pay for hospitalization, treatment, or three meals a day. You can guess where the extra hundred yuan went with just your toes.

Xiao Yang finally understood why Sister Zou, who was usually a man of few words, pulled him aside and said those words. He quietly stuffed the brown paper back into his pocket, touched his head, and said with a smile: "There is no other way. I can only go back to find the instructor."

He never mentioned Lin Laoshi's retirement.