In the early morning, the mountains were quiet and still. The verdant peaks were enveloped in a layer of mist as thin as gauze, faintly circling them. At the horizon, the clouds were as cold as water.

A spring rain had fallen during the night, making the road to town muddy and difficult to traverse. The car bumped slightly as it drove.

When Yu Hao got in the car, Lu Huaizheng was still by the roadside, saying goodbye to the little mutt.

Sitting in the car, she lowered her head slightly and peered outside through the crack in the window. The man was bent over by the dog, saying something she couldn't hear. The little mutt let out another whimper, looking at him with teary eyes.

Lu Huaizheng bent down again, touching his forehead to the dog's, as if in farewell.

The driver seemed to recognize the dog too. He turned back to explain to Yu Hao: "Captain Lu rescued this dog two years ago when he came here for training. I remember both of its legs were broken at the time. Captain Lu sent it to a pet shop in the next town, and it was treated for two months. But even before its legs were fully healed, it started running to the Military Region every day." The driver pointed to a green pine tree not far away. "It would just squat there, waiting every single day. It's really miraculous, you know. When Captain Lu isn't here, it doesn't come for even a single day. But the moment he arrives, it runs faster than anyone. The soldiers all joke that it's Captain Lu's 'girlfriend'."

Yu Hao smiled too.

Lu Huaizheng opened the car door, bent down, and got in. Seeing her smiling with the corners of her lips turned up, he was taken aback for a moment. Then he closed the door and told the driver to drive.

It was a forty-minute drive to the town.

Hiding under the covers last night, Yu Hao had thought long and hard about what she should say during these forty minutes. He would be leaving once they reached town. All in all, the time they had left together was just these few dozen minutes in the car.

A forty-minute lecture felt long to her, but these forty minutes with him felt brief, flying by in a whoosh.

Now, with another person in the car, she was even less adept at bringing up trivial topics in front of others. The driver was also an enthusiastic chatterbox, striking up a conversation with Lu Huaizheng the entire way. They talked about everything under the sun, from current affairs and politics to national development. She wasn't used to interrupting others and had no room to interject. And so, she remained silent for over twenty minutes. Looking down at her watch, she saw it was already 7:24.

The driver glanced at Yu Hao in the rearview mirror and asked, "Dr. Yu, what do you need to buy?"

Buy what?

She wasn't buying anything. She was here to see off the man she loved!

"Old Li, have you had breakfast yet?" Lu Huaizheng suddenly blurted out from the side, seemingly out of nowhere.

Old Li grunted in acknowledgment, looked over, and replied, "I've eaten."

Lu Huaizheng nodded, gazing out the window at the lush greenery rushing by in the mountains. He said nonchalantly, "I'm going to take Dr. Yu to get a bite to eat. Why don't you get out and walk around town for a bit?"

Old Li readily agreed, "No problem. You two go eat. I'll just watch people play chess by the bridgehead. Just give me a call when Dr. Yu is done shopping."

Yu Hao suddenly turned her head to ask him, "What time is your flight?"

"Two in the afternoon."

"Will you make it?"

"It's fine. I just need to be there an hour early."

It was a four-hour drive to the airport from here, so even taking a nine o'clock car would be fine. Plus, with Lu Huaizheng's status, he had access to a priority lane, so even half an hour in advance would be enough. By this calculation, they could still spend another hour or so together.

Her heart began to pound with renewed vigor. The feeling was like watching a battery about to die, only for it to be fully charged again in the blink of an eye. There was an unreal sense of stolen time.

In the town, there was an ancient canal with a long history. The water gurgled, and bridges spanned its banks, connecting the two sides.

The car arrived at the bridgehead at 7:40 sharp. Old Li parked by the roadside and went off to watch people play chess. The town wasn't large, and it was always the same group of people gathered together. Someone recognized Old Li at a glance and started chatting with him.

The early morning light filtered gently through the clouds, casting lingering, sparse shadows on the narrow bluestone path. The quiet ancient alley meandered beautifully, winding through old, dilapidated residential buildings. The mottled walls on both sides had a dark patina and were covered with fluffy green moss, as if one could see the rings of time.

A clear, cool breeze blew in gusts, carrying the scent of green moss.

The townspeople woke up early. Before eight o'clock, the ancient road was already packed with vendors on both sides. Crowds gathered in clusters here and there. The street was even more packed; on the few-feet-wide path, people were shoulder to shoulder. Lu Huaizheng's hand rested lightly on Yu Hao's back as he guided her through the dense crowd to a nearby breakfast shop.

"I thought there wouldn't be many people in this town," Yu Hao muttered.

"There's a temple fair today. I could have taken you to see it." Lu Huaizheng's hand rested lightly on her shoulder. He looked down at her, his gaze flickering, and said, "My job...a lot of the time, I'm not my own master."

Yu Hao lowered her head. "I understand."

The two walked quietly through the stream of people. The sounds of the market—shouts, hawking, arguments, and laughter—were incessant. Yu Hao felt as if she could even hear the gurgling of the water if she held her breath, coiling around her ears. The wind seemed to stand beside her ear, like a feather, gently brushing against it.

The instant Yu Hao said, "I understand."

Lu Huaizheng's hand, resting lightly on her shoulder, couldn't help but tighten slightly.

"I just want you to be safe," Yu Hao said, suddenly looking up at him.

Lu Huaizheng's gaze was fixed, unable to move away. He lowered his head and looked at her deeply, as if a meteor had fallen, a starry fire burning in his eyes.

He remembered a meeting in Nanjing several years ago. During the lunch break, he was standing at the hotel entrance smoking with Sun Kai and a few leaders when a girl walked in. Her back looked remarkably like hers. She was holding the hand of a young child, who was limply calling out "Mama." At that moment, he completely froze.

For a split second, he truly thought it was her.

A leader called his name several times, but he didn't react. The cigarette in his hand had accumulated a long ash that hadn't broken off. He just stared blankly at the girl's back, the scene seemingly frozen in time. Sun Kai said that even the leaders were startled by the look in his eyes.

After all these years, everyone here knew him well.

They knew he was the type who wouldn't show a hint of fear even if he knew he was going to die the next second. But the sadness and despair in his eyes at that moment were something they had never seen before.

It wasn't that he hadn't thought about it. Over the years, she might have already gotten married, might have already had children.

But when he was actually faced with that possibility, he realized he had overestimated himself.

Men don't say much to each other, but they seem to understand all emotions. He hadn't told Sun Kai about Yu Hao at that point, but Sun Kai understood that he had someone in his heart. Later, seeing him distracted throughout the afternoon meeting, Sun Kai said, "How about I have someone bring her over for you to see? If it really is the one you've been longing for, it'll at least let you give up hope. If you keep waiting, I'm afraid it'll be too late."

After the meeting, Sun Kai really did find an excuse to bring the woman over.

At the time, Lu Huaizheng was sitting in the front row of the main hall, leaning back with his head down. When the person entered, he glanced up and confirmed it wasn't her. He stood up and politely explained the situation. The girl expressed her understanding and left with Sun Kai.

Then he buried his head again, resting his forehead on his hand propped on his knee, and sat silently in the hall all night. It was then that he made a decision in his heart: wait one more year.

In psychology, this is actually a form of self-comfort for people in despair. When you realize deep down that the probability of something happening is getting smaller and smaller, becoming a distant hope, you set a short-term deadline for yourself in your mind.

And that deadline will then be extended indefinitely in your heart.

The breakfast shop Lu Huaizheng took her to had few customers. The owner knew him well. Seeing him from afar, she called out a greeting, "How come you have time to come out today?"

Lu Huaizheng smiled and pulled out a chair for Yu Hao. He placed his palm on her back, guiding her to sit, then turned to the owner and said with a smile, "I have to go back to Beijing."

The shop was small, with mottled walls. A simple business license hung by the main entrance, stating a food hygiene rating of Category C.

The owner nodded with a smile while wiping a table and greeted them warmly, "What would you like to eat? Have a seat first."

Lu Huaizheng had her sit down, then used his foot to hook a chair from the next table and sat down beside Yu Hao, not opposite her. He asked, "What do you want to eat?"

"I'll have the same as you." Yu Hao pulled out a tissue to wipe the table in front of him.

Lu Huaizheng chuckled and took the tissue from her hand. While wiping the table, he turned to the owner and ordered two bowls of porridge, a few side dishes, and some other small snacks.

Their fingertips touched, and it felt like an electric shock. Yu Hao felt her scalp tingle.

Lu Huaizheng wiped her side first, then gave his own side a quick wipe before tossing the tissue into the nearby trash can.

In the past, when throwing things away, even just a piece of paper, he would crumple it into a ball, raise his hand, and toss it with perfect basketball shooting form, making a smooth arc into the trash can. Sometimes, if he missed, he would run over, pick it up, and throw it again, not stopping until he made it in.

Back then, Yu Hao had asked him why he was so persistent, and he had actually replied that it was a man's persistence.

Just like after every basketball game, the very last shot before leaving the court had to be a three-pointer. Otherwise, he would refuse to leave, no matter what.

Now, he really didn't have as many flashy mannerisms as before.

"Do you still play basketball?" Yu Hao asked, tilting her head.

The owner came over with the dishes.

Lu Huaizheng pulled a pair of chopsticks from the bamboo holder and handed them to her, glancing at her sideways. "Not really."

Sometimes, he wouldn't even go when there was a game in the unit.

In high school, he had done two things: one, play basketball, and two, pursue her.

After she left, he even gave up basketball.

Yu Hao nodded.