I frowned; I didn’t like his answer—it left too much room for interpretation. “Xiao Bing, do you think he’s better than me in every way?” Yin Zhongtian, drunk, wouldn’t typically ask such a question.
“No,” I replied seriously. “Zhongtian, you are more down-to-earth and steady. You are a good man that a woman can entrust her life to…”
Yin Zhongtian interrupted: “I heard he just got a medical doctorate in Japan and made military merits, promoted ahead of schedule. He’s not even thirty and became a staff officer of a certain regiment. Do you know why?”
I paused, knowing it was due to experiences and sacrifices others couldn’t imagine. “Because his father is a commander of a military region, and his grandfather seems to be a…” He tried to remember, but I wasn’t interested and brought him some soup.
“Have some soup,” I said. He took a sip and made a sour face, then set it down. “He came to see you, didn’t he?”
“Zhongtian…”
“I could see it that day when we were eating… the way he looked at you, his eyes were sparkling…”
I supported myself on the dining table, barely standing.
“Don’t overthink, we have nothing.” “It was him, wasn’t it?” I didn’t dare to face his pressing gaze and lowered my head. “It’s all in the past, he and I are long over, you…” Before I could finish, my phone rang, disrupting my composure. I had a strong feeling this call was from Ye Zhengchen. I didn’t dare answer, afraid that hearing his voice would expose everything.
Seeing me hesitate, Yin Zhongtian sensed something. He grabbed my bag from the sofa, took out my phone, and checked the caller ID. His bitter expression gave me the answer. When he pressed the answer key, my heart sank, and I rushed out of the kitchen.
“Hello?” Yin Zhongtian answered calmly. “Staff Officer Ye… you’re looking for Xiao Bing? Yes, wait a moment!” He handed the phone to me, and I stiffly took it.
