When Ye Huan settled Ye Jiachao in Tong Zhan’s room, this brother who was only two years older than her, upon seeing his lifesaver, cried so much that it made her feel awkward!
While they were catching up, she asked Little Shitou to help by going to the hospital cafeteria to get patient als for them, while she set up a small clay stove at her dormitory door, placed a pottery jar on it, and made porridge for them.
This al was an extra she made for them. The als from the hospital cafeteria were distributed based on the severity of the patients’ injuries. Although the porridge she made wasn’t much, only a small bowl each, it was very nutritious.
As usual, it was a multigrain rice porridge, cooked until soft with red dates, peanuts, corn grains, and sweet potatoes, then she brought the whole pot over to them.
She still had so eggs in her space, but there weren’t many. Compared to these grains, taking out the eggs was too conspicuous, so it was good enough just to let Brother Eight eat to his fill.
Brother Eight’s patient al was ordinary boiled cabbage with tofu, and two coarse-grain stead buns, while Tong Zhan’s included eggs and at, along with two fine-grain stead buns.
See, that’s the comparison, but compared to those on the battlefield, their al was considered good, at least it was hot.
In this battle, how many people were frozen or died, how many died on foreign lands, never to return ho in their lifeti?
When she arrived, the two of them had almost finished eating, so she served them another bowl of porridge each.
Tong Zhan was thankful he just shared so with Jia Chao; otherwise, where would he find space to eat her cooking?
The porridge she made was especially fragrant, sweet, and soft. Just one taste, and one would get hooked. Just seeing those peanuts, red dates, corn grains, and sweet potatoes, where did she get these good things from?
Worried that she wasn’t eating well herself, giving all the good stuff to them, Tong Zhan asked Shitou to hand her his allowance book, letting her use the money as needed.
Ye Huan pushed it away with a bemused smile: "Even if I could withdraw money now, I wouldn’t use yours. These are what I’ve saved up, the corn grains were traded specifically with the locals. You don’t have to worry that I only cook for you and can’t bear to eat myself. Taking care of your health is more important than anything. at and eggs are out of reach, but these things are still obtainable."
Ye Huan had Shitou look after them for their daily needs while she attended to her duties—dispensing dication and helping wherever needed, checking on them every few hours.
Only with her brother under her watchful eye could she be at ease.
She rembered the invasion campaign led by 17 countries spearheaded by Country M, which started in late October 1950 and lasted until the end of July 1953, spanning three years and thirty-two days. Yet at present, it was rely the sumr of ’51.
Particularly, the two of them were from Volunteer Army Unit One, their adversary being Australia, the unit that engaged most frequently with the Australian Army.
After more than a month of recovery in the hospital, they returned to the battlefield before sumr’s end, albeit as injured soldiers relegated to secondary lines.
Because several of her brothers were here, Ye Huan had developed the habit of requesting a list of wounded and fallen soldiers whenever transferring patients to the hospital.
Daily work on the frontlines exposed her to life and death, causing her to empathize deeply each ti.
In mid-December, while transferring patients to the second hospital as usual and requesting a list, she saw the nas of Brother Five, Ye Jiayu, and Brother Six, Ye Jia Kai.
Her legs gave way, and she collapsed to the floor, tears instantly streaming down her face; the nurse, upon seeing her expression, was startled as well.
"Dr. Xiao Ye, what’s wrong? This isn’t a list of the deceased; it’s of the injured. Don’t tense up,"
Not the deceased?
Yet, Ye Huan couldn’t stop crying: "Where are Ye Jiayu and Ye Jia Kai? Please, take to them quickly!"
In the end, Ye Huan saw Ye Jiayu, who had lost a leg, and Ye Jia Kai, who had lost an arm, the brothers in different wards and not in a good ntal state.
After seeing their dical records, Ye Huan turned around, leaned against the wall, and cried uncontrollably into her hands.
Her brothers, whom she last saw cheerful and lively, now teetered on the brink of death. Especially seeing their downcast looks, where were the once tall, confident, and handso figures?
Ye Huan imdiately returned to the first hospital to coordinate with the director, eventually securing a transfer application and heading to the second hospital. Since both hospitals had people from their school, and both her brothers were here, she couldn’t ignore them.
Finally, she used her teacher’s connections to place the brothers in the sa ward, daring then only to face her brothers.
Poor Brother Five and Brother Six didn’t even know they were in the sa hospital. Upon eting in the ward, seeing each other’s injuries, they couldn’t hold back, mourning sorrowfully from their beds.
Their bodies were covered in severe frostbite, the arms and legs most seriously affected, resulting in amputations.
Seeing Ye Huan, the brothers were first incredulous, then reversed roles to console her, as she stood before them, unable to stop wiping her tears.
"Silly girl, why are you crying? At least we ca down and are still alive. Many comrades died up there."
"I never expected you to co too. It’s been tough here, hasn’t it? Facing this every day,"
The brothers choked up and couldn’t continue. Ye Huan bit her lip tightly, holding back the tears.
"Before you two are discharged, I’ll take care of you, get well, and you can go ho after the New Year."
Unlike Tong Zhan and Ye Jiachao’s situation, they lost an arm and a calf. They can’t fight anymore and will be sent back to their hotown.
She couldn’t imagine what expression Third Aunt would have when she saw the two of them.
Just thinking about that scene made her heart ache. Big Brother and Second Brother had already sacrificed themselves, Third Brother lost a hand, and now Fifth and Sixth Brother too...
But compared to those warriors who can never return, they were still lucky...
In the one or two months that followed, Ye Huan, while working, secretly brought additional als to her brothers using the grains and vegetables from her space.
This year, she didn’t dare to think about it. On New Year’s Eve, she secretly fed her brothers the white flour dumplings she made. Although they had no at, they were filled with chive and egg, more delicious than at. As they ate, tears fell from their eyes, and the scene triggered her tears, which she couldn’t stop.
Thinking of how young they were when they left ho, they managed to preserve themselves well in the country’s defense, but who would have thought they’d fall on foreign soil? It was truly aggrieving to think about it.
A few brothers ca, but Fourth Brother and Seventh Brother were still missing. Eighth Brother, because he was under Tong Zhan, that guy would co to find her from ti to ti and tell her news about Eighth Brother, so she knew Eighth Brother was safe. But as long as there was no news of Fourth and Seventh Brother, she couldn’t rest easy.
She continued to inquire at other hospitals every day.
In early March, Fifth and Sixth Brother boarded the train ho. She and the dical staff personally saw them off to the train, and as they left, she hugged them and cried for a long ti. As the train started moving, she chased it for a long distance.
She missed ho too, having not returned in almost a year. In this era of poor communication, she couldn’t even send a letter.
In April, within her jurisdiction ca an injured soldier nad Ji Huzi.
He was injured while saving a young warrior, suffering severe back injuries and damage to the muscles of his right arm. Even if healed, it might affect him.
This Ji Huzi lived up to his na, with a fiery temper and a bossy manner. His loud voice scolding young warriors was all the more impressive. If it weren’t for lying down affecting his breath, he would be more exaggerated. His authentic Henan dialect was comforting to hear.
Promoted to the rank of battalion commander, he was sent by the warriors with their gratitude, and despite comforting others, his rough voice was unmatched. With a straightforward and honest appearance, he was in his early thirties.
As a Henan native, Ji Huzi, a battalion commander, was deduced to be their savior.
The world was vast, but this circle was small, and there ca a ti when she saved him in return.
Thus, when Ye Huan composed herself and approached him with the badge he once had and handed it to him, he looked at her bewildered.
"Do you rember this badge?"
Ji Huzi looked down carefully, murmuring, "This is our troop’s badge, how do you have it?"
Ye Huan rolled her eyes, "Look at it more closely."
Ji Huzi seed to recall sothing, pulled back to read the na, "Hey~~~ isn’t this mine? How did it end up with you?"
"About two or three years ago, did your troop rescue people trapped in a tunnel?"
Ji Huzi suddenly sat upright in bed, but the pull on his back wound made him grimace in pain.
"Yes, yes, I lost my badge at that ti, so you picked it up?"
Ye Huan laughed, "When I woke up, it was in my hand. My brother said you saved both our lives, so I want to repay you."
Ji Huzi, puzzled, "Girl, are you sure you got the right person? I don’t rember saving you, and your brother,"
"My brother is Ye Jiazhe, he lost a hand and retired to his hotown in Henan in ’45. You were fellow townsn, and you were a Company Commander, and my brother was a platoon leader in your company!"
"Oh, it turns out it’s indeed like that. Turns out you’re Ye Jiazhe’s sister? That’s amazing. Are you the doctor here?"
"I’m still in my internship." Ye Huan removed her mask, "So you really have no impression of ? Since the badge was in my hand, you must have been the one who dug out of the soil."
"Sister, you said you were dug out of the soil, how could I see what you looked like? But now that you ntion it, we are indeed quite fated."
A brother and sister both benefited from his kindness, wasn’t that fate?
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