Sutan slept soundly until dawn. After getting up, she cooked a small bowl of millet porridge and smashed a cucumber to eat with it.
Once she finished eating, she rolled up her bedding and tied it securely onto the back of her bicycle along with the clothes she had packed yesterday.
Pumping the pedals hard, she rode toward the Military Compound.
The northwest wind had been howling all through last night, and it still hadn't stopped. Even with the sun shining, the wind felt like a vicious slap across the face from a wicked stepmother, stinging so badly it made you want to howl.
Sutan instinctively tucked her chin deep into the collar of her woolen sweater. By the time she arrived, her forehead and nose felt completely frozen through.
She got off her bicycle, stamping her feet and rubbing her hands together to get some warmth back into them, before taking the key out of her pocket.
The guard at the gate had given her this key when she entered just moments before, saying Hechengming had left it for her.
Sutan thought that soldiers really were different from ordinary people; they considered things much more thoroughly than most.
Unlocking the door, Sutan noticed some mud on the ground of the courtyard that hadn't been fully cleaned up. She blinked, wondering if Hechengming had actually swept the place last night.
Carrying her things inside, she found the rooms spotless and lingering with warmth. There was no stove in the living room, so she walked further in.
Seeing that a brick kang over two meters long had been added to the inner room, Sutan's face lit up with pleasant surprise, and the mud bricks were already completely dry.
She pressed her freezing red hand against the surface—it was still burning hot.
A deep sense of comfort washed over Sutan. In both of her lives, this was the first time she had ever met a man as thoughtful as Hechengming.
It was a pity that they were destined to have no romantic fate together.
Sutan placed the things she had brought right by the edge of the brick kang.
At Zhou Jianfeng's house, she had slept on a regular bed covered with two thin mattresses, which barely sufficed. A brick kang, however, was different. First, a reed mat had to be laid across the bottom. If felt could be bought, another layer of felt went on top of that, and finally a bedsheet over everything else before one could sleep comfortably.
Back when she was filming in television crews, many productions used brick kang sets to make the scenes look more realistic and immersive.
Especially in the dead of winter or during her period, curling up on a warm kang was absolute bliss.
She still remembered a time when they were shooting a sleeping scene. She had originally been keeping her eyes closed, pretending to sleep, but the bedding was so cozy that she actually dozed off. Everyone had laughed at her for a long time after that.
Since it was still too freezing outside, Sutan didn't want to go shopping just yet. Reed mats were manageable, but felt was heavy. With the wind blowing this fiercely today, dragging it back on her bicycle would probably cost her half her life.
By a little past ten o'clock, the wind had finally died down a bit, and the weather had warmed up slightly.
Sutan locked the front gate and went back out.
At this hour, the residents in the compound were either off at work or huddled indoors. Coupled with the fact that there were hardly any households in her particular row of rental units, no one noticed that someone had moved into the very last house.
Sutan made inquiries and managed to buy a reed mat and a felt pad at the Farmers' Market. The bedsheets she had brought were too small, so she also bought a new pair featuring a "blooming wealth" pattern—a popular trend of this era.
When in Rome, do as the Romans do; she thought it looked rather nice herself.
Puffing and panting, Sutan returned to find Hechengming standing right at the doorway.
She noticed that no matter the time, Hechengming's posture was always so straight and upright, giving people a rock-solid sense of reliability and something to lean on.
Seeing the things on Sutan's bicycle rack, Hechengming strode over in a few long steps and lifted the items off the back himself.
Feeling as exhausted as an old dog, Sutan instantly felt a wave of relief.
"The key!"
Sutan hurriedly freed one hand and took out the key to give to him.
Hechengming unlocked the door, carried the things inside first, and Sutan pushed her bicycle in after him. By the time she parked her bike and went inside, Hechengming had already knelt on the kang, neatly smoothing out both the reed mat and the felt pad until they were completely flat.
"There's food for you by the door!" Hechengming said without raising his head.
Sutan rushed out in a flurry and found an aluminum lunchbox sitting on a small stone stool by the entrance. She picked it up—it was still hot, clearly prepared not long ago.
The warmth Hechengming had shown her from yesterday to today was simply too much; Sutan didn't even know what to say anymore.
"Picked it up from the canteen. I've already eaten!"
Before Sutan could even open her mouth after bringing the lunch box inside, Hechengming had already answered the question she wanted to ask.
Having only had a bowl of millet porridge in the morning and running around all morning, Sutan was starving. She squatted right on the floor and began to eat.
As Hechengming tucked in the bedsheets, he glanced up at Sutan several times.
He knew she hadn't been eating properly lately. She used to dislike fatty meat, but today she was devouring braised pork chunks in huge bites.
Though she ate faster than before, her table manners remained as elegant as ever.
Once a lunchbox containing both meat and vegetables reached her stomach, Sutan felt alive again.
Sitting on the kang with her back against the wall, she let out a satisfied sigh. "This is wonderful. I finally have a home of my own. From now on, I'll never have to worry about being beaten, scolded, or having nowhere to go!"
Hearing this, Hechengming furrowed his thick brows.
She had had a terribly hard time all these years!
Hechengming recalled what Sutan had said once before—that she studied desperately hard just to escape a household that suffocated her.
Five or six years had passed; perhaps she had finally achieved that now.
The thought that he had helped Sutan attain what she wanted brought a quiet sense of gladness to Hechengming.
Looking at Hechengming, who refused to offer even a shred of emotional support and wore a completely expressionless poker face, Sutan was quite helpless.
"Do you have time tonight?" she asked.
Hechengming let out a low hum, his dark eyes fixed on her.
The spot under her felt a bit warm, so Sutan shifted her position slightly. "I want to move my sewing machine over. It's too big, and I can't manage it myself. I was hoping you could help!"
"Eight o'clock."
Sutan murmured her assent, and Hechengming picked up the lunchbox she hadn't yet washed and left.
Sutan came to yet another conclusion: when dealing with women, Hechengming was entirely expressionless and as tight-lipped as could be. With a cold-faced man like him, she wasn't surprised at all that he still hadn't managed to take a wife at his age.
Well-fed and content, Sutan bolted the front gate from the inside and took a wonderful nap.
That afternoon, she made several trips back and forth, moving everything movable out of that old house.
At 8:30 PM, Sutan finally welcomed Hechengming's arrival.
Looking at the empty, barren rooms, Hechengming's pupils dilated in utter shock.
Sutan calmly explained, "Qin Hongmei got Zhou Jianfeng's body, but I only took these things. I'm the one getting the short end of the stick!"
Hechengming's eyes widened even more than before.
Looking at Sutan's crafty, gleaming eyes, he felt that hearing such words come out of her mouth wasn't surprising in the least.
Hearing that Hechengming had driven a truck over, Sutan directed him to load up the sewing machine, table, and chairs.
The cupboard and wardrobe were small and shabby; Sutan felt they were unworthy of her new home, so she left them behind.
The stove in the living room was left behind too, but she took the honeycomb briquettes and fire tongs.
As the very last item was carried away, Sutan stood in the doorway, looking at the room where even voices echoed back.
She clapped her hands together in satisfaction.
"Good job! People who bully others deserve to pay a price!"
"Bye-bye!"
Hechengming heard what Sutan said.
He had thought Sutan would feel at least a little bit sad leaving this place.
Yet Sutan's voice held nothing but joy.
It seemed she really was determined to get a divorce and completely break free from Zhou Jianfeng.