"I know, Uncle Wu. Have a safe trip."
Little Tang Mo finally spoke up, handing Wu Sheng a bag of medicine he had taken the opportunity to grab earlier.
"Uncle Wu, this is medicine. Take it if you don’t feel well."
Wu Sheng took the medicine from him. "Alright. Thanks, Little Point."
Wu Sheng gave Su Li and Little Tang Mo one last look, then turned and left. His steps were firm, and he didn’t look back.
Su Li watched him go downstairs, desperately holding back her tears.
’This is something I have to go through, something I have to get used to.’
This was the first time, but in the future, she would send Wu Sheng off like this countless times.
There was nothing she could do but hope for his safe return.
Waiting at home for him to come back.
’I have to handle everything at home well so he won’t worry. He needs to be able to work without any concerns, and then come back safe.’
’I can’t cry. If I don’t cry the first time I see him off, I won’t cry in the future either.’
’I have to set a good precedent.’
Su Li took a deep breath and came back to her senses. "Okay, Little Mo, let’s close the door. Your Uncle Wu is gone."
Su Li didn’t want to let her mind wander, so she tried to keep talking.
"Your Uncle Wu is so busy, he didn’t even have time to eat. I wonder if he’ll have time to eat that bowl of fried rice."
"You made it, Mom. He’ll definitely find time to eat it."
Little Tang Mo replied, "They work so hard."
"Of course." Su Li finished speaking and then paused abruptly. "...Little Mo, now that you mention it, it’s not just your Uncle Wu. A lot of the people going with him probably haven’t eaten either, right?"
Little Tang Mo nodded. "Yeah."
Su Li slapped her forehead. "I’m so stupid. I made food for Wu Sheng, but if he eats alone, are his colleagues just going to watch him? And I didn’t prepare enough."
She suddenly grabbed her bag and ran out. "Little Mo, close the door! Mom’s going out for a bit."
Su Li rushed downstairs as fast as she could and saw a truck stopped at the intersection ahead. Wu Sheng was just getting on.
Without a second thought, Su Li got into her car, which was parked nearby, and drove a hundred meters to a steamed bun shop on the side of the road.
"Ma’am, pack up all your buns for me."
The owner of the bun shop knew Su Li. Although she found it strange, seeing how anxious she was, the owner and her husband packed up all their remaining fifty or sixty buns for her.
"I’ll be back to pay you in a bit, Ma’am!"
Su Li took them to her car and drove off at top speed.
This was the fastest Su Li had ever driven.
Meanwhile, the truck Wu Sheng was in moved slowly toward the edge of the city, waiting for the other vehicles that were departing with them.
Wa Wa Lian was sitting next to Wu Sheng. Seeing him get on with a somber expression, he asked cautiously, "Boss, you didn’t get to see your lady?"
Wu Sheng showed him the lunch box and medicine in his hands. "You don’t see this?"
Wa Wa Lian gave them a strange look. "A lunch box? Your lady made you food? Did she cry?"
Wu Sheng shook his head. "She didn’t cry."
She didn’t cry, but his heart still ached.
After so many years, he was used to leaving at a moment’s notice, and Wu Qihua was used to it too. Wu Sheng had originally become much more composed about it.
But today, saying goodbye to Su Li face-to-face for the first time, he felt as if he had returned to the pain of his very first deployment, when he’d looked at Wu Qihua.
"It’s good she didn’t cry. But I didn’t think she was that type of person anyway."
Wa Wa Lian didn’t know how Wu Sheng was feeling and was just relieved. "Actually, Boss, you could have said a few more words to her. There were still a few minutes before we had to leave."
’Oh well, it was pointless for me to say that.’
With his boss’s personality, he was never one for a dramatic last-minute appearance; he was usually the first to arrive.
Wu Sheng didn’t respond. He was looking at the lunch box, and Wa Wa Lian’s attention was drawn to it as well.
"Boss, what’s in the lunch box?"
"Egg fried rice. Your lady made it for me." Wu Sheng finally reacted, opening the lunch box.
The truck was instantly filled with the aroma of egg fried rice. Not only did Wa Wa Lian’s stomach start to RUMBLE, but even the driver and the colleague in the front passenger seat glanced over.
Wa Wa Lian: "Boss, you’re not going to eat it now, are you?"
’You’re just trying to make us all jealous!’
Wu Sheng nodded as if it were the most natural thing in the world. "Of course. Gotta eat it while it’s hot and I have time."
’That’s what Su Li said. Hehe.’
Wa Wa Lian: "...Boss, I’m hungry too... I didn’t eat lunch. None of us ate..."
Before he could ask if everyone could have a bite, he heard Wu Sheng shake his head resolutely.
"This is mine!"
Wa Wa Lian grimaced. In his mind, a tiny version of himself was stomping its feet. ’The boss’s wife is just too cruel! Why torture us like this!’
Just as he was grimacing, the driver suddenly let out a puzzled sound. "Hey, why is that car chasing us?"
Hearing this, Wu Sheng and Wa Wa Lian looked outside. Wu Sheng immediately recognized the car and stopped eating. "What’s going on?"
He pushed Wa Wa Lian aside and stuck his head out. "What’s wrong, Su Li?"
Seeing Wu Sheng, Su Li let out a sigh of relief. "Wu Sheng! It’s nothing, it’s nothing."
The driver quickly hit the brakes.
Su Li also stopped short and gestured for Wu Sheng not to get out.
As quickly as she could, she stood on her toes and shoved a bag of steamed buns through the vehicle’s door. "I bought these for you guys. Eat them to tide you over when you have time."
Wu Sheng, holding a huge bag of buns, was a little stunned.
Su Li looked at them, her face full of embarrassment. "I hope I didn’t hold you up."
After saying that, Su Li covered her face, got back in her car, and hurried away.
She had acted on impulse. She had been thinking about Wu Sheng’s hungry colleagues. Because of her feelings for Wu Sheng, she also cared for this group of respectable and admirable people—it was a case of "love me, love my dog"—and she couldn’t bear the thought of them going hungry.
So without a second thought, she bought the buns and rushed over to give them to them.
It was only after she caught up to the truck that she realized her actions... seemed a bit inappropriate.
’Following them like this, they might get suspicious of my intentions.’
But before she could react, the driver had already noticed her. Su Li had no choice but to bite the bullet and hand over the big bag of buns.
Su Li covered her face and fled.
Wu Sheng’s truck continued on its way, but the atmosphere in the cab was strange.
Everyone’s eyes were fixed on the large bag in front of Wu Sheng.
"Boss... what just happened?"
Wa Wa Lian twitched his nose, breaking the silence.
He could have sworn he smelled something delicious!
Wu Sheng glanced sideways at Wa Wa Lian and smacked his hat.
"Stop playing dumb. These... are for you guys."
Wu Sheng understood Su Li. From how she had just acted, he could guess what she had been thinking and the trip she had just made.
When she heard he was hungry earlier, she had looked heartbroken. Unlike a typical military wife who might just pack things or cry, she had immediately made him a box of egg fried rice as quickly as possible.
As for these buns, she probably realized after he left that everyone else hadn’t eaten either. She must have felt bad for them, so she bought these and rushed to deliver them.
’She wanted them to eat something hot and fill their stomachs too.’
Wu Sheng looked at Wa Wa Lian’s surprised and disbelieving expression, opened the bag, and laughed as he saw the steaming hot buns inside.
"Silly girl."