Volume 1, Chapter 52: Who Gave You Permission to Touch My Things?

His slender, finely-jointed fingers held her soft, fair little hand, guiding her slowly through the steps of the dance.

Her moist, expressive eyes gazed up at him with a tender allure, and her long, curled lashes blinked in a pitiful, captivating manner.

It was enough to make anyone's heart race.

The air between them was filled with the delicate, sweet fragrance of her youth.

He reached out, wanting to remove the small rabbit mask from her face, but she dodged him and turned to run away.

"Tingting..." He caught her hand, and the rabbit mask slipped from her face, revealing a gentle, pure visage with serene, tender eyes, resembling a blossom of pristine white gardenia.

It was Su Wan!

Huo Xiaohan snapped awake from the dream, pushing the military-green shirt off his face.

His dark eyes were heavy and complex, and sweat rolled down his forehead.

How could he have dreamed of Comrade Tingting’s face as being Su Wan’s?

He must have lost his mind!

The two of them bore a slight resemblance, yes, but Comrade Tingting and Su Wan were completely unrelated people with no connection whatsoever.

Perhaps it was because he had never actually seen Comrade Tingting's face, coupled with the fact that her eyes indeed seemed remarkably similar to Su Wan's, that he had conjured such a dream.

Huo Xiaohan steadied his breathing. His back and chest were drenched in sweat, and his blue-and-white striped hospital pajamas clung to him damply.

He quickly got up, took a fresh pair of underwear from his belongings, and headed to the bathroom to change. The military-green shirt by the bedside had a patch soaked through with sweat.

Hesitating for a moment, he hung the military-green shirt on the rack, then took it along with the bedsheets into the bathroom.

When nighttime nurses' rounds came around, several night-shift nurses vied with one another for the chance to check on the cadre ward.

Everyone knew that this cadre ward housed a handsome military officer, a young man who had attained the rank of battalion commander at a tender age. Tall and striking, he exuded a chilling, ascetic aura. Stripped of his sharp, solemn military uniform and dressed in hospital pajamas, he possessed a uniquely tragic and compelling appeal.

Word was that he was still single and unmarried.

Eventually, a more senior nurse holding a clipboard stepped forward and reached to turn the yellow-lacquered door handle of the ward.

Only to find the door bolted from the inside.

Listening closely, she heard the sound of rushing water and clothes being scrubbed within.

"Commander Huo, I'm here for rounds," the nurse called out through the door. "How does your right shoulder feel? Do you need a painkiller injection?"

"No," a cold, firm voice soon replied from within.

"Commander Huo, remember that you're scheduled for general anesthesia tomorrow. You cannot eat anything for twelve hours, not even water," the nurse instructed further.

She thought to herself that he truly lived up to his status as a soldier; his endurance was remarkable.

"Understood." Cold, concise, and clearly indicating he wished not to be disturbed further.

The nurse had no choice but to head off to check another room, feeling somewhat disappointed.

Huo Xiaohan took another cold shower, washing his clothes at the same time.

Since there was nowhere to dry them in the dead of night, Huo Xiaohan could only scrub the wet patch of the bedsheet clean, spread it out on the bed, and open the window to let it air-dry naturally.

He sat upright on the sofa with a straight back and his hands resting on his knees, completely devoid of sleepiness.

Over and over in his mind, he replayed the dream, and when he reached the final scene where Su Wan's face appeared, his high, sharp brows knitted together coldly.

Early the next morning, Su Xiaohui arrived at the hospital carrying a thermos, enthusiastically bringing breakfast for Older Brother Huo.

Yesterday, she had come to the cadre ward several times looking for Older Brother Huo, hoping to find out how things stood between him and the person who had taken Nurse Tingting's place, but she hadn't been able to locate him.

When she arrived this time, Older Brother Huo was still not in his room.

The blue-and-white striped hospital quilt was folded into a neat, square block, and the four corners of the sheet were pulled taut and straight without a single wrinkle.

It looked just like a military camp—neat, orderly, and meticulous.

"Nurse, could you tell me where Commander Huo went?" Su Xiaohui asked, tracking down a nurse.

The nurse had a deep impression of Su Xiaohui, with her country-style dress, having seen her come looking around several times yesterday.

She had no idea what her relationship with Commander Huo was, but she certainly seemed very concerned about him.

Hearing this, Su Xiaohui relaxed slightly.

She wondered if Older Brother Huo even knew that someone had attended the social mixer under the name of Nurse Tingting.

And who was the person who had taken her place?

Could it be Su Wan?

That thought flashed through Su Xiaohui's mind, but she quickly dismissed it, determined not to be led astray by Fang Yu's notions. It was merely a coincidence that both of them happened to have a red cinnabar mole right below their earlobes.

When she went to the Song family's home yesterday to look for Su Wan, she hadn't seen that blue-and-white polka-dot dress hanging on the balcony.

Besides, if it really were Su Wan, knowing that Older Brother Huo had gone to the hospital to ask Secretary Jiang to act as a matchmaker, she surely would have been grinning from ear to ear and couldn't possibly have maintained a completely expressionless face.

With that thought, she swept her gaze around the ward and walked over to the wooden wardrobe, reaching out to pull open the door.

She liked Older Brother Huo, feeling that looking at things he had used brought her a little closer to him.

The wooden wardrobe was divided into several tiers by shelves. Older Brother Huo hadn't brought many things, and they were all neatly categorized. The second tier held toiletries—soap, toothpaste, toothbrushes, and an enamel mug for brushing teeth—while the third tier held his change of clothes.

Just like yesterday.

Su Xiaohui was about to close the door when she looked up and noticed that tucked away in the innermost corner of the top tier was a pair of women's crystal sandals.

They hadn't been there yesterday.

Could these have been bought for her by Older Brother Huo?

Su Xiaohui stood on tiptoe and took down the women's crystal sandals. They were brand new, still emitting the pleasant, fresh scent of plastic.

She had never worn such city-style crystal sandals in her life; she had always worn the cloth shoes made by her mother back home, which were stuffy and ugly.

Could they really have been bought for her? Or were they for the person who had taken Nurse Tingting's place?

Surely they hadn't become a couple after just a single day yesterday, causing Older Brother Huo to buy crystal sandals for the other person right away?

Apprehensively, Su Xiaohui flipped the sandals over to check the size marked on the sole.

Size 37! Her own feet were size 36, but Su Wan's feet were size 37!

Could the substitute really be Su Wan?

Impossible.

Su Xiaohui put the sandals back in their original place.

Whoever the substitute was, as long as she stayed at the hospital to take care of Older Brother Huo, she would bound to find out.

With that thought, Su Xiaohui noticed the military-green shirt hanging on the hanger. It had some wrinkles, suggesting it had already been worn.

So she took the military-green shirt down, intending to take it to the bathroom to wash.

Right at that moment, Huo Xiaohan returned from his examination, followed by a guard.

Seeing Su Xiaohui holding his military-green shirt, his stern brows knitted together. He snatched the shirt right out of her hands, his voice cold, severe, and laden with warning: "Who gave you permission to touch my things?"

"Older Brother Huo, I just saw that this shirt looked like it had been worn, and I wanted to help you wash it." Su Xiaohui faltered, the smile freezing on her face.

Ever since Older Brother Huo had seen her at the Song family's home, his attitude toward her had been exceptionally cold and aloof.

"There is no need. Do not touch my things without my permission. As unmarried comrades, please maintain an appropriate distance and observe proper boundaries." Huo Xiaohan's face and eyes were filled with an icy hostility that kept people thousands of miles away, dripping with warning and reprimand.

He shook the shirt in his hand, as if trying to rid it of any lingering scent left behind by Su Xiaohui.

His grim, severe expression made it clear how intensely he objected to Su Xiaohui's touch.

Su Xiaohui flushed red under Huo Xiaohan's reprimand, and seeing his reaction, she bit her lower lip hard.

"I'm sorry, Older Brother Huo. I won't do it next time." She apologized meekly, then walked over to the table and opened the thermos. "Older Brother Huo, you haven't eaten breakfast yet, have you? This is chicken soup I got up at four in the morning to brew, to help you build up your nutrition in advance."

"Take it back," Huo Xiaohan said coldly. He carefully and neatly folded the military-green shirt and placed it back into the wardrobe, only to discover that the pair of crystal sandals he had placed on top had been disturbed.

He turned around and cast a sharp gaze at Su Xiaohui: "Did you touch my wardrobe?"

"Older Brother Huo... I, I just wanted to help you tidy up your things." Holding the thermos and caught red-handed, Su Xiaohui looked extremely flustered, her cheeks burning.

Huo Xiaohan's gaze grew even colder, his tone severe and carrying a daunting pressure: "I don't wish to see this happen again. Return to the Huo family right now."

"I'm truly sorry, Older Brother Huo. I shouldn't have touched your things. It's just that I saw the size of those women's sandals seemed to match my sister's, so I got curious and took them out to look," Su Xiaohui shrunk her shoulders, twisting her hands together and speaking in a pitiful, delicate manner.

Su Wan was also a size 37?

Their heights seemed similar, so wearing the same shoe size was quite normal.

Huo Xiaohan narrowed his eyes coldly, turning his back to her without another word. His tall, straight back appeared exceptionally rugged and steep, surrounded by an icy, forbidding aura that warned strangers to stay away.

"Comrade, please leave. Commander Huo needs to rest properly now," the guard stepped forward and said.

Su Xiaohui wrung her hands so hard she nearly broke the skin. Huo Xiaohan's attitude toward her was agonizingly painful to endure.

"Then... Older Brother Huo, please drink this chicken soup," she asked timidly, holding onto a glimmer of hope.

She had bought that free-range farm chicken specially yesterday; it was extremely nourishing, and she had simmered it in an earthenware pot for three hours until the meat was tender and falling apart.

"Comrade, Commander Huo is prohibited from eating or drinking for twelve hours prior to surgery. He cannot consume anything right now. You had better take the chicken soup back," the guard reminded her.

Su Xiaohui froze, never expecting this turn of events. Wasn't the chicken soup she had painstakingly gotten up in the middle of the night to brew going to waste?

The weather was so hot now; by the time Huo Xiaohan finished surgery and came out, it would probably have spoiled and become inedible.

Yet, looking at Huo Xiaohan's cold back, she had no choice but to carry the thermos out of the ward.

She was unwilling to accept this. When Older Brother Huo had first brought her to Beiping, he had been so good to her.

He had gone out of his way to buy her small cakes, and upon arriving at the Huo family home, he had given her a leather suitcase and even provided her with a dictionary to help her learn characters.

But ever since the nitrite incident, Huo Xiaohan's attitude toward Su Wan had clearly changed. At the Song family's home, he had helped Su Wan serve soup; although he still wasn't courting her, he no longer showed that previous aversion and repulsion.

Instead, his attitude toward her had grown colder and colder, and when she merely wanted to help him wash a piece of clothing, he had been so harsh with her.

She couldn't bear this shift in attitude, nor could she let anyone steal Huo Xiaohan away.

She had come to Beiping for the sole purpose of marrying Huo Xiaohan.

After stepping out of the ward, Su Xiaohui happened to see Li Sumei and Fang Yu coming to the hospital to receive an intravenous drip.

An idea suddenly struck her: since Fang Yu believed the substitute looked so much like Su Wan, why shouldn't she validate that suspicion?

Right now, Fang Yu harbored a bitter hatred for that substitute, wishing she could hunt her down, tear her limb from limb, and grind her bones to dust.

There were only a few days left until the end of the month, and Su Wan needed to find a nanny job as quickly as possible. However, after asking around the family quarters all morning, she found nothing.

Families who could afford a nanny had already hired one long ago, and those who hadn't didn't need one.

Although Su Wan was a good cook and people sympathized with her impoverished background, nobody's money grew on trees.

On top of that, Su Wan could only work for a month; once school started, they would have to find a new nanny all over again, which was rather troublesome.

Finding another situation like the Song family's—where the regular nanny had to return home temporarily for personal reasons, requiring a substitute—was probably impossible.

Auntie Wang felt bad about it and had also gone out to ask around, but not a single household was looking to hire a nanny.

At noon, Secretary Jiang came home from work without bringing any good news either, simply comforting Su Wan to take her time.

"It's fine, Auntie. My tuition money is enough anyway. At the end of the month, I'll move back to my relatives' place, and helping out around there will be quite nice."

Even in later generations, finding a job in such a short span of time would be nearly impossible, let alone in the 1980s, when employment relied entirely on state assignment and personal connections.

Su Wan had already made up her mind; plus, going back would give her a chance to put Su Xiaohui in her place.

After lunch, Su Wan set the crucian carp she had bought at the market that morning to simmer. Huo Xiaohan was having surgery in the afternoon, and by any measure of reason or etiquette, she ought to make an appearance.

She couldn't avoid this; basic human decency and politeness required it.

Even though the Huo family didn't lack a bowl of her fish soup, she still needed to express her good intentions.

So when Song Wenbo came home last night, she had asked him about Huo Xiaohan's surgery schedule and also requested that he keep the matter of her substituting for Ruan Tingting a secret.

Song Wenbo was a discreet person by nature and completely understood Su Wan's approach.

Thus, just as Huo Xiaohan's surgery was getting underway, she set off for the military district hospital carrying the freshly simmered carp soup.

Her plan was to go to the hospital while Huo Xiaohan was in the operating room, and leave before he came out and before the anesthesia wore off.

That way, her gesture would be made, while direct contact with him could be avoided.

Upon arriving at the military district hospital, she first went to the administrative building to hand over the money for yesterday's tetanus shot—which Huo Xiaohan had paid for—to Secretary Jiang, asking him to forward and return it to Huo Xiaohan.

Hearing Secretary Jiang say that after speaking with Huo Xiaohan yesterday, the man had shown no particular reaction, she felt relieved.

After asking a nurse for Huo Xiaohan's room number, she walked toward the inpatient ward.

"Yesterday, I made a special trip to Principal Song's home to tell my sister that Older Brother Huo is having surgery today. I wonder why my sister still hasn't arrived? Could it be that Principal Song's side is too busy and she couldn't get away?"

Huo Xiaohan's afternoon surgery had been moved up to eleven o'clock, and the operation had gone even more smoothly than anticipated.